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Thread: Alternate Names for Devils
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2019-08-08, 07:15 PM (ISO 8601)
- Join Date
- Sep 2018
- Location
- In the fiery pits of Hell
- Gender
Alternate Names for Devils
The title pretty much says it. I'm not really a fan of the name "devils" for everyone's favorite LE fiends. Not really sure why, I just don't really like the name. Does anyone know of any cool alternative names I could use rooted in history, mythology, etymology, etc.? (also feel free to tell us about how you prefer to run devils)
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2019-08-08, 07:40 PM (ISO 8601)
- Join Date
- Oct 2010
- Gender
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2019-08-08, 07:45 PM (ISO 8601)
- Join Date
- Sep 2018
- Location
- In the fiery pits of Hell
- Gender
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2019-08-08, 07:48 PM (ISO 8601)
- Join Date
- Oct 2010
- Gender
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2019-08-08, 08:03 PM (ISO 8601)
- Join Date
- Apr 2015
- Location
- Paris, France
- Gender
Re: Alternate Names for Devils
D&D has also called them Baatezu, on account that they live in the Nine Hells of Baator (and to escape a certain real-life "panic"). It is said that Baatezu overthrew an ancient race of super-devils called the Baatorians.
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2019-08-09, 07:42 AM (ISO 8601)
- Join Date
- Aug 2018
Re: Alternate Names for Devils
Well, what is their origin and nature in your setting?
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2019-08-09, 08:17 AM (ISO 8601)
- Join Date
- Aug 2013
Re: Alternate Names for Devils
Another option is simply not to give them a name. That adds to their mystique.
For example, if there are a finite number of powerful devils, you simply refer to them by name or title. "This is the sign of Rafthagor," or "This place has been tainted by the presence of He Who Feasts on Innocence." It impresses on the players how well-known and feared these beings are.
Alternatively, refer to them, as a whole, conceptually. Similar to how terms like "The Fair Folk" came to be, where the idea was to refer to them generally rather than directly. For example, "The Powers Below," "The Beneath," "The Vile Ones," and so forth. Referring to them in this way is like referring to "He Who Must Not Be Named," with similar effect - it makes clear that these are creatures not even to be spoken of directly.My headache medicine has a little "Ex" inscribed on the pill. It's not a brand name; it's an indicator that it works inside an Anti-Magic Field.
Blue text means sarcasm. Purple text means evil. White text is invisible.
My signature got too big for its britches. So now it's over here!
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2019-08-10, 11:41 AM (ISO 8601)
- Join Date
- Mar 2019
- Location
- Magrathea
- Gender
Re: Alternate Names for Devils
Demons, devils, the Wrathful, the Fallen, Nether Dwellers, the Brimstone Citizenry, lots of things without even going into mythology. Basically you can just name them like you would members of any other shadowy organization.
An explanation of why MitD being any larger than Huge is implausible.
See my extended signature here! May contain wit, candor, and somewhere from 52 to 8127 walruses.
Purple is humorous descriptions made up on the fly
Green is serious talk about hypothetical
Blue is irony and sarcasm
"I think, therefore I am,
I walk, therefore I stand,
I sleep, therefore I dream;
I joke, therefore I meme."
-Squire Doodad
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2019-08-17, 12:32 AM (ISO 8601)
- Join Date
- Sep 2013
Re: Alternate Names for Devils
Oni would be suitable, especially in a setting that draws on Japanese cultural themes.
~ Composer99
D&D 5e Campaign:
Adventures in Eaphandra
D&D 5e Homebrew:
This can be found in my extended homebrew signature!
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2019-08-19, 09:14 AM (ISO 8601)
- Join Date
- Jul 2007
Re: Alternate Names for Devils
Daeva and Jinn are close to demons in that they come from nearby mythology and folklore. Asura, Fomorians, Jotun, Oni, Dalaketnon, or Jumbee would be other similar things from a bit further afield. You can go with something more descriptive of their specific role in your setting such as Children of Apophis (or another dark deity/theme), The Fallen, The Wretched, The Vile, etc.
If you want to simply keep the concept of lawful-evil creatures, but don't care about the trappings of a devil, you could go with a much wider set of options.
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2019-08-19, 01:11 PM (ISO 8601)
- Join Date
- Jul 2019
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2019-08-19, 09:13 PM (ISO 8601)
- Join Date
- Jul 2012
- Location
- USA
- Gender
Re: Alternate Names for Devils
If you're going with a classic D&D cosmology, then the archdevils ruling over each of the Nine Hells can be collectively called "The Nine" and regular devils can be called "Servants/Arbiters/Whatever of the Nine"
Come check out my setting blog: Ruins of the Forbidden Elder
Inspired by LudicSavant, I am posting deities: Erebos, The Black Sun