Zaros

Zaros, pronounced "Zahr-oh-s" (also known as The Empty Lord, Great Lord and Unknown Power) is a god whose arrival in Gielinor was one of the most important events of the early Second Age. During this age, he ruled a vast empire stretching from Ice Mountain in Western Asgarnia to Canifis in Morytania, and from Ghorrock in north of the Wilderness as far south as Ullek in the Kharidian Desert. From his arrival soon after Guthix entered his first great slumber until his downfall at the hand of Zamorak, he was the most powerful god known on Gielinor (other than Guthix himself) - both in personal power and influence. Zaros is the patron of theAncient Magicks and Ancient Curses, an is associated with conquest and domination. Zaros has recently regained contact with his followers on Gielinor.

Present-day Saradominists and Zamorakians consider Zaros an adversary. Others, like the inhabitants of Kharidian Desert and some Mahjarrat, still worship Zaros as their lord. There is currently no indication as to Zaros's motives, other than that the player may be part of his plans at some point in the future. This may involve the upcoming Ritual.

Saradominists such as Lennissa have claimed that


 * "Evil will always breed more evil, and will never be satisfied with what it has. The Empty Lord chose to ally himself with the dark creatures of this world, fully aware that their own natures would cause them to rally against his rule, and take every opportunity they could to betray him."

Some of Zaros's followers are evil in the conventional sense of being ruthless, enjoying being deceptive and seeking power for power's sake. Also, the Ancient Curses, seem to be evil (or just highly combative) in their focus on inflicting damage on others and draining others of their powers. Although some may jump to the conclusion that Zaros is evil, evidence is inconclusive. It is very likely Zaros' army of demons and vampyres committed evil, but there are no records of Zaros promoting evil, either during his conquest or his rule, however, it is likewise true that there are no records of him promoting good. Additionally, even creatures whom did not and do not follow Saradomin or Zamorak, such as the Pharaoh Queen, call Zaros a 'vile creature' whom they clashed against long ago.

Zaros's legacy is still strong, as Saradomin will not speak of him, instead making evasive responses such as, "For your own continued good health, I implore you to drop this subject. Speak that name no more, and trouble not your mind with such thoughts." and Zamorak fears him immensely, implying Zaros in his prime possessed power surpassing that of either.

According to the Mysterious ghost, "As I told you, the Empty Lord was extremely powerful, but not so powerful that he could rule over the other deities of this world. Should he have made a move against any other god, then he could still have been easily brought down by the combined efforts of the others." However, with the aid of the Staff of Armadyl, Zaros's power would be magnified to a degree enabling him to overcome all on Gielinor, but due to the interference of the other gods and their followers, he failed to obtain the Staff.

Notable followers of Zaros include the Mahjarrat Akthanakos, Azzanadra, Jhallan, Sliske and possibly Wahisietel. Traditionally, the vampyres, dragon riders, and demons of Gielinor were allied with Zaros, but most, if not all of these, switched their allegiance to Zamorak once he defeated Zaros.



Second Age
Zaros arrived in Gielinor after Guthix entered his first sleep. Therefore, it is likely that Guthix has little knowledge of Zaros and vice versa. After his arrival, Zaros persuaded the Mahjarrat, a powerful race of near-immortals, to join his forces. The Mahjarrat had previously served Ichtlarin, one of the Menaphite Pantheon's main gods. Zaros conquered much of the what is now the Kharidian Desert with the Mahjarrat's assistance, gaining many followers. He then moved north to conquer Misthalin, Asgarnia and the whole of what is now the Wilderness, which was then a fertile plain. He founded several cities, of which Senntisten became the capital of his empire. This empire crumbled when Zaros was betrayed and banished by his foremost general, Zamorak.

Betrayal
Zamorak, a Mahjarrat general in Zaros' service, wanted to usurp Zaros' leadership of his vast empire and the Mahjarrat. When he, by chance, got hold of the Staff of Armadyl, he decided to make his move. With his close Mahjarrat followers Hazeel and Zemouregal, as well as the vampyre Lord Drakan and others, he plotted Zaros' downfall. His allies would engage Zaros' bodyguards while Zamorak fought their liege.

