Ûlmon Paavos

Cult
 Location

The Plague God, god of illness and the sick, and of disease and despair, Ûlmon Paavos appreciates only those who can rise above the torment he inflicts upon them. He has been a secretive constant throughout A'therian history, a lesser god who very rarely makes himself known outside his cult. All major plagues can be attributed to him, tests which few survive. Paavos is usually viewed as simply a shaper of human immunity, which gives him domain over defiance as well - his favorite members of humanity are those who can conquer adversity, especially when he is its provider.

## History

Paavos is most well-known for his cultish and isolated followers. Commonly during the Age of Balance, he would set plagues upon them simply to see which among them was strong enough to survive. Both Paavos and his followers see disease as a great equalizer: the weak perish while the strong survive, and it is the strong who are worthy to continue on. Those who served him who did not die would become immune to his various diseases, as a gift from their master. Despite evidence to the contrary, Paavos cared for his followers, but seems to have believed in growth through adversity; their betterment and the betterment of humanity as a whole through one's own strength. It is said that those followers who displease him are turned into the lowly, brainless slimes one finds in moist and dark places of the world, no longer able to question his wisdom.

It is important to remember that Ûlmon Paavos also holds domain over those who do not perish in his tests. Mortals who have faced death and pulled away pray their thanks to Ûlmon Paavos as much as any who are diseased and sick curse his name. In the current age, as modern methods take the place of homeopathic remedies for preventing illness, Paavos and his cult have slowly been forgotten. Diseased followers often appear in capitals and other places of gathering, shouting about a coming plague to remind A'therys of his power. Most discount these claims, especially those who have forgotten the name of the God of Plagues. But as long as disease and hopelessness exist in A'therys, the Plague God is sure to also remain.

## Appearance

Very little is known about the appearance of Ûlmon Paavos, specifically because he so very rarely appears in physical form. The times that he does are often only to his followers, and even then only at the height of whatever illness he has inflicted upon them. Thus, the descriptions given by individuals who claim to have seen him are usually wildly different, affected by the fevered state of the viewers. What little can be pieced together from these accounts paints a picture of an elderly man covered in a tattered cloak, barely covering his diseased and scabbed flesh. His movement is marked by trails of writhing maggots, which also can be found in his lengthy hair and beard. The mask which covers his face appears to be made of distressed wood, a human face mixed caught somewhere between a grimace of pain and a feverish laugh. Those who have seen him say that after he appears, the symptoms of their disease worsen, as though his visits are meant to reclaim whatever vile afflicition he levelled upon them.

*Originally written by OccidentalAnvil for the more official A'therys wiki*