Geryon

The Betrayer

The archdevil Geryon is the master of swampy Stygia, Hell's fifth layer. Geryon is the source of all great heresies. He was formerly an asura before becoming an archdevil; he notably devoured 812 other tyrants of Hell before swearing itself to Asmodeus in the Only Vow.

Appearance

Although Geryon typically stands 10 ft tall, his serpentine body stretches to 30 ft in terms of length and ends in a venom-dripping barb. His humanoid torso is muscular, with massive, bat-like wings protruding from his back, and his large, bestial arms ending in clawed hands similar to paws. Despite his mismatched bodily structure, the Wild Beast has a kind of raw, animalistic presence that makes him weirdly alluring and his head boasts a strangely handsome visage.

Home

Every lie spoken throughout the planes condenses as a drop of poison to flood Stygia the fifth layer of Hell, which is where Geryon rules. Amid the tangled swamps and fetid jungles rise moldy ruins, mired temples to false deities, and whole blasphemous cities. The waters of the Styx mix with the layer's venomous bogs, creating vast noxious moors before flowing into vast black seas In the mountainous scriptorium called the Library of Oaths, diabolical clerks record every mortal oath with a damning consequence. These records prove binding, and those who break their words are damned to eternity in Stygia for as long as their vows remain within the library vault.

History

When Asmodeus found a simple, darkened shrine in Hell when wandering the Great Beyond, the serpent that would become Geryon appeared and asked him who he was. Asmodeus learnt of the serpent and its people, the asuras. Asmodeus learned much of beings beyond Heaven, and he in turn shared many of Heaven's truths and innovations to the asuras before returning to Heaven.
The serpent recognised Asmodeus and remembered all they had learned from one another after he fell from Heaven and led his followers in an exodus to Hell. It petitioned to enter Dis, a bastion just hastily claimed by Asmodeus, and spoke in private to him. As they negotiated, a truce held between the invaders and defenders before the serpent exploded from Asmodeus' keep and nearly destroyed Dis.
The serpent issued a call for Hell's tyrants to unite their armies against Heaven's rejects. 812 asura answered the call, and the serpent consumed them all. With their armies shattered, the asura cursed the serpent and fled to a corner of Hell called Atalu, granting Asmodeus and his followers a foothold over Hell. Only Asmodeus knows what promises turned the serpent against its people.
Asmodeus' forces proceeded to conquer the entirety of Hell except for the serpent's realm of Stygia, where the treasures, slaves, and cities of Hell's defiant inhabitants were transferred. After the end of the conquest, Asmodeus granted the serpent a legion of devils for it to consume and share their blood, along with all the spoils, wisdom, and secrets of the asura, and allowed it to continue ruling over Stygia. The serpent swore itself to Asmodeus in the Only Vow, a word that none remembers, and Asmodeus named him Geryon.

Worshipers

Worshipers of Geryon crave forbidden knowledge above all things. Sacred places are hidden in old libraries and amid the ruins of fallen (or failing) kingdoms.

Divine Classification

Archdevil

Alignment

Lawful Evil

Current Location

The Nine Hells

Species

Devil

Honorary & Occupational Titles

• The Serpent
• Source of Lies
• Wild Beast
• Lord of the Fifth
• The Betrayer

Eyes

Red

Hair

Dark Brown

Skin Tone/Pigmentation

Red Scales

Height

30'

Weight

600lbs

Holy Symbol

Pathfinder Statistics

Divine Domains

• Evil
• Law
• Strength
• Water

Favored Weapon: Heavy Flail

D&D 5e Statistics

Suggested Domains

• Trickery Domain