Warlocks in Dungeons and Dragons 3.5
Warlocks harbor great reserves of mystical energy. The font of dark magic burning in their souls makes them resistant to many forms of attack and arms them with dangerous power. Warlocks do not wield spells but they do learn to harness their power to perform a small number of specific attacks and tricks called invocations. Warlocks make up for their lack of versatility by being tougher and more resilient than sorcerers or wizards.
Ambitious and often unprincipled, humans are the most likely to seek out the dangerous shortcuts to power that lead to life as warlocks.
D&D Complete Arcane. Baker, R. et al. 2004. P 5-6.
Arcane versus Innate
Some creatures are born with the capacity to work genuine magic, just like some creatures have the power of flight or the ability to breathe water. Such creatures have no explainable awareness of how they actually manage their magical talents.
They have no special ability to sense magic, and they don't do anything special to work their magic beyond willing their magical tricks to happen. Such creatures seem to function as self-filling vessels for magical power. They naturally collect magical potential and release it with a thought.
This magical potential doesn't seem to have any clear link either to arcane magic or to divine magic, though it creates results similar or identical to those arising from spells. A glabrezu's dispel magic ability functions like the same spell cast by a wizard or cleric (hence the term "spell-like").
A few magical theorists even claim that the "spells" of a sorcerer or a dragon have more in common with the spell-like abilities of warlocks and various other creatures than with the spells of a wizard. These individuals suggest that an entire third category of magic (called, for lack of a better term, "innate" magic) would better describe those who wield magic without relying on either traditional learning or a divine source. So far, this theory has gained little traction among traditional sages.
The Origins of the Warlock
Though the warlock is described as an arcane character, his powers function very differently from those of the various arcane spellcasters in D&D. Although the end result of a breath of the night invocation might be largely indistinguishable from a fog cloud spell, a warlock channels his magic in a way that the average wizard or sorcerer can only dream of accomplishing. Warlocks typically claim that this proficiency with magic comes from their bloodline - or, in some cases,from a pact made with powerful entities that permanently changes the individual's interactions with the supernatural.
The infernal denizens of the Nine Hells of Baator are the undisputed masters of crafting power-driven bargains with mortals, so it should come as no surprise that the iconic warlock is a result of such a deal. No other creatures take as much pleasure from corrupting mortals with dark powers, and the sheer number of devils who traffic in such pacts would send a chill down the spine of the staunchest paladin. From ambitious horned devils and pit fiends to the greatest archdevils themselves, these masters of artifice and duplicity take pride in sowing evil throughout the land, and endowing warlocks with their power provides ample opportunity. Among the various lords of the Nine Hells, Dispater, Mammon, Belial, Mephistopheles, and the mighty Asmodeus most actively broker such accords.
D&D Complete Mage. Williams, S. et al. 20046. P 7.
Hellfire Warlocks
Hellfire Warlocks in the World
"The offering of hellfire is yet one more way the fiends have worked their claws into our world. Each mortal who thinks to master this fell power is yet one more fool offering his soul to the Lord of the Eighth."
- Alod the Traveler, planeshifter
Most hellfire warlocks whom the PCs encounter have likely already succumbed to the temptations of evil. Usually minions in the service of an infernal cult, they lead groups of thugs or devils against good organizations or to hunt down and destroy adventurers. Only in the rarest circumstances does a hellfire warlock resist these temptations and use her power to advance the cause of good.
Organization
Since hellfire warlocks are nearly universally reviled, these characters keep to themselves. THeir isolation pushes them to test the limits of their morality, and in time, most succomb to the darkness blooming within them. Hellfire warlocks are jealous and petty. They see others who practice their dark art as threats to theirprominence and power, so these characters are swift to destroy their rivals.
Some hellfire warlocks attach themselves to infernal cults, believing that through service to an archfiend, they can increase their knowledge and skill. Hellfire warlocks act as guardians and enforcers in such organizations, valued for their combat capabilities.
D&D Infernal Codex II: Tyrants of the Nine Hells. Laws, R. and Schwalb, R. 2006. P 91
Devils and Faustian Pacts
A Harvester Devil.
A layman's assumption that demon and devil are just different names for the same creature is partly correct. Both are beings of pure evil, and both are enemies of virtue and morality. Furthermore, both creatures are keenly interested in the affairs of mortals, at least to the extent that they prey on, exploit, and sometimes kill mortals.
But demons and devils do differ in several important ways. Demons are destroyers. They use their abilities to ruin, smash, and end all things. Devils, on the other hand, are deceivers, liars, charlatans, and thieves bent on luring mortals into damnation. A devil will use any trick at its disposal to finagle a mortal into signing over his soul.
Demons want to destroy the world;devils want to conquer it.
TOP NINE DEVIL FEARS
As arrogant and domineering as they strive to appear, all but the mightiest devils are driven by fear. Here, in ascending order, are a devil’s nine greatest fears.
9. Items that overcome damage reduction
8. Anarchic weapons
7. Disorder
6. Failure
5. The scheming of its underlings
4. Its immediate superior
3. Its archduke
2. Oblivion
1. Demotion
Faustian Pacts
The bulk of such contracts are negotiated by harvester devils, who specialize in convincing foolish mortals to sign away their souls. Other devils of higher rank, from erinyes to pit fiends, can also offer Faustian pacts if they wish, but they are not as aggressive in seeking new marks as harvesters.
