Upgrade your account to a Community Supporter account and remove most of the site ads.

Reply to thread

Message: <blockquote data-quote="Lancelot" data-source="post: 6866159" data-attributes="member: 30022">2e literature (e.g. Planescape) had some of the non-evil lawful gods actively aiding the baatezu (i.e. devils) in the Blood War. 3e literature (e.g. Fiendish Codex II) broadened this into a discussion of Asmodeus' role in divine politics. 4e promptly changed a lot of this lore, and now 5e seems to be going back towards a 2e/3e view.Of the various "takes" on Asmodeus, I tend to go with a blend of 2e/3e lore. In other words: Asmodeus was a servant of the Good gods. He was a front-line commander in their war against the nihilistic hordes of the Abyss, which seek to unmake all of creation. Unlike the other gods, he was not afraid to get his hands dirty. He used the methods of the enemy to defeat them, and was slowly corrupted (in morals and appearance) by this approach. However, none could deny his efficiency. If the Good gods didn't wish to continue sanctioning him, then they either had to get their hands dirty themselves... or they had to concede that they would lose more battles (innocent lives) by refusing to employ some strategies.So, they continued to offer their reluctant blessing. Asmodeus (and his lieutenants: Dispater and Mephistopheles) continued the fight against the demons. But, as the Good gods increasingly distanced themselves from the horrors of the war, Asmodeus (reasonably) requested that he needed to draw power from another source. Hence, a pact whereby the "devils" (growing more and more twisted in form and evil) would punish sinners and draw strength from their torment. This solved many problems for the Good gods. The "devils" would continue defending the innocent from Chaos, the Good gods wouldn't have to get directly involved, and the only people who would suffer were the evil sinners who were transgressing against the Good gods anyway.Of course, then they found out much later that the "devils" weren't just punishing the sinners that fell into their possession... they were actively tempting all mortals into sinning, increasing their own power. As Asmodeus said: "Maybe you guys didn't read the fine print in our agreement..."...That's a real brief summary of the 3e lore from Fiendish Codex, which seems like a useful starting point with Asmodeus. It gives him a motivation and a history other than being eeeevil. He's the hard-bitten general facing a lethal foe who, in his disgust at the Ivory Tower politicians, decided to work around them. There's a certain nobility to his goals (prevent the annihilation of the multiverse by the Abyssal hordes), even if he has become totally corrupted by his own desire for power and uses the most vile methods himself.It also suggests a more complex relationship with the gods than just: yeah, he's evil. The Good guys don't like him, and most of the Bad guys don't either. I kind of dislike alignment lines being drawn that plainly. If all the Good gods are on Team Blue, and all the Evil gods are on Team Red, then it's just boring.I'd guess that some LG and LN gods secretly support (and maybe even admire) Asmodeus. As mentioned above, 2e sources suggested that some non-evil Lawful powers aided the devils in the Blood War. Primus has a dedicated modron army that aids the devils, and gods like (LG) Clangeddin actively fight the demons (perhaps alongside devils, sometimes - even if he isn't happy about it). I could see some of the more martial LG and LN gods having a grudging respect for Asmodeus' role as Ruthless Defender of the Lawful Side. In the Forgotten Realms, I could see Tyr... and possibly Tempus... as being okay with Asmodeus for this reason. There could also be some LG gods who are secretly embarrassed about the history mentioned above. They wish to conceal their own complicity in the Pact Primeval with Asmodeus (initially sanctioning his actions against the demons) from their own worshipers. Hence, they may be susceptible to blackmail from the devils ("Work with us, or we'll reveal to your followers that you let this happen"), or at least don't publicly denounce them.By contrast, the CG powers are probably the biggest opponents of Asmodeus. They're less worried about the encroaching ravages of Chaos, and they're appalled at the loss of individual freedoms that have resulted from the Lawful guys basically letting Asmodeus do their dirty work. Organizations like the Harpers would probably be among the fiercest opponents of devilkind, along with the gods they serve.</blockquote>

Verification