RO’AZARKH – Father of Fire

Status:  1st Generation Elder God

Level:  88000

Avatar:  Carint

Also known as ‘Firelord’, this elder god was created by Ome-te Llest as the embodiment of flame. He is lord of the effrits and flame devils, and was the original Warmaster of the Gods.

Before time itself Ro’Azarkh and the other Gods were alone in the world, which stood devoid of intelligent life. Marnarka Lord of the Gods and the Sky Lord ordered the Gods to see if any of their kind existed elsewhere in the universe. He told Tanarsa, his wife, and Ro’Azarkh the Warlord, God of Fire, to investigate the void to find their “Fons et Origo” source and origin and to see if other Gods exist.

On they’re adventures together in space Tanarsa and Ro’Azarkh laid together. From this union, in the cold harshness of space, was born a daughter, whom they named U’Basti. U’Basti was a beautiful child who from birth carried her form with a cat like grace. Immediately Ro’Azarkh was smitten by his daughter’s beauty and grace, but he told not Tanarsa for he feared her jealousy, and so together Ro’Azarkh and Tanarsa carried the infant on their adventures.

The search eventually led them to Se the great burning sky globe. So intense was its scalding heat and dazzling light that Tanarsa was driven back, for the mighty rays of Se threatened to burn both her and her infant. Ro’Azarkh commanded that Tanarsa should take his daughter to Bifrost but only by a secret way. Tanarsa told Ro’Azarkh of The Path Of Ages a secret path in the western mountains of Bifrost that her husband Marnarka used to use when he went on his communes with Ome-te Llest. Ro’Azarkh agreed that this was acceptable and that Tanarsa should take U’Basti to Mt Fireheart in the East and await his return.

Ro’Azarkh was able to pass Se safely, as he explored behind Se he found a young child who was wandering lost in space. Ro’Azarkh cradled this young boy child under his mantle of fire and carried him back to Bifrost.

When Ro’Azarkh returned he adopted the child, who was known as Nayme, and his illegitimate daughter U’Basti under Marnarka’s grace. This was to be the detriment of Ro’Azarkh for Nayme used his perfidious power to make Ro’Azarkh fall in love with his Daughter and so Ro’Azarkh hid U’Basti’s parenthood from her. Eventually, over time Ro’Azarkh and U’Basti married. However Nayme made sure that the bedroom of the incestuous Ro’Azarkh and U’Basti was not a happy one, both U’Basti and Ro’Azarkh were both arrogant and proud, and Nayme found it easy to make their lives together domestic hell. One night in a fit of terrible, divine rage Ro’Azarkh flung U’Basti to the earth. Upon her landing she manifested herself as Niritess the slaughterer (Sandspeach- Narkonoa) and took about hunting Ro’Azarkh’s priests. In her blind frenzy she set about all the main temples and religious centres to Ro’Azarkh and slaughtered all but a handful of Ro’Azarkh’s followers before Ro’Azarkh finally apologised for his actions.

Revelling in the carnage she had caused U’Basti refused Ro’Azarkh’s please to stop, forcing Ro’Azarkh to resort to philtres made from human blood. In her thirst she drank them all, thereafter becoming too intoxicated to continue the slaughter. Thus Ro’Azarkh’s followers were saved. This poisoning made U’Basti even more enraged. So to appease U’Basti’s anger at being tricked, Ro’Azarkh decreed that, ‘at the same time each year, a great festival should be held in her sacred city Bukabois’. Where on that day there should be brewed in her honour as many jugs of philtre as there are priestesses to her power. Such is the legend of the origin of the great annual celebration, which takes place in Bukabois.

Ro’Azarkh was amongst the pantheon gathered by Marnarka to visit the halls of the Dwarves. After the visit he was amongst those Gods excited about creation, and with Lorinthiel’s help he created the Eltinder or Fire Elves imbuing in them the heat and consuming passion if Eä’s never dying fire.

In the days when the Elder Gods travelled on Eä, Ro’Azarkh’s huge figure carrying its flaming sword was always seen with awe and respect. He had a passion for all things, though soon became bored. The only thing that never bored him was the freedom of the heated battle frenzy that would take him whenever he joined his fellow gods in battle. He was always treated with respect due to his quickness to anger and unforgiving vengeful nature should he beaten in anyway.

His Battle fame brought him many opponents hoping to beat him and so take a place amongst the Gods as the Warmaster. None succeeded in this challenge until one day when Ro’Azarkh was following Marnarka’s orders, hunting down the minions of Pharastus. He eventually came to Pharastus’s Greatest Temple, which was guarded by the High Priest Gwilion-Bri, a Drow of dark renown who had not only succeeded in being the first Priest to make the Flight into Darkness, but was also acknowledged as the greatest Drow swordsman of the ages.

As Ro’Azarkh approached he could hear the sounds of screams and smell the carnage of battle, he hurried to his destination and found a human wielding a notched and blood smeared Claymore, making short work of all the Drow he had been commanded to destroy.

