D&D General What Would Happen if Fiends Came to Fill the "Low CR Monsters" Niche?

[Mind of tempest]

You mean Diablo?

or doom.

 

[Peter BOSCO'S]

I've been thinking for a while that D&D, if it wanted to, could just shift a lot of the negative traits ascribed to goblins and orcs and whatever to certain low CR demons and make them more common as low-level enemies.

Thoughts?

If Demons started being more Common wouldn't it just lead to, literal, witch hunts for Demon summoners?
More Demons = more marginalized and minority people who may not be guilty being killed by suspicious neigbors and authoritarian goverments. Unless you first establish a clear mechanism for "more demons" and ensure that everyone in the world knows about it, a "planar conjunction" perhaps, so everyone knows that the Demons are not being summoned than you'll get witch hunts.

"If you see something demonic, say something to the Inquisition about who summoned it." "If you try to protect an accused demon summoner that proves that you must be a demon summoner too." "We must kill suspected demon summoners to protect the children!" = What NPC's would say and do.

 

[Faolyn]

If Demons started being more Common wouldn't it just lead to, literal, witch hunts for Demon summoners?
More Demons = more marginalized and minority people who may not be guilty being killed by suspicious neigbors and authoritarian goverments. Unless you first establish a clear mechanism for "more demons" and ensure that everyone in the world knows about it, a "planar conjunction" perhaps, so everyone knows that the Demons are not being summoned than you'll get witch hunts.

"If you see something demonic, say something to the Inquisition about who summoned it." "If you try to protect an accused demon summoner that proves that you must be a demon summoner too." "We must kill suspected demon summoners to protect the children!" = What NPC's would say and do.

In the right hands, that could be a good campaign hook. In the real world, horrible things were done during witch hunts. In D&Dland, however, there's a host of spells that could easily be cast to determine who is actually at fault: detect evil and good, detect magic, detect thoughts. And DM fiat could limit use of these spells to people who have credible evidence against them. While there could easily be "summoner-hunters" and an inquisition, simple, low-level magic could very easily replace the torture and trial by ordeal.

 

[Bluebell]

Witch hunts or inquisitions are a possible element that could definitely work, but I don't see why it would have to be a given. There are so many examples in fiction of demons showing up as a consequence of say, a curse that was allowed to fester, or ground that was desecrated by a battle, or there happened to be a portal into hell in the area, or some prophecy is driving them to seek something or someone, or even just as a natural phenomenon. There's no reason why demons, or the social reactions to them, have to exist in this specific Christian mindset.

 

[Faolyn]

Witch hunts or inquisitions are a possible element that could definitely work, but I don't see why it would have to be a given. There are so many examples in fiction of demons showing up as a consequence of say, a curse that was allowed to fester, or ground that was desecrated by a battle, or there happened to be a portal into hell in the area, or some prophecy is driving them to seek something or someone, or even just as a natural phenomenon. There's no reason why demons, or the social reactions to them, have to exist in this specific Christian mindset.

Actually, a lot of non-Western mythology has demons like this as well. Demons just exist and are evil spirits; they're not necessarily the creation of evil gods or what happens to damned souls (although an evil person might turn into a demon because of their deeds).