The only answer is, We don't know. All will be revealed in the newest installment!!1
We can speculate all we want, but until then, well...
Much speculation rests on the Black Soulstone. We think it somehow taps into the Abyss, where the souls of Mephisto, Diablo and Baal were sent upon their deaths. The Abyss is the nether realm from which nothing emerges. Supposedly.
Anyways. The Black Soulstone was created by a member of the Horadrim, Zoltun Kulle, and was made to imprison the souls of Demons and Angels alike. Now, Azmodan is searching for this, which would give him the power of all the other Prime Evils, since they've mostly all been killed off and sent to the Abyss. It could be from this demonic amalgamation of souls, coupled with the fact that... something something something (spoiler:
Leah is, through the Dark Wanderer, Diablo's daughter
)... that Diablo manifests as the strongest-willed demon.
So, that's the theory we're running with now. Help any?
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've been thinking about the nature of Diablo's newest incarnation.
It's generally accepted the fan community that Diablo will absorb the Greater Evils and manifest into that body, becoming THE Prime Evil incarnate. We see characteristics of different creatures fused in this new body, and it's generally accepted that this comes from Baal, Mephisto, Andariel, Duriel and Diablo himself.
This was something I believed, too, until V-Day.
Sin Incarnate: The Lieutenants
Blizzard released imagery of Gluttony Incarnate, one of Asmodan's lieutenants. I looked him up and found something surprising. I then researched what we know about Asmodan's other lieutenants: Cyndaea, Ghom and Rakanoth.
Ghom -- Gluttony -- has these... mouths on his shoulders. So does New Diablo. So I thought to myself, What if Diablo has absorbed not the Greater Evils, but Asmodan's lieutenants? He has Ghom's shoulders; the feminine quality of Cyndaea; and the blades of Takanoth.
Asmodan's Plan: Betrayal
Thinking about this also made me wonder about Asmodan's goals. Presumably, he knows of "The Trap" that befell the demons of Hell. Many of us believe that the Black Soulstone is the key to this "trap", absorbing demonic souls sent to the Void, Angelic and Demonic. This would let Asmodan become The Prime Evil, once he gets his hands on the stone and all its souls.
So why invade Sanctuary? Does hesimply hope to find it? What if he has a another goal? Perhaps he is leading the Legions of Hell to their doom in order to fill the void with even more demonic souls? This would include his lieutenants' deaths!
This is what Baal did; he spread destruction across the world to empower his Soulstone of Destructiob and use it to corrupt the WorldStone.
Perhaps it is through these deaths that Diablo gains the new body? Perhaps -- and this would be a kicker! -- the amaglamated souls of all demonic kind cry out for revenge against Asmodan, and fuse together in defiance? That would be an interesting twist; Asmodan's own lieutenants avenge their own deaths after he betrays them!
After[birth]thoughts
Of course, it's been said that some of Asmodan's lieutenants live on in order to perpetuate the Diablo franchise in expansions. My hypothesis also leaves out the Arch Angels. All I can say to that is, Perhaps their contribution to the New Diablo takes on the form of those long, curving blades on his back, a physical manifestation of their angelic wings?
Who knows. Just a few thoughts.
tl;dr Asmodan betrays his lieutenants; their bodies/souls are fused together to form the New Diablo.
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
Okay. What fascinates me about Necromancers is their ability to perceive and manipulate what they call "Prime Energies" that flow through all things. Like the Unformed Lands, it is omnipresent. This grants Necromancers the ability to animate the inanimate, such as raising the dead and manipulating chemicals and particles from afar (corpse explosion, poison nova, etc). These energies also allow them to twist the fates of others. Essentially, Necromancers bend probability over and make it their bitch.
I think Priests of Rathma and Umbaru Witch Doctors may perceive the same thing differently, allowing for similar yet divergent powers. Unfortunately we don't know enough about either the Unformed Lands or Prime Energies to make any real guesses.
EDIT I hadn't realized this before but Goatmen were originally derived from the Umbaru, with their Shaman analogous to Witch Doctors. I hope we get to see more of them in DIII, it'll give us a lot more information about their culture and the Unformed Lands!
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 really though Mephisto was boring until I discovered his soulstone was split into shards, and that each of the council members was corrupted by these shards and was mutated by them, and that Mephisto saved the largest chunk for his own incarnation. Interesting.
Well, I'm not so sure of this anymore. Most reference to this event has been erased, and it is never referred to anywhere else, which I find strange.
