But he was never mortal because mortals were created after his time, so he isn't dead, because he hasn't died, because he's immortal. I guess it depends on your definition to an extent. If you describe dead as immortal, then yes, he's dead, but he still never went through the process of death, so I still don't think that would be true. Just my opinion- I haven't read the Sin War. Happen to have a quote, though?
But he was never mortal because mortals were created after his time, so he isn't dead, because he hasn't died, because he's immortal. I guess it depends on your definition to an extent. If you describe dead as immortal, then yes, he's dead, but he still never went through the process of death, so I still don't think that would be true. Just my opinion- I haven't read the Sin War. Happen to have a quote, though?
YOU NEVER READ THE SIN WAR?!?!!?!?!?!?!?!?!? Shame
Rollback Post to RevisionRollBack
www.myspace.com/mpotatoes for all your Trans Siberian Orchestra listening pleasure
If you want to arrange it
This world you can change it
If we could somehow make this
Christmas thing last
By helping a neighbor
Or even a stranger
And to know who needs help
You need only just ask
i always wondered this to but i read the sin war books and figured that its probably the same as demons ...go to a voidish place and come back stronger haha
Rollback Post to RevisionRollBack
:cool:i dont know how to make banners an such so ill put quotes
god grant me the serenity,
to accept the things i cannot change, courage to change the things i can and wisdom to know the difference
Now, the Worldstone was created by Inarius, was it not? This allowed him to completely mask Sanctuary's presence completely from both the High Heavens and Burnings Hells, but eventually things didn't work out so well, and both sides found it and attacked it, then had a truce and... well I haven't read that far yet *just finished the trilogy*.
He actually stole it if I remember correctly. And that truce (more forced than anything) was absolutely epic beyond all reason if you know what im talking about ;). dont wanna spoil anything
"The fun thing is that Belial and Azmodan exiled the prime evils to Sanctuary, hoping that it would give them a advantage in the war. They hoped that Heaven would focus their powers on the 3 most powerful demons in Sanctuary, making it easier for Belial and Azmodan to defeat Heaven. But they fought over who should get the power and blabla civil war..."
This is the only flaw in the explanation. In DII we're told that the Prime Evils orchestrated their exile into Sanctuary. The agreements made between the High Heavens and the Burning Hells expressly forbade direct interference in the mortal realm, as you indirectly stated earlier. It was therefore necessary for the Prime Evil's to use subterfuge to enter mankind's domain and begin converting souls to their daemonic cause (why couldn't they just outright break the pact with heaven? These guys are evil, so a better question would be: why did they make the pact in the first place? One possible answer: they knew that the honorable host of Heaven wouldn't break the pact first. The Prime Evils would then be free to take and hold the initiative in the Sin War, knowing full well that Heaven would always be the reactionary force, never upping the ante of their own volition).
Thus, once the Brother's were freed from their false prisons (the soul stones, given to Tyrael by Izual, which were intended by the latter to be corrupted), they were able to open an Infernal Gate and send Diablo through to the Burning Hells not only unopposed, but (we can rightly assume) welcomed by his vile brethren.
Think about it: the Maiden of Anguish and the Prince of Pain weren't in Sanctuary to try and destroy the Prime Evils. Anduriel and Belial both were covering for their masters' escape from captivity - protecting them from the interference of angel and mortal alike (though woefully unsuccessful).
"The fun thing is that Belial and Azmodan exiled the prime evils to Sanctuary, hoping that it would give them a advantage in the war. They hoped that Heaven would focus their powers on the 3 most powerful demons in Sanctuary, making it easier for Belial and Azmodan to defeat Heaven. But they fought over who should get the power and blabla civil war..."
This is a quote then? Where did you find this? Yes, the Lesser Evils did plot to exile the Prime Evils into the Mortal realm, but it was not so Hell could defeat Heaven more easily. It was just so they could rule Hell themselves because they desired more power.
Quote from name="Divine Avenger" »
This is the only flaw in the explanation. In DII we're told that the Prime Evils orchestrated their exile into Sanctuary.
