“Jillian, get me the sun,” Cassie commanded. “I want it.” She leaned back and waited. When her demand was not met, she called out, “Joel! Get me the sun! Joel!” The sun remained in the sky. They were ignoring her again. Cassie began pounding her fists on the ground, crying, “Mummy! Daddy! Joel and Jillian won’t get me the sun! I want it! The sun! The sun! I want the sun!”
What do you want it for? asked someone from somewhere.
“I want to wear it in my hair,” answered Cassie dreamily, staring longingly into the sun, “because it’s the same colour.” The stars and the sun were vibrating, and their vibrations sounded the name CASSIE just for her. How do they know it’s my birthday? she marvelled.
HAPPY BIRTHDAY! trumpeted a voice from above or below or maybe beside her, Cassie could not tell.
Cassie knit her brows, confused. But it’s not my birthday. My birthday was two months ago. On the fourph. No, that sounded wrong. She mouthed the word “fourth,” but it came out the same way. The stars had stopped dancing and now swam around the sun, a school of fish in an ocean of sky, swimming around a blazing orb of coral. Then the stars were fish, and the sun was coral, and Cassie was peering at them through the clear glass of her mother’s aquarium at the old house. Cassie knew it was the old house because she could see her reflection in the glass – a small child of six or seven clutching a capless permanent marker in her little hand, several more markers littering the carpet by her bare feet. She was drawing a scrawling mosaic of herself and her family and a family of seals all riding a colossal ocean wave on surfboards on the glass of massive aquarium.
Today is indeed the "fourph," so Happy Birthday to Cassie, one of the protagonists of my upcoming fantasy series, The Crimson Realm! In honour of the occasion, here is an out of context excerpt featuring my golden-haired girl from Book the First: Chapter the Fifteenth: Old Demons. Happy Fourph!
"Take me to church
I'll worship like a dog at the shrine of your lies
I'll tell you my sins and you can sharpen your knife
Offer me that deathless death
Good God, let me give you my life"
this if for #EgoWatch event by @s00pgr00p!! I choose Jameson Jackson with my two prompts, strings and powerless! I can’t wait to see the submissions later today!!
First off, I just want to thank you all for your support and kindness after my first post! It’s nice to see so many of you have taken an interest! Now, a few of you pointed out interest in other demons, i.e, ones that didn’t serve as player companions but might be used in role play plot lines. Or perhaps just curiosity because you’re an aspiring demon nerd like me. Either way, I’ve decided to finish off all I know of demon lore with a couple more posts for you all. This section will cover demon’s we’ve seen over the previous six versions of World of Warcraft prior to Legion. Finally, I’ll make a brief part 3 post with what little details we have on the brand new demons we’ve seen with Legion. Of course, as always, if I’ve left out any details you feel is important do send it my way so it can be mentioned. And if when all is said and done I’ve missed any demons you’re particularly interested in, send me a message and I can relay what I know, or direct you to a good source of canon information to do your own research! So get ready for Doctor Percival Thalsian the thirds second compendium on Demons!
Wrathguards
starting with this one because a few people pointed out that I didn’t include it in my first collection despite it having been a companion demon in previous years. The reason it was excluded is because it is no longer available in game as a companion. But they are pretty interesting and have an interesting backstory that should be shared.
The first point, is wrathguards are in fact Eredar.[1] That’s the same original race as Kil’jaden, Archimonde, and even you Draenei players. However they do have a few odd features, such as extra sets of horns and clawed feet. One theory is that these are mutations from the exposure to fel magic, similar to the broken draenei seen in warcraft III and Outland. It could also be an intentional augmentation, but this is all player speculation.
The summoning ritual for them is also explained in Jubeka’s Journal, claiming that the ritual circle to summon requires less magic runes than other demons, claiming that they respect raw power over intricate spell work.[1]
One interesting fact I discovered in my research on these ex-companions is that, based on their old in-game quotes, they actually enjoyed being Warlock minions! I make this claim based on quotes such as “I live to be commanded!”[2] and “Pleased to Slay upon command!”[2] This makes them sound like they’d be phenomenally loyal demonic bodyguards for any warlock who summoned them.
