Buy me a coffee(Elder Titan) Crius, The Stellar Axis
“Bound in Tartarus and burning with stellar wrath, Crius—Titan of Constellations—awakens to rewrite the heavens in his image!”
- Pantheon: Primordial Greek (Titan)
- Deity Title: Titan of Constellations, Southern Pillar of the World, Warden of Celestial Law
- Deity Symbol: Ram-horned star enclosed in a celestial compass or sextant
- Home Plane: Tartarus (Bound), formerly the Astral Firmament
- Deity Level: Greater Deity (Primordial Titan-class)
- Alignment: Neutral (tending toward Lawful Neutral)
- Aliases: Krios, The Starbound Titan, The Southern Flame, Lord of the Forgotten Pillar
- Superior: None (Primordial, pre-Olympian)
- Traditional Allies: Astraeus, Eurybia, Coeus, Atlas
- Traditional Foes: Zeus, Apollo, Hermes, Hades
- Divine Artifact: The Asterion Compass – realigns constellations and distorts time
- Servants: Star Oracles, Time-Seers, Celestial Engineers
- Servitor Creatures: Ram-headed celestials, Constellation Drakes, Aeonic Sentinels
- Sacred Animal: The Ram (Aries)
- Manifestations: Ram constellation burning bright, a solar eclipse with clockwork corona, star-song vibrations
- Signs of Favor: Sudden star alignment, perfect navigation, constellation-like markings on skin
- Worshipers: Astronomers, navigators, timekeepers, monastic mathematicians, heirs of lost empires
- Cleric Alignments: Neutral, Lawful Neutral, Neutral Good, True Neutral, Lawful Good
- Specialty Priests: Starbinders – mystics who shape fate through starlight and math
- Holy Days: Celestine Zenith (Winter Solstice), The Turning of the Sky (centennial convergence)
- Portfolio: Constellations, Timekeeping, Celestial Order, Ancient Law, Restoration of Balance
- Domains: Knowledge, Order, Time*, Stars*, Travel (*homebrew or custom domains)
- Favored Weapon: Stellar Chain – flail/whip made of divine astral energy
- Favored Class: Cleric, Oracle, Diviner, Astrologer (custom), Horizon Walker
- Favored Race: Githzerai, Elves, Star-touched Aasimar
- Duties of the Priesthood: Preserve celestial lore, restore lost structures, guide fate back to Titan order
- Major Cult Sites: Ruins atop Mount Kos, Astral Crystal Ziggurat, Circle of Equinox beneath Constantinople
- Benefits: Vision of the Stars (insight divination), Navigation Immunity (immune to magical disorientation), Temporal Fortitude (resist time/fate effects)
- Significant Others: Eurybia (wife), Gaia (mother), Chronos (philosophical kin)
Crius stands colossal and eternal, a living monument to the lost grandeur of the Titans. His form is carved from the fabric of the night sky itself—his skin a deep obsidian, streaked with faintly glowing star-trails that shimmer and shift like constellations in motion. His towering frame pulses with the quiet energy of ancient galaxies, each step leaving behind a flicker of cosmic dust that swirls and vanishes.
Twin ram horns curl from his temples, spiraling backward in arcs that glint like polished bronze under celestial light. They mark his dominion over Aries and the primordial beginnings of time. His eyes burn like twin eclipses—black cores ringed in radiant gold—seeing not just the present, but the movements of stars yet unborn.
Across his chest flows a mantle of star-woven cloth, rippling with spectral hues—navy, violet, and deep crimson—fastened by a brooch shaped like a six-pointed star. His hands, immense and rough like meteor-worn stone, crackle with the power to align the heavens and twist constellations into new order.
Crius rarely speaks, but when he does, his voice is a rolling vibration, low and cosmic, as if space itself bends to carry his words. His presence is regal yet heavy with ancient sorrow—a being displaced from time, yet still bound to its flow.
Crius — The Titan of Celestial Order and the Southern Sky
Crius, one of the twelve original Titans born of Uranus (Sky) and Gaia (Earth), is the Titan of Constellations, the Southern Wind, and the Celestial Compass. Though less prominently featured in surviving myths, his role is fundamental—he represents structure in the heavens, the charting of time through stars, and the cosmic order that predates even the Olympians.
As one of the four cornerstones of the cosmos, Crius stood as the southern pillar during the overthrow of Uranus by Cronus, holding down his father so that the next age might rise. This act defines his identity: not of rebellion, but of cosmic responsibility—upholding structure, even in chaos.