I'm not sure it was a flaw in the explanation. It would be more accurate to say that the only accessible being who knew of the true plot of the Prime Evils to exile themselves to Sanctuary was Izual. It is possible that the Lesser Evils did try to overthrow the Prime Evils and succeeded, or maybe Izual was trying to manipulate you into thinking that it was all intentional. Either way there was a conspiracy, but I'm not certain we know for sure what the real circumstances of the exile were.
Quote from name="Divine Avenger" »
The agreements made between the High Heavens and the Burning Hells expressly forbade direct interference in the mortal realm, as you indirectly stated earlier.
This is actually incorrect. The High Heavens did in fact have a policy of non-interference with the moral realm, but the Burning Hells had no such policy especially since they were not necessarily united behind policy. It is mentioned in the D1 manual I believe that the demons of the Burning Hells were actually jealous of the potential power that mortals possessed. Many demons intentionally got involved with Sanctuary's affairs to see what powers they could exploit for themselves.
Quote from name="Divine Avenger" »
It was therefore necessary for the Prime Evil's to use subterfuge to enter mankind's domain and begin converting souls to their daemonic cause (why couldn't they just outright break the pact with heaven? These guys are evil, so a better question would be: why did they make the pact in the first place?
I can only reiterate that I believe you are wrong about this. No such pact ever existed between the two forces. I don't think any pact of any kind has ever existed between the two. Order and chaos don't really make treaties with one another.
Quote from name="Divine Avenger" »
Thus, once the Brother's were freed from their false prisons (the soul stones, given to Tyrael by Izual, which were intended by the latter to be corrupted), they were able to open an Infernal Gate and send Diablo through to the Burning Hells not only unopposed, but (we can rightly assume) welcomed by his vile brethren.
False prisons? Why you gotta play the Horadrim like that? They weren't false prisons. They were just inadequate prisons and this leads to one of the last reputations the Horadrim were known for, their hubris and arrogance. They felt they could contain the demons indefinitely. And Tyrael could only hope that the mortal agency would ultimately prove worthy of his direct aid and ultimately succeed in imprisoning the Prime Evils forever. I believe this actually suggests how aloof and out of touch Tyrael was with mortals. He wanted to help, but he was also very misguided.
Quote from name="Divine Avenger" »
Think about it: the Maiden of Anguish and the Prince of Pain weren't in Sanctuary to try and destroy the Prime Evils. Anduriel and Belial both were covering for their masters' escape from captivity - protecting them from the interference of angel and mortal alike (though woefully unsuccessful).
I believe by the time of D2, they Prime Evils were either highly restored in their power, or at least seemingly so to the Lesser Evils. Andariel and Duriel were merely playing politics. They sensed that the Prime Evils were about to ascend again, and instead of risking getting their asses kicked once they did, they decided instead serve them in an effort to save themselves. As to why Azmodan and Belial were not in on that, we may never know. Or we may never know at least until the release of D3.
First off, what a beautifully constructed argument. Props for that.
Quote from name="Divine Avenger" »
"The fun thing is that Belial and Azmodan exiled the prime evils to Sanctuary, hoping that it would give them a advantage in the war. They hoped that Heaven would focus their powers on the 3 most powerful demons in Sanctuary, making it easier for Belial and Azmodan to defeat Heaven. But they fought over who should get the power and blabla civil war..."
This is the only flaw in the explanation. In DII we're told that the Prime Evils orchestrated their exile into Sanctuary. The agreements made between the High Heavens and the Burning Hells expressly forbade direct interference in the mortal realm, as you indirectly stated earlier. It was therefore necessary for the Prime Evil's to use subterfuge to enter mankind's domain and begin converting souls to their daemonic cause (why couldn't they just outright break the pact with heaven? These guys are evil, so a better question would be: why did they make the pact in the first place? One possible answer: they knew that the honorable host of Heaven wouldn't break the pact first. The Prime Evils would then be free to take and hold the initiative in the Sin War, knowing full well that Heaven would always be the reactionary force, never upping the ante of their own volition).
Thus, once the Brother's were freed from their false prisons (the soul stones, given to Tyrael by Izual, which were intended by the latter to be corrupted), they were able to open an Infernal Gate and send Diablo through to the Burning Hells not only unopposed, but (we can rightly assume) welcomed by his vile brethren.
