Notes on the Pathetic: Imps & Misc Fiendish Lore

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Kuma
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Notes on the Pathetic: Imps & Misc Fiendish Lore

Post by Kuma » Tue Feb 28, 2017 9:44 am

Some passages from a number of sources, both canon and non-canon, that many may find useful.

Fiendish Codex II: Tyrants of the Nine Hells, pg. 12. Bold text is my emphasis, bold text in brackets are my own notations.

IMPS: THE FIRST LINE OF CORRUPTION

Although least devils (Lemure, Nupperibo, Spined devil) are sometimes dispatched to the Material Plane as guardians and lackeys for soul harvesters, the first chance a devil gets to take direct credit for soul corruptions occurs at the imp stage. This is the primary reason why bearded devils (the first of the lesser devils) anxiously seek promotion to a physically less formidable form. Changing from a fearsome infernal foot soldier into the diabolical equivalent of a house pet might rankle a bit, but such momentary blows to a devil’s pride mean little when its future advancement hangs in the balance.

The best assignment an imp can hope for is to become a free-roaming agent so that it can devote its time to trawling for vulnerable souls. More often, however, these low-ranking devils are loaned out to lawful evil potentates to serve as spies or advisors. Imps find such postings infinitely less attractive because only rarely does a mortal who has not already consigned herself to the Nine Hells receive the services of an imp. Imps might be loaned to mortals as a part of a package of inducements designed to lead their souls to perdition, but the credit for these transactions goes to the higher-ranking devil that negotiated them, not to the imp that sticks around to do the drudge work.

Even imps stuck in such positions can still chalk up a few damnations on the side. For example, servitor imps might scheme for the souls of the humanoids around their masters—be they lowly servants or heirs to the throne. Through whispered counsel, an imp in service to an influential master might also be able to persuade him to change the social conditions of his village, city, or kingdom in a way that encourages the locals to drift toward lawful evil alignments.

Whether fancy-free or fettered in service, an imp must rely solely on persuasion as a means of securing souls. Too weak to bully its targets effectively, it must cajole, trick, or lure its victims into performing actions of a lawful evil nature. Unlike its superiors, an imp isn’t authorized to negotiate Faustian bargains. However, if it has access to treasure or information, it can certainly provide such inducements to its targets to hasten their corruption and make it easier for them to go forth and commit lawful evil deeds.

An imp’s advancement to the next rank (that of steel devil) is not necessarily tied to collecting a particular number of souls. An imp might win advancement after corrupting a single, highly coveted soul, or it might advance for performing other services of great value to its superior, such as informing against traitors in the ranks. Typically, though, an imp is expected to claim somewhere in the neighborhood of nine souls to qualify for higher rank.

--
pg 28.
THE INFERNAL TONGUE

Devils speak and write Infernal, a painfully rigorous language that formed spontaneously on Asmodeus’s stern lips when he landed at the bottom of the Pit. Best pronounced with a forked or wriggling tongue, Infernal uses a mathematically rigid grammar. Only one correct way exists to construct any given statement in Infernal. Thus, devils are quick to mock non-native speakers. Except when in disguise, they find the urge to correct errors in spoken or written Infernal nearly impossible to resist.

The language’s alphabet uses thirty-three geometric glyphs composed entirely of straight lines, plus a second character set for numbers and mathematical symbols. It is an ideal language for accounting and record keeping, but a poor one for philosophy or poetry.

Demons, who have little interest in the written word, use a devolved form of the Infernal alphabet. Devils can’t look at the demented scrawlings of such beings without wincing at the degradation that their fine, logical script has suffered at the claws of demon kind. The Lords of the Nine, the Dark Eight, and most unique devils also speak an archaic form of Infernal known as Mabrahoring (High Infernal). This rarefied tongue is rarely spoken outside the citadels of Baator. Only unique devils can learn and speak this language. Other creatures are incapable of learning it, though magic such as comprehend languages can decipher it as normal.

