Fiends

Sinspawn

Fiends are wicked creatures originating in the lower planes, and within those nightmare realms, they are legion. Most appear alive and solid, but their bodies are an otherworldly fusion of flesh and spirit that seems "wrong" to mortal senses. In addition to significant violence, every fiend specializes in at least one form of physical or emotional predation. These are known as addictions.

Addictions

Fiends experience a rush of pleasure when indulging their addictions, and this goal defines them. The impulses of simple fiends are straightforward and violent. Sophisticated fiends dress up their addictions in elaborate schemes. Torture, domination, violation, theft, exploitation, and similar addictions are embodied by different types of fiends. The powers and skills of each fiend are tailored to help the creature satisfy its list of addictions.

Cultists

Fiends often create cults of mortals to serve them. Devils do this to bargain for souls to create more of their kind, while demons do it to spread chaos and destruction.

Devils

Lawful fiends are known as "devils", and most have a gargoyle-like appearance. Devils are brutal, organized, dogmatic, and clever. They strike deals and create contracts with other beings to amass power, wealth, slaves, and souls. Devils assume predictable forms with predictable powers and metamorphose into new shapes whenever promoted or demoted. They cannot corrupt other creatures with their mere presence, relying on guile and temptation. The mind of a devil is frighteningly well-ordered, and they take naturally to arcane magic and scientific disciplines like architecture or engineering. Within the lower planes, devils create vast tyrannical city-states. In the mortal world, they corrupt governments and support tyrants to promote the generation of lawful evil souls.

Demons

Chaotic fiends are known as "demons", and they assume a wide variety of forms. Demons are brutal, selfish, and impulsive. All of their addictions involve some form of consumption. They usually operate in gangs or hordes, held together by fear and self-interest. Prolonged exposure to their psychic presence can spread this demonic addiction to mortals. Demons are prone to mutation, and each has a unique set of cosmetic traits. Despite this, they can be loosely grouped into "categories" based on their shape and the addictions they embody. Within the lower planes, demons maraud or claim territory while viciously dominating and feuding against one another. In the mortal world, they engage in wanton destruction, defiling or devouring everything they touch.

Divs

Neutral fiends are known as "divs", and tend to resemble humanoids with gruesome animal traits. They also tend to operate in small groups or warbands, driven by malice and self-interest. Divs serve as untrustworthy mercenaries, honoring their agreements only so long as it suits them. They are more interested in personal gain than control or wanton destruction, and a div formed from a humanoid soul will retain some of the characteristics and memories it had in life.

Eternal Conflict

Demons refuse to accept the authority of devils, and devils find the chaos demons spread intolerable. Both hate each other, and they constantly engage in war for primacy. This conflict is not unified, but it is omnipresent. Devil warlord states are constantly under attack by hordes of demons or plotting to seize territory from demons. Divs act as mercenaries on the fringes of this conflict, or else shun it entirely to seek power and profit on other planes.

Primordialism

All fiends have sorcerous potential, but few have the intelligence or discipline to cultivate it. Intelligent fiends with addictions involving manipulation or psychological torment usually become sorcerers of modest ability. Demon lords and arch-devils are always mighty sorcerers. Divine magic is rare among fiends, but it does exist in individuals with a firm ethos of darkness and large numbers of cultists.

These forms recur across every alignment of fiend. Each appears in devilish, demonic, and div variants — distinguished by discipline, mutation, and the addictions they embody, but sharing the same essential silhouette.

Beyond the universal forms, certain shapes are unique to demons — born of mutation, gluttony, and the chaos of the abyssal realms. They have no devilish counterpart.