Ba'al

Before the Rebellion in Heaven neither Michael nor Baal had any association with War, and in truth there was barely any war to be associated with.

Ba'al prepared his ethereal bolthole in advance. Rather than Falling to Hell like the other rebels, he retreated to his safe haven in the Marches once it became clear that Lucifer’s side would not win the initial engagement. Once Lilith opened the first tethers to Hell, Ba'al strode in like a conquering hero, completely untouched by the madness and infighting between the initial denizens of the nether realm.

## Band Attunements

### Rapha (restricted)

Given their ability to suppress disturbances, the raphaim of the War make for ideal spies, scouts, and saboteurs. Rather than an innate attunement that can be tracked back to Ba'al, these raphaim receive a reliquary worth a number of CP up to the demon’s Forces.

### Tannean

Tanneanim of the War can triple their effective strength when making an attack.

### Malak

The demon prince of the War has often considered what he would do with one of the malakim on his side. He knows that one of two things would need to happen ~ such a creature would have to forswear all oaths, or else must consider Heaven itself to be a den of evil. If it turns out the be the latter~ he would require an oath to serve the armies of Hell. A malak of the War would be able to add their Celestial Forces to any Celestial damage they inflict.

## Distinctions

### Rittmeister Generals of the Apocalypse

The cavalry commanders of Hell who are responsible for identifying, recruiting, and supporting the Four Horsemen.

#### Why a Rittmeister General?

Several European countries had a special rank reserved for the commander of a squadron of cavalry: the Rittmeister. This rank was considered equivalent to captain.

Because **Ba'al’s** generals outrank his dukes, the Rittmeister Generals of the Apocalypse are best thought of as lesser Superiors ~ comparable in influence to, say, Furfur or Fleurity.

### Duke Generals

Ba'al’s dukes are immensely powerful warlords. However, their authority is typically limited to their own feudal vassals. Duchies are claimed “organically” by anyone who seizes and holds a sufficiently large or critical piece of Gehenna’s landscape. This means Ba'al is one of the few demon princes to allow mortal souls to climb all the way to the top of his hierarchy (not that any have). It also means that most of his dukes will avoid personally joining assaults on the corporeal plane unless there is the promise of a tether. They will, of course, be more than willing to order knights, barons, and marquises to go in their stead.

On the other hand, duke generals are hand-picked by Ba'al to fulfill specific command and administrative duties. Their authority can extend to demons who serve other lords, and they are given greater freedom in how they go about reclaiming their lands should someone be fool enough to claim them while the general is on assignment. Most duke generals are selected from among Ba'al’s Wordbound dukes, but he has been known to elevate other demons to these positions on the basis of skill.

#### Expectations of a Duke General

Because Ba'al refuses to face any archangel other than Michael, he does his best to ensure that his duke generals are all competent enough to hold their own against such a foe. Setting his goals this high has the added benefit of ensuring that his duke generals could take on demon princes in the event of another civil war.

* **Field generals** typically focus on the tactical and psychological expertise that would allow them to defeat a Superior
* **Administrative generals** are picked both for their ability to keep Hell’s war machine going and their competence to fill in for another Superior in the case that martial law is declared.

Ideally a duke general could fulfill either duty, and Ba'al has been known to reshuffle the duties of his senior staff in order to ensure cross competence.

#### Command Titles

All dukes have a ducal title which corresponds to their infernal liege-lands. Duke generals also have a command title that reflects their role in managing the War.

In addition to this list, there should probably be 3-5 field generals who oversee the active and reserve armies of Hell. These could either be divided on the basis of theater or branches of the infernal military, depending on what fits your game better.

##### Duke General of Personnel

This demon tracks the disposition of the War’s units (active, on leave, in Limbo, &c) and ensures that Ba'al will have enough demons to meet his command objectives.

##### Duke General of Intelligence

This general gathers information on Heavenly (and ethereal) military assets and readiness. While there is some cloak and dagger, it is intentionally kept to a minimum so that Alaemon & Asmodeus will have a harder time suborning the division. Instead, the War’s intelligence tends to focus on analyzing observed capability through intensive debriefing of demons who have faced the enemy.

##### Duke General of Logistics

The General of Logistics is responsible for lines of transit and communication, including the channels of Essence from Hell to the War’s servitors on Earth. If anyone outside of Nybbas could keep Perdition running, it would be the Duke General of Logistics.

