Difference between revisions of "Ghroth"

Latest revision as of 20:23, 8 June 2010

Once Creation had many moons, and chief among the tribe of moons was Ghroth, Harbinger of Endings and Maker of Stars. For Ghroth is a vast and fleshy moon, with bone and sinew beneath his pulpy exterior. He had one great eye that stared down at Creation balefully, for always had Ghroth been discontent with mortal kin. He roamed in far reaches, and rained down starmetal death upon the puny mortals that offended him with their cities. In his realm in Malfeas, Ghroth has been sewn into the mad green sky, unable to roam as once he did; for this, he suffers, as wanderlust in is him. (Nero's Boot)

Endurance, travel
Progeny Count: 2:2:1
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• Mageddon, 1st soul of Ghroth, The Fire In the Sky (Nero's Boot)
  Of all Ghroth's souls, none were as feared as Mageddon, destroyer of cities, the Fire In the Sky. For Mageddon is the breath of Ghroth, and is his herald, favored above all others in the Harbinger's eyes, save Ur. A mighty stone as vast as a city, Mageddon has no set form or feature, being merely a great stone of starmetal and Malfean iron. Before the reign of the gods, when Ghroth grew wrathful at a city of men or Dragon Kings, he would breathe forth his breath, and Mageddon would issue out, hurtling towards the mortal realm. Mageddon would crush all those he landed upon, crushing them beneath his vast iron bulk. After his work is done, Mageddon sinks into the ground, and is reborn inside his master's cavernous mouth. Now bound away from the mortals he loved to destroy, Mageddon has grown wrathful, and seeks endlessly to liberate himself from bondage. His cult is vast, as many would seek out the Fire In the Sky.
  • Shedu, Expressive, the Poetry of Desolation (Nero's Boot)
    Even demons have their poets, and among the demons of the 2nd circle, no greater poet is there than Shedu, the Poetry of Desolation. In the time before Ghroth's chaining, Shedu was the Bringer of Tears and Sorrow, for her stanzas could reduce even the hardest-hearted of gods and Primordials to tears. Now, she spreads misery with her verses, seeking only to add her sorrow to the joy of others. Unlike all other demons, her binding was different, for she is not bound in Hell, but rather bound to witness endless catastrophy in Creation, a vagabond without power over where she wanders. For this reason, she hates Creation more than Ghroth himself, for her own home is now her cell of confinement. No sorcerer can summon her, but tragedy that leaves nations desolate can bring her forth.
  • Balseraph, Warden, the Metalsmith (Nero's Boot)
    Born of fire and love and despair, Balseraph is the Metalsmith, the forger of Ghroth. He is a vast being, standing 12 feet tall, made of brimstone and magma, with hands as sharp as razors. He has no face, but his voice wells up from within him as if by means of echoes. In the days when the gods still knew their proper place, Balseraph was the Metalsmith of Yu-Shan, and it is said that his skill knew no equal, save from the component souls of Autochthon the Great Maker. The Metalsmith can bleed forth metal of any kind, save that of Magical Materials, and can forge weapons with strange techniques and lores imbedded in them. Once, Balseraph counted Autochthon as his most-loved mentor; now, the Metalsmith seeks only to see Autochton's blood course through the streets of Malfeas.
    • Forge Daughters, spawn of the Metalsmith (Nero's Boot)
      Balseraph is a maker and a builder, for such was taught him by Autochthon in days of yore and legend. But not all things he makes are intentional, and not all are loved or cherished. Of all the creatures that dwell in Creation, only cicadas dwell also in Malfeas. Mad in cacophany of noise, Malfean cicadas are drawn to the Metalsmith, for they sense he can make more of them. As Balseraph works his forge, sparks fall onto the ground, and the cicadas eat them, becoming Forge Daughters, a fusion of beautiful human woman and insect. Like their father, who hates them, Forge Daughters are makers and builders; but from their father's hate comes imperfection, and nothing the demon-cicadas make will endure past one night. This drives the Forge Daughters to urgency and despair, which the Metalsmith revels in.
• Ur, fetich soul of Ghroth, the Many-Taloned Hunter (Nero's Boot)
  Foremost amongst the souls of Ghroth is Ur, the Many-Taloned Hunter. For in days gone by, Ur was the hunter of the demon host, ranging about the ebon sky seeking out worthy foes to pursue. With mighty heaves, Ur would hurl down great stones of starmetal on those he deigned to hunt, crushing them. Thus was starmetal once known as urstone. Many were the gods that fell to Ur's hunts, and thus was he hated more than most. When he was imprisoned, Ur fractured, and is no longer one entity. So forecfully did he throw himself against the closing ribs of Malfeas that he was shattered into a dozen pieces, each fragment aware of and in communion with the others. Now, Ur is the Many-Taloned Hunter, as he is shattered and no longer one. He sits in a great cathedral buried under the skin of Ghroth, raging against what Fate has done to him.