Though benefits of extraordinary value can be offered in a Faustian pact, the devil preparing it always tries to achieve a deal with the minimum possible expenditure of resources. Once the soul is securely damned, the negotiator often arranges - usually through servitors- to bring about the signatory's untimely death. Not only does this tactic negate any continuing expenses required by the contract, it also ensures that the mortal doesn't wriggle out of the arrangement by atoning her way back to her original alignment.
The Pact Certain
The Pact certain is the favored choice of all devils who deal in Faustian pacts, but it is offered only to easy marks who have already proven themselves indifferent to the fates of their souls. A Pact Certain contains language in which the mortal explicitly affirms allegiance to a Lord of Hell and promises to walk the paths of law and evil in exchange for whatever benefits are offered.
Mortals signing such pacts immediately switch alignment to lawful evil, even if they have not previously taken any actions of either a lawful or an evil nature. The mere act of consciously assigning one's soul to a lord of Hell is, by the terms of the Pact Primeval, an irredeemably and intrinsically lawful evil act.
A Pact Certain can be nullified only by proving that the bloody signature was extracted involuntarily, through duress. According to the Pact Primeval, devils cannot reap signatures through torture or threats of force-including force against third parties. This rule does not, however, pertain to individuals who voluntarily sign a pact certain to ransom an imprisoned soul from Baator.
Pact Insidious
In a Pact Insidious, a devil promises to provide certain benefits for a mortal signatory in exchange for specified reciprocal favors. It does not explicitly bind the mortal's soul to Baator, nor does it require a statement of allegiance to any particular archdevil.
From the devil's point of view, such a pact is still an exercise in damnation-it is merely sneakier than a Pact Certain. A Pact Insidious allows a gullible mortal to believe he can gain the benefits of a flirtation with evil without suffering its consequences. Thus, it exploits the eternal self-delusion of the lazy and greedy.
A contract of this type is written to deliver its promises in stages. To reap the next stage of benefits, the signatory must perform a new service for the devil. A fool who signs such a bargain rarely notices until it is too late that each service incrementally nudges him toward eternal damnation. Each task specified by a Pact Insidious is a corrupt act. Hidden provisions in the contract revoke the previous benefit if the mortal stops performing the specified tasks.
Strict prohibition forbid the mortal from disclosing the contents of the agreement to any third party. Though the contract does not explicitly say so, these prohibitions are meant to keep mortals away from meddlesome priests, who can perform atonement spells to absolve repentant signatories of the sins they have accumulated while fulfilling the terms of the contract. (23-24)
Adjudication
Devils allow very few souls to return to the Material Plane and live again. The only souls they release are those of committed and useful servitors whose eventual damnation is guaranteed, or those pried from their grasp through legal proceedings. Thus, when PC signatories of Faustian pacts die and want to be raised, reincarnated, or resurrected, a series of scenes set in Baator determines whether they are freed or ferried immediately to a hellish torture chamber. In the latter case, the character must be retired.
Mortals who consider themselves unfairly condemned to Baator might protest the terms of their contracts only after death, when their souls arrive on the Shelves of Despond. At that point, they must be knowledgeable enough to demand adjudication from the barbazu attempting to manhandle them into the waiting vessels of their respective archdevils. A successful DC 20 Knowledge (the planes) or Knowledge (religion) check reveals this essential fact.
Once this right is invoked, the Pact Primeval requires that the soulb e granted a fair hearing. In ordinary circumstances, the trial takes place in the Diabolical Courts, which are located in the city of Abriymoch in Phlegethos.
The soul is entitled to representation by the advocate of its choice. If the desired advocate is not already in Baator, the presiding devil must contact the individual to make the request, though it is under no obligation to provide transport to Baator. A harvester devil or erinyes is appointed the soul's counsel if it lacks available representation. On the other side is a devil's advocate, who speaks for the condemnation of the soul.
Only the following two defenses against condemnation are considered valid:
The mortal was coerced or magically compelled into signing a Faustian pact.
The devil offering a Pact Certain did not provide the promised benefits.
The judge, usually a pit fiend, listens dispassionately to both sides and rules, as a lawful creature must, according to the law. . .
It is also possible for a defendant to win her case on merit, only to suffer condemnation to the Nine Hells on unrelated grounds . . . Much diabolical laughter then ensues.
D&D Infernal Codex II: Tyrants of the Nine Hells. Laws, R. and Schwalb, R. 2006. P 18,23-25
Devil Worship
Devil worshipers are easily the most despicable of mortals. Such individuals willingly exchange their souls for temporal power and the promise of greater stations in Baator. Most who join cults do so because they are disaffected with society and view an alliance with Baator as an act of supreme rebellion. Others embrace evil in this way because they are dissatisfied with their lives and frustrated with religion or society. A few dabble in the forbidden simply because they are bored or morbidly curious, not realizing the dangers such activites might invoke.
