Baator
Encyclopedia
In the Dungeons & Dragons
fantasy
role-playing game
, Baator, also known as the Nine Hells of Baator or the Nine Hells, is a lawful evil-aligned plane of existence
. It is one of a number of alignment-based Outer Plane
s that form part of the standard Dungeons & Dragons (D&D) cosmology, used in the Planescape
, Greyhawk
and some editions of the Forgotten Realms
campaign settings. It also exists as one of a number of faith-based Outer Planes that form part of the separate 3rd-Edition Forgotten Realms
cosmology, used in the setting of the same name.
Baator is stylised as a plane of sinister evil
and cruelty. The different types of devil
s that dwell here obey a strict hierarchical
caste
-like social structure. Each continually plots to advance their position through treachery and deception. Unlike the demons
of the Abyss
, the devils are highly organized, with a logical and calculating nature.
The plane itself is composed of nine different layers, each of which models a differing but no less inhospitable and dreadful environment, including barren plains of ash and rock to frozen wastes of endless ice.
, fiendish creatures of pure lawful evil; the most populous variety of devils are the baatezu, a race which effectively rules the plane. The devils are in a constant conflict known as the Blood War
with the chaotic evil demons
. The ultimate rulers of Baator are the Lords of the Nine, also called archdevils or Archdukes; each one rules absolutely over one of the layers. The current political climate of Baator was determined by a civil war known as the Reckoning of Hell
.
Besides the devils, Baator is home to evil deities such as Tiamat
and Kurtulmak
, as well as hell hounds
, fire giants
, rakshasas
, and other evil creatures. A few mortals live in well-defended fortresses in Baator.
Baator is also populated by several types of petitioners
, the most common being soul shells. These are ghost-like forms which can be molded by the devils into increasingly horrific and agonized forms; ultimately, their destruction results in their essence merging with that of Baator. Especially evil petitioners become lemures, mindless blobs of molten flesh who serve as shock troops in the Blood War and basic servants to other devils.
In earlier Planescape supplements, another type of creature, the nupperibo, is said to inhabit Baator as a remnant of an ancient race that existed long before the Baatezu. Nupperibos grow naturally from larvae present on the plane if left to develop. Since the arrival of the Baatezu, the larvae have been molded by the devils into lemures in an effort to prevent large numbers of nupperibo developing.
In the 4th edition cosmology, the Nine Hells are still the haunt of the devils. However, Asmodeus himself is the only evil deity to dwell in Baator (Tiamat shares the Dominion of Tytherion with Zehir), and the nupperibo and other ancient Baatorians do not exist, as the devils have inhabited Baator since before their fall.
's ascending mountain.
In the standard D&D cosmology, Baator’s first layer, Avernus, shares borders with the neighbouring planes of the Infernal Battlefield of Acheron and the Bleak Eternity of Gehenna; travel is possible between Baator and these planes at certain locations. Baator's portals are huge hoops of reddish light guarded by abishai and amnizu.
In the Forgotten Realms cosmology, Baator links via the Astral Plane, to Toril
, the Prime Material Plane
. A number of portals directly connect it with the Barrens of Doom and Despair
, Clangor, and Blood Rift.
The layers of Baator are configured as a descending cone
, with each layer successively lower than the one before it, as opposed to the Upper Planes
of good alignment, where one goes higher to enter deeper into the plane.
In the 4th edition, Baator's overall structure is finite. The new Baator is shaped like a planet, with each layer taking the form of a continent-sized cavern deeper within the planet's crust than the previous one. Avernus is the "surface" of this "planet", while Nessus clings to the underside of Cania, overlooking the planet's fiery core. In addition to being a realm of torment, Baator doubles as the Astral Dominion of Asmodeus, god of tyranny; like all Astral Dominions, Baator drifts on the endless currents of the Astral Sea as opposed to having a fixed position on the now-defunct Great Wheel.
. A red light suffuses the sky and huge fireballs fly across the layer, randomly exploding wherever they hit. Beneath the blood-red sky balls of fire burst unpredictably. They are said to be embodiments of the rage of the imprisoned Lord of the First, Zariel
.
The River Styx flows through this layer, as does the appropriately named River of Blood.
From the gate in Ribcage the nearest site is the ruined city of Darkspine, where refugees desperately try to avoid the baatezu thought police while trying to do enough good to shift their town back to the Outlands.
The Bronze Citadel is a huge fortress city, housing massive numbers of devil troops and war machines. It is constantly being added to in the form of new fortifications against attacks. Lord Bel
, formerly a powerful pit fiend
before his ascension to noble status, is the current ruler of Avernus, having betrayed the former lord, Zariel
, to obtain the position. He resides in a personal fortress at the center of the Bronze Citadel.
The largest series of astral conduits on Baator lead to the Maggot Pit, a sea of squirming infernal larvae, beyond which the Dragonspawn Pits of Azharul sprawl in a cluster of tall hills and mountains. Tiamat
, the five-headed deity of evil dragons, stands watch over the way to the next layer with her draconic and abishai servitors. Nearby exists the Pillar of Skulls, a hideous landmark of trophy-skulls of those killed in the Blood War that reaches a height of more than a mile close to the entrance to the second layer.
A number of godly realms exist on Avernus, including Draukari, realm of kobold
deity Kurtulmak
, goblin
deity Bargrivyek
's deceptively titled realm of The Peacable Lands, and Abthalom, the Nether Reaches, realm of dragon-queen goddess Takhisis
. Vast legions of abishai serve the Queen of Darkness, milling through the Rallying Grounds and near the Temple of Takhisis and the Tower of High Sorcery. The towns in Draukari, hidden in the hills, mountains, and deep forests of the realm, are Frekstavik, Nibellin, and Snjarll. Kurtulmak's realm is often raided by goblins serving Bargrivyek.
A number of unique devils cast from the hierarchy of the Hells also dwell on Avernus. Known as the "rabble of devilkin
", these exiles number roughly 50 former consorts, dukes, vassals, and other unique devils who lost favor with their masters. To prevent them from being summoned, they have been stripped of their names.
rules this layer from the Iron Tower, an impregnable fortress that reaches far into the sky and can be seen everywhere on Dis (literally; by looking to any direction in the skyline one can see the Iron Tower).
A notable feature of Dis is God Street, a place filled with buildings that are actually the godly realms of various lawful evil deities that have not earned enough worshippers to earn a realm on another layer of Baator or another plane entirely. It is suggested that homebrewed (DM created) lawful evil deities get a realm on God Street.
Although the Iron City of Dis has a wall, the transition from plain to the city itself is imperceptible. One moment a traveler is passing an iron spur, the next the traveler is in the middle of the city with the mighty iron walls surrounding everything that can be seen. It is thus much easier to enter the Iron City than it is to leave it; to leave, one must pass through the heavily guarded city gates (unless the traveler has means of crossing planes of existence).
