Ironic Hell: For Vorbis, the desert every Omnian has to cross in the afterlife to reach judgement turns into this, as he's spent his whole life believing that he was following the voice of his god and realizes that it was his own all along. The realization that he's now alone without anyone to guide him leaves him prostrated in terror, until Brutha finds him a hundred years later (a literal eternity from his perspective, according to Death) and takes mercy on him. It Came from the Fridge: The, ahem, live yogurt sold by Cut-Me-Own-Hand-Off Dhblah, which was kept out in the sun too long. As a result, Dhblah had to keep hitting it with a spoon to prevent it from escaping.

The deadliest monster in Greek mythology and “Father of All Monsters”. Last son of Gaia, fathered by Tartarus and god of monsters, storms, and volcanoes. He challenged Zeus for control of Mount Olympus. The turtle moves!", the cry of the revolutionists against Omnia's dogmatism and a Shout-Out to Galileo. The goddess Czol was an ancient goddess of Thut before that land sank under the sea some 9,000 years ago. One does not ask about her. Mentioned in Going Postal. May be somehow related to Mrs. Cake.Death Glare: Brutha's first impression of Simony. The man shoots him an expression of pure and unfiltered hatred. Lu Tze, the supernaturally wise and vaguely Asian monk, seems to be named in honor of Lao Tzu, the semi-legendary Taoist philosopher. This article is about the concept of small gods. For the Discworld novel also called Small Gods, see Small Gods (novel).

Ancient, pre-Olympian sea-god of the deep sea, one of the Greek primordial deities and son of Gaia. The Chosen Many: The Prophets of Om (holy horns), of which there have been several, Brutha just being the latest. Explored, and subverted, since Om didn't actually chose any of them. Half the time he never even met or talked to them, and in one case the lengthy amount of things he said was actually no more than "hey, look what I can do". And then Brutha manages to single-handedly institute a cultural and religious revolution, managing to actually play the idea relatively straight.Lu Tze, one of the Monks of History, who decides to improve Omnian history so it is less bloody. He spends time working in the gardens of the Omnian Temple observing Brutha while sweeping and keeping the soil beds. He may have arranged the compost heap for Om to fall on, thus allowing him to survive. Nuggan is the locally worshipped monotheistic and omnipotent God of Borogravia, but elsewhere he is known as the God of Paperclips, Correct Things in the Right Place in Small Desk Stationery Sets, and Unnecessary Paperwork. He usually sports a fussy little moustache. Simony, who refuses to believe in the existence of the gods even when they're speaking to him personally. Om likes him because atheism that militant is basically the same as religious belief from the point of view of a god — they're thinking and talking about the gods as frequently and as strongly as believers, if not more so. Heel Realization: Vorbis finally gets this after death, realizing that he'd never actually been following the commandments of a god—that the only voice he'd ever heard came from his own head. Sturgeon's Law: Om says that ninety-nine percent of the Ephebian philosophers' ideas are useless but they are tolerated because that last one percent is a "humdinger".

The Great God Om tries to manifest himself once more in the world, as the time of his Eighth Prophet is nigh. He is surprised, however, when he finds himself in the body of a tortoise, stripped of his divine powers, except for the ability to singe eyebrows with tiny thunderbolts. One of the twelve Titan Gods, Crios was known as the god of the heavenly constellations and the measure of the year. He was father to Astraeus, Pallas, and Perses. The 13th Discworld novel and a standalone, although it uses some characters and locations from Pyramids and its events influence later works. Really 700 Years Old: The History Monks, who use 'circular aging' the way those who play wind instruments use 'circular breathing'.The Ferryman of Hades. Took the newly dead people across the rivers Styx and Acheron to the Greek underworld if they paid him three obolus (a Greek silver coin). Exact Words: Vorbis swears up and down that the Ephebians killed the preacher Omnia sent. When Brutha starts questioning this story, Vorbis tries using these to say that while they didn't kill him exactly, their not listening to him did. Brutha points out this means he was actually killed by the Inquisition on his return. And I Must Scream: Vorbis's final fate - an eternity in the absolute silence of his own mind, all alone with himself - is Subverted when Brutha mercifully takes him to the afterlife. Beware the Silly Ones: Why Ephebe keeps so many philosophers around. As Om observes, 99 out of every 100 ideas they come up with are complete rubbish, but the 100th tends to be an absolute humdinger. For instance, one minute they're wibbling on about beauty and truth, the next they're saying "incidentally, putting this mirror up on that tower would make for an interesting demonstration of optical principles", giving Ephebe their own death ray.