The Nine Hells

The Nine Hells of Baa tor inflame the imaginations of
travelers, the greed of treasure seekers, and the battle
fury of all moral creatures. It is the ultimate plane of
law and evil and the epitome of premeditated cruelty.
The devils of the Nine Hells are bound to obey the laws
of their superiors, but they rebel within their individual
castes. Most undertake any plot, no matter how foul,
to advance themselves. At the very top of the hierarchy
is Asmodeus, who has yet to be bested. If he were to
be vanquished, the victor would rule the plane in turn.
Such is the law of the Nine Hells.

# THE NINE LAYERS

The Nine Hells has nine layers. The first eight are
each ruled by archdevils that answer to Asmodeus,
the Archduke of Nessus, the ninth layer. To reach the
deepest layer of the Nine Hells, one must descend
through all eight of the layers above it, in order. The
most expeditious means of doing so is the River Styx,
which plunges ever deeper as it flows from one layer
to the next. Only the most courageous adventurers can
withstand the torment and horror of that journey.

## Avernus

No planar portals connect directly to the
lower layers of the Nine Hells, by Asmodeus's orders.
As such, the first layer of Avernus is the arrival point
for visitors to the plane. Avernus is a rocky wasteland
with rivers of blood and clouds of biting flies. Fiery
comets occasionally fall from the darkened sky and
leave fuming impact craters behind. Empty battlefields
are littered with weapons and bones, showing where the
legions of the Nine Hells met enemies on their native
soil and prevailed.
The archduchess Zariel rules Avernus, supplanting
her rival, Bel, who has fallen out of Asmodeus's favor
and is forced to serve as Zariel's advisor. Tiamat, the
Queen of Evil Dragons, is a prisoner on this layer,
ruling her own domain but confined to the Nine Hells
by Asmodeus in accordance with some ancient contract
(the terms of which are known only to Tiamat and the
Lords of the Nine).
Zariel's seat of power is a soaring basalt citadel
festooned with the partially incinerated corpses of
guests who failed to earn the archduchess's favor. Zariel
appears as an angel whose once-beautiful skin and
wings have been ruined by fire. Her eyes burn with a
furious white light that can cause creatures looking
upon her to burst into flame.

## Dis

Dis, the second layer of the Nine Hells, is a
labyrinth of canyons wedged between sheer mountains
rich with iron ore. Iron roads span and wend through
the canyons, watched over by the garrisons of iron
fortresses perched atop jagged pinnacles.
The second layer takes its name from its current lord.
Dispater. A manipulator and deceiver, the archduke is
devilishly handsome, bearing only small horns, a tail,
and a cloven left hoof to distinguish him from a human.
His crimson throne stands in the heart of the Iron City
of Dis, a hideous metropolis that is the largest in the
Nine Hells. Planar travelers come here to conspire with
devils and to close deals with night hags, rakshasas,
incubi, succubi, and other fiends. Dispater collects a
piece of every deal through special provisions that are
added to contracts signed on his layer of the Nine Hells.
Dispater is one of Asmodeus's most loyal and
resourceful vassals, and few beings in the multiverse
can outwit him. He is more obsessed than most devils
with striking deals with mortals in exchange for their
souls, and his emissaries work tirelessly to foster evil
schemes in the Material Plane.

## Minauros

The third layer of the Nine Hells is a
stench-ridden bog. Acidic rain spills from the layer's
brown skies, thick layers of scum cover its putrid
surface, and yawning pits lie in wait beneath the murk to
engulf careless wanderers. Cyclopean cities of ornately
carved stone rise up from the bog, including the great
city of Minauros for which the layer is named.
The slimy walls of the city rise hundreds of feet into
the air, protecting the flooded halls of Mammon. The
Archduke of Minauros resembles a massive serpent
with the upper torso and head of a hairless, horned
humanoid. Mammon's greed is legendary, and he is
one of the few arch devils who will trade favors for gold
instead of souls. His lair is piled high with treasures
left behind by those who tried-and failed-to best him
in a deal.

## Phlegethos

Phlegethos, the fourth layer, is a
fiery landscape whose seas of molten magma brew
hurricanes of hot wind, choking smoke, and pyroclastic
ash. Within the fire-filled caldera of Phlegethos's largest
volcano rises Abriymoch, a fortress city cast of obsidian
and dark glass. With rivers of molten lava pouring
down its outer walls, the city resembles the sculpted
centerpiece of a gigantic, hellish fountain.
Abriymoch is the seat of power for the two archdevils
who rule Phlegethos in tandem: Archduke Belial and
Archduchess Fierna, Belial's daughter. Belial is a
handsome, powerfully built devil who exudes civility,
even as his words carry an undercurrent of threat. His
daughter is a statuesque devil whose beauty encases the
blackest heart in the ine Hells. The alliance of Belial
and Fierna is unbreakable, for both are aware that their
mutual survival hinges on it.