The iron walls and streets of the city smoke with intense heat, burning those who touch them without protection. Abishai, erinyes, spinagons, and lemures are common - so are soul shells, petitioners who retain their humanoid forms and memories, the better for Archduke Dispater to torment them. Bezekira, kocrachons, rakshasas, and hamatulas are also found thronging the streets of Dis.
The most prominent building in the Iron City is Dispater's tower of iron and lead, a skyscraping edifice that constantly changes shape. The streets, too, are constantly shifting, constantly being rebuilt by the tormented petitioners, confusing and sometimes choked with garbage.
Despite all this, Dis is the most populous and wealthy city in Baator, filled with planewalkers of all types who come to sample the city's terrifying delights.
The realm of Druaga, the Refuge of the Fallen, exists on the plains far outside the city walls. Dis is largely flat, with a sky of smoky green occasionally lit up by lightning. Black, stagnant rivers criss-cross its plains. Monolithic spurs of blackened, unworked iron - natural formations, as much as anything in Baator is natural - thrust out of the plains, growing more frequent as a traveler approaches the Iron City itself.
The huge stone city of Minauros the Sinking is located here, so called because the weight of the city causes it to continually slip beneath the slimy waters; only the endless efforts of thousands of slaves prevents it from doing so. The city sits in a marshy bowl in the center of these volcanic lands, and is constructed of a black stone gleaned from another plane, perhaps a world on the Prime Material
, and rests on mighty pillars that eternally sink into the foul bog that fills the layer. Below the city are said to be the ruins of a town that once resided in the Outlands, a town filled with riches beyond dreaming. Hanging in the sky over the stink of Minauros can be found the kyton city of Jangling Hiter, City of Chains, suspended by chains suspended from who knows what.
Mammon
the Viscount is the ruler of Minauros; he resembles a long serpent with a human torso. He rules from the centre of the city, within a huge mausoleum-like structure made of gold.
Aeaea, the secondary realm of the goddess Hecate
, is on Minauros, as is the realm of the Blood Queen of the aboleth
s.
is a fiery wasteland filled with active volcanoes, hills of ash, gouting fires, streams of magma, pits of smoking excrement, and burning sand beneath a screaming rain of magical fire flakes. Lady Fierna
and Archduke Belial
are the lords of this layer. Few can exist here for long without suitable protection from the extreme heat. The fortress capital city of Abriymoch is built on the lip of a volcano and composed of hardened magma in the caldera of a volcano and is somewhat more bearable than the rest of Phlegethos. It has little tolerance for outsiders, but important allies of Fierna
, the Lord of the Fourth, have their places in its society. The pit fiend Gazra
, commander of the hamatulas, dwells here in a palace of crystal. Fierna and Belial reside in a palace of pure obsidian high up on one side of the city.
The ground of Phlegethos is always uncomfortably hot. This, as well as patrols of barbed devils, keep most intruders constantly on the move. Tremors are common, and it is not unusual for the ground to violently erupt or fissures to open without notice. The sky of Phlegethos is a dark, starless void, but constantly leaping flames provide weird illumination to the harsh landscape.
Rivers of liquid fire feed and emerge from at least two massive lakes where the flames burn brightest. This fiery "water" is inhabited by numerous wandering salamanders that were brought to the layer in days long past, to be bound in servitude to the master of the plane. Given that salamanders are not prone to taking orders, this didn't work out, and most were slain by Belial's servants and vassals. Those few who escaped remain bound to Phlegethos by Belial's magic, and continue to survive by avoiding large groups of baatezu and snatching lone individuals who venture too close to one of the fiery rivers.
The Pit of Flame is a boiling, fiery sea of refuse empowered by the primal energy of Baator. It is a place of both promotion and punishment for baatezu across the nine circles. Thousands of osyluths watch it to ensure that it is not abused.
Most of Phlegethos is inhabited by barbed devils, though other baatezu live there as well.
In the fiery plains beyond Abriymoch, the Sumerian goddess Inanna lives in a realm called the Jealous Heart.
. The surface of the ice is covered with chilly marshes. The dark sky is constantly filled with lightning storms, and the ice may be lit by weird cold flames. Tantlin, the City of Ice, is built on a huge ice floe with a large harbor to the river Styx, and is ruled over by a huge pit fiend. The lack of any kind of law enforcement leads itself to gangs controlling much of the city.
Prince Levistus
rules over this layer, frozen in a giant iceberg floating in the harbor as punishment for betraying Asmodeus. For many centuries, his realm was given over to the fiend Geryon
. Geryon was recently deposed, and Levistus was reinstated, though he remains in his iceberg.
Godly realms on this layer include Sheyruushk, realm of sahuagin
deity Sekolah
, and Ankhwugaht, realm of Set
.
Baatezu of this layer include amnizu, osyluths, and cornugons. In the water are giant octopuses, sharks, squids, whales, sahuagins, and scyllans.
Some also still serve Geryon
, who lives now in his Citadel Coldsteel. There he broods with his minotaur worshippers and thinks of vengeance, but mostly he still does the bidding of the Dark Lord of Nessus, who holds the key to his restoration. Doing his bidding is the wolf-headed duke Amon
, though some claim that Amon is not as loyal as he seems, and serves Levistus in certain matters as well.
Beneath the ice is Sheyruushk, the realm of the sahuagin deity, Sekolah
. On another ice floe is the realm called the Steadfast Chill, where Kriesha (a goddess of Cerilia) dwells.
Ankhwugat is the realm of Set. Set is the dark master of the desert, lord of serpents, jackals, assassins, and creatures of the wild. Though dark waters flow underneath his realm, its surface is hot and dry as the sands of Pelion
, and those familiar with the realm of Nephythys there will see Ankhwugat as a twisted reflection of that one. When Set and Nephythys divorced, Set went to Stygia to forget his pain. Perhaps once all Stygia was like Ankhwugat, and perhaps, if Set has his way, it will be again. Some claim that Set is mad and wishes to transform the layer or even turn his realm into a new outer plane set between Baator and Acheron. Others say he only wishes to reunite with his estranged wife Nephythys, and that the mad ones are the baatezu who try to earn his favor. The common chant says that Set and Levistus are headed toward a showdown. The will of a Lord of the Nine is supposed to be absolute in his layer, but Set has the good will of Ra and Levistus is imprisoned in ice.
, he was deposed during the Reckoning of Hell
and replaced by The Hag Countess Malagard
. Malagard has since been disposed of, and Glasya, daughter of Asmodeus
, currently rules Malboge. Now, the realm is alive, being formed from the flesh and bones of the Hag Countess.
As "The Crushing Lands", Malbolge was a place of craggy, black stone and ash filled with stinking vapors, smoke, fire pits, and huge caves and caverns in which ancient Baatorians lurked. The air was hot and choking, and the whole layer existed at a steep tilt so that no flat terrain exists. Falling was a constant danger there, as were rockslides and avalanches.