Think about it: the Maiden of Anguish and the Prince of Pain weren't in Sanctuary to try and destroy the Prime Evils. Andariel and Belial both were covering for their masters' escape from captivity - protecting them from the interference of angel and mortal alike (though woefully unsuccessful).
I think there is more to this idea. What was not explained here was the simple question, "Why?" Why go through the ridiculous charade instead of brazenly reigniting the war? It was stated in "The Black Road", I believe, that demons are very patient and complex creatures, and that their plots are even more complex. This would, then, apply to the three Prime Evils.
I feel that each of the Prime carry similar traits to the Gods of old as we know them: Zeus, Heimdall, Sekhmet (to name a few), in that they embody the characteristics of their "domain". That is, they know everything there is to know about their domain, not only the good, the bad, and the ugly, but also become a personified version of that domain. It may sound confusing, but bear with me.
Baal is the Lord of Destruction. From what we've seen in the videos and his actions, he does that job very well. He is the brute force of the Three, this being exemplary of the method on which you fight him. The player must battle several waves of enemies before attacking Baal head on. In his logic and his methods, he is destructive and relies on strength versus wit to accomplish his goal.
Mephisto is the Lord of Hatred. He would be considered the "brains" of the Three. He is manipulative and evasive. Even his true form, which has never been completely identified, is ethereal in nature. This can be seen in the Durance (and even in Tristram), as it is a maze. Even when fighting him, Mephisto uses trickery (ghostly spirits and council members) to throw the player off balance when fighting him.
And finally, Diablo, the Lord of Terror. Though considered one of the more powerful of the three, I feel he is the most clever and calculating of the three. Nothing the heroes have done in the previous games has ever truly set him back. He's planned all of this since their original "exile" from the Burning Hells. Take note of the Chaos Sanctuary. There are five buttons that must be hit in order to "summon" Diablo. If the developers had more time and a bigger budget at the time, the nodes might've required a correct sequence to open.
Nevertheless, everything done is done for a reason. This would explain Tyreal's survival. Tyreal is the only one on Sanctuary who could've destroyed the Worldstone, which, in my honest opinion, was one of the final goals of Diablo and his ilk.
To fight on Sanctuary as another battlefield though? I don't feel so. Using the humans as warriors, destroying the Worldstone to "unlock" the potential for the Nephalem, is desirable for both sides of the Great War.
Rollback Post to RevisionRollBack
------------------------------------------- Those who stand for nothing will fall for anything.
-------------------------------------------
Nevertheless, everything done is done for a reason. This would explain Tyreal's survival. Tyreal is the only one on Sanctuary who could've destroyed the Worldstone, which, in my honest opinion, was one of the final goals of Diablo and his ilk.
I don't know about that. I'd like to think there are some things that even these powerful beings cannot foresee. I believe Diablo was genuinely shocked by Tyrael's presence in the tomb, but he also could sense Tyrael's power waning rapidly. I'm not sure we know for certain either that only Tyrael could destroy the Worldstone. And I'm one of the few I think that actually believe Baal wanted the Worldstone in tact as a sort of antenna to his power. That's why he'd corrupt first and convert it into something he could harness.
Quote from "OathofChaos" »
To fight on Sanctuary as another battlefield though? I don't feel so. Using the humans as warriors, destroying the Worldstone to "unlock" the potential for the Nephalem, is desirable for both sides of the Great War.
I think the Prime Evils really did just want Sanctuary as a new front to their war and to be able to exploit mortals and their planet as a resource.
I think the Prime Evils really did just want Sanctuary as a new front to their war and to be able to exploit mortals and their planet as a resource.
Having seen the prowess of humans from the Sin War, I think that the Prime Three's whole plan was to corrupt the humans and use them as tools in the war. I believe that was said by the Council when they arrived, as their reason to destroy Sanctuary.
Rollback Post to RevisionRollBack
------------------------------------------- Those who stand for nothing will fall for anything.
-------------------------------------------
To fight on Sanctuary as another battlefield though? I don't feel so. Using the humans as warriors, destroying the Worldstone to "unlock" the potential for the Nephalem, is desirable for both sides of the Great War.
This was a theory I had some time ago. I had originally thought, however, that the destruction of the World Stone would sever Sanctuary from the other realms, during which time the few surviving demons would be able to corrupt humanity. Once the veils thinned, they would emerge from the world as an unstoppable torrent of nightmare and destruction against Heaven, the Nephalem's powers re-awakened as they were released from the World Stone.
Rollback Post to RevisionRollBack
Be it through hallowed grounds or lands of sorrow
All in the Forger's wake is left bereft and fallow
Is the residuum worth the cost of destruction and maiming;
Or is the shaping a culling and exercise in taming?
The road's goal is the dark Origin of Being
But be wary through what thickets it winds.
-Excerpt from the Litany of Residuum;
As Translated by He Who Brings Order
i have played both games and i just now decided to get more into the story. why does mephisto remain in kurast. is he still trapped there and is still forced to do his bidding through the zakharum or is it to gaurd the gate by which diablo passes? also why is diablo sent through the gate to which i am assuming is to hell but im not sure. sorry if i am asking very simple and somewhat stupid questions but i just wanted to get a better understanding of the basic plot.
Both of those questions really don't have answers. Personally I assume they were just keeping us busy while Baal was doing whatever the hell he was doing to the worldstone (which we're also unsure of).
Sure they have answers. Mephisto was in Kurast because he was imprisoned there. He may have had control of the Zakarum and access to a huge fuck off Hell portal (for some reason), but he still seemed trapped there nonetheless.
Diablo returns to Hell to rally forces there. That was always my understanding. Who knew what all the forces of Hell were up to while the Prime Evils and some of the Lesser Evils were on Sanctuary.
I've a very simple theory/answer about this question.
They didn't spared tyreal's life. It's clear that Tyreal had the edge of the fight in that moment (diablo was in human form and baal was still weak for several reasons even through he was able to save Diablo from Tyreal.). They barely scaped from Tal Rasha's tomb. In attempt to gain time, they were able to trap Tyreal there and run away, but surely not able to kill him.
I think some of you overestimate the level of deviousness even from the Prime Evils. I think it is true indeed that they planned their own exile to Sanctuary. But I do not believe it was Diablo's plan to let you kill him in the Chaos Sanctuary. I mean, they aren't all knowing or anything. And humans are erratic. Why can't it just be that you killed Diablo because he failed, not because he was letting you. And what if his plan was to let you kill him but he accidentally killed you first? Eh? Cause he sure killed me plenty of times. Then he'd be all, "Oh fuck me, now I have to wait for someone else to kill me cause I can't just kill myself for some reason." Conspiracies do exist in this game's story, neither the High Heavens or the Burning Hells are full of all knowing omnipotent beings. I think sometimes we actually think those two sides are like the Heaven and Hell of how we understand it to be in the Bible. But in Diablo, there's no God or Satan. There are just really powerful angels and really powerful demons. The Prime Evils, they annointed themselves with that title. It's not like they're the natural rulers of Hell. They are the rulers of Hell because they managed to be just powerful enough to assert themselves as such.
So all I'm saying is that even for these guys, things may not always go according to plan. Yes there are conspiracies, but you suck all the fun out of the story when you assume that everything happened for a reason. It's supposed to be by a slim chance that your character defeats Diablo. And maybe once he and Mephisto was destroyed, maybe only then did Baal fall back on a plan for the Worldstone.
As for the question with Mephisto and whether or not he was trapped, maybe he really wasn't. Macros is probably right about that. But he definitely seemed weakened or still recovering his strength. He possessed the body of Sankekur, the top Zakarum priest and what you see of him was likely his unfinished metamorphosis with his new host. Just as Baal had not finished metamorphisizing by the time you see in him Act 3 (I often wonder where he was hiding when you were attacking Mephisto). So yes, he may have been free, but not strong enough to risk going into either Hell or the surface of Sanctuary. Diablo, for whatever reason, was strong enough. Maybe when Diablo returned to Hell he actually did have to fight some other demons who did not wish his return. Remember that Hell is not united. It only is seemingly so under the imposed order of a powerful demon or a group of powerful demons such as the Prime Evils.