A cult is a small religious cell dedicated to a single archdevil, or sometimes another greater devil. Cults meet in secret places, such as basements or abandoned buildings, to perform foul rites in honor of their infernal masters. During the day, cultists might lead ordinary lives, working shoulder to shoulder with their fellow citizens, with no one the wiser about their nocturnal ventures. Every Lord of Hell except Bel has a cult. Small or large, widespread or working in isolated pockets, these mortal servants pose as much a threat to society as the devils themselves. The reason is simple: Though cultists believe they will somehow be exempt from the torment of other lawful evil souls, they realize that if found wanting, they stand to face the same fate as anyone else consigned to the Pit. Foes with nothing to lose are the most dangerous of all.
Devil-worshipping cults serve as major vehicles for diabolical activities in the Material Plane. Any mortal cultists who willingly serve devils have by definition already consigned their souls to Baator. Even better, these deluded, glassy-eyeed, and eminently expendable fanatics can be employed to advance diabolical agendas on the Material Plane. Such schemes usually aim, with varying degrees of directness, to steer less overtly cooperative mortals to spiritual doom.
Devils support two types of cults: revealed and hidden. . .
Revealed Cults
Revealed cults consist of worshipers who knowingly pay homage to one of the Lords of Hell-usually Asmodeus. The membership of such cults is primarily monstrous or humanoid. In societies where lawful evil alignments predominate, these cults typically operate openly. In societies dedicated to other alignments, even the so-called revealed cults keep their activities secret, revealing their true natures only to their followers.
While Asmodeus unquestionably dominates the arena of revealed cults, all archdevils participate in a network of hidden cults to bolster their yield of harvested souls.
The Revealed Cults of Hell, ranked from most to least influential, are described below.
Cult of Asmodeus: By far the largest of the Baatorian cults, the Cult of Asmodeus is the first choice of civilized devil worshipers everywhere. Though the cult claims some monstrous adherents, most of its sect are based in the towns of cities of human, dwarves, elves, gnomes, and halflings.
Most Asmodeus cultists use the organization as a stepping stone to wealth and power. Devoted to might and oppression, the cult functions as a sort of sinister mutual aid society. Members form secret alliances, employing their wealth and connections to bootstrap each other into positions of power. In cities and kingdoms thoroughly devoted to the worship of Asmodeus, all persons of ambition must join the cult to advance socially, politically, or economically. In hareas hostile to lawful evil alignments, a hidden cult might feed recruits into the sect proper. Temples are hidden in subterranean complexes beneath ideologically hostile cities, but they dominate the landscape in lawful evil settlements.
Symbols of the Cult of Asmodeus include a clawed fist gripping a skull (popular in devil-dominated societies) and the more subtle ruby-tipped rod that Asmodeus uses as his emblem. The cult's favored weapon is the heavy mace and the domains available to its clerics are Diabolic, Evil, and Law.
Cult of Mephistopheles: Until recently, the subtle, fiery Mephistopheles operated cults for Asmodeus as part of his vassalage to the greatest of the archdukes. Now Mephistopheles is slowly relinquishing these subcontracted duties to build a peculiar cult of his own that promises its members control of hellfire-a relatively new magical substance of his design. This sect, which does not restrict its membership to lawful evil adherents, has hidden cult aspects because it's as much a soul-harvesting operationas a means of entrenching diabolical power in the Material Plane.
Temples of Mephistopheles feature massive fire pits in which sacrificial victims are burned alive. Favored intitiates are granted access to the spells Hellfire and Hellfire Storm in exchange for the performance of corrupt or obeisant acts. They can use these spells regardless of class and at a level predetermined by the corrupting cleric.
Cult leaders, called hellfire masters or hellfire stewards, favor the ranseur as a weapon and have access to the Diabolic, Evil, and Fire domains. The symbol of Mephistopheles is a flame rendered in copper and gold.
D&D Infernal Codex II: Tyrants of the Nine Hells. Laws, R. and Schwalb, R. 2006. P 25-28.
Mephistopheles: Lord of the Eighth, Cania
Hellfire
Hellfire is the creation of Mephistopheles, archduke of Cania.
Hotter than the hottest flames of any world, hellfire burns with a white-hot glow and is capable of burning through even the hardest of substances. Hellfire does not deal fire damage, despite its flames. Even creatures with immunity or resistance to fire take full normal damage from these hellish flames. Hellfire also deals full damage to objects, unlike normal fire damage.
D&D Infernal Codex II: Tyrants of the Nine Hells. Laws, R. and Schwalb, R. 2006. P 119.
Strategies and Tactics
No one understands the dangers of Hell's politics more than Mephistopheles. Since enemies lurk in every shadow, he is never without a pair of fiendish bodyguards. Anyone bold enough to attack him deserves annihilation, so Mephistopheles holds nothing back. He sends his minions forward to engage the enemy while he calls in more reinforcements, typically a pair of pit fiends. He then unleashes a barrage of offensive spells and spell-like abilities. Should it seem he faces a serious threat, Mephistopheles teleports away, leaving his allies to fend for themselves.
Servants, Enemies, and Goals
Mephistopheles is something of a walking contradiction. Unstable and thoroughly wicked, he presents multiple faces to those he meets. On the one hand, he can be charming, erudite, and civil. But beneath the veneer of respectability is a vicious temper and unchecked ambition. He is patient and cunning, yet when alone, he flies into a fury, screaming and shrieking, tearing at his skin and destroying everything around him in a thunderous explosion of hellfire and devastating magic.