The Sixth has had more known lords than any other layer of Hell. The earliest known ruler of Malbolge, the archdevil Beherit
(along with his consort, Batna), was destroyed by Asmodeus for violating rules regarding the promotion of devils. Subsequently, the layer was ruled by Baalzebul through his viceroy, Moloch
. When Moloch defied Asmodeus after the Reckoning of Hell
, the former was exiled to Avernus, while rulership of the Sixth was passed on to Moloch's leman, Malagard the Hag Countess
. Malagard's reign was short-lived, however, as she was deposed by Glasya, Asmodeus's daughter and current Lord of the Sixth. As of Fiendish Codex II, Glasya used the Hag Countess's body to reform Malbolge. Thus, the Sixth plane of Baator is in fact little more than the Hag Countess's innards and bones. The Countess is technically dead, though her life essence still remains on Malbolge.
Malbolge is now a noisy place populated by tormented lemures, cornugons, and the occasional spinagon. Large numbers of lesser devils on this layer are missing all or part of at least one limb, or have some other sort of disfigurement or infirmity—a testament to the days when Baalzebul and Moloch ruled here, both of whom delighted in the torture of their subjects.
The nobles of this layer once dwelled in copper fortresses, whose metal plating helps ward off the worst of the falling stones. The Hag Countess once traveled between these fortresses in disguise, testing the gentility of her subjects; she despised mindless brutality, and destroyed those who committed it.
After the Hag Countess' demise, those few nobles were not purged by Glaysa for treachery now live with the Princess of Hell in her palace, a grotesque, five-story building formed from Malagard's skull.
The archduke Baalzebul
, the Lord of the Flies, rules this layer. He is never satisfied with his cities, always demanding that they be destroyed and rebuilt based on tiny, unnoticeable flaws. Nothing less than perfection will do for him, even if he has to destroy his entire layer - indeed, all of Baator - to achieve it.
The major intact cities are Grenpoli, the city of treachery and diplomacy run by the erinyes noble Mysdemn Wordtwister, a fortress called the Relentless, and Malagard, a city of black spires from which Baalzebul himself rules.
The layer is ruled over by Mephistopheles
, from his great citadel of ice Mephistar. It sits upon a giant glacier called Nargus, the movement of which is controlled by Mephistopheles himself. Inside Mephistar huge heated baths and fire warm the citadel, providing quite a comfortable environment.
Many things lie hidden under the ice of Cania: vast lost cities, frozen armies of creatures. The primary portal to access Nessus is through a gaping hole guarded by 9,999 gelugons. At the bottom of the dizzyingly deep pit is an icy body of water and 1,001 fathoms deep in that is a silvery portal to Malsheem.
rules over the entire plane, and thus the entire race of devils.
It is a plain shattered by rifts deeper than the deepest ocean trench. Many of the ravines and canyons here reach thousands of miles into undifferentiated, dead stone. Most of the trenches seem natural, but some appear as if they were cut or blasted into the land. Rumor has it that an offshoot of the River Styx flows here and there, dropping into trenches and trickling its way across the layer. Few know how to reach this tributary, if it exists at all.
A rift of incredible depth and width lies immediately below the layer boundary between Cania and Nessus. Malsheem, the Citadel of Hell, rises in its dark, elegant, fiendish beauty from the trench. From here, the Overlord of Hell, Asmodeus
, rules the plane of Baator.
of Baator is broadly derived from the Hell
described in Dante Alighieri
's The Divine Comedy
, although the arrangement and names of the layers of Baator differ greatly from the circles of Hell described by Dante. The Outer Plane of Mount Celestia
is likewise loosely inspired by Dante's depiction of Heaven
and Purgatory
.
Dungeons & Dragons
Dungeons & Dragons is a fantasy role-playing game originally designed by Gary Gygax and Dave Arneson, and first published in 1974 by Tactical Studies Rules, Inc. . The game has been published by Wizards of the Coast since 1997...
fantasy
Fantasy
Fantasy is a genre of fiction that commonly uses magic and other supernatural phenomena as a primary element of plot, theme, or setting. Many works within the genre take place in imaginary worlds where magic is common...
role-playing game
Role-playing game
A role-playing game is a game in which players assume the roles of characters in a fictional setting. Players take responsibility for acting out these roles within a narrative, either through literal acting, or through a process of structured decision-making or character development...
, Baator, also known as the Nine Hells of Baator or the Nine Hells, is a lawful evil-aligned plane of existence
Plane (Dungeons & Dragons)
The planes of the Dungeons & Dragons roleplaying game constitutes the multiverse in which the game takes place.In the earliest versions of Dungeons & Dragons, the concept of the Inner, Ethereal, Prime Material, Astral and Outer Planes was introduced; at the time there were only four Inner Planes...
. It is one of a number of alignment-based Outer Plane
Outer Plane
In the fantasy role-playing game Dungeons & Dragons, an Outer Plane is one of a number of general types of planes of existence. They can also be referred to as godly planes, spiritual planes or divine planes. The Outer Planes are home to beings such as deities and otherworldly creatures such as...
s that form part of the standard Dungeons & Dragons (D&D) cosmology, used in the Planescape
Planescape
Planescape is a campaign setting for the Dungeons & Dragons fantasy role-playing game, originally designed by Zeb Cook. The Planescape setting was published in 1994...
, Greyhawk
Greyhawk
Greyhawk, also known as the World of Greyhawk, is a fictional world designed as a campaign setting for the Dungeons & Dragons fantasy roleplaying game...
and some editions of the Forgotten Realms
Forgotten Realms
The Forgotten Realms is a campaign setting for the Dungeons & Dragons fantasy role-playing game. Commonly referred to by players and game designers alike as "The Realms", it was created by game designer Ed Greenwood around 1967 as a setting for his childhood stories...
campaign settings. It also exists as one of a number of faith-based Outer Planes that form part of the separate 3rd-Edition Forgotten Realms
Forgotten Realms
The Forgotten Realms is a campaign setting for the Dungeons & Dragons fantasy role-playing game. Commonly referred to by players and game designers alike as "The Realms", it was created by game designer Ed Greenwood around 1967 as a setting for his childhood stories...
cosmology, used in the setting of the same name.
Baator is stylised as a plane of sinister evil
Evil
Evil is the violation of, or intent to violate, some moral code. Evil is usually seen as the dualistic opposite of good. Definitions of evil vary along with analysis of its root motive causes, however general actions commonly considered evil include: conscious and deliberate wrongdoing,...
and cruelty. The different types of devil
Devil (Dungeons & Dragons)
In the Dungeons & Dragons roleplaying game, devils are a powerful group of monsters used as a high-level challenge for players of the game. Devils are Lawful Evil in alignment and originate from the Nine Hells of Baator. True to their Lawful Evil alignment, devils are locked in a strict and brutal...
s that dwell here obey a strict hierarchical
Hierarchy
A hierarchy is an arrangement of items in which the items are represented as being "above," "below," or "at the same level as" one another...
caste
Caste
Caste is an elaborate and complex social system that combines elements of endogamy, occupation, culture, social class, tribal affiliation and political power. It should not be confused with race or social class, e.g. members of different castes in one society may belong to the same race, as in India...
