'''Basic Trope''': The given deity of a setting is evil.
* '''Straight''':
** God is the creator of the world, the designer of the human race, and the supreme power in the universe. He also considers humans to be nothing but a culture of bacteria He is experimenting with, to be snuffed out when they overextend their bounds - or when He [[YouHaveOutlivedYourUsefulness grows tired of the experiment]].
** Elysium the Creator is known to create humanity and manipulate her creations into violence and misery and she is amused by it.
* '''Exaggerated''':
** [[EldritchAbomination God]] created the world [[CrapsackWorld for the sole purpose of torturing everyone and everything]] [[ItAmusedMe for His own sadistic pleasure]]. The reason why we even have a life is because He wants us to experience hope [[CosmicHorrorStory before it is ripped away and revealed as a cruel illusion]].
** God is every single negative religious stereotype combined. He rewards those who torment, oppress, and murder in His name, and sends everyone else to Hell.
** God is MadeOfEvil.
* '''Downplayed''':
** God is not a CardCarryingVillain, but [[KnightTemplar He enforces His not-unreasonable morals with]] [[DisproportionateRetribution horribly disproportionate punishments]].
** God is just a {{Jerkass|Gods}}.
** A new God is chosen every few millennia, and sometimes the person is evil.
** Elysium the Creator may be evil or a jerk but she has [[EvenEvilHasStandards a few lines she won't cross]].
** God is antagonistic specifically because [[WellIntentionedExtremist He's Good.]]
** GodIsFlawed.
** God is just AffablyEvil.
** God started out as [[GodIsGood good]] before [[FallenHero slowly becoming evil over many millenniums]].
** In a polytheistic [[TheVerse universe]], there are about twenty evil gods, and three gods who are definitely not evil, but similar in most other ways.
* '''Justified''':
** The classic Epicurean [[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Problem_of_evil Problem of Evil]], no wonder.
** It's a CosmicHorrorStory.
** The [[CrapsackWorld crapsackness of the world]] is InherentInTheSystem, God is the AnthropomorphicPersonification of it.
** Omnipotence actually makes anyone [[DrunkWithPower drunk]], [[WithGreatPowerComesGreatInsanity insane]] and [[ArsonMurderAndJaywalking bored]]. Why should gods be exempt?
** If God possesses eternal life, then ImmortalityImmorality and WhoWantsToLiveForever are in effect.
** Elysium the Creator exists because [[ClapYourHandsIfYouBelieve people believe in Her]]. Some humans [[KnightTemplar believe She punishes "evil"]], [[ValuesDissonance but each has biased and severe definitions of "goodness"]]. [[{{Greed}} Others see Elysium the Creator as a cosmic cash machine]]. Still others [[{{Naytheist}} reject Her existence entirely]] thinking that [[HollywoodAtheist only a malicious god could make an imperfect world anyway]]. The end result [[MadGod isn't pretty]] - [[GoldenMeanFallacy a Goddess who makes EVERYONE miserable and imposes ridiculous and paradoxical standards no one could meet]]. [[YouBastard You]] [[HumansAreBastards Bastards]].
** God created everything, [[TakeOverTheWorld and by extension feels entitled to control of everything]]. How would you feel if the shed you built got mad and ran off?
** Who is more likely to have a [[AGodAmI god complex]] than God?
** Being an immortal omnipotent entity, God has a very poor understanding of human suffering.
** God is ancient and by extension has very [[DeliberateValuesDissonance ancient values]].
* '''Inverted''':
** SatanIsGood.
** Evil is God (As in humanity's collective depravity creates a powerful cosmic being that is pretty much close to God)
** or [[GodIsGood God is the greatest force for good ever.]]
* '''Subverted''':
** The protagonist begins the story believing GodIsEvil, but comes to see that God was really looking out for him all along, in a roundabout kind of way.
** [[{{UsefulNotes/Gnosticism}} The god that is evil is actually the devil in disguise]]
Satan was lying about God again. So everyone thought God was evil. God is actually good. Satan is bad.
