The Undying Tyrant

"WARNING: This page is fan fiction and therefore non-canonical."The Undying Tyrant was a Chaotic Neutral deity of necromancy and healing. He was a lesser power in the pantheon of Exandria whose influence did not extend far outside of its origins in Stillben, a swampland city in Tal'dorei. His existence and dogma was extremely divisive among gods, their followers, and necromancers alike.

Originally a human necromancer named Aldym Meleghost, the Undying Tyrant ascended to godhood by defeating and consuming the divine spark of an ancient, near-dead deity named The Rotting Lord (Moander). Along with The Everlight's sponsorship, he successfully ascended to godhood.

His symbol was a blooming flower behind the image of a human skull with green eyes and biting down on a silver dagger.

Followers
His followers were often chaotically aligned, neutral or even good necromancers (sometimes referred to as grey and white necromancers), although more traditional "black magic" practitioners were not unheard of. Some of the priesthood were not themselves necromancers or clerics but still had great adoration for their god. Mundane followers were usually those with a connection to life, death, and healing, like physicians, apothecaries, herbalists, midwives and even grave keepers.

Relations with the Gods
The Undying Tyrant was a divisive figure. His domains placed him in competition with other gods, like The Whispered One over necromancy or The Dawnfather for healing. This was not entirely uncommon as the healing domain was also shared with other minor deities like The Everlight.

The Matron of Ravens
His moderate position on necromancy and undeath made him distasteful but tolerable among good-aligned deities and simultaneously hated by some evil-aligned deities. The Matron of Ravens, who despised undead and oversaw the domain of death, had no love for him. His dogma directly conflicted with her own which could have made them enemies. However, The Undying Tyrant offered an extended life only to his most loyal servants, and only those that chose it. The dead were still offered freely to the Matron, which stayed her wrath. Grave keepers and other followers of The Undying Tyrant who dealt closely with death were still asked to pay their respects to her. Despite this, she remained wary. Her followers were tasked with maintaining a vigilant eye over The Undying Tyrant, his followers, and their chaotic path.

The Whispered One
The schism The Undying Tyrant created among necromancers greatly drained the power of The Whispered One, making them staunch enemies despite sharing certain interests. This appealed greatly to all of the gods, even some of evil alignment, as it weakened their competition. An ongoing rivalry persists to this day.

It was not uncommon for servants of The Whispered One to attempt to infiltrate the Temple of the Undying Tyrant. A purging among the priesthood was required early in the Temple's history. In order to avoid such issues again, it become standard practice to magically interrogate any would-be acolyte, especially if they were a necromancer. The sparse few paladins of The Undying Tyrant were largely tasked with rooting out followers of The Whispered One or hunting and killing their evil, often undead creations.

The Everlight
Although she despised evil creatures who were beyond redemption, The Everlight was often hopeful that a follower of evil forces could still be redeemed. When the mortal Aldym Meleghost cast prayers to her, unsolicited, she could not help but listen. He begged her aid in helping him defeat The Rotting Lord, or at least dispel the dark influence that had come over him. This was the beginning of their relationship together and eventually led to her sponsoring his ascent into godhood. As two gods, they remain allies.

Symbolism
"'Death is a curse! Death is a wicked king! I seek nothing to do with Death. Instead, I hope to be the thing that Death fears. If need be, I will be its cruel and oppressive ruler, to shackle Death, and ensure men's freedom to live.'"The temple of The Undying Tyrant were first to admit their lord was not perceived well as a first impression. His title and imagery inspired thoughts of tyranny and undeath. At times he was discarded as an upstart, evil deity domain over unsavory things. However, his true nature proved to be a contradiction to this, once understood.

The Undying Tyrant
As a mortal necromancer, he wrote in his journals:"'Who are the gods to say when our time of ending must be? It is a grand joke to them, that some are born with few fleeting years, and even the ancient ones must be stripped of their aeon of accomplishments. Death should be a thing a man chooses.'""'I despise you, Death. I have no choice but to be a greater foe than you. When you take, I shall give. I shall serve the living and the free. But you? I shall enslave you as a tyrant would. I will be your eternal and undying jailer. Now, that's a bitter name for those that worship death: The Undying Tyrant!"It was also said he bore a tattoo on his left arm of a black-robed skeleton framed by the words, "Undying Tyrant".