-like social structure. Each continually plots to advance their position through treachery and deception. Unlike the demons
Demon (Dungeons & Dragons)
In the Dungeons & Dragons fantasy role-playing game, demons are the most widespread race of fiends. The demons are chaotic evil by nature, and are native to the Abyss...
of the Abyss
Abyss (Dungeons & Dragons)
In the Dungeons & Dragons fantasy role-playing game, the Abyss or more fully, the Infinite Layers of the Abyss, is a chaotic evil-aligned plane of existence. It is one of a number of alignment-based Outer Planes that form part of the standard Dungeons & Dragons cosmology, used in the Planescape...
, the devils are highly organized, with a logical and calculating nature.
The plane itself is composed of nine different layers, each of which models a differing but no less inhospitable and dreadful environment, including barren plains of ash and rock to frozen wastes of endless ice.
Inhabitants
The principal inhabitants of Baator are the devilsDevil (Dungeons & Dragons)
In the Dungeons & Dragons roleplaying game, devils are a powerful group of monsters used as a high-level challenge for players of the game. Devils are Lawful Evil in alignment and originate from the Nine Hells of Baator. True to their Lawful Evil alignment, devils are locked in a strict and brutal...
, fiendish creatures of pure lawful evil; the most populous variety of devils are the baatezu, a race which effectively rules the plane. The devils are in a constant conflict known as the Blood War
Blood War
In the Dungeons & Dragons fantasy roleplaying game, the Blood War is an eternal conflict between the fiends of the Lower planes. The Tanar'ri are the demonic forces of the Abyss, an evil plane of chaos. Representing the equally evil but lawful realm of Baator are the Baatezu, the dominant caste of...
with the chaotic evil demons
Demon (Dungeons & Dragons)
In the Dungeons & Dragons fantasy role-playing game, demons are the most widespread race of fiends. The demons are chaotic evil by nature, and are native to the Abyss...
. The ultimate rulers of Baator are the Lords of the Nine, also called archdevils or Archdukes; each one rules absolutely over one of the layers. The current political climate of Baator was determined by a civil war known as the Reckoning of Hell
Reckoning of Hell
In the cosmology of the Dungeons & Dragons fantasy roleplaying game, the Reckoning of Hell was a civil war that shaped the political landscape of the Nine Hells into its current form...
.
Besides the devils, Baator is home to evil deities such as Tiamat
Tiamat (Dungeons & Dragons)
Tiamat is the name of a powerful draconic goddess in the Dungeons & Dragons role-playing game. The name is taken from Tiamat, a goddess in ancient Mesopotamian mythology who is substantially different ....
and Kurtulmak
Kurtulmak
In the Dungeons & Dragons roleplaying game, Kurtulmak is the chief deity worshipped by the kobold race. He is a member of the default pantheon....
, as well as hell hounds
Hell hound (Dungeons & Dragons)
In the Dungeons & Dragons fantasy roleplaying game, the hell hound is a hyena-like creature which can breathe fire and hunts in packs. It is classified as an outsider from the Nine Hells.-Publication history:...
, fire giants
Giant (Dungeons & Dragons)
In the Dungeons & Dragons fantasy role-playing game, giant is a type of creature, or "creature type." Giants are humanoid-shaped creatures of great strength and size.-Dungeons & Dragons :...
, rakshasas
Rakshasa (Dungeons & Dragons)
In the Dungeons & Dragons fantasy role-playing game, a rakshasa is a type of evil outsider that is now native to the Material Plane. They are powerful sorcerers and, although they disdain physical fighting as ignoble, can be dangerous in close combat as well.-Dungeons & Dragons :The rakshasa first...
, and other evil creatures. A few mortals live in well-defended fortresses in Baator.
Baator is also populated by several types of petitioners
Petitioner (Dungeons & Dragons)
In the Dungeons & Dragons fantasy role-playing game, a petitioner is the soul of a deceased mortal.-Publication history:The concept of the petitioner first appeared in second edition for the Planescape setting in the original Planescape Campaign Setting boxed set , and appeared throughout the...
, the most common being soul shells. These are ghost-like forms which can be molded by the devils into increasingly horrific and agonized forms; ultimately, their destruction results in their essence merging with that of Baator. Especially evil petitioners become lemures, mindless blobs of molten flesh who serve as shock troops in the Blood War and basic servants to other devils.
In earlier Planescape supplements, another type of creature, the nupperibo, is said to inhabit Baator as a remnant of an ancient race that existed long before the Baatezu. Nupperibos grow naturally from larvae present on the plane if left to develop. Since the arrival of the Baatezu, the larvae have been molded by the devils into lemures in an effort to prevent large numbers of nupperibo developing.
In the 4th edition cosmology, the Nine Hells are still the haunt of the devils. However, Asmodeus himself is the only evil deity to dwell in Baator (Tiamat shares the Dominion of Tytherion with Zehir), and the nupperibo and other ancient Baatorians do not exist, as the devils have inhabited Baator since before their fall.
Structure
In its original conception, Baator is a spatially infinite plane, consisting of nine layers or sub-planes, arranged in descending order like a dark pit, the inversion of Mount CelestiaMount Celestia
In Dungeons & Dragons, the fantasy role-playing game, Mount Celestia or more fully, the Seven Mounting Heavens of Celestia, or even the Seven Heavens is a lawful good-aligned plane of existence...
's ascending mountain.
In the standard D&D cosmology, Baator’s first layer, Avernus, shares borders with the neighbouring planes of the Infernal Battlefield of Acheron and the Bleak Eternity of Gehenna; travel is possible between Baator and these planes at certain locations. Baator's portals are huge hoops of reddish light guarded by abishai and amnizu.
In the Forgotten Realms cosmology, Baator links via the Astral Plane, to Toril
Toril
Toril, meaning bullpen in Spanish, can refer to:* Toril - a District in Metro Davao in The Philippines* Toril - a Barangay in Island Garden City of Samal, Metro Davao, The Philippines* Toril y Masegoso, a town in the province of Teruel, Aragón, Spain...
, the Prime Material Plane
Prime Material Plane
The Prime Material Plane is the central plane of existence in the Dungeons & Dragons role-playing game...
. A number of portals directly connect it with the Barrens of Doom and Despair
Barrens of Doom and Despair
In the Dungeons & Dragons fantasy role-playing game, the Barrens of Doom and Despair is an evil-aligned plane of existence. It is one of a number of Outer Planes that form part of the cosmology retroactively introduced in the third edition of the Forgotten Realms campaign setting...
, Clangor, and Blood Rift.
The layers of Baator are configured as a descending cone
Cone (geometry)
A cone is an n-dimensional geometric shape that tapers smoothly from a base to a point called the apex or vertex. Formally, it is the solid figure formed by the locus of all straight line segments that join the apex to the base...