Staff of Armadyl
Valdez, a Saradominist explorer, stumbled upon the Staff of Armadyl. He realized this immensely powerful weapon should not fall into the wrong hands. However, a thief called Rennard found Valdez, knocked him unconscious and stole the Staff. He intended to sell it to Zaros. Instead, Zaros's messenger, Kharrim, took it to Zamorak, who was mortal at that time. Lennissa, a Saradominist spy, found out about the sale and informed her superior Dhalak, a Saradominist mage. Dhalak was supposed to pass the information on to Saradomin himself, but he instead enchanted the staff so that Zaros could not detect it. He hoped that Zaros, the greatest enemy of Saradomin at that time, would be defeated.

Defeat
Zamorak, accompanied by his loyal followers - many of the Mahjarrat, vampyres, demons, and a human called Viggora, set out to attack Zaros in his throne room.

Whilst the followers of Zamorak distracted the guards, Zamorak fought Zaros and managed to stab him in the front with the Staff of Armadyl. This weakened Zaros, but he still seemed to be much more powerful than Zamorak. With the staff still impaled in his front he seized Zamorak by the throat and lifted him into the air. Zamorak would have been killed, but somehow Zaros stumbled and fell onto his back. The Staff of Armadyl impaled Zamorak without leaving Zaros' body. Unexpectedly, it acted as a conduit that transferred at least some of Zaros' divine power to Zamorak. For killing a god, Zamorak was banished from Gielinor. However, according to information in While Guthix Sleeps he somehow obtained the Stone of Jas and returned to Gielinor as a god. At Zamorak's return, most of Zaros' followers abandoned their original god and sided with Zamorak. There were notable exceptions however, including the fortress city of Padewwa and the magnificent capital of Zaros' empire, Senntisten.

"The Empty Lord was a powerful god, stronger than any of the others awake at the time, possibly even as strong as Guthix is, and Zamorak was but a mortal: a Mahjarrat warrior all the same, with all of the strength and power that that entails, but mortal nonetheless, but to see him fight, you would not think of him as a ‘mere’ anything...He was war itself! Flurry after flurry of blows he rained upon the Empty Lord, and the very castle walls shook and quivered with their power, but the Empty Lord would not fall! Even with the weapon of a god embedded in his back, he fought on, and with each blow our victory seemed less and less certain..."

- Viggora

Aftermath
Zaros faded from Gielinor while Zamorak seemed to become more real. However, before he was "banished", Zaros uttered a curse onto all those involved in the rebellion. The curse was to make them wander around Gielinor as ghosts for eternity. The following six people were affected by the curse:
 * Valdez, a Saradominist explorer.
 * Rennard, a seemingly Zarosian thief.
 * Kharrim, a Zamorakian messenger.
 * Lennissa, a Saradominist spy.
 * Dhalak, Lennissa's boss.
 * Viggora, a Zamorakian warrior.

Zamorak was also affected by Zaros' curse, but because he became a god, he didn't die.

Several others involved were seemingly unaffected. Viggora theorises that it was because all of Zamorak's other followers were magical, so the curse was much less effective on them.

The remaining followers of Zaros were actively hunted by followers of both Saradomin and Zamorak. However, Zamorak soon turned against Saradomin and other gods, starting the God Wars. Even during the God Wars, when Zamorak battled with other gods, he occasionally joined forces with Saradomin to fight off the remaining followers of Zaros.

Before the God Wars during the third age, some Saradominists attempted to wipe the memory of Zaros from Gielinor. The Saradominists locked away a group of Zarosians, including Nex in a dungeon close to the present day God wars dungeon.

Return
In the recent Q&As from three Jagex Moderators (Mod MMG, Mod Roderick and Paul Gower), it has been hinted that Zaros will return soon. It was also hinted many years ago by the Chaos Elemental in a Postbag from the Hedge with the phrase "bizarre boron swell", an anagram of "Zaros will be reborn "(also the word reborn is much different than return)

During The Temple at Senntisten, the player collects three items to give to Dr Nabanik (Azzanadra), used to contact Zaros. This creates a connection between the temple and the plane where Zaros is located, allowing speech. This connection is only the start of what may happen when Zaros is fully reborn, as shown in a cutscene. The cutscene shows the dark mage's portal going crazy (almost destroying the universe according to him) but the mage thankfully manages to control it. It also shows an earthquake which cracks a Zamorak statue at the Chaos Temple. The Monks of Zamorak are furious, and suspect it is the Saradominists' fault.