Mephisto's always been the most interesting character to me, since he single-handedly corrupted the Zakarum faith, driving out the Paladins; and sent Lazarus to Kinh Leoric, thus allowing the Bishop to free and aid Diablo. In this way Mephisto's been the most determined of the three, driving all these various plots and characters even while he was locked away within a Soulstone. I just wonder what he might have done if he had more time outside the Soulstone! What then?
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 agree with you, Creepsville. He's the Silent Antagonist, just like Master Chief or your Diablo character might be the Silent Protagonist. He's more of an event than anything else. To date, his most layered depiction was in Diablo II as he struggled with the Warrior's spirit and will for control of the body. A lot of what the Dark Wanderer does are half-Diablo, half-Warrior.
(And yes, the Warrior has a name, revealed in DIII.)
We get more of a glimpse of his brothers, Mephisto and Baal. The former is totally into the whole evil, dominate-the-world thing, while Baal obviously takes delight in wreaking havoc on a much more personal level. In this way, Baal and Mephisto are at opposite ends.
Diablo... well, we never get a sense for where Diablo fits in. The Book of Cain suggests he's much more personal, like Baal, as he "views himself as an artist of terror," but so far we don't really see any indication of that in the games. He's just kinda... there.
You are right that the brothers are much more well known than Diablo himself. Which might be part of the point of the game. Nothing that happens in Sanctuary would have been possible without Diablo. Like I said, he is more of an event than an individual. Which is where his appeal comes from.
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
And I really wouldn't but much stock into the Book of Cain and its bearing on DIII; Deckard Cain repeatedly tells the reader to take what they read in his tome with a pinch of salt, that everything is still up for interpretation. I think there would be something behind Imperius' inclinations to side with Asmodan, some sort of subtle corruption he may not be aware. But I like your theory.
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
Blizzard recently announced a contest calling for original Heroes for the Diablo universe. I'm pretty excited about this contest, 'cause I know there are plenty of creative minds out there just itching to contribute. Full details can be found here.
I've got a couple ideas of my own, but can't pin down exactly what to do. I have a selection of three rough drafts here. I have my own inclinations, but wanted to get some input first.
Hopefully we can get other members of the forums involved in this contest. I'd love to see what you people can come up with.
Demon Class
The first image I've got here is a spin on the old wished-for Hero Class, the Demon, but with a bit of a spin to it. The Heroe's story is pretty much this: Part of a small cabal of bored, young and affluential dabblers in magic, this tragic young figure delved much too deep into the lore and magics of Vizjerei summoning. Now, inextricably tied with a demonic presence, this Dark Wanderer strives to contain the darkness within while using his newfound powers for the betterment of Sanctuary's denizens.
Or, it could just be a good demon, balancing out all the fallen angels we've got running around. I'm pretty attached to this one. His armor is cobbled together as he stands with two orphans rescued from a demon raid on a village, which smolders in the background.
Necromancer Adept
Here we've got The Adept, a pupil in the Cult of Rathma, binding the primal forces to her will in an exploration of raising the dead. Her first subject is a dead raven. She shows promise, indeed. Her mentor, the Necromancer from Diablo II, watches from the shadows in approval.
I see a lot of promise when it comes to atmosphere, and get a nice chance to show of my own interpretation of Necromancer magics in action. Plus, hot goth chick. Wondering whether to give her glasses.
Barbarian Ancient
Finally, we've got the onligatory Barbarian. In the background we have a Barbarian who's been memorialized in a statue. At top we see him at his prime, a full-color picture from an ancient victory; but as we move down the figure it turns to stone, resting in a chamber near Horragoth. A Barbarian elder is inducting two young Barbarians as they praise the exploits of a dead hero together.
To me, this is the most compositionally appealing, but also the most difficult to portray realistically without it coming off as forced or silly. If I go with this one, I've got a lot of work ahead of me.
Alright, people, tell me what you think! And don't forget to contribute your own artwork!
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 was disappointed by it. I thought we'd get more content and background on the classes, characters and history. New additions, a broadening of the world. But all we got was a lengthy summary any of us could have written better.
I'm an artist, so I absolutely had to get this for the artwork and craftsmanship. But if it were not for that, I would have waited for it to come to my local library.
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
We do face off against some of his lieutenants, so I can see Imperius falling to Asmodan's power in some subtle, indirect way. It would be in such a way that Imperius falls right into Asmodan's hands without realizing it.
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
We can speculate all we want, but until then, well...
