A devil, also referred to as a baatezu, is a group of fictional creatures in the Dungeons & Dragons (D&D) roleplaying game typically presented as formidable opponents for advanced players.
Devils are often portrayed as seeing the various worlds in the D&D universe as tools to be exploited for their objectives, such as participating in the Blood War—a centuries-long conflict against demons.
[2] Concerned about protests from religious groups and others who viewed the game as an entryway into Satanic worship, TSR, Inc. dropped the words "devil" and "demon" from all descriptors of the monsters,[3] substituting instead, baatezu /beɪˈɑːtɛzuː/ and tanar'ri .
[11] Ed Greenwood's follow-up article, "The Nine Hells Revisited" in Dragon #91 (November 1984), introduced the greater devils Armaros, Azazel, Cahor, Dagon, Duskur, Kochbiel, Malarea, Nisroch, Rumjal, and the arch-devil Gargoth.
The unique devils Moloch the Outcast, Titivilus, Bael, Balan, and Bathym all reappeared in the online version of Dragon, in issue #360 (October 2007) in the "Infernal Aristocracy" feature.
[35] The unique devils Agares, Tartach, Lilith, Hutijin, and Adramalech reappeared in Dragon #361 (December 2007) in the second part of the "Infernal Aristocracy" feature.
Similar characters have appeared in products by publishers other than TSR or Wizards of the coast (copyright holders for Dungeons & Dragons material).
Asmodeus became an official part of the Judge's Guild City State of the Invincible Overlord setting with the publication of The Azurerain Pirates.
His appearance in Dungeons & Dragons was cited as evidence for Satanism in the game by Pat Pulling and Kathy Cawthon in their 1989 book The Devil's Web.
His clothing is so valuable that a single garment worn by Asmodeus is worth more than an average nation will spend on food in a year.
He is typically described as appearing as a giant human, over 13 feet tall, with dark skin and hair, red eyes, handsome features, and small horns on his forehead.
He is described in the Book of Vile Darkness as a "calm, chillingly reasonable" being with a modest appearance that hides his true power.
In Dragon # 28, the article "The Politics of Hell" presents a different version of Asmodeus where he is the latest in a series of hellish rulers.
Afraid of his power and of the changes he had undergone, the gods put Asmodeus on trial and demanded that he be cast out of the Upper Planes.
The gods could not understand why their creations did not follow their instructions, until Asmodeus explained to them that their system did not work because it relied solely upon voluntary compliance.
Otherwise, Asmodeus reasoned, they would have to be granted the powers of godhood in order to do their job, which the current gods would surely find unacceptable.
Asmodeus offered the gods an alternative; give him the power to create his own plane of existence from which to torture the souls that broke heavenly law.
When they arrived in Baator, the gods found that Asmodeus had turned it into a nightmarish world of endless suffering, filled with countless new devils.
Part of Asmodeus' long-term plans includes using the magical energy harvested from souls in order to heal his wounds, and ultimately, the complete destruction of the Upper Planes, as well as to one day achieve godhood.
This story first appeared in the AD&D supplement Guide to Hell: Asmodeus is described as Ahriman, the twin brother of Jazirian the god of the couatls.
In this story Jazirian and Ahriman were responsible for the establishment of the current arrangement of the planes but fought eventually because of their perspectives of the law (LG versus LE).
[19] In Fiendish Codex II: Tyrants of the Nine Hells, Asmodeus is described as one of the primal forces of evil in the D&D universe, and had a hand in creating Baator in order to punish sinners for their crimes.
Despite the horror of the good gods who'd established the Hells as a punishment, they didn't also expect its existence to help fuel evil in the world.
After the conflict, which came to be known as the Dawn War, Asmodeus was assigned to guard the entrance to the prison of the god Tharizdun which was located in the Abyss.
The demon lord Pazuzu appeared to Asmodeus, as detailed in Demonomicon, and encouraged the angel to act on his thoughts of rebellion against He Who Was.
Asmodeus returned to Baathion, the realm of He Who Was, gathered those angels who would join his side, and instigated a rebellion that ended with his former master's death.
After the war, Bane anticipated the eventual angelic rebellion Asmodeus would launch, and alone of the Gods he was not surprised when it finally happened.
Typical rhetoric from worshippers of Asmodeus will discuss "promoting personal excellence and independence," "taking care of one's own affairs" and "ridding oneself of weakness".
According to the Guide to Hell, though he has worshipers and does on occasion grant them clerical powers, his true identity as Ahriman makes him loath to expand his cult.
This is because his true motivation is to spread atheism through the multiverse and make all believe that "gods" are not divine at all, but beings who have achieved great power.