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In the universe ofDungeons & Dragons, Demons and Devils are not the same thing. Both are evil, but Demons are chaotic beings that want to destroy everything, while Devils are of lawful alignment, and their aim is to control all life.
Their differences have them in an eternal conflict known as the Blood War, a battle that’s been going on for longer than anyone can remember, and that has no end in sight. But why are these creatures locked in eternal combat, and why is it that no side ever wins?
What Is The Blood War?
As stated before,the Blood War is the eternal conflict between Devils and Demons. They fight because their aims are fundamentally opposed;Devils want absolute control, while Demons look for absolute destruction.
The way each side does battle echoes their nature:Devils are expert planners, using carefully thought out strategies to take down their foes, whileDemons attack with reckless abandon, throwing themselves into the fray with little care.
Most of the conflict happens in Avernus, the first layer ofthe Nine Hells, with hordes ofDemons entering it via the river Styx. The constant conflict can sometimes spill into other layers, and even to the Abyss itself, although it’s usually contained in Avernus.
The Styx is a river that crosses the planes, connecting most Fiendish layers.
It starts in Pandemonium and enters many layers of the Abyss before ending in the fifth layer of Hell, Stygia.
Are Demons And Devils Equals?
In terms of raw power, you’re able to find similar stat blocks for Demons and Devils, meaning thatthey are roughly equal in power. However, there are some key differences that set them apart, and they mostly have to do with where the battle takes place.
Demons
Like all Fiends,Demons can only truly die if slain in their home realm(in their case, the Abyss), making their strategy of throwing themselves away with little thought have a bit more justification.
Sincethe infinite layers of the Abyss are constantly making new Demons, andthey revive when dying in the Hells, it would be safe to assume that Demons have the upper hand.
Their lack of organization, however, affects them evenbefore entering the battlefield.Demons don’t like being ordered around, so they have to be threatened into service, meaning that you need plenty of powerful Demons to put others in check.
If any of the Demon Princes were to take interest in the Blood War, that would be a different matter, but they’re busy with their own agenda to worry about what the Devils are up to. That’s without mentioningthe constant infighting, particularly between Demogorgon and Orcus.
Devils
With just a glance over the battlefield in Avernus, you’d see the organization of Devils taking hold, as they dispatch the Demonic horde with ease. Yettheir combat supremacy is countered by their glaring weakness: every Devil slain in Avernus is lost forever.
What’s more,Devils can’t refill their numbers as easily as Demons can, since they usually need mortal souls to turn into new Devils.
This makesDevils avoid exceedingly dangerous tactics, ensuring their survival, butkeeping them from attaining a true advantageover the Demonic army.
Devils are able to keep the Demons at bay thanks to their commanders, particularly the ruler of Avernus, Zariel. While Archdevils aren’t known for working together, they still do now and again against the Demons, particularly when they start spilling into layers beyond Avernus.
Can The Blood War End?
If the Blood War ended, no matter which side ends victorious,it would spill doom for the rest of creation. The winning side would shift their focus to enslaving or destroying everyone else, and they’d use the power of the losing side to do so.
Since it’s so important that the War never ends,many factions look to its continuity, keepingbalance in the cosmos.This usually means distracting the leading Fiends with other problems, so the mightiest of them don’t take interest in the conflict.
The main faction that benefits from the Blood War are Yugoloths, a third species of Evil Fiends. They are of neutral alignment, andsince they’re not from the Hells nor the Abyss, they can fight for both sides and never truly die.
The one thing that could end the Blood War is if either side works in unison, something nearly impossible to achieve for Demons. Yet for Devils, it isn’t as impossible: it would requireAsmodeus, Archdevil of the ninth layer of Hell, to command the rest to win it.
It wouldn’t be as simple, butAsmodeus certainly has the power to see it through. Since it hasn’t happened yet, we can only assume thatAsmodeus wants the Blood War to continue, for what reason we don’t know, and it’s hard to think that he’d keep it going forever.
