Asmodeus

**Asmodeus** is one of *Pathfinder's* deities.

## Background

Asmodeus reigns as the unquestioned lord of Hell, the emperor and god of the damned. He is the most powerful entity to reside within the infernal realm, and even the other deities who make their home within the Pit do so at the Prince of Darkness's leave. All of Hell is his fortress, each layer serving as a nefarious rampart between Nessus, his sinister keep, and a multiverse that screams in want of order. He is the most dreaded enemy to the freedom and spirit of the multiverse's mortal inhabitants, yet the surest route to a grim but eternal peace.

Asmodeus can take any form he chooses, yet in the depictions of his faith and visions of his worshipers, he appears as a tall, muscular man with red skin, dark hair, short black horns, arrogant features, and hoofed feet. Whether this is the Archfiend's true form or merely a guise he adopts so his mortal servants can conceive of him, none can say. Some legends tell that he has another form — one that bears a great, endlessly bleeding wound he received during his final battle with his brother Ihys — but if any souls have ever witnessed this shape, they have never been allowed to leave Nessus. He is rarely seen without his symbol of rule, the Archstar, an artifact forged before the diabolic Exodus from Heaven that bears his symbol and often takes the form of a burning ruby mace, rod, or staff.

Asmodeus is beyond arrogant, beyond confident, and beyond patient. He knows that, eventually, the tide of the multiverse will turn, the young deities that hold such appeal to the souls of the mortal world will perish or move on, and moralities will shift, elevating him to a place of righteousness. So it was, and so it will be once more. He is known for his devastating bouts of wrath, yet his ire is but a tool to inspire fear, for few events in the last millennia have truly enraged him. None know the face of the Prince of Darkness's true fury — his disciplined facade being impenetrable — but those who cross him come to know suffering in their lives and beyond like nothing imaginable. As a being of impossible age and intelligence, he is a cold but reasonable emperor, and even what seem to be snap decisions have undergone deliberation and consideration from countless angles. Once he utters his commands, few can hope to change his mind to favor them. He demands order, and with his vast intellect, he can often perceive patterns and reasons where none seem present — tales say that he had a hand in arranging the placement of the stars, the architecture of living forms, and the laws of physical existence. All of his cunning, genius, and passion Asmodeus combines with a deft tongue and disarming charm. Even the most benevolent deities have, at times, sought out Asmodeus's counsel, and afterward, they have shuddered to realize that the Ruler of Hell is no monster but a charismatic, sane, and wise being, opposed to all they believe yet nonetheless deserving of their awe. Furthermore, he commands countless powerful minions, the greatest of which are his eight archdevil champions, who gather together once every 13 years to plot infernal politics and be informed of his will.

For all the powers and boons he grants the creatures of the Material Plane, Asmodeus loathes mortals. Certainly his worshipers prove useful in exacting his whims upon the planes, but he bears not even the greatest of them an iota of love. The creation of mortals has ruined the perfect order of the early multiverse; they sow chaos and disorder throughout the planes, and they nourish the most destructive forces of reality. They were the gods' first and greatest mistake, and these rampant souls will be a blight upon existence until they can be wiped out or fundamentally altered. Fortunately, Asmodeus is cultivating numerous subtle plans to bring about such ends. His stratagems have been in motion for centuries beyond counting — and they are working.

## Bugs

 There are no "Mace" weapon in the game, only Light Mace and Heavy Mace and classes with this deity don't get proficient with either. Although it's only Ecclesitheurge who suffers from that. (Last Version:2.1.7b)