Glossary:Elder Gods

Elder Gods

"Elder god" is a broad term for any ancient (subjectively to one's perception) deities. They are also called Titans and Ancient Giants.

Many races and groups have been called "Elder Gods" throughout time: the Lords of the Dawn, the first Elder Gods; ancient beings such as the Elder Gods of Earth; the Old Ones/Many-Angled Ones; the Elder Gods of Limbo, the Gibborim (one of them being possibly part of the Elder Gods of Limbo), the Many-Souled Ones; the Elder Ones; the N'Garai and their masters the Mabdhara, and even some Abstract Entities.

It would also become a name for more recent pantheons, such as the Gods of Egypt, the Olympians, and also of the Aesir from the Ragnarök era preceding our era.

The elder gods presented here are unlikely to be all related to each other, apart from that name, originating from their status as ancient deities.

History

Knull, Lord of the Abyss

First Elder Gods

From before creation

The Dweller-in-Darkness, who described himself as an elder god, originated from the dimension Everinnye, and survived from a previous universe, where he fractured the M'kraan Crystal in an effort to destroy reality as a whole, creating fear throughout the universe that would feed his appetites. Instead, the Phoenix Force united the minds of the dying universe, preventing them from being afraid, and foiling his plans.

The Black Winter, a cosmic entity capable of devouring universes, consumed the Sixth Cosmos, sparing only Galan of Taa to serve as its Herald in the new Multiverse.

The Black Winter's destruction of the universe created an existential void, in which the elder god Knull, the King in Black came into being and claimed as his domain. When the Celestials began creating the seventh iteration of the universe, Knull declared war on them and their creations.

According to lore, before the act of creation, all existences was populated by primordial beasts who embodied nothingness, the absence of meaning, thus being evil: the Old Ones.

One of the first elder gods smiling at his creation

Early years of the Universe

Fourteen billion years ago, in the Void, one of the first elder gods, a baby, played with creating life before being assassinated by the time-travelling Gorr.

Many entities identified as the "titans", "elder gods" and "ancient giants", such as the Black Winter, the God Tempest, the Phoenix, and the King in Black fought each others during the early years of the cosmos.

The Nameless Old Ones allegedly ruled the universe a billion eons before the birth of Gayomar, the first of all men.

Twelve to four billion years ago, after the First Great War of the Gods, the Lords of the Dawn, "the first Elder Gods", or their begetters, built Omnipotence City as a place of divine fellowship.

Elder gods on Earth

On Earth, many groups and beings were described as "elder gods", including :

• the Elder Gods of Earth (created 4 billion years ago);
• the Old Ones Shuma-Gorath and other Old Ones came million years ago, ruling the Earth and feasting on the ape-men;
• the Elder Ones, alternatively described as beings of goodness or entities evil, or at least antagonists to Man;
• the Many-Souled Ones, creatures who walked the Earth before Man or animal, and who lived and died before there was a Heaven;
• the N'Garai, created by the Elder God of Earth Chthon after his fleeing of Earth, and their masters the Mabdhara.

Additionally a certain number of gods and demons have received that appellation.

Though the Demogorge is usually stated to have dealt with the degenerated Elder Gods of Earth, he has been stated to have destroyed the various elder gods and demons that ruled the planet before the gods' creation, possibly including other elder gods.

The Elder Gods have been alternatively described as dark gods requiring human sacrifices, and beings gifted with great wisdom and insight.

Opposing Gods and Demons

The mighty (but also arrogant and ambitious) god G'bharr Rjinn sought to dethrone the Elder Gods, using his magical eyes. The Elder Gods consequently destroyed him, leaving as only remains his eyes.

Jergal Zadh, a demon so great even the gods feared him, was banished to a hellish netherworld by elder god jealous of his power. Similarly, they banished Thazarra the Sorceress into a prison in another plane. Similarly, the Ancient Ones/Ancients imprisoned the Dark Angels.

The Elder God appearing to Zuulda Thaal

Pre-Cataclysmic Age

During the Pre-Cataclysmic Age, a mountain city on the fringes of Valusia and ruled by Thuron worshiped the Unnameable One, who rewarded Thuron with enhanced strength and the Ring of the Black Shadow, allowing him to summon the Black Shadow. They sacrificed humans to the Unnameable One.

King Kull of Valusia decided to have all those who offered human sacrifice to the dark elder gods, and marched upon at least the city worshipping the Unnameable One. Thuron was killed, seemingly by the intervention of the Scorpion-God, before the arrival of Kull.

Hyborian Age

13,000 BC

Circa 13,000 BC, Zuulda Thaal worshiped an elder god who bestowed him a magic breastplate, gauntlets encrusted with precious gems and an enchanted bow.

Age of Conan (10,000 BC)

The elder gods were invoked by sorcerers, demons, and other figures.

The oldest god of the Hyperboreans was the elder god Bardisattva the Very Old, or Bardis, the god of the Coya clan, while despised by the Clan Curgill. The Land of Bardisattva was forbidden to all but the Silent Followers, priests of the Coya.

An elder god was worshiped by women of the race inhabiting the Vale of Lost Women, for which they performed human sacrifices. Such one was the Ophirean woman Livia of House of Chelkus, who was rescued by Conan the Cimmerian.

King Maddoc II of El Shah Maddoc self-styled as the "son of the elder gods".

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In the ancient past of Mars, the Barsoomians used to worship the elder gods, particularly those of the now abandoned city of Aaanthor, where their priest still lived.

At some point before the 1950s, the evil sorcerer Khalis-Wu encountered the Elder Gods and was seemingly defeated into retreat.

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Modern Age

Babylon Event

In an attempt to start a Babylon Event which would destroy reality, the Proto-Mage Cubisk Core went to A.I.M.'s Prometheus Pit. Using the Pit to power the Staff of the Living Tribunal, he summoned a group of elder gods referred to as "Gods of Babylon", but were prevented from reaching reality by Earth's heroes led by the Avatar of The-Powers-That-Be, Wyn.

Miscellaneous

Representatives: "Elder gods" from unknown origin include the Unnameable One, the elder god worshiped by Zuulda Thaal, Pluorrg, X'axal, Knull, Bardisattva the Very Old / Bardis, the Dweller-in-Darkness (a demon from the dimension Everinnye), the elder god worshiped in the Vale of Lost Women, Annihilation from Amenth, Ikribu

List of the known elder gods

Notes

• The Aesir from the Ragnarök era preceding our era were known as Elder Gods as well.
• The demon Gathonagog was described as an "archaic god" by Doctor Doom.

See also

• Appearances of Elder Gods whose exact affiliation or classification (if any) is unknown.
• Mentions of Elder Gods whose exact affiliation or classification (if any) is unknown.
• Images of Elder Gods whose exact affiliation or classification (if any) is unknown.
• Yug-Sluggoth, Baron of the Elder Hell.
• Razazel, Arch-Demon of the Elder Night.

Links

• 30 appearance(s) of Elder Gods
• 5 minor appearance(s) of Elder Gods
• 41 mention(s) of Elder Gods
• 8 invocation(s) of Elder Gods
• 2 image(s) of Elder Gods