Orcus

Orcus, also known as Tenebrous and the Prince of the Undead, was a demon lord and master of the undead.

"I will be the last creature when I am done. The cosmos will then be perfect, free of the braying abominations that are all other living things."

- Orcus

Description
Orcus was typically described as having the head and legs of a goat, although with ram-like horns, a bloated body, bat-like wings, and a long tail.

His holy symbol was described as the horned head of a goat.

Personality
Orcus cared for nothing save himself—not even his devotees and undead servants—and focused only on spreading misery and evil.

Abilities
The Prince of the Undead held dominion over the portfolio of undeath, and held influence over the domains of chaos, death, evil, and undeath.

Possessions
One of his most identifiable symbols was the artifact known as the Wand of Orcus, a skull-topped wand with the power to slay any living being. Orcus also wielded a powerful artifact known as the Orcusword.

The Wand of Orcus was a powerful artifact. This skull-topped wand had the ability to automatically slay any living creature it touched. The Wand was highly coveted across the planes, and Orcus sometimes let it fall into the hands of mortals in order to allow them to wreak chaos and evil. The wand was thought to be in the possession of a cult called the Lurkers In Shadow.

The Orcusword was Orcus's personal weapon when he was still a balor. It was later held in Tchian-Sumere, Orcus's fortress on the Negative Energy Plane.

Orcus crafted

Realm
Orcus' realm was Thanatos, the 113 layer of the Abyss. It was a frigid and frozen layer infested with the undead. Several cities dotted the layer (most of them ruled by minions of Orcus, including a powerful succubus and Quah-Nomag himself). Orcus ruled from his palace of Everlost in the bone-meal desert of Oblivion's End, north of a vast mountain chain called the Final Hills that cut across the layer. Despite Orcus regaining control over Thanatos, Kiaransalee's taint could still be found in the city of Naratyr on the Frozen Sea south of the layer, and in the so-called Forbidden Citadel in the city of Lachrymosa, located in the Final Hills.

Enemies
Orcus was one third of the triad of demon lords―including Eltab and Graz'zt―that engaged in ongoing war with one another.

Offspring
Orcus sired a number of half-fiend children with women of the Darakh Dynasty of Narfell, in the centuries leading up to Dale Reckoning. Among his near-mortal sons were Jesthren Darakh, born to Larnaeril Darakh, as well as Heldakar Darakh, Yannos "the Slayer" Darakh, Garthelaun "the Goreclaw" Darakh, and Ilithkar Darakh. Nearly all of their mothers said to have been sacrificed to Orcus following their births.

Worshipers
"Bloated goat prince of undeath, master of vampires and lord of specters, Orcus, grant me your crushing might and the deadly power of your skull-headed wand!"

- The Skull King Quah-Nomog

The cult of Orcus was mainly composed of twisted creatures with a morbid fascination with the undead. Notable among these followers necromancers, as well as creatures deliberately seeking the path to unlife, such as would-be liches and vampires. He often attracted devotees from among malevolent humans and the goblinoid races.

Regions
Orcus had cults dedicated to his worship all across Faerûn. In Vaasa and across the Bloodstone Lands, his worship was coordinated by the Cult of the Goat's Head.

Notable temples of Orcus could be found in the caverns of Deepearth.

His influence was not limited to the Abyss and the Prime Material Plane. Many of Orcus' dark servants spread out across the Shadowfell, determined to commit horrific deeds in his name. His undead minions had taken over the dark settlement of Evernight, the dark echo of Neverwinter in the Realms.

Notable Worshipers of Orcus

 * Banak, high priest of Orcus in the Bloodstone Lands
 * Doresain, an elf that feasted upon of flesh of others, remade as the first ghoul in creation.
 * Soneillon, the succubus Queen of Whispers that claimed Orcus as her patron.
 * Zhengyi, the Witch-King of Vaasa.
 * Kyuss, high priest of Orcus.

Rise to Power
Like many of the most powerful demon lords who struggled for power in the Abyss, Orcus started his existence as a mortal on the Prime Plane. He was apparently a wicked spellcaster of some sort, most probably a priest to some dark deity. After his death, his soul, like the souls of all chaotic evil mortals, went to the Abyss and Orcus began his afterlife as a lowly larva.

Orcus proceeded to climb through the demonic ranks over the next several thousand years, going from larva to mane, from mane to dretch, from dretch to rutterkin, from rutterkin to vrock, from vrock to glabrezu, from glabrezu to nalfeshnee, and eventually a balor. From there, he ascended to the rank of demon lord, becoming the Prince of the Undead and ruling the layer of Thanatos, the Belly of Death. Even though there are other demon lords aspiring to the title of "Prince of the Undead", Orcus' claim to the title went unchallenged for the most part. Ever hungry for more power, Orcus wanted to be recognized as "Prince of Demons", a title held by Demogorgon and coveted also by Graz'zt. As a result, he became the arch-enemy of both demon lords. In time, Orcus also achieved true godhood.

