Rathma: Diablo Character Analysis

Race: Nephalem / Firstborn

Sex: Male

Faction: Priests of Rathma

Rathma is remembered as the Firstborn nephalem of Sanctuary and the figure most closely associated with the necromantic tradition later formalized as the Priests of Rathma. In the modern era of Sanctuary’s history, his name functions less like a mere historical footnote and more like a doctrinal cornerstone, invoked as protection, warning, and proof that the Cycle can be studied without being broken. The faith-language around him is deliberate, almost liturgical in tone, as in the oft-cited line: “Let the wisdom of Rathma protect us from those that would do us harm.”

Rathma, Keeper of Balance

What was Rathma’s origin as Linarian, the Firstborn nephalem?

Rathma’s earliest identity matters because it frames his entire mythic trajectory: he is not “a” nephalem in the loose, heroic sense, but the first of that bloodline, born of Lilith and Inarius, and therefore positioned at the fault line between Heaven’s order and Hell’s hunger. Most depictions emphasize that he rejects both parents’ visions for Sanctuary, not out of indecision, but out of a colder comprehension: either extreme becomes a kind of doom. That ideological spine, Balance over victory, is what later sets him apart from the many powers that treat Sanctuary as prize, battlefield, or laboratory. Diablo lore sources consistently describe him as a master over death and spirits and as the creator or origin-point for the Priests of Rathma, linking his personhood directly to the later necromancers.

There is also a tonal contrast baked into his “Firstborn” status. The world around Linarian begins as possibility, then becomes aftermath. Stories of the early nephalem age frequently emphasize loss as the catalyst that hardens his worldview. Whether presented as tragedy, awakening, or both, the throughline is that Rathma’s path is not an ascent into power for its own sake, but a narrowing into function.

Rathma and Trag’Oul

The pivot from Linarian to Rathma is not merely a name change. It is a conversion, in the old sense: a reorientation of purpose. Rathma becomes inseparable from Trag’Oul’s metaphysics, because Trag’Oul is not treated like a conventional mentor or patron, but as a cosmic principle given voice and shape. Rathma’s identity as “Keeper of Balance” is thus less a title bestowed by mortals and more a job-description aligned to the structure of Sanctuary itself.

This is where Rathma’s reputation becomes unusually paradoxical. He is associated with necromancy, yet the philosophical center is not domination of death but stewardship of the Cycle. He is associated with vast lineage and cosmic parentage, yet he repeatedly chooses constraint, secrecy, and the long game over empire. Even when stories place him near world-defining mechanisms, the emphasis tends to fall on prevention rather than conquest.

Rathma’s role in the Sin War and the hidden war for Sanctuary

Rathma’s importance in the Sin War era is often described in terms of influence without spotlight. Rather than being framed as the champion at the head of an army, he is placed in the role of saboteur of certainty, disrupting both angelic and demonic routes to supremacy. In many tellings, he functions like a corrective force: when one side’s plan begins to look inevitable, Rathma’s presence introduces friction, doubt, or an alternate move that preserves equilibrium.

What makes this period especially defining for his later legend is that it establishes the pattern that follows him across centuries of lore: he is present at turning points, yet rarely “owned” by them. Rathma is not written as a loyal instrument of Heaven, nor as a redeemed heir of Hell. He is written as Sanctuary’s internal immune response, a figure whose allegiance is to the world’s continued existence as a world that can choose.

Founder of the Priests of Rathma

Rathma’s relationship to the necromancers is not framed as a casual founding of a school, but as the installation of a safeguard meant to outlast the Firstborn themselves. In other words, the priesthood exists because Rathma expects absence. His project is continuity: building a tradition that can maintain the Balance after the era of the ancient nephalem ends, after memory fades, after history becomes religion.

Lore summaries explicitly connect Rathma to the creation of the Priests of Rathma, who later become widely known simply as necromancers. This association is one reason his name persists even when direct evidence of his deeds becomes scarce. A necromantic order anchored to Balance, rather than to conquest of mortality, makes Rathma more durable than a mere legendary warrior. It makes him doctrine.

