Devil Species in The Fantasy Nexus | World Anvil

Devil

Devils are the highest and most powerful being in Hell, on par with angels, and they make up the majority of Hell's population. They often have command of small swarms of imps, as well as any other lesser demons that are around such as arch imps, lilim, or luciem. It is quite rare to actually see a devil by itself: they usually send their imps or subordinates out to do their dirty work.

Basic Information

Biological Traits

When outside of Hell, devils cannot truly be killed. When dealt a fatal wound, they will involuntarily transform into a wisp of black smoke, and be sent back to a regeneration chamber in Hell. The regeneration can take anywhere from two days to three weeks. However, should a devil be mortally wounded while inside of Hell, they are not sent anywhere. Their body must be taken to a regeneration chamber manually. Should they die while inside of Hell, they will stay that way, permanently. Devils have no afterlife, and as such, their soul is simply annihilated upon true death.

Genetics and Reproduction

Devils are a sterile species, due to their divine origins. Imps, their weakest and starting form, are born into existence from pure dark energy. From there, they evolve several times until they reach full devil status.

Growth Rate & Stages

All devils start from a humble imp. Using caches of dark energy located somewhere in Hell, they can evolve themselves, progresssing to arch imps, which then progress to lilim/luciem. From there, they become true devils, and are divided into three species.
  • Alices are devils that, at first glance, seem to have regressed to an earlier point of evolution. They take the form of small girls, usually dressed up in rags and filthy, out on the street. However, this is not the case. Only lilim, not luciem, can turn into this devil, thus one will never see a male alice. Alices feed on parental protection and love. Those who take alices in are none the wiser to being fed upon, and when the alice eventually disappears, fully satiated, they believe the child was a gift from Heaven, meant to test their parenting skills, should they ever have children. Naturally, this is not the case.
  • Nox are devils that look startlingly different than their brethren. Nox' skin is a dark blue, their eyes are bright blue, their hair is silver, and they often have white freckles on the face, as well as other various parts of the body. They feed on dreams, as well as a specific type of energy, only emitted when a victim is asleep.
  • Succubi and incubi are among the most common devils. They feed from sexual energy, and their sole purpose is to have sex or otherwise be enticing or flirting with mortals. They make up roughly half of Hell's population.
  There is another type of devil, though rare. Oni are born spontaneously, when there is an excessive amount of dark energy gathered somewhere on the lower levels of Hell. Oni have a deep love for both fighting and alcohol, often at the same time. They are the strongest devil that exists below the rank of archdevil. No other devil can match them in terms of strength.  

Evolution


Like angels, devils have two forms which can further their power.   The first transformation is from devil to Archdevil. It is said that the original Seven Sins were able to become Archdevils. In order to become an Archdevil, a devil must perform a significant or extreme act of evil. Erebos will then appear in person and pour dark magic energy into the devil's body. When the transformation is complete, the newly formed Archdevil will have a light reddish skin tone, as well as horns coming from the tips of their wings. Their magical power and physical attributes, such as strength and speed, will be vastly enhanced from that of a typical devil.   The final transformation a devil can undergo is the transition from Archdevil to a Devil God. In recorded history, no devil has ever reached this level. Devil Gods are said to be the most powerful and villainous of the devils, working directly with Erebos to cause chaos and destruction. Their power is second only to that of the gods themselves. In order to become a Devil God, both Hell and Erebos must consider the Archdevil a "true agent of darkness". Once this happens, Erebos will take the chosen Archdevil into his personal pocket dimension, a world completely overflowing with the purest dark magic energy.   The Archdevil will be left there for a year, in order to maximize their exposure to the darkness. Once a year has passed, the newly formed Devil God will be able to leave Erebos's dark dimension by themselves. Their skin tone will have become a blackish-red, a cloak/cape made of darkness will attach itself to them, and their sclera will have turned black. Additionally, they will gain a completely orange, slitted, third eye in the center of their foreheads, which affords them additional abilities and powers. They will emerge more powerful than any other mortal creature in the universe.   But this power does not come without a cost. Where as most normal devils and Archdevils are content with causing minor mayhem and feeding from mortals, Devil Gods lose their sense of self, becoming true agents of Erebos. They no longer require emotions or sexual desire to feed, instead feeding from darkness itself. They long for total destruction, war, bloodshed and tragedy. They will not stop until the world has been subjugated by darkness completely. They follow Erebos's words religiously, and will never question orders. Should Erebos ever choose to make Devil Gods en masse, it would surely be the apocalypse.

