Death Gods, Psychopomps or Grim Reapers (Shinigami in Japan) as they are sometimes referred, are personifications of Death itself who rule over the souls of the departed or are its Harbingers at the very least. They are often portrayed as Chaotic Evil or Neutral Evil due to humanity's natural fear of the afterlife or perceived lack of it.

Death Gods in fiction tend to be Greedy Collectors of Souls who plot against life or ally with evil figures, but are simultaneously Necessary Evils since they are needed to maintain the cycles of life and death.