Diablo IV: the Necropolis of the Firstborn (Spoilers)

Spoilers for Diablo IV follow.

Diablo IV presents one of the most concrete, visceral uses of Rathma in the franchise’s modern storytelling: not simply as revered founder, but as a casualty that proves how personal the cosmic conflict remains. The “Descent” quest sequence ties Rathma to a specific place, a specific aftermath, and a specific exchange that reframes prophecy as something like a trap that still closes even when it is seen coming.

The scene is remembered in large part because it strips away the comfortable abstraction that can accumulate around ancient figures. Rathma is not treated as unreachable myth. He is treated as someone who can be confronted, argued with, murdered, and used.

In the quest’s quoted exchange, Inarius demands the key to Hell, and Rathma’s response is chillingly matter-of-fact: he speaks of a vision in which the key will be taken from his corpse “under the watchful eyes of the Great Serpent.” The line lands because it carries two implications at once. First, Rathma has already accepted the shape of this moment, placing him in the familiar role of the seer who cannot simply brute-force fate aside. Second, the prophecy’s wording suggests surveillance and inevitability, as if even death occurs within a system that is watching and counting.

The aftermath further reinforces Rathma’s narrative role as a hinge between ages. In the same quest text, Lilith’s mourning underscores that the conflict between Lilith and Inarius is not merely ideological or political but familial, intimate, and vicious. Rathma’s death becomes a signal flare: Balance is no longer an idea guarded by an ancient caretaker, but a vacancy into which other forces will reach.

Why Rathma matters beyond his life: legacy as doctrine, not just history

Rathma’s legacy persists because it is functional. The necromancers’ identity as protectors of Balance, rather than as simple death-magi, gives the world a counterweight to the binary pull of angels and demons. Rathma becomes a symbol that mortals can inherit: the belief that life and death, light and dark, order and chaos can be engaged without surrendering to any of them.

Even in sources that summarize him briefly, the key points repeat: Firstborn nephalem, child of Lilith and Inarius, master over death and spirits, architect of the Priests of Rathma, and a figure whose life intersects directly with the franchise’s largest metaphysical questions. That combination makes Rathma unusually useful for Diablo’s storytelling. He is a bridge between myth and system, between personal tragedy and cosmology, between prophecy and the cold machinery of consequence.

Rathma's Raw Power

Rathma’s Raw Power scores 8.5/10, reflecting a Firstborn nephalem whose innate command over life and death repeatedly manifests as battlefield-grade magic, mass control over the dead, and high-end mobility. This is not a “perfect 10” profile, because Rathma’s greatest feats often read as controlled, purposeful applications of necromancy and arcane force rather than limitless, reality-shattering output in direct duels, and his story includes moments where overwhelming opposition can still end him when circumstances turn against him.

Strength

Measured strictly as physical might independent of supernatural force, Rathma’s strength appears above human norms but not emphasized as a defining weapon. The canon impression is of a tall, pale, angular-featured figure whose presence conveys age and unnatural poise more than brute musculature. His combat identity does not hinge on lifting power, striking force, or grappling dominance, and there is no consistent depiction of him solving problems through sheer physical violence. Even when he carries a dagger of bone or a staff, those implements function as conduits and symbols, not proof that Rathma is a physically overpowering melee monster. In Raw Power terms, that means Strength contributes only modestly to the final score: it is serviceable for a nephalem entity, but the text repeatedly frames him as a practitioner whose body is secondary to what he can command.

Magical Ability

This is the engine of Rathma’s Raw Power, and the evidence points to a rare blend of necromancy, arcane projection, and metaphysical access that stays combat-relevant in multiple contexts. First, Rathma demonstrates early-cycle authority over life and death at a scale that quickly leaves “small tricks” behind. The initial act of restoring a dead weeping lily is not impressive because it is horticulture, but because it signals an instinctive link to the Cycle that later expands into commanding the dead and severing hostile bindings. Later episodes show him dismantling undead compulsions imposed by another will, freeing corpses from domination with gestures that read like absolute overrides, and then offering those freed dead a choice between rest and service. In practical combat terms, that is battlefield control plus recruitment, and it implies that hostile necromancy is not automatically “equal” to his own.