, with each layer successively lower than the one before it, as opposed to the Upper Planes
Outer Plane
In the fantasy role-playing game Dungeons & Dragons, an Outer Plane is one of a number of general types of planes of existence. They can also be referred to as godly planes, spiritual planes or divine planes. The Outer Planes are home to beings such as deities and otherworldly creatures such as...
of good alignment, where one goes higher to enter deeper into the plane.
In the 4th edition, Baator's overall structure is finite. The new Baator is shaped like a planet, with each layer taking the form of a continent-sized cavern deeper within the planet's crust than the previous one. Avernus is the "surface" of this "planet", while Nessus clings to the underside of Cania, overlooking the planet's fiery core. In addition to being a realm of torment, Baator doubles as the Astral Dominion of Asmodeus, god of tyranny; like all Astral Dominions, Baator drifts on the endless currents of the Astral Sea as opposed to having a fixed position on the now-defunct Great Wheel.
Avernus
The first layer, Avernus, is a vast charred wasteland of rubble over which the iron towers of the Dukes of Hell stand. Legions of devils march across the plains in continual readiness for the next battle of the Blood WarBlood War
In the Dungeons & Dragons fantasy roleplaying game, the Blood War is an eternal conflict between the fiends of the Lower planes. The Tanar'ri are the demonic forces of the Abyss, an evil plane of chaos. Representing the equally evil but lawful realm of Baator are the Baatezu, the dominant caste of...
. A red light suffuses the sky and huge fireballs fly across the layer, randomly exploding wherever they hit. Beneath the blood-red sky balls of fire burst unpredictably. They are said to be embodiments of the rage of the imprisoned Lord of the First, Zariel
Zariel
Zariel is an archdevil who once ruled Avernus, the first layer of the Nine Hells of Baator, in the Dungeons & Dragons fantasy role-playing game.-Publication history:Zariel was first mentioned in the second edition book Guide to Hell ....
.
The River Styx flows through this layer, as does the appropriately named River of Blood.
From the gate in Ribcage the nearest site is the ruined city of Darkspine, where refugees desperately try to avoid the baatezu thought police while trying to do enough good to shift their town back to the Outlands.
The Bronze Citadel is a huge fortress city, housing massive numbers of devil troops and war machines. It is constantly being added to in the form of new fortifications against attacks. Lord Bel
Bel (Dungeons & Dragons)
In the Dungeons & Dragons fantasy roleplaying game, Bel the pit fiend, is the Arch-Devil currently in charge of Avernus, the First Layer of the Nine Hells of Baator...
, formerly a powerful pit fiend
Devil (Dungeons & Dragons)
In the Dungeons & Dragons roleplaying game, devils are a powerful group of monsters used as a high-level challenge for players of the game. Devils are Lawful Evil in alignment and originate from the Nine Hells of Baator. True to their Lawful Evil alignment, devils are locked in a strict and brutal...
before his ascension to noble status, is the current ruler of Avernus, having betrayed the former lord, Zariel
Zariel
Zariel is an archdevil who once ruled Avernus, the first layer of the Nine Hells of Baator, in the Dungeons & Dragons fantasy role-playing game.-Publication history:Zariel was first mentioned in the second edition book Guide to Hell ....
, to obtain the position. He resides in a personal fortress at the center of the Bronze Citadel.
The largest series of astral conduits on Baator lead to the Maggot Pit, a sea of squirming infernal larvae, beyond which the Dragonspawn Pits of Azharul sprawl in a cluster of tall hills and mountains. Tiamat
Tiamat (Dungeons & Dragons)
Tiamat is the name of a powerful draconic goddess in the Dungeons & Dragons role-playing game. The name is taken from Tiamat, a goddess in ancient Mesopotamian mythology who is substantially different ....
, the five-headed deity of evil dragons, stands watch over the way to the next layer with her draconic and abishai servitors. Nearby exists the Pillar of Skulls, a hideous landmark of trophy-skulls of those killed in the Blood War that reaches a height of more than a mile close to the entrance to the second layer.
A number of godly realms exist on Avernus, including Draukari, realm of kobold
Kobold (Dungeons & Dragons)
Kobolds are a fictional species featured in the Dungeons & Dragons roleplaying game. Aggressive, xenophobic, yet industrious small humanoid creatures, kobolds are noted for their skill at building traps and preparing ambushes...
deity Kurtulmak
Kurtulmak
In the Dungeons & Dragons roleplaying game, Kurtulmak is the chief deity worshipped by the kobold race. He is a member of the default pantheon....
, goblin
Goblin (Dungeons & Dragons)
In the Dungeons & Dragons fantasy role-playing game, goblins are a very common and fairly weak race of evil humanoid monsters. Goblins and Kobolds are commonly non-human monsters that low-level player characters will face in combat. In D&D, goblins aren't smaller cousins of orcs, but are a part of...
deity Bargrivyek
Bargrivyek
In many campaign settings for the Dungeons & Dragons role-playing game, Bargrivyek is the goblin deity of cooperation and territory. He is known as the Peacekeeper because he tolerates no war between goblin tribes...
's deceptively titled realm of The Peacable Lands, and Abthalom, the Nether Reaches, realm of dragon-queen goddess Takhisis
Takhisis
Takhisis is a fictional character from the Dragonlance universe. She is the main goddess of evil and head of the Dark Pantheon.- Titles and forms :...
. Vast legions of abishai serve the Queen of Darkness, milling through the Rallying Grounds and near the Temple of Takhisis and the Tower of High Sorcery. The towns in Draukari, hidden in the hills, mountains, and deep forests of the realm, are Frekstavik, Nibellin, and Snjarll. Kurtulmak's realm is often raided by goblins serving Bargrivyek.
A number of unique devils cast from the hierarchy of the Hells also dwell on Avernus. Known as the "rabble of devilkin
Rabble of Devilkin
In the Dungeons & Dragons fantasy roleplaying game, "rabble of devilkin" is a term applied to the lesser unique outcast devils dwelling on Avernus, the first layer of the Nine Hells...
", these exiles number roughly 50 former consorts, dukes, vassals, and other unique devils who lost favor with their masters. To prevent them from being summoned, they have been stripped of their names.
Dis
The second layer, Dis, is both a layer and a burning city of iron known as the Iron City of Dis. The walls of the buildings of the city radiate extreme heat, as do the stones of the streets; more than brief skin contact results in severe burns. The Archduke DispaterDispater (Dungeons & Dragons)
In many campaign settings for the Dungeons & Dragons fantasy role-playing game, Dispater is an Arch-Devil of Hell , and the Lord of the Iron City of Dis....
rules this layer from the Iron Tower, an impregnable fortress that reaches far into the sky and can be seen everywhere on Dis (literally; by looking to any direction in the skyline one can see the Iron Tower).
A notable feature of Dis is God Street, a place filled with buildings that are actually the godly realms of various lawful evil deities that have not earned enough worshippers to earn a realm on another layer of Baator or another plane entirely. It is suggested that homebrewed (DM created) lawful evil deities get a realm on God Street.
