Greetings, crusaders!
Last time, we talked about the most common types of demons you’re likely to encounter in the Worldwound. Today, we’ll be looking at some more of your potential enemies.
Abrikandilu
Abrikandilus are born from the souls of mortals who used to destroy works of art and things of beauty out of pure envy.
Abrikandilus look like malformed hunchbacks with forked rat tails. Their bite is truly horrible and can leave mutilating wounds that don’t heal for a long time. In demon wars, abrikandilus typically act as foot soldiers who favor neither weapons nor armor — rather, their urge to destroy any and all displays of beauty works to demoralize the enemy.
The only thing that abrikandilus loathe more than beauty is looking at themselves in the mirror.
Vermlek
Vermleks are born from the souls of those who once found pleasure in desecrating corpses — grave robbers, necromancers, and necrophiles.
Vermleks actually resemble large, four-tailed worms, but they are most commonly seen inhabiting bloated human bodies, which they wear like clothes and use as means of transportation. Even though vermleks are expendable troops in demon armies, their ability to control dead bodies often allows them to infiltrate the enemy’s rear. This disguise, however, does not hold up to scrutiny — vermleks are not particularly good at using the vocal cords of the dead and have trouble with articulated speech. One can even see the vermlek itself through the open mouth of the corpse.
Left to their own devices, vermleks usually avoid warfare and prefer infiltrating mortal communities under the guise of laborers and gravediggers, indulging in the same vices that spawned them.
Schir
Schirs, or spite demons, are born from the souls of mortals who committed heinous crimes (or framed others for them) for the sake of petty vengeance.
Schirs look like shaggy, goat-legged — and likewise goat-headed — humanoids. Among the denizens of the Abyss, schirs are known to have the foulest of tempers. They may not be too sharp, but they are strong, hardy, and hungry for battle. Schirs make up the backbone of the demonic hordes, and their fetid bardiches can infect their victims with terrible diseases.
Fledgling adventurers would do well to remember that it is impossible to trick a schir with an invisibility spell — and that it is best not to give it enough space for a charging attack…
Incubi and succubi
Incubi are born from the souls of sadists, sex criminals, and rapists.
Muscular and attractive humanoids with silky-smooth skin, curving horns, and wings — often decorated with piercing and tattoos — incubi prefer to act as advisors, executioners, and masters of torture to more powerful demons. However, that is not to say they shy away from battle, and the finesse with which they wield both weapons and magic makes them truly formidable opponents.
Incubi can easily assume the form of any humanoid of any gender, and thus make excellent spies and saboteurs.
Succubi are born from souls depraved by lust.
Their appearance is that of a gorgeous woman, whose demonic nature is reflected in their leathery wings, tail, and tiny horns.
Like incubi, they are not exactly fond of combat, as they prefer seducing mortals with their unholy gifts and sinful pleasures in order to bring them to their fall and inevitable demise. Although succubi and incubi share a fascination with sex and perversion, it is hard to mistake one for the other because of the differences in their methods of bringing societies to ruin — incubi act brutishly and aggressively, whereas succubi favor a softer, subtler approach.
Invidiak, or Shadow Demon
Invidiaks are born from the souls of mortals steeped in envy and jealousy, and they are the main source of stories about so-called “demonic possession.” Their most distinctive trait is their ability to take over the bodies of their enemies and manipulate them like living puppets.
It is difficult to describe the appearance of a shadow demon, for its form is ever-shifting, blending in with the surrounding darkness. What one can make out for certain are its leathery wings, glinting fangs — and a whole lot of sharp claws.
There is another reason why these demons are dangerous — they are incorporeal, which makes them impervious to ordinary steel. What is more, invidiaks possess powerful magic, capable of materializing forms from the Shadow Plane, while still being deadly in melee combat.
Sunlight is the only salvation from a shadow demon, as it becomes helpless when exposed to it — and some particularly powerful spells that conjure sunlight can even expel a shadow demon from the body it has possessed.
Kalavakus, or Horned Demon
Kalavakuses are born from the souls of slavers.
They look like massive, muscular purple beasts covered head to toe in pointed horns.
Oddly enough, in the Abyss kalavakuses occupy themselves with more or less the same activities as when they were alive — trading in slaves. They possess a variety of means of enslaving both souls and wills. Even worse: if they succeed in their attempts to enslave their opponent’s soul, the creature’s death nourishes the kalavakus with power and heals its wounds.
Coloxus
Coloxus, or fly demons, are born from the souls of vain and narcissistic mortals whose heedless egocentricity led to disaster or tragedy.
These demons look like humanoid figures with a grotesque fly head and insectile wings. They typically serve as envoys and diplomats to some of the mightier demons and are known for being incredibly patient and refined — by demon standards. They see themselves as the elite of the “high society” of demonkind.
Coloxus have access to powerful spells, and prefer fighting from behind the backs of sturdier demons.
Oh, and mirrors? Coloxus hate those too.
Omox
Omoxes are born from the souls of mortals who defiled objects of beauty and worship with filth and excrement.
An omox looks like a formless mass of slime and filth that occasionally assumes a vaguely recognizable human form. Dangerous both in melee and at range, omoxes can swiftly catch up to their prey in damp environments, and their strikes coat enemies in a filthy slime that restricts movement.
Glabrezu, or Treachery Demon
Glabrezus are born from the souls of traitors.
