DEITY
Known as the Inmost Blot, the Enemy, the Star Seed, and the Husk. A Neutral Evil Great Old One of the Elder Mythos, dedicated to decay, parasites, and transformation.
An entity first referenced in the Act I Epilogue as something living beneath a lake next to a dead city, which grows larger when fertilized by the thoughts of mortals that merely know its name.
A name first spoken by the woman hiding out in the smuggler’s cave near Thrushmoor, as if Grip and Rony would know who or what it was.
The living cancer known as Xhamen-Dor has existed on innumerable worlds across the immensity of time, and in almost all cases, its gestation on those worlds resulted in their doom. It consumed their inhabitants from within and transposed those entire worlds into the parasitic heart of the alien city of Carcosa.
It has a physical body and inhabits a physical place, but to think of the place where its body temporarily resides as the extent of its being is to completely misunderstand its nature. It truly exists inside the dreams and memories of anyone who has ever heard its name. It grows whenever its name is learned. And over time, anyone “seeded” by it will be transformed into undead servants (unless they manage to kill themselves first). It is very rare that the name is written down.
After being poisoned by hearing its name, the party began sharing its dreams every night. Sometimes they dreamed the dreams of Xhamen-Dor (such as on Campaign Day 12, Campaign Day 14, Campaign Day 16, Campaign Day 17, and Campaign Day 18). Sometimes, Xhamen-Dor dreamed their dreams (such as on Campaign Day 20, Campaign Day 42, Campaign Day 55, and Campaign Day 70).
In Chapter 62, Barnabus revealed the existence of a cult dedicated to both worshipping it and keeping it asleep.
In the Act III Prologue, the party experienced a series of visions from Xhamen-Dor's impossibly long lifespan, from its origins as a malignant scab scraped loose from the sewers of Carcosa by the folds of Hastur’s cloak untold billions of years ago, through its arrival on Golarion during the fall of the Starstone over 10,000 years ago, all the way to the present day, where it now slumbers in Neruzavin.
In Chapter 101, Vik recovered memories of how Xhamen-Dor’s “Contagious Lore” ability works:
- Any sentient being with the ability to dream that learns Xhamen-dor’s name immediately comprehends the Great Old One’s nature as an insidious, immortal, cosmic parasite and a fungal seed blossoms deep inside their brain. The creature is dazed for one round (Fort negates) by the physical and mental shock of the impregnation and takes two points of Sanity damage (Will halves). From that moment on, that creature shares Xhamen-dor’s infectious dreams.
- Every month there is a 1% chance that the creature can be targeted by the god’s nightmare spell-like ability, regardless of the distance between them. If the victim fails its save against the nightmare, it becomes infected with a particularly virulent fungal blight. The creature is also immediately affected with a modified and particularly potent version of the seed-born consumption disease (no save). One month later, the victim’s mind begins growing scattered and inattentive. At that point, and every month thereafter, they must succeed at a Fortitude save or take 1d2 points of Charisma damage. The DCs are 27 if Xhamen-dor is slumbering, or 41 is he is currently awake in his current body. The Charisma damage cannot be healed by any means, except if the victim succeeds at three consecutive monthly saves, the Charisma damage can be healed. A successful casting of remove disease, heal, or similar magic will result in the same—however this does not mean the victim is cured of the disease, only that the progress has been temporarily suppressed.
- There is no cure for this disease, except the death of the Inmost Blot, which cannot truly happen as long as a single being in the universe, including Hastur, knows its name. However, certain extraordinary interventions can impact the course of the infection—periods of dissociative magic, or the use of drugs or magic to dull mental function, may suppress or slow the effects. A miracle or wish spell used specifically to make the victim forget all knowledge even slightly tangentially related to the existence of the Great Old One could cause the victim to enter a dormancy state. Accepting the Inmost Blot as the subject of genuine worship may slow, speed or alter the effects of the disease, and such worship may convey other benefits as well.
- If a creature’s Charisma score is reduced to 0 by seed-born consumption, it falls into a feverish mental state for 24 hours then dies, and rises as a fungal undead corpse puppet, driven by Xhamen-dor and tormented by memories of their former lives, personalities and desires. Those undead are carriers of a version of the disease that can be spread to non-sentient life or species that do not dream.
In Chapter 108, while sleeping overnight in the Enchanted Wood, the party discovered that Xhamen-Dor didn’t seem to be able to haunt their dreams while visiting the Dreamlands by means of the Dreamlands Excursion ritual.
Xhamen-Dor’s interaction with ritual casters was discussed in Chapter 110, when the party reviewed the way dreaming 'works'–information they learned from The Chain of Nights.
In Chapter 150 (Part 2), Lowls revealed the following.
The Inmost Blot calls to me. I will awaken it, and I will become its Vessel. I will take It into my body—physically—and with the power of the Star Seed inside of me I will do what Ariadne failed to do all those centuries ago: I will drag ALL of Golarion into Carcosa. And the resulting power will free the King in the Yellow from his prison! I have seen it in my dreams. Xhamen-Dor has shown it to me! Everything that has ever happened, for the past 200 billion years, has happened on the road to MY great achievement! The entire universe will bow to Hastur, and He will owe EVERYTHING to ME! I just have to find NERUZAVIN!
One possible end-state of Xhamen-Dor’s fungal infestation was encountered in Chapter 157: Seeded Corpse Puppets.
In a dream communication sent by the Prisoner to the party, it was learned that Yithians not only could not see Xhamen-Dor with their ability to look across Time, but that their ability to do so was also compromised by people and events simply brushing up against its travels.
In Chapter 192, Kaklatath revealed to Tharivol that there had once been a major outbreak of Xhamen-Dor’s Seedborn Consumption in Ninshabur, shortly before the rampage of the Tarrasque.
First Reference: Act I Epilogue
Other Notable References: Chapter 41, Chapter 42, Chapter 43, Chapter 44, Chapter 61, Chapter 62, Chapter 78, Chapter 86, Chapter 89, Act III Prologue, Chapter 101, Chapter 108, Chapter 110, Chapter 115, Chapter 123, Chapter 150 (Part 2), Chapter 150 (Part 3), Chapter 157, Chapter 158, Chapter 160, Chapter 161, Chapter 162, Act IV Interlude Part 1, Chapter 175, Chapter 183, Chapter 185, Chapter 192