Much speculation rests on the Black Soulstone. We think it somehow taps into the Abyss, where the souls of Mephisto, Diablo and Baal were sent upon their deaths. The Abyss is the nether realm from which nothing emerges. Supposedly.
Anyways. The Black Soulstone was created by a member of the Horadrim, Zoltun Kulle, and was made to imprison the souls of Demons and Angels alike. Now, Azmodan is searching for this, which would give him the power of all the other Prime Evils, since they've mostly all been killed off and sent to the Abyss. It could be from this demonic amalgamation of souls, coupled with the fact that... something something something (spoiler:
So, that's the theory we're running with now. Help any?
All in the Forger's wake is left bereft and fallow-Excerpt from the Litany of Residuum;
As Translated by He Who Brings Order
All in the Forger's wake is left bereft and fallow-Excerpt from the Litany of Residuum;
As Translated by He Who Brings Order
All in the Forger's wake is left bereft and fallow-Excerpt from the Litany of Residuum;
As Translated by He Who Brings Order
It's generally accepted the fan community that Diablo will absorb the Greater Evils and manifest into that body, becoming THE Prime Evil incarnate. We see characteristics of different creatures fused in this new body, and it's generally accepted that this comes from Baal, Mephisto, Andariel, Duriel and Diablo himself.
This was something I believed, too, until V-Day.
Sin Incarnate: The Lieutenants
Blizzard released imagery of Gluttony Incarnate, one of Asmodan's lieutenants. I looked him up and found something surprising. I then researched what we know about Asmodan's other lieutenants: Cyndaea, Ghom and Rakanoth.
Ghom -- Gluttony -- has these... mouths on his shoulders. So does New Diablo. So I thought to myself, What if Diablo has absorbed not the Greater Evils, but Asmodan's lieutenants? He has Ghom's shoulders; the feminine quality of Cyndaea; and the blades of Takanoth.
Asmodan's Plan: Betrayal
Thinking about this also made me wonder about Asmodan's goals. Presumably, he knows of "The Trap" that befell the demons of Hell. Many of us believe that the Black Soulstone is the key to this "trap", absorbing demonic souls sent to the Void, Angelic and Demonic. This would let Asmodan become The Prime Evil, once he gets his hands on the stone and all its souls.
So why invade Sanctuary? Does hesimply hope to find it? What if he has a another goal? Perhaps he is leading the Legions of Hell to their doom in order to fill the void with even more demonic souls? This would include his lieutenants' deaths!
This is what Baal did; he spread destruction across the world to empower his Soulstone of Destructiob and use it to corrupt the WorldStone.
Perhaps it is through these deaths that Diablo gains the new body? Perhaps -- and this would be a kicker! -- the amaglamated souls of all demonic kind cry out for revenge against Asmodan, and fuse together in defiance? That would be an interesting twist; Asmodan's own lieutenants avenge their own deaths after he betrays them!
After[birth]thoughts
Of course, it's been said that some of Asmodan's lieutenants live on in order to perpetuate the Diablo franchise in expansions. My hypothesis also leaves out the Arch Angels. All I can say to that is, Perhaps their contribution to the New Diablo takes on the form of those long, curving blades on his back, a physical manifestation of their angelic wings?
Who knows. Just a few thoughts.
tl;dr Asmodan betrays his lieutenants; their bodies/souls are fused together to form the New Diablo.
All in the Forger's wake is left bereft and fallow-Excerpt from the Litany of Residuum;
As Translated by He Who Brings Order
All in the Forger's wake is left bereft and fallow-Excerpt from the Litany of Residuum;
As Translated by He Who Brings Order
Okay. What fascinates me about Necromancers is their ability to perceive and manipulate what they call "Prime Energies" that flow through all things. Like the Unformed Lands, it is omnipresent. This grants Necromancers the ability to animate the inanimate, such as raising the dead and manipulating chemicals and particles from afar (corpse explosion, poison nova, etc). These energies also allow them to twist the fates of others. Essentially, Necromancers bend probability over and make it their bitch.
I think Priests of Rathma and Umbaru Witch Doctors may perceive the same thing differently, allowing for similar yet divergent powers. Unfortunately we don't know enough about either the Unformed Lands or Prime Energies to make any real guesses.
EDIT I hadn't realized this before but Goatmen were originally derived from the Umbaru, with their Shaman analogous to Witch Doctors. I hope we get to see more of them in DIII, it'll give us a lot more information about their culture and the Unformed Lands!
All in the Forger's wake is left bereft and fallow-Excerpt from the Litany of Residuum;
As Translated by He Who Brings Order
All in the Forger's wake is left bereft and fallow-Excerpt from the Litany of Residuum;
As Translated by He Who Brings Order
Mephisto's always been the most interesting character to me, since he single-handedly corrupted the Zakarum faith, driving out the Paladins; and sent Lazarus to Kinh Leoric, thus allowing the Bishop to free and aid Diablo. In this way Mephisto's been the most determined of the three, driving all these various plots and characters even while he was locked away within a Soulstone. I just wonder what he might have done if he had more time outside the Soulstone! What then?
All in the Forger's wake is left bereft and fallow-Excerpt from the Litany of Residuum;
As Translated by He Who Brings Order
(And yes, the Warrior has a name, revealed in DIII.)
We get more of a glimpse of his brothers, Mephisto and Baal. The former is totally into the whole evil, dominate-the-world thing, while Baal obviously takes delight in wreaking havoc on a much more personal level. In this way, Baal and Mephisto are at opposite ends.
Diablo... well, we never get a sense for where Diablo fits in. The Book of Cain suggests he's much more personal, like Baal, as he "views himself as an artist of terror," but so far we don't really see any indication of that in the games. He's just kinda... there.
You are right that the brothers are much more well known than Diablo himself. Which might be part of the point of the game. Nothing that happens in Sanctuary would have been possible without Diablo. Like I said, he is more of an event than an individual. Which is where his appeal comes from.
All in the Forger's wake is left bereft and fallow-Excerpt from the Litany of Residuum;
As Translated by He Who Brings Order
All in the Forger's wake is left bereft and fallow-Excerpt from the Litany of Residuum;
As Translated by He Who Brings Order
All in the Forger's wake is left bereft and fallow-Excerpt from the Litany of Residuum;
As Translated by He Who Brings Order
Blizzard recently announced a contest calling for original Heroes for the Diablo universe. I'm pretty excited about this contest, 'cause I know there are plenty of creative minds out there just itching to contribute. Full details can be found here.
I've got a couple ideas of my own, but can't pin down exactly what to do. I have a selection of three rough drafts here. I have my own inclinations, but wanted to get some input first.
Hopefully we can get other members of the forums involved in this contest. I'd love to see what you people can come up with.
Demon Class
The first image I've got here is a spin on the old wished-for Hero Class, the Demon, but with a bit of a spin to it. The Heroe's story is pretty much this: Part of a small cabal of bored, young and affluential dabblers in magic, this tragic young figure delved much too deep into the lore and magics of Vizjerei summoning. Now, inextricably tied with a demonic presence, this Dark Wanderer strives to contain the darkness within while using his newfound powers for the betterment of Sanctuary's denizens.
Or, it could just be a good demon, balancing out all the fallen angels we've got running around. I'm pretty attached to this one. His armor is cobbled together as he stands with two orphans rescued from a demon raid on a village, which smolders in the background.
Necromancer Adept
Here we've got The Adept, a pupil in the Cult of Rathma, binding the primal forces to her will in an exploration of raising the dead. Her first subject is a dead raven. She shows promise, indeed. Her mentor, the Necromancer from Diablo II, watches from the shadows in approval.
I see a lot of promise when it comes to atmosphere, and get a nice chance to show of my own interpretation of Necromancer magics in action. Plus, hot goth chick. Wondering whether to give her glasses.
Barbarian Ancient
Finally, we've got the onligatory Barbarian. In the background we have a Barbarian who's been memorialized in a statue. At top we see him at his prime, a full-color picture from an ancient victory; but as we move down the figure it turns to stone, resting in a chamber near Horragoth. A Barbarian elder is inducting two young Barbarians as they praise the exploits of a dead hero together.
To me, this is the most compositionally appealing, but also the most difficult to portray realistically without it coming off as forced or silly. If I go with this one, I've got a lot of work ahead of me.
Alright, people, tell me what you think! And don't forget to contribute your own artwork!
All in the Forger's wake is left bereft and fallow-Excerpt from the Litany of Residuum;
As Translated by He Who Brings Order
I'm an artist, so I absolutely had to get this for the artwork and craftsmanship. But if it were not for that, I would have waited for it to come to my local library.
All in the Forger's wake is left bereft and fallow-Excerpt from the Litany of Residuum;
As Translated by He Who Brings Order
All in the Forger's wake is left bereft and fallow-Excerpt from the Litany of Residuum;
As Translated by He Who Brings Order
All in the Forger's wake is left bereft and fallow-Excerpt from the Litany of Residuum;
As Translated by He Who Brings Order