He has one goal, one reason for existence. He covets Asmodeus's throne. It is, in his mind, his destiny to rule the Nine Hells. So confident is he that he has told this to Asmodeus himself. One would think that such arrogance would be reason enough for the Lord of the Ninth to bring this archdevil to heel, but curiously, Asmodeus hasn't. It seems he's content to let Mephistopheles have his delusions.
Mephistopheles's naked ambition and haughtiness does not sit well with his peers. Some are drawn to his power, such as Dispater, but most despise him, seeing him as an unstable and unpredictable element in the Hells' convoluted politics. Among his enemies, Baalzebul is his greatest. The Lord of Lies has long opposed his every effort. So long as Baalzebul lives, Mephistopheles spends his time hatching plots to eliminate his ancient rival, leaving Asmodeus secure in his position as the Lord of the Nine Hells.
Despite his distractions, Mephistopheles still poses a grave threat. He commands legions of ice devils as well as the pit fiends, barbazu, and cornugons that have flocked to his banner. In addition, it falls to him to protect the only gate into Nessus, so he nominally commands the army whose sole duty it is to safeguard Asmodeus's realm. To make matter worse, he has mastered the essence of Hell, channeling it into a foul destructive energy called hellfire. With such tools at his disposal, it seems Mephistopheles will one day make good on his promise to rule in Asmodeus's stead.
Thankfully, Mephistopheles does not exert the same influence on the Material Plane. Many mortals confuse him and Asmodeus, believing they are one in the same. This frustrates Mephistopheles to no end; above all, he wants to be worshiped as a god. Still, he has a number of small cults that revere him as the god of hellfire. He also attracts disaffected devil worshipers, stealing individuals from other archdevils.
His temples are strange places, hidden and out of the way. Decorated with fire pits, they are unbearably hot and the pits are rigged so that they flare up during ceremonies at the most dramatic moments. The cultists meet to perform sacrifices, binding their living victim on a blackened altar and immolating him alive. His screams add the chorus to their silent prayers.
D&D Infernal Codex II: Tyrants of the Nine Hells. Laws, R. and Schwalb, R. 2006. P 154-155.
The Lord of Cania
In outward appearance, Mephistopheles, Archduke of Cani, typifies the archetypal handsome yet monstrous devil. Unlike most of his fellow archdukes, he's happy to entertain visitors purely for their amusement value.
Though he has long been a power in Baator, Mephistopheles has allowed his obsession with a pet project to steal needed attention from his soul-harvesting efforts. This enterprise=the development of a form of magic fire with new and interesting properties-has sent his previously favored minions, the ice devils, packing to the fringes of his chilly domain. There they grumble and fret and wonder whether they should be working to correct their master's foolish behavior or conniving for a replacement. Meanwhile, his new courtiers, selected for their ability to deliver innovative applications of his hellfire techniques, work to solidify their positions. Foremost among this group are Baalphegor (Mephistopheles's consort) and the pit fiend Buldumech.
Mephistopheles's main goal is to build up his cult on the Material Plane by offering mastery of hellfire as an incentive. Unlike other kinds of magic, which require their users to progress slowly along a dangerous path of adventure, the cultists of Mephistopheles offer hellfire mastery to influential persons regardless of their personal accomplishments. As an easy, painless route to fame, success, and domination, it has spread across many worlds.
Although the Cult of Mephistopheles is rapidly expanding, it expends much more divine energy than it takes in. Soul harvesters working for the other archdukes try to speed their victim's journeys to Baator after conversion, but Mephistopheles orders his minions to keep his cultists alive so that they can recruit and continue the expansion.
Though eventually Mephistopheles will reap a bumper crop of corrupt souls, his expansion efforts have left him temporarily overextended. He has been borrowing divine energy from his fellow rulers, particularly Dispater and Levistus, at an alarming rate. If his gamble pays off, his personal power will increase dramatically, and his diabolical cult will be more popular than those of any of his rivals. If it fails, he will be beholden to his fellow archdukes for eons.
Though Mephistopheles has kept the full political import of his hellfire project under wraps, his uncertain position hasn't completely escaped notice. Hellish observers expect the jostling for worshipers to heat up when the point of Mephistopheles's schemes becomes clearer. At that point, his creditors might begin to sabotage his recruiting drive to keep him in their debt.
D&D Infernal Codex II: Tyrants of the Nine Hells. Laws, R. and Schwalb, R. 2006. P 69-70.
Asmodeus: Lord of the Ninth, Nessus
This diabolical creature stands thirteen feet tall. he has lustrous dark skin and black hair. Handsome and dangerous, his red eyes shine with infernal power. A pair of small sharp horns crowns his head. He wears fine red and black robes studded with black diamonds and fiery rubies, and he carries a rod seemingly made of a single carved ruby that shines with the power of hell.
Asmodeus is the Lord of the Ninth, ruler of Nessus, and overlord of all the Nine Hells.
D&D Infernal Codex II: Tyrants of the Nine Hells. Laws, R. and Schwalb, R. 2006. P 154-155.
The Pact Primeval
In the beginning-and even before-chaos was all that existed. Out of it came demons-the living manifestations of chaos. Time had not yet been invented, so the demons fought each other continuously in a vortex of disorder over an immeasurable period.