Although the Iron City of Dis has a wall, the transition from plain to the city itself is imperceptible. One moment a traveler is passing an iron spur, the next the traveler is in the middle of the city with the mighty iron walls surrounding everything that can be seen. It is thus much easier to enter the Iron City than it is to leave it; to leave, one must pass through the heavily guarded city gates (unless the traveler has means of crossing planes of existence).
The iron walls and streets of the city smoke with intense heat, burning those who touch them without protection. Abishai, erinyes, spinagons, and lemures are common - so are soul shells, petitioners who retain their humanoid forms and memories, the better for Archduke Dispater to torment them. Bezekira, kocrachons, rakshasas, and hamatulas are also found thronging the streets of Dis.
The most prominent building in the Iron City is Dispater's tower of iron and lead, a skyscraping edifice that constantly changes shape. The streets, too, are constantly shifting, constantly being rebuilt by the tormented petitioners, confusing and sometimes choked with garbage.
Despite all this, Dis is the most populous and wealthy city in Baator, filled with planewalkers of all types who come to sample the city's terrifying delights.
The realm of Druaga, the Refuge of the Fallen, exists on the plains far outside the city walls. Dis is largely flat, with a sky of smoky green occasionally lit up by lightning. Black, stagnant rivers criss-cross its plains. Monolithic spurs of blackened, unworked iron - natural formations, as much as anything in Baator is natural - thrust out of the plains, growing more frequent as a traveler approaches the Iron City itself.
Minauros
The third layer of Minauros is an endless bog of vile pollution. The weather on Minauros consists of acidic rain, flesh-slicing hail, and harsh winds. Most of the layer is a vast dismal marsh of foul rotting soil, littered with carrion and pools of water. Through murky fog, one often encounters numerous carcasses soaking up the filthy rain. Another horrid feature of these lands are "cells." These are large shallow pits, filled to a depth of two or three feet with water. Chains and manacles of brass and iron are attached to huge stones laying at the bottom of the cells, where intruders and others captured by Mammon's barbed devil sentinels will be kept. The chained prisoners are forced to stand or sit in the chill, fetid water until they die from exposure or starvation, unless they are taken away for torture or interrogation first. Fortunate prisoners escape, though occasionally the barbed devils will allow a prisoner to escape in order to hunt it for sport.The huge stone city of Minauros the Sinking is located here, so called because the weight of the city causes it to continually slip beneath the slimy waters; only the endless efforts of thousands of slaves prevents it from doing so. The city sits in a marshy bowl in the center of these volcanic lands, and is constructed of a black stone gleaned from another plane, perhaps a world on the Prime Material
Prime Material Plane
The Prime Material Plane is the central plane of existence in the Dungeons & Dragons role-playing game...
, and rests on mighty pillars that eternally sink into the foul bog that fills the layer. Below the city are said to be the ruins of a town that once resided in the Outlands, a town filled with riches beyond dreaming. Hanging in the sky over the stink of Minauros can be found the kyton city of Jangling Hiter, City of Chains, suspended by chains suspended from who knows what.
Mammon
Mammon (Dungeons & Dragons)
In the Dungeons & Dragons roleplaying game, Mammon is an Arch-Devil of Hell , also known as the "Lord of Avarice." His symbol is a pair of red scaled hands open and looming over a black gemstone, or gold medallions emblazoned with the image of a snake-bodied devil.Mammon is the lord of Minauros,...
the Viscount is the ruler of Minauros; he resembles a long serpent with a human torso. He rules from the centre of the city, within a huge mausoleum-like structure made of gold.
Aeaea, the secondary realm of the goddess Hecate
Hecate
Hecate or Hekate is a chthonic Greco-Roman goddess associated with magic, witchcraft, necromancy, and crossroads.She is attested in poetry as early as Hesiod's Theogony...
, is on Minauros, as is the realm of the Blood Queen of the aboleth
Aboleth
In the Dungeons & Dragons fantasy role-playing game, aboleths are a fictive race of malevolent, eel-like aberrations with potent psionic abilities...
s.
Phlegethos
PhlegethosPhlegethon
In Greek mythology, the river Phlegethon or Pyriphlegethon was one of the five rivers in the infernal regions of the underworld, along with the rivers Styx, Lethe, Cocytus, and Acheron...
is a fiery wasteland filled with active volcanoes, hills of ash, gouting fires, streams of magma, pits of smoking excrement, and burning sand beneath a screaming rain of magical fire flakes. Lady Fierna
Fierna
In the Dungeons & Dragons role-playing game, Lady Fierna is the ruler of the Fourth Layer of the Nine Hells of Baator. She is the daughter of arch-Duke Belial and his late consort Naome, and currently shares the rulership with her father...
and Archduke Belial
Belial (Dungeons & Dragons)
In many campaign settings for the Dungeons & Dragons role-playing game, Belial is an Arch-Devil of Hell , lord of the Fourth Hell, Phlegethos. He retained his rule after the Reckoning of Hell, though he now shares this responsibility with his daughter Fierna who serves as his mouthpiece...
are the lords of this layer. Few can exist here for long without suitable protection from the extreme heat. The fortress capital city of Abriymoch is built on the lip of a volcano and composed of hardened magma in the caldera of a volcano and is somewhat more bearable than the rest of Phlegethos. It has little tolerance for outsiders, but important allies of Fierna
Fierna
In the Dungeons & Dragons role-playing game, Lady Fierna is the ruler of the Fourth Layer of the Nine Hells of Baator. She is the daughter of arch-Duke Belial and his late consort Naome, and currently shares the rulership with her father...
, the Lord of the Fourth, have their places in its society. The pit fiend Gazra
Gazra
Gazra is a pit fiend, in the Dungeons & Dragons roleplaying game.-Publication history:Gazra was first mentioned in the Monstrous Compendium Outer Planes Appendix...
, commander of the hamatulas, dwells here in a palace of crystal. Fierna and Belial reside in a palace of pure obsidian high up on one side of the city.
The ground of Phlegethos is always uncomfortably hot. This, as well as patrols of barbed devils, keep most intruders constantly on the move. Tremors are common, and it is not unusual for the ground to violently erupt or fissures to open without notice. The sky of Phlegethos is a dark, starless void, but constantly leaping flames provide weird illumination to the harsh landscape.
Rivers of liquid fire feed and emerge from at least two massive lakes where the flames burn brightest. This fiery "water" is inhabited by numerous wandering salamanders that were brought to the layer in days long past, to be bound in servitude to the master of the plane. Given that salamanders are not prone to taking orders, this didn't work out, and most were slain by Belial's servants and vassals. Those few who escaped remain bound to Phlegethos by Belial's magic, and continue to survive by avoiding large groups of baatezu and snatching lone individuals who venture too close to one of the fiery rivers.
The Pit of Flame is a boiling, fiery sea of refuse empowered by the primal energy of Baator. It is a place of both promotion and punishment for baatezu across the nine circles. Thousands of osyluths watch it to ensure that it is not abused.