House Freth: Reference Information
House Claddath: Reference Information
"What's a heretic?": a guide to religious schism terminology

Irongron wrote:

4. No full screen images of the NWN gnome model (might frighten the children)


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Kuma
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Re: Notes on the Pathetic: Imps & Misc Fiendish Lore

Post by Kuma » Tue Feb 28, 2017 9:55 am

Now for some things that aren't canon to D&D or the Forgotten Realms.

Hell Unleashed, Pathfinder, pg. 12

Benabak
Imps are among the least of true devils. These tiny winged sycophants are just a small step up in status from lemures; they lack any real authority in Hell’s hierarchy. Their lowly positions make them easy tools for the machinations of more powerful devils. However, their lack of responsibility also affords them a high degree of freedom, especially when it comes to interactions with residents of the Material Plane. Powerful devils dispatch imps to Golarion in droves to corrupt mortals and tempt their souls to Hell. One of the most long-standing of Hell’s imp recruiters is the gambler Benabak. Dispatched to the Material Plane in 4060 AR as a Taldan wizard’s familiar, Benabak has remained on Golarion ever since. Normally, after serving—and hopefully damning—their mortal masters, imps are left to fend for themselves on a hostile plane. However, through a twist of ingenuity, Benabak convinced his Taldan master to bequeath him as inheritance to her son. Thus, the grovelling Benabak became akin to a family pet.

Over subsequent generations, Benabak worked to damn each descendant in turn. In a twisted way, he became part of the family. He first befriended the children, capering and japing for laughs, and teaching them how to steal sweets from local vendors. As the children grew to adulthood, Benabak introduced them to whatever vices seemed most likely to prove destructive. Eventually, when overindugence in these vices led his masters into unfortunate situations, the imp brokered an infernal contract between the mortal and a more powerful devil. Benabak idolizes the infernal duke Bifrons, lord of fate, luck, and patterns, and hopes to one day join his service.

Benabak’s efforts to tempt his last noble master were a little too successful. His master Epitarus’s vice of choice was gambling. Epitarus hosted games of chance at his villa every evening, and Benabak used his flight and invisibility to give his master substantial advantages at the gambling table. Benabak paid close attention to the strategies of every player, and developed his own skills. However, Epitarus’s gambling ambitions were larger than fleecing a few nobles in his parlor, and he moved from small, private games to high-stakes betting at prominent local casinos. These casinos had protections in place to prevent cheating, such as Benabak’s invisible assistance. As his addiction spiraled out of control, the wizard ruined himself and several relatives financially. Even after he signed away his soul for wealth, he continued to wager away every gold piece he could find.

Epitarus became a pariah in his own family, and Benabak was also cast aside. Eventually, the wizard began using the imp as a marker, counting on the fact that his fellow gamblers would trust a familiar as collateral. The time came when Epitarus could not pay back his debts, and Benabak became the property of a particularly disreputable casino—or so the imp claimed. He worked as a part of the casino’s security for decades, using his stealth and magic to catch cheaters. However, the terms of Benabak’s original contract were not transferrable, and over time, he sowed corruption and skimmed money for himself. The casino took a long time to detect his treachery, and when they finally discovered it, the imp barely escaped with his life.

Benabak fled to an abandoned watchtower on the edges of his former family’s holdings, north of
Misarias, now a part of Cheliax. Luckily for the imp, Her Infernal Majestrix kept a large contingent of her standing army near the city. Benabak began to visit the garrison, bowing and scraping and performing menial chores. Most of the Chelish soldiers were suspicious of the imp at first, but they eventually came to believe his tale that he served a military officer in Ostenso, and that he had been sent to do their chores as punishment for his failures. Over time, Benabak opened up to the soldiers, and began telling bawdy tales around the nightly campfires. Imps are not known for their skill at betting, and it didn’t take much for Benabak to convince the soldiers to join him in games of cards. As it turned out, the bored soldiers loved gambling just as much as the imp. Once his apparent haplessness had sufficiently disarmed his marks, the imp lured them back to his abandoned watchtower for a small private game, far from the prying eyes of company commanders. There, the imp unleashed his full prowess, fleecing his victims and building up a sufficient stake to tempt even the most cautious gamblers into betting more than they could afford.

