Characters of Diablo

Major and recurring characters from the fantasy series Diablo are listed below, organized by respective origin within the fictional universe, referred to as Sanctuary. The story of the Diablo series revolves around events of the Great Conflict, a war between denizens of the Burning Hells and the High Heavens. Specifically, the games focus on events within the mortal plane, called Sanctuary, which are collectively known as the Sin War. The series began with Blizzard Entertainment's 1996 video game Diablo and has been expanded with sequel Diablo II. The franchise has been further extended with a number of novels, most written by Richard A. Knaak.

Character design

The lead world designer for upcoming Diablo III is Leonard Boyarsky, who has done notable previous work on Fallout.^[1]

Characters of Hell

Creatures from Diablo's Burning Hells are called demons and the most powerful seven of these demons are known as the Great Evils. These elite can be further broken into two groups: three "brothers" called the Prime Evils and four somewhat less powerful demons called the Lesser Evils.^[2]

Prime Evils

Sometimes known simply as the Three or the Brothers, the Prime Evils are revealed very early in the original Diablo to be the rulers of the Burning Hells and leaders in the fight against the forces of Heaven. However, prior to the start of the first game, it is shown that all three have been exiled to the world of Sanctuary by the Lesser Evils, where they retain very little of their former power.^[2] This of course makes Diablo, and in the sequel his brothers, accessible to the player's mortal character as a final challenge in certain chapters of the games. Despite being nicknamed the "Brothers," there is no mention of the Prime Evils having parents and indeed are often said to have existed "from the Beginning," though they are given different, but unquantified, ages.

Diablo

Diablo, called the Lord of Terror, is the titular character and arch-villain of the game series. He is also the youngest of the three prime evils. He was sealed beneath Tristram.

Diablo has made three appearances in the quasi-annual character contests of GameFAQs, reaching as high as the final four in the villains contest in 2005.^[3]

Baal

Baal is also known as the Lord of Destruction. Baal was chased and finally confronted in the deserts of Aranoch. The Horadrim managed to defeat him, but during the encounter, Baal's destructive nature shattered the Soulstone that would be his prison. It was during this moment that Tal Rasha, leader of the Horadrim, stepped forward. Knowing that the stone would not contain the Lord of Destruction after its sundering, Tal Rasha volunteered to complete the prison with his own body. Selflessly sacrificing himself, Tal Rasha was buried far out in the desert in one of seven identical tombs, hidden in a valley where he would hopefully never be found.

The plan worked, and Baal remained chained in the tomb, unable to break free. Tal Rasha had thought that he could match the will of the Prime Evil, but pride had blinded him. It wasn't long before Baal had complete control over the mortal mage - including his knowledge and memories - but, trapped as he was, there was nothing Baal could use this information for.

In Diablo II, Diablo, with the help of Marius, travels to the tomb and frees his brother. Released from his bonds, Baal first travels with Diablo to Kurast, where they set their eldest brother, Mephisto, free. After that, Baal travels to Mount Arreat. Through Tal Rasha, he has learned that this is the location of the Worldstone, and he invades the mountain with a demonic army in the expansion pack to Diablo II in the hopes of corrupting the stone, opening the way for Hell to invade Sanctuary. In the Worldstone Chamber, he is ultimately killed by a band of heroes.

Mephisto

Mephisto, the Lord of Hatred, is the oldest of the Prime Evils and the 'boss' of Act III in Diablo II. Found by players in the Durance of Hate beneath Travincal in the Kurast Forest, he is slightly spectral in appearance and attacks with lightning-, poison- and cold-based spells. With the assistance of his brothers Diablo and Baal, he opens a portal to Hell through which Diablo travels to 'send forth his terror'. When Mephisto is defeated, a walkway of bones rises from a moat of blood and allows the player to access Act IV.

Lesser Evils

Directly under the Prime Evils in power are the Lesser Evils. Within the games and books released so far, four Lesser Evils have been named, but it remains unclear whether other demons with this title will be revealed. Since the banishment of the ruling Three to Sanctuary, reign over the Burning Hells has been left in question and supposedly a civil war has broken out between two of the Lesser Evils (Azmodan and Belial) to determine who will claim power.^[2] The other two Lesser Evils (Andariel and Duriel) appear as the final enemies of the opening acts of Diablo II.

Andariel

The strongest daughter of the "Queen of the Succubi," Andariel appears in Diablo II as a large, feminine demon, not unlike the succubi of the first game. According to her backstory, despite taking part in the banishment of the Prime Evils, she followed Diablo to Sanctuary and wished to gain his favor by guarding the way east, so that Diablo can free his brother without interference.^[4]

Duriel

The player meets the demon Duriel, sometimes referred to as the Prince of Pain, in the final battle of Diablo II's second act. This mantis-like Great Evil has been tasked with guarding the captured Tyrael in the tomb of Tal Rasha, as punishment for the part he played in the Dark Exile.^[5] A much stronger version of this character also appeared as an enemy during the Pandemonium Event.

Other demons

Lilith

Though not listed in Diablo as one of the seven Great Evils, the character of Lilith certainly seems to be attributed with no less power than any of the Lesser Evils. She is said to be the daughter of Mephisto, mother to Andariel and "Queen of the Succubi." The character is indeed given enough strength to resurrect Diablo and in turn the other two Prime Evils, as well as command a host of demonic forces during Diablo II's 'Pandemonium Event.'^[6] In the novels, the story is told of Lilith helping to create the realm of Sanctuary and pairing with Inarius to spawn some of the Nephalem. Shortly thereafter she is banished from Sanctuary and her ability to later return during the Pandemonium Event is left unexplained.

