God of the Depths

God of the Depths
Relatives	Maiden of the Depths (human bride)

Biographical information
Date of death	1590 (died and used as a vessel during the creation of the God of Fear and Hunger)

Physical description
Gender	Uncertain (different sources depict them as both male and female)
Species	Old God

Warning! Spoilers ahead! Proceed at your own risk!

The God of the Depths is an Old God and an important deity in Fear & Hunger. They were a gargantuan creature with organs spread everywhere across the lower levels of the dungeons of fear and hunger. Their body also serves as a location - entering the god's mouth leads to The Gauntlet, an end-game area.

Lore

The God of the Depths is one of the old deities worshipped by man, before man decided that they had enough of the old world order and wanted to supplant the Old Gods. The God of the Depths is not as prevalent as most other Old Gods, such as Gro-goroth or Sylvian. Like Rher, they had scant few followers and their actions were shrouded in mystery. They are responsible for the layout of the dungeons of fear and hunger, ever-changing in shape to challenge new visitors.

From bits of scattered information, and talking to their followers in the game, it seems that the god encompasses the idea of revulsion and inescapable darkness. According to Ragnvaldr, the God of the Depths is "worshipped by those who are forsaken and forgotten". Their followers seem devoid of self-awareness or any kind of higher intelligence, only capable of further fulfilling pre-set duties in the dungeons. They are often insectoid, such as the cockroaches, Scarabs, spiders, and the Cockroach King. If not insectoid, creatures that were or outcast stuck in darkness - the Cavedwellers, the Body Snatcher, the Butterfly, or the Mumbler, who are described as mindless servants to the god.

There is evidence that the God of the Depths had human worshippers as well. At a certain point in history, a mysterious sect known as the Hermit Mages of the South held the God of the Depths in high esteem. These reclusive practitioners were known for their rare ability to imbue rings with life-draining magic, though little else is known about their practices beyond their name. Moreover, ancient folklore speaks of the Maiden of the Depths, a human woman who was supposedly chosen to be the bride of the God of the Depths.

The skill Mastery over Insects is affiliated with the god and allows one to communicate with such creatures. Unlike other gods, affiliation with the God of the depths is gained through fulfilling the Cockroach king's quests instead of praying or making a sacrifice. The few other spells they can provide to a believer are mild offensive spells that range in usefulness and make use of insects and birds as minions.

The deity possesses the Cube of the Depths, an essential object needed to reach Ma'habre.

Unlike other Old Gods, the God of the Depths is present in a physical form in the dungeon. The player can enter their mouth after destroying all three of the god's hearts in the game. The god will open their mouth and the player may enter The Gauntlet, the most difficult area in the game and God of the Depth's equivalent of a boss battle.

The God of the Depths' hearts can be found in the following three places:

• On Level 7 of the dungeon, in the same area where Le'garde can be found.
• At the bottom of the Tree dungeon in the Thicket.
• At the end of the present-day Golden Temple, where the aged Francóis is found.

In Fear & Hunger 2: Termina, it is revealed that the god died in 1590 after one of the four heroes killed their three hearts in Fear & Hunger and that their body was used as a vessel to give birth to the God of Fear and Hunger. As an older deity cannot truly die, a part of the God of the Depths still lives on in the Ascended God. Beekeepers stand as the sole remnants of the God of the Depths' enduring influence in modern times, symbolizing their last remaining aspect: insects.

Trivia

• In Fear & Hunger, there are totems and statues scattered among the dungeon, where the player character can pray for an old god in order to increase affinity with said deity and unlock their spells on the Hexen Table. While there is a multitude of these statues where one can pray to Alll-mer, Gro-goroth, and Sylvian, the only place where the character may pray to the God of the Depths is in Old Ma'habre, which might be an indication that the god's cult has dwindled greatly over the years.
• In older versions of Fear & Hunger, the player could also sacrifice party members for the God of the Depths. The idea was that the act would alter the layout of the dungeon later on the game as the deity is linked to the dungeons heavily, but the feature was eventually abandoned before being implemented.
• The God of the Depths is referred in-game by both male and female pronouns on different occasions, probably due to different interpretations of the deity's mythology. For this reason, this article was written in the search of gender neutrality.
• The God of the Depths' design is seemingly inspired by the underwater shipwreck of the USS Saratoga, specifically the Hawse Hole at the bow of the destroyed ship.

Gallery

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  Datamined image showing the God of the Depths' full head, mouth closed.

• 

  Another version of the previous image, displaying the posthumous version, mouth open.

• 

  The shipwreck of the USS Saratoga and the rusted hole that inspired the appearance of the God of the Depths.

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  Symbol belonging to the God of the Depths.

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