Angharad
The Deep God · The Usurper of the Deep · The Whisperer of Madness · Maelstronom
Domain
Tempest, Death, Chaos, the Deep
Alignment
Chaotic Evil
Status
Dormant
Factions
Cult of the Devouring Deep
Angharad is the god of the deep waters, storms, and madness — an entity of staggering power who consumed the former Guardian of the Deep, a deity named Rhys, and usurped dominion over the ocean trenches. Angharad transcends binary gender, manifesting both masculine and feminine aspects fluidly. Currently dormant in the deepest abyssal trenches, Angharad's influence persists through the Cult of the Devouring Deep, whose activity has been escalating in recent years.
Holy Symbol
The Spiral of the Deep — a whirlpool descending into an abyssal eye
Worship & Rites
The Cult of the Devouring Deep conducts rituals in underwater grottoes, coastal caves, and flooded temples. Worship involves ritualistic sacrifice — both animal and human — dark communion rituals, and exposure to the psychic emanations of the deep. Followers adorn themselves with seaweed, barnacles, and coral. The most devoted undergo physical transformation, their flesh merging with sea creature characteristics.
Clergy & Organization
The cult follows a strict hierarchy: Initiates undergo trials of pain and sacrifice; Acolytes wield minor eldritch powers; Drowned Champions are elite warriors bearing physical mutations; and High Priests maintain direct psychic communion with Angharad. Each cell operates semi-independently, connected by the god's telepathic network.
Holy Days
The Maelstrom Festival
Spring Equinox. Devotees adorn themselves with oceanic detritus, perform ritual dances, and offer blood to the tides. Celebrates the chaotic energy of the changing season.
The Feast of the Drowned
Summer Solstice. A dark feast commemorating Angharad's victory over Rhys. The most disturbing of the holy days, involving cannibalistic ceremonies believed to grant a taste of the god's power.
The Night of the Leviathan
Autumn Equinox. Blood offerings honor the deep creatures. On this night, Angharad may commune directly with followers through dreams and visions.
The Tide of Shadows
Winter Solstice. The darkest time. Divination and necromancy rituals; communing with drowned spirits and reading portents in the tides.
The Day of the Usurper
Anniversary of Rhys' defeat. Grand feasts, sacrifices, and masked re-enactments of the final battle between Angharad and the former guardian.
Lore & History
Angharad was not always a god. Born from the chaotic energies released during the Great Sundering forty-five thousand years ago, the entity spent millennia developing sentience and an insatiable hunger for dominion. Approximately eleven thousand years ago, during the God Wars, Angharad consumed the essence of Rhys — the Guardian of the Deep — and ascended to full divine status.
The Deep God transformed the ocean trenches into a nightmare realm of crushing darkness and predatory intelligence. Angharad's servants include Leviathans, Kraken Broodlings, Chthonic Eels, and Deep Sea Dragons — creatures warped by the god's corrupting influence.
Angharad is currently dormant but far from defeated. The Cult of the Devouring Deep grows stronger with each passing year, and whispers of the god's return echo through port cities from Fort Valiance to Scuttle Cove. Sacred artifacts — the Heart of the Deep, the Trident of the Drowned King, the Abyssal Mirror — remain scattered across the world, each one a potential catalyst for the god's resurgence.
Among the most feared manifestations of Angharad's influence are the Third Eye warlocks: mortals who have accepted fragments of deep power in exchange for service, identifiable by the vertical slit that appears on their foreheads.