He is the father of Astraeus (god of dusk and stars), Pallas (warcraft), and Perses (destruction)—offspring who each represent facets of divine transformation. Through them, Crius’s legacy threads into the forces of time, battle, and arcane change.
Though ultimately defeated during the Titanomachy and cast into Tartarus, Crius remains unbroken in spirit. In mythic imagination, he continues to watch the stars from below, calculating the cycles of return, waiting for a moment when the universe forgets its balance—and he can restore the primordial order he once embodied.
His hope is not vengeance, but restoration. He seeks a cosmos where time, stars, and fate again follow the ancient, untampered paths—etched by Titans and unmarred by Olympian ego. Crius waits patiently, like the turning of the sky—inevitable, vast, and ageless.
Crius 5e 2024
Crius 3.5
Crius, Titan of Constellations
Gargantuan celestial (titan), neutral
Armor Class: 28 (natural celestial armor)
Hit Points: 1,350 (90d20 + 540)
Speed: 50 ft., fly 120 ft. (hover)
| STR | DEX | CON | INT | WIS | CHA |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 32 (+11) | 22 (+6) | 28 (+9) | 26 (+8) | 30 (+10) | 28 (+9) |
Saving Throws: Str +19, Con +17, Wis +18, Cha +17
Skills: Arcana +16, Insight +18, Perception +18, Religion +16
Damage Resistances: radiant, psychic, necrotic; bludgeoning, piercing, and slashing from nonmagical weapons
Damage Immunities: fire, poison
Condition Immunities: charmed, frightened, exhaustion, poisoned
Senses: truesight 120 ft., passive Perception 28
Languages: All, telepathy 120 ft.
Challenge: 50 (over 250,000 XP)
Legendary Resistance (5/Day).
If Crius fails a saving throw, he can choose to succeed instead.
Celestial Pillar (Aura).
Within 120 feet of Crius, allies gain:
- +5 bonus to saving throws against spells and magical effects
- Resistance to psychic and radiant damage
Divine Constellation (Recharge 5–6).
Crius calls down a massive constellation in the sky. Creatures of his choice within 300 feet must succeed on a DC 26 Constitution saving throw or take 88 (16d10) radiant damage and be blinded for 1 minute. Half damage and no blindness on a success.
Innate Spellcasting.
Crius’s innate spellcasting ability is Charisma (spell save DC 25). He can innately cast the following spells, requiring no components:
- At will: detect magic, light, guidance
- 3/day each: plane shift (self only), divine word, dispel magic, greater restoration
- 2/day each: meteor swarm, time stop, wall of light, sunburst, control weather
- 1/day each: wish, true resurrection, foresight, prismatic wall
Actions
Multiattack.
Crius makes three attacks: one with his Stellar Chain and two with his Cosmic Ram Horns.
Stellar Chain. Melee Weapon Attack: +19 to hit, reach 30 ft., one target.
Hit: 46 (8d8 + 11) radiant damage. The target must succeed on a DC 26 Strength saving throw or be restrained by glowing astral chains for 1 minute. The target can repeat the save at the end of each of its turns.
Cosmic Ram Horns. Melee Weapon Attack: +19 to hit, reach 15 ft., one target.
Hit: 40 (6d10 + 11) bludgeoning damage plus 27 (6d8) radiant damage.
Starfall Barrage (Recharge 6).
Crius summons a volley of falling stars in a 100-foot cone. Each creature must succeed on a DC 26 Dexterity saving throw or take 110 (20d10) radiant damage, or half on a success.
Legendary Actions
Crius can take 5 legendary actions, choosing from the options below. Only one legendary action option can be used at a time and only at the end of another creature’s turn. Crius regains spent legendary actions at the start of his turn.
- Star Lash. Crius makes one Stellar Chain attack.
- Celestial Shift. Crius teleports up to 120 feet to an unoccupied space he can see.
- Cosmic Pulse (Costs 2 Actions). Crius releases a wave of cosmic energy. Creatures within 60 feet must succeed on a DC 26 Constitution saving throw or take 45 (10d8) radiant damage and be pushed 30 feet away.
- Constellation Call (Costs 3 Actions). Crius heals one ally within 120 feet for 100 hit points and grants advantage on saving throws and attack rolls until the end of their next turn.
- Time Warp (Costs 4 Actions). Crius distorts time around one creature he can see within 120 feet. The target must succeed on a DC 26 Wisdom saving throw or be slowed (as per the slow spell) for 1 minute.
Unique Traits
Titanic Cosmic Presence. Crius is always affected by sanctuary and cannot be magically banished or teleported against his will.