Ecology and Habitats

Hell

Dietary Needs and Habits

Devils do not require material food, but like angels, they often eat for the taste. They can eat anything but prefer meat. Given their extensive power, finding food isn't an issue. Their real food source depends on the devil. For most generic devils, they feed on an emotion or feeling of some kind. For succubi and incubi, the food source is sexual energy. For nox, it's dreams and sleep energy. For alices, it's parental affection.

Additional Information

Uses, Products & Exploitation

Devil wings, tongues, and tails are used in potions and elixirs. Succubus and incubus tails are also served as a dish, typically fried or salted, and are apparently delicious.

Facial characteristics

Devils's eyes have slits instead of pupils, like a snake.

Geographic Origin and Distribution

Hell

Average Intelligence

Human or higher

Perception and Sensory Capabilities


As Devils


  • Natural Weaponry
    • Fingernail Claws: Devils can rapidly grow and shrink their fingernails at will, using them as claws. For this reason, devils prefer to keep their nails sharpened into points, rather than filing them down.
    • Powerful Bite: Included in their demonic strength is an incredible bite force, capable of cleanly severing through limbs and even reinforced steel. Naturally, devils' teeth are incredibly durable to compensate. They typically only use this as a desperate measure, however.
  • Supernatural Condition: Devils have a supernatural condition, which gives them the following natural boosts:
    • Supernatural Perception/Detection: Devils can sense both life force and magic, regardless of cloaking, illusion, or any other means that would render the user invisible or untraceable. There is no known way to deceive a devil.
    • Supernatural Reflexes: Devils have reflexes beyond mortals, and can perceive most normal attacks coming.
    • Supernatural Regeneration: Devils' natural regeneration of injuries and wounds is much faster than any mortals, allowing them to heal even near-mortal wounds within minutes.
    • Supernatural Senses: Devils have extremely heightened senses. This includes better sight, better sense of hearing, taste, smell, and touch.
    • Supernatural Speed, Type II: Devils can move and attack much faster than most races including elves.
    • Supernatural Stamina: Devils' stamina is greatly enhanced beyond any that of any mortal.
    • Supernatural Strength, Type III: Devils are far stronger than any mortal race, including elves.
  • Supernatural Concealment: Devils can not only turn completely invisible, but can also mask their life force, presence, and magical signature, allowing them to go completely undetected by most creatures and races. The only ones who can detect them in this state are angels and the gods.
  • Transcendent Magic: Their magical abilities and power are on the level of a minor god.
  • Umbramancy: All devils are inherently and primarily umbramancers, regardless of what other magic they decide to master.
 