Most of Phlegethos is inhabited by barbed devils, though other baatezu live there as well.
In the fiery plains beyond Abriymoch, the Sumerian goddess Inanna lives in a realm called the Jealous Heart.
Stygia
Stygia, the fifth layer is a freezing layer of cold and ice dominated by a murky ocean fed directly by the River StyxStyx (mythology)
The Styx is a river in Greek mythology that formed the boundary between Earth and the Underworld . It circles the Underworld nine times...
. The surface of the ice is covered with chilly marshes. The dark sky is constantly filled with lightning storms, and the ice may be lit by weird cold flames. Tantlin, the City of Ice, is built on a huge ice floe with a large harbor to the river Styx, and is ruled over by a huge pit fiend. The lack of any kind of law enforcement leads itself to gangs controlling much of the city.
Prince Levistus
Levistus
In the Dungeons & Dragons role-playing game, Levistus is the arch-devil currently ruling Stygia, the Fifth layer of the Nine Hells of Baator...
rules over this layer, frozen in a giant iceberg floating in the harbor as punishment for betraying Asmodeus. For many centuries, his realm was given over to the fiend Geryon
Geryon (Dungeons & Dragons)
In the Dungeons & Dragons role-playing game, Geryon was an Arch-Devil of Hell , also known as the "Wild Beast."-Creative origins:...
. Geryon was recently deposed, and Levistus was reinstated, though he remains in his iceberg.
Godly realms on this layer include Sheyruushk, realm of sahuagin
Sahuagin
In the Dungeons & Dragons fantasy role-playing game, the sahuagin are a fish-like monstrous humanoid species that live in oceans, seas, underground lakes, and underwater caves. Sahuagin speak their native tongue . With higher intelligence scores, they can also speak two bonus languages, usually...
deity Sekolah
Sekolah
In the Dungeons & Dragons roleplaying game, Sekolah is a powerful devil and the primary deity worshipped by the sahuagin race. His sacred animal is the shark...
, and Ankhwugaht, realm of Set
Set (mythology)
Set was in Ancient Egyptian religion, a god of the desert, storms, and foreigners. In later myths he was also the god of darkness, and chaos...
.
Baatezu of this layer include amnizu, osyluths, and cornugons. In the water are giant octopuses, sharks, squids, whales, sahuagins, and scyllans.
Some also still serve Geryon
Geryon (Dungeons & Dragons)
In the Dungeons & Dragons role-playing game, Geryon was an Arch-Devil of Hell , also known as the "Wild Beast."-Creative origins:...
, who lives now in his Citadel Coldsteel. There he broods with his minotaur worshippers and thinks of vengeance, but mostly he still does the bidding of the Dark Lord of Nessus, who holds the key to his restoration. Doing his bidding is the wolf-headed duke Amon
Amon (Dungeons & Dragons)
Amon, also known as Amon the Wolf, is a deposed Duke of Hell, in the Dungeons & Dragons roleplaying game.-Publication history:Amon was first detailed in Gary Gygax's article "From the Sorcerer's Scroll: New Denizens of Devildom," in Dragon #75...
, though some claim that Amon is not as loyal as he seems, and serves Levistus in certain matters as well.
Beneath the ice is Sheyruushk, the realm of the sahuagin deity, Sekolah
Sekolah
In the Dungeons & Dragons roleplaying game, Sekolah is a powerful devil and the primary deity worshipped by the sahuagin race. His sacred animal is the shark...
. On another ice floe is the realm called the Steadfast Chill, where Kriesha (a goddess of Cerilia) dwells.
Ankhwugat is the realm of Set. Set is the dark master of the desert, lord of serpents, jackals, assassins, and creatures of the wild. Though dark waters flow underneath his realm, its surface is hot and dry as the sands of Pelion
Arborea (Dungeons & Dragons)
In Dungeons & Dragons, fantasy role-playing game, Arborea or more fully, the Olympian Glades of Arborea, is a chaotic good-aligned plane of existence...
, and those familiar with the realm of Nephythys there will see Ankhwugat as a twisted reflection of that one. When Set and Nephythys divorced, Set went to Stygia to forget his pain. Perhaps once all Stygia was like Ankhwugat, and perhaps, if Set has his way, it will be again. Some claim that Set is mad and wishes to transform the layer or even turn his realm into a new outer plane set between Baator and Acheron. Others say he only wishes to reunite with his estranged wife Nephythys, and that the mad ones are the baatezu who try to earn his favor. The common chant says that Set and Levistus are headed toward a showdown. The will of a Lord of the Nine is supposed to be absolute in his layer, but Set has the good will of Ra and Levistus is imprisoned in ice.
Malbolge
Malbolge was originally an endless rocky slope where rockslides and avalanches of boulders were common. Numerous copper fortresses provided some refuge from the avalanches. Once ruled by MolochMoloch (Dungeons & Dragons)
In many campaign settings for the Dungeons & Dragons role-playing game, Moloch is an arch-devil of Hell , and once served as the viceroy of Baalzebul.-Creative origins:...
, he was deposed during the Reckoning of Hell
Reckoning of Hell
In the cosmology of the Dungeons & Dragons fantasy roleplaying game, the Reckoning of Hell was a civil war that shaped the political landscape of the Nine Hells into its current form...
and replaced by The Hag Countess Malagard
Hag Countess
In the Dungeons & Dragons role-playing game, the Hag Countess, also known as Malagard, is the former ruler of Malbolge, the Sixth Layer of the Nine Hells of Baator...
. Malagard has since been disposed of, and Glasya, daughter of Asmodeus
Asmodeus (Dungeons & Dragons)
In the Dungeons & Dragons roleplaying game, Asmodeus is an Arch-Devil: a lord of the game's version of Hell . There he is the Overlord of the Dukes of Hell...
, currently rules Malboge. Now, the realm is alive, being formed from the flesh and bones of the Hag Countess.
As "The Crushing Lands", Malbolge was a place of craggy, black stone and ash filled with stinking vapors, smoke, fire pits, and huge caves and caverns in which ancient Baatorians lurked. The air was hot and choking, and the whole layer existed at a steep tilt so that no flat terrain exists. Falling was a constant danger there, as were rockslides and avalanches.
The Sixth has had more known lords than any other layer of Hell. The earliest known ruler of Malbolge, the archdevil Beherit
Beherit (Dungeons & Dragons)
In many campaign settings of the Dungeons & Dragons roleplaying game Beherit is the former arch-Duke of Malbolge, the sixth layer of the Nine Hells of Baator...
(along with his consort, Batna), was destroyed by Asmodeus for violating rules regarding the promotion of devils. Subsequently, the layer was ruled by Baalzebul through his viceroy, Moloch
Moloch (Dungeons & Dragons)
In many campaign settings for the Dungeons & Dragons role-playing game, Moloch is an arch-devil of Hell , and once served as the viceroy of Baalzebul.-Creative origins:...