Over the next several years, word of Benabak’s depredations spread, and he was no longer welcome at the army garrison. However, his notoriety ended up being a blessing in disguise. Though he was no longer able to prey on common soldiers, tales of his treasure trove began to lure professional gamblers, hardened rogues, and other card sharps to his games. As the prowess of his opponents increased, so too did his winnings. Instead of the barrels of ale, suits of armor, and copper coins that he won from the soldiers, Benabak began to see gold, jewels, and magical baubles swell his coffers. However, his biggest treasures were the gullible fools he forced into profound debt. Those who became too deeply beholden to Benabak soon learned that the only way to repay the imp was to indulge themselves in their worst vices, thereby damning their souls. Slowly but surely, Benabak turned gambling addicts into murderers, thieves, traitors, and worse.

Over the decades since his emancipation, more than a few thugs have attempted to divest Benabak of his hard-earned winnings. The imp’s elusiveness, arcane defenses, and mobility often best those who attempt to seize his hoard by force. To protect his tower home, Benabak hung a trio of zombie soldiers upside down from a pair of beams on the third floor. He used a wand of command undead that he won from a down-on-her luck arcanist to procure the zombies, who were the unfortunate victims of an ill-fated training exercise against a devil. The zombies gnash their teeth, and lash out at any living creatures in reach, serving as warnings to potential pilferers, as well as last-ditch
security. Whenever would-be thieves attempts to steal the imp’s treasures, Benabak kills them and strings their bodies up with the zombies. Two such corpses currently hang among the undead. Benabak hopes to one day gain the resources to raise these corpses as zombies as well.
Those who wish to end Benabak’s tiny reign of corruption may do best to outwit him by beating the imp at his own game.

--

Book of the Damned Vol. 1, Princes of Darkness pg. 28

Imps: Typically sculpted by a powerful devil from a single lemure, imps are usually created for a specific purpose. An infernal lord can create an imp in moments, often treating these fiends as disposable couriers, accounting for the great numbers of them throughout most layers of Hell.

--

Imps
Masters of underestimation, imps throughout the multiverse have an infamous reputation for being craven, pandering, sadistic weaklings that fearfully obey any creature larger and stronger than themselves. While unquestionably true, imps know the stories and expectations of those who call upon them and go to great lengths to play such roles. Beneath their cowardly and toadying natures lie calculating minds. Patiently and humbly they serve even the most unfit, eagerly whispering advice and subtly manipulating those who think themselves masters. In the end, imps quickly turn on those they’ve served even for centuries, trusting in their decades-long machinations to eternally damn their foul former masters.

The process of summoning imps as familiars has burgeoned widely through the planes, largely spread by devils and imps. Delighting in tempting their masters down the path of diabolism, imps gradually dole forth their knowledge of Hell’s powers on a quid pro quo basis, revealing their familiarity with the Pit in exchange for small acts of depravity. While the details of such exchanges are rarely truthful, few spellcasters who would summon a devilish familiar balk at the increasingly depraved acts their servants require in payment.

Infernal Sacrifice: As a placation to their tiny egos, imps favor small, bloody sacrifices that suggest their summoner’s wilingness to do evil. Those who offer a heart cut from the breast of a still-living dove gain a +2 bonus on Charisma checks made to summon an imp.

House Freth: Reference Information
House Claddath: Reference Information
"What's a heretic?": a guide to religious schism terminology

Irongron wrote:

4. No full screen images of the NWN gnome model (might frighten the children)


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