This manifestation of power appears to have violated the Edicts of Guthix, which prohibits all other gods from directly interfering with Gielinor (only the gods' followers can act on behalf of their gods). If this was indeed a violation, it is not known whether it was intentionally in violation of the Edicts, as the edicts were proclaimed during the God Wars, long after Zaros had disappeared from the plane of Gielinor. It is also possible that the Edicts do not affect Zaros as he had not been in Gielinor at the time they were put in place. Also in the 25th God Letter Guthix stated that he did not know of Zaros and when telling stories to Juna following the completion of the quest The Temple at Senntisten, she speaks of Zaros's return as a move towards balance; all of which increases the probability that Zaros is not affected by the Edicts.



Religion
The symbol of Zaros is a circle surrounding an equidistant cross, and is found on an ancient talisman at the Digsite, on the Ancient Staff, the new 'Ancient' clue scroll rewards (dragonhide, runite armour, vestments etc.), and on Glarial's tomb in the Waterfall quest. Zaros's colour seems to be purple or black, although cream and light blue dominate the restored Temple at Senntisten.

Originally Zaros was worshipped by an unknown empire in the north-east of RuneScape (the Wilderness); however, that empire was destroyed by Zamorak and Saradomin. Most traces of the Zarosian religion, such as altars and temples, have been destroyed by Saradomin and Zamorak; however, there are two known altars remaining: one underneath the Digsite and another in Azzanadra's pyramid.

On the Ancient Spellbook, the 4 teleports that lead to different levels of the Wilderness are also destroyed grounds of Zarosian worship: Carrallangar, Ghorrock, Annakarl and Dareeyak. The other teleports, Ice Mountain (Lassar), Canifis Pub (Kharyrll) and Edgeville (Paddewwa) were important military and defence fortresses. The Digsite is referred to by its ancient name, Senntisten.

Zaros probably had a treaty with Scabaras at one point. Talking to the Kalphite Queen head in a player-owned house, will sometimes cause her to say, "we are faithfully waiting for the return of Zaros". This is odd because the Kalphites are allegedly followers of Scabaras—for example, a Keris dagger works on the Kalphites. The Kalphites are also occasionally said to have been spawned from the blood of Scabaras. This may lead some to believe that the Kalphites are the followers of both Zaros and Scabaras. This is suggested somewhat by the fact that the Mahjarrat appear to have jumped from following Icthlarian to Zaros in a single and random instance. If Zaros was somehow in leagues with another desert god, he could have orchestrated it more easily. While this is somewhat speculative, it is still possible. Another possible explanation of the Kalphite Queen's message is that Scabaras was an enemy of Zaros, and the Kalphites are meant to stop his resurgence.

Some gravestones also show the Zarosian symbol on its top. When read, it says "_______, servant of the Unknown Power, perished in this place." Some gravestones found in the Yanille Agility Dungeon also bear the Ancient symbol of Zaros as well; why they are in a place such as Yanille is not known yet.

Due to deliberate effort on the part of Jagex, little is known about Zaros' actual teachings.

Alignment
Zaros' alignment is a subject of much debate within the RS community. Making the subject of Zaros' alignment all the more confusing is the fact that even Zarosian players are split on the subject of Zaros' alignment, with some players who follow Zaros claiming he is evil, and other players following Zaros claiming he is good. Part of this is due to Jagex deliberately being ambiguous about Zaros, and part of this is due to conflicting evidence found in game. However, it must be noted that at this point in time '''there is no conclusive evidence for Zaros being good or being evil. '''Listed below, however, is a list of the evidence for each viewpoint. However, it should be noted, that nearly every non-Zarosian NPC who knows of Zaros seems to consider him evil. The Pharaoh Queen, Senliten even refers to him as "Vile" if asked about her lands (see below) :