Second, Rathma’s destructive output is explicitly lethal. He channels beams and blasts of energy capable of outright obliteration, including bursts so extreme they erase bodies caught in the release. That is not merely a stun or knockback toolkit, it is a capacity for terminal force when restraint fails.

Third, his mobility and intangibility function like magical superiority rather than convenience. Rathma can teleport, shift between Sanctuary and Trag’Oul’s realm, and even pass through solid objects. In a combat scenario, that translates to near-total positioning control: disengage at will, appear behind defenses, bypass fortifications, and ignore mundane containment.

Finally, Rathma’s sensory magic provides a fight-winning edge. His mind-touch does not rely on simple thought-reading, but on perceiving the sensations behind intentions, which he treats as harder to falsify. In practical terms, this supports target assessment, deception resistance, and the ability to identify the “real” motive behind an enemy’s actions before the enemy commits.

Combat Prowess

Combat Prowess evaluates effectiveness in fights, blending physical and magical performance with skill using weapons and techniques. Rathma’s prowess is best characterized as command-style combat, where the battlefield itself becomes the instrument.

He demonstrates mass engagement capability through the creation and leadership of an undead host, including ethereal allies and reanimated bodies. That matters because it is not a one-off summon. The narrative frames it as an accumulating army that grows as Rathma advances, turning each conquered encounter into additional force. This gives him scalable pressure: screening, flanking, absorbing attacks, and overwhelming defenders while he remains the central caster.

He also shows direct duel functionality when forced into it. When incapacitated or pressed, Rathma responds with surges of raw magical force that can end engagements instantly, and when confronted by entities using the dead as weapons, he can break that control and reverse the tactical situation. That is a hallmark of high Combat Prowess: the ability to fight both “units” and “controllers,” and to punish the controlling layer rather than merely cutting down minions.

At the same time, the record suggests a notable limit relevant to this category. Rathma’s combat excellence is maximized when he can act as orchestrator, shaping the field, choosing when to escalate, and applying overwhelming necromancy from a position of advantage. In scenarios where an opponent closes the distance under conditions that deny preparation, leverage, or sanctuary protections, the story demonstrates that even Rathma can be ended. That does not collapse the score, but it prevents a “topmost” placement within Raw Power, because true peak combat profiles tend to remain unkillable or inexhaustible even when surprised, cornered, or stripped of staging.

Rathma's Tactical Ability

Rathma’s Tactical Ability earns an 8.5/10, reflecting a figure who consistently operates several layers above the immediate conflict, shaping outcomes through foresight, positioning, and controlled intervention rather than simple reaction. This rating considers only his capacity for strategizing, planning, and executing plans in conflict situations, not the raw magnitude of his magic or his durability.

Strategic Mind

Rathma’s defining tactical trait is his long-horizon thinking. He does not merely respond to threats as they appear, but frames conflicts within the larger principle of Balance, treating wars between cosmic factions as variables to be managed rather than battles to be “won” outright. His involvement in the Sin War illustrates a strategic approach that favors indirect action, selective alliances, and containment over decisive but destabilizing victory. He works from the shadows, allowing opposing forces to exhaust or expose themselves while he intervenes at key leverage points. This includes identifying when direct confrontation would be counterproductive and instead investing in shaping people, institutions, and conditions that will persist beyond a single campaign.

He also shows the ability to recognize inflection points in advance. Visions and prophetic insight feed into planning, but what elevates him tactically is how he operationalizes them. Rather than becoming paralyzed by foreknowledge, he translates it into preparation, such as positioning trusted actors in roles where they can influence future events, or codifying warnings and knowledge into systems that outlive him. This capacity to think in terms of generational outcomes, not just battlefield turns, is characteristic of a high Strategic Mind score.