At some point in his existence, Orcus slew the entity Maanzecorian, once worshipped by the mind flayers.

Gaining Worship in the Realms
In, a servant of Orcus named Thargaun Crell became the first Nentyarch of Tharos, the realm that later came to be known as Narfell. The Prince of the Undead bestowed upon Crell the Crown of Narfell, a powerful artifact that would corrupt the royal line and their descendants for centuries. His dynasty would rule until, when the lich-king Belevan was slain by the twin sons of Graz'zt.

Orcus became the patron of the Red Wizard Zhengyi in the 900s DR, aiding him in his quest to become a lich.

Priests of Orcus supported Zhengyi in the, when the lich created the Castle Perilous and gained control over many undead creatures. Zhengyi attacked Damara the following year and finally brought it under his control after nearly a decade of conflict.

In the, the duergar of Deepearth attempted to summon an avatar of Orcus to the Realms. They were thwarted by the future king of Damara Gareth Dragonsbane and his company of adventurers. Following their victory, the adventurers defeated the Witch-King Zhegyi and banished the Lord of Undeath's influence over the region by stealing the Wand of Orcus. They traveled to Orcus' domain of Thanatos, stole the wand away to the Astral Plane, and destroyed it upon an altar of the dragon goddess Tiamat, With Orcus' wand destroyed, the Witch-King was defeated. Castle Perilous and his undead army disintegrated.

Death & Rebirth
Simultaneously, Orcus was slain by the drow demi-goddess Kiaransalee, who took over rulership of Orcus' realm of Thanatos in the Abyss. She was said to have locked the Wand of Orcus away in the last layer of Pandemonium. Kiaransalee decreed that Orcus' name be erased from all existence.

Despite the drow demi-goddess' efforts, Orcus was restored as an undead demon lord named Tenebrous. Upon his return, Orcus discovered the Last Word, an utterance so powerful that it could destroy deities. The Last Word would also eventually kill those who knew it unless the being was a true deity, and to restore himself to his lost divinity, Orcus went in search for his wand. During his search, Orcus killed several gods, including Primus, god of the modrons, and Maanzecorian. Orcus' efforts were stymied by a group of adventurers and Orcus was again destroyed, this time by the power of the Last Word. A cabal of greater deities, in response to Tenebrous' predations, later nullified the Last Word.

However, Orcus was resurrected by Quah-Nomag, one of his foremost high priests and thralls, in a blasphemous ritual he enacted in the Astral Plane. Orcus then reclaimed his kingdom and his original name, re-proclaiming himself Prince of the Undead, despite his hatred of undead. However, as a result of his second death and resurrection, Orcus again lost his divinity and became the demon prince he once was. Orcus' divinity thereafter existed as a vestige, named Tenebrous, and could be called upon by binders.

In 1373 DR, the Moonsea region was plunged into chaos as the mysterious Order of the Crippled Fang rose to power under leadership of Archmage Maganus. The wizard harbored a grudge against the Zhentarim and against Fzoul Chembryl, the father the organization who was to blame for the deaths of Maganus' parents. He developed a plan to destroy Zhentil Keep and spent a decade putting the events into motion. This plan resulted in the Archmage's trading his soul in exchange for summoning Orcus to the Prime Material plane. The Order of the Crippled Fang crisis culminated in a full-blown demon attack on Zhentil Keep led by Orcus, his lieutenants Quah-Nomag the Skull-King, vampire lord Kauvra, and lich Harthoon. While a pirate blockade led by a mysteriously returned Avagard, a legendary pirate and enemy of Zhentil Keep (in reality, an agent of the Unseen). The conflict cost many lives of the city's defenders and citizens as well as many structures destroyed or damaged. Eventually, the battle culminated in a battle between Maganus and Fzoul Chembryl, while the Hero of Daggerford, Beirmoura, Lyressa, and Sharalyn Lockleaf stood against the demon lord. When the dust settled, the demon hordes were sent back to the Abyss alongside their master, while Maganus faced Zhentil Keep's justice, a very slow and painful death.

In the late 15 century DR, Orcus found himself summoned to the Underdark, where he used his powers of necromancy to control a dead elder brain named Cyrog.

Rumors & Legends
It was speculated that Orcus was responsible for informing mortals of the secret means by which they could bound Eltab to the Prime Material Plane.

Appearances

 * Adventures
 * The Mines of Bloodstone • The Throne of Bloodstone
 * Bloodstone Pass • The Bloodstone Wars • City of the Spider Queen
 * Video Games
 * Idle Champions of the Forgotten Realms • Neverwinter Nights: Tyrants of the Moonsea
 * Gamebooks
 * Knight of the Living Dead
 * Organized Play & Licensed Adventures
 * Dreams of the Red Wizards (Uprising)
 * Dreams of the Red Wizards (Uprising)