A state of raw chaos was intolerable to the universe, so a force arose to combat it-the power of law. From this principle of abstract order, a number of beings coalesced to combat the demons.
These new deities of law suited themselves in gleaming armor made of pure stability and took up weapons forged of ideal thought. Then they waded into battle against the demons. After the battle had raged for uncounted eons, the law deities felt the need to track their progress. They created numbers, to record the enemies slain, and time, so they could see how long victory would take.
Gradually, however, the deities of law began to suspect that the supply of demons was infinite. Weary of battle, they wished to move on to other projects, such as the creation of worlds and intelligent beings. So they made beautiful winged warriors to serve them and wield their divine magic, both in the endless war against the demons and in the worlds yet to be created. These beings, glorious in their diversity, were called angels.
The bravest, toughest, fiercest, and most beautiful of the angels was Asmodeus. He slew more demons than any other of his kind-more even than any deity. But as the eons wore on, Asmodeus and the members of his magnificent and terrible company began to take on some of their enemies' traits, so as to fight them more effectively.Gradually, their beauty turned to ugliness, and the deities and other angels began to fear them. Eventually, the inhabitants of the celestial realms petitioned the great gods to banish Asmodeus and the most fearsome of his avenging angels. So Asmodeus was put on trial before before Heironeous, the god of valor.
The darkest of the angels responded readily to the charges, reading from the great tablets of law that he had helped to carve. "The first duty of law is to destroy chaos," he argued. "I have performed this duty better than any."
"You have made war, and made it well," Hieroneous agreed. "Yet you and your company have poisoned yourselves in the process. Can you not go elsewhere, lest we become contaminated too?"
Asmodeus smiled, and the smoke of a thousand battlefields rose from his lips. "As Lord of Battle,"he pointed out, "you should know better than any that war is a dirty business. We have blackened ourselves so that you can remain golden. We have upheld the laws, not broken them. Therefore, you may not cast us out."
The gods huddled together to discuss what they had heard. Great was their consternation when they could find no counters in their tablets of law to Asmodeus's arguments. The dark angel knew the laws better than they did and could wield their clauses like a knife.
With the passage of time, Asmodeus and his warband grew ever more alarming in aspect. Fangs jutted from their mouths, their tongues grew forked, and they wreathed their bodies in mantles of fire. The deities built new citadels to escape them, but Asmodeus and his followers penetrated these as well. They sued the gods under their own laws, demanding full access to all the privileges accorded champions of order. The deities were distressed but could find no lawful way to stop them.
So the gods retreated to their great project-the creation of mortals, and of verdant worlds for those favored beings to live on. But when demons invaded these worlds, the warbands of Asmodeus were called upon to stop them. Although the voracious hosts of the tanar'ri were no easier to vanquish on the new worlds of the Material Plane than they had been on the battlegrounds of the Outer Planes, Asmodeus and his dark angels generally succeeded in driving them back. Together, the gods and angels created barriers on the Material Plane to keep the demons at bay. They erected walls, threw up ranges of mountains, covered portions of their worlds with icy wastes, and buried the entrances the demons had used under vast oceans. Thus were the newly created worlds, like Asmodeus and his lot, scarred and made ugly for the greater benefit of law.
Then the deities of order made a horrifying discovery. The mortals they had created-their pride and joy-imediately set to work tearing down these barriers. They scaled walls, climbed mountains, and traversed glaciers to let the demons back in. Upon returning to the Material Plane, the demons ran riot, destroying one earthly paradise after another.
The deities were angry but also confused. "Why did my sweet halflings do this to me?" cried Yondalla, who had created them.
"I invented mountains and set my clever dwarves as their protectors!" thundered Moradin. "Why did they tunnel under them and into the demon crypts?"
The gods wailed and lamented until Asmodeus came to them with the answer. "Your mortals are taking these actions because you gave them minds of their own."
"Of course we did!" said the deities. "Without free will, the choice to follow the law means nothing."
"Indeed," replied Asmodeus, crushing a small insect that had crawled out of his neatly trimmed red beard. "They are curious creatures, these mortals, and the demons have promised them freedom. Soon they will learn that the liberty dangled before them is that of absolute anarchy, and that in a demon realm, they are free only to be destroyed. But by then, it will be too late for them. You might create more worlds and more mortals to people them, but I promise you, the same folly will recur eternally.."
When the gods realized the truth of the dark angel's words, they were downcast. They rent their garments and wailed in despair.
"I have the solution that eludes you," said Asmodeus, "one that will allow your previous mortals to retain the free will you have so beneficently given them. The problem is this," he continued. "Your law is one of voluntary obedience. You command the mortals to abjure chaos, but what happens when they disobey you?"
The deities had no answer. "We are their creators," moaned Yondalla. "Of course they should heed us."
"Indeed they should," replied Asmodeus, bowing gallantly to the fair Yondalla. "But they do not, because there can be no law without Punishment."
"Punishment?" muttered the host of deities and godlings. "What is this Punishment of which you speak?"
Asmodeus pulled it from its sheath. At this time, Punishment was shaped like a mighty sword, though it has taken on many forms since then. "I have invented this item for you as the ultimate weapon of law. When laws are broken, the wrongdoers must be made to suffer as a warning to others. Thus, mortals can choose between the paradise of rightful action and the torment of wickedness. A few will suffer Punishment so that the majority can see the consequences of lawbreaking."