As Archdevils


  • Archdevil Condition: Archdevils' condition is enhanced even further than their previous devil form, allowing them:
    • Archdevil Perception/Detection: Archdevils can extensively sense life force and magic, and can only be deceived by the gods and archangels. No other forms of cloaking or illusion will fool them.
    • Archdevil Reflexes:To the untrained eye, archdevils may appear to have precognition. However, this is simply the extent of their reflexes. As soon as an attack begins, they can see it coming. Seraphim, however, are too fast for archdevils to perceive.
    • Archdevil Regeneration: Archdevils' regeneration is enhanced greatly from their previous form,allowing them to regenerate even near-mortal wounds within a matter of seconds.
    • Archdevil Senses: Archdevils' five senses are enhanced even further than their previous devil form, letting them taste, see, hear, touch, and smell more acutely.
    • Archdevil Speed, Type II: Archdevils' speed is greatly enhanced from their previous form, allowing them to move faster than any mortal eye can perceive.
    • Archdevil Stamina: Archdevils' stamina is greatly enhanced from their previous form, allowing them to keep fighting/performing tasks without tiring, for extended periods of time.
    • Archdevil Strength, Type III: Archdevils' strength is enhanced far beyond their previous form, allowingthem to split whole mountain ranges with relative ease, and crush the earth below them as if it was water.
  • Archdevil Magic: At this point, conventional measures of magical power begin to break down, but know that the only ones more powerful than Archdevils are the gods, Devil Gods, and Seraphim.
  • Curse Manipulation: Archdevils can inflict curses on someone, something, themselves, oreven other devils. These curses become greatly enhanced when the archdevil becomes a Devil God. They also expire after a set amount of time, and can be cancelled by the archdevil at any time. Such curses include:
    • Cursed Body: Causes the target to heal slower, including clotting of blood. Condition Curses: Archdevils can inflict curses which decrease the target's physical attributes, such as strength, speed, stamina, reflexes, perception, and senses, as well as causing deafness, blindness, paralysis, sleep, poisoning, petrification, and loss of voice.
    • Demonic Infusion: Used primarily on weapons, shields and armor, it curses said objects with susceptibility to damage. Additionally, shields and armor are weakened from attacks from devils and other creatures of darkness, whileit causes weapons to deal less damage to the same.
    • Emotional Curses: Archdevils can inflict curses which force an emotional state on someone, such as sadness, depression, lust, anger, fear, and hatred.
    • Unluckiness
    • Weakness: A certain curse that goes hand in hand with unluckiness, which causes the target to be more susceptible to damage and wounds. It is greatly enhanced and more devastating when the archdevil has become a Devil God.
  • Damage Reduction/Supernatural Defense: An archdevil's body has become more durable than their previous devil's body, making it harder to injure them in any way.
 

As Devil Gods


As Devil Gods, their curses are greatly enhanced. Devil Gods also gain the following powers:
  • Divine Gift: Since Devil Gods are in direct contact with Erebos, they can ask for further power, protection and blessings from the god by praying. They would typically do this before a battle, to ensure their victory.
  • Divine Protection: Angelic and light attacks used on Devil Gods are greatly dampened, and they are also provided a certain layer of passive protection from Erebos at all times, even without blessings or their Divine Gift.
  • Divine Damage Reduction: A Devil God's body has become even more durable than their previous archdevil form, making injuring them difficult. On this level, the only beings that could probably damage them are the gods and Seraphim.
  • Divine Corruption: Devil Gods have the ability to corrupt and curse almost anything they set their mind to, creating flaws, weaknesses, and imperfections. This includes metal, gems, people, animals, plants, and a whole host of other things...including low-level angels. Should they decide it, they could completely corrupt a normal angel, turning them over to the side of darkness. This would prove disastrous for Evelyn, as she would gradually lose her angels to the darkness over time. They cannot, however, corrupt archangels or Seraphim. Additionally, as devil gods, they are afforded additional powers and abilities thanks to the third eye occupying their foreheads. These powers are:
    • Limited Future Sight: Upon the opening of the third eye, devils gain limited sight into the future. The starting range for this is between one second and five minutes. However, with proper training, they can increase this future sight to up to twenty to fifty years. This ability cannot be used on Seraphim, as they are immune to prediction.
    • Telekinetic powers: Devil gods acquire telekinetic ability, and all the sub-abilities and attacks that come along with that.
      • Psionic Explosion: A notable telekinetic power of devil gods is the ability to produce a beam of compressed telekinetic energy from their third eye, which causes whatever it hits to explode.
  • Perfected Demonic Condition: Devil Gods' condition is as close to the gods as possible, having been perfected. It gives them:
    • Perfected Demonic Perception/Detection: Devil Gods' perception has been perfected. They can now perceive almostevery presence, including gods, concealed or no. They cannot, however, perceive the presence of the Goddess of Light or Seraphim.
    • Perfected Demonic Reflexes: Devil Gods' reflexes have been perfected. Only the gods and Seraphim can overpower them now.
    • Perfected Demonic Senses: Devil Gods' five senses have been perfected. Nothing evades their detection.
    • Perfected Demonic Speed, Type III: Devil Gods' speed has been perfected. The only ones who outmatch them now are the gods and Seraphim.
    • Perfected Demonic Stamina: Devil Gods' stamina has been perfected. They can now fight or perform tasks without tiring for an unknown/indefinite amount of time.
    • Perfected Demonic Strength, Type IV: Devil Gods' strength has been perfected. There is barely an upper limit to the feats of strength they can perform.
    • Perfected Demonic Magic: The only ones more powerful than the Devil Gods now are the gods.