So you get to the Zakarum Temple, and Mephisto is there to stop you from pursuing Diablo but he is still weak. Yet he still is overconfident in his abilities since he just took over an entire city of zealots. Can't we just believe that he thought he'd kill you but ultimately failed? And the same with Diablo. In the end he just wasn't strong enough to defeat you and his plans got all fucked up. So fucked up were their plans in fact, that Baal decided to ruin everyone's shit by taking it to the Worldstone in some last attempt to claim Sanctuary as his as well as all mortals' souls.
Can a mod get rid of that [fixed spelling] in the thread's title? It's really fucking annoying.
I have seen these kind's of questions all over forums regarding Tyrael and what not. I think that Tyrael was not killed because as previously stated the prime evil were in their weakened states and were not able to "kill" him. I think considering he is an arch-angel that he would also be reborn like the Prime Evils would be so in the long run it would not be worth wasting their energy to kill him. There main intent was to reach Mephisto. Although i still don't understand why Hell would want to take over Sanctuary. The only plausible explenation would be that it would be a place to gather the army and attack Heavan. In order to do this they would have to break free of the Soulstones and get to Mt. Arreat. In order for them to get all of Hell onto Sanctuary they would have to destroy the Worldstone which protects Sanctuary from Heavan and hell. (I know i am jumping around a bit..so many ideas rushing through my head.)
Now you wonder, how did they get to Sanctuary in the first place? The soulstones,,thats right the very object to contain them. They would posses they nearest human which led to them regaining their power. Whose idea was it to make the Soulstones? TYRAEL! It always comes back to him. Perhaps he had been working with the three and had make the soulstone knowing they would escape, which is why he is spared. Tyrael has already been disliked by heaven for interfering with Sanctuary which the angels were not supposed to do. He has nothing to lose and i assume he turns into a power hungry beings like most antagonists. Now the reason for destroying the soulstone seems obvious, to help the 3. Baal had simply corrupted it to make it look that Tryrael had destroyed it for a semi legitimate reason. I dont think that the 3 had their death in mind but i think Hell has underestimated the Nephalem while heaven is somewhat afraid of them. I highly doubt that the 3 are terribly afraind of there death considering they will be reborn in the abyss. With Tyrael as a covert agent if he succeeds in destroying the Worldstone they can just hop right into Sanctuary and a massive unending war will begin.
This is my theory hope you enjoy it.
Rollback Post to RevisionRollBack
To post a comment, please login or register a new account.
YOU NEVER READ THE SIN WAR?!?!!?!?!?!?!?!?!? Shame
If you want to arrange it
This world you can change it
If we could somehow make this
Christmas thing last
By helping a neighbor
Or even a stranger
And to know who needs help
You need only just ask
god grant me the serenity,
to accept the things i cannot change, courage to change the things i can and wisdom to know the difference
He actually stole it if I remember correctly. And that truce (more forced than anything) was absolutely epic beyond all reason if you know what im talking about ;). dont wanna spoil anything
This is the only flaw in the explanation. In DII we're told that the Prime Evils orchestrated their exile into Sanctuary. The agreements made between the High Heavens and the Burning Hells expressly forbade direct interference in the mortal realm, as you indirectly stated earlier. It was therefore necessary for the Prime Evil's to use subterfuge to enter mankind's domain and begin converting souls to their daemonic cause (why couldn't they just outright break the pact with heaven? These guys are evil, so a better question would be: why did they make the pact in the first place? One possible answer: they knew that the honorable host of Heaven wouldn't break the pact first. The Prime Evils would then be free to take and hold the initiative in the Sin War, knowing full well that Heaven would always be the reactionary force, never upping the ante of their own volition).
Thus, once the Brother's were freed from their false prisons (the soul stones, given to Tyrael by Izual, which were intended by the latter to be corrupted), they were able to open an Infernal Gate and send Diablo through to the Burning Hells not only unopposed, but (we can rightly assume) welcomed by his vile brethren.
Think about it: the Maiden of Anguish and the Prince of Pain weren't in Sanctuary to try and destroy the Prime Evils. Anduriel and Belial both were covering for their masters' escape from captivity - protecting them from the interference of angel and mortal alike (though woefully unsuccessful).