Resourcefulness

Rathma repeatedly operates under constrained conditions and still alters the trajectory of events. He spends long stretches isolated, without a standing army, kingdom, or formal authority structure, yet remains a decisive actor. When traditional power blocs are unreliable or hostile, he pivots to unconventional channels. He recruits and mentors individuals who begin as skeptics, turning them into effective agents through knowledge transfer and reframing of their role in the larger conflict. He also leverages environments that others overlook, such as hidden sanctums, liminal spaces, and metaphysical domains, using them as staging grounds that offset material disadvantages.

A key aspect of his resourcefulness is his refusal to overcommit to a single solution. He does not hinge the survival of the world on one duel, one alliance, or one artifact. Instead, he builds redundancy into his approach, distributing responsibility and capability across people and institutions so that failure at one node does not collapse the entire design. This is tactical resilience expressed through planning structure rather than physical endurance.

Resource Arsenal

Though Rathma rarely commands conventional military or political resources, his true arsenal is structural and informational. He possesses unique access to knowledge of cosmic mechanics, the Balance, and the long-term consequences of extreme outcomes. That knowledge functions as a strategic asset on par with legions, because it allows him to anticipate moves others do not even understand are possible. He also cultivates a lineage of practitioners and a philosophical order centered on his teachings, effectively creating a distributed network of specialists aligned to his worldview. That order serves as a standing strategic reserve, able to intervene in crises tied to life, death, and imbalance even when Rathma himself is absent.

Additionally, his relationship with a primordial guardian figure provides a channel of perspective and support unavailable to most actors. This is not brute force reinforcement but access to a higher vantage point, reinforcing his plans with insights that transcend local politics and short-term interests. The result is a Resource Arsenal that is light on banners and fortresses but heavy on enduring, scalable influence.

Rathma's Influence

Rathma’s Influence/Persuasion merits an 8.5/10, placing him in the uppermost echelon of influential figures across fantasy settings, though not at the absolute pinnacle occupied by beings who command entire civilizations through charisma or divine mandate alone. This score reflects his ability to shape individuals, institutions, and long-term ideological currents through persuasion, earned reverence, and exceptional internal will, rather than overt rulership or emotional magnetism.

Persuasion

Rathma’s persuasive power operates less through warmth or charm and more through clarity, authority of knowledge, and an almost unsettling moral certainty. When he speaks, he does so from a position of profound understanding of life, death, and cosmic consequence. Those he addresses are often skeptical at first, yet he consistently succeeds in reframing their perspective. He does not simply argue a point, he reveals a larger context that makes his position difficult to dismiss. This method proves especially effective with strong-willed individuals who are not easily swayed by flattery or threats. His approach is didactic rather than manipulative in the traditional sense, but it still achieves compliance, alignment, or at minimum reluctant cooperation.

Importantly, Rathma persuades others to adopt burdens they did not seek. He convinces mortals to step into roles tied to maintaining Balance, a concept abstract and thankless, offering no glory or obvious reward. The fact that people accept this path under his guidance speaks to persuasive depth. However, he is not universally compelling in emotional or political arenas, and he does not rally masses through speeches or populist appeal, which keeps this subcategory just shy of the very top tier.

Reverence

Reverence is where Rathma’s influence becomes systemic rather than personal. He is not merely respected as a powerful individual, but venerated as a foundational figure within an enduring philosophical and practical tradition. Entire generations of practitioners model their worldview, rituals, and ethical framework on his teachings. He functions as a patron figure whose name, image, and doctrine carry weight long after his direct involvement in events. This is not celebrity or fear based notoriety, but institutionalized reverence embedded in identity and practice.

Such reverence magnifies his influence beyond physical presence. Decisions are made, doctrines upheld, and crises addressed in alignment with principles attributed to him. Even those who never met him act in ways shaped by his legacy. That kind of transgenerational, quasi sacred authority is rare and signals a near-maximum score in this subcategory. The main limiting factor is that this reverence is concentrated within specific traditions rather than universally acknowledged across all cultures and factions.

