The Totem Landmark rose from pieces of the fallen star Ethian on the island of Ulangi. During the season of Sarapin when the Totem and all the other landmarks became volatile, stag horn fragments would be needed to shift the aspect of the Totem. Those seeking to shift the Totem to its devotional aspect would offer the stag horns up to the King Stag, while those who wished it to be the necromantic aspect of the Stygian Totem would go to Melkhiour, the forest lich. The being that held the most stag horns at the end of Ethian's Crossing would dictate the dominate aspect of the totem.
The Totem became defunct after the failed ritual by the Conclave damaged all the landmarks, and eventually offered up its remaining energies to give birth to Lady Makali.