The Horseman of Pestilence
Apollyon is the ram-headed Horseman of Pestilence and one of the most powerful archdaemons in Abaddon. Sometimes referred to as the Prince of Locusts, Apollyon sends forth plagues and diseases throughout the planes in an effort to increase his power above his fellow archdaemons.
Appearance
Apollyon generally appears as a pockmarked man with the head of a sickly ram. His cloak is fashioned from the flayed skin of a dozen angels, each of whom had invaded Abaddon to kill the Horseman and free the damned souls under his control.
Realm
He rules from the Throne of Flies, a palace and throne thought to be the body of a dead godling, located in the festering pits and shriveled forests of the Plaguemere.
History
Apollyon became the Horseman of Pestilence when his predecessor, Yrsinius, vanished in the Maelstrom. After their master's disappearance, Yrsinius' minions fought among themselves until Apollyon emerged as the victor; half of his rivals died to his blows, while the others fled to serve the other Horsemen, withdrew into the unclaimed parts of Abaddon, or left the plane entirely. While it is rumored that Yrsinius was killed by the protean Chorus of Malignant Symmetry, this has not been proven; the other three Horsemen nonetheless rode on the Maelstrom and slaughtered a number of choruses and a protean elder, then deposited the elder's corpse in the Plaguemere to rot, where it remains to this day.
Relationships
Apollyon's cults consider evil druids, as well as the cults of Rovagug and Urgathoa allies.
Servants
Among the creatures under his control are his deacons: the sinister leukodaemons, whom he sends into the world to collect souls on his behalf. The white apocalypse horse Septisaeus serves as Apollyon's mount. Particularly favored servitors may also receive one of the Ushers of the Black Rain bows empowered by the Horseman with fragments of the souls of the angels flayed alive to fashion his cloak.
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