Willpower

Rathma’s willpower is a cornerstone of his influence profile. He resists not only external coercion, but also ideological extremes that would be easier to embrace. Positioned between overwhelming cosmic forces, he maintains a stable philosophical stance when surrendering to one side or the other would offer safety, validation, or power. He endures personal loss, prophetic burden, and the knowledge of catastrophic futures without abandoning his role. This stability under metaphysical and emotional pressure makes him extremely difficult to manipulate.

His willpower also reinforces his persuasive authority. Others sense that his convictions are not performative or opportunistic. He cannot easily be intimidated, corrupted, or swayed by appeals to fear or ambition. This creates an impression of incorruptible purpose, which in turn strengthens both personal persuasion and the reverence he inspires.

Rathma's Resilience

Rathma’s Resilience earns a 9/10, placing him among the most enduring figures across fantasy settings, though still short of entities that are fundamentally unkillable concepts or self-restoring cosmic forces. His resilience is expressed through exceptional physical and magical survivability during life, coupled with an extraordinary degree of existential persistence through legacy, metaphysical presence, and long-term impact even after death.

Physical Resistance

In strictly physical terms, Rathma does not present as an armored juggernaut or brute force combatant, yet his durability exceeds what his lean, scholarly appearance might suggest. As a Firstborn nephalem, his baseline constitution is far beyond that of ordinary mortals, granting him heightened endurance, resistance to environmental extremes, and the capacity to remain functional under injuries or conditions that would incapacitate most beings. His long life across eras marked by war, magical catastrophe, and divine interference implies sustained survivability in dangerous contexts rather than fragile dependence on protection.

However, his resilience is not rooted in sheer physical toughness alone. He can be physically killed, and ultimately is, which prevents a perfect score in this subcategory. His resistance lies more in endurance and durability than invulnerability, marking him as highly resistant but not immune to decisive physical force from beings of comparable or greater tier.

Magical Resistance

Rathma’s magical resistance is considerably more pronounced than his purely physical durability. As a master of necromancy and a being deeply attuned to the Balance, he operates within the same metaphysical systems that many hostile powers attempt to exploit. This grants him profound familiarity with soul manipulation, death magic, and spiritual interference, making him unusually difficult to overwhelm through curses, fear effects, or soul-based assaults. He is not merely a user of magic but an architect of understanding regarding the life–death cycle, which translates into defensive depth.

His exposure to entities of angelic, demonic, and cosmic nature without being immediately subjugated or erased demonstrates resistance to overwhelming supernatural presence. He is capable of functioning in realms and under pressures that would shatter lesser minds or souls. That said, he is not completely beyond magical harm, as sufficiently powerful forces can still affect or kill him. This keeps his magical resistance very high, but not absolute.

Longevity

Longevity is the subcategory that elevates Rathma’s overall resilience into the highest tier. He endures across vast stretches of history, witnessing generational change, civilizational collapse, and cosmic conflict without fading into irrelevance. His lifespan alone far exceeds that of most beings, allowing him to outlast threats that are temporary on a cosmic timescale. More importantly, his existence is not limited to biological duration.

Even after his physical death, Rathma’s presence continues to shape events through prophecy, doctrine, and metaphysical imprint. His teachings persist as an active force in the world, guiding others who act in alignment with his philosophy of Balance. In narrative and functional terms, his influence and role do not end with his body. This does not equate to direct resurrection or constant reappearance in corporeal form, so he does not reach the absolute pinnacle reserved for beings who repeatedly return in person. Still, the combination of extreme lifespan and posthumous functional impact places his longevity near the top of the scale.

Rathma's Versatility

Rathma’s Versatility merits an 8.5/10, marking him as one of the more broadly capable figures across fantasy settings, though not at the absolute pinnacle occupied by beings who can seamlessly operate in every conceivable domain. His versatility stems from a rare combination of magical breadth, metaphysical awareness, and role flexibility that allows him to function effectively in radically different environments and narrative contexts.