** The "god" is actually a SufficientlyAdvancedAlien posing as a god.
** The "god" is actually a {{Naytheist}} EvilSorcerer who acts evil to destroy people's faith in deities.
** This "god" turns out to be a Sealed Evil in the earths core.
** This "god" is just the GodOfEvil in a polytheistic pantheon with more moral deities.
** As it turns out, God doesn't know what he doing is wrong - He either [[ObliviouslyEvil genuinely doesn't realise he's being a dick]], or [[GodIsInept is trying to be good, but failing miserably.]]
** Elysium the Creator was just in a [[HairTriggerTemper bad mood]]. Other than that, She's a {{Jerkass God|s}}dess [[JerkWithAHeartOfGold With A Heart Of Gold]].
** God has been horribly misinterpreted by their {{corrupt|Church}} or [[TheFundamentalist extremist]] followers.
** God was evil, but had a HeelFaceTurn since he last saw us.
** Elysium is being impersonated by [[GodOfEvil Sophia]].
** Elysium's most devoted follower, Faye, manages to bring her back onto the path of righteousness.
* '''Double Subverted''':
** ... And then God destroys the hope he just instilled.
** ... But then it's revealed that the Devil IS God.
** ... But god is no better, or is worse than the Devil
** ... Who is sufficiently advanced enough to count as a PhysicalGod by the 'verse's settings.
** ... [[RageAgainstTheHeavens Because]] ''[[DespairEventHorizon his own hope]]'' [[WellIntentionedExtremist was destroyed by an evil god]].
** ... Then its revealed that The Earth forms around The Sealed Evil technically making this Sealed Evil the unwilling creator of humanity.
** ... But is then shown to be a TautologicalTemplar who [[CantTakeCriticism smites everyone who points out that he's screwing up.]]
** ... But this didn't stop Her from torturing humanity more sadistically than before. For that, She's a {{Jerkass God|s}}dess [[JerkWithAHeartOfJerk With A Heart Of Jerk]].
* '''Parodied''':
** God is an [[LargeHam over-the-top]], [[IneffectualSympatheticVillain comically ineffective]] DastardlyWhiplash.
** Elysium the Creator inflicts CoolAndUnusualPunishment on non-believers.
* '''Zig Zagged''': God keeps the world in a miserable state, but He reveals to the heroes that [[MiseryBuildsCharacter this is for humanity's development...]] until God sends the heroes to Hell to be relentlessly tortured ForTheEvulz.
* '''Averted''':
** God's alignment is beyond good.
** Elysium the Creator [[BlueAndOrangeMorality isn't explicitly good nor evil]].
** Elysium is LawfulNeutral
** God is a mindless creator and cannot comprehend good nor evil.
** God's personality is exactly like in the belief system.
** GodIsNeutral
* '''Enforced''':
** The author of the work is trying to make an {{Anvilicious}} criticism about a religion they disagree with.
** The writer wants a metaphor for the dangers of unchecked power; what kind of power could be more unchecked than [[TheOmnipotent God's?]]
* '''Lampshaded''':
** "Why can a benevolent God exist, yet [[CrapsackWorld all the problems of the world do?]] Clearly God cannot be benevolent!"
** "God always answers our prayers. It's just that the answer is usually 'Screw you'."
* '''Invoked''': Evil sorceress Alice summons Bob the [[PlanetEater Eater of Worlds]] and [[DeadBabyComedy Mutilator of the Unborn!]] Alice makes a point of researching into Bob to make sure he's a sufficiently evil enough god to do her bidding.
* '''Exploited''': A person is given godlike powers for the sole reason of corrupting him.
* '''Defied''':
** Allen becomes a PhysicalGod, and makes a concerted effort to prevent [[WithGreatPowerComesGreatInsanity going mad from power]].
