Orcus



Orcus is the demon prince and lord of the Undead in many Dungeons & Dragons campaign settings. He is named after Orcus of Roman mythology.

Description
Orcus is 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.

Orcus cares for nothing save himself - not even his devotees and undead servants - and focuses only on spreading misery and evil. One of his most identifiable symbols is the artifact, the Wand of Orcus, a skull-topped wand with the power to slay any living being. In earlier editions of the game, Orcus also wielded a powerful artifact known as the Orcusword.

History
Like many of the most powerful demon lords who struggle 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 in 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 recognzied 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.

However, shortly afterwards, Orcus was slain by the drow demi-goddess Kiaransalee, who took over rulership of Orcus' layer of the Abyss and locked his wand 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, renaming himself Tenebrous. As Tenebrous, Orcus discovered the Last Word, an utterance so powerful that it can destroy deities. The Last Word will also eventually kill those who know it unless the being is 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 Modron 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, has since 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 has lost his divinity and is now a demon lord again.

Orcus' divinity now exists as a vestige, also named Tenebrous, and can be called upon by binders.

Realm
Orcus' realm is Thanatos, the 113th layer of the Abyss (although in H4: The Throne of Bloodstone, it is numbered 333rd). It is a frigid and frozen layer infested with the undead. Several cities dotted the layer, (most of whom are ruled by minions of Orcus, including a powerful succubus and Quah-Nomag himself). The Prince of the Undead rules from his palace of Everlost in the Bone Meal Desert north of a vast mountain chain (called the Final Hills) that cut across the layer. Despite Orcus regaining control over Thanatos, Kiaransalee's taint can 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.

Cult of Orcus
The cult of Orcus is mainly composed of twisted creatures with a morbid fascination with the undead, such as necromancers, as well as creatures deliberately seeking the path to unlife, such as would-be liches and vampires.

Orcus has a chance of hearing his name whenever and wherever spoken, and of reacting by manifesting to the speaker in an irritated mood. Unscrupulous merchants in various parts of the D&D have used this by selling parrots trained to speak only innocuous phrases until at a predetermined location, when they scream Orcus' name non-stop. This summons the demon, who slays the adventurer, allowing his or her equipment to be looted by the merchant's associates.

Wand of Orcus
The Wand of Orcus is a powerful Artifact. This skull-tipped wand has the ability to automatically slay any living creature it touches.

The Wand is highly coveted across the planes, and Orcus sometimes lets it fall into the hands of mortals in order to allow them to wreak chaos and evil.

The Wand of Orcus is currently thought to be in the possession of a cult called the "Lurkers In Shadow."