Avernus

Avernus (pronounced ah-VUR-nuhs) is the top-most layer of Hell, and ruled by the archdevil Barbatos.

Geography

Avernus can be described as a vast plain of terror and desolation. The land is a barren, volcanic desert pitted with volcanic rock and pitted iron. Sudden bursts of hellfire from the ground is a constant fear for travelers.

Places of interest

Fortresses of infernal warlords, the so-called Fools' Citadels, rise throughout the plane, ever ready with legions to defend Avernus and to hunt down renegade souls for their own benefit.

Inhabitants

Achaekek

The god Achaekek has a den on Avernus, though the Mantis God's home realm is based in Pharasma's Spire of the Boneyard.✝ The two powerful beings appear to co-exist peacefully enough, although Barbatos nevertheless resents the presence of such a powerful resident without it being under his control.

Ardad Lili

One of the four Queens of the Night, the fallen angel Ardad Lili holds court at her hold, the Stainless Caress.

Barbatos

The archdevil Barbatos rules Avernus as the Lord of the First, literally overseeing the layer from his floating island, the Promised Land.

Furcas

The infernal duke, Furcas, the Knight of Laurels, lives in his fortress Forked Pyre, in Avernus.

General Susumu and Yaezhing

The Tian Xian gods General Susumu and Yaezhing share the dualistic realm of war known as Setsendu on Avernus's edge.

Losarkur

Another infernal duke, Losarkur, the Beastlord of Avernus, breeds packs of hellhounds and other beasts.

Minderhal

The stone giant god Minderhal dwells just outside Hell's first layer in the mountain chain of Stonepeak, within sight of Avernus.

Devils

Lesser devils, most commonly the type known as barbazus (often referred to as bearded devils), are more prolific on Avernus than any other layer of Hell, constantly on the hunt for rogue souls. These devils pay at least some degree of veneration to Barbatos. Devils known as chortovs are also common, as Avernus the place of their original creation. These hulking brutes possess an affinity with the hellfire, making them useful guardians for the numerous portals leading to the plane. Levalochs, also known as warmonger devils, are particularly common across the wastes of Avernus and serve in the armies of the more militant of the infernal dukes that reside there.

Shades

Damned souls known as shades appear at random locations throughout the plane, all freshly sent from the Boneyard. These souls occasionally form refugee caravans, seeking in vain for some place to escape their pursuers, but their freedom is temporary at best. More skilled hunters, such as host devils, are unleashed to bring in especially evasive shades. Only the souls of suicides are left forsaken, doomed to wander the landscape forever.

Although the damned cannot be harmed by hazards such as hellfire, they still suffer the pain of being burned or otherwise injured.