The gods were disquieted by this pronouncement, but as usual, they could find no flaws in their champion's logic. How could mortals be expected to choose virtue if evil went unpunished?
At last, one of the godlings stepped forward and said, "Yes, retribution is the basis of all law." These words transformed him on the spot into the greater deity now known as St. Cuthbert.
On that day, the deities began to see that law and chaos were not the only principles in the universe. Good and evil were natural forces in the cosmos as well. So the gods separated themselves from one other on that basis. Deities such as Hecate and Set offered patronage to Asmodeus's poisoned angels, while Heironeous and some of the others drew back from them still more.
So the deities handed down their new laws and sent their clerics through mortal lands to announce that the punishment for sin would be torment. The gods were pleased with the arrangement. They truly thought that everyone would obey and that no one would actually be punished.
But as mortals died, some souls trickled into the celestial planes who bore the stink of transgression. Asmodeus, aided by Dispater, Mephistopheles, and others of his dark brigade, set about their lawful punishment. They flayed these sinners, and burned them, and placed them on racks.
The shrieks of the damned reverberated throughout the heavens, and the flowers in the gods' idyllic gardens dripped with blood. The deities of law tried to shut their ear,s but they could not abide the horror. So they put Asmodeus in chains and again charged him with high crimes against them.
"I have merely done what I said I would, under the laws you drafted," said Asmodeus. Again, the gods had to admit he was right.
"But I have a proposal for you," the grim champion continued. "You wish to see the law upheld, but you do not care to witness its ranker consequences. So to preserve your delicate sensibilities, my followers and I will take our project elsewhere. We will build a a perfect Hell for you. You will gain from its existence but need never lay eyes upon it. We shall put it . . . there." And he pointed to an empty land, which is now called Baator.
"Yes, yes!" said all the deities. "You must move your Hell there, forthwith!"
"Nothing would please me more," said Asmodeus. He extended his hand, and a ruby rod of power appeared in it. "but first, we must make a pact."
"A pact?" asked Moradin suspiciously.
"Yes, indeed," said Asmodeus, producing a document with a wave of his hand. "It is to your benefit to ensure that we, who labor for you in a place you will not venture, continue to carry out your will. This agreement specifies the fate of damned souls. In exchange, it allows us to draw magic from these souls, so we can fuel our spells and maintain our powers."
"I'm not sure I like the sound of that," said flinty Moradin.
"Your concerns are entirely understandable, O Maker of Dwarves," said Asmodeus in his most reassuring tone. "But since we will be separated from you, we will not be able to draw our powers from you, as we always have. You would not wish to make us gods independent of yourselves, would you?"
"Assuredly not!" huffed Moradin, appalled at the thought.
"So instead, take this lesser measure, and simply sign this pact," he said with a smile. Thus, the law deities signed the agreement that determined the boundaries of Hell and the rules for the transmission of wicked souls. Today, mortals know this document as the Pact Primeval.
Once it was signed, Asmodeus, Mephistopheles, and Dispater decamped to Baator, which was then a bleak and featureless plain. With them went a host of other dark angels that called themselves erinyes.
"What you gotten us into?" Mephistopheles moaned.
"This place has nothing!" Dispater complained.
"Just wait," said Asmodeus. Then he explained his plan.
The deities of virtuous law reveled in their newly purified celestial domains, now free f the cruel angels' degradation for the first time. It was not for many years, in mortal terms, that they discovered an alarming drop in the number of souls being transmitted to their various heavens. Upon conferring with their clergy, they realized that devils were corrupting mortals and ensuring their damnation by turning them toward evil.
The deities formed a delegation, which set off immediately for Baator. To their surprise, the once-featureless plain had been transformed into nine tiers of monstrous horror and torment. Within its confines, they found countless souls writhing in pain. They saw these souls transformed, first into crawling, mindless monsters, and eventually into an army of powerful devils.
"What goes on here?" Heironeous demanded.
"You have granted us the power to harvest souls," replied Asmodeus. "To build our Hell and gird our might for the task set before us, we naturally had to find ways to improve our yield."
The war deity drew forth his longsword of crackling lightning. "It is your job to punish transgressions, not to encourage them!" he cried.
Asmodeus smiled, and a venomous moth flew out from between his sharpened teeth. "Read the fine print," he replied.
D&D Infernal Codex II: Tyrants of the Nine Hells. Laws, R. and Schwalb, R. 2006. P. 4-5.
Strategies and Tactics
Asmodeus rarely reveals himself to others; when he does, it is through a project image spell.
If by some chance his aspect is drawn into a fight, he is always prepared. He casts shield of law, spell immunity, and protection from energy (sonic) before the combat begins. If he has time, he also uses summon baatezu until he has a sizable force at his side. He summons a pit fiend first, then rounds out his force with aspects of other archdevils, cornugons, paeliryons, and anything else he might need to defeat his opponents.
Once the fighting commences, Asmodeus fights from the back. He alternates uses of his chill gaze with his fear and weakness gaze between uses of implosion, destruction, and fire storm. Even if enemies somehow manage to close on him, they must contend with his aura of submission and his terrible Ruby Rod. Should Asmodeus actually take any damage, he teleports away.
