- Not to be confused with daemon.
Demons are creatures known only as evil to most mortals. Most of the demons in Azeroth or Outland are members of the Burning Legion. Most demons are not born as such, but were converted to demonic beings by the Burning Legion after their worlds were conquered.[1]
The change to a demon being includes a powerful command of arcane energy. Similar to sorcerers and wizards, demons control their power with the force of their will, but their magic is innate. The demonic magic that infuses them also confers certain immunities and resistances (acid, cold, electricity, and fire among others) and they radiate an aura that induces fear into the weak willed.[2]
There are many types (see below) and races, most of whom typically serve either their own agenda or that of the Legion (they are often the same). For a description of the most important/famous demons visit the race pages or the Legion page.
Not all demons are aligned with the Burning Legion. Other demons have chosen to "abandon" the Burning Legion and yield their allegiance to others, such as the demons that pertain to Illidan's forces.
Characteristics in World of Warcraft[]
- Cannot be skinned except for felhounds, darkhounds and their variants, and helboars.
- Medium Level (24 upwards) demons can drop Silk Cloth.
- Higher level demons in the 50-60 range can drop Felcloth.
- Enchanters can enchant weapons with Demonslaying which gives the player bonus attack power against demons and also causes their weapon to become engulfed in flames.
- Some can be banished or enslaved by warlocks
- Can be feared by a Paladin's Turn Evil
- Warlocks in metamorphosis form are considered demons and can be affected by abilities such as Turn Evil.
- According to Altruis, knowing the true name of a demon will grant a certain amount of power over that demon.
- Apparently, demons are somehow able to know the names of random individuals they encounter.[3] It is unknown if this is related to the power concerning their own names.
- It is possible that demons can be purified. For example, Aviana's blood purifies and blesses the Doomguard that "slay" her. Furthermore, the ata'mal crystals is said to turned the dark eredars from the arcane magic to the Holy Light that are granted by the Na'aru.
Notable demonic races[]
- Fail:IconSmall Gan'arg.gif Gan'arg — The main engineers of the legion.
- Pit lords — Gigantic generals who lead the armies of the Legion, the pit lords are surpassed in power only by the demonic eredar.
- Fail:IconSmall Dreadlord.gif Nathrezim (aka dreadlords) — Usually commanding a small troop of felguards, the dreadlords do not always engage in combat, and are more likely to meddle behind the scenes.
- Fail:IconSmall Tothrezim.gif Tothrezim — Distant cousin race of the nathrezim, laborers and researchers of the Burning Legion, responsible for the creation of the infernals.
- Fail:IconSmall Doomguard.gif Ered'ruin
- Fail:IconSmall Doomguard.gif Doomguard — These ironfisted demons serve as the Burning Legion’s captains and generals.
- Fail:IconSmall Doomlord.gif Doomlord — The most powerful Doomguard can turn important high comanders of the Legion troops.
- Fail:IconSmall Fiend.gif Fiend (Terrorguard, Fear Fiend, Terrorfiend) — Shock troops and supervisors of the Legion, found on the front lines of the Burning Crusade in areas like Outland.
- Fail:IconSmall VoidTerror.gif Void terror — Large, two-headed demons with vast magical powers.
- Fail:Spell Shadow SummonInfernal.png Infernal — Great burning stone demons that are infamous for falling from the sky like burning meteors.
- Fail:IconSmall Succubus.gif Sayaad
- Fail:IconSmall Succubus.gif Succubus — Female demons that can be summoned by warlocks of some power.
- Incubi (presumed)
- Fail:IconSmall Voidwalker.gif Voidwalker — Ethereal minions utilized by warlocks as companions.
- Fail:IconSmall Imp.gif Imp — Small, horned spellcaster demons, often seen accompanying warlocks.
- Fail:IconSmall Dreadsteed.gif Dreadsteed — Great demonic steeds from the dreadlord world of Xoroth. They only respond to the call of the most powerful warlocks in the land.
- Fail:IconSmall Shivarra.gif Shivarra — The fanatical shivarra are the religious commanders of the legion. They are totally devoted to Sargeras as their god, and inspire the troops — as well as being front line commanders.
- Fail:IconSmall Abyssal.gif Abyssal — infernal-like creature made of jagged stone.
- Fail:IconSmall FloatingEye.gif Floating eye (aka beholders) — Many-eyed demons of unknown origin.
- Fail:IconSmall DemonicHound.gif Demonic hound — Two-headed hounds made of molten fel energies.
Demonically corrupted races[]
- Man'ari eredarMan'ari eredar Man'ari (Eredar warlocks) — The uppermost rank of the Burning Legion. Some, like (Kil'jaeden and Archimonde), were turned into demons by the dark titan Sargeras.
- Fail:IconSmall Felhunter.gif Fel stalker — The felbeasts were originally creatures of conquered worlds who were changed by the evil of the eredar into a demonic form.