I'm not sure it was a flaw in the explanation. It would be more accurate to say that the only accessible being who knew of the true plot of the Prime Evils to exile themselves to Sanctuary was Izual. It is possible that the Lesser Evils did try to overthrow the Prime Evils and succeeded, or maybe Izual was trying to manipulate you into thinking that it was all intentional. Either way there was a conspiracy, but I'm not certain we know for sure what the real circumstances of the exile were.
This is actually incorrect. The High Heavens did in fact have a policy of non-interference with the moral realm, but the Burning Hells had no such policy especially since they were not necessarily united behind policy. It is mentioned in the D1 manual I believe that the demons of the Burning Hells were actually jealous of the potential power that mortals possessed. Many demons intentionally got involved with Sanctuary's affairs to see what powers they could exploit for themselves.
I can only reiterate that I believe you are wrong about this. No such pact ever existed between the two forces. I don't think any pact of any kind has ever existed between the two. Order and chaos don't really make treaties with one another.
False prisons? Why you gotta play the Horadrim like that? They weren't false prisons. They were just inadequate prisons and this leads to one of the last reputations the Horadrim were known for, their hubris and arrogance. They felt they could contain the demons indefinitely. And Tyrael could only hope that the mortal agency would ultimately prove worthy of his direct aid and ultimately succeed in imprisoning the Prime Evils forever. I believe this actually suggests how aloof and out of touch Tyrael was with mortals. He wanted to help, but he was also very misguided.
I believe by the time of D2, they Prime Evils were either highly restored in their power, or at least seemingly so to the Lesser Evils. Andariel and Duriel were merely playing politics. They sensed that the Prime Evils were about to ascend again, and instead of risking getting their asses kicked once they did, they decided instead serve them in an effort to save themselves. As to why Azmodan and Belial were not in on that, we may never know. Or we may never know at least until the release of D3.
Siaynoq's Playthroughs
I think there is more to this idea. What was not explained here was the simple question, "Why?" Why go through the ridiculous charade instead of brazenly reigniting the war? It was stated in "The Black Road", I believe, that demons are very patient and complex creatures, and that their plots are even more complex. This would, then, apply to the three Prime Evils.
I feel that each of the Prime carry similar traits to the Gods of old as we know them: Zeus, Heimdall, Sekhmet (to name a few), in that they embody the characteristics of their "domain". That is, they know everything there is to know about their domain, not only the good, the bad, and the ugly, but also become a personified version of that domain. It may sound confusing, but bear with me.
Baal is the Lord of Destruction. From what we've seen in the videos and his actions, he does that job very well. He is the brute force of the Three, this being exemplary of the method on which you fight him. The player must battle several waves of enemies before attacking Baal head on. In his logic and his methods, he is destructive and relies on strength versus wit to accomplish his goal.
Mephisto is the Lord of Hatred. He would be considered the "brains" of the Three. He is manipulative and evasive. Even his true form, which has never been completely identified, is ethereal in nature. This can be seen in the Durance (and even in Tristram), as it is a maze. Even when fighting him, Mephisto uses trickery (ghostly spirits and council members) to throw the player off balance when fighting him.
And finally, Diablo, the Lord of Terror. Though considered one of the more powerful of the three, I feel he is the most clever and calculating of the three. Nothing the heroes have done in the previous games has ever truly set him back. He's planned all of this since their original "exile" from the Burning Hells. Take note of the Chaos Sanctuary. There are five buttons that must be hit in order to "summon" Diablo. If the developers had more time and a bigger budget at the time, the nodes might've required a correct sequence to open.
Nevertheless, everything done is done for a reason. This would explain Tyreal's survival. Tyreal is the only one on Sanctuary who could've destroyed the Worldstone, which, in my honest opinion, was one of the final goals of Diablo and his ilk.
To fight on Sanctuary as another battlefield though? I don't feel so. Using the humans as warriors, destroying the Worldstone to "unlock" the potential for the Nephalem, is desirable for both sides of the Great War.
-------------------------------------------
Those who stand for nothing will fall for anything.
-------------------------------------------
I think the Prime Evils really did just want Sanctuary as a new front to their war and to be able to exploit mortals and their planet as a resource.