It’s worth noting that, the glyph of wrathguard appears to still be somewhere in the games system. So we may be seeing them again in a later patch!
Pitlords & Annihilan
In most cases, the Pit Lords act as commanders and generals for the legion forces. They’re some of the best representations of a cliche demon. Terrifying massive monsters that live for destruction. When you think of demons and the Burning Legion, these are the guys that should come to mind.
They also boast some of the greatest cruelty, living to brutalize and torture mortals. They would outright enslaving other demons and using them as fodder in their assaults on mortal worlds.[3]
You’ll note I purposely separate the title “Pit Lord” from the species “Annihilan” for a couple reasons. The first is because, although Annihilan are the only ones seen holding the title of Pit Lord, it is very much a military position in the legion and not the name of the demonic species. There are a few examples of demons that don’t match the titles with the species. Azzinoth, the demon from whom Illidan acquired his signature Warglaives, was of the species “Fiend” but was referred to as a Doomguard (as opposed to a Terrorguard)[4]. Another example being the Annihilan Illidan and his demon hunters fight in the short film “Harbingers - Illidan” who refers to himself as “The Doomlord Azgoth.”[5]
The second is to illustrate that the chances of you actually seeing a true ‘Pit Lord’ is pretty slim if you think about it logically. It would be the equivalence of seeing a military general out on the field with his soldiers, doesn’t happen very often if ever (In fact, only two were seen on all of Azeroth during the War of the Ancients, Mannoroth & Azgalor)[6]. However, an Annihilan of lesser power or standing would be a very reasonable option for an exceptionally powerful warlock antagonist, or perhaps a small cult. In the end, it really boils down to semantics, if you write an Annihilan in your plot as a ‘Pit Lord’ no one would really notice or judge you on it... except me...I’ll judge you.
Dreadlords & Nathrezim
The Dreadlords are equally as evil as the Annihilan, but in a very, very different way. Definitely one of the better known demons to most players. Masters of shadow magic, the Nathrezim are among the most cunning and deceptive of demons. Preferring to infiltrate mortal civilizations and cause unrest and strife from within. Once the nations were dissolved and chaos ran across their civilizations, the Dreadlords would corrupt the mortals into new breeds of demons[7]. You read that right, Dreadlords can turn people into demons. That’s right scary.
As we’ve seen multiple times in game, Dreadlords are capable of taking on the form of others to infiltrate society. Balnazaar and the Scarlet Crusade is a very good example of just how adept they are at infiltrating groups. As fanatical as the Crusaders were, how much of that was their own zeal, and how much was actually the dreadlords influence?
It’s also important to note that Dreadlords, although they’re original demons and some of the evilest, can be turned to the side of the Light. We have one example of this in Lothraxion, who is a Paladin champion in Legion.[8] Now since we only have ONE example, assuming this is common or even exists beyond this singular example is a stretch, but it’s not the only example of demonic repentance we’ve seen.
Mo’Arg & Gan’Arg
Engineers of the Burning Legion, first seen on Outland. Technically Mo’Arg Brutes, Felguards, and Fel Lords are in fact Mo’Arg as well, but for the sake of this guide we will focus specifically on the engineering demons. Mo’Arg are the larger of the two. Sporting highly modified bodies via cybernetic implants and augmentations. Gan’Arg are the stunted version of the two, sporting equally modified bodies. These engineers are incredibly intelligent and cunning, crafting siege weapons, arms, and armor for the legion’s conquest across the planet.[9]
Again, as with many demons, they aren’t strictly aligned with the legion. The Mo’Arg Engineer Sal’salabim is found in the Worlds End Tavern of Shattrath city as a quest giver, loosely working with Altrius the Sufferer, as he drinks his time away.[10]
Man’ari Eredar
Now to cover everything that is the Eredar would also involve citing the whole history of the Draenei, as they are of the same race. But the brief version is this: Man’Ari is the faction of Eredar that joined the Legion, Draenei is the faction that refused and followed Velen. So for you warlocks who like to speak in demonic (or Eredun as it is properly known), a Draenei would most certainly be able to understand you.[11] In fact during a plot line where The Conclave worked along side The Sha’Tor (a Draenei guild on WrA) I had some lovely banter between my warlock and an elder Draenei priest. Makes for super fun role play potential!