## Stygia

The fifth layer of the Nine Hells is a freezing
realm of ice within which cold flames burn. A frozen sea
surrounds the layer. and its gloomy sky crackles with
lightning.
Archduke Levistus once betrayed Asmodeus and is
now encased deep in the ice of Stygia as punishment.
He rules this layer all the same, communicating
telepathically with hi followers and servants, both in
the Nine Hells and on the Material Plane.
Stygia is also home to its previous ruler, the
serpentine archdevil Geryon, who was dismissed
by Asmodeus to allow the imprisoned Levistus
to regain his rule. Geryon's fall from grace has
spurred much debate within the infernal courts. No
one is certain whether Asmodeus had some secret
cause to dismiss the archdevil or whether he is testing
Geryon's allegiance for some greater purpose.

## Malbolge

Malbolge, the sixth layer, has outlasted
many rulers, among them Malagard the Hag Countess
and the archdevil Moloch. Malagard fell out of favor and
was struck down by Asmodeus in a fit of pique, while
her predecessor, Moloch, still lingers somewhere on
the sixth layer as an imp, plotting to regain Asmodeus's
favor. Malbolge is a seemingly endless slope, like the
sides of an impossibly huge mountain. Parts of the
layer break off from time to time, creating deadly and
deafening avalanches of stone. The inhabitants of
.Malbolge live in crumbling fortresses and great caves
carved into the mountainside.
Malbolge's current archduchess is Asmodeus's
daughter, Glasya. She resembles a succubus with
her small horns, leathery wings, and forked tail. She
inherited her cruelty and love of dark schemes from
her father. The citadel that serves as her domicile on
the slopes of Malbolge is supported by cracked pillars
and buttresses that are sturdy yet seem on the verge of
collapse. Beneath the palace is a labyrinth lined with
cells and torture chambers, where Glasya confines and
torments those who displease her.

## Maladomini

The seventh layer, Maladomini, is ruincovered
wasteland. Dead cities form a desolate urban
landscape, and between them lie empty quarries,
crumbling roads, slag heaps, the hollow shells of
empty fortresses, and swarms of hungry flies.
The Archduke of Maladomini is Baalzebul,
the Lord of Flies. A bloated fiend with the lower
body of an enormous slug, Baalzebul's form was
in flicted on him by Asmodeus as punishment for
wavering loyalty. Baalzebul is a miserable and
degenerate monstrosity who has long conspired to
usurp Asmodeus, yet has failed at every turn. He carries
a curse that causes any deal made with him to lead to
ca lamity. Asmodeus occasionally shows Baalzebul favor
for reasons no other archduke can fathom, though some
suspect that the Archduke of Ness us still respects the
worthiness of this fallen adversary.

## Cania

Cania, the eighth layer of the Nine Hells, is an icy hellscape, whose ice storms can tear flesh from bone. Cities embedded in the ice provide shelter for guests and prisoners of Cania's ruler, the brilliant and conniving archdevil Mephistopheles. Mephistopheles dwells in the ice citadel of Mephistar, where he plots to seize the Throne of Baator and conquer the planes. He is Asmodeus's greatest enemy and ally, and the Archduke of Ness us appears to trust Mephistopheles's counsel when it is offered. Mephistopheles knows he can't depose Asmodeus until his adversary makes a grave miscalculation, and so both wait to see what circumstances might turn them against each other. Mephistopheles is also a godfather of sorts to Glasya, further complicating the relationship.
Mephistopheles is a tall, striking devil with impressive horns and a cool demeanor. He trades in souls, as do other archdevils, but he rarely gives his time to any creatures not worthy of his personal attention. His instincts are as razor sharp as Cania's fridig winds, and it is said that only Asmodeus has ever deceived or thwarted him.

## Nessus

The lowest layer of the Nine"'Hells, Ness us is
a realm of dark pits whose walls are set with fortresses.
There, pit fiend generals loyal to Asmodeus garrison
their diabolical legions and p)ot the conquest of the
multiverse. At the center oUhe layer stands a vast
rift of unknown depth, out of which rises the great
citadel-spire of Malsheem, home to Asmodeus and his
infernal court.
Malsheem resembles a gigantic hollowed-out
stalagmite. The citadel is also a prison for souls that
Asmodeus has locked away for safekeeping. Convincing
him to release even one of those souls comes at a steep
price, and it is rumored that the Archduke of Nessus has
claimed whole kingdoms in the past for such favors.
Asmodeus most often appears as a handsome,
bearded humanoid with small horns protruding from
his forehead, piercing red eyes, and flowing robes.
He can also assume other forms and is seldom seen
without his ruby-tipped scepter in hand. Asmodeus is
the most cunning and well-mannered of archdevils. The
ultimate evil he represents can be seen only when he
wills it so, or if he forgets himself and flies into a rage.