Servants enemies, and Goals
Asmodeus is the undisputed master of the Nine Hells, commanding fear and respect from all those who occupy his realm. Even the gods who dwell in the Nine Hells give Asmodeus his proper due. Though the archdevils might work to usurp him, few have the courage to act in the open.
Asmodeus's machinations are long in the making, and they might take centuries, if not millenia, to see resolution. He works on a grand scale, carefully constructing insidious and inexplicable intrigues, maneuvering the forces of wickedness like chess pieces on a board that encompasses all the planes.
His core concerns are simple. First, he wants the power structure currently in place to remain exactly as it stands now, with him in charge. He has spies on every layer, plants in every court. No fiend knows for sure which of its minions actually serve Asmodeus, so the climate is one of justified paranoia.
Asmodeus also expands evil. He directly opposes celestials and good-aligned deities. His minions combat the agents of the Upper Planes, murdering them whenever and wherever they can.
Finally, Asmodeus wages war against the demons. He sees the untold legions as a direct threat to his supremacy. Until he can wipe them out, he will never achieve that which he most desperately covets: godhood.
Asmodeus is aware of every plot hatched against him. Older than the oldest archdevil, he has watched the rise and fall of other archdevils far craftier than any of Asmodeus's contemporaries. He keeps to himself, letting his minions stew in fear of what he will do next. Of course, few have forgotten that Asmodeus emerged unscathed in the Reckoning, proving to all that he is their better.
On the Material Plane, Asmodeus has more cultists than all the other archdevils combined. Mortals who worship devils actually draw power from Asmodeus. He influences all levels of society and has followers of nearly every race, even within the strongest bastions for good. His path is the way to great and unattainable power, so his clerics are mighty men and women with influence and personal magnetism that makes them natural leaders among their kind.
D&D Infernal Codex II: Tyrants of the Nine Hells. Laws, R. and Schwalb, R. 2006. P 156-157.
The Lord of Nessus
Asmodeus appears as a horned, red-skinned humanoid with a tall, lithe frame. He dresses in splendid robes and understated but elegant accoutrements. Half-healed wounds erupt from his skin like the canyons that scar the Nessian landscape. These injuries are the result of an incident not usually recounted in the creation story.
In fact, Asmodeus's parting from the lawful deities after the signing of the Pact Primeval was not amicable. Once he had committed himself to residing in Baator, the deities physically him out of hte upper realms, and he fell-and fell, and fell. Upon reaching the plain of Baator, he plunged through the nascent layers he had begun to shape. (In some versions, his fall created the layers, breaking the formerly featureless plain into nine pieces, which then arranged themselves into floating tiers.)
At last he hit solid ground but continued to fall, spiraling through rock and soil. The protesting earth of Baator tore at his flesh, opening scores of gaping wounds. Still he fell, until he could fall no farther. The point where he finally stopped was the deepest part of Baator-the Pit.
The wounds that Asmodeus suffered in his dramatic fall have never healed. Though he manages to appear blithely unperturbed by his injuries, they still weep blood every day, and he has been wracked by constant pain for millennia.
As the unquestioned master of Baator, Asmodeus can work nearly any magic within its boundaries as an act of will. He can alert the forms of other archdukes, though he might not be able to slay them outright. (Whether the demise of Malagarde the Hag Countess was the direct work of Asmodeus or simply a bizarre death remains an unanswered question.) He can also reach into other realms and reshape them with the merest thought.
Recently, Asmodeus achieved a long-standing goal that had previously eluded him for eons-he tamed his daughter's rebellious spirit and exacted new pledges of loyalty from her. In exchange, he made her ruler of her own layer-an event that has the other archdukes scrambling in reaction.
Asmodeus currently enjoys a renewed sense of political supremacy. He has his archdukes right where he wants them-scared and anxious to please-and his grip over the Nine Hells has never been stronger.
Now he seeks to expand that power to the Material Plane. More souls will give him still more divine power, and perhaps enable him to tip the alignment of the material world toward lawful evil.
Asmodeus's ultimate aim is to use this additional divine energy to heal the wounds he suffered when he was cast out of the upper realms. Once he has healed himself, he intends to broker a deal with the demons. He knows it won't last for long, but it doesn't have to-just long enough to tip the direction of the eternal warfare from its current law-versus-chaos axis to an apocalyptic struggle between good and evil.
Eventually, Asmodeus plans to demolish the upper realms. Consulting the plans he first drew up a thousand years ago, he has determined that he's running ahead of schedule.
Asmodeus is a soft-spoken, articulate, chillingly reasonable fellow who is confident in his status as one of the multiverse's most powerful entities. Even when surprised, he reacts with supreme poise, as if he were already three steps ahead of his adversaries.
D&D Infernal Codex II: Tyrants of the Nine Hells. Laws, R. and Schwalb, R. 2006. P 73.
The Nine Hells
The nine layers of Baator are arranged atop one another in a funnel-shaped stck, with the largest layer (Avernus) on top, and the smallest (Nessus) on the bottom. Diabolical scholars speculate that the layers exist in a featureless void of pure law and malice, but such an outer region is undetectable from anywhere within Baator. Each of the layers has its own sky, through which the layer above (if any) can be seen as a dim and distant shadow. Access points, such as the cascading River Styx between Cania and Nessus, are sometimes visible, but otherwise each layer functions independently of the rest and even has its own unique climate conditions. In fact, most exhibit strange magical weather that makes the most extreme Material Plane weather conditions seem mild by comparison. . .