##### Duke General of the Mast

The Duke General of the Mast is in charge of Ba'al’s MPs, JAGs, and tribunals. When circumstances allow, major charges will come before a full court martial (or dukes’ court). However, if Asmodeus might have an interest in influencing the outcome, the Duke General of the Mast is perfectly comfortable approving administrative punishment instead.

##### Duke General of PsyOps

The Duke General of PsyOps is responsible for understanding the influence of Media and the Marches, and how to employ those influences to further the goals of the War. This division tends to play a key role in combating Wordbound and undermining Heavenly control of tethers.

##### Duke General of Research

The division of research focuses on advancing military technology and tactics and adopting such advances from corporeal sources into Hell’s arsenal. The duke general is an especially competent calab who is quite vocally bitter about having been barred from Vapula’s service (though at this point he wouldn’t take such an appointment even if it were offered).

##### Duke General of Strategic Analysis

This is the demon responsible for all Ba'al’s “strategic modeling.” This means he orchestrates much of what goes on in the fields of Gehenna and he arranges the occasional illicit march into the ethereal realm so that the War’s army can use Earth-like dreamscapes to better prepare for engagements in the corporeal realm. Most of Ba'al’s dukes assume that the General of Strategic Analysis is the War’s #2, since he’s the one who bosses them around the most.

##### Duke General of Vice

Everyone’s favorite duke general. Rather than allowing vice and corruption to undermine army discipline, Ba'al concentrated it all in one place and gave it a very special duty. The division of vice is responsible for all “special rewards” (from leaves of absence, to visits from well known Lusties, “under the table” opportunities to torture captive angels, &c).

#### Ducal Titles

Ba'al is something of a traditionalist. Most of his duchies are named geographic locations (typically a powerful tether to Earth) or notable events in the War with Heaven. Others are known for particularly bloody campaigns on earth or “grave” landmarks.

Many of the dukes who hold a tethered domain played a personal role in its formation, but whether they were personally involved or not, a Duke will move to claim any tether (and it’s associated war dead) found within their demesne. Typically they succeed, but sometimes an upstart will be able to lay claim to the tether and hold it long enough to justify their own elevation to one of Ba'al’s senior distinctions.

##### Tethered Duchies

* Hinnom: There is a very old connection between Gehenna and the Valley of Hinnom. Ba'al will only allow one of his most trusted dukes to hold the tether. Should someone else claim it, Ba'al will personally see to their expulsion, and then the demotion of whatever demon was unfortunate enough to lose the tether in the first place.
* Golgatha
* Carthage
* Changping
* Picket’s Charge
* Srebrenica
* Verdun
* Volgograd

##### Landmarked Duchies

* The Barrows
* Avvio Hills
* God’s Acre
* Hangman’s Forest
* Polyandrium

##### Historic Duchies

* Interpunct (death of the Metatron)
* Autumn (fall of Lucifer’s army)
* Radiant Point (fall of Lucifer’s army): These first three are the oldest duchies in Gehenna. Before the first tethers to the corporeal realm were discovered, they were the heart of Ba'al’s realm. They now hold less strategic importance to the War than Hinnom, but they are still very symbolically important in Hell. A duke who manages to capture one of these three duchies will be treated with caution and respect by all of Hell’s gentry. Most demons old enough to make duke remember exactly how effective Ba'al was during the Civil War.
* All Flesh (corruption of the grigori)
* Torrent (destruction of the grigori)
* Castra (Raphael & Legion’s death)

##### Earthly Campaigns

* Abbasid
* Barbarosa
* Brusilov
* Dnieper

### Rittmeister der Roten (Captain of the Red)

Captains in the Red Cavalry of the Apocalypse have an instinctive grasp of all vehicles. Their level in any Riding, Piloting, or Driving skill will never be considered less than their Corporeal Forces. They may also purchase attunements from Ba'al or Mammon as if they served those Superiors.

### Reittenmeister der Schwarzen (Captain of the Black)

If a captain in the Black Cavalry of the Apocalypse is completely out of Essence, they may sacrifice 6 body hits to immediately gain the effects of spending 1 Essence. Using this distinction renders conventional healing ineffective until Essence has been regained by other means. These demons may also purchase attunements from Ba'al and Haagenti as if they served those Superiors.