Celestial Navigator. Crius knows his exact position on any plane and can find paths to any celestial body or realm.
Ancient Wisdom. Crius has advantage on all Intelligence, Wisdom, and Charisma saving throws and checks.
Bound Chains of Tartarus. While bound in Tartarus, Crius’s damage resistance becomes immunity to nonmagical damage, but his movement speed is halved.
Divine Artifact: The Asterion Compass
Crius wields the legendary Asterion Compass, which allows him to manipulate celestial navigation and time flow:
- As a bonus action, Crius can activate the Compass to alter gravity and direction in a 300-foot radius. Enemies must succeed on a DC 26 Strength saving throw or be knocked prone and moved up to 60 feet in any direction.
- Once per day, Crius can realign the stars, casting wish without components.
Associated Creatures
- Astraeus, God of Dusk and Stars: Crius’s son and celestial guide.
- Constellation Drakes: Magical serpentine beasts of starlight guarding Crius.
- Ram-headed Celestials: Loyal warriors embodying Aries, protectors of Crius’s sacred sites.
Lore and Roleplaying Notes
Crius is a primordial Titan embodying cosmic order, celestial law, and constellations, the southern pillar holding the heavens. Though imprisoned in Tartarus, he remains a patient force seeking restoration rather than vengeance. He appears with ram horns, star-streaked obsidian skin, and eyes like molten eclipses. His presence distorts time and shapes the constellations overhead.
Crius
This colossal humanoid seems to bear more weight on his frame than his size would suggest. His skin is dull gray, and his long gray beard seems to be pulled by invisible weights to almost touch the ground. His cloak, although dry, sags as if waterlogged.
Crius is the master of gravity, weight, and density in physical matter.
Crius is one of the original Titans born to Uranus and Gaea, and an older brother of Cronus. He took Eurybia as a lover and sired Pallas, a lesser god of wisdom. Pallas married Styx, the goddess of the River of the same name, and had four children, one of them the goddess Nike.
Crius fought alongside his brothers in the Titanomachy the war against the Olympian gods, and was thus imprisoned in Tartarus along with them.
Crius is 100 feet tall and weighs 800,000 pounds.
Crius speaks Abyssal, Common, Celestial, Draconic, and Giant.
Originally Posted by Boz of the En World forums.
| Titan, Greater, Crius | |
| Colossal outsider (Chaotic, Evil, Extraplanar) | |
| Hit Dice | 49d8+833 (1,053 hp) |
| Initiative | +6 |
| Speed | 60 ft (12 squares) |
| Armor Class | 41 (-8 size, +6 Dexterity, +33 natural), touch 8, flat-footed 35 |
| Base Attack/Grapple | +49/+84 |
| Attack | Slam +60 melee (5d8+19/19-20/x2) |
| Full Attack | 2 slams +60 melee (5d8+19/19-20/x2) |
| Space/Reach | 30 ft/30 ft |
| Special Attacks | Alter weight, gravity field, spell-like abilities, spells |
| Special Qualities | Damage reduction 20/epic, Darkvision 120 ft, fast healing 3, Spell Resistance 36, tremorsense 120 ft |
| Saves | Fort +49 Ref +33 Will +45 |
| Abilities | Strength 48 Dexterity 23 Constitution 44 Intelligence 38 Wisdom 37 Charisma 31 |
| Skills | Balance +43, Bluff +57, Climb +66, Concentration +64, Craft (stonemasonry) +61, Decipher Script +51, Diplomacy +41, Gather Information +57, Heal +50, Intimidate +57, Jump +72, Knowledge (Arcana) +66, Knowledge (architecture and engineering) +54, Knowledge (history) +61, Knowledge (nature) +61, Knowledge (religion) +66, Knowledge (the planes) +71, Listen +60, Perform (percussion) +57, Search +61, Sense Motive +66, Spellcraft +66, Spot +61, Survival +50, Swim +61 |
| Feats | Ability Focus (gravity field) Combat Casting, Combat Expertise, Endurance, Eschew Materials, Great Fortitude, Improved Critical (slam), Iron Will, Quicken Spell |
| Epic Feats | Automatic Quicken Spell (x3), Epic Endurance, Epic Fortitude, Epic Will, Fast Healing, Ignore Material Components |
| Environment | Tartarus |
| Organization | Solitary |
| Challenge Rating | 33 |
| Treasure | Double standard |
| Alignment | Always chaotic evil |
| Advancement | — |
| Level Adjustment | — |
COMBAT
Cruis likes to toy with lesser opponents, forcing them into alternating situations of gravity. He will make the most powerful weapons being used against him too heavy to lift, and will launch hapless foes into the air. Crius also likes to use his magical abilities against his enemies rather than fighting them with his not-inconsiderable physical might.
