Mogis

God of Slaughter

Mogis is the God of Slaughter on Theros. He is associated with black and red mana. Mogis, the dark twin of the god Iroas, is the horned god of wrath and pain. He is associated with slaughter, violence, bloodlust, war, and cannibalism. He wields a one-headed battleaxe, though it looks somewhat more medieval than a Greek epsilon axe. He is worshipped by minotaurs and is known to take the form of a minotaur, as well. His "red eye" is used as a profanity in Meletis relating to violent death, while Akroan warriors are warned of the threat of giving in to his whims.

Mogis is the god of slaughter, violence, and war. He is hatred unrestrained, empathy denied, and mercy forgotten, an entity whose very presence incites mortals to violence. Soldiers fear succumbing to his blood lust lest they dishonor themselves, but the vengeful and forsaken call to him for the gift of his rage. He is the brother of Iroas, god of victory, and his antithesis in matters of warfare.

The anger and malice radiating from Mogis is almost palpable. He exercises no control over his temper or his urges and lashes out at subordinates at the slightest provocation. Akroan soldiers are warned that to give in to his seductive battle rage is to risk becoming an androphage—a bloodthirsty killer wholly consumed by Mogis’s fury.

Mogis cuts a terrifying figure, appearing as a four-horned minotaur of incredible size clad in spiked bronze armor and wielding a massive ebon greataxe. He doesn’t debase himself by appearing in other guises to mortals—to behold him is to behold the cruelty of war personified. He hungers endlessly to defeat his brother Iroas in combat and thus become the sole avatar of war among mortals.

Mogis’s Influence

Mogis, like his brother, governs the sphere of warfare. But while Iroas thrives on the glory of honorable victory, Mogis revels in sadism, destruction, and the utter humiliation of the vanquished. He drives warriors to acts of cruelty and malice in their pursuit of victory. Only those who have experienced the terror and violence of war truly understand the seductive nature of Mogis’s power. To feel rage, to be an instrument of wrath—these emotions override the fear of battle. In hatred there is strength, and Mogis revels in this fact. But mortals must beware, for the price he exacts in exchange for this strength is the sacrifice of decency, honor, and compassion.

Mogis’s Goals

To Mogis, the world is a canvas upon which he paints in blood. His goals are easy to understand, thus easily fulfilled by his minions. Mogis wants to unmake the world through savagery. Let every polis fall and the works of mortals burn—everything comes to ruin in time, and Mogis believes that time should be now. Only the most brutal and savage among the mortals should survive— his chosen few. Once the world lies in ruin with his brother dead at his feet, Mogis’s goals will be achieved.

Divine Relationships

Mogis’s existence is defined by his eternal struggle against his twin brother, Iroas. (Only a handful of contradictory myths address the parentage of these gods, but they are universally described as twins.) Any of Mogis’s actions and endeavors contribute to undermining and ultimately destroying Iroas. Any divine relationships Mogis might enter into are born of convenience and as a means to the end. Mogis is incapable of loyalty and should be expected to break any pact or agreement once it has outlived its usefulness.

Erebos appreciates Mogis’s single-minded desire to destroy because it serves as a means to bring ever more souls into his realm. Also, Erebos occasionally steers Mogis’s rampages in directions that inconvenience Heliod. This disruption inevitably leads to Heliod calling on Iroas to battle his brother, perpetuating the endless cycle of conflict between the twins.

Of all his fellow gods, Mogis holds the most respect for Phenax. Mogis can’t help but smile at the chaos Phenax is able to cause and the carnage the Returned wreak on the world. Phenax has a talent for inciting conflict, which allows Mogis to revel in the resulting strife.

Mogis harbors an abiding disrespect, verging on hatred, for Ephara and Karametra. Ephara’s neat, orderly cities are a delight to destroy, especially given her fussy, precise adherence to rules. Likewise, Ephara’s close relationships with Iroas and Heliod provoke Mogis’s disgust. Mogis disdains Karametra because she aids mortals and provides succor to the weak. These are acts of foolishness because the weak don’t deserve aid—they are fodder for the strong. Setting fertile fields ablaze and witnessing the resulting famine is a source of enjoyment for Mogis, though he has been surprised more than once by the ferocity of Karametra’s reprisals.

Worshiping Mogis

Mogis exhorts his followers to channel their hatred and rage into ever greater acts of cruelty and violence. He demands actions over words, making his followers an active and dangerous lot. From the spurned lover thirsting for revenge to the blood-drenched warrior on the battlefield, all honor Mogis with the shedding of blood in anger.

Minotaurs are the most ardent worshipers of Mogis and regularly hold bloody rites in his honor. Warchanters, the minotaur clergy of Mogis, whip their marauders into a near-mindless frenzy before battle; the ensuing slaughter gives glory to Mogis’s name.

The appearance of the blood moon is a most holy occasion for the faithful of Mogis, since the moon represents his hateful crimson eye. At such times, his followers prepare and consume a feast of meat, either raw or barely cooked, along with copious amounts of intoxicants, followed by ritual self-mutilation—scarring themselves to demonstrate their devotion to Mogis.

Myths of Mogis

The tales of Mogis’s deeds exemplify his need to unmake, his brutality, and his desire to destroy his hated brother.

The Endless Feud. One legend claims that Mogis and Iroas were once a single being, the act of war personified. But the inherent tension between honor and brutality in combat led to a dichotomy of purpose too great for a single god to reconcile. Ripping himself apart, the god split in two, and so did Mogis and Iroas come into existence, embodiments of the two aspects of war that are forever in conflict. Though no tales of either Mogis or Iroas’s faith speak of such, whispers among the servants of other gods claim that there might be a way to piece the fractured god back together. Doing so would require an incredible feat, though, likely involving the cooperation of both Mogis and Iroas themselves.