A glabrezu’s appearance masks its true nature perfectly. Bulky monsters with chitin-covered claws on the outside, they are, in fact, cunning and cruel manipulators. That being said, glabrezus also possess strong illusion magic that lets them take on any guise they desire. They use their ability to grant wishes to mortals as an instrument of temptation and degradation, twisting the mortal’s wish in a way that would make its fulfillment bring about the greatest amount of suffering and ruin.
Powerful spellcasters and brutal melee combatants, glabrezus strike fear into the hearts of even the bravest of heroes.
Oolioddroo
Oolioddroo are born from the souls of mortals who controlled the minds of innocents to make them commit horrific misdeeds. Usually these mortals were powerful mages in life, so it is hardly surprising that their soul transforms into a powerful demonic manipulator.
Oolioddroo look like a sickly female figure with the head of a moth, dragonfly wings, and a long proboscis. Their distinctive feature is their ability to implant larvae into the brains of their victims in order to manipulate their mind later on. Expert brainwashers and aficionados of mind-affecting spells, oolioddroo are incredibly dangerous and can make sleeper agents out of unsuspecting crusaders with remarkable ease.
Frail physically, these demons fight by means of their magic and the creatures they’ve enslaved.
Nalfeshnee
Nalfeshnees are born from the souls of covetous rulers.
They look like massive, corpulent beasts with the head of a boar and a set of tiny wings.
Nalfeshnees are a wealth of unholy knowledge, which makes them popular targets of summoning rituals performed by desperate mages seeking new revelations and paths to power.
If there is one thing that can be said for certain about nalfeshnees, it is that they are unequaled in their understanding of the inner workings of the Abyss as a living organism. Their allegiances typically lie not with some demon lord, but rather with the Abyss as a whole. They guard its secrets, preserve its very essence, and receive mysterious blessings from it.
A special caste of nalfeshnees known as Curators act as sentinels and keepers of the Rift of Repose — the mysterious, hidden corner of the Abyss where the souls of slain demon lords gather.
Lilitu
Lilitu are born from the souls of mortals who used seduction to push their own kind to sin.
Lilitu look like alluring women with horns, hooves, a snake tail, and a face… with no eyes. However, thanks to their ability to wear other people like clothes, they never have any trouble looking their best. Lilitu, like succubi, prefer infiltrating mortal communities and destroying them from within, corrupting their morals and customs.
Lilitu have an abundance of tools at their disposal for their unholy activities — from powerful magic to clever psychological manipulation. They quite often answer directly to a demon lord, performing the kinds of sensitive tasks that typically do not involve brute force.
Vavakia
The first vavakias were constructed personally by the Mother of Beasts, Lamashtu, and she used her own womb to carry them. The Abyss soon absorbed this concept and began spawning new vavakias from the souls of mortals who violated other creatures’ souls in some way in their lifetime, such as by extracting, enslaving, or consuming.
The lower part of a vavakia’s body is that of a giant four-legged dinosaur, and their upper body is a demonic humanoid torso. Their head resembles that of a dragon — a nightmarish combination of horns and fangs.
Vavakias take pleasure in serving as the strike force that penetrates enemy defenses and annihilates their fortifications — these demons revel in simple, pure destruction. When facing a vavakia, one should watch out for its breath, which can quite literally incinerate mortals and drive them mad.
Whenever vavakias emerge on the Material Plane it is a calamity, and dealing with it is at times beyond the capabilities of an entire nation, for these monsters are capable of sowing ruin on an unimaginable scale.
Not all demons come from larvae. For instance:
Cambion
Red-skinned, horned humanoids with forked tongue, cambions do not grow from larvae. Instead, they appear as a result of an abominable union between incubi and mortals (succubi’s partners tend not to survive copulation). Few cambions reach maturity in the brutal environment of the Abyss, but those who do survive can rise to impressive heights.
The greatest numbers of cambions can be encountered in the Porphyry City, Alushinyrra, the realm of the demon lord Nocticula. The reason for this is that Nocticula favors those who take newborn cambions under their protection, thus allowing them to reach maturity.
Quasit
Tiny winged demons with twisted horns, quasits manifest themselves through a familiar-summoning ritual performed by a spellcaster. As part of the ritual, the spellcaster sacrifices a small fragment of their soul, which then serves as the catalyst for the quasit’s birth. In the numerous cases where the quasit outlives its master, it claims their soul and seeks to find its way back to the Abyss.
Vrolikai
A vrolikai — the final stage in the evolution of a nabasu — is a large, four-armed monster that resembles a bat. It possesses all the abilities of a nabasu, which it has honed to perfection. Vrolikai are some of the mightiest demons in the Abyss and generally serve directly under a demon lord.
One should not take demons for a brainless, chaotic force that seeks nothing but destruction — even though their appearance may suggest as much. Demons’ foremost aspiration is not just to murder and obliterate as it would seem at first glance, but to cultivate sins in mortal souls; to corrupt and erode their morals and ethical codes. A mortal who dies to the claws of a demon can be considered lucky, for their soul is free to be reborn — but those who have succumbed to the pernicious influence of corruption are doomed to join the demonic ranks after death, which is the true goal of demonkind.
Fierce battles are waged ceaselessly where the Abyss borders Hell and Heaven, as well as Abaddon, due to the constant expansion of the Abyss — and it is the sinful souls of mortals that fuels the growth of this interplanar tumor.