. When Moloch defied Asmodeus after the Reckoning of Hell
Reckoning of Hell
In the cosmology of the Dungeons & Dragons fantasy roleplaying game, the Reckoning of Hell was a civil war that shaped the political landscape of the Nine Hells into its current form...
, the former was exiled to Avernus, while rulership of the Sixth was passed on to Moloch's leman, Malagard the Hag Countess
Hag Countess
In the Dungeons & Dragons role-playing game, the Hag Countess, also known as Malagard, is the former ruler of Malbolge, the Sixth Layer of the Nine Hells of Baator...
. Malagard's reign was short-lived, however, as she was deposed by Glasya, Asmodeus's daughter and current Lord of the Sixth. As of Fiendish Codex II, Glasya used the Hag Countess's body to reform Malbolge. Thus, the Sixth plane of Baator is in fact little more than the Hag Countess's innards and bones. The Countess is technically dead, though her life essence still remains on Malbolge.
Malbolge is now a noisy place populated by tormented lemures, cornugons, and the occasional spinagon. Large numbers of lesser devils on this layer are missing all or part of at least one limb, or have some other sort of disfigurement or infirmity—a testament to the days when Baalzebul and Moloch ruled here, both of whom delighted in the torture of their subjects.
The nobles of this layer once dwelled in copper fortresses, whose metal plating helps ward off the worst of the falling stones. The Hag Countess once traveled between these fortresses in disguise, testing the gentility of her subjects; she despised mindless brutality, and destroyed those who committed it.
After the Hag Countess' demise, those few nobles were not purged by Glaysa for treachery now live with the Princess of Hell in her palace, a grotesque, five-story building formed from Malagard's skull.
Maladomini
Maladomini is a hell of ruins, the seventh layer of Baator. Everything natural on the layer has been defaced, destroyed, or stripped away, replaced with strip mines, quarries, poorly maintained roads and bridges, rivers of molten lava, slag heaps, wasted cities, and polluted canals, filled with stinking vapors, earth tremors, fire pits, and mines. Petitioners and other refugees hide in the ruins. Underground, the ancient diabolic predecessors to the baatezu still lurk.The archduke Baalzebul
Baalzebul (Dungeons & Dragons)
In the Dungeons & Dragons roleplaying game, Baalzebul is a fictional character, described as an Arch-Devil of Hell , also called the "Lord of the Flies."Baalzebul is lord of Maladomini, the Seventh Plane of Hell...
, the Lord of the Flies, rules this layer. He is never satisfied with his cities, always demanding that they be destroyed and rebuilt based on tiny, unnoticeable flaws. Nothing less than perfection will do for him, even if he has to destroy his entire layer - indeed, all of Baator - to achieve it.
The major intact cities are Grenpoli, the city of treachery and diplomacy run by the erinyes noble Mysdemn Wordtwister, a fortress called the Relentless, and Malagard, a city of black spires from which Baalzebul himself rules.
Cania
Cania (or Caina), the Eighth Hell, is an unimaginably cold wasteland, where few living things can survive more than a few moments in an unsheltered area. Huge fast moving glaciers crash around the layer sending snow and ice up in the sky. It is dominated by intense, freezing cold, and is extremely hostile toward those who are unwelcome on the layer, which includes nearly every being that enters. It is the home of the gelugon baatezu.The layer is ruled over by Mephistopheles
Mephistopheles (Dungeons & Dragons)
In the Dungeons & Dragons role-playing game, Mephistopheles is an Arch-Devil of Hell , also known as the "Lord of No Mercy" and the "Cold Lord"....
, from his great citadel of ice Mephistar. It sits upon a giant glacier called Nargus, the movement of which is controlled by Mephistopheles himself. Inside Mephistar huge heated baths and fire warm the citadel, providing quite a comfortable environment.
Many things lie hidden under the ice of Cania: vast lost cities, frozen armies of creatures. The primary portal to access Nessus is through a gaping hole guarded by 9,999 gelugons. At the bottom of the dizzyingly deep pit is an icy body of water and 1,001 fathoms deep in that is a silvery portal to Malsheem.
Nessus
Nessus is the ninth and deepest layer of Baator. It is a place of pits and ravines of virtually endless depths. The great citadel of Malsheem lies immediately below the portal between Cania and Nessus and is the largest fortress in all of the Outer Planes. Here, AsmodeusAsmodeus (Dungeons & Dragons)
In the Dungeons & Dragons roleplaying game, Asmodeus is an Arch-Devil: a lord of the game's version of Hell . There he is the Overlord of the Dukes of Hell...
rules over the entire plane, and thus the entire race of devils.
It is a plain shattered by rifts deeper than the deepest ocean trench. Many of the ravines and canyons here reach thousands of miles into undifferentiated, dead stone. Most of the trenches seem natural, but some appear as if they were cut or blasted into the land. Rumor has it that an offshoot of the River Styx flows here and there, dropping into trenches and trickling its way across the layer. Few know how to reach this tributary, if it exists at all.
A rift of incredible depth and width lies immediately below the layer boundary between Cania and Nessus. Malsheem, the Citadel of Hell, rises in its dark, elegant, fiendish beauty from the trench. From here, the Overlord of Hell, Asmodeus
Asmodeus (Dungeons & Dragons)
In the Dungeons & Dragons roleplaying game, Asmodeus is an Arch-Devil: a lord of the game's version of Hell . There he is the Overlord of the Dukes of Hell...
, rules the plane of Baator.
Historical influences
The topographyTopography
Topography is the study of Earth's surface shape and features or those ofplanets, moons, and asteroids...
of Baator is broadly derived from the Hell
Hell
In many religious traditions, a hell is a place of suffering and punishment in the afterlife. Religions with a linear divine history often depict hells as endless. Religions with a cyclic history often depict a hell as an intermediary period between incarnations...
described in Dante Alighieri
Dante Alighieri
Durante degli Alighieri, mononymously referred to as Dante , was an Italian poet, prose writer, literary theorist, moral philosopher, and political thinker. He is best known for the monumental epic poem La commedia, later named La divina commedia ...
's The Divine Comedy
The Divine Comedy
The Divine Comedy is an epic poem written by Dante Alighieri between 1308 and his death in 1321. It is widely considered the preeminent work of Italian literature, and is seen as one of the greatest works of world literature...
, although the arrangement and names of the layers of Baator differ greatly from the circles of Hell described by Dante. The Outer Plane of Mount Celestia
Mount Celestia
In Dungeons & Dragons, the fantasy role-playing game, Mount Celestia or more fully, the Seven Mounting Heavens of Celestia, or even the Seven Heavens is a lawful good-aligned plane of existence...
is likewise loosely inspired by Dante's depiction of Heaven
Heaven
Heaven, the Heavens or Seven Heavens, is a common religious cosmological or metaphysical term for the physical or transcendent place from which heavenly beings originate, are enthroned or inhabit...
and Purgatory
Purgatory
Purgatory is the condition or process of purification or temporary punishment in which, it is believed, the souls of those who die in a state of grace are made ready for Heaven...
.