Manual of the Planes

CHAPTER 7:THE OUTERPLANES116Particularly vile petitioners become lemures. Only themost evil of mortals can achieve status as lemures, and theyusually end up here regardless of the deity they worshipedin life. Lemures, of course, are despised by all other devils,and they serve the most base duties in any devilish groupthey are part of. In any initial Blood War confrontation, thelemures are the shock troops that draw the enemy’s fire.Lemures appear as revolting blobs of molten flesh,with vaguely humanoid torsos and heads. Hints of thepetitioner’s former mortal features are visible when theyare not too twisted by anguish. Lemures are mindless,though they are sensitive to telepathic messages fromother devils and obey their mental commands, doing thebidding of the strongest devil in the closest proximity.Lemures have the following special petitioner qualities:Additional Immunities: Fire, poison.Resistances: Cold 20, acid 20.Other Special Qualities: Mindless, damage reduction5/silver, spell resistance 5, no planar commitment.Mindless (Ex): Lemures are immune to all mindinfluencingeffects, and unless commanded, act as iffeebleminded.No Planar Commitment (Ex): Unlike most other petitioners,lemures can leave their home plane.MOVEMENT AND COMBATMovement in the Nine Hells is much like movement onthe Material Plane. Even moving between layers is fairlystraightforward.The connecting points between two layers are alwaysfound at the lowest point of the higher layer and at thehighest point on the next layer down. If there is a mountain,hellish fortress spire, or other high structure alongthe ledge on the lower layer, then the traveler can climbdown. Otherwise, simply stepping off the lowest, ledgelikeprojection on the upper layer sends a traveler plummetinginto the lower layer. The distance fallen is subjective,but seems to be at least a half-mile. Creatureswithout some way to slow their fall take 20d6 points ofdamage when they impact the lower layer.FEATURES OF THE NINE HELLSThe layers of Baator are nine, and each layer has its ownruler. All other rulers answer to the lowest, Asmodeus,in the Pit. Each of the nine layers has its own uniqueenvironment, but they’re all inhospitable and possiblyoutright deadly. Travelers to the Nine Hells had bestknow how to get back out, lest they are waylaid by a devilishpress gang bound for the Blood War. But even asmall chance of survival in battle would be preferable toenslavement in the Nine Hells for eternity.The politics of the Nine Hells have rocked back and forthover the millennia, often accomplished by artful rhetoric orsubtle poison, but sometimes accomplished by outrightconflict involving armies of devils warring against eachother. The city of Dis on the second layer has withstoodsiege more than once at the hands of aggressive devils.However, in all the time that Asmodeus has ruled frombelow, no revolt has ever succeeded in replacing the lordof the ninth layer with a different devil, despite a ploydesigned by Asmodeus that once allowed his rivals tothink he had been dethroned.Though the Nine Hells is governed by devils, some sagesbelieve that the devils commandeered the Nine Hells froma far older, stranger race now simply called ancient baatorians.It’s possible that remnants of this mysterious race stillinhabit isolated portions of the Nine Hells.AvernusThe first layer of Baator is a wasteland of charred, rubblestrewnplains, with mountains and talus-sided foothillsbreaking up the monotony. Legions of mail-clad devils areon perpetual watch here, always assembling for some newcross-planar Blood War sortie. Blood-red light suffuses theair, and fiery balls flit randomly across the sky, sometimesdetonating to terrible effect. Travelers not protected byartificial structures or caves are 10% likely per day to findthemselves at ground center of a fireball dealing 6d6 pointsof fire damage (as if cast by a 6th-level spellcaster).Runnels of blood flow in streams across Avernus,finally joining the River Styx. The origin of the blood isunknown, though the devils say it is likely the blood ofall Avernus’s past victims.Bronze Citadel: What may have once been a citadelconstructed of bronze is now a brutish, unimaginativecity covering dozens of square miles and featuring twelveconcentric ring walls, each bristling with war machines.The city is filled with petitioners, both lemures and soulshells, and hundreds of thousands of lesser devils of alltypes bound for the Blood War.Because Avernus is the likeliest beachhead for anymassed demonic attack, fortifications are always beingpqqqqrsTHE DARK EIGHTand Zimmimar. These eight rule the devils beneath them,The Dark Eight are the generals of the Blood War; these eight meeting in the fortress of Malsheem in Nessus, the ninthpit fiends hold council every sixty-six days. The Dark Eight hold layer. In addition to planning the next Blood War offensive,immense power, but they still answer to the Lords of the Nine, they also have a hand in determining which devils getwho each control a layer of the Nine Hells, and ultimately they promoted.answer to Asmodeus.On the rare occasions when they are not leading theirThe pit fiends that make up the Dark Eight are called armies, they reside in Nessus. When away on some hellishBaalzephon, Corin, Dagos, Furcas, Pearza, Zapan, Zaebos, errand, they often appear in malefic human guise.pqqqqrs