Personally, I’d say these Demons offer the best option for a really deep antagonist since they are a previous mortal race and therefore it’s much easier to make them a relatable character. They’re also a perfect example of how a mortal can become a demon. A lot of people may see roleplaying a mortal-turned-demon as somewhat of a taboo, but with multiple races acting as proof I say it’s more than fair to do so if that is your desire.
It’s also worth noting that, because they are -now- demons, they seem to possess the ability to change their shape & size through their new found fel powers. The vast mutations of Kil’Jaden are one example, or the varying size of Archimonde. It is reasonable then to speculate that all demons have the ability to change their shape and form to some degree, possibly even as far as similar transformations as the Dreadlords. But that last statement is unconfirmed and therefore is used at the writers discretion.
Void Hounds/Void Terrors
Really not much to talk about with these demons. They’re 2 headed, multi-eyed demon dogs. Similar in model to Core Hounds. Immol’thar was the only known Void Hound on azzeroth until the Sunwell patch was released. There are also a few examples in game of these creatures being summoned via shadow/void magic, making them aberrations as opposed to demons.[12]
However, Chronicle does specifically cite Void Hounds as demons that roam the twisting nether.[7] so it’s more likely that the ones considered aberrations were simply used for the model because... it’s creepy? Either way, they’re demons!
Satyr
For the most part, Satyr are once Night Elves that were ‘blessed’ with the Satyr curse Sargeras first gave to Xavius and he passed on. Although they did later discover that they could pass on the Satyr curse to other races. But the curse has weakened over the millennia and new satyr aren’t often being found.[13]
With that having been said, since Xavius has made his reappearance, along with the massive legion invasion, we’ve seen more Satyr and one could argue that he’s been giving his gift about to any one power hungry enough to accept it, until he was defeated in the Nightmare of course.
Satyr are also another race of mortals turned demon. As with the Eredar, they retain many of their kaldorei features, but sport some interesting mutations such has cloven hooves and horns. They seem to particularly enjoy corrupting and drain the land of its natural life magic. Apparently, the Satyr that have drained a lot of magic have swollen and uncloven hooves.[13] it’s a minor, and rather silly detail, but if you want to write a very old, very powerful Satyr, mention it’s hooves!
Satyr are also another example of how demons/demonic entities can repent and wish to atone for their sins. Avrus Illwhisper is an example of this, and through a quest is actually redeemed and returned to his former night elf form.[14]
Conclusion
So there you have it. Most of the demons we’ve seen over the years outside of those that warlocks summon in-game. Some of them are rich with lore and back story. Others, not so much. But as we can see they all have different levels of depth and personality that can be written and used for a myriad of different stories and plots. Many of these demons of course make for good antagonists, but with multiple sources of demonic repentance over the years it is also possible to have them written in as individuals who want to return to the side of good.
You're not friends. You'll never be friends. You'll be in love till it kills you both. You'll fight, and you'll shag, and you'll hate each other till it makes you quiver, but you'll never be friends. Love isn't brains, children, it's blood... blood screaming inside you to work its will. -Spike, Lovers Walk
I don't exactly have a reputation for being a thinker. I follow my blood, which doesn't exactly rush in the direction of my brain. -Spike, Touched
Yeah, sometimes Spike is wrong. Here we have Buffy giving Angel the most friendly kiss ever:
BtVS S10 #18, Old Demons (Christos Gage/Rebekah Isaacs)
Five title changes later, and another chapter has been edited. Only six more chapters to edit before I begin a final edit on Book the First as a whole. I'm equal parts excited and nervous.