Evidence For Zaros's Benevolence

 * 1) Zaros's followers are generally nicer to the player than Zamorak's: Throughout the game, Zaros' followers tend to act friendly and helpfully to the player. Azzanadra teaches the player ancient magicks and curses, Akthankos gives the player a Camulet, and Eblis gives the player an Ancient Staff.
 * 2) There is evidence that Zaros was kind to his own followers: Zaros's empire is said to have been one of the largest, and those within were said to live prosperous lives.
 * 3) Jagex said that Zaros is not evil: This is an often repeated statement on the RS forums and RS fansites, it is also a misquote. Jagex staff did at one point say "Zaros is not the god of evil."This, however, does not necessarily mean that he is not evil - it merely means that evil is not his divine portfolio.
 * 4) The Wilderness was a natural paradise under the rule of Zaros, and under Zamorak it became a scorched waste: The present-day Wilderness was a seat of Zarosian rule during the Second Age, and in that time it was prosperous and fertile.
 * 5) Zaros gladly shares his power with te player in the form of the Ancient Curses and Magicks: This is an often quoted example of why Zaros is a good deity. However, even Azzanadra, Zaros' most faithful servant, suggests that Zaros' reasons for giving the player curses is not necessarily benign, noting that he gave the player the ancient hymnal because the player is needed in Zaros' plans for return.
 * 6) Juna said Zaros' return would help restore balance: After completing the Temple of Senntisten, should one talk to Juna about the quest, she says that as Zamorak is a usurper god, and that the return of Zaros would help restore balance.
 * 7) Saradomin being a benevolent deity is something true only in the public eye: Juna has often spoken ill of Saradomin and his followers, so to assume Juna too believes Saradomin is benevolent is perhaps jumping the gun. It's possible that Juna sees both Saradomin AND Zamorak as malevolent gods, both having aided to destroy Zaros' empire, having warred for 4000 years, and generally committing fairly equal-weighted crimes. As such, Zaros could be the benevolent god to two lesser malevolent gods.
 * 8) Zaros's empire was a place of harmony and diversity: Whilst some of Zaros's followers were demons, vampyres, and other unsavory creatures, Zaros also had followers such as mankind. Zaros, it would seem, managed to govern a very diverse selection of races in an empire that was considered a "paradise".

Evidence for Zaros's Malevolence
Armadyl, who Jagex has stated to be the god of Supreme Justice, is thought to have been allied with Saradomin at the time. It is notable that his followers helped enslave Nex and that in the God Wars Dungeon, Armadyl's NPCs do not attack Saradomin's NPC's (each will, however, attack players who wear the symbol of the other.)
 * 1) The Ancient Book is described as "unholy": The Ancient Book, the prayer book of Zaros, is described as "the unholy book of a forgotten god" This is quite unusual, as eventhe book of Guthix the god of balance, is "holy" - in fact, the only other book described as unholy is Zamorak's. It's likely, however, that these descriptions are from the "mainstream" Saradominist point of view; it's unlikely that anyone would consider their deity's prayer book unholy.
 * 2) Zaros' followers use curses: Generally, curses are associated with evil beings, and combined with the fact that Zaros requires players to forget prayers, which are often associated with good beings, in order to use his curses, is often cited as evidence that Zaros is a malevolent deity.
 * 3) Zaros seems to have been on unfriendly terms with at least most of the gods: Evidence for this comes from the Ghostly Robes miniquest and RS history. In the former, Larissa suggests that all the gods had an agreement to come to each others' aid if Zaros invaded any of them, and Viggora claims that the gods detested Zaros, even though he goes on to say they were more horrified that a mortal was able to defeat Zaros. This hostility toward Zaros may however, have come from jealousy of his huge empire, or fear of the power and influence he held.
 * 4) Armadyl, the god of Justice, seems to have a positive affiliation with Saradomin, but not with Zaros:
 * 1) Saradomin is considered a benevolent deity, whilst Zamorak acts as a counterbalance: Since Juna suggests that Zaros taking back his position from Zamorak would aid the balance, it seems that she is suggesting that Zaros is a better counter-balance to Saradomin. In order to be a counter balance of a benevolent deity one would have to be a malevolent deity, for as Juna says "Balance lies in the juxtaposition of opposites."
 * 2) Zaros was at least on unfriendly terms with Saradomin: Saradomin, his methods and arrogance aside, is generally considered a good deity. Furthermore, his followers consisted of some of the more pure races in the Second Age, such as the Icyene, unicorns, and centaurs. As such it would be highly unlikely that Saradomin's followers would remain loyal to him if he was hostile toward a non-malevolent deity. However, there is still some debate as to whether Saradomin is truly good. His followers, while "pure", still went to war.

Evidence for Zaros's Neutrality

 * 1) Zaros may be unaligned, and simply ambitious. While he was hardly peaceful conquering many lands, his followers seemed to have been treated quite kindly and his empire prospered.
 * 2) In saying that his return wold bring about balance, Juna may be indicating that Zaros represents 'The Stalemate': while his empire reigned, no other god had the power to defeat him; but Zaros did not dare to attack any one god for fear of retaliation from the others. Thus, an uneasy peace was kept - but once Zaros was gone, the gods fell into war.
 * 3) When gathering followers, Zaros simply chose the greatest and most powerful, without regards to alignment.