### Rittmeister der Chlor (Captain of the Pale)

Captains in the Pale Cavalry of the Apocalypse are undisturbed by death and will never suffer Trauma upon the passing of a host or vessel. They may also purchase attunements from Ba'al, or Saminga as if they served those Superiors.

## Ba'al, Archangel of Valor

Prior to Falling, Ba'al was the archangel of Valor. He and Michael were practically inseparable, each attempting to prove the superiority of his word and calling to the other. Ultimately, though, Michael did not truly see the value of Ba'al’s focus on conflict until after the Fall.

### Choir Attunements

#### Seraph

The seraphim of Valor can see through the lies and uncertainty that cause fear. They cannot be frightened or intimidated.

#### Cherub [restricted]

If, barring the intervention of celestial forces, someone to whom a cherub of Valor is attuned will die in the next 24 hours, that angel will feel it in the pit of his stomach. This attunement doesn’t identify the nature or exact timing of the fatal stroke. Acting on its warning, however, a cherub of Valor can alter events to keep the attuned person alive.

#### Ofan

The speedy and unpredictable ofanim who work for the archangel of Valor invariably get the drop on everyone else, even when mortally wounded! In combat, Ba'al’s ofanim always go first. They favor hit and run and hit again tactics ~ maneuvering backward with the intention of circling round to strike again doesn’t generate dissonance for them.

#### Eloah [restricted]

With his natural resonance, an eloah working for Ba'al can feel the emotions not only of the people presently in his general vicinity, but those from the past as well ~ a number of hours through the past equal to the angel’s Celestial Forces.

#### Malak

Baal had no malakim ~ However, if Ba'al did have any Virtues he would have given them the attunement Michael ultimately chose. Malakim of Valor can hear the sound of danger sweeping through the Symphony, beginning as many minutes ahead of time as they have Corporeal Forces, and growing louder until the moment of conflict. However, this gift doesn’t identify the nature of the threat ~ only its existence. It is possible for a combat to be defused and never happen ~ in that case, the theme of danger fades away.

#### Kuriotes [restricted]

Ba'al's kuriotates, unlike their brethren who serve other archangels, can have their own vessels ~ they need not find a host to manifest on the corporeal plane. And like others of their choir, they may still inhabit as many Corporeal Forces’ worth of hosts and/or vessels as the total amount of their Forces. But they cannot abandon the vessels they make, and they acquire a note of dissonance when such a vessel is destroyed. The vessel is created by Ba'al, as are vessels for other angels, but he will usually take the kuriotes's own wishes or needs into consideration. It requires the same number of Forces as a normal host of that type (5 for a human). Any Forces invested in the vessel can’t be used to possess other creatures, even when the vessel isn’t manifested.

#### Mercurian [restricted]

Mercurians who serve Ba'al acquire no dissonance by killing a human in honorable combat.

#### Grigori

Ba'al had no grigori ~ However, if he did, they could look into people’s eyes and tell just how serious they are ~ how much they’re willing to risk in a situation. If someone is resigned to killing, or to dying, then these angels will know it. Grigori of Ba'al are expert at identifying and removing definite fighters from a combat situation, leaving behind the uncertain and the easily dissuaded.

#### Bright Lilu

Few of Ba'al’s lilim are geared toward combat; they prefer to work behind the lines, spying and indulging in the occasional sabotage or assassination. They add their Corporeal Forces to any attempt to charm someone.

### Distinctions

Michael and Ba'al are nothing if not consistent. Their distinctions remain the same (though the names of Ba'al’s distinctions would have a more heavenly bent)

## Servitors of Valor: Where are they now?

Almost all the servitors of Valor followed Ba'al into rebellion and Fell along with him. Those still allied with Heaven either joined Michael or Uriel, or else were forced to swear the malak oaths. When Uriel was recalled to the Higher Heavens, the Valorous in his care joined Laurence, Khalid, or the Tsayadim.

## What if Ba'al never fell?

Ba'al’s Fall is central to the story of *In Nomine*. If he had not Fallen, someone else would have had to lead the armies of the Rebellion. Michael is the next most likely choice, but if you’re just going to have the two of them swap roles, there’s not really much point in making the change (as they’re pretty much mirrors of each other anyway).

The next most likely candidates in my mind would be Asmodeus or Camael. The first choice would have treated the War like just another game, while the second would be a wild and emotional leader, throwing wave after wave of the fallen against heaven until it became clear that victory was impossible . . . at which point he’d start into a grand sulk.