Mogis’s Warhound. Mogis generally fights alone, because he often loses control of his temper and strikes allies as well as foes in the heat of battle. Still, Mogis sought a creature that would go before him, instilling fear in his foes before his mighty axe fell upon them. Mogis took a ferocious cerberus and bound it together with the fires of his eternal rage. This terrible new creation became his personal harbinger and battle companion. The god of slaughter didn’t name his pet, refusing to do so until the beast had claimed a hundred thousand lives and so proved itself truly worthy of his esteem.

Origin of the Minotaur. In ages past, a warrior of tremendous strength stalked the battlefield. As a lone combatant, he was unbeatable, but he suffered when groups rose to oppose him. After one such defeat, the warrior was so filled with wrath that he murdered his entire village in Mogis’s name. The god, delighted by this display, gifted the warrior with his own ferocity, remaking him as a reflection of Mogis’s wrath and an engine of destruction in combat. This warrior became the first minotaur, and many minotaurs still worship Mogis, as he is their creator and they were made in his image.

Revel in Ruin. The summer festival of the Megasphagion is a domesticated version of Mogis’s typical rites. It involves the sacrifice of many cattle to avert Mogis’s wrath. The meat is then cooked and distributed among all who attend the festival. The grand feast that follows tends to devolve into a drunken revel. In some tales, individuals or communities with long-held grudges find themselves incensed during the festival, leading them to seek violent ends to their rivalries.

Wrathbringer. Shortly after his birth, Mogis decided to create a weapon with which to kill his brother. Mogis assembled his champions and sent them out to battlefields, where they collected the essences of rage, hatred, and bloodlust. Under a blood-red moon, Mogis used those ingredients to forge a black iron greataxe of manifest violence, Wrathbringer.

Mogis’s Champions

Alignment: Usually chaotic, often evil

Suggested Classes: Barbarian, cleric, druid, fighter, warlock

Suggested Cleric Domains: War

Suggested Backgrounds: Athlete, criminal, outlander, soldier

Most champions of Mogis are antiheroes motivated by rage and a thirst for war. Many are tortured souls with a thirst for vengeance.

Mogis’s Favor

Mogis’s favor isn’t difficult to earn for someone who lacks a moral compass. Mogis demands that blood be spilled in his service, preferably the blood of Iroas’s followers. Would-be champions should realize, though, that the god of slaughter invests in his followers with the expectation of receiving great returns. Those who disappoint, proving themselves incapable of sufficient cruelty or bloodshed, might find themselves on the wrong end of his blade.

To Mogis, the ideal follower is one who sheds all moral compunctions in the course of bringing suffering to the world. He also cultivates grievances and bitterness in those not ordinarily disposed to acts of wanton violence. Over the eons, he has found that the betrayed, the disgusted, and the disfavored are readily turned to a life of murderous service, to be discarded just as easily if they don’t satisfy him. The Mogis’s Favor table suggests a few ways that a mortal might come to Mogis’s attention, or vice versa.



Mogis’s Favor

d6	Circumstance
1	You were born under a sanguine moon, the symbol of Mogis’s red eye.
2	Your twin sibling is a champion of Iroas.
3	You successfully carried out a brutal vendetta against a rival family.
4	You proved yourself dramatically (and perhaps violently) worthy in a contest of strength, a feat of endurance, or a similar accomplishment.
5	You called on Mogis’s power to settle old scores by becoming an instrument of his wrath.
6	You have no idea why Mogis chose you, but his hate seeps into your being day by day nonetheless.

Devotion to Mogis

Following Mogis is a definitive rejection of ethical codes and adoption of bloodlust and rage. As a follower of Mogis, consider the ideals on the Mogis’s Ideals table as alternatives to those suggested for your background.

Mogis’s Ideals

d6	Ideal
1	Devotion. My devotion to my god is more important to me than what he stands for. (Any)
2	Savagery. I express my rage through combat. (Chaotic)
3	Hate. Hatred of my foes warms my heart and gives me power. (Any)
4	Fury. My only release from life’s endless grind is surrendering to my inner beast. (Evil)
5	Ruthlessness. The ends justify the means and victory is to be obtained at any cost. (Evil)
6	Pride. No one can best me in my chosen endeavor and woe to those who try. (Any)

Earning and Losing Piety

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

• Defeating a champion of Iroas

• Taking vengeance against a powerful foe

• Burning a polis or a settlement to the ground

• Desecrating a temple to Iroas as an offering to Mogis

Your piety score to Mogis decreases if you diminish Mogis’s influence in the world, contradict his ideals, or make him look weak or ineffectual through acts such as these:

• Failing to carry out a sworn vendetta

• Publicly displaying weakness or compassion

• Rejecting a duel or a challenge out of fear

Mogis’s Devotee

Piety 3+ Mogis trait

As a devotee of Mogis, you have shown yourself to be a brutal combatant. You can call on Mogis’s favor and cast wrathful smite with this trait. Mogis’s blessing manifest as a blood-red glow around your weapon, causing it to shed dim light in a 5-foot radius until the spell ends. You can cast the spell in this way a number of times equal to your Constitution modifier (minimum of once). You regain all expended uses when you finish a long rest. Constitution is your spellcasting ability for this spell.

Mogis’s Votary

Piety 10+ Mogis trait

You can cast blinding smite with this trait. Once you cast the spell in this way, you can’t do so again until you finish a long rest. Constitution is your spellcasting ability for this spell.

Mogis’s Disciple

Piety 25+ Mogis trait

Countless battles and vicious visions have given you focus. You have advantage on saving throws against being charmed or frightened.

Champion of Slaughter

Piety 50+ Mogis trait

You can increase your Strength or Constitution score by 2 and also increase your maximum for that score by 2.