Saradomin

Saradomin (pronounced /ˌsærəˈdoʊ̯mɪn/) is the god of order and wisdom, and sometimes associated with light as well. He is one of the most worshipped gods on Gielinor. While often portrayed by his followers as the god of all that is good, he has a darker side, as evidenced by his destruction of the city of Askroth when the Naragi race angered him. In the Third Age, he founded the Temple Knights, a highly secretive military and espionage organisation from Falador. He is even said to give direct orders in person to their current head of operations and second-in-command (after Saradomin himself) - Sir Vey Lance.

Today Saradomin has a vast number of followers, most of which believe he is the god of good, and there are far more churches dedicated to him than to other gods. Most of his modern followers reside in Misthalin, Asgarnia, Kandarin and Entrana, but there are several groups outside these areas. Unlike those of Zamorak or Guthix, his followers consist almost entirely of humans, though that was not always the case. Saradomin's symbol is a four-pointed star (that is usually coloured gold or silver), which he likely took from his crown. Saradomin was the first god to return to Gielinor in the Sixth Age, after Guthix's death. Saradomin possesses one of the twelve Elder God artefacts, the crown. It is used to locate all the other artefacts, being quite useful for his plans. However, possessing any of the other artefacts will likewise reveal the crown's location. It is known to have been in his possession for much over 10,000 years.

According to Mod Osborne in a 2012 Q&A, Saradomin 'might not be as you expect. People reckon he's all good, I reckon he's got a darker side, just a slight one, but that's my own thinking.'

Gaining Godhood
Virtually nothing is known of Saradomin prior to ascending to godhood, although it is known he was originally a human, and thus likely originated from the plane that humans inhabited before Guthix brought them to Gielinor. It is likewise unknown how he gained his godhood, although like most young gods, he likely gained it through the use of an Elder Artefact. After ascending to godhood, Saradomin gained his distinctive blue skin. Jagex have said he is one of the oldest young gods, so this happened some time ago. Despite being human before he ascended, he does not seem to favour them over other races, like the Icyene. That said, the vast majority of his followers on Gielinor are humans.

Naragi God Wars
Saradomin, before discovering Gielinor, arrived to the Naragi realm through a portal in their city of Askroth, being the first god to arrive on the realm. The god was welcomed by the Naragi diviners, but these somehow angered him and, in a fit of rage, Saradomin grew to the size of a mountain and razed the city, being described as a "blue giant" by the refugees. After this, he built a gigantic white fortress on Askroth's ruins and assembled an army. Guthix, who was a mortal at that time, took care of many of these refugees, and he and the rest of his race became very afraid of Saradomin, with some of the Naragi creating armies of their own in an attempt to fight off Saradomin.

Centuries later, Tuska, a godly creature who desired battle, attacked Saradomin's castle and the two gods duelled one another. It is unknown who the victor of this battle was, but some time later, Saradomin left the realm while Tuska and other gods such as Skargaroth remained.

Arrival to Gielinor
When he eventually arrived on Gielinor, the portal he came through was on the island of Entrana. This is why all Saradomin's followers have always considered the island as the holiest place in all of Gielinor. He most likely arrived along with other gods such as Armadyl and Zaros in the second age. According to Guthix, Saradomin wears a crown, an artefact made by the Elder Gods, that allows him to sense the presence of other artefacts made by the Elder Gods. It can therefore be assumed that he came to Gielinor sensing the 3 Elder artefacts Guthix first discovered on Gielinor, the Stone of Jas, or "The eye of Saradomin" as he calls it, the Staff of Armadyl, and "the horn".

Soon after the gods arrived on Gielinor, they started to conquer land. Saradomin's biggest known settlement at that time was the city of Hallowvale. Hallowvale was a mighty city inhabited with Icyene and humans, and ruled by Queen Efaritay and her husband Ascertes. Hallowvale still exists today under the name of Meiyerditch. Entrana remained under the control of Saradomin through the entire second age, and a fortress was also built on Dragontooth Island. He also possibly conquered areas in modern day Asgarnia. In the second age Saradomin had a strong alliance with Armadyl, whether this friendship started before or after their arrival on Gielinor is still unknown. For reasons currently unknown, he appeared to be on bad terms with Zaros, who ruled the mightiest empire of the entire second age.

Near the end of the second age, the Zarosian General and Mahjarrat named Zamorak, started to make plans to overthrow his master. Many of his fellow Mahjarrat sided with him, and Saradomin sent spies to Zamorak's base of operations in order to keep an eye on him. When the Staff of Armadyl, an extremely powerful artefact owned by the god Armadyl, was taken by a Saradomin follower named Valdez, he wanted to take the artefact to Saradomin. However, through a series of unfortunate and accidental actions which some Saradominists played a role in, the staff fell into Zamorak's hands instead. With the power of the staff, Zamorak challenged Zaros in combat, which led to Zaros' banishment. Zamorak, who absorbed most of Zaros' power, was banished as well by Saradomin and the other gods for banishing a god, even though all the other gods feared Zaros, although he later returned as a god himself. Since Zaros' banishment, Saradomin has done everything possible to cover up any information regarding Zaros, mainly to prevent him gaining followers, and thus possibly returning.