Even the most seasoned adventurer justifiably quails in terror at the mere thought of traveling through the Nine Hells. Baator is no dungeon to dip into for a few profitable fights and then pop safely back out again. Its inhabitants are unlikely to cooperate with PC raiding efforts by neatly arranging themselves in easily defeatable groups. Indeed, overwhelming forces are always lurking just around the corner. The Nine Hells welcome no living mortal-no matter how fanatically devoted to evil-who does not have permission to enter. A lucky few gain letters of safe passage from high ranking devils, but typically such letters contain instructions to travel only upon specific routes between predetermined points. Furthermore, these documents always specify dates of validity, rendered according to Baator's ancient calendar system, that make them usable only as long as it should take the bearer to accomplish his duties. Archdukes can grant letters of passage that allow completely free movement within Baator, but only within their own layers. Asmodeus alone can draft a letter of safe conduct that is valid for travel between layers-and he never provides letters for passage through his own layer, Nessus.
As might be expected, clever devils and other plane-shifting con artists often swindle unwary infernal pilgrims with forged letters of transit. Such documents are easily detected, however, by the bone-devil patrols that constantly police Baator for unauthorized migrants.
Despite Baator's perils and generally unwelcoming nature, a few mortals do make their permanent homes here-in fact, some are even born and bred here. Wizards and other knowledge seekers, mortals who traffic with devils, and clerics of evil deities or the devils themselves sometimes choose to settle within the Nine Hells. Called planars, these permanent residents survive only at the pleasure of the local diabolical authorities. Although deliberately choosing to live in the Nine Hells is the very definition of madness, some planars are capable of behaving as if they were completely sane for extended periods of time.
In truth, any mortal who proves sufficiently useful can find a place in Baator, since devils-though irrevocably evil-tend to refrain from mindless destruction. Furthermore, the plane is perhaps the best place to find safety from good-aligned enemies. Thus, for example, a cabal of evil wizards being hunted on the Material Plane might provide the devils with useful spells and magic items in return for safe harbor within the bounds of Baator.
D&D Infernal Codex II: Tyrants of the Nine Hells. Laws, R. and Schwalb, R. 2006. P 33-34.
Layer 8: Cania
The frigid layer of Stygia seems a balmy paradise compared to the icy wasteland known as Cania. Mile-thick glaciers grind across a forbidding landscape, only to crash into cyclopean mountains. Screaming snowstorms pelt the white expanse of wilderness. Deep crevasses, often hidden by thin layers of snow, wait to devour the unwary traveler. Dotted across the land like so many signposts are the half-buried, icy corpses of foolish intruders who thought they could survive Cania's arctic rigors.
D&D Infernal Codex II: Tyrants of the Nine Hells. Laws, R. and Schwalb, R. 2006. P 69.
Layer 9: Nessus
The blasted plain of Nessus floats on a swirling, crimson void. Its roughly ovoid, jagged-edged land mass extends for approximately 2,500 miles from east to west and about 1,100 miles from its northernmost to southernmost points.
The absolute flatness of Nessus allows a viewer to see for miles in all directions. Devoid of trees, structures, and changes in elevation, its desolate landscape provides little or no cover. Beings moving across its surface can be seen for hours before they finally close to ranged weapon distance.
A network of crisscrossing gouges, gorges, and canyons scars the dry and rocky plain. The largest of these crevasses are miles across and dozens of miles deep. The layer's millions of inhabitants dwell within these canyons, either in caves carved out of the walls, or on the crevasse floors. Although the surface of Nessus is finite, its twisting canyons and runnels contain an effectively infinite amount of space.
The canyons intersect confusingly across the surface of Nessus. In a few places, they weave around each other, sculpting towering mesas. To reach a specific destination, explorers must be able to tell one gorge from another. In keeping with the layer's utter hostility to travelers, the crevasses are completely unmarked. Maps of the surface have been cobbled together from sketches created by generations of suicidally brave cartographers. But even when accurate, these maps are difficult to match with conditions on the ground. Finding a particular point on Nessus's surface requires a succesful DC 30 Knowledge (geography) check. A map can grant a +1 to +4 bonus to this check, depending on its accuracy.
Few bridges span the canyons, and those that do exist are either heavily guarded or trapped. Any seemingly unguarded bridge is likely to hurl travelers into the gorge bleow if the correct password is not uttered when they reach the midway point. Without exception, the gorges of Nessus are deeper than 200 feet, so anyone plummeting into one takes 20d6 points of damage.
Flightless devils are expected to remain in their home crevasses. In cases of emergency, though, they can travel up and down the walls either by holding tight to treacherous handholds (Climb DC 20) or by using the fraying rope ladders (Climb DC 10). Inhabitants with poor climbing skills tend to stick close to their caves or hovels, venturing forth only when their lives depend on it. Indeed, devils plunge to their deaths from the canyon walls on an infrequent but regular basis.
D&D Infernal Codex II: Tyrants of the Nine Hells. Laws, R. and Schwalb, R. 2006. P 72-73.
