[2020] Lore god question

So, some of this is potentially spoilers for future quests, so take that in mind, however I shall do my best to answer.

> Were Zaros and Seren created by the elder gods?

Zaros and Seren were dreamed into existence by the malformed Mah, the elder god of Freneskae who was stillborn and incomplete. He dreams created life and her earliest dream was of Zaros, as a companion, child, or toy. He wanted to leave her, so she dreamed Seren into existence, who would keep Zaros close.

> Were Saradomin, Guthix, and Zamorak also created by the elder gods?

Technically...

So the elder gods created everything. They formed the universe out of sacred clay and funnelled the flow of anima through the universe to their "perfect world" Gielinor. This flow of anima allowed life to spring up and some of that life became sapient and some of that sapient life ascended. Saradomin and Guthix are from this organic springing up of life.

Zamorak though, is a mahjarrat, aka another being dreamed into existence by the elder god Mah. So technically she did create him.

> Is there any one god who is really in control?

Our gods aren't from a single combined pantheon, so no.

> Are there any quests that let you deal with the elder gods?

Yes, but the elder gods are not humanoid or even human-esque. They are alien creatures and they do not care about, nor desire worship.

> Is there any hint in the lore about whether the elder gods were uncaused or whether they were created themselves?

I'm guessing you've not engaged much with the most recent storylines, so I'll just say "keep playing". ;)

> Any info on the gods would be much appreciated. Their alignments and purposes just seem really hard to figure out.

They're not that hard but the problems is that they're not just binary "good" or "evil" deities. Our gods all fall on the morally grey spectrum with each of them offering an outlook and methodology that inspires their followers.

Saradomin, for example, is a god who promotes order and reason. He is one of the oldest of the gods and has amassed a great amount of wisdom. He believes in a perfect society where everyone has a place and everyone is cared for. He believes that as the oldest and wisest being he knows best what's right for everyone. He promotes order, piety and compassion.

Zamorak believes in strength through chaos. He believes that only by overcoming struggles and obstacles can we improve and evolve. He believes in survival of the fittest and ambition. He is often considered the "evil" god, but that's as much propaganda as anything else.

Armadyl believes in justice and democracy. He believes the people can lead themselves if they just follow laws that protect them all. He believes that together we can overcome. His philosophy is perhaps the most naive of all the god philosophies.

Bandos believed in war. In the stronger crushing the weak. Ironically he's dead now.

Guthix believed in seeking balance. In being in tune with nature and the ecosystem. This is why he's currently feeding the worms (or not, he's stone now, so feeding moss maybe?).

Zaros, one of the transcendent gods, believes in control via fate, with him acting as fate. Everyone has a place, a purpose and a destiny and who better than he to guide it?

Seren, the other transcendent god, believes in protecting her people. She loves her elven people and will do anything to keep them safe. She is a caring nurturing figure but also one prone to taking things too far.

There's more info as you play through and more nuance than I've written here, but hopefully this should be helpful.