Adaptability

Adaptability is the strongest pillar of Rathma’s versatility. Over the course of his existence, he shifts between identities and functions with notable ease, moving from isolated scholar to spiritual guide, from reluctant farmer to architect of a philosophical order, and from observer to direct participant in world-shaping conflicts. This demonstrates more than personality flexibility. It shows an ability to reorient purpose and method in response to changing cosmic conditions.

He operates comfortably in multiple planes of reality, including the mortal world and other realms tied to deeper metaphysical structures. This requires not just raw power but procedural adaptability, the capacity to function under different physical laws, spiritual pressures, and existential stakes. He also adapts to shifting balances of power, choosing when to intervene directly and when to guide events through intermediaries, indicating flexibility in approach rather than rigid dependence on a single mode of action.

Luck

Rathma’s relationship with luck is subtle but significant. He is not portrayed as someone who stumbles blindly into fortune, yet events frequently align in ways that allow him to continue his work or preserve the broader Balance he serves. He repeatedly survives eras of upheaval in which entire civilizations, factions, or bloodlines are erased. While this is partly due to his inherent nature and foresight, there is an undeniable pattern of improbably favorable survivals in situations where countless others fall.

His visions and prophetic awareness blur the line between luck and informed positioning. By anticipating possible futures, he places himself in scenarios where the odds tilt in his favor. This does not make him a passive beneficiary of chance but rather someone whose trajectory is consistently shielded from random, meaningless elimination. His luck rating is therefore above average, though not at the extreme end reserved for characters whose success depends almost entirely on outrageous coincidence.

Shaved Knuckle in the Hole

Rathma consistently operates with hidden advantages that only become apparent when circumstances are most dire. His deep understanding of the life–death cycle, his foresight regarding critical events, and his long-term preparation of successors function as strategic reserves that can be brought into play when straightforward methods fail. These are not flashy last-second tricks but carefully seeded contingencies embedded in philosophy, prophecy, and institutional legacy.

He also demonstrates an ability to reveal new layers of capability at pivotal moments, drawing on knowledge or connections that others do not even realize exist. This secret edge is not infinite, and he cannot simply conjure a solution to any conceivable problem. However, the pattern of concealed preparation and unseen depth gives him a strong score in this subcategory, as he is rarely reduced to having no remaining options.

Rathma's Alignment

Rathma is best classified as Lawful Neutral, a being governed not by compassion or cruelty, nor by rebellion or whim, but by unwavering adherence to a cosmic doctrine: the Balance. This alignment reflects both his origins as a Firstborn nephalem and his lifelong role as the metaphysical counterweight to the excesses of Heaven and Hell.

Rathma’s race is Nephalem, specifically one of the Firstborn, the earliest and most powerful generation born of angel and demon union. As the son of Inarius and Lilith, he embodies both order and chaos in his very nature, yet rejects the ideological extremes of both lineages. Unlike later humanity, whose powers diminished over generations, Rathma retained immense innate capability and an extended lifespan that allowed him to observe Sanctuary across ages. This long view reinforced his detachment from mortal moral frameworks and deepened his commitment to systemic equilibrium over individual outcomes.

His primary factional association is with the Priests of Rathma, later known as the necromancers. Though the order was formally established through Mendeln, renamed Kalan, it is built entirely upon Rathma’s teachings and philosophy. The priesthood does not exist to spread death, rule nations, or serve light or darkness. Its purpose is custodianship of the Cycle of Being, the flow between life and death that Rathma believes must remain undisturbed. This institutional legacy further reflects lawful alignment, as he codified belief into doctrine, mentorship, and structured continuity rather than leaving his worldview as personal intuition.

On the moral axis, Rathma is neutral. He does not prioritize saving lives, alleviating suffering, or defending the innocent as ends in themselves. At the same time, he does not pursue domination, cruelty, or corruption. He allows tragedies to unfold if intervention would tilt the cosmic scales too far in one direction. His refusal to side fully with humanity, Heaven, or Hell demonstrates that his decisions are not guided by empathy or hatred, but by outcome at the level of existence itself. Individuals, even loved ones, do not override principle. This emotional restraint is most visible in how he ultimately accepts personal loss and even foresees his own death as part of a larger necessity.

