“It is in his nature to assume the worst.” - Kel’Thuzad warning Arthas Menethil about the dreadlord; Tichondrius
'ello Argent Dawn
It is I, Nelox.
After recieving positive feedback about my previous guide towards the undead, I decided I’d make this a small series of threads discussing each of the cosmological forces of the Warcraft universe. I thought I’d go with a warlock’s best friend, their demon, or rather their demons to be exact.
Previous Guide: [Guide] Avatars of Death: An IC Study of the Undead
Strawpoll on what next: https://www.strawpoll.me/18132951
Section One:
- What are Demons?
Demons or sometimes spelled as daemons, dae’mons are undying beings whose souls are chained to the depths of the Twisting Nether. These creatures are fueled by their own chaotic green magic known as the Fel, a volatile energy that corrupts everything that it touches. They are most commonly seen amongst the armies of the Burning Legion and other warlock factions such as the Black Harvest and the Shadow Council. Not all demons are born however, some are made and or created. The infernals and abyssals are demonic constructs that are fueled by Fel, similiar to how undead flesh constructs are fueled by necromancy, and users of the corrupted magic can become demons themselves if they use it recklessly.
Some warlocks strive to become a demon in order for them to transform into essentially immortal beings, however a wise one would stay away from that goal as Fel has a way of corrupting the use indefinitely. Demons are attached to most magic throughout the universe and strive on destroying everything that is good. Because of this, most demons are more than happy to serve in the Fallen Titan, Sargeras’ Burning Legion.
Section 2:
- Biology and Nature
The Twisting Nether is a place outside the mortal barriers and is a timeless space of both chaos and order. Thus demons transcend all dimensions and realties. It is unknown exactly how many types of demons inhabit the universe. Over the millenniums, countless demons have been revealed to the realm of mortals either by invasion by the Burning Legion or by warlock practices. A demon’s soul will always return to the Twisting Nether upon death, where it will reconsitute itself into a new body with memories of its previous life(s) still intact. The only way a being can truly kill a demon is to kill them in the Twisting Nether, where the energies of the Nether leak or places entirely consumed by Fel energies. However there are some recordings of a demon’s power not returning fully after reconsitution. Demons serving under the Burning Legion have their souls tortured and sometimes repurposed entirely for their failture in their previous life.
It is in a demon’s nature to thrive on all the evil in the universe and their hunger for magic is what caused them to be attracted to Azeroth in the first place. This started the War of the Ancients which was caused by Azeroth’s Well of Eternity, a pool emitting large amounts of arcane magic that was worshipped by the native Kaldorei. Demons who have gone without a source of magic for too will begin to severely weaken and eventually die. Because of this, most of the demon populace were more than happy to join the Burning Legion as a constant supply of magic and resource was too hard of an opportunity to pass up.
Fel magic, the energy that demons are made up from is corruptive by its very design and thus, some magic users tend to stay away from its volatile nature and stick to more reliable source of magic. Extensive use can lead to a mortal being in becoming a demon themselves and thus an easy ticket to immortality, though not one many are willing to risk their minds to. However not all demons are bad, infact there are plenty of demons who willingly use their demonic powers to serve the best of others. Lothraxion, a nathrezim also known by most as dreadlords is a demon who possesses the power of the Light, and used such power as a general in the Grand Army of the Light against the Burning Legion. Rarely any demon however chooses to serve out of goodness rather than bad, after all it is in their nature.
There are little demons are dare to defy the Legion such as Lothraxion and those that do are heavily punished, either by eternal torment, submission back into their ranks, or even death. However the Legion tends not to let their imprisoned demons die when instead they can have further usage for them in the coming future.
Section Three:
- Creatures and Summary
As I mentioned at the start, there are untold amounts of species of demons and thus I shall be listing the most known and prominent of these crude beings into a list and summarizing them in a short description.
Ered’ruin
Ered’ruin, also known as Doomguards and Doomlords are demons that onced served the titan Pantheon as a police force for the use of arcane magic in the Great Dark Beyond. However when Sargeras destroyed the Pantheon, many of them joined his army and served as commanders, footsoldiers and shocktroopers for his infinite armies. They are a common sight on the battlefield and their ability to fly makes them an intimidating opponent.
Eredar / Man’ari
The Eredar once one of the most accomplished races across the cosmos were gifted in the ways of magic and were one of the most advanced societies across the universe. However when their race was confronted by Sargeras to join his Legion, all but one of their leaders, Velen and his followers gladly joined their ranks. The Eredar now transformed by the Fel were dubbed Man’ari by the Velen’s followers who now went by the Draenei. One of the more intelligent races, they serve the Legion mostly as generals, soldiers and agents for milleniums. They are both feared and respected within and outside of the Dark Titan’s army.
Mo’arg
One of the more diverse species of demons, the Mo’arg serve the Legion as Gan’arg for workers, Fel lords as commanders and Felguards as the Legion’s main infantry units. They are one the most common of demons to be seen within their ranks and on the battlefield. Brutal and powerful, they are a force to be reckoned with when in groups or squadrons.
Nathrezim
The Nathrezim, known by most as dreadlords are one of the most cunning, manipulative races of the Twisting Nether. In my opinion, they are the most influential of demons within the demonic armies as they have carved and turned many societies and worlds against eachother. Do not be fooled by their size, they are very much capable of acting as spies and manipulators just as much as their combat prowess. Serving as advisors, commanders and supervisors within the Legion.
Infernals & Abyssals
Infernals are demonic constructs created by more intelligent demonic beings that fueled by Fel magic. They are walking tanks and are known to be favorable by the Nathrezim and warlock on the battlefield. Though they live short lives, they intend to level everything within their path before their Fel core deplete and fall lifeless as pebbles into the ground. Abyssals are similiar but they are instead made from a more molten rock instead of ones originated from Fel fire.
Imps
By far the weakest of the demons, imps are small, trickster demons born from the stomachs of Imp Mothers. They serve as novice summons for warlocks and what they lack in strength, they make up for in numbers. Fel imps are known to have the ability to fly and prove to be more of an annoyance rather than a threat to most mortals.
Felhounds and Felstalkers
Felhounds are demons known to most magic users as counters to their magic usage, and thus serve as excellent pets for warlocks against any kind of magic user. Using their projection beams to disable being’s magical influence and thus their power for a short amount of time. Felstalkers are mainly used by the Mo’arg and serve as “guard dogs” and hunting demons to their demonic masters. They are difficult to counter when in numbers, but they shouldn’t prove to much of a challenge to most mortals.