Crius’s natural weapons, as well as any weapons he wields, are treated as epic weapons for the purposes of overcoming damage reduction.
Alter Weight (Sp): As a standard action, Crius can change the weight of a single non-living object in his line of sight as a standard action. He can make an unattended object weightless, causing it to float upward as per the reverse gravity spell, for as long as he maintains Concentration on it.
Alternatively, Crius can increase the weight of an object, making it too heavy for any creature to lift for 1d4 rounds. If Crius concentrates on the object for 1 full minute, he can make the object permanently too heavy to lift; nothing short of a wish or miracle spell can allow the object to be lifted.
Gravity Field (Sp): At will, Crius can produce an effect like that of a reverse gravity spell (caster level 25th; Reflex save DC 44), except that the range is 350 feet and it affects an area of up to ten 10-foot cubes. If necessary, Crius can simply stack the cubes to reach a ceiling or other overhang, then use any remaining area to disrupt other opponents.
Alternatively, Crius can increase the gravity in a similarly sized area. Creatures within the area are affected as if they were on a plane with heavy gravity (see Dungeon Master’s Guide, pages 147-148). Airborne creatures are pulled downward and reach the ground in 1 round. The armor check penalties of armors worn in this area are doubled. Any creature attempting a grapple check suffers a –2 circumstance penalty on the check. A freedom of movement spell negates all penalties and allows normal movement.
Thrown weapons are ineffective within the heavy gravity field, even when launched from outside the field. Attacks with other ranged weapons take a –2 penalty on attack rolls for every 5 feet of the field’s area they pass through, in addition to the normal penalties for range and heavier gravity.
Spell-Like Abilities:
- At will –bestow curse (DC 24), chain lightning (DC 26), charm monster (DC 24), cure critical wounds (DC 24), deeper darkness, enlarge person, fire storm (DC 18), greater dispel magic, hold monster (DC 25), invisibility, invisibility purge, jump, levitate, persistent image (DC 25), polymorph (humanoid forms only, duration 1 hour), protection from energy, read magic, reduce person (DC 21), slow (DC 23), unholy blight (DC 24);
- 3/day – etherealness, freedom of movement, greater teleport, summon nature’s ally IX, waves of exhaustion (DC 27), word of chaos (DC 27);
- 1/day – clenched fist (DC 28), crushing hand (DC 29), grasping hand (DC 27), gate, maze, meteor swarm (DC 29), plane shift, wind walk.
Caster level 25th. The save DCs are Charisma-based.
Spells: Crius can cast divine spells as a 15th-level cleric.
Crius has access to the following domains: Chaos, Evil, Magic, and Strength. The save DCs are Wisdom-based.
Typical Cleric Spells Prepared (6/10/9/9/8/8/6/5/4; save DC 23 + spell level):
- 0 – detect magic, guidance, inflict minor wounds, mending, read magic, resistance;
- 1st – cause fear, detect good, divine favor, doom (x2), magic aura*, protection from good, protection from law, sanctuary, shield of faith;
- 2nd – aid, bear’s endurance, bull’s strength, desecrate, eagle’s splendor, identify*, shatter, silence, sound burst;
- 3rd – bestow curse, blindness/deafness, inflict serious wounds, magic circle against good, magic circle against law, magic vestment*, meld into stone, prayer, protection from energy;
- 4th – chaos hammer*, dimensional anchor, dismissal, divine power, greater magic weapon, imbue with spell ability, spell immunity, tongues;
- 5th – dispel good, dispel law, greater command, inflict light wounds, mass, righteous might*,Spell Resistance, true seeing, summon monster V;
- 6th – animate objects, antimagic field*, create undead, forbiddance, greater dispel magic, harm;
- 7th – blasphemy, greater restoration, regenerate, spell turning*, word of chaos;
- 8th – cloak of chaos, earthquake, protection from spells*, unholy aura.
*Domain spell.
Crius can also cast arcane spells as a 15th-level sorcerer (6/9/9/8/8/8/8/5; save DC 20 + spell level).