Gielinorian God Wars
After Zaros' banishment, many of his followers sided with Zamorak, and Saradomin quickly took the opportunity to confiscate the Stone of Jas from the banished Zamorak, placing it in a cave beneath Forinthry. Soon, however, Zamorak returned and, in an attempt to reclaim the Stone, he declared the God Wars. The remaining Zarosian settlements were destroyed mostly by Saradominist and Zamorakian forces in a loose alliance during the Zarosian Extermination, which lasted throughout almost the entire wars. Another notable alliance of Saradominists and Zamorakians was the imprisonment of Azzanadra, champion of Zaros, in Jaldraocht Pyramid. They would sometimes turn against each other, however, as was evident during the Battle of Annakarl in 3100. In the end, Senntisten and Ghorrock were the only settlements to survive the many attacks of Saradomin and Zamorak, making them the last Zarosian settlements of that time which still stand today. Senntisten eventually fell after Azzandra's imprisonment, though, despite attempts of Wahisietel to make the Saradominists and Zamorakians fight each other and save the city. He failed and the once-capital of the Zarosian empire was evacuated and destroyed.

The other gods, including Saradomin, soon wanted to conquer the lands Zaros once ruled. Many battles were held mainly in Forinthry; because of its many resources many gods wanted control over it. The war escalated, however, and soon all of Gielinor was dragged into the war.

Saradomin was one of the most active gods of the god wars, fighting against the armies of Zamorak, who turned into his worst enemy. Many Icyene from left their home plane in order to fight for their god. Some humans aligned to Saradomin as well a faction of dwarves, who did not hide underground. In addition, Saradomin bought a goblin tribe from Bandos: the Saragorgak. Entrana remained in Saradomin's hands during the wars. Saradomin claimed most victories in the areas of modern-day Asgarnia and Misthalin.

However, as much as Saradomin fought against Zamorak, he couldn't prevent him from claiming Hallowvale, which quickly fell to the vampyre lord Drakan, backed by an army granted by Zamorak in exchange for helping him overthrow Zaros. Many Icyene, which were Saradomin's strongest tools of war, were wiped out during the battles.

In a last ditch effort to destroy Zamorak, Saradomin called Armadyl and Bandos together to create the godsword, a very powerful artefact which was believed to be able to kill a god. Saradomin gathered a last battalion to fight Zamorak's forces, and the aviantese of Armadyl were charged with the task of delivering the godsword to this army. But they were ambushed by Zamorak's forces while Saradomin's army was attacked as well. The aviantese retreated into a Saradominist temple which is today the god wars dungeon, and Saradomin and Bandos sent their forces into the dungeon to aid the aviantese. It was during this time that the champion of Zaros, Nex, aroused from her enchanted sleep after Sliske manipulated some people to perform an awakening ritual. Laying waste to vast numbers of followers from all sides, Nex, while weakened from her slumber, was nearly unstoppable along with her army. Soon, all the gods united forces in a temporary alliance and trapped Nex behind a frozen door inside a prison. At the peak of the God Wars, Zamorak finally had the Stone of Jas. He used it to enhance his powers and destroyed the entire Forinthry site, which is today the Wilderness. After that, Guthix awoke with the booming and massive destruction from his slumber and immediately put an end to the God wars. He took a gigantic sword, smashed it in the middle of Forinthry as a demonstration of his immense power and created his Edicts, which banished all the major gods of Gielinor. They could still slightly affect Gielinor while not being on it however. After being banished, Saradomin retreated to the Icyenic Realm, where he focused on building his relationship with them, all the while looking for other ways back onto Gielinor.

Further events
Saradomin's followers consists almost entirely of humans since the Fourth Age, when he started becoming more popular. In response to letters he received, he claimed to have created the sense of morality and peace that exists on Gielinor: "Ah... but have you questioned whatever motives Guthix himself might have, to slander me so outrageously? Would you give him the credit for the peace that mostly reigns upon this world for his contribution of sleep? I call this world my creation, for the value system of honour, and courage, and mercy, and wisdom are attributes that I brought to this once barbaric land! It is true, I did not physically create the raw material of this world, but I have shaped and sculpted it into the glorious land that it is today!" Also, Sir Amik Varze, though having mysteriously come to rule over Falador through King Vallance's absence, claims that killing an 'unarmed foe', even a Zamorakian as murderous and dangerous as Solus Dellagar is against the way of his Knights and that of Saradomin, a teaching written in Saradomin's Holy book: "Show love to your friends, and mercy to your enemies, and know that the wisdom of Saradomin will follow."

And yet, as per a quote above, Saradomin himself wished only ill on those who followed Zamorak, claiming that the world needed to be purified of their evil.

Following the events of The World Wakes, Saradomin is once again able to walk on Gielinor. He teleported to Gielinor immediately after Guthix' death, being the first major god to arrive since the Edicts of Guthix were broken, and took Commander Zilyana with him to make preparations for when the other gods will be entering Gielinor.