Characters of Heaven

Only three characters from the High Heavens are named within official game publications and only two of those even make appearances during gameplay. Still, the fiction reveals that this realm consists of Angels and Archangels, collectively known as Seraphim, ruled by a group of five Archangels called the Angiris Council. The Seraphim shown in Diablo II seem similar to humans in form, with the addition of tendril-like wings, but their faces are never seen, as they are fully shadowed by hoods.

Angiris Council

Tyrael

The Archangel Tyrael is the first Heavenly being seen in the games, appearing at the end of the second act of Diablo II. He wears heavy armor and possesses great flowing, luminous wings. Tyrael guides much of the player's actions while in the Burning Hells at the end of Diablo II, also instructing the player to defeat Izual and release his tortured spirit. During the events of the series, Tyrael takes by far the most direct actions within Sanctuary of any of the Seraphim.

Inarius

Though he plays a vital role in the creation of Sanctuary, Inarius is mentioned little-to-none in the actual games. Instead, he is spoken of briefly in the Diablo manual and greatly expanded on in the novels that supplement the series. According to the novels, Inarius is the brother of Tyrael and was once a member of the Angiris Council. However, he grew tired of the Great Conflict and, together with other rogue angels and demons, created the world of Sanctuary. With Lilith, a daughter of Mephisto, he also spawned some of the Nephalem, the first generation of humans, but the two fought bitterly for control over this powerful new race. Eventually, Lilith was banished from Sanctuary and Inarius used the Worldstone to diminish the powers of the Nephalem and their offspring, slowly changing them into the relatively weak humans that appear in Diablo. However, the Angiris Council made a deal with Mephisto, capturing the rebellious Archangel and handing him over to Mephisto to be tortured in Hell for eternity.

Other Seraphim

Izual

Izual is first mentioned in the Diablo manual as having once been a great hero of the Light and lieutenant to Archangel Tyrael. However, he was captured by the forces of Hell, twisted by their dark powers and trapped within the body of a terrible creature, which is how he appears when encountered in Diablo II.^[2] After the player defeats this demonic form, Izual's angelic spirit seems to be released and he reveals that he helped the Prime Evils mastermind their supposed exile to the mortal world and told them how to corrupt the Soulstones, which sheds a new light on the entire Diablo storyline.

Characters of Sanctuary

In the Diablo universe, mortals are born into the world of Sanctuary and are descended from the Nephalem, who were themselves offspring of demons and angels. With such powerful beings as ancestors, these mortals possess great strength, although much of their power was held at bay by the Worldstone, which was shattered by Tyrael at the end of Diablo II: Lord of Destruction.

Deckard Cain

Also known as Cain the Elder, Deckard Cain is the only character aside from the title character, Diablo, to appear in every installment of the series. He is voiced by Michael Gough. Through in-game interactions in Diablo, the player learns that Cain is the last surviving member of the Horadrim, an ancient order of mages charged with trapping the Prime Evils within Soulstones and guarding them thereafter. Cain acts as advisor and guide, accompanying the player's character through each act of the games and providing a great deal of the lore to be found in-game. Despite appearing very old already in Diablo II, Cain has been revealed as a returning character in Diablo III, which takes place twenty years after the second game, and he is expected to be a somewhat darker character.^[7]

The Dark Wanderer/Warrior

The Dark Wanderer is introduced at the beginning of Diablo II with little information given, aside from strong hints at being the character who defeated Diablo in the first game. Later, as the Wanderer loses the ongoing battle of wills with the demon inside him, it is revealed that he is in fact the playable Warrior character from Diablo, who has plunged the Lord of Terror's Soulstone into his head in the hopes of keeping the demon trapped within him. As Diablo begins to assume full control of this body, he travels with Marius to Aranoch and together they free his brother, Baal, from his imprisonment within the body of Tal Rasha. At the end of the second act of Diablo II, Marius relates watching Diablo's demonic form finally shed its host body, signalling the end of the Wanderer character.

Cultural impact

Merchandise

Action figures for the Barbarian character class, Unraveller, and Diablo were sold in Blizzard's online store and at retailers to complement the release of Diablo II.^[8]

An 18 inch collectible statue of Diablo III's Barbarian class has been produced for sale by Sideshow Collectibles.^[9]

References

1. ^ "Diablo III: Deep in Hell with Leonard Boyarsky". GameSpy. 2008-06-29. http://au.pc.gamespy.com/pc/diablo-iii/885172p1.html. Retrieved 2011-04-12. 
2. ^ ^{a b c d} Diablo (manual). 1996. Irvine, Calif.: Blizzard Entertainment.
3. ^ "Spring 2005: Got Villains?". GameFAQs. http://www.gamefaqs.com/features/contest/spr05. Retrieved 2007-09-23. 
4. ^ "Monsters: Andariel". Arreat Summit. http://classic.battle.net/diablo2exp/monsters/act1-andariel.shtml. Retrieved 2011-04-14. 
5. ^ "Monsters: Duriel". Arreat Summit. http://classic.battle.net/diablo2exp/monsters/act2-duriel.shtml. Retrieved 2011-04-14. 
6. ^ "Monsters: Lilith". Arreat Summit. http://classic.battle.net/diablo2exp/monsters/act5-lilith.shtml. Retrieved 2011-04-13. 
7. ^ Haynes, Jeff (2009-08-23). "BlizzCon 09: Diablo III Q&A". IGN. http://uk.pc.ign.com/articles/101/1017305p2.html. Retrieved 2011-04-12. 
8. ^ "F.A.Q.: General". Arreat Summit. http://classic.battle.net/diablo2exp/monsters/act2-duriel.shtml. Retrieved 2011-04-13. 
9. ^ "Sideshow Collectibles presents Diablo III Overthrown statue". Destructoid. http://www.destructoid.com/sideshow-collectibles-presents-diablo-iii-overthrown-statue-136835.phtml. Retrieved 2011-05-24.