He has access to the following spells:
- 0 – arcane mark, dancing lights, daze, ghost sound, mage hand, message, open/close, prestidigitation, touch of fatigue;
- 1st –expeditious retreat, feather fall, magic missile, ray of enfeeblement, floating disk;
- 2nd –blur, misdirection, owl’s wisdom, pyrotechnics, spider climb;
- 3rd –gaseous form, halt undead, haste, ray of exhaustion;
- 4th –mass enlarge person, mass reduce person, resilient sphere, stoneskin;
- 5th –telekinesis, transmute rock to mud, wall of force, waves of fatigue;
- 6th –mass bull’s strength, move earth, repulsion;
- 7th –reverse gravity, symbol of weakness.
The save DCs are Charisma-based.
Originally found in the first edition Deities and Demigods (1980, James M. Ward and Robert J. Kuntz) and Well of Worlds (1994).
Currently in the World
The night sky darkens, but it is not mere absence of light—something ancient stirs beyond the veil of stars. Crius awakens.
Bound for eons beneath Tartarus’ crushing depths, his colossal form shifts, tethered to time yet defiant of it. The chains that once held him clatter softly, worn by centuries of waiting. Above, the constellations wheel in silent procession, their courses marked and measured by the very power Crius once wielded.
He rises—not with wrath, but with purpose. His eyes, eclipses of burning gold, pierce the veil between worlds as he surveys a world reshaped by mortal hands and new gods. The age of Titans has passed, yet the cosmic order he forged quivers beneath mortal chaos. His southern pillar—the foundation of balance—feels a tremor.
Earth churns, kingdoms rise and fall, and in 1453, the great walls of Constantinople crumble under the onslaught of the Ottoman siege. The old world shudders, the axis of power shifts. Crius watches, unseen, his gaze drawing threads of fate across the continents.
He moves subtly, weaving through the fabric of reality like a shadow cast by a distant star. His goal is not conquest, but restoration—a return to a cosmos where celestial law governs the tides of time and destiny. He senses mortal ambition rippling outward, fraying the tapestry his hands once arranged. War, faith, discovery—all chaotic forces swirling without order.
Yet, Crius is patient. Through his children—Astraeus, the bringer of stars and winds; Pallas, the spirit of strength and strategy; and Perses, the harbinger of ruin—he whispers the ancient knowledge, hidden in myth and memory, waiting for those who can hear.
His desire is simple yet profound: to guide the world back to balance, where stars align with destiny, and the celestial pillars hold firm once more. He is no vengeful god but a custodian of cosmic truth, burdened by exile but unyielding.
As the Renaissance dawns, with scholars reaching for forgotten knowledge and explorers charting new seas, Crius watches closely. The universe hums with possibility—and he will be there, a silent force in the background, shaping the dance of stars and empires alike.
His story is one of quiet power, of eternal vigilance, and the unending quest to restore a cosmos fractured by time and ambition. The Titan of the South waits—patient, eternal, and unbroken.
His Plan
Crius’s Plan: Restoring Primordial Cosmic Balance
1. Reclaim the Celestial Pillars
Crius was once a cosmic pillar himself—the southern pillar that upheld the heavens. His plan involves reasserting the foundational structures of the cosmos, ensuring that the stars, seasons, and celestial cycles realign to their original, harmonious paths. This could mean destabilizing or counteracting the Olympian influence that has reshaped fate and time.
2. Influence Through His Progeny
Crius’s children—Astraeus (stars and winds), Pallas (warcraft), and Perses (destruction)—are his agents in the world. Through them, he subtly guides natural forces, wars, and transformations that wear down mortal and divine arrogance. He plants seeds of chaos and order alike, nurturing eventual realignment with Titan-era cosmic law.
3. Undermine Mortal and Divine Hubris
Rather than outright war or revenge, Crius works by exploiting cracks in the current order—wars, upheavals, failed empires, forgotten knowledge rediscovered—pushing the world toward a tipping point where the old cosmic laws must be remembered and respected again.
4. Patience and Long View
Being a primordial Titan, Crius thinks in epochs, not lifetimes. His plan spans centuries or millennia, waiting for the right moments when mortal actions echo the ancient rhythms. He remains mostly hidden, influencing subtly, until a cosmic event or alignment provides the catalyst for a grand restoration.
5. Restore Cosmic Truth, Not Vengeance
Unlike other Titans who might seek revenge, Crius’s goal is restoration over destruction—to guide the cosmos back to its original balance, where fate, stars, and time flow according to the laws the Titans first set down.
Summary
Crius’s plan is to be the unseen hand that nudges the universe back to its ancient order—through celestial realignment, his children’s influence, and subtle manipulation of mortal and divine events—waiting patiently for the right moment to restore the primordial cosmic balance.
Would you like me to flesh out what kind of cosmic events or mortal upheavals Crius might target or orchestrate?