- Fail:IconSmall Felguard.gif Felguard — The main infantry of the Legion. They are lethal but inexperienced, and are often treated poorly by greater demons. These humanoid-like creatures were originally residents of conquered worlds who were changed by the evil of the demonic eredar into a demonic form.
- Fel orcFel orc Fel orc — Fel orcs are orcs who have been changed by the Blood of Mannoroth and of Magtheridon, changing there skin and making them a blood-thirsty race.
- Felblood elfFelblood elf Felblood elf — Felblood elves are elves changed by siphoning fel energy from Suspended Terrorguards.
- Broken male Broken — Some Draenei were filled with bitterness after the massacres committed by the orcs and so the demonic influence over Outland influenced them.
- Fail:IconSmall LostOne.gif Lost One — As the Broken, the demonic power corrupted these individuals to mutate and degenerate even more than the Broken.
- Fail:IconSmall Satyr.gif Satyr — Satyrs are night elves who have been corrupted by demonic powers either as a reward or as punishment by Sargeras, other races may also have been transformed later.
- Fail:IconSmall Felsteed.gif Felsteed — Demonic steeds that can be summoned by experienced warlocks.
- Fail:IconSmall Helboar.gif Helboar — Helboars are boars corrupted by the resident demons in Outland.
- Fail:IconSmall Darkhound.gif Darkhound — These vile creatures are canines having somehow been twisted by demonic energy.
- Fail:IconSmall WarpStalker.gif Warp stalker - These beings were corrupted by the Burning Legion and are sometimes used as mounts.
Notable demons[]
Demon or dae'mon?[]
There is some question as to the origin of the name "demon" in Azeroth. In Christie Golden's Rise of the Horde, it is insinuated that the word "demon" came from the Orcish word "dae'mon", meaning a soul that was evil, twisted, not right...much the same as the eredar word "man'ari". However, in the War of the Ancients Trilogy, the night elves refer to them as demons at the first coming of the Burning Legion — thousands of years before Rise of the Horde. Additionally, "daemon" without the apostrophe is a term used by both Horde and Alliance in varying sources, such as Warcraft I, Warcraft II and World of Warcraft: The Burning Crusade, including documents predating the First War. No matter the origin of the word, the meaning is still the same.
Demonic traits[]
"If I have wings, why am I always walking?" - Dreadlord in Warcraft III
"Wings, horns, hooves...what are we saying, is this Diablo?" - Illidan Stormrage in Warcraft III
Usually demons have one or more of a set of demonic physical traits.
| Character(s) | Horns | Scales | Bat Wings | Hooves | Fangs | Red Skin | Flames |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Man'ari eredar | Yes | Yes | One (Kil'jaeden) | Yes | Yes | Some | Some |
| Nathrezim | Yes | No | Yes | Yes | Yes | Some | No |
| Sargeras | Yes | Yes | Once | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Sayaad | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Some | No |
| Annihilan | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | No | Some |
| Ered'ruin | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Some | No |
| Illidan Stormrage | Yes | No | Yes | Yes | Yes | No | Yes |
| Mo'arg | No | No | No | No | No | Some | No |
| Felhunter | Yes | Yes | No | Yes | Yes | Yes | No |
| Fel orc | No | No | No | No | Yes | Yes | No |
| Satyr | Yes | No | No | Yes | Yes | Some | No |
| Imp | Yes | No | No | No | Yes | Some | Yes |
| Voidwalker | No | No | No | No | No | No | No |
| Infernal | No | No | No | No | No | No | Yes |
| Void terror | Yes | Yes | No | No | Yes | No | No |
| Shivarra | No | No | No | No | No | Some | Yes |
- Only one eredar, Kil'jaeden, has been seen with wings (it is unknown if this is part of his illusions or if he has become greatly mutated). Eredar also display a variety of skin tones, including but not limited to demonic red.
- Gul'dan saw Sargeras in the Tomb of Sargeras and had wings, however, he is shown without them in the artworks.
- Not all pit lords have been observed to possess flames. Mannoroth is an example of one characterized by flames.
- Illidan's flames are a result of his triggered immolation ability and not a result of anatomy, though his arcane tattoos have been known to smolder on occasion, as do his hoofprints (they also bubble when in or on water)
Dungeons & Dragons[]
In Monster Manual there is a distinct breed of demons which use the "demonic" subtype.[2] This kind of demons are described in Manual of Monsters Appendix Three and as told before the description doesn't match the demons described in the Warcraft Universe.[4] Throughout the Manual fo Monsters the term "demon" refers to the minions of the Burning Legion,[2] but in the section of "demons" of the Appendix Three they refer to the demons of D&D.[4] However, the validity of the Appendix Three is disputed.
Media[]
Video[]
Illidan, a Demon/Night Elf Hybrid
References[]
- ↑ Monster Guide, pg. 188
- ↑ 2,0 2,1 2,2 Manual of Monsters, pg. 112
- ↑ Vi'el
- ↑ 4,0 4,1 Manual of Monsters, p.191
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