Bestiary: Hells

Products of Baalzebul's foul imagination, Ayperobos Swarms are akin to clouds of mosquitoes found in the swamps and mires of the Material Plane. They prowl the misty reaches of the plane, setting upon anyone or anything less powerful. They are especially fond of Lemures and Nupperibos, and they tear apart these wretches with relish.

An individual Ayperobos is quite powerless. It has little ability to do harm by itself, and on some layers, the small devils are considered delicacies by larger fiends - popular for their squeals and the sudden rush of blood when crushed between the teeth. The need to survive drove these creatures to form into colonies, as they found other fiends much less likely to hunt them when so grouped. Perhaps it is because of the ability of a swarm of such creatures to burrow in the flesh of a creature it engulfs, to take control of the victim, that frightens them into seeking tamer prey. An individual who cannot resist becomes a plaything for a legion of fiends.

A brachina, or pleasure devil, as they are more commonly known, is an insidious devil that specialises in corrupting the servants of the gods. Brachinas are specially selected Erinyes who are lifted from their station and endowed with even greater beauty and power. Charged with corrupting the virtuous, they travel to the Material Plane to work their evil, returning to the Nine Hells only when they have succeeded in their task, The punishment for failure is severe; thus, all pleasure devils work doubly hard to corrupt their victim.

When in Hell, pleasure devils, plot and connive like all the rest, grasping at the chance to rise in status to one day join the ranks of Pit Fiends. They are quick to betray others of their kind as it means moving ahead. Pit Fiends and archdevils use Brachinas as playthings, discarding them as quickly as they select them. Thus, these seducers are quick to take any assignment they can to avoid the brutal attentions of their masters.

Bueroza, or steel devils, as they are more commonly known, are soldiers. They exist to fight, to spend their lives destroying any threat that comes to the Nine Hells. When not engaged in combat, they return to their barracks in the bowels of infernal citadels, where they stand at attention in readiness for the coming war. They specialise in locating and slaying particularly troublesome spellcasters or demons with magical abilities. While they lack the orthons' raw, brute strength, they more than compensate with their keen intellect and talent for moving their enemies around the battlefield.

A steel devil stands 6 feet tall and weighs 240 pounds. Every gap or hole in its armour is sealed shut. When slain, a steel devil collapses into a pile of junk. The fine steel used to construct its armour transforms into warped, worthless lead.

Rumor in the underworld tells that the first Erinyes were angels who fell from their lefty heights because of some temptation or misdeed. Now the skies of the Nine Hells are littered with their descendants. Erinyes serve as scouts, servants and even concubines for powerful devils. Unlike other devils, erinyes appear attractive to humans, resembling very comely women or men. They're not above taking advantage of being mistaken for the celestials that legend says they once were.

Excruciarchs, or pain devils as they are commonly known, are diabolical torturers. They torture devils that have displeased their masters, soul shells and other captives with equanimity.

Pain devils relish a good fight. While they derive ghastly pleasure from torturing helpless beings, their deep streak of cruelty makes defeating enemies who have some chance of escape all the more compelling. A pain devil loves to leave an opponent lingering on the edge of defeat, luring him into a sense of false hope by appearing weak or giving him the illusion that victory might be at hand. To a pain devil, extinguishing the last spark of hope within a creature is the greatest feat of all.

After serving without any errors for 1001 years, a gelugon is eligible for transformation to pit fiend status. To do this, they must remain in the Pit of Flame for 1001 days.

These chain shrouded beings, also called kytons, are often mistaken for undead by those who liken them to the traditional shackle-rattling ghost. Kytons are human like devils, wrapped in chains instead of clothing.

The greatest kyton settlement is Jangling Hiter, the City of Chains in Minauros, Baator's swampy third hell. The city swings from infinitely long, slime-covered iron chains, wracked with rain and sleet. Jangling Hiter's filled with shadows and terror, kytons appearing out of nowhere to inflict suffering on those who venture within. Although the city's nominally under the control of the baatezu, even they are wary there.

Kytons are not true baatezu, and are not part of the baatezu hierarchy. Each of them is considered equal in station to every other kyton, though some of course are more "equal" than others.

The creature is humanoid in basic shape, standing 9 feet tall and weighing 800 pounds. A maelephant's hands appear oversized for its body and are tipped with claws. Its head is similar to a small-eared elephant's head, having a small mouth filled with tiny teeth, small rheumy eyes, and a long, coiling trunk tipped with a long, thin spike.

Originally created by powerful baatezu lords to serve as guardians, many maelephants escaped their servitude when their lords were deposed.

Malebranches utilize their great strength to the best of their ability. When fighting in numbers, they fly on silent wings, dropping from the sky to deliver gore attacks, followed by a series of ranseur attacks. They prefer to operate in teams, and are occasionally used as steeds by other devils.