Siaynoq's Playthroughs
Having seen the prowess of humans from the Sin War, I think that the Prime Three's whole plan was to corrupt the humans and use them as tools in the war. I believe that was said by the Council when they arrived, as their reason to destroy Sanctuary.
-------------------------------------------
Those who stand for nothing will fall for anything.
-------------------------------------------
This was a theory I had some time ago. I had originally thought, however, that the destruction of the World Stone would sever Sanctuary from the other realms, during which time the few surviving demons would be able to corrupt humanity. Once the veils thinned, they would emerge from the world as an unstoppable torrent of nightmare and destruction against Heaven, the Nephalem's powers re-awakened as they were released from the World Stone.
All in the Forger's wake is left bereft and fallow-Excerpt from the Litany of Residuum;
As Translated by He Who Brings Order
The world may never know...
Diablo returns to Hell to rally forces there. That was always my understanding. Who knew what all the forces of Hell were up to while the Prime Evils and some of the Lesser Evils were on Sanctuary.
Siaynoq's Playthroughs
They didn't spared tyreal's life. It's clear that Tyreal had the edge of the fight in that moment (diablo was in human form and baal was still weak for several reasons even through he was able to save Diablo from Tyreal.). They barely scaped from Tal Rasha's tomb. In attempt to gain time, they were able to trap Tyreal there and run away, but surely not able to kill him.
So all I'm saying is that even for these guys, things may not always go according to plan. Yes there are conspiracies, but you suck all the fun out of the story when you assume that everything happened for a reason. It's supposed to be by a slim chance that your character defeats Diablo. And maybe once he and Mephisto was destroyed, maybe only then did Baal fall back on a plan for the Worldstone.
As for the question with Mephisto and whether or not he was trapped, maybe he really wasn't. Macros is probably right about that. But he definitely seemed weakened or still recovering his strength. He possessed the body of Sankekur, the top Zakarum priest and what you see of him was likely his unfinished metamorphosis with his new host. Just as Baal had not finished metamorphisizing by the time you see in him Act 3 (I often wonder where he was hiding when you were attacking Mephisto). So yes, he may have been free, but not strong enough to risk going into either Hell or the surface of Sanctuary. Diablo, for whatever reason, was strong enough. Maybe when Diablo returned to Hell he actually did have to fight some other demons who did not wish his return. Remember that Hell is not united. It only is seemingly so under the imposed order of a powerful demon or a group of powerful demons such as the Prime Evils.
So you get to the Zakarum Temple, and Mephisto is there to stop you from pursuing Diablo but he is still weak. Yet he still is overconfident in his abilities since he just took over an entire city of zealots. Can't we just believe that he thought he'd kill you but ultimately failed? And the same with Diablo. In the end he just wasn't strong enough to defeat you and his plans got all fucked up. So fucked up were their plans in fact, that Baal decided to ruin everyone's shit by taking it to the Worldstone in some last attempt to claim Sanctuary as his as well as all mortals' souls.
Can a mod get rid of that [fixed spelling] in the thread's title? It's really fucking annoying.
Siaynoq's Playthroughs
Now you wonder, how did they get to Sanctuary in the first place? The soulstones,,thats right the very object to contain them. They would posses they nearest human which led to them regaining their power. Whose idea was it to make the Soulstones? TYRAEL! It always comes back to him. Perhaps he had been working with the three and had make the soulstone knowing they would escape, which is why he is spared. Tyrael has already been disliked by heaven for interfering with Sanctuary which the angels were not supposed to do. He has nothing to lose and i assume he turns into a power hungry beings like most antagonists. Now the reason for destroying the soulstone seems obvious, to help the 3. Baal had simply corrupted it to make it look that Tryrael had destroyed it for a semi legitimate reason. I dont think that the 3 had their death in mind but i think Hell has underestimated the Nephalem while heaven is somewhat afraid of them. I highly doubt that the 3 are terribly afraind of there death considering they will be reborn in the abyss. With Tyrael as a covert agent if he succeeds in destroying the Worldstone they can just hop right into Sanctuary and a massive unending war will begin.
This is my theory hope you enjoy it.