Battle of Lumbridge
A few months after Guthix's death, a mysterious portal materialised in the forested area west of Lumbridge, drawing people from all across the world in their curiosity. Following several stages of development, the mystery of the portal was finally solved when, after millennia just outside of the world, Zamorak emerged - the second god to return to Gielinor - intent on harvesting the remnants of Guthix's power that had accumulated in the area. Saradomin, however, was able to sense his old rival's arrival and quickly teleported to the site of all the commotion. Growing to size enormous, Saradomin vowed to stop his nemesis and harvest the remnants of Guthix's power for himself, prompting the two to clash for the first time in centuries.

The resulting battle obliterated the rest of the forest and caused some moderate damage to Lumbridge Castle, creating a massive crater in their place. But despite this devastation, it quickly became apparent to the two gods that they could not overcome one another. Determining that one would have to supplement their powers with the divine tears found in the newly-made crater for a victor to be found, Saradomin and Zamorak erected structures on their respective sides of the battlefield and summoned in human followers to battle eachother for control of the tears, led by a general chosen by the gods themselves. As Zamorak teleported in Moia, the Mahjarrat half-breed daughter of Lucien, Saradomin summoned to his aid an Icyenic commander known as Padomenes. And with the first charge of their forces, the Battle of Lumbridge began.

Even now, Saradomin is locked in a struggle with Zamorak whilst his followers seek to strengthen him with the divine tears, that he may defeat his rival.

Powers and abilities
Saradomin has been shown to have extreme power and abilities. He can teleport himself and other beings anywhere on a whim except when another being that has extreme power. He can also grow to gigantic sizes and bestow power into weapons and other beings. He is also in possession of the Crown Archival, which makes it possible for Saradomin to locate other Elder Artefacts while exposing him to other gods who are in possession of other Elder Artefacts.

Despite maintaining a powerful beam while locked in battle with Zamorak, he could still produce area of effect spells that would empower his followers or weaken his enemies.



Followers
Some Saradominists believe that there are only three gods, denying the existence of other gods/demi-gods.

Groups and races

 * Humans - Most citizens of RuneScape, primarily in Misthalin, Asgarnia and Kandarin, follow Saradomin.
 * Monks - Men who have devoted their life to the follow of Saradomin.
 * Myreque - An organisation plotting against Lord Drakan in Morytania.
 * H.A.M. - A group of human refugees seeking the destruction of evil non-human races.
 * White Knights - An organisation of religious knights, centred in and devoted to the protection of Asgarnia. Headquartered in Falador.
 * Temple Knights - An ancient organisation tied to the White Knights who were involved in the Sea Slug conflicts of the Third Age.
 * Icyene - A race of winged humanoids with notable power against the Vampyres.
 * Holy Order of Paladins - A division of the Royal Army of Ardougne.
 * Imcando dwarves - A tribe of dwarves driven to near extinction by the Runecrafting Crusades.
 * Saragorgak - A goblin tribe sold to Saradomin by Bandos.
 * At least some Centaurs - Half-horse, half-human creatures.

Notable individuals

 * Commander Zilyana - leader of Saradomin's army in the God Wars Dungeon, who is one of the few remaining Icyenes.
 * Wise Old Man - famous Saradominist hero and mage.
 * Sigmund - former advisor to the Duke of Lumbridge. He became the leader of his own split faction of the H.A.M cult.
 * Drezel - the priest in Paterdomus, the ancient temple dedicated to Saradomin that protects Misthalin from Morytania's evil taint.
 * Barrows Brothers (Formerly) - six powerful warriors sent to Morytania in the Third Age.
 * Brother Jered - leader of the Monastery located west of Edgeville.
 * Sir Amik Varze - leader of the White Knights of Falador and current ruler of Asgarnia.
 * King Tyras - ruler of West Ardougne, brother of King Lathas
 * Sir Tiffy Cashien - head of the recruitment of the Temple Knights.
 * Akrisae - a Saradomin priest who acts as a representative of the Temple Knights during While Guthix Sleeps.
 * High Priest - leader of the monastery on Entrana.
 * Veliaf Hurtz - lieutenant of the Myreque in Mort Myre.
 * Safalaan Hallow - lieutenant of the Myreque in Meiyerditch and a half-icyene.
 * Vannaka - Slayer master who formerly served in Saradomin's armies.
 * Abbess Benita - head of the Abbey in Al Kharid.
 * King Roald III - the current king of Varrock and Misthalin.
 * King Vallance - the current, ill king of Falador and Asgarnia.
 * Sir Vey Lance - head of operations of the Temple Knights.
 * Calsidiu - leader of the Myreque.
 * Johanhus Ulsbrecht - leader of H.A.M.
 * The Missionary - a devout Saradominist who is trying to convert the habitants of the Eastern Lands to following Saradomin. He built a church in Hyu-Ji, an island in the Skull archipelago in order to help him to do that.

Animals

 * Unicorns.
 * Rabbits (including the Easter bunny and his son).
 * Saradomin owls.
 * Lions.

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 allignments 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.

Trivia

 * In the FunOrb game Arcanists, statues of Saradomin can be found on the Sky Castle stage.