** God imposes a Constitution onto himself and turns the CelestialBureaucracy into a democracy.
** God's followers explain to everyone that God isn't evil, but He's causing all of these tragedies and catastrophes as a way to give humanity a wake-up call and that [[HeelFaithTurn they all need to repent]].
** "The LORD your God is good and righteous! How dare you accuse your creator of evil!"
*** "God only looks evil because [[HumansAreTheRealMonsters you humans are just looking for a convenient scapegoat for your miseries! Bet you do the same to Satan too.]]"
** God learns to be good from the humans.
** [[UsefulNotes/{{Christianity}} God creates a human form which he uses to understand the plight of man]].
* '''Discussed''': "If absolute power [[DrunkWithPower corrupts absolutely]] than where does that leave God?" -- George Deacon
* '''Conversed''':
** "With all those [[TheFundamentalist Fundamentalist]] rants, who would want to worship a God like that?"
** "God or the Devil? They're probably the same thing anyways."
* '''Deconstructed''':
** God created a perfect world for humans, but [[HumansAreBastards their ingratitude and disobedience]] made Him [[CreatorBacklash hate His own creation]]...
** God seems evil due to the fact that He has an [[BlueAndOrangeMorality entirely different]] [[ValuesDissonance view of morality.]]
** God has all the power that followers of monotheistic religions believe Him to have. [[CosmicHorrorStory There is nothing in the universe that can defeat Him because He controls all things in it,]] [[MindScrew even those that seek to destroy Him.]] [[NoOntologicalInertia Furthermore, should God die, the universe will, too.]]
** Elysium the Creator behaves cruelly towards humanity so bad that they all decided to align themselves with [[SatanicArchetype Lucia]], who's proven to be a [[SatanIsGood pretty decent person]] unlike their creator. This [[BerserkButton angers]] Elysium to the point where She decides to cast humanity and Lucia [[FireAndBrimstoneHell into the Lake Of Fire]] [[AndIMustScream for all of eternity]], refusing to realize that it's Her cruelty that's driven humanity away from Her.
** Elysium the Creator's story is explained via a prequel: She was once a GodOfGood. Unfortunately, years of watching humanity suffer and being unable to do a thing, being exploited by loyal followers for money and power, and suffering from the other gods being jerks, Elysium descended into insanity. This is actually how free will was created: Her last attempt to give humanity a chance to kill her to save themselves.
** God's cruelty results in humans stop worshipping Him and go into RageAgainstTheHeaven.
** Under a theology of [[https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Divine_simplicity Divine Simplicity]], God ''is'' all of his attributes, and is thus MadeOfEvil. A supremely evil being would be too selfish to create anything or anyone to begin with ... so nothing exists, and there is no story or setting to speak of.
* '''Reconstructed''':
** ...And it's HIS fault for making humanity exist that way in the first place. [[GoneHorriblyRight Or, the fact He made us in his image all too well.]]
** ...But He is still evil by all human standards and His perspectives doesn't necessarily have precedence over our perspectives.
** It's revealed that He allowed free will to exist just so He can have excuses.
** It's revealed that He allowed free will to exist so that He can watch humanity torturing each other.
** It's revealed that free will and hope was an accident [[GodIsInept that He never bothered to fix.]]
** Mankind repents, but Elysium the Creator still torments them, this time even more sadistically.
** ...then, She creates another set of humans who are willing to worship Her and obey Her questionable laws, even if She enjoys tormenting them from time to time.
** If God is evil, then not worshipping Him is [[DoNotTauntCthulhu downright suicidal]]. Not only can He make your life in the CrapsackWorld He created even worse, with maybe a BoltOfDivineRetribution or ten, even death is no guarantee of release since God can continue to [[TheProblemWithFightingDeath torment your immortal soul for all eternity.]]
** [[UsefulNotes/{{Objectivism}} Who said selfishness was evil?]]
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[[YeOldeButcheredeEnglishe Thou shalt return]] to the [[GodIsEvil main page]], or I will send thee to Hell where ye will be tortured and punished '''FOREVER'''!
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