Civilization and Culture

Average Technological Level

Devils are surprisingly technologically advanced. Not to the level of angels, but they have electricity, mobile phones and computers, and typical household appliances.

Major Language Groups and Dialects

Hellish

Common Dress Code

There isn't a dress code, but there are no limits to what a devil is allowed to wear either. They could be fully clothed, half-clothed, or almost naked. Generally, if a devil is running around completely devoid of clothing, another will stop or detain them.

Common Customs, Traditions and Rituals

For most devils, it's a coming of age when they feed from their first victim. The only other custom is the Cerberus ceremony.

Common Taboos

Associating with an angel is strictly forbidden.

History

When the gods were first created by Eris, and the world was created by those gods, Evelyn and Erebos volunteered to be the first to add new life to the world they'd created. Evelyn created the angels, similar to herself in image. Incorruptible, representing everything that was good. Erebos created devils to mirror her, creatures of flesh and impulse. The original hope for these two races was that they would balance each other out, and teach each other their own individual ways, while taking away important lessons from each other in the process.   This was not what happened. Each had their own moral code to follow, and the angels were the first to voice their concerns. They believed that the way devils sustained themselves was repulsive. Feeding on others' emotions or sexual energy for their own personal gain? They were nothing more than leeches, dragging the angels down with them, and having no respect for themselves. The devils retorted just as scathingly. It was impossible for them to control their dietary needs, and that aside, how were they supposed to rise to meet the angels' unreasonable standards? They had set the bar for morality too high - there was no way the creatures of darkness could keep up.   The conflict began to escalate further and further. In due time, Evelyn and Erebos could not agree on which race was in the right, and grew resentful of each other. Just when it seemed that things couldn't get any worse, both gods descended to the world themselves, directly leading and commanding their own race. The war ravaged the world, each side as powerful as the other. Angel and devil lives were both lost in the thousands in the War of Light and Dark.   The other gods were concerned for the well-being of their brother and sister, but were uneasy about their own, should they step in. Therefore, they observed and did nothing. Finally, Eris descended and brought a swift end to the conflict, showing no mercy or forgiveness to those that got in his way. Once all was said and done, he demanded that both angels and devils be sent to their own realm, deeming them too powerful to keep balance in the mortal world. Evelyn and her angels refused to share a realm with Erebos and his devils, demons, and imps. They instead separated.   Evelyn created Heaven, to protect her angels' purity and prevent them from succumbing to darkness and sin, and Erebos created Hell, in order to keep his devils', demons' and imps' integrity, to defy the angels' law of right and wrong.   After the War of Darkness and Light, the devil population was nearing extinction. Erebos was fearful for devils' continued survival, so he created the evolutionary chain of devils, starting from the humble imp, in order to allow the species to grow once more. This was a double edged sword: the continued survival of devils was assured, but since imps were born from dark energy and not naturally, devils became a sterile species. They could not produce any genetic children of their own. In the first place, they hadn't been given that ability; neither Evelyn nor Erebos believed either of their people would die. At the time, they both panicked, and later, when all was said and done, neither were willing to change the genetic make up of their species. The evolutionary chain of devils has continued to this day, albeit with more chances for evolution.   Additionally, "parents" and "family" in Hell are adoptive. Typically, the family they served under as an imp will be the one that adopts them.

Common Myths and Legends

It's been said that a devil can be anywhere, any time, and they're always watching, just out of view. This probably comes from the fact that devils can literally swim through the shadows. There have also been rumors that devils have gotten married to humans, and are secretly living among them.

Interspecies Relations and Assumptions

Devils have no boundaries with any species besides angels. Succubi and incubi will try to seduce and even have intercourse with them as soon as possible, while nox will try to put other races to sleep on the spot. This is partially due to needing to feed.
Scientific Name
Homo sapiens infernum
Lifespan
N/A
Conservation Status
Least Concern
Average Height
5-6 feet (152-183cm)
Average Weight
140-170lbs (63.5-77 kg)