90482 Orcus objects with a similar size and orbit to that of Pluto are named after underworld deities. Accordingly, the discoverers suggested naming the object after "Orcus", the Etruscan god of the underworld and punisher of broken oaths. He was portrayed in paintings in Etruscan tombs as a hairy, bearded giant. The name was also a private reference to the homonymous Orcas Island, where Brown's wife Diane had lived as a child and that they visit frequently. On March 30, 2005, Orcus's companion, Vanth, was named after a winged female demon of the Etruscan underworld. She could be present at the moment
Orcus (Dungeons & Dragons) slumber, Acererak scheming with the Negative Energy Plane, and a once-powerful follower of Orcus sending a final impassioned prayer. Orcus was now "a thin, small, shadowy creature", and renamed himself Tenebrous. He was still a god, but much less powerful than before his death. His servants had been slain by Kiaransalee, so Tenebrous brought them back as undead tanar'ri called "visages", tasking them to gather information to plot his vengeance. He also found the Last Word in the ruins of Pelion on the plane of Arborea, which he could use to slay even gods. He sought the "Wand of Orcus",