Groetus

Groetus

(Deity)

Titles

God of the End Times
God of the End of the World
Harbinger of Last Days
Azlanti period: Father of the Apocalypse

Adjective

Groetan

Realm

Sky above the Boneyard

Alignment

Chaotic neutral

Areas of Concern

Apocalypse
Empty places
Oblivion
Ruins

Worshipers

Doomsayers

Edicts

Preach of the upcoming end times, destroy that which has outlived its usefulness, put the suffering out of their misery

Anathema

Artificially extend something's existence or lifespan, spread hope

Follower Alignments (1E)

LG	NG	CG
LN	N	CN
LE	NE	CE

Domains (1E)

Chaos, Darkness, Destruction, Madness, Void

Subdomains (1E)

Catastrophe, Insanity, Loss, Night, Protean, Stars
Azlanti period: Catastrophe, Entropy, Insanity, Loss, Night, Stars

Follower Alignments (2E)

LG	NG	CG
LN	N	CN
LE	NE	CE

Domains (2E)

Darkness, destruction, nightmares, void
Alternative: decay

Favored Weapon

Heavy flail, war flail

Symbol

Skull-faced moon

Sacred Animal

None

Sacred Colors

None

Images of Groetus

Source: Inner Sea Faiths, pg(s). 46–51 (1E)
Gods & Magic, pg(s). 61 (2E)

More information about this subject might be available on StarfinderWiki.

Overlooking all of Pharasma's Boneyard is another, lesser god. This is Groetus (pronounced GRO-tus), the god of the End Times, a sentient and uncaring moonlet that looks down upon the Boneyard and waits for the last living soul to die. According to the Concordance of Rivals, when Pharasma judges the last soul after the last living body dies on the Universe, Groetus will descend to the Boneyard to meet with Pharasma on her crumbling throne before he moves on to the Universe to "clean up" and pack the dust away for another reality. Groetus will fade from existence once he has confirmed that nothing is left; yet, just like how Pharasma came from a previous reality, a new Survivor will escape the destruction to recreate the cosmos.

Appearance

Silently watching, Groetus hangs in the form of a bloated moon above Pharasma's Boneyard in the Outer Sphere. This moon is simultaneously Groetus' physical form, his divine realm (where his servants and shades dwell), and a shell separating the Great Beyond from its end. Its size varies between viewers, from that of a thumbnail held at arm's length to 20 times that size. Adventurous folk who have braved the surface of this place are either never heard from again, or are discovered soon after as the newest of the god's insane faithful. It is unknown what role Groetus will play in the End Times.

It is a rare occurrence indeed for Groetus to manifest in humanoid form, but records from Azlant describe him as a tall, slender man wearing a long gray robe that hangs heavily to the floor. His complexion is ashen, with hollow eyes and long, smooth hands. He has a slight bent at the neck (as though bearing some great weight) and his bare feet are black from soot and ash (as though he has been walking through an old fire). His voice is described as a whisper, like old paper, and he speaks with an archaic or foreign inflection.

Dogma

Cultists of Groetus have many theories about how their god will manifest in the End Time and what his ultimate role will be. These theories or interpretations are known as dooms; and the proponents of each particular doom may be seen as members of a splinter cult of the faith. The most well-known dooms of Groetus are:

Mouth of Apocalypse

Followed by the Teeth of Oblivion cultists

Portal of Incarnation

Followed by the Heralds of the Incarnate Moon cultists

Sign of the Destroyer

Pursued by the Followers of the Gray Sign cultists

Relations

Groetus is rather isolated from other deities and they seldom make any effort to contact him. On those rare occasions, other gods and goddesses proceed with extreme caution, knowing full well that their followers (whether mortal, undead or other) often fall to insanity should they scry or otherwise make contact with him.

It is believed that Groetus has some connection to Rovagug, another deity associated with the end of the world but there does not appear to be any basis for this theory. The two deities and their followers show no animosity to one another and it is speculated that Rovagug's purpose is to destroy the physical world while Groetus will devour the spiritual energies of the dead.

Cults of Groetus often cooperate with cults of Urgathoa who share their hedonism, but the nihilistic Groetans scoff at an eternal existence as undead.

Servants

Cultists worship Groetus.

Groetus has few allies or followers, making no effort to acquire either. However, beings who travel to his moon-home often succumb to his power (and accompanying madness) and serve him after a fashion.

End's Voice

The herald of Groetus, End's Voice serves as his personal hand. Draped in a long crimson robe, End's Voice floats above the ground on footless legs, faceless, and speaking (rarely) with a hollow, distorted voice.

Geg Noam Gyeg

An insane and paranoid barbed devil. It adorns its spikes with the eyes of its victims and prefers to be paid for its services in silver mirrors and magical items that utilise divination magic.

Yles

An especially insane grey naunet protean, Yles is an avid collector of magical writing and spellbooks. It continuously babbles narration of its own activities.

Church of Groetus

Groetus has no formal religion or church, with many of his faithful being made up of lone desperate people prophesying the end of everything, or megalomaniacs bent on bringing about the end of creation to please their god. Some believe that he may not even know or care that he has any followers, knowing that if his goals are achieved, they will be destroyed along with everything else.

Formal clothing is observed, more often than not, by his followers. Gray robes with blue accents is traditional but his priests rarely take much interest in their attire, meaning most of his followers wear shabby and stained raiments.

In the Age of Legend, Groetus was worshipped in largely the same manner as he is today. Motivated by nothing but a desire to see the apocalypse, raving Groetan doomsayers took every opportunity to accost others and proclaim all sorts of impending doom, even when people paid little attention to them. When Earthfall descended upon Golarion, many of them cried and praised Groetus for delivering his final message. The few survivors later felt betrayed, as Groetus was not the actual culprit of Earthfall. They began to doubt their faith in him and fell into intense uncertainty and depression; some later committed suicide.

Temples and shrines

Priests of Groetus have little interest in creating lasting monuments to their master. After all, all things will fade and crumble when the end comes. It is not uncommon however, for followers to congregate in the ruined temple of another faith.

Religious texts

Being a cult of separated and often confused individuals, there is no single codified list of Groetus's teachings. Information is typically gleaned from scribblings by the mad, often upon asylum walls or in the blood of a murdered victim. Much of this data is vague and contradictory. The more rational members of the faith keep a collection of lore known as the Book of the Last Moon.

Holidays

The worshipers of Groetus celebrate few holidays, seeing such frivolity as pointless and meaningless in the greater plans of their deity. The only time his followers unite is the Final Day, where his worshipers observe an hour of silent contemplation, hopeful of some guidance from their enigmatic master.

References

Paizo published major articles about Groetus and his church in Beyond the Doomsday Door, p68ff., and Inner Sea Faiths.

For additional as-yet unincorporated sources about this subject, see the Meta page.