At home anywhere in the Nine Hells, Malebranches are not choosy about where they loiter. Many congregate in Avernus, to fight the endless hordes of demons and the occasional celestial expeditionary force. From the moment of their creation (or elevation from another kind of baatezu), they are abused, mistreated, and tormented, all to make them tough and resistant to pain. Malebranches do not enter into the pacts that allow baatezu to summon others of their kind, or at least they never put other devils in their debt. They are expert fliers, and often snatch up smaller foes and hurl them to their deaths from on high.

Legend has it that these creatures originated from the tears shed by Mammon as he groveled at the feet of Asmodeus, begging forgiveness for his betrayal in the Reckoning. While this is most likely a rumour spread by Mephistopheles or Dispater, both of whom were also betrayed by Mammon in the Reckoning and now count him as a hated foe, these creatures do share their namesake's greedy and lustful nature, constantly seeking out flesh to devour. A being's first encounter with them is often also their last as Tears are extremely difficult to destroy by ordinary means...

Narzugons are rarely seen without their hallmark spiked plate armour, or masterwork construction. Behind their visors, they resemble pale, grey humans whose eyes betray an incomparable sadness - but to gaze at the narzugon's face is to court death itself.

Most narzugons ride nightmares when on missions for the baatezu. Some ride greater barghests, fiendish dire boars, or even dragons.

At first glance, a nightmare looks like a large, powerful horse with a jet-black coat. A closer look, however, reveals its true nature. Flames wreathe its steely hooves, trail from its flared nostrils, and smoulder in the depths of its dark eyes.

Nightmares are wild and restless creatures. They roam the world doing evil and haunting the dreams of all who dared cross them. Although they have no wings, they can fly with great speed. They seldom allow others to ride them, but particularly powerful and evil creatures have been known to make mounts of nightmares.

Orthons are foot soldiers in Hell's armies. Though specialised in killing demons, they are equally dangerous against mortal foes. They believe it an honour to die for the baatezu, and that their sacrifice furthers the glory of Hell. Their deadliness in combat ensures that other devils treat them with a wary respect.

Orthons live a miserable, pain-wracked existence. The armoured plates hammered into their body grind against bone, muscle, and sinew. The smallest movement causes them terrible anguish. Only in combat are their minds distracted enough to allow them to rise above their misery.

An osyluth looks bony and wretched, almost a husk of a humanoid form, topped with a fearsome skull whose sickly, dried skin is stretched tight. It has a tail like a scorpion's and exudes a foul odour of decay. Osyluths stand about 9 feet tall.

The greatest number of pit fiends dwell in Nessus, the ninth of Baator's hells, although some exist in higher layers as well. The greatest of pit fiends are the Dark Eight.

Physically, pit fiends are corpulent, scaly humanoids of great size and strength, with bat wings, horns, monstrous claws, and venom-dripping fangs, though they have the ability to take on more comely guises with their powerful innate illusions.

Rakshasas look like humanoid tiger garbed in the clothes of nobility. They love rich living, baldly using their intelligence and power to maintain a decadent lifestyle at the expense of others. Although their bodies are like those of humans, except for the luxurious coat of tiger's fur, their hands are backward (with the palm where the back of the hand is on a human). While this doesn't detract from the creature's manual dexterity, it makes them look very disturbing to those unfamiliar with them.

Most sahuagin feature green coloration, darker along the back and lighter on the belly. Many have dark stripes, bands, or spots, but these tend to fade with age. Their great, staring eyes are deep black. They have scaly skin with webbed fingers and toes, and their mouths are filled with sharp fangs. An adult male sahuagin stands roughly 6 feet tall and weighs about 200 pounds.

Sahuagin are the natural enemy of tritons. The two cannot coexist peacefully. Wars between them are prolonged, bloody affairs that sometimes interfere with shipping and maritime trade.

If a petitioner is slain on its own plane, its essence merges with that of the plane in general or its patron power, if any. If slain off the plane, though, the energies dissipate, never to be seen or heard from again. Most petitioners never leave their plane for this reason.

The planes shape their petitioners to fit the nature of that plane. For example, on the Beastlands, petitioners take the form of sentient animals. On Mount Celestia, they begin as lantern archons, in the Gray Waste they often become larvae, and so on and so forth.

Soul shells are a form of petitioner common in the iron hell of Dis. They are twisted by the baatezu into all manner of hideous, painful configurations, and granted the memories of their former lives in order to torment them even more.

Spinagons who excel at their tasks can be promoted as high as amnizu status, but this is rare. Most spinagons who perform satisfactorily are transformed into abishai.

Physically, spinagons are small, scaly humanoids with tiny horns, bat like wings, and a tail studded with sharp spines which they can launch at opponents. Their bodies are covered with spines as well.