Zamorak

Zamorak (pronounced "Zam-oh-rack") is the god of chaos and a former Mahjarrat general in the Zarosian empire. He betrayed Zaros with a large group of followers, however, and attained godhood by absorbing the Empty Lord's power by accident. Many Saradominists believe that Zamorak is the god of evil, though this is not the case. His symbol is similar to the letter W, two horns or the Greek letter.

He was known under Zaros as General Zamorak the Scourge, for he was the most powerful Mahjarrat at that time, though Azzanadra nearly matched him.. Zamorak is unforgiving and dominant, but he rewards those who are loyal to him. This is proven by him aiding Lord Drakan to overtake the Hallowland, eventually invading Hallowvale, the lands he granted his loyal follower Hazeel (the rough area of what is now called Ardougne) and the fortress he gave Zemouregal after his help in the betrayal of Zaros. Some followers describe him as a liberator from Zaros' reign. Zaros' return is a major blow for both Zamorak and his followers, as well as for Saradomin; as some of Zaros' most powerful followers from the Second Age still remain today.

Arrival to Gielinor
The Mahjarrat came from the realm of Freneskae, and were led by Icthlarin, Menaphite god of the dead, to fight against Zarosian invaders, as Zaros was attempting to claim the Kharidian Desert. Back then, Zamorak was the single most powerful of his kin and a feared warlord by all. At the same time, Amascut, Icthlarin's sister and goddess of rebirth, was tainted after witnessing the Mahjarrat's capabilities leading to her mind becoming warped, leaving her the divine embodiment of destruction, soon gaining the nickname "The Devourer". The Mahjarrat fought well for the Menaphites and brought the Empty Lord's campaign to capture the Kharidian Lands to a halt. Zamorak's valiant and successful methods quickly earnt him the nickname "The Scourge". Instead of sending in new troops, Zaros decided to recruit the Mahjarrat. At the promise of more warfare and skirmish, the Mahjarrat agreed and left Icthlarin's service for Zaros'.

Under Zaros' service
Zamorak cared only for battle and power. On one occasion, his fellow Mahjarrat Enakhra built a large temple for him in the western Kharidian Lands as a sign of affection for him, but Zamorak rejected the gift, simply stating that he'd prefer a weapon instead. The Scourge soon became one of the most valued soldiers amongst Zaros' armies, which consisted of wicked creatures he'd brought from their respective realms, such as dragon riders, vampyres from Vampyrium, flocks of demons from the Pandemonium Realm and now the Mahjarrat from Freneskae. Zamorak, quickly ascending to the rank of general, was given only the most important missions by the Empty Lord, although the latter always remained alert.

On one such mission, Zamorak, Enakhra, the elder demon Thammaron, the scholar Perjour, the human warrior Viggora and the auspah Char (who had only been known to the others as a dancer prior to the mission) were to raid a barbarian settlement in the west. They set off but were soon attacked and Char was captured. When she awoke, she saw fellow Auspah being used as slaves by the barbarians for their fire-based powers and she too was commanded by one of them. Angered by this, Char grew in size and unleashed her full rage upon the barbarians, ravaging the camp. Zamorak and the others had been sitting a distance away, enjoying the sight. Zamorak then took Perjour's journal, the contents of which were directly transferred to Zaros' mind so he could track everything Perjour was thinking. He made a duplicate without these mind-reading powers which he gave back to Perjour, keeping the real book for himself. It is likely that he was already preparing to betray his lord at this time.

The betrayal
His thoughts now hidden from the Empty Lord, Zamorak started planning his betrayal with his closest allies. His primary goal was to eliminate Zaros' other generals to increase the chances of victory. Very little of these actions of Zamorak's are known and only the eradication of Char is available in detail. On a mission to the west to suppress the elven armies of Seren, Zamorak made his move. While Char was preoccupied battling elves, Zamorak approached her from behind and impaled her with a poisoned dagger. He did not intend to kill her, rather to make sure she could not prevent Zaros from being defeated but still live in pain to witness it happening. Char fell to the ground, her eyes burning with eternal hatred for Zamorak as he left her and returned to his co-conspirators.

"Many thousands of years ago, I was a general in Zaros's army. Zaros believed Seren was planning something on her crystalline city. Far away from his empire, he sent out a scout party. This had to go undiscovered, so Zaros only sent a small group of trusted followers. I am not one to question my god, but I disagreed with this choice from the start. He chose me, of course, but the rest of part was made up of Zamorak, and selected members of Zamorak’s ranks. (...) We were on our outward journey when we were ambushed by elven out-riders. Individually they were no match for us, but we were heavily outnumbered. In the middle of the battle, I turned to Zamorak. He was not fighting, but walking calmly towards me. I could not have expected it: not such betrayal in the middle of our enemies. He stabbed me with a poisonous dagger. He did not mean to kill me, he knew the poison would slow me, and stop me from ever reaching Zaros before it was too late, he wanted me to live with my pain."

- Char, after re-obtaining power in the Fifth Age

At approximately the same time, a Saradominist explorer by the name of Valdez found a large underground temple somewhere on Gielinor, and within was an Elder Artefact which Armadyl had hidden there after finding it: the staff of Armadyl. Realising the magnitude of his find and how grateful Saradomin would be with it, Valdez wrapped the staff in rags and went on his way to Entrana. However, he was intercepted by the sneaky thief Rennard, who stole the staff and, even without being aware of its divine powers, recognised it as a powerful weapon. Figuring Zaros might be an interested buyer, he hired a messenger - Kharrim - to inform the Empty Lord. But Kharrim's loyalty lay with Zamorak and he told his master how a drunk thief would provide him the very staff of Armadyl, which would make the attempt to usurp Zaros actually possible. Zamorak and his allies went to Rennard and bought the staff off him for a ridiculously low price, boosting Kharrim's prestige amongst the Zamorakians.

Later, what turned out to be a week before the plan would be executed, Zamorak approached the five remaining Dragon Riders of Zaros, and made them an offer; that he would provide them what Zaros could not deliver, in exchange for two of their number joining him as personal bodyguards during the attack. Morvannon and Apropos agreed to the deal, believing that if they helped Zamorak take Zaros' place as a god, he would cure their infertility.

Soon, the Saradominist spy Lennissa got ear of Zamorak's having the staff. Being under the suspicions of Lucien, another Mahjarrat, she could not act, so she informed her superior; the wizard Dhalak. Dhalak knew that, should Zamorak succeed, the world would be ridden of Zaros. As such, instead of reporting to Saradomin, Dhalak placed a powerful enchantment upon the staff that would conceal it from Zaros - an action he would later regret.

Desiring the use of more Elder Artefacts, Zamorak sent Perjour, who, in fear, had switched sides, to the island of Karamja. There he entered TzHaar City and explored the deeper parts of the volcano in search of the Elder Kiln, so that Zamorak could build an army of rock creatures, possibly even the TokHaar. Perjour, keeping a journal about his progress, eventually stumbled upon a door, the locking mechanism of which he could not comprehend. As the security system was activated by his presence and hordes of lava creatures swarmed inside, Perjour was killed. His charred skeleton remains in the cave today. This meant that Zamorak could not use the Elder Kiln to strengthen himself further.

Achieving godhood
Zamorak made sure that any enemies would be kept at bay, such as Azzanadra, who was occupied elsewhere. He and his followers went forward to assault Zaros' castle under the pretence of discussing war plans. Hazeel, Enakhra, Zemouregal, Viggora, Lowerniel Drakan, Thammaron, Morvannon and Apropos soon attacked, however, and the Zarosians retaliated. While these distracted Zaros' bodyguards, Zamorak unsheathed the staff and duelled Zaros himself, stabbing it into his back with great force. The blow weakened Zaros, but he still remained more powerful than Zamorak and was leading in the duel. Zamorak fought valiantly, but eventually he failed to withstand Zaros' attacks. Zaros grabbed Zamorak by the throat and proceeded to choke him, but somehow tripped and began to fall. The staff, still sticking out of his back, pierced his entire body and impaled Zamorak too. It now served as a conduit for power and, by utter luck, transferred a significant portion of Zaros' power into Zamorak.

Zaros promptly began to fade away from Gielinor. To avoid death, however, he abandoned his body and, incorporeal, fled to a very distant dimension, though just before he disappeared he was able to curse all involved in the revolt to be invisible ghosts for the rest of eternity. The curse had immediate effect; Viggora too began to fade and the cheering Zamorakians could not hear him scream for help. Valdez, Rennard, Kharrim, Lennissa and Dhalak were affected by the curse of Zaros as well. Zamorak and his fellow Mahjarrat, and the other creatures that took part in the attack, were seemingly unharmed though. Despite being stricken by the curse, their magical essence and life force prevented it from infesting them like it did with the humans.

Zamorak, now the most powerful mortal alive, awaited what would happen next. Despite their fear of Zaros, it was wrong for a mortal to supposedly kill a deity and the other gods banished Zamorak from Gielinor for what he had done. But soon, Zamorak returned triumphantly, now a god himself. While it is still unknown how exactly he returned and obtained godhood, it is fact that Zamorak had somehow obtained the Stone of Jas and used it to attain godhood in conjunction with the staff. Zamorak rewarded those who had helped him: Hazeel was given the area that is now Ardougne; Drakan and his vampyres were free to invade the Hallowland; Zemouregal got a fortress near the Ritual site; Thammaron could conquer Uzer. Note that the two dragon riders were labelled traitors by the other Zamorakians; vampyres assassinated Apropos while a herd of hellhounds obliviated Morvannon. Zamorak travelled to many realms to acquire new followers, such as the gorak and bloodveld. Some other Mahjarrat, the entire vampyre race, most of the demon army, the former battalions of Viggora and many others switched their allegiance to Zamorak, and, with Zaros out of the way, he believed he could conquer Gielinor. To ensure that he would not be betrayed like Zaros, he travelled to the Infernal Dimensions where he acquired special robes of subjugation from the crafting demon Razulei. He ordered his followers to wear these robes - those that were not loyal to him were tortured at once and thus Zamorak's army was cleansed. The other gods declared war on Zamorak, ending the Second Age: another God War had begun.

During the God Wars
The God Wars initially started with an extermination of all that reminded of Zaros and his former following. Most of these followers went into hiding, like Sliske, but others didn't and were slaughtered. Zamorakian and Saradominist factions temporarily allied to destroy the Zarosian cities in Forinthry: Dareeyak, Paddewwa, Lassar, Annakarl and Carralangar amongst others soon fell. Annakarl would be the site of a battle for what remained of the fortress three millennia later. Only the capital of the Zarosian empire, Senntisten, stood strong (only in the last few centuries of the war, almost four millennia later, did Senntisten succumb to Zamorakian and Saradominist troops. It was taken over by Zamorakians and later ravaged by Saradominists, who built a city over it, Saranthium, to make sure no trace of the once great capital remained). Azzanadra operated from there, in an attempt to bring Zaros back. In addition, Saradomin somehow confiscated the Stone of Jas, likely with the help of his Elder Crown, at the beginning of the wars, and used it to his advantage.

While Azzanadra defended Senntisten, the other Zarosians attempted to conquer the Ritual Site. An atrocious monstrosity called Nex, feared by the gods themselves, led these actions. The Saradominist forces managed to lure Nex and her armies into an icy cavern, realising she was unstoppable, where she was magically sealed. The Saradominists then built the Temple of Lost Ancients around it to mark their victory. Soon, other gods began to participate in the war; Armadyl sent forth his Aviantese and Bandos arrived to Gielinor, only to find that most races had already aligned themselves with a god, thus forcing him to steal goblins from Yu'Biusk and win other less intelligent races for himself so that he could fight in the war. Concurrently, the vampyres, led by Drakan, conquered the Hallowland and took over its capital Hallowvale, ending the peaceful reign of the Icyene there. Demon armies began the Kharidian Campaign, turning the lands into a desert while at it. During the Battle of Uzer, Thammaron and his armies destroyed most of the city, but were eventually defeated by the combined forces of the elite golems, the troops of Queen Senliten and Azzanadra. It took another combined effort of Zamorakians and Saradominists to bring Azzanadra to his knees and imprison him in the Jaldraocht Pyramid. Meanwhile, Balfrug Kreeyath's armies advanced to the southern polis of Ullek and sent it straight to oblivion. A while after Nex's imprisonment, the godsword was forged. Zamorak discovered this, however, and when a special flock of Aviantese transported this sword through the mountains of the Troll Country, they were ambushed by a group of demons near the Saradominist temple. A skirmish started which soon grew into the Battle for the Godsword between Saradominist, Zamorakian, Armadylian and Bandosian forces, each god sending one of their most powerful generals there. The Bandosian troops were led by General Graardor, a huge and fearsome ourg. Commander Zilyana, a combative Icyene, led the Saradominists. Aviansie commander Kree'arra led his birds in the name of Armadyl. Zamorak stationed a huge demon by the name of K'ril Tsutsaroth (who had been summoned to the realm by the Mahjarrat Bilrach some time earlier) to claim the god sword. Armadyl, Saradomin and Bandos planned to unite and defeat Zamorak, but everyone turned against each other instead. During the battle, the devious Zarosian Mahjarrat Sliske re-surfaced. Posing as a Guthixian druid, he convinced a group of Saradominists of the horror of the war and converted them to Guthixian religion. He taught them a ritual to wake Guthix and end the wars, which was performed. The ritual had actually released Nex and her armies from their prison and she immediately began to fight all the factions in revenge. Sliske then revealed his true identity and teleported away. With amazing effort, the four other gods joined forces to defeat Nex and she was imprisoned once more, the door locked by a special ritual. Some unknown spell froze the dungeon that had been created, including all of its inhabitants. Only in the Fifth Age did tectonic activity thaw it, and the armies, oblivious to time, still fight on. In the last moment of the God Wars, Zamorak found the Stone of Jas and took it with him to Forinthry. He reduced the entire continent to a barren wasteland, which became known as the Wilderness. As a result, the Anima Mundi cried out in agony. This cry awoke Guthix, who had been in a deep slumber since the First Age, and, upon seeing that his perfect world had been scarred by the gods he detested so much, he banished all gods, including Zamorak, from the planet. He created a set of edicts to avoid any deity from directly interfering with Gielinor in the future and assigned Guardians of Guthix to guard important locations. By the end of the God Wars, only tiny ruins left hints at what Forinthry once was - only the fortress of Ghorrock remained in the icy north and Khazard, a Mahjarrat born to Palkeera during the wars, took up residence in it.

Zamorak's followers remained and, throughout the Fourth and Fifth Ages, would cause quite some chaos around the world, mostly in conflicts against Saradominists. Meanwhile, Zamorak looked for a way to return to Gielinor, but ultimately could not find one.

Return to Gielinor
Since then, many Zamorakian organisations have tried bringing their god back. The world being mostly Saradominist in the Fifth Age, this did not go effortlessly. In the west of Kandarin and Tirannwn, the Iorwerth Clan of the elves, along with King Lathas of East Ardougne and the Mourner Death Guard are conspiring to returning a Dark Lord, extremely likely to be Zamorak. They required the power of the Temple of Light and the death altar for this, but an adventurer reinforced the temple's safeguard in 169, halting the Mourner's attempts to obtain this power. In the Fourth Age, Bilrach began a dig downwards in the Daemonheim castle east of the Wilderness, being called by whispers in his head. Bilrach assumed these to be Zamorak's and thus he and his army began to dig kilometers downwards in search of 'The Rift', visiting many strange realms and creatures while at it. In 1669, Lucien and Zemouregal sent the former daughter's Moia after Bilrach to find out what was going on and she reached and confronted Bilrach in 168 of the Fifth Age. They began to venture to the last floor, where The Rift supposedly was, together but unanswered questions leave Zamorak's return doubtful.

In 169 of the Fifth Age, Guthix' cave, where he had gone to sleep after the God Wars, was found by an archaeologist. The cave was soon invaded by factions of nearly all gods, including Zamorak's. Zemouregal, Enakhra and K'ril Tsutsaroth, each with their own legion of followers, tried to reach and kill Guthix to return Zamorak to the world. Due to a lack of cohesion amongst them, they all failed and were forced to return to their homes. Through a series of events in the cave, Sliske eventually slew Guthix with the staff of Armadyl, nullifying the Edicts. Saradomin returned first and concluded that other gods, including Zamorak, would soon follow. Currently, Zamorak is planning in his own realm, awaiting a good opportunity to return in the Sixth Age.

Groups and races

 * Monks of Zamorak are monks who have devoted their life to the worship of Zamorak
 * Chaos Dwarves, a mutated dwarf race, conducted by the Red Axe who follow Zamorak
 * Dark wizards and various other similarly-titled mages such as witches
 * The Dagon'hai, a Zamorakian organisation of powerful wizards
 * The Kinshra, a large, militant organisation that are also known as the Black Knights
 * Khazard's Army, an army owned by General Khazard the Mahjarrat warlord
 * Gargoyles, animated flying creatures made of rock
 * Gorak, powerful and aggressive beasts that look like a combination of a chicken and a rhinoceros
 * Undead, various kinds of re-animated dead beings
 * Demons, a race from the Pandemonium Realm - they generally look like wicked, red beasts, often with wings, although there are variations
 * A number of Mahjarrat
 * Specific Morytanian races - werewolves and vampyres
 * Chaos druids, occultists who practice in dark magics and sacrifices
 * Dark Gnomes of Arposandra - Zamorakian gnomes who have ties with The Red Axe Mining company and the Mourners
 * Zamorak Magical Institute, an organisation attempting to steal various runecrafting secrets from the Wizards' Tower
 * The Huzamogaarb tribe of goblins, although technically not followers of Zamorak, actually fought for Zamorak during the God Wars as footsoldiers, which might be why he holds goblins in low regard
 * The Iorwerth Clan and Prifddinas Death Guard, dark-hearted elves who worship the Dark Lord
 * Necromancers, dark mages who specialise in raising beings from the dead
 * Zamorakian Order of Paterdomus, Zamorakian extremists that have over-thrown the Temple of Paterdomus
 * Order of Red Wizards, one of the former four orders of the first Wizards' Tower and inventors of the elemental spells

Notable individuals

 * Hazeel - A fellow Mahjarrat who helped Zamorak rebel against Zaros. Was defeated by Carnilleans, but a Cult of Hazeel has plans to return him.
 * Enakhra - A fellow Mahjarrat who built a temple to Zamorak in the desert. She is known to have strong feelings for Zamorak.
 * Zemouregal - A fellow Mahjarrat who launched an assault on Varrock from the Wilderness and defeated Arrav in the process.
 * Bilrach - A fellow Mahjarrat who created the tunnels under Daemonheim. He appears to be zealously loyal to Zamorak. He has been reported as deceased by other Mahjarrat while seeking the "great power" within Daemonheim.
 * Lucien - A fellow Mahjarrat who was into ancient artefacts and knowledge. He tried ascending to godhood by collecting Elder Artefacts and usurping Zamorak in the Fifth Age, but was defeated by Dragonkin.
 * Lord Lowerniel Vergidiyad Drakan - An immensely powerful vampyre, lord of Morytania.
 * Lord Iban - A former Black Knight claiming to be the spiritual son of Zamorak. He has taken control of the Underground Pass but was thrown into the Well of the Damned by an adventurer hired by King Lathas.
 * Surok Magis - The new leader of the Dagon'hai who attempted to take control over Misthalin by manipulating the mind of King Roald. Currently incarcerated when he was captured working for Lucien.
 * Lord Iorwerth - A dark-hearted Elven lord and leader of the Iorwerth Clan.
 * King Lathas - Ally of Iorwerth and currently plotting to overthrow Camelot.
 * Thammaron - An elder demon who was a lieutenant to Zamorak. Thammaron died after the Battle of Uzer.
 * K'ril Tsutsaroth - One of Zamorak's most feared tools of destruction. He now resides in the God Wars Dungeon.
 * Balfrug Kreeyath - A demon who played a large part of destroying Ullek. He is now a bodyguard of K'ril Tsutsaroth.
 * Solus Dellagar - A major criminal hunted by the Temple Knights. Was assassinated in a "trial" of an initiate Temple Knight.
 * Lord Daquarius - Current Lord of the Kinshra.
 * Scorpius - A famous astronomer who has since become a ghost and a follower of Zamorak.
 * Tarn Razorlor - A necromancer lurking in the depths of the Mort Ridge Mine. Was killed by an adventurer.
 * Viggora - Powerful human warrior who aided Zamorak in his betrayal of Zaros. He was cursed by Zaros and now roams the land as a ghost.
 * Zandar Horfyre - A dark wizard who runs the Dark Wizards' Tower west of Falador.
 * Hreidmar - Leader of the Red Axe company, a Zamorakian company in the Dwarven Consortium.
 * The Culinaromancer - An evil and lunatic mage who draws his power from food. After attempting to kill the Lumbridge Secret Council, he was defeated and his head exploded.
 * Invrigar the Necromancer - A necromancer who resides at the top of the Necromancer Tower, southeast of Ardougne.
 * Dark mage - A mage who keeps the abyssal rift open. He resides in the Abyss where he prevents the universe from exploding.
 * Vanstrom Klause - A powerful vampyre tasked by Lord Drakan to destroy the last Icyene. Was killed by the Myreque.
 * Nezikchened - An ancient demon who once ruled Kharazi. He was defeated by an aspiring Legends' Guild member.
 * Agrith Naar - An ancient demon of the weather, disguised as Denath, a dark mage. He was killed by an adventurer.
 * Delrith - An ancient demon who attacked Varrock, banished most recently by the same adventurer.
 * Wizard Ellaron - Last Red Wizard to live. He died in the Abyss due to an overflow of magical energy inside him after attempting to blow up the Wizards' Tower.
 * Kal'Ger the Warmonger - Marshal of the Kal'gerion demons, aided by five generals, currently guarding Daemonheim for Bilrach.
 * Lord Sulla - Previous Lord of the Kinshra and primary antagonist of the Runescape novel Betrayal at Falador. He was killed in his attempt to escape Asgarnia.
 * Tenebra - Highly powerful Vampyre and primary antagonist of the Runescape novel Legacy of Blood.



Zamorak's role in the present
Zamorak, along with many other gods, still watches over Gielinor and despise its "peace", he is currently hunting for a possible weakness in order to break the Edicts of Guthix and return to Gielinor, his most desired wish. He can still provide power to his followers, cause natural disasters and cast spells on Gielinor, however, it is a limited amount of power he can use at a time.

In the caves and dungeons of the Wilderness castle of Daemonheim, players discovered that one of Zamorak's most loyal Mahjarrat and generals, Bilrach, was (or is) working hard through a number of centuries to reach the bottom of the complex dungeon system. After months of venturing these dungeons, players discovered through his journals that he was attempting to reach a place known only as "The Rift" in order to retrieve a valuable treasure. It is unknown what happened to him, but due to the intensity of the strange power once felt in Gielinor, it is very possible that he died.

When the occult floors of Daemonheim were finally accessible by adventurers seeking Bilrach, they found more journals revealing his true purpose. In the Rift, there is an inter-dimensional portal, that Bilrach plans to use in order to bring Zamorak back to Gielinor, bypassing the Edicts of Guthix.

Following the events of The World Wakes, since Guthix is killed by the hands of Sliske, the Edicts of Guthix are gone. This means that Zamorak himself can return to Gielinor, however it is unknown what The Rift deep under Daemonheim has to do with this.

Disputed alignment
In the "Lore Live Stream with Mods Mark and Osborne", see here, a question was asked about the alignment of Zaros. While introducing this question, the questioner said that the alignments for Guthix, Zamorak and Saradomin were: Balance, Chaos and Order - respectively. Before answering the question about Zaros, Mod Mark said that they are not necessarily agreeing with the ascribed alignments of Guthix, Zamorak and Saradomin - saying nothing further about the topic. That is possibly because these are not the only things these gods wish to provide. It's also possible that the wishes of the gods have been confused over time; as has been mentioned previously, the world has been primarily Saradominist for a long time, and it's likely that they have twisted the facts a little when it comes to information on the gods they didn't like. Dakh'thoulan Aegis, a member of the Dagon'hai, seems to believe this.

Trivia

 * Even though they are usually enemies, Zamorak and Saradomin allied to wipe Zaros' forces from the face of Gielinor. They succeed with most, although they locked some alive into the Ancient Prison along with Zarosian general Nex.
 * Of the three original major gods, Zamorak is the only one not to have appeared in game. Guthix appeared in a cutscene during Meeting History, while Saradomin appeared in a cutscene during Ritual of the Mahjarrat. They both re-appeared in The World Wakes.
 * During the Witch's House quest, there is a statue of Zamorak which when examined says "A depiction of the evil god Zamorak". Since this is your character's point of view, it is highly unlikely that this is a direct confirmation of Zamorak's morality..