Groups and races

 * Desert Bandits - This group also reveres Azzanadra, as they believe he will bring back Zaros.
 * Certain Mahjarrat
 * Possibly Kalphites
 * Probably some past citizens of Mort'ton - Tombs within the Shade Catacombs feature the symbol of Zaros.
 * Possibly an amount of the monkeys on Ape Atoll - Zaros' symbol can be found on some gravestones.
 * Blood reavers
 * Ancient mages, Ancient rangers and Ancient warriors
 * Possibly waterfiends, as they appear in The Ghorrock Fortress during the Temple of Senntenisten and Armies of Gielinor.

Notable individuals

 * Azzanadra - A powerful Mahjarrat attempting to revive Zaros. He is involved in the quests Desert Treasure and The Temple at Senntisten.
 * Eblis - A Bandit of the Kharidian Desert Bandit Camp. He is involved in the Desert Treasure quest.
 * Sliske - One of the more powerful Mahjarrat. His current whereabouts are unknown.
 * Jhallan - A cowardly Mahjarrat who is involved in The Tale of the Muspah quest.
 * Akthanakos - A camel-headed Mahjarrat who is enemies with Enakhra. He is involved in the Enakhra's Lament quest.
 * Possibly Wahisietel - A Mahjarrat mentioned in Zemouregal's Notes Part II. He does not currently appear in-game although he might be Ali the Wise as it is a anagram of Wahisietel, not to mention his unique relationship with Dr. Nabanik, who turns out to be Azzanadra.
 * Possibly Glarial - An ancient Elven queen. Her tomb on the inside, located near Baxtorian Falls, features the symbol of Zaros.
 * Nex - Leader of the last Zarosian army.
 * Fumus - Nex's bodyguard and a mage of smoke.
 * Umbra - Nex's bodyguard and a mage of shadow.
 * Cruor - Nex's bodyguard and a mage of blood.
 * Glacies - Nex's bodyguard and a mage of ice.

Players
In addition to his NPC followers, Zaros has many player followers. As a result of this, Zaros was rated the third most popular god in Jagex's odd gods poll; falling behind Saradomin by a mere 113 votes. However, one could argue that the polls were skewed by the fact that free players could vote, and that since the f2p worlds only focus on the big three (Saradomin, Guthix, and Zamorak) free-players predominately voted for them. Amongst member voters, Zaros rated second defeating the third place, Saradomin by nearly 900 votes. At the same only a small part of the players voted on this poll.

Bob the Cat
Bob the Jagex Cat was thought to be Zaros due to some dialogue when talking to him using the Amulet of Catspeak. However, there is no real evidence to support this. In the "Tail of Two Cats" quest, players find out that Bob is or was "Robert the Strong". Robert the Strong existed during the Fourth Age. If the player asks Bob the Cat while they have a cat following, he will tell their cat to join him and destroy Zamorak. Also, asking Bob the Cat in Catherby, should the player ask him about cats being created by Guthix and he will say "Well, I don't believe much really since I know I am Zar-... erm, well, no, I erm, meow?" The complete word could also be "Zarosian," which would only apply to his faith and not his identity.

After completing The Temple at Senntisten, Dr Nabanik (Azzanadra) tells you to not get your information from a talking cat, and states that Bob is not Zaros.

Affliated Quests

 * The Dig Site
 * Desert Treasure
 * The Temple at Senntisten

Affiliated Items

 * Ancient staff
 * Ancient talisman
 * Relic
 * Stone tablet
 * Ancient hymnal
 * Blood diamond
 * Ice diamond
 * Shadow diamond
 * Smoke diamond
 * Ancient book
 * Ancient vambraces
 * Ancient d'hide
 * Ancient coif
 * Ancient chaps
 * Ancient platebody
 * Ancient platelegs
 * Ancient full helm
 * Ancient plateskirt
 * Ancient kiteshield
 * Ancient crozier
 * Ancient mitre
 * Ancient stole
 * Ancient robe top
 * Ancient cloak
 * Ancient robe legs
 * Damaged book
 * Ancient page 1
 * Ancient page 2
 * Ancient page 3
 * Ancient page 4
 * Torva armour
 * Zaryte bow
 * Ancient Ceremonial robes
 * Pernix armour
 * Virtus armour

Trivia

 * "The time has come, my warriors, to begin your servitude to me...to my god. But first, you must die..." from The Fall of Six hints at the return of Zaros..