Ro’Azarkh approached the human and commanded him to stay his weapon, lest he melt it. The human wiped the blood smeared sweat from his forehead and turned to stare at Ro’Azarkh asking who he was to stop him destroying the Pharastus honouring scum. Ro’Azarkh looked at the human, he had seen the humans prowess and been impressed, but he did not want to disobey a direct command from Marnarka, or loose out on being the one to kill the High Priest Gwilion-Bri.

They stood fast and eyed each other for what seemed like an eternity. Slowly a smile played across Ro’Azarkh’s face and he asked the Human how he would feel about a battle of Champions, the winner of which would get to enter the temple and destroy the High Priest. The human agreed to a contest to first blood. They began the combat, both seeming evenly matched; they had to pause a couple of times in the combat to kill interfering Drow. It seemed that neither could get the better of the other and Ro’Azarkh became angry and the red mist of the battle rage came upon him, this was his undoing for the human was still cold and calculating and managed to use Ro’Azarkh rage against him.

The Human had won and Ro’Azarkh conceded to him the temple. Ro’Azarkh stood outside the temple leaning on his flaming swords listening to the sounds of battle coming from within. Ro’Azarkh was sad that the young human was about to die at the hands of the High Priest for he rather liked him, and he had beaten him, the Warmaster of the Gods.

Eventually the human exited the temple carrying the head of the High Priest Gwilion-Bri. Ro’Azarkh was so pleased to see his young friend, as he now thought of him, alive, that he immediately announced that he should take the place of the Warlord of the Gods and carried him straight back to Bifrost and Marnarka.

Ro’Azarkh’s attitude to his children and followers is completely different to that of his enemies. He treats them as part of himself and will do anything within his power to give them what they need to survive and empower them with the flames might.

 

Ro’Azarkh is sometimes worshipped by warriors due to his all-consuming strength and witch-hunters (due to his vengeful aspect), but is mainly worshipped by primitive tribes who pay homage in return for his continued favour.  Ogres, Orcs and suchlike also worship Ro’Azarkh for they hope that he will bring them success in combat; he is also worshipped by some blacksmiths alongside Moradin and Grond.

Ro’Azarkh is a vengeful deity, as his element suggests and he is often called upon in curses to consume unfortunates in his flames. Ro’Azarkh withdrew from the mortal world after Ome-te Llest called all the elder gods together. It is said that the main sources of his power on this world reside in the depths of the largest volcanoes, where a few crazed cults revere him and try to summon his servants to cleanse Eä of evil.

It is clear that Ro’Azarkh is followed under many aspects, as a chaotic destroyer to the Ogres, a lawful vengeful deity to those who desire to rid the world of Chaos. It is said that Ro’Azarkh is the patron of Warlord, and his love for battle was born from the strength of the fire and it is said to be the source of his rage-induced berserking.

He is the patron of the race of fire elves and as is his nature, they tend to be quick thinking, impulsive and quick to anger.

SYMBOL

Stylised Flame

WORSHIP

Ro’Azarkh is worshipped under many different aspects, each with its own differences. The Ogres and their kin burn sacrifices to him in the hope that he will bring them success in battle, other cults offer up animal offerings.

Ro’Azarkh is a very mysterious deity and there are very few organised cults dedicated to his worship in the civilized world. He is sometimes worshipped as the patron of war and battle and sacrifices are made before great combats to ensure victory. Blacksmiths sometimes maintain small shrines to him in their smithies.

The only exception to this are the Fire Elf Tribes who hold Ro’Azarkh as the centre point of there lives, honouring him with fire and always maintaining a tribe High Priest that can commune with the element of fire and honour Ro’Azarkh’s wishes.  

TEMPLES

There are very few actual temples to Ro’Azarkh, but the few that there are tend to be located near great sources of fire, such as volcano’s. They also tend to be very sparsely furnished, and preferably carved from the living rock that gives life to the flames.

HOLY DAYS

There are no specific holy days dedicated to the worship of Ro’Azarkh, but all Priests are expected to brew a philtre on the 1st day of Maymonath and bring it to a sacred site of Kaboi. As decreed by Ro’Azarkh, on this day all followers will brew a philtre, one jug for every priestess in the cult, to appease Kaboi’s anger at being tricked.

FRIENDS AND ENEMIES

As it is not an organised cult as such, the cult has no real connections with any other. It respects the cults of the other gods, especially that of Warlord, and tends to avoid the cult of Kaboi, except on the 1st day of Maymonath.

CULT REQUIREMENTS

There are no general cult requirements for those wishing to follow Ro’Azarkh, although individual cults may have their own entry requirements.

STRICTURES

• Never back down from a challenge.
• Always avenge fallen comrades.
• The dead must always be burnt on a pyre dedicated to Ro’Azarkh
• Brew a philtre and take it to a Kaboi sacred site on the 1st Day of Maymonath each year.