On the law–chaos axis, Rathma is decisively lawful. His life is defined by structure, philosophy, and long-term design. Under Trag’Oul’s guidance, he adopts a strict metaphysical framework and follows it consistently for centuries. He plans in epochs, manipulates events indirectly, and adheres to prophecy not as fate to escape but as pattern to understand. Even his opposition to his parents is not rebellion but enforcement of Balance when they overreach. His mindset is systematic, rule-bound, and disciplined rather than emotional or impulsive.

Rathma’s alignment therefore reflects a being who values order, continuity, and cosmic function above moral sentiment. He is not the champion of good, nor the agent of evil, but the custodian of equilibrium, acting according to an internalized law that supersedes personal desire and mortal ethics. Pride and Prophecy keeps an updated character alignment matrix across all planes of existence.

Rathma's Trophy Case

Arena Results

Titles & Postseason Results

Halls of Legend Records

Overall Conclusion on Rathma and Position Across Planes of Existence

Rathma’s placement at 8.6 situates him firmly within the uppermost tier of power across fantasy settings, yet just short of the absolute cosmic apex, and this distinction is critical rather than arbitrary. He is not merely a powerful spellcaster or immortal mystic, but a foundational being whose existence is intertwined with the metaphysical architecture of Sanctuary itself. At the same time, he is not a reality-authoring entity, not the ultimate origin of creation, and not beyond death or limitation in an absolute sense. This tension between immense scope and defined boundaries is exactly why his rating peaks high without reaching the unreachable ceiling.

As a Firstborn nephalem, Rathma represents a generation whose innate potential eclipsed later humanity. His command over the cycle of life and death is not symbolic but literal. He restores life to plants in childhood, commands the dead at scale, severs external control over undead hordes, and unleashes blasts of arcane force capable of obliterating powerful entities and destabilizing sacred sites. His mobility across realms, including transition between Sanctuary and Trag’Oul’s domain, and his ability to pass through physical barriers, place him beyond conventional spatial limits. These traits alone elevate him far above most battlefield-level powers and into a category where metaphysical forces are tools rather than mysteries.

What further strengthens his standing is his relationship to cosmic structures. Rathma is not simply using magic inside a system, he understands the system. He studies the Worldstone’s function, grasps the long arc of Heaven and Hell’s influence, and operates alongside Trag’Oul, a being defined as a fulcrum of Balance. This positions Rathma as an actor on the level where worlds, races, and cosmic wars are variables, not just backdrops. His undead armies are not random summons but extensions of philosophical authority over the Great Cycle. Even his prophecy work reflects perception across time, a sign of power that operates on causality and destiny rather than momentary force.

However, he does not reach the absolute summit because his power is still contextual and not supreme. He can be killed. Inarius slays him using his own staff, and although his death is foreseen and meaningful, it remains a true physical end. Rathma influences events, but he does not dictate existence unopposed. He operates within Balance, not above it. He must plan, maneuver, and rely on allies such as Trag’Oul, Mendeln, and later necromantic lineages. He cannot simply erase Heaven, Hell, or Sanctuary with will alone. That limitation, the fact that he is a keystone player rather than the board itself, keeps him below the rarest strata of omnipotent or multiversal architect figures.

His longevity, prophetic insight, cross-planar presence, and mastery over death still make him one of the most structurally important beings in his setting. Rathma is less a weapon and more a governing force, a custodian of equilibrium whose power expresses through systems, legacies, and cosmic leverage. That scale of influence, combined with formidable direct capability, justifies his 8.6 as elite, enduring, and world-defining, without crossing into absolute, unconstrained supremacy. Pride and Prophecy keeps an updated power ranking across all planes of existence. This will only be sortable on desktop viewing. The below table shows a summary within the same plane of existence of this article.