> [!infobox] > ![[Neraxis.jpg|300]] > ###### Information > | | | > | ---- | ---- | > | **Titles** | The Pale King, Harbinger of Sorrow, Lord of the Silent Veil | > | **Domain** | Death, Grave, Darkness | > | **Gender** | Masculine | > | **Alignment** | Neutral Evil | > | **Artifact(s)** | Longsword | > # Symbol > ![[Neraxis.png]] ### **Description** **Neraxis, the God of Death and Despair**, was one of the **Malevolent Old Tyrant Gods** — a grim force dedicated to spreading hopelessness, ruin, and an endless cycle of sorrow. While some claim death as a natural part of life, Neraxis reveled in transforming mortality into a weapon of fear and control. Neraxis’s influence thrived in moments of profound grief and overwhelming loss. His presence weighed heavily upon those mourning loved ones, his whispers urging them to abandon hope and surrender to despair. Where Neraxis walked, crops withered, spirits broke, and the air itself seemed to hang heavy with dread. Unlike the chaotic cruelty of some Tyrant Gods, Neraxis's reign was defined by cold inevitability — a slow suffocation of hope, where mortals found themselves trapped in a spiral of grief and ruin. His followers believed that the greatest power lay not in ruling the living, but in controlling the inevitability of death itself. When the **Benevolent Old Gods** sealed the Tyrant Gods away, Neraxis resisted not with fury, but with cold resolve — dragging countless souls into his grasp as his power was torn from the world. Even now, his grim influence lingers in forgotten tombs, cursed lands, and among those who see death as a tool of dominion. ### **Appearance** Neraxis manifested as a towering skeletal figure clad in a rotting funeral shroud that billowed as though caught in an endless wind. His face, a pale mask of bone, bore a twisted grin of jagged teeth. Within his hollow sockets, twin points of cold blue flame flickered faintly — burning low, yet never extinguished. His gaunt frame was wrapped in chains of blackened iron, their links engraved with the names of the countless souls claimed by his touch. ### **Tenets of Neraxis** 1. **Hope is a Lie:** All things end in ruin; to struggle against it is folly. Accept despair and thrive in its certainty. 2. **Master the Inevitable:** Death comes for all — embrace its power to control the living and the dead alike. 3. **Grief is Strength:** Pain and loss are weapons. Wield them to break the wills of those who oppose you. ### **Holy Weapon** **The Weeping Blade** — A jagged, rune-etched longsword that constantly drips with spectral ichor. Legends say that wounds inflicted by the blade never fully heal, leaving behind a gnawing, lingering agony that drives victims to despair. ### **Worship and Rituals** Neraxis’s followers believe that spreading hopelessness strengthens their god’s influence. They sabotage communities by fostering despair, whispering messages of doom to those who mourn or suffer. The most devout take pride in driving entire towns to surrender their wills to Neraxis’s inevitable grasp. **The Mourning Rite** is the most sacred of their ceremonies — a grim affair in which a victim is slowly drained of their life while mourners chant Neraxis’s dirges. The ritual is believed to anchor their victim’s despair to the land itself, creating pockets of cursed ground where hope falters and spirits linger in grief. ### **Legacy** Though Neraxis’s form was sealed away with the Tyrant Gods, his lingering touch haunts those burdened with loss. In times of great suffering, his name finds its way into whispered prayers — a dangerous plea for release that risks drawing his gaze. His followers still seek to awaken his presence, believing that through endless mourning and despair, they can resurrect their grim master and shroud the world in eternal sorrow.