Xenagos

Xenagos
God of Revels
[[File:{{#setmainimage:Xenagos-The-Reveler-Art.jpg}}|250px]]
Details
Race	Satyr Planeswalker Later God
Birthplace	Setessa, Theros
Lifetime	unknown-~4559 AR
Colors
Currently:

Xenagos was a satyr planeswalker from Theros. He was once the lord of Skola Valley and was known at large as King Stranger. He later became the God of Revels.

Appearance and characteristics

He appeared as a muscular young satyr with long brown hair and a beard, brown fur down his hooves, two pairs of horns, as well as markings along his body of what appeared to be red war paint. He wielded a spearlike polearm with a lyre shape behind the tip, which may be a functional instrument. As a god, he also carried a kylix of Nyxborn wine.

Xenagos was centered in green and red mana.

History

Xenagos's history of violence and ego began before he was even born, slaying his twin sister while they were each still in the womb. In time, his mother, Raissa, would give birth, knowing that Xenagos would bear a fate destined to be something special. Unlike the others of her kind, she stayed and attempted to raise the child that she knew was fated for something great.

Xenagos displayed a wanton disregard for life, killing another child and leading Raissa to flee with her child from Setessa. At six, he began to attempt to murder his mother. He seemed impressed by her ability to overcome his repeated attempts on her life, but all Raissa desired were answers. The answers she received were confusing and terrifying, as she saw visions of her son rising to challenge the gods themselves.

The Rise of King Stranger

Like the rest of his kind, Xenagos led the life of a hedonist, reveling in a carefree life of pleasure without inhibitions. Though he did not lead the satyrs of Skola Vale, he served as de facto host at their revelries. At some point, this lifestyle led to his ascension, his spark igniting during the Bakkeia. Xenagos took advantage of his newfound status and perspective, engaging in revelries elsewhere in the Multiverse and enjoying the new pleasures available to him, but soon he was aware of a grim reality: that he, ultimately, was utterly insignificant in the grand scheme of things, and that the gods' reach was meaningless outside of Theros. Following the trauma of this revelation, and disillusioned with the meaningless hedonism, the satyr became progressively more ambitious.

Return to Theros

God of Revels.

Sometime later, Xenagos returned to his birthplane, finding his old hedonistic lifestyle exceedingly dull and the gods to be a farce in which he was no longer willing to participate. His ambitions had evolved into a desire for outright godhood, to join or replace the pantheon of Theros, and so he began gathering his forces of eldritch, otherworldly monsters to attack the polis of Meletis, Akros, and Setessa. These attacks became so severe that the gods themselves began to go blind, cut off from their oracles. This drove them into a panic which escalated as they blamed the others of their kind for the transgression. Only Nylea seemed to be aware of the threat he played, but with his otherworldly magic, none of the gods could truly stop him.

In circumstances largely under mystery, he gained knowledge that the Gods' power stemmed from the devotion of their followers. Gaining enough devoted followers, he managed to ascend to godhood. This occurred during a minotaur siege at Akros, battled off by armies led by Elspeth. The victory celebration was the final ingredient to Xenagos' divine ascension, and in the ensuing turmoil, the Sun god's champion was ironically scapegoated for this, resulting in her exile to the wilderness. Xenagos held the position of the god of the revels, furthering the chaos and distrust of the established pantheon. Heliod was particularly offended by his ascension and sought to destroy the satyr, whom he refers to as "the usurper". He planned to punish all of mortal-kind for the actions of the new god.

Fall from Nyx

Elspeth kills the god Xenagos

Xenagos had accomplished what he had desired: obtaining a place in the pantheon. However, he could not sustain his godly form by himself; he gathered a large array of Nyxborn creatures, using them to keep his position. Capturing the Nyxborn caused Theros's sky to darken, as chaos spread across the plane. His stay in Nyx would not be a long one, though. Only a couple of days after his rise, Elspeth and her friend Ajani arrived in Nyx to set Theros right again. After a difficult battle, Xenagos managed to knock Elspeth down, planning on taking her weapon, Godsend, to keep his position firm. However, Elspeth managed to throw the spear into Xenagos's chest, causing the arrowhead, which Nylea had shot into Xenagos before his ascension, to explode, tearing Xenagos's organs into shreds. As Xenagos died in Nyx, he is not even in the Underworld, and as such, he is truly gone.

Trivia

• The character of Xenagos is inspired by the Greek satyr god Pan, Dionysus, the Greek god of wine, ritual madness, and ecstasy, and the satyr god Comus Greek god of revelry, merrymaking, and festivity.
• Xenagos was originally designed with a goat head, but this was scrapped due to him looking "too demonic and inhuman".
• The name of Xenagos can be a combination of the Greek words ξένος (xénos) "stranger" and ἄγος (ágos) "curse", "abomination", or "reverence".
• Xenagos narrates the trailer for Born of the Gods.

Planeswalkers met

• Ajani Goldmane
• Elspeth Tirel

Planes visited

• Theros

Gallery

• 

  Xenagos key art

• 

  “Why pray to the gods, who feed on your worship? Dissolve your illusions and see the true nature of things.”

• 

  "The Usurper".

• 

  Reaching to divinity

• 

  The god

• 

  “Embrace every moment, for it could be your last.”

• 

  Xenagos, God of Revels from Secret Lair Drop Series: Theros Stargazing.

Story appearances

Title	Author	Publishing date	Set	Setting (plane)	Featuring
The Hero of Iroas	Matt Knicl	2014-03-05	Born of the Gods	Theros	Aesrias, Iroas, Pilun, Anax, Xenagos
Dreams of the City	Ken Troop	2014-04-23	Journey into Nyx	Theros	Cacophony, Euneas, Pollio, Melantha, Xenocrates, Koblios, Ephara, Phenax, Ashiok, Xenagos
Thank the Gods	Clayton Kroh	2014-04-30	Journey into Nyx	Theros	Xenagos

In-game references

Represented in:

• Xenagos, the Reveler
• Xenagos, God of Revels
• Xenagos Ascended (Defeat a God)

Associated cards:

• Destructive Revelry
• Eidolon of the Great Revel
• Fanatic of Xenagos
• Reckless Reveler
• Revel of the Fallen God
• Temple of Abandon (Theros)
• Xenagos's Scorn (Defeat a God)
• Xenagos's Strike (Defeat a God)

Depicted in:

• Deicide
• Impulsive Charge (Defeat a God)
• Silence the Believers
• Strength from the Fallen

Quoted or referred to:

• Annul (Theros)
• Eidolon of the Great Revel (Secret Lair, #422)
• Mischief and Mayhem
• Rollick of Abandon
• Satyr Hoplite