How would a God describe himself when asked "What are you"?

[LibraryOgre]

I AM SMAUG!
I kill what I wish!
I am strong. Strong. STRONG!
My armor is like tenfold shields, my teeth are like swords, my claws, spears, the shock of my tail, a THUNDERBOLT!
My wings, a HURRICANE!
And my breath.... DEATH!

That is how a god describes himself to a mortal.


(red text is just red, not mod-voice)

[Unoriginal]

“I USHERED SOULS INTO THE NEXT WORLD. I WAS THE GRAVE OF ALL HOPE. I WAS THE ULTIMATE REALITY. I WAS THE ASSASSIN AGAINST WHOM NO LOCK WOULD HOLD.
"Yes, point taken, but do you have any particular skills?”

-Mort, by Terry Pratchett

[Slipjig]

"I am He Whose Tread Shakes the Earth."

"I am what happens when the God of Murder decides he's tired of being subtle."

"I am... hungry."

-edit-

Not really applicable to this deity, but I like, "The Storm That None Survives".

[Bohandas]

"I have existed from the morning of the world and I shall exist until the last star falls from the night. Although I have taken the form of Gaius Caligula, I am all men as I am no man and therefore I am a God."

[TheHalfAasimar]

Well, the first thing is coming from FMAB, so something along the lines of:

"I am Truth, God, whatever you want to call me"

Or, if we're going by the bible, well,
"I am Alpha and Omega, the Beginning and End"

[Maryring]

It depends so much on who the god is. Why are they even talking to mortals in the first place? What's the aspect they're manifesting through? What's their goal in this interaction?

Essentially, if the goal is to intimidate then the answer is going to be quite different from if it's trying to lure the party into a false sense of security. But either way, there's been some pretty good examples for this particular god in question. So it all comes down to what you want to present him as.

[Beelzebub1111]

I would respond with a question to try and determine why the player is asking that question. If the player wants to wax philosophical with a god of murder then it enables them to get the heart of the response. If the player wants to learn how to become a god...a primordial entity representing the idea of the first being intentionally ending the life of another is not the best place to start. If the player is trying to be clever and get the god to disprove itself by asking tricky atheistic questions, then have the dinosaur god eat him. Respond with: "That is what I am"

[Carrion Knight]

First and foremost ask yourself what a god is in your world at least in the simple sense. Is a god a manifestation of a concept, in this case murder? Or is it an preexisting entity that chose the domain of murder, to feed on it as its divine sustenance? Is it a fiction conjured into this world and sustained by the belief of it's worshippers?
With the answer to that in mind, the truth as it is, you can then look to the personality of the god. Would they lie about their origins? Are they poetic, or blunt? How do they feel about mortals, or these mortals specifically? What mood are they in, what have they been doing lately and how would that impact their current conversation?
A manifestation of a concept god with a poetic style of speech who sees mortals as playthings and has been grumpy do to recent conflict with the ocean god, will sound vastly different to a fiction god with a blunt style who hates mortals.
The former may decide to let out frustration on the party, trying to intimidate them for its amusement with a truthful and flowery speech. The latter may try to scare the mortals, requiring their belief to exist, with an enraged lie about being a manifestation god or a preexisting god as not to reveal any potential weaknesses.

Just some long winded thoughts.

[Entessa]

Thanks to everyone of you.

Really.

You truly gave me some ideas. I can say you some things, though:

1) The "I am" stuff I truly don't like, because it reminds me of the Abramitic God, while we are in a pantheon of Gods

2) I should have phrased that Kazgaroth is made from the essence of Murder, but he is not Murder. Bhaal is murder, but he is currently dead, and the party will meet him because one of the being here is a Bhaalspawn.

3) The "what are you is still hard to answer, even with all your replies.

4) Some of the phrases are really cool, such as "Death of Earthmother made manifest, or the wind snuffing the candle". I feel though they are more adapt to an answer of "who are you".

5) For Beelzebub1111: the player wishes a philosophical answer, rather than a materialistic one.

6) to Carrion knight: it an preexisting entity that chose the domain of murder, to feed on it as its divine sustenance.

Thanks to everyone <3

[Unoriginal]

2) I should have phrased that Kazgaroth is made from the essence of Murder, but he is not Murder. Bhaal is murder, but he is currently dead, and the party will meet him because one of the being here is a Bhaalspawn.

"I am what you could be: an entity made *from* Bhaal, but not Bhaal or beholden to him."

[Bohandas]

2) I should have phrased that Kazgaroth is made from the essence of Murder, but he is not Murder. Bhaal is murder, but he is currently dead, and the party will meet him because one of the being here is a Bhaalspawn.

*"In our father's house there are many graves"

*"Come with me and I will make you butchers of men"

[Witty Username]

There is the old favorite repurposed:

'Murder is my blood, and death is my bones'

It is a redux of how Jon Irenicus describes bhaalspawn, when you accuse him of infiltrating your dreams.

[Misereor]

"So glad you asked!" *stab*
- Belkar, The Halfling God of Murder

[Trafalgar]

An omniscient god would have to exist outside time. So use Dr. Manhattan for inspiration.

"We are all puppets. I am just a puppet who can see the strings"
or
"Perhaps the world is not made. Perhaps nothing is made. A clock without a craftsman. It’s too late. Always has been, always will be, too late."
or
"She says I am like a god now. I tell her I don’t think there is a God, and if there is, I’m nothing like Him".


For example, I would change the first quote for a god of murder:

"We are all puppets. Gods are puppets who can see the strings. I am the god who cuts the strings of other puppets."

[Easy e]

"I 'iz what I 'iz" - Pop-eye The Sailor Man

[KorvinStarmast]

"I 'iz what I 'iz" - Pop-eye The Sailor Man

I recall that being "Aye Yam what Aye Yam" but it's been a lot of years since I saw those cartoons.

[Bohandas]

I recall that being "Aye Yam what Aye Yam" but it's been a lot of years since I saw those cartoons.

Same here, on both counts

[Kane0]

No words, just a mental projection. A single momentary telepathic link to every creature currently murdering or being murdered. A split second glimpse into their entire perspective of existence.

[hewhosaysfish]

I recall that being "Aye Yam what Aye Yam" but it's been a lot of years since I saw those cartoons.

I thought that was Descartes?

[wilphe]

I thought that was Descartes?

So did I man

So did I

So easy to get those two dudes mixed up

[Psyren]

"I 'iz what I 'iz" - Pop-eye The Sailor Man

I recall that being "Aye Yam what Aye Yam" but it's been a lot of years since I saw those cartoons.

I thought that was Descartes?

Exodus predated both, though I don't think I can elaborate here.

*"In our father's house there are many graves"

*"Come with me and I will make you butchers of men"

Ha, cute

[ArlEammon]

"I am as far beyond Mutants as they are beyond you!" - En Sabah Nur

[Easy e]

I recall that being "Aye Yam what Aye Yam" but it's been a lot of years since I saw those cartoons.

Oh! I think you are right. Faulty memory strikes again!

[Sapphire Guard]

The question 'what are you' Kind of implies an answer beginning 'I am', unless you god just says 'irrelevant. Why are you here?'

[KorvinStarmast]

I can just see the conversation if the deity in question is having a rough time at the moment.

Mortal: What are you?
Deity: What's it to you, pal?

[Ionathus]

Since many fictional "pantheon" gods (like those in the Forgotten Realms) each have a typical portfolio, usually a powerful concept in mortal minds like Death, Light, or Love, I always lead with that. That one aspect (though it can be several connected concepts) of their personality informs everything about how they think about themselves. It may not align perfectly with how mortals see that concept.

Example: Kelemvor is the god of death, but importantly "death as the natural counterpart to life." It's not something to be feared, or avoided, or inflicted upon others. It's something to be accepted and "enforced" (for those who violate their own mortality like liches, vampires, mad mages, etc.), but that doesn't make it a bad thing, and Kelemvor doesn't relish death. Even if a mortal might fear death (and by extension, Kelemvor), Kelemvor won't approach it in those terms. Kelemvor will speak of natural order, and inevitability, and be generally "fair, but cold" which is one of his taglines.

Think about if you asked two people to describe themselves and what they do for a living: a visual artist who creates oil paintings for sale, and a construction painter who spray-paints hundreds of interior rooms a year with a basic primer coat. They each work with the same medium (paint) for a living, but their approach is entirely different. One prioritizes the visual appeal, one is going for efficiency. One likely plays with different styles, and the other one has perfected a consistent way of accomplishing one task.

From what I can see of Kazgaroth on the wiki, it seems like a feral, bestial creature who relishes murder and death. It would speak like a gloryseeking gladiator or a bloodthirsty monster, and it would consider itself the highest form of being, because of its ability to inflict death on others. It would demonstrate profound ego, profound cruelty, and profound predatory cunning. Compare that to Kelemvor, who also works with death, but as a neutral arbiter, not a gleeful killer himself.

Hope that helps!

(red text is just red, not mod-voice)

Too late: through accidental use of mod-powers you have literally transformed yourself into a massive red dragon. Seek medical treatment immediately...OR seek out Peelee to set a time and place for a dragon-battle for the ages, and let us know so we can preorder front-row tickets

[Moyza]

The encarnation of murder, you say?
Let's use the principle of where comes from and to what it leads.

"I am the source of loss, the begin of sorrow, the fountain from where regret flow. I am the life cut short, the impossibility of tomorrow, the outter edge of the downward spiral. I am murder!"

…etc. My English is not that good, but I suppose you get the idea.

[Unoriginal]

I can just see the conversation if the deity in question is having a rough time at the moment.

Mortal: What are you?
Deity: What's it to you, pal?

"Mortals always ask what I am, no one ever ask how I am."

"It's not because I'm immortal that I can't be dead tired, you know?"