Overlord (Position)

VritraA position of supreme authority over Monsters created by the gods in antiquity, whatever Monster, Divinity, or Man holds the position is capable of exerting direct influence over the minds, bodies, and Mana of every Monster on Gaea. Exactly how much influence varies greatly depending on the power and skill of the individual, and also on the degree to which the Monsters being influenced resist. The position was created as a means of unifying the various other "Lord," "King," and "Queen," "Prince," "Knight," and "Arch" Authorities that had been added to the hierarchy of Monsters and the structure of the Everwar.

The position of Overlord was traditionally the most coveted of all within Monster society, available only to the most ruthless and powerful. The gods created a number of barriers to reaching the position that would normally only be surmountable through divine assistance (either overtly or through the manipulation of fate) and significant time. These included gathering all of the Regalia of the Overlord, successfully claiming the Throne of the Abyss, and forming at least one Covenant with an Abyssal Archomental. This, while also contending with every other powerful Monster seeking the Authority. The reason for these barriers lay in the power of the position; a Monster so armed with it could exploit the natural instincts of Monsters on the whole to turn them into a coherent military force and wield them against the Races of Man, or even the Divinities themselves. The former was the intention behind the Authority itself. It was to be a doomsday button, a tool to reset the whole of Man's civilization in instances in which they had strayed too far from the path the gods intended or grew too powerful or destructive in the eyes of the Divines.

The position of the Overlord is effectively a scaled-up version of the more common Demon Lord position. It wields tremendous control over the environmental conditions and geography of the Abyss and can alter the minds, bodies, and Mana of receptive Monsters by injecting some of the Overlord's own Mana into them. Most Monsters instinctively submit to this influence, but there are those, especially among those intelligent and strong enough to have earned an Authority of their own, who are capable of resisting and even sheltering other Monsters under their own Authority from that of the Overlord. This can result in inconsistencies across Gaea and the Abyss in terms of the Overlord's influence and how it manifests, especially in areas far removed from contiguous, compliant Domains.

## Known Overlords

* **Lilith:** The current Overlord, Lilith is a former Human who was transformed into a type of Succubus known as an Alu-Demon. A weak Monster, she was nonetheless brought to power due to the machinations of the previous Overlord's surviving Generals, and has since evolved into a far more powerful type of Monster. She holds one of the longest *known* reigns as Overlord, currently having served in the position for over five centuries.
* **Vritra:** The previous Overlord, Vritra was a famed general and warrior known for his remarkable invincibility. An Asura with draconic, serpentine features, he was both cunning and powerful, but also tremendously prideful, and was ultimately slain when he refused the aid of his Generals in battle against a Hero and his allies. Though the result was mutual death, he was ultimately defeated.
* **Bael**
* **Agares**
* **Vassago**
* **Samigana**
* **Marbas**
* **Valefor**
* **Amon**
* **Barbatos**
* **Paimon**
* **Buer**
* **Gusion**
* **Sitri**
* **Beleth**
* **Leraje:** A mutant Arrow Demon, Leraje was an Overlord known more for the destruction she wrought on trade and commerce throughout the world rather than common conquest. Monsters under her reign were known for raiding and pillaging more than wanton slaughter, focusing on the theft or destruction of property and the crippling of trade routes and shipping lanes. The modern term for Monster nests, "Dungeon," derives from early in her rise to power.
* **Eligos**
* **Zepar**
* **Botis**
* **Bathin**
* **Sallos**
* **Purson**
* **Morax**
* **Ipos**
* **Aim**
* **Naberius**
* **Glasya-Labolas**
* **Circe**
* **Bune**
* **Ronove**
* **Berith**
* **Astaroth**
* **Forneus**
* **Foras**
* **Asmodeus**
* **Gaap**
* **Furfur**
* **Marchosias**
* **Stolas:** An avian Overlord thought to have been the ancestor of, or a member of, the Witchowl species, Stolas was a relatively benign Overlord who ruled with a subtle hand and knowledge and wisdom gleaned through his mastery of divinatory magic. His reign was marked by relative peace between Man and Monster, wherein Monsters were far more likely to destroy human works or powerful figures with surgical precision rather than wantonly attack the general population.
* **Phenex**
* **Halphas**
* **Malphas**
* **Raum**
* **Focalor**
* **Vepar**
* **Sabnock**
* **Shax**
* **Vine**
* **Bifrons**
* **Vual**
* **Haagenti**
* **Azi Dahaka:** A fearsome, half-fiend dragon wreathed in noxious hellfire, Dahaka was a terrible primordial worshipper of the Demon God Angra Mainyu devoted to spreading misery and suffering among man in his name. Dahaka is said to be an immortal being itself; though it was slain in antiquity by a Hero, it is said that it reincarnates or revives periodically.
* **Crocell**
* **Furcas**
* **Balam**
* **Alloces**
* **Caim**
* **Murmur**
* **Orobas**
* **Orthos:** Widely believed by Binders and scholars to be the Overlord commonly known as the Unnamed One, Orthos is ultimately a mystery. Nothing is known of its rule for certain, only that it exists and can be conjured as other Vestiges.
* **Gremory:** A High Succubus, daughter and student of the Succubus Queen Eisheth-Zenunim, Gremory rose to the status of Overlord through guile, cunning, ruthlessness, and mastery of the dark arts of Necrocarnum taught to her by her mother. During her reign, Monsters became much as they are under the current Overlord, but were far more malignant, domineering, and lethal; Gremory drew power from the torment, destruction, and consumption of souls, and imparted elements of this capability and tendency onto the Monsters who served her. The seductive and cruel nature of Monsters under her reign saw the near total collapse of human civilization, with many cultures being completely exterminated before she was eventually slain. While historical records of her rule are few, stories of the horrors Monsters performed and the damage they inflicted upon mankind during this period continue to color the manner in which modern Monsters are perceived even thousands of years after her demise.
* **Ose**
* **Amy**
* **Orias**
* **Vapula**
* **Zagan**
* **Valac**
* **Andras**
* **Flauros**
* **Andrealphus**
* **Kimaris**
* **Amdusias**
* **Decarabia**
* **Seere**
* **Dantalion**
* **Andromalius**
* **Pandora:** The first Demon Lord, and widely thought of as the first Overlord, Pandora is known for having held the longest reign of any of her kind, lasting from the end of the First Age, through the entirety of the Second, and only ending during the Third. She held the status of Overlord for *eons* compared to her successors, and some believe is a true immortal who cannot actually be killed by any means, claiming that she still exists in a sealed demiplane.