Page 68 - Monster Manual [11th Print]

H
THE I N F E RNAL I E R ARCHY I N F E R N A L H I E R A R C H Y
The Nine Hells has a rigid hierarchy that defines every 1 . lemure Greater devils
aspect of its society. Asmodeus is the supreme ruler Lesser devils 8. horned devil
of all devils, and the only creature in the Nine Hells 2. imp 9. erinyes
with the powers of a lesser god. Worshiped as such 3. spined devil 1 0 . ice devil
in the Material Plane, Asmodeus inspires the evil 1 1 . pit fiend
4. bearded devil
humanoid cults that take his name. In the Nine Hells, Archdevils
he commands scores of pit fiend generals, which in turn 5. barbed devil
command legions of subordinates. 6. chain devil 12. duke or d u chess
d
A supreme tyrant, a brilliant deceiver, and a master 7. bone devil 1 3 . arch u ke or archduchess
of subtlety, Asmodeus protects his throne by keeping
his friends close and his enemies closer. He delegates Demotion is the customary punishment for failure or
most matters of rulership to the pit fiends and lesser disobedience among the devils. Archdevils or greater
archdevils that make up the infernal bureaucracy of the devils can demote a lesser devil to a lemure, which
Nine Hells, even as he knows that those powerful devils loses all memory of its prior existence. An archdevil
conspire to usurp the Throne of Baator from which he can demote a greater devil to lesser devil status, but the
rules. Asmodeus appoints archdevils, and he can strip demoted devil retains its memories-and might seek
any member of the infernal hierarchy of rank and status vengeance if the severity of the demotion is excessive.
as he likes. No devil can promote or demote another devil that has
If it dies outside the Nine Hells, a devil disappears not sworn fealty to it, preventing rival archdevils from
in a cloud of sulfurous smoke or dissolves into a pool demoting each other's most powerful servants. Since all
of ichor, instantly returning to its home layer, where it devils swear fealty to Asmodeus, he can freely demote
reforms at full strength. Devils that die in the Nine Hells any other devil, transforming it into whatever infernal
are destroyed forever-a fate that even Asmodeus fears. form he desires.
Archdevils. The archdevils include all the current THE NINE HELLS
and deposed rulers of the Nine Hells (see the Layers
and Lords of the Nine Hells table), as well as the dukes The Nine Hells are a single plane comprising nine
and duchesses that make up their courts, attend them separate layers (see the Layers and Lords of the Nine
Hells table). The first eight layers are each ruled by
as advisers, and hope to supplant them. Every archdevil archdevils that answer to the greatest archdevil of all:
is a unique being with an appearance that reflects its Asmodeus, the Archduke of N essus, the ninth layer.
particular evil nature. To reach the deepest layer of the Nine Hells, one must
Greater Devils. The greater devils include the pit descend through all eight of the layers above it, in order.
fiends, erinyes, horned devils, and ice devils that
command lesser devils and attend the archdevils. The most expeditious means of doing so is the River
Lesser Devils. The lesser devils include numerous Styx, which plunges ever deeper as it flows from one
strains of fiends, including imps, chain devils, spined layer to the next. Only the most courageous adventurers
devils, bearded devils, barbed devils, and bone devils. can withstand the torment and horror of that journey.
Lemures. The lowest form of devil, lemures are
the twisted and tormented souls of evil and corrupted DEVIL TRU E N A M E S A N D TA I S M A N S
L
mortals. A lemure killed in the Nine Hells is only Though devils all have common names, every devil above a
permanently destroyed if it is killed with a blessed lemure in station also has a true name that it keeps secret. A
weapon or if its shapeless corpse is splashed with holy devil can be forced to disclose its true name if charmed, and
water before it can return to life. ancient scrolls and tomes are said to exist that list the true
P r omotion and Demotion. When the soul of an evil names of certain devils.
mortal sinks into the Nine Hells, it takes on the physical A mortal who learns a devil's true name can use powerful
form of a wretched lemure. Archdevils and greater summoning magic to call the devil from the Nine H e lls and
bind it into service. Binding can also be accom plished with
devils have the power to promote lemures to lesser the help of a devil tal isman. Each of these ancient relics is
devils. Archdevils can promote lesser devils to greater inscribed with the true name of a devil it controls, and was
devils, and Asmodeus alone can promote a greater devil bathed in the blood of a worthy sacrifice-typically someone
to archdevil status. This diabolic promotion invokes a the creator loved-when crafted.
brief, painful transformation, with the devil's memories However it is summoned, a devil brought to the M a terial
passing intact from one form to the next. Plane typically resents being pressed i n to service. However,
Low-level promotions are typically based on need, the devil seizes every opportun ity to corrupt its summoner
such as when a pit fiend transforms lemures into imps so that the sum moner's soul ends up in the N i ne Hells.
to gain invisible spies under its command. High-level Only m i p s are truly content to be sum moned, and they easily
promotions are almost always based on merit, such commit to serving a summoner as a familiar, but they still do
as when a bone devil that distinguishes itself in battle their utmost to corrupt those who summon them.
is transformed into a horned devil by the archdevil it
serves. A devil is seldom promoted more than one step
at a time in the hierarchy of infernal forms.

V
DE I LS