Poliel
Also known as: Mistress of Pestilence, the Grey Goddess, Goddess of Disease | Race: Goddess (ascendant) | Warren/Affiliation: High House of Chains (allied), Disease/PestilenceSummary
Poliel is the Mistress of Pestilence — a goddess who embodies plague, disease, and the suffering they bring. She is one of the more actively malevolent deities in the Malazan pantheon, willingly allied with the Crippled God in his campaign to poison the world. As the Grey Goddess, her power manifests through epidemic and contagion, and her followers spread disease as a form of worship.
Poliel serves as a major antagonist in The Bonehunters, where she occupies her temple in the city of G'danisban and radiates plague across the surrounding region. Her confrontation with Ganoes Paran, the Master of the Deck of Dragons, is one of the defining moments of that book — a mortal-turned-ascendant directly challenging a goddess in her place of power. Poliel represents the dark side of the divine: a god who actively chooses to inflict suffering rather than alleviate it.
Arc by Book
Book 6: The Bonehunters
Poliel is a central antagonist. She has occupied her temple in G'danisban, and her presence radiates pestilence across the city and the region. The plague she unleashes is devastating — entire populations are afflicted, and her power grows as the disease spreads.
Ganoes Paran, now the Master of the Deck of Dragons, confronts Poliel directly in G'danisban. This confrontation is a pivotal moment: Paran uses his unique authority over the Deck to challenge a goddess, demonstrating the extraordinary power he has accumulated since being touched by Oponn's coin in Gardens of the Moon. Paran's intervention against Poliel is part of his broader campaign to restore balance to the divine hierarchy.Poliel's alliance with the Crippled God is explicit — she serves the Chained One's agenda of spreading suffering through the mortal world. Her opposite in the pantheon is Soliel, the goddess of healing.
Key Relationships
- Ganoes Paran — confronts her in G'danisban as Master of the Deck
- The Crippled God — her patron/ally; she serves his campaign of suffering
- Soliel — her divine opposite (healing vs. disease)
- D'rek — fellow goddess of affliction (decay vs. pestilence)
Appearances
| Book | Role |
| 6. The Bonehunters | Major (antagonist in G'danisban) |
See Also
- Ascendancy — the divine order Poliel inhabits
- Religion and Worship — Poliel as an example of malevolent divinity
- Convergence — her presence in G'danisban as a nexus of power