Erebos, God of the Dead

Erebos is the god of death and the Underworld, lord of all that has ever lived. He presides over the bitterness, envy, and eventual acceptance of those who suffer misfortune. His hoarding of both souls and the treasures the dead carry into the Underworld see him worshiped by those who desire to collect and keep wealth. Erebos’s very presence is stifling, and those who come face to face with him often depart in despair. He is jealous and tyrannical within his realm, but unlike his brother Heliod, he neither blusters nor tries to expand his influence. He waits patiently, secure in the knowledge that everything belongs to him in the end. Erebos most frequently appears as a slender, gray-skinned humanoid with two large, outward-curving horns, wielding an impossibly long black whip. He also appears in the form of a black asp, a cloud of choking smoke, or an animated golden idol.

Erebos’s Influence

Born from Heliod’s shadow and then banished to the Underworld, Erebos claimed dominion over that desolate realm. He sees it as his duty and his right to ensure that those who enter his realm remain there for all time. Within the Underworld, only the relative paradise of Ilysia is sheltered from his influence. In the other four realms of the dead, his will is law. Mortals typically fear death, yet death is the inevitable end of each one’s time in the mortal world. Erebos, having long ago come to terms with his own banishment, teaches his followers to accept the inevitability of death and the often unavoidable tragedies of life. Although Erebos forbids souls from leaving the Underworld, some escape his clutches. Generally such souls are beneath his notice, but he sometimes sends agents to retrieve those he has particular interest in.

Erebos’s Goals

Erebos wants above all to maintain his position of absolute authority over the realm of the dead. He lashes out at anyone who aids souls in escaping from him or otherwise tries to subvert the inevitability of death. Erebos is patient, usually willing to wait for souls to come to him, but he does interfere in the mortal realm on occasion. When the other gods displease him, he sends mortal agents or Nyxborn monsters to kill the worshipers of the offending gods and spread despair. Many of Erebos’s schemes target those who escape his clutches. He regularly sends agents to retrieve the Returned soul or the wayward eidolon of a hero of great renown who has succeeded in returning to Theros. If any of the dead, renowned or otherwise, escape the Underworld fully intact—without identities erased—Erebos will spare nothing to make an example of the fugitive and any who provided assistance.

Divine Relationships

Erebos loathes Heliod, who banished him to the Underworld eons ago, forever severing him from the world of life and light. Erebos takes particular delight in profaning Heliod’s temples, defiling the raiment of his priests, slaughtering his worshipers, and claiming the souls of his champions. Erebos believes that Heliod will one day challenge him for control of the Underworld. He looks forward to that day, certain that his lesser brother can’t possibly prevail within Erebos’s own territory. Erebos holds a special grudge against Phenax. Phenax readily teaches others how to escape the Underworld as the Returned and even sneaks into the Underworld to assist them, earning him Erebos’s undying ire. Pharika and Karametra understand, better than many of the other gods, that life and death are closely intertwined. Pharika’s tinctures can either extend a life or snuff it out, and Karametra’s planters know that reaping follows sowing in turn. Although he appreciates what these gods have in common with him, Erebos occasionally feels the need to remind them that the dead are his, and other gods’ acceptance of death’s inevitability doesn’t make them masters of it. Erebos has no true allies but operates closely with Athreos and Klothys. Athreos is one of the few beings Erebos trusts to be as committed as he is to ensuring that the passage into death is a one-way trip. Klothys, too, would see the dead remain dead, concerned as she is with the acceptance of destiny.

Worshiping Erebos

To many mortals, Erebos is primarily concerned not with death, but with gold. Most of his followers downplay his association with death and misfortune, instead praying to him for material wealth. Others pray to him because they want to be more accepting of their misfortune. These individuals see themselves as beyond hope of improving their lot in life, asking only that Erebos grant them the strength to endure until they enter his realm at their predestined time. A smaller but more dangerous group of Erebos worshipers are those who actively glorify death. These cultists and assassins congregate in secret in communities across Theros, engaging in campaigns of violence. The only major festival dedicated to Erebos, called the Katabasion or “the Descent,” features a ceremony in which worshipers make a symbolic journey into the Underworld. The supplicants enter a cave, offer prayers and sacrifices to Erebos in utter darkness, and slowly make their way back to the surface just before sunrise.

Erebos’s Champions

Alignment: Usually neutral, often evil Suggested Classes: Cleric, fighter, rogue, wizard Suggested Cleric Domains: Death, Trickery Suggested Backgrounds: Acolyte, charlatan, criminal, noble, urchin Most worshipers of Erebos seek to enforce the boundary between life and death, whether absolutely or selectively. They often find grim satisfaction in serving the covetous but patient god, knowing that all will ultimately know their patron’s embrace.

Erebos’s Favor

As Erebos sees it, he already owns the soul of every living being. For him to bestow special favor or power on a mortal would be an act of generosity, and he expects to be compensated for it. Those who rise to the ranks of true champions of Erebos, though, embrace death and their inescapable destiny in the Underworld. Did you pledge yourself to Erebos by joining his priesthood, or did you come to find his favor through a prayer of quiet desperation? The Erebos’s Favor table offers a handful of suggestions. Erebos’s Favor

1 You follow Erebos seeking financial success, expecting service to translate into rewards.

2 In a moment of anguish, you prayed to Erebos. He granted you acceptance of your fate and his favor.

3 You were pledged to another god, but when you lost a loved one, only turning to Erebos could ease your grief.

4 After you recovered from a mortal injury, Erebos appeared and claimed your service.

5 Ever since the first time you saw someone die, Erebos has whispered in your ear.

6 You can’t bear to witness suffering, so you serve Erebos to bring peaceful ends to the unfortunate.

Devotion to Erebos

Just as every life ends at the same destination, many different paths can lead a worshiper to Erebos. As a follower of Erebos, consider the ideals on the Erebos’s Ideals table as alternatives to those suggested for your background. Erebos’s Ideals

1 Devotion. My devotion to my god is more important to me than what he stands for. (Any)

2 Mortality. I will enforce the most important law: anything that lives must one day die. (Lawful)

3 Consolation. Everyone deserves the solace that comes with accepting their destiny. (Good)

4 Acceptance. Whatever my fate, I will embrace it with Erebos’s blessing. (Neutral)

5 Wealth. Death is forever, so I’m going to get rich while I still can. (Neutral)

6 Power. I relish having mastery over life and death. (Evil)

Earning and Losing Piety

You increase your piety score to Erebos when you expand the god’s influence in the world in a concrete way through acts such as these:

Convincing a group of people to accept misfortune
Easing someone’s death or assisting with funeral arrangements
Retrieving a prominent figure’s eidolon or Returned form
Thwarting the schemes of Heliod

Your piety score to Erebos decreases if you diminish Erebos’s influence in the world, weaken his dominion over death, or alleviate misfortune without good cause through acts such as these: