Sliske

Sliske (pronounced SLISS-kay) is a mysterious, cunning and powerful Mahjarrat responsible for the death of the god of balance, Guthix, and is believed by some to have attained godhood by doing so. Although he always seemed loyal to Zaros, events following the death of Guthix have caused fellow Zarosians to doubt this. He was also the first Mahjarrat to switch allegiance and follow Zaros. Azzanadra describes him as "Sliske the serpent-tongued, who delves the shadows" and Zemouregal calls him: "one of the more powerful of our number" and "a slippery fellow."

Sliske enjoys using tricks and lies to manipulate others, while being elusive unless he desires to seek you himself. He also collects strong warriors and adds them to his collection as his undead wights, which he uses in battle. In 169 of the Fifth Age, he established his name permanently in the history of Gielinor when he slew Guthix using the Staff of Armadyl, ending the age abruptly and supplying himself with significant amounts of power, possibly allowing him to ascend to godhood.

Personality
Although supposedly a devout Zarosian, Sliske is very unlike his fellow Zarosian Mahjarrat. In line with his titles, Sliske is extremely cunning, confident, an excellent liar and able to betray allies at a whim. He often works towards his own goals while making his allies believe what they want. This is most evident when he turned against an allied adventurer at the 18th Rejuvenation Ritual, and even more when he pretended to agree with Wahisietel, Akthanakos and Azzanadra to wake and bargain with Guthix to return Zaros, when in reality he had somehow obtained the Staff of Armadyl, planning to slay the god, and managed to do so in the end.

Sliske is devious and manipulative and whatever he does, it is always for the good of Zaros or himself. Whoever of the two benefits, Sliske chooses the path he deems the most 'fun', regardless of others' opinions. For example, he took the effort of having Saradominists release Nex rather than doing it himself, enjoying how they would summon their allies' own doom. Sliske is devoutly Zarosian, regarding the Zamorakians as stupid and misguided. Nevertheless, he is willing to agree with a Zarosian sacrifice at rituals, should that be necessary. At the 18th ritual, Sliske agreed to have Lucien sacrifice Jhallan, his once powerful but now weakened Zarosian ally, although he did join the other Zarosians in protecting him and fighting the Zamorakians.

As suggested by the fellow Mahjarrat's comments, Sliske has been proven to be quite intelligent and very cunning, and he is very aware of how he is regarded. His "serpent-tongued qualities" seem to be similar to the abilities of the ring of Charos. Azzanadra states that "too many would assume this to be just his manner of speaking – he is far from being a snake. Rather, his words carry weight in the mind, and have a way of bending the weak to his will". He has also stated that "power is fleeting, and Sliske always gets what he wants out of deals; I’d advise, should you ever meet him, not to make deals with him." This has been evident many times in history; when Sliske tricked Saradominists into releasing Nex, when he claimed the souls of the Barrows Brothers, when he attempted to get a new wight at the 18th Ritual and when he pretended to agree with the other Zarosians to not kill Guthix, for example.

Abilities
Not much is known of Sliske's powers. He is known for "delving the shadows" and having "powers over shadows", as Zemouregal mentioned in his notes. Sliske's "power over shadows" is noted to be very useful by Azzanadra, who states that "Not many of our kind are able to reach into the Shadow Realm, but of those who can, Sliske’s mastery is unmatched." Azzanadra has also said of Sliske, "An ally he may be, but I did not become master of my Lord's legions without being sure of the powers wielded by those close to me. Sliske is one whose actions can be seen each and every day in the smallest of this world's details."

Sliske has great control over the undead, as he is the stranger described in The Fall of Six who granted the Barrows Brothers their abilities and reanimated their spirits; the stranger in the tale is described as "delving into the shadows at [the camp's] edge". Azzanadra states that "Sliske himself did not kill his Barrows toys, but it was the power he granted them that sealed their fate." This is true, for the brothers died naturally before Sliske claimed them for his collection. It seems Sliske only controls specific warriors of whom he thinks are worthy of becoming his slaves, unlike Zemouregal, who takes any zombie as his servant, and trains them later.

Aside from his power over his wights, the ability to convert new warriors to wights and his hitherto unrivalled mastery of the Shadow Realm (although it is rumoured that Zaros has an even better grasp on it), virtually nothing has been seen of Sliske's direct combat abilities. Although he did slay Guthix, Elder Weapons do not seem to require sufficient experience to be used, as was proven with Guthix's stabbing of Skargaroth, who, at the time, was nothing but a mere craftsman or farmer with no experience in battle whatsoever. In fact, it appears Sliske tries to avoid direct confrontations whenever possible. After the God Wars had begun, Sliske disappeared and when he later emerged during the Battle for the Godsword, he took the effort to gather Saradominists to release Nex instead of doing it himself, likely because he deemed it the most fun way to accomplish his goal. Nevertheless, it can be assumed that Sliske, being a Mahjarrat and quite a powerful one too, is very proficient at combat and has great magical skill.

Arrival to Gielinor
Like the other Mahjarrat, Sliske lived on Freneskae, the realm of perpetual warfare, along with the other Children of Mah tribes. Here, they would live to survive the elements and the destructive power of the legendary "Mother Mah", an Elder God whom they would prevent from wreaking havoc on Freneskae through the Rituals of Rejuvenation and Enervation, although at least one Mahjarrat regarded her as a mere myth and the rituals as superstitious traditions. Due to the constant conflict with neighbouring tribes such as the Mahserrat as well as the frequent sacrifices at the Rituals, the Mahjarrat tribe never counted more than a few hundred members and was ruled.

In the Second Age of Gielinor, however, the two demi-gods Icthlarin and Amascut travelled to Freneskae in order to recruit the Mahjarrat to fight the Zarosian invaders of their homeland, the Kharidian Empire, in the Kharidian - Zarosian War. Some Mahjarrat opposed the proposal while others agreed to go, causing a large battle to break out. Both Azzanadra and Temekel argued that the Mahjarrat should go with Icthlarin and Kharshai was one of the most excited at the prospect of leaving Freneskae, as Gielinor is a much kinder realm than Freneskae was.. Eventually, after the death of Salisard and the sacrifice of Abrogal, those in favour of travelling to Gielinor emerged victoriously and the entire Mahjarrat tribe accompanied the two gods to Gielinor. There, Sliske aided the Menaphite warriors in driving back the Zarosian army, with success. During this time, they were known as the Stern Judges of Icthlarin.

However, as the Menaphites had almost ensured their victory a couple of years later, the Mahjarrat Sliske, who had got into a feud with Icthlarin over his methods in battle, approached the Zarosian legate, a Chthonian demon named Duke Ceres, and made arrangements to desert the Menaphites and join Zaros. Most of the Mahjarrat convened at the fortress of Kharid-et and soon emerged, joining arms with the Zarosians, proceeding to slaughter the retreating Menaphite armies. The god Tumeken, father of Icthlarin and Amascut, swiftly interfered by sacrificing himself, his armies and half of his empire to repel the Zarosians; he used his powers of fire to create a massive explosion, turning half of the empire into a desert wasteland as well as obliterating his own army and most of the Zarosian one. Of the approximately five hundred Mahjarrat present, less than a fifth survived the explosion thanks to Azzanadra, who quickly erected a magical barrier as protection. Sliske was amongst those to survive and join the remainder of the Zarosian on the march to Forinthry. He was given the rank of tribune in the Army of Zaros.

He was described by Gram Kobold, a mercenary for the Menaphites at the time, as being dangerous and untrustworthy, yet Kobold felt a connection with him. Sliske fought with immense pleasure, constantly moving through the Shadow Realm to surprise his Zarosian opponents before quickly killing them and resurrecting them as undead wights. On one occasion, he saved Kobold from the blade of a Zarosian scout, put his finger to his lips, grinned and disappeared, leaving the mercenary in awe. Soon, however, Sliske's methods began to displease Icthlarin, especially because he kept dead warriors from moving to the afterlife, using them as his slaves instead. After the Zarosians were repelled from the desert, Icthlarin requested Sliske hand over his wights, and when he refused, he took all of Sliske's wights by force and released their souls. Shortly after this, the god's sister, Amascut, lost her mind "after witnessing the Mahjarrat's power", suggesting Sliske's involvement in a possible act of vengeance.

He had a high rank in Zaros' army, although he was not a general. The most plausible explanation for this is that such a high position would ask too much responsibility of the Mahjarrat, and he desired more freedom to be able to act as he pleased. It may also be that, despite his skill, he is not a particularly good leader. Certainly he wouldn't be too concerned about conserving the lives of his soldiers. Instead, Sliske served as Praefectus of the Praetorians, effectively making him the head of Senntisten's secret police.

At some point, Sliske wrote and performed a play for Senntisten's elite, including demons and powerful humans merchants and bureaucrats. Before the play, Sliske would take 'unwanted' humans from the city streets, dress them with brightly coloured costumes and fit them with crude wooden masks. These masks would speak aloud and control the players' movements, causing them to perform Sliske's play jerkily, able only to watch themselves carry out these actions, powerless to resist. The climax of the play often saw the players forced to stab each-other to death with their weapons, though in one particularly memorable showing one 'actor' died mid-way through the performance - in response, Sliske's masks continued to control the corpse as if it were alive, and the show continued. Sliske's play was immensely popular with the crowds and was performed a dozen times until Sliske himself grew bored and moved on to another pet project.

Not a lot is known about Sliske's actions during the fall of Zaros, when Zaros's general Zamorak started a rebellion which ended with Zaros vanished and Zamorak becoming a god himself, save that when Zamorak struck, Sliske was 'elsewhere'. Zamorak's forces cooperated with Saradomin's to destroy everything that remained of the Empty Lord's empire throughout the God Wars, which Zamorak had declared in an attempt to reclaim the Stone of Jas. This Zarosian Extermination proved mostly successful, seeing that nearly all Zarosian settlements fell and most of his followers switched sides, went into hiding (Sliske amongst these) or were slaughtered. While Sliske did not actively participate in the wars, unlike allies such as Azzanadra or Wahisietel, he certainly did have involvement in them.

Morytania Campaign
Some time after his aid in the coup of Zaros, vampyre overlord Lowerniel Vergidiyad Drakan took up the plan to conquer Hallowland and claim it as his own, after which Drakan invaded the country with his army of vampyres. The defending Icyene put up a good fight, but the country eventually fell. When he reached the capital Hallowvale, where humans and Icyene lived in peace, he managed to kidnap their queen's husband Ascertes, forcing Queen Efaritay to surrender and give up the city. Drakan gave power to an already strong vampyre named Vanstrom Klause to find the last Icyene of Hallowland, Efaritay's son Safalaan, and renamed the city Meiyerditch. Soon, he turned the city into a ghetto where humans were farmed for blood and the entire continent was permanently covered in dark clouds. Its once pristine environment became a haunted swamp, infested with ferocious monsters.

A Saradominist campaign was launched at the end of the God Wars (one of several in history that attempted to liberate the Sanguinesti region, the area from which Drakan ruled), consisting of an army of several thousand mercenaries and warriors, in an attempt to reclaim "Morytania" in the name of Saradomin. They were led by six brothers, each very adept at their branch of combat. Sliske appeared before them as the campaign was about to set off, disguised once again, and granted them great powers. The campaign advanced, albeit with difficulty. After one last stop, the army reached the walls of the capital Darkmeyer and Castle Drakan. Sliske then appeared before the six brothers, Ahrim, Dharok, Guthan, Karil, Torag and Verac, and spoke to them. He told them that he had given them power so that they could serve their god, but now, it was time for them to serve his own. The brothers all subsequently died the next night and were interred under barrows just outside Darkmeyer, ending their campaign. Sliske raised the brothers as his undead minions and tasked them with guarding a precious Zarosian artefact. Drakan had suffered a blow, but due to the brothers' deaths, the campaign failed and the vampyres turned out victorious.

Sliske then proceeded to fulfill an assignment for his ally Azzanadra, who had been imprisoned in Jaldraocht pyramid after fruitlessly attempting to restore communication with Zaros. Sliske took an ancient artefact and concealed it within the Barrows crypts, ordering his wights to guard it. The artefact was an icon that absorbed prayer energy and Azzanadra figured he would later need it. The Barrows Brothers did a good job, as the icon was never stolen until Azzanadra later ordered its theft.

Release of Nex
As the purge of Zaros' followers reached its peak, the last army of Zaros was trying to secure the location of the Mahjarrat ritual stone when they were attacked by Saradominists. Zaros' forces were led by the devastating creature Nex. The Saradominists had no hope of defeating such a strong force, so with great effort they drove Zaros' army back into a cave where they were sent into an enchanted sleep, after which the cave was sealed. Saradomin then erected the Temple of Lost Ancients around it. As even Zaros's most powerful champion, Azzanadra, fell to the forces of Zamorak and Saradomin, and the settlements of Zaros fell one by one, Sliske did what he did best and went into hiding.

Towards the end of the God Wars, a small flock of Armadyl's Aviantese followers were ambushed by a much larger group of demons that Zamorak had sent. The Aviantese carried the "Godsword", an exceptionally powerful weapon imbued with the power of a deity. Unable to repel the attack, the Aviantese fled into the very same temple, unaware of what it covered. Forces from all sides soon arrived, and the Battle for the Godsword erupted.

Sliske, seizing the opportunity, disguised himself as a follower of Guthix and used his manipulating influence on a group of Saradominists. He told them that Guthix was an almighty god, the only one powerful enough to stop the war (which, some time later, turned out to be true) and that a ritual had to be performed to awake Guthix from his slumber. The priests, amongst whose number was Ashuelot Reis, converted to Guthixianism and performed the ritual. To their horror, the ritual instead unlocked the seal Saradomin had placed, thus opening the Ancient Prison, as had been the Mahjarrat's intention. Nex and her forces were free, and caused huge losses amongst all sides. Sliske slipped away again, his work done.

Unbeknownst to Sliske, all four forces (those of Zamorak, Armadyl, Saradomin and Bandos) united for the only time in history to drive back the Zarosians. Eventually, they succeeded and they sealed the army of Nex behind a frozen door. Its key was smashed into four pieces, one to be guarded by each faction. Their common threat defeated, the factions once again broke into fighting one another. Ashuelot saw the error of her ways and became a nature spirit in the icy prison, ready to warn people for the atrocities ahead should they ever breach the frozen door.

When the God Wars were brought to an end by Guthix's large campaign and subsequent banishment of the gods with the Edicts of Guthix, the god of balance ordered a powerful mage, Aeternam, to freeze the temple in time, causing Nex and all others to enter a magical sleep.

18th Ritual of Rejuvenation
Sliske, as always, arrived to the Ritual in 169 of the Fifth Age shortly after Lucien. He revealed himself to the present adventurer as the individual who had been keeping The Barrows Brothers trapped as vengeful spirits. He appeared at Ghorrock for the Ritual of Rejuvenation just at the time the adventurer, whom he had been following for a while, Wahisietel, Sir Tiffy Cashien and a battalion of Temple Knights were about to fight Lucien and his forces, and joined the fight against Lucien, aiding in defeating the powerful Ice Demons that he summoned.

When the Ritual commenced, Sliske went along with Lucien's suggestion that the fellow Zarosian Jhallan should be sacrificed because he had become the weakest of their kind. When the decision was about to be made, Wahisietel demanded that Lucien had to be the one sacrificed due to the danger he posed to Gielinor, starting a fight between the Zarosian and the Zamorakian Mahjarrat. During the fight, Sliske summoned the Barrows Brothers once more to fight off Zemouregal's followers, starting with Armoured Zombies and ending with Zemouregal's second-in-command, Sharathteerk. Zemouregal summoned Arrav to keep Sliske and his wights at bay, but the adventurer broke Arrav's curse using the latter's heart and the hero of Varrock proceeded to send a flurry of attacks at Zemouregal. Unable to withstand both Arrav's and Azzanadra's attacks, Zemouregal begged Lucien for help, but after his cousin simply ignored him, he realised Wahisietel had been right and prompted all Mahjarrat to turn on Lucien. They agreed and both Zarosians and Zamorakians focused their attacks on the aspiring god.

After the Ritual was completed and Jhallan was sacrificed, Azzanadra summoned the power of Zaros, severely damaging Lucien in the process. Enraged, Lucien brought in and touched the Stone of Jas in attempt to use its power to punish the opposing Mahjarrat. However, the Dragonkin were summoned and they killed Lucien after a short but intense brawl. After witnessing Lucien's death, most of the Mahjarrat teleported away, terrified by the Dragonkin but satisfied by the outcome of the Ritual. Sliske was one of the two Mahjarrat that did not teleport away (the other being Wahisietel). Instead, impressed by the adventurer's power, Sliske remained to attempt to claim them as a new addition to his collection, but failed as the priest Akrisae saved them by jumping in front of the spell that Sliske had cast. Akrisae was then turned into a wight called Akrisae the Doomed and Sliske teleported away with his new minion, commenting that he would do for now, before Sir Tiffy could attack him.

Hunt for the Dragonkin
After the ritual, Sliske went in pursuit of the Dragonkin trio and found out that one of them, Strisath, had been assigned to guard the shaft of the Staff of Armadyl. Upon spotting the Mahjarrat, Strisath charged at him, holding the staff. However, this led him right into Sliske's trap for the Dragonkin in the Shadow Realm and the Dragonkin was immediately captured by him. Sliske proceeded to repair the staff by attaching another orb made from shards beneath the ritual plateau before turning his attention to his prisoner again.

Now in possession of the Staff of Armadyl, Sliske's powers and characteristic traits were amplified, causing him to gain a deeper desire for the treacherous plots he considers "fun".

Discovery of Guthix's retreat


Later, Sliske disguised himself as a shadowed figure to do some reconnaissance around RuneScape and follow the adventurer. He could be found around the Grand Exchange, the entrance to the God Wars Dungeon, and near the ruins by the Legends' Guild. Some time afterwards, an archaeologist from Varrock Museum, Orlando Smith, discovered an ancient Guthixian site in Kandarin. Thinking it may be the resting place of Guthix himself, a location that many Mahjarrat had looked for for a long time after the end of the God Wars, Sliske quickly formed a plan of action to find Guthix and undo his edicts. Azzanadra, Wahisietel and Akthanakos also became aware of this and decided to attempt and negotiate Zaros' return with Guthix once they would have reached him, for there would be much to learn from such an ancient being and it would be more beneficial to have only their god return. Sliske, though initially disagreeing, seemingly went along with the plan. Despite Wahisietel's reminders of Sliske's cunning nature, Azzanadra put his full trust in him.

When Orlando enlisted the adventurer's help to explore the dungeon (the adventurer strangely being able to open the ancient door), they accidentally set off the alarm system of the cavern, unbeknownst to them also awakening Guthix. After Orlando was slain by three automatons, which are part of the security system, thinking he was a Mahjarrat, Sliske presented himself, pretending to be Guthix. The adventurer did not believe this however, and Sliske revealed his true identity, explaining why the automatons had traced a Mahjarrat lifeform. He stated that his intention was to find Guthix and negotiate Zaros' return with him and not killing him, which is what other gods' followers were looking for. He explained that they were standing in Guthix's resting place and that triggering the alarm was sensible all over the world. He predicted that many other creatures were about to storm in, eager to reach Guthix and kill him to return their own god. As such, he advised that the adventurer side with the Zarosians, who would not kill Guthix, while pretending to side with the Guthixians (who would want to protect Guthix, obviously) to reach him first. When asked why Sliske should be trusted, he simply replied he shouldn't be.

After that, he concealed them in the Shadow Realm, and they visited the Wilderness Crater, where the sword Guthix had slammed into the ground when declaring his edicts was pulsating red light. Sliske explained that the sword had been activated when the alarm was triggered and that it is communicating with all the stone circles - include the Zamorakian one near Varrock. They then spied on Zemouregal and Sharathteerk in the former's fortress, seeing Zemouregal finding out that Guthix's cave has been discovered as some dark wizards reported to him that their stone circle was crying out with pain. They moved on to the entrance of the God Wars Dungeon and noticed Commander Zilyana flying off towards the cave to return Saradomin. As they returned to the cave, the ground began shaking when Zilyana, Kree'arra and K'ril Tsutsaroth stormed in in their attempt to assassinate Guthix, to which Sliske teleported away, advising the adventurer to try not to die. He then proceeded to the Ancient Prison and released Nex, while Azzanadra travelled to notify Char.

The slaying of Guthix
As the adventurer defeated Kree'arra and ventured further into the cave, allying themselves with the Guardians of Guthix and other important Guthixians, they arrived in the central chamber when all factions attacked at once. A mighty battle erupted and, after dealing with General Graardor, K'ril Tsutsaroth, Zemouregal and Enakhra (all come to return Bandos and Zamorak respectively) Zilyana appeared with her army and killed the Guardian of Guthix Cres, thinking him to be Guthix. Having secretly followed the Saradominists, the powerful Zarosians (Sliske excluded) swarmed the room and after a tense discussion, while no one payed attention, Sliske betrayed his faction and the adventurer, broke into the last chamber and quickly killed Guthix with the legendary Staff of Armadyl, proving his allies' trust misplaced. Even Azzanadra was surprised by Sliske's act, despite earlier warnings of Wahisietel not to believe that Sliske would not kill Guthix.

It is unknown if Sliske acquired the power of Guthix, if Guthix had already transferred his powers to the adventurer or if his power was partially lost. Sliske's allies still state with much security that such betrayal is normal for Sliske and that he is loyal to Zaros. It is currently unknown if he has become a god, but the other Zarosian Mahjarrat believe that he hasn't.

Sliske's Grand Ascendancy
Some time after the death of Guthix, Sliske managed to use the staff to discover the connection between Strisath and the Stone of Jas, allowing him to pinpoint its location. Depending on the coordinate the adventurer had had in mind after the ritual, Sliske found the Stone either beneath the Barrows, on the bottom of the Crandor sea, underneath Trollheim, underneath the Temple of Lost Ancients or in the cave where he had killed Guthix.

Whether Sliske actually obtained the Stone remains open to doubt, for it is entirely possible that he made the story up. Either way, he kept his possession of both Elder Artefacts a well guarded secret.

His power greater than ever and possibly in possession of the two most powerful Elder Artefacts, Sliske decided to host a game amongst the gods returning to RuneScape after the death of Guthix. To this end, he captured the Empyrean Citadel in the sky, where the aviantese of Armadyl once held court. He took it over with his wights and transformed the throne room into a stage for himself with podia for several gods to stand on. He began planning his "Grand Ascendancy", an event at which he would announce his ascension to godhood to the gods.

Soon after the end of the cataclysmic Battle of Lumbridge, Sliske set his plans in motion. He knew Armadyl would attend because he had conquered his citadel and Zamorak would not miss an event wherein another Mahjarrat would follow his path and invited them without expecting any protests. He also assured Bandos' attendance by promising him war and the presence of his fellow gods. Additionally, he invited Zaros, Guthix (symbolically, being his murderer), Marimbo and Brassica Prime, although only the latter would attend in person. Next, he set up a plot involving the murders of several Saradominist monks and Serenist elves and made it seem as if elves had slain the monks and Saradominists the elves, thus assuring the attendance of Saradomin, who travelled to the citadel to confront Seren. The crystal goddess was absent, however, having shattered herself after the God Wars. Although Zaros was not corporeally present, a purple haze did appear above his podium. Additionally, the gods took some of their followers with them, all of whom were denied access to the throne room by the Barrows Brothers and Akrisae, including Sliske's Zarosian Mahjarrat allies, to their great dismay. Finally, Sliske needed to ascertain the presence of his nemesis Icthlarin, god of the dead, and to accomplish this he kidnapped Harold Death, reaper of souls.

This kidnapping rendered the souls of the dead unable to pass on to the Grim Underworld and so Icthlarin began an investigation as to what had happened to his colleague while Harold's helpers would attempt to fulfill his duty during his absence. While doing this, Icthlarin joined forces with aforementioned adventurer, who was investigating the murders of Saradominists and Serenists. When they noticed Icthlarin's arrival, wights to whom Sliske had assigned his task emerged from the ground and attacked, leaving an invitation box upon defeat, which contained Icthlarin's invitation. Although the god realised it was another of Sliske's tricks, he and his companion were forced to go to the citadel to rescue Death. The adventurer began searching for him, while Icthlarin entered the throne room.

A heated discussion immediately sparked up between the gods, with Icthlarin desparately attempting to convince them of Sliske's manipulative and devious nature. As the adventurer reached the end of Sliske's puzzles and received an invitation to the event rather than finding Death, Sliske himself arrived as well. He presented Death in a cage, and Strisath in another before revealing the ascendancy had been a ruse, announcing his possession of the Stone of Jas and declaring a contest: he promised he would give the Stone to whoever would manage to kill the most deities by the next solar eclipse. The shocked gods responded in various ways when Sliske released Strisath and tossed the adventurer the key to Death's cage before retreating into the Shadow Realm. Strisath, a necrosyrte, immediately gave in to his rage and began firing dragonfire at the various false users around the room, prompting all the gods, save Brassica and Icthlarin, to teleport to safety. The adventurer managed to release Death, who retrieved his scythe and teleported himself and his two companions away. Afterwards, Strisath caused some destruction around the citadel before leaving as well. Only Brassica Prime remained on his podium, although it seems he was oblivious to the events that had transpired, thinking the ascendancy to be a tribute to himself and enjoying the feeling of his podium's cushion against his leaves.

As it would transpire, the true purpose of the ascendancy was to serve as a diversion for Zaros. With the other gods preoccupied with Sliske's 'tournament', Zaros could now return unnoticed and unchallenged, as he had planned.

Sliske's current whereabouts remain unknown, nor is there evidence of him having the Stone. Nevertheless, the gods intend to participate in his contest in their quest for power, be it voluntarily or not. Some time after the Ascendancy, a large battle broke out between Bandos and Armadyl, the former aiming to win the Stone, the latter to stop his arch nemesis. The Mahjarrat himself at one point began experimenting with his power by torturing and manipulating the minds of the Barrows Brothers, amplifying their powers immensely.

A short while later, a number of men, women, wizards and witches began to follow Sliske's ideals, presumably learning of him through Relomia, and sought to turn the Godless against the other factions during the battle between Bandos and Armadyl that broke out after the Ascension. Others would play a little "game" before giving one of the factions a set of Golem parts.

Return of Zaros and Excommunication
Sliske was later enlisted by Azzanadra to pull the World Gate out of the Shadow Realm and allow Zaros to return to Gielinor. Sliske informs the adventurer about how to repair the World Gate, then proceeds to pulling them into the Shadow Realm, where they would assist Zaros.

When Zaros finally returned to Gielinor, he gathered with all his followers, assigning them orders and tasks; however, he excommunicated Sliske, likely due to his now-questionable loyalty.

Godhood
There was much debate as to whether Sliske has achieved godhood after his slaying of Guthix.

Guthix himself achieved his godhood by slaying the ancient god Skargaroth with one of the Elder Artefacts, transferring Skargaroth's power to Guthix in a similar way to how Zamorak became a god. This suggests that Sliske's fate may have been of similar nature. Sliske's claim to have obtained the Stone of Jas makes this even more likely, if true. Azzanadra, however, states that, while the killing of Guthix may have changed Sliske, he is strongly convinced that Sliske is not intent on achieving godhood, although Wahisietel is unsure. This does not mean he hasn't received any godly powers from Guthix after his slaying. Sliske himself held a party in the Empyrean Citadel, claming it to be his "Grand Ascendancy", although this was merely a ruse to attract the gods, and he refused to say whether he actually was a god or not, saying that "it's fun to keep you all guessing."

Nevertheless, he is believed to be a god by Relomia, an Ardougnese housemaid who somehow managed to get stuck in the Shadow Realm and claims to have been rescued by Sliske, now proclaiming "Sliske's ways" as his emissary, and players are able to follow him as one of the factions in the aforementioned emissaries. She is strongly convinced of Sliske being a god and even made a symbol for him, although she is fairly uninformed and as such ought to be considered an inaccurate source. His symbol resembles a green mask of Sliske's face, referencing Sliske's habit for deception and his collection of sentient masks. Sliske himself describes Relomia as a "lovely girl", though needy.After the Fate of the Gods quest, Sliske answers one of the Players questions, if asked if he is a god, he will answer no.

Icthlarin
Sliske was never favoured by the god of the dead due to his methods of converting the Zarosian invaders into semi-undead wights. Sliske was allowed to continue as long as the war lasted, however, for the sake of protecting the Kharidian Lands at all costs. Their relationship was permanently damaged when Icthlarin released all of the wights' souls to the Grim Underworld after the Kharidian - Zarosian War. This led to Sliske offering his and the other Stern Judges' services to Zaros and thus abandoning Icthlarin and the Menaphite Pantheon. Even now, the Mahjarrat holds a grudge against Icthlarin for what he seems to think of as 'betrayal' by 'stealing' his minions and the god seems to be the person Sliske would like to see suffer the most. At the Ascension, Sliske almost killed Icthlarin by knocking him off his feet with a spell before unleashing a Dragonkin upon him, but he was rescued by his acquaintance Harold Death.

Azzanadra
While Azzanadra and Sliske have long been close allies - with Azzanadra having known Sliske for his entire life - they have quite different views on how to handle situations. A notable difference is Azzanadra's loyalty to his companions and to Zaros, whereas Sliske will not hesitate to turn against the former at a whim. Additionally, Sliske always seeks a profit for himself in a situation. Nevertheless, the two have worked together on various occasions. For example, just before Azzanadra was imprisoned in Jaldraocht, he gave a powerful artefact to an ally almost certainly known to be Sliske for safekeeping, knowing it would be key in reestablishing contact with Zaros. Seemingly seeing the importance of this, Sliske heeded this request and his wights have guarded the item faithfully for many centuries, until Azzanadra was released and ordered the retrieval of the artefact soon after.

It seems, however, that, while Azzanadra is more than aware of Sliske's slippery and deceitful nature, he will sometimes give Sliske 'the benefit of the doubt' and fully trust him to cooperate. For instance, when Sliske agreed with the suggestion of Azzanadra, Wahisietel and Akthanakos to negotiate with rather than kill Guthix in order to convince Nex and Char to do the same, Azzanadra was completely confident Sliske would keep his word, despite Wahisietel's warning that he could and would betray them. After Guthix' murder, Azzanadra did not seem happy with his ally's betrayal, although he realised his mistake in blindly trusting him - nevertheless, he was contented with the result anyway, for Zaros had indeed become free to return.

Azzanadra seems to know Sliske quite well, aware of his desire for freedom of action and disliking of responsibility. As such, he states it extremely unlikely for Sliske to be striving for godhood when asked. After the events at the Empyrean Citadel, however, he considers Sliske to have gone too far and does not quite think of him as an ally anymore.

Wahisietel
"If nothing, you can always trust that you can't trust Sliske."

- Wahisietel

Wahisietel seems to be the Mahjarrat who best understands Sliske. For instance, Wahisietel had suspected Sliske to remain after the 18th ritual to get a 'reward' and was not surprised when he attempted to acquire a new wight. In addition, he seems to have been the only one who realised Sliske would not stick to the plan of not killing Guthix.

Sliske appears to respect Wahisietel, having come to his aid on several occasions, most recently when he faced Lucien and his ice demons at the 18th ritual. And, although he initially agreed to sacrifice Jhallan, he immediately backed up Wahisietel by summoning the Barrows Brothers and having them hold off Zemouregal's troops.

However, during and after the Grand Ascendancy, which involved Sliske starting a gladiatorial-type competition between the gods, Wahisietel seemed to recant his views - displaying animosity towards Sliske and stating that he no longer believes Sliske to be loyal to Zaros.

The adventurer
The adventurer whom Sliske first met in person at the 18th ritual (in the quest Ritual of the Mahjarrat), but whom he had been following for a longer while, is of great interest to the Mahjarrat due to their prowess and skill. Sliske planned to convert them into a wight after the ritual, but Akrisae Kolluym jumped in front of the spell, saving the adventurer's life and becoming a slave of Sliske himself. While Sliske was satisfied for the time being, he still desires to add the adventurer to his collection. In Guthix' refuge, he led them to believe he wanted to bargain with Guthix, like the other Zarosians, and praised them for not trusting him easily. When he did, in fact, kill Guthix, he looked at the adventurer with a large grin on his face, enjoying his/her shock at his broken promise. Despite the obvious grudge held against him, Sliske continues to monitor the adventurer's actions, eager to claim them for himself.

Sliske's wights
Sliske owns of a collection of wights, which consist of powerful warriors who Sliske enslaved to serve him and, to a greater extent, Zaros. These wights do not become weaker with time, making perfect slaves for the Mahjarrat. Currently, the following wights of Sliske's are known;


 * Multiple warriors of the Army of Zaros - acquired during the Kharidian - Zarosian War in the Second Age, but all were released by Icthlarin.
 * The Barrows Brothers - he acquired these at the end of the Third Age near the Great Vyrewall, in what is now called the Barrows. In 1 of the Sixth Age, Sliske empowered the six greatly.
 * Ahrim, "the Blighted" - a powerful magician wielding a staff
 * Dharok, "the Wretched" - a strong warrior carrying a greataxe
 * Guthan, "the Infested" - a potent warrior using a spear
 * Karil, "the Tainted" - a nimble crossbow archer
 * Torag, "the Corrupted" - a valiant warrior using twin warhammers
 * Verac, "the Defiled" - a powerful warrior wielding a flail
 * Akrisae, "the Doomed" - a powerful warrior-priest. Sliske acquired him in 169 of the Fifth Age just after the 18th Ritual, on the ritual site. Although he had aimed for someone else, Akrisae intercepted the spell and became one of Sliske's wights instead.
 * Many other warriors he acquired after obtaining the Staff of Armadyl, which he kept at the Empyrean Citadel.

Development history
Sliske has a notable development history insofar as it is rather unique: his first 'appearances' were obscure references in various Postbags from the Hedge, followed by in-game mentions before he was finally released in person and became one of the most important figures in the game's storyline.

The Legend of the Brothers book, released on 9 May 2005, speaks of a "stranger" who was involved with the Barrows Brothers' powers and deaths. Although nothing suggested the stranger to be a Mahjarrat at the time, the character was always intended to be the Mahjarrat who would later be named Sliske. The name Sliske was first used in the 20th Postbag from the Hedge, released on 26 June 2007, where Azzanadra briefly mentioned him as serpent-tongued and delving the shadows. On 24 July, barely a month later, a new Lore and History was released on the website, called The Fall of Six, describing the Barrows Brothers' tale in more detail. Although Sliske was not named in the story, the aforementioned stranger was now described as "delving the shadows", establishing a connection between him and Sliske. The two had not been confirmed to be the same, however.

On 31 January 2008, Sliske was revealed to be a Zarosian Mahjarrat who had gone into hiding after his god's fall by Eblis, who responded in the 27th Postbag. On 5 February 2009, Azzanadra spoke of Sliske yet again, this time in the 38th Postbag - he described him as an ally whose powers could be seen in the world's smallest details.

The release of The Curse of Arrav on 21 July 2009 also saw the first direct reference to Sliske inside the game itself. Zemouregal, in his notes, described him as a powerful shapeshifter and a slippery fellow with powers over shadows. A popular theory at the time was that Sliske was the Strange Old Man at the Barrows, due to the former's suspected connection to the brothers and the latter's constant digging, or delving. Further evidence suggesting this was provided by the 44th Postbag, released on 7 October 2010, wherein Azzanadra not only described him as a master of the Shadow Realm and advised not to make deals with him, but also confirmed him to be the person who "sealed the fate of his Barrows toys." The second in-game reference to Sliske was released on 10 January 2011 in the form of the Ancient Prison. The nature spirit Ashuelot Reis would tell the story of how Sliske released Nex from her prison by tricking a group of Saradominists by pretending to be a druid.

After five years of references and mentions, Sliske appeared in person in Ritual of the Mahjarrat, released on 14 September 2011. During the quest, he attends the Ritual of Rejuvenation, bringing along the Barrows Brothers and leaving with a new wight after the ritual. This also confirmed him to be a separate entity from the Strange Old Man. His next appearance would come a while later, on 4 March 2013, with the release of The World Wakes (although a 'Shadowed Figure' was released on 18 February as a teaser for the quest, they were only confirmed to be Sliske during the quest itself). He has a much bigger role in this quest, slaying Guthix with the Staff of Armadyl. From then on, he would have frequent references in other content and would feature prominently in Sixth Age quests, such as Missing, Presumed Death and Fate of the Gods.

Trivia

 * Sliske's examine text during Missing, Presumed Death implies he is no longer Zarosian, but this can also be the player being confused as to whether Sliske is Zarosian or not. The Zarosian symbols that were on his shoulders from The World Wakes are not there anymore in Missing, Presumed Death, but his gloves prominently don the Zarosian cross. In Fate of the Gods, Sliske is officially excommunicated by Zaros.
 * Sliske is the third individual known to have defeated, and the second to have killed a god. The other two are Guthix, who slew Skargaroth, and Zamorak, who defeated Zaros. Like Zamorak, Sliske used the Staff of Armadyl. In addition, both Sliske and Zamorak did not immediately ascend to godhood, unlike Guthix. Sliske's fate and wishes remain unknown.
 * Sliske's favourite colour is Aquamarine.
 * Sliske's name is possibly derived from the Polish word "śliskie" meaning "slippery".
 * Sliske has a luchador mask aligned to him called el serpiente (meaning the snake), referring to his title of "the serpent-tongued".
 * His green face symbol might be a reference to 90's film.
 * A common endonym for Sliske is "Sliskean". Mod Osborne's preferred term for Sliske is "scumbag." Mod Crow believes that the proper endonym for Sliske is "a crazy person."
 * Sliske's possession of The Staff of Armadyl and the Stone of Jas most likely makes him the most powerful Mahjarrat currently living, perhaps comparable to Azzanadra or Bilrach if the latter is alive.