The Skull
The skull symbolism is meant to be an "inoculation against death". By accepting a mark of death, it suggests one should not be afraid of it. Followers were meant to face death fearlessly and promote life where possible.

The Silver Dagger
The silver dagger was a weapon sometimes wielded by The Undying Tyrant in his mortal life. Silver was also a common weapon used against undead and other powerful, magical creatures. Carrying a silver dagger meant you were always prepared to face any dark forces you might encounter.

Origins
The Undying Tyrant was once a human necromancer named Aldym Meleghost who arrived in Exandria after passing through a portal from Faerun. He adventured in the areas around Stillben and Westruun before encountering the essence of a thought-to-be dead god, the Rotting Lord, or Moander. Aldym underestimated the true nature of the Rotting Lord and offered service to him in return for power, becoming a warlock.

Aldym struggled to reconcile his own ideals against those of the Rotting Lord. Over many months the two battled wills. Often the result was painful and brutal for Aldym and those around him, but during this time the necromancer learned many secrets. He realized that the Rotting Lord had indeed been dead but only recently reborn. Still in a relatively weakened state, his patron could be overcome.

As Aldym grew in talent, he managed to strike weakness into the Rotting Lord with the aid of The Everlight. As punishment, his warlock abilities were stripped away, but Aldym was not fazed. Eventually, Aldym and his loyal allies came to battle with the Rotting Lord's avatar. The battle nearly resulted in failure, but Aldym and his friends somehow emerged victorious.

Unexpectedly, Aldym consumed the diminishing divine spark within the Rotting Lord. The two spirits, god and mortal, merged violently, but Aldym survived. His warlock abilities were restored and enhanced. As this godly power grew in him, his weak, mortal flesh threatened to breech and be destroyed. Using necromancy he staved off this fate by transferring his soul into different and more powerful bodies. The Everlight did what she could to mend or enhance his ability to survive. Inevitably even that was not enough, and Aldym had no choice but to enter into a state similar to astral projection.

When his projected spirit arrived on the astral plane, the godly powers in him were fully unlocked. The gaze of all gods turned to him, some with great interest, others with fear, and others with dire hatred. The Everlight spoke on his behalf, sponsoring the ascent and explaining his potential. Aldym, as The Undying Tyrant, could fulfill an otherwise empty domain revolving around neutral and good-aligned necromancy. Likewise, he would be ally against The Whispered One, who had himself recently ascended to godhood.

After much debate, The Undying Tyrant was accepted as a god, albeit one of limited influence.

Dogma

 * The Undying Tyrant believed the physical body was ultimately expendable but integral to undestanding the living soul. While a soul inhabited a body it was important to care for it, as physical health aided in spiritual health. The faithful were encouraged to study necromancy, anatomy, and the practices of healing and herbalism in order to pursue good health. Body and mind-altering vices like drinking alcohol and using narcotics was looked down upon, but not banned outright. The faithful were expected to spread these beliefs by providing medical services to their communities, often free of charge or for a modest donation.
 * The Undying Tyrant advocated for the use of undead as servants or as a path to extending one's life, such as using clones, transferring a soul into an younger or undead body, or even lichdom. The use skeletons (and sometimes zombies) as servants and protectors was not uncommon among his faithful. However, he also discouraged the creation or use of more powerful and cunning undead, like ghouls and wights. Followers of the Undying Tyrant would sometimes hunt and kill "unmastered" undead. His symbol, the silver dagger, was meant to represent a weapon against the undead.
 * Lastly, the Undying Tyrant has a great distrust for the powers-that-be and encourages his followers to embrace a chaotic nature. Serving the self is most important, and only when such actions interfere with the freedom of others do they need to be corrected. Altruism is not uncommon, especially among white necromancers in his faith. The Undying Tyrant is pleased by this, so long as their self-sacrifice is made from free choice and not compelled. Slavery and other such forms of oppression are great sins and the faithful are encouraged to do what they can to dispel them.

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