What's missing from the plot among each Diablo series game? (Part 1)

Feb-01-2024

 

 

 

 

I. The Beginning of Creation

At the very beginning, there was only one existence—a small pearl, within which resided the sole "spirit" Anu, a being of contradictions, embodying both good and evil, joy and sorrow (essentially a paradox). Anu, yearning for purity, grew to despise the evil within himself to the extreme and expelled all that was wicked from his body.

The evil discarded by Anu transformed into a seven-headed dragon: Tathamet. Thus, the pearl now harbored two beings, alas, not friends but eternal foes.

They engaged in an endless struggle within the pearl, and as their strength waned, they both made a final desperate effort, shattering each other. Their ultimate confrontation triggered a cosmic explosion, giving rise to the universe as we know it.

 

Tathamet's seven heads became the seven lords of hell—the three evil gods: Diablo, the Lord of Terror; Mephisto, the Lord of Hatred; Baal, the Lord of Destruction; and the four demon princes: Andariel, the Queen of Pain; Duriel, the Lord of Suffering; Azmodan, the Lord of Sin; and Belial, the Lord of Lies.

Anu's power, on the other hand, formed the many angels of heaven, while his spine became the Crystal Archway, and his eyes are what we often refer to as the Worldstone.

Their offspring—angels and demons—thus inherited the ceaseless battle of their ancestors.

II. The Creation of Sanctuary

The war raged on endlessly, but not everyone was keen on this conflict. Inarlus, a high-ranking angel weary of the eternal war between hell and heaven, was captured during a battle. Before losing consciousness, he madly expressed his wish to be far from the war. This wish was overheard by Lilith, a demoness and daughter of the demon lord Mephisto, who shared Inarlus's weariness of the conflict and saw an opportunity to use him for her own ends. Lilith released Inarlus and together they devised a plan to gather angels and demons alike who were tired of the war to build a world free from conflict.

After his release, Inarlus used his power and influence to find like-minded individuals. He discovered that many angels, and even some demons from hell, were growing weary of the war. With the help of these warweary beings, he successfully stole the Worldstone from the Pandemonium Fortress and used its power to create a new world, which he named Sanctuary. It was at this time that Inarlus realized he had fallen deeply in love with Lilith.

 

 

III. The Battle of Original Sin (circa 1740 BC)

Inarlus successfully established Sanctuary and believed he could escape the war and enjoy a temporary peace. However, he failed to notice that while his lover was as tired of the war as he was, Lilith's goal was not to flee but to end the conflict. Now with the conditions to do so, she wanted Inarlus to understand that victory was possible. But before that, Lilith intended to give birth to Inarlus's offspring, the progenitors of humanity, Nephalem with  infinite potential. (Lilith believed that the key to ending the war lay in the Worldstone and the new world, and she either fell in love with Inarlus or simply wanted an army, especially since no one knew how powerful the Nephalem were at that time.)

The immense potential of the Nephalem frightened the angels and demons in Sanctuary, who sought to eliminate this threat. However, Lilith ruthlessly killed all the angels and demons in Sanctuary except for Inarius. Inarius, in a fit of rage and shock, banished Lilith to the void forever and altered the Worldstone to diminish human potential over time, fearing the Nephalem.

It's worth mentioning that the newly born humans did not worship angels or demons, as neither had yet discovered Sanctuary. They mostly revered their ancestors, magic, or some noble cause.

Hell was the first to discover Sanctuary and began to woo humans through the establishment of religions, while Inarius quickly countered with his own religious movement. Soon after, heaven also found Sanctuary and engaged in direct confrontations with hell's forces there. (Of course, most demons were summoned by humans.)

Uldyssian, a mortal, was enchanted by Lilith, who had escaped from the void, awakening his latent Nephalem potential. Fortunately, he eventually saw through Lilith's deception and, together with Inarius, banished her back to the void. He then chose to sacrifice himself by detonating all the energy within his body, saving his human brethren from the war between hell and heaven. This event is known as the Battle of Original Sin.