ASTAROTH aka Nolon – God and Daemon Lord of Pain and Torment

Status:  2nd Generation Elder God

Level:  6000

Avatar:  Carint

Astaroth is often confused with Pharastus, and many still believe that they are one and the same.

The Book of Ebon Bindings says this about Astaroth;

None knows the titles and qualities of this, the mightiest of Demons. The pen dreads to write and the ink dries of its own fear. To set his name upon the page is itself an act of daring, for the summoning of this Prince of Princes is not a thing which is done in any land, save with the gravest of provocation, and with the fullest protections which can be con­structed. Let the would-be evocator beware, therefore, and think ten thousand times before venturing upon this conjuration. Let him rather himself go down to death than bring forth this Lord. Abjure this thing and seek it not! The perils which beset the calling of Lord Nolon are more than any world should be made to endure.

Those who are knowledgeable of the Demon Planes speak of mighty Lord Nolon as though he were king thereof Other Demon Princes draw back and cease from their vauntings when his name is recited. None can say how many legions of Demons he rules, nor which Quadrant is his home, nor what powers he commands. King of the Demon Planes he may be, and perhaps even the almighty Gods Themselves would consider well before confronting him.

How can a mere mortal, then, call him forth? If it must be done let it be for such a circumstance that the very fabric of the Many Worlds is at stake, and for nothing less!

One shall recognise the coming of Lord Nolon by the procession of lesser Demons – many of them Lords in their own sphere - which shall first appear before the evocator. These denizens of nightmares will stride forth in turn, and to each must the evocator speak the correct Name and the proper formula of dismissal; else all is lost, and the Demons will be free to work their will upon this world. Only at length and after many seeming will Lord Nolon himself appear. Then the evocator will perceive him in one of his many forms. The most frequent, according to the Book of Presence’s, is of a mighty lizard-like being, so huge as to fill the veritable Great Hall of Tal-Y-Llyn itself. Scaled and clawed and plated in crusted armour, the Prince will stand so high that the evocator cannot see the waving forest of spiky protuberances which depend from Its head, if such it may be termed. When the Prince leans down, the evocator will behold six dripping, ichorous mouths, each mottled and oozing and of the height of two men. Above, in the darkness, are the eyes, but these are usually invisible amidst the wrinkled flaps and pods and saggings of the face of the Demon King. The tentacles, which depend from the mouths writhe and twine and ever seek prey, and the limbs which are like unto pillars of one of the palaces of hell move restlessly and hatefully with a sound of many scrapings. Odours of long-dead and decaying things fill the chamber with noisome stenches, and there is also the smell of something dry and sharp, as of certain fluids burning (acids?). The colours of this Prince are black and deep red and tiny flames sparkle over his body like eldritch dancers. Thus is his appearance, usually, as much as can be comprehended by mortal men.

The powers of this Demon King are vast indeed. Amongst the recorded summonings one finds tales of the sinking of cities, of the crumbling of mountain peaks, of the rending of whole nations, and the slaughter of myriad’s of beings. The imprisoning of the great eldritch wizard Madelyn. He is said to have been summoned by the great Drow king Kettulano he called upon the great Nolon to destroy a wizard inimical to him. Even though Lord Nolon was offered the enemy wizard, that person's entire entourage, his island palace, and all that was under his foe's hand as serfs and followers, still the Demon Prince was not sated. After slaying the enemy mage and consuming all of his people, Lord Nolon so devastated that land that it was no more; the waters rushed in, the adjacent lands were made into volcanic wastelands, and cities of principalities nearby were made overnight into the haunt of ghosts and the unspeaking dead. This destruction was so terrible that the Gods arose to protest; the wizard Kettulano was in turn slain, together with all of his creations and adherents. Thus, it is no light thing to summon mighty Lord Nolon, and those who would do so had best be able to offer him much in return for his services.

Aside from Sundering [tearing victims into very small bits], mighty Nolon utilises the powers of Purging (sweeping a region clean of all life and even of its geographical irregularities), of Expunging (annihilating an area and Leaving no trace of any habitations), and of Overthrowing (turning a region completely upside down, so that the molten rock beneath is uppermost). Lord Nolon grants no boons of wealth, for he cares naught for such things. Nor does he gift the evocator with secrets. He is not a patient being, moreover, and the evocator must speak his demands at once and waste no words. To hesitate is to die and never to be seen again upon any Plane. Once the compact is made, however, the Demon King will perform his task instantaneously and without taking more time than it requires to blink once. Thereafter the evocator shall cry out the formula of dismissal urgently, else will restless Lord Nolon seize upon the evocator as well as a sign of his vexation?

The summoning of Lord Nolon is not an easy task, and it should not be attempted by one person alone, although it is said that there are secret books in which special calling and binding spells are inscribed for this purpose. These are not known to this writer, and were they so, they would deserve only instant destruction or at least a permanent concealment within the hidden places of the Planes Beyond!

SYMBOL

     

The cult of Astaroth is symbolised by the heavenly

Astrological symbol of their god. Worshippers

also adorn themselves with hundreds of tattoos of

various demonic symbols.

WORSHIP

The only worship tolerated by Astaroth is absolute blind fanatical devotion. The lower echelon of any Astaroth sect are unquestioning disciples who would give their life to serve not only their God but also their sect leader. However should any particular individual ‘shine’ in Astaroth’s eyes they will find themselves wielding great power, having great health and money. They are gifted with great charms and good looks, which afford them the ability to ‘have’ any members of the opposite sex.

Worship is a harrowing affair of sacrifice and bloodletting, perfidious plotting and working against the authorities that would see the sect destroyed.

TEMPLES

There is no true temples to Astaroth, instead each sect builds a temple in any available locale to carry out the dark business appeasing their god then move onto another sight, quite often burning the temple to the ground to avoid the sects detection.

HOLY DAYS

There are no holy days in the Astarotian calendar.

FRIENDS AND ENEMIES

The cult of Astaroth has no friends.

All other cults are opposed to the worship of Astaroth.

CULT REQUIREMENTS

Any person wishing to join the cult of Astaroth must first pledge their eternal soul to Astaroth. (Should they die then they can never be resurrected).

Any entry to the cult must involve a blood sacrifice of someone very personal to the individual (i.e. Good friend, Family member, etc)

STRICTURES

• Any priest must carryout any order/whim/want of a higher level priest, this regardless of their own well being; if ordered to kill themselves they must.