| • Science | • People | • Locations | • Timeline |
The demons, also called tanar'ri, are chaotic evil natives of the Abyss; they are rapacious, cruel and arbitrary. The Abyss and its population are both theoretically infinite in size. The devils, also called baatezu, are lawful evil natives of the Nine Hells of Baator; they subjugate the weak and rule tyrannically over their domains. These two races wage the Blood War against one another. Lastly, the yugoloths (called daemons in previous editions of the game) are neutral evil natives of the Gray Waste; they are neutral to the affairs of the other fiendish races, interfering only when they see a situation that may be profitable or a potential for the advancement of their own schemes. Other, more minor fiends also exist, such as a number of varieties of impImp is a term for an imaginary being similar to a fairy, frequently used in folklore. Because of the recurrent use of the term, it is possible to give quite a detailed description of how imps are, or were, viewed by the superstitious. A being described ass. Most fiendish species are divided into a number of variants, usually in a hierarchyA hierarchy (Greek hieros sacred, arkho rule) is a system of ranking and organizing things. Different fields use the word in slightly different ways, but a particular definition (below) captures the core of almost all uses. Originally, "hierarchy" meant " of increasing power and cunning.
A number of critics of Dungeons & Dragons (mostly fundamentalist ChristiansFundamentalist Christianity is a fundamentalist movement, especially within American Protestantism. The term, Fundamentalist tends to have a variable meaning. Historically, and for those who use the name to describe themselves, a Fundamentalist Christian) accuse the game of promoting SatanismSatanism is a religious or philosophical movement centered around Satan or another entity identified with Satan, or centered around the forces of nature, particularly human nature, represented by Satan as an archetype. Unlike many religions and philosophi and occultism, intentionally or otherwise. Some products, particularly the First Edition Dungeon Master's Guide, have shown actual symbols classically used by witches and magicians for summoning, abjuration and protection.
TSR eliminated most references to occult symbols, demons and devils from the second edition of the game under great pressure from anti-D&D negative publicity, but Wizards of the Coast reinserted many of these excised references in the third edition of the game, on the basis that most D&D players are mature adults (most surveys on the matter show that the average D&D player is in their early- to mid-twenties). Although characters in the game are capable of casting spells to summon such creatures, these spells are restricted to evil characters, most of whom are non-player characters.See also: List of species in fantasy fiction
Fictional demons Dungeons & Dragons creatures Outer Planes