What Really Happens When a Devil Gets Demoted In D&D?

[@DungeonDad]

Get 4 months extra on a 2 year plan here: nordvpn.com/dungeondad. It’s risk free with Nord’s 30 day money-back guarantee! Shout out to NordVPN for helping me get this week's video made! What monster would you like to see next?

[@razielthegoblinslayer4456]

Nagathas. They were the monstrous servants of spirit nagas. As far as I remember they appeared in 3rd edition.

[@Dragowolf_Rising]

Well they aren't a D&D monster but I'm curious how you would make a cleanrot knight from Elden Ring. I'd totally use them as champions of Zuggtmoy!

[@nicholasbrosseau3405]

@DungeonDad doesn't even eat booty.

[@namelesssomebody2557]

Mezzikim are a bit weird. 2E states that they are ranked as Lesser Baatezu but the lore makes it more like a punishment state like the Gulthir.

[@garygood6804]

Vpns don't do that. Why are you pushing lies?

[@Manicies]

Even before you got to the Plot Hooks, I had the thought of an angry, vindictive Gulthir HIRING the party to help it get revenge against the upper boss that demoted them, with maybe like a promise that, once it gets back to its former glory/it's TOTALLY RIGHTLY DESERVED POSITION, it will handsomely reward the players

[@DungeonDad]

Absolutely, I think that would be extremely fun

[@LurchTheBastard]

You could even fold the "Very specific contract" idea into that, with the gulthir having somehow wrangled the party into a contract like that for added leverage, with the INTENT that it will be null and void upon their reinstatement. Carrot of a reward, stick of failure meaning the gulthir still has their soul.

[@remiwelch6234]

This was the first hook that I thought of as well!

[@Lazysupermutant]

To quote Eggman from Sonic Heroes. "When I take over the world I will pay you!"

[@Sam-pb8ym]

Gulthir warlock pact could be interesting and hilarious 😂

[@10KTakeda]

Already see it now, party beats a high-ranking devil. It comes back as gulthir, hungry for revenge. Literally and figuratively.

[@HaughtyToast]

The fact that the ingest evil ability doesn't specify devil is interesting since it means that gulthirs can take advantage of the nearly infinite number of demons that they are fighting in the blood war in order to keep the abyss' army stable. Gulthirs are also just low enough cr to be summoned by Infernal calling, and you can cast both dominate monster and enlarge/reduce on them. Have fun with that. Make it swallow a balor or something.

[@privpi]

"Hey Demegorgon, how do you taste?"

[@1000Tomatoes]

Law enforcement in the nine hells is something that I really want to see more of. Imagine a Gulthir and Erinyes buddy cop story.

[@Necrikus]

I did NOT think I'd be waking up today and immediately learning about the existence of the Vore Devil.

[@Muriuki34]

I did NOT think I wouldn't be sleeping today and learn about the vore devil

[@j2minerblacksands881]

Building on your "Takeover a Town" idea, we can change this over to a horror zombie scenario. The Idea being that yes the town is mind controlled but the dominated villagers are being forced to make contracts/give up there soul to the Gulthir's superior and near immediately killed then turned into more Gulthir, this being done as fast as possible before any eyes from the Good aligned Higher realms realize what is going on. Mabey have that if you have a Weapon made out of Gulthir parts or infused with it's essence that it could kill devils permanently, and that is what you use to fight against the BBEG of the Scenario.

[@privpi]

I don't think domination works for fiend contracts, generally forcing someone doesn't. Otherwise, why would they bother with deception in the first place? Just tell them to sign if they want to live out the rest of their lives, easy.

[@yuridhjeeyn9034]

@@privpi this would then be a way the party can solve this infernal problem they could summon an Erinye and drag the gulfir before an infernal court

[@emissaryofthecows3389]

I'm curious to see just how far a humiliated Gulthir can rise up the ranks. Maybe after a particularly insane devil was demoted, they learned to enjoy the fear that came with their new form and made liberal use of their ability to devour others. May need to integrate that idea into a campaign.

[@DungeonDad]

Love that!

[@namelesssomebody2557]

Blood War press gang. The 9 Hells is essentially a cosmic pyramid scheme.

[@turtleinvader2982]

A cool monster from the Libris Mortis are the angels of decay. While that book doesn't go far into depth, in my world I have them be the "angels" of Atrophus, the world born dead. (Basically the physical embodiment of undeath.)(this isn't completely random, in the book elder evils then they are called his angels during the final boss fight.)

[@NanoRizen]

devils may cry sometimes

[@DungeonDad]

They tend to do that I've heard

[@RedSunUnderParadise]

Keep DMC out of your bum mouth, you DnD pleb.

[@michaelanderson2166]

@@DungeonDadat least four times, yes.

[@almasyelesbayev736]

@@michaelanderson2166 five times already

[@eg_manifest510]

it may just be pareidolia but in the original Gulthir artwork you can kinda see a face on its torso, which is probably a nod to its eating abilities and might subconsciously lend it some allure over every other "weird-looking dude" type of enemy

[@DungeonDad]

That is definitely a part of the uncanny look of it I think. Good catch

[@ketsuekikumori9145]

"They don't even get to make a save, they're just dominated." Submissive: Joke's on them, I'm into that shit.

[@hoi-polloi1863]

Reminds me of an old Far Side cartoon where you had this guy in Hell, whistling merrily. Two devils are nearby, and one says, "You know, we're just not getting through to that guy."

[@pykeembers1575]

Such an interesting idea. A devil police force for other devils and fiends. Makes me think of how to implement them when you have a devil trying to make deals in your world. Maybe this is something he requests for the party to remove entirely so they don't need to be on the run in exchange for a favor. Once again asking for ethergaunts

[@DungeonDad]

Ethergaunts are on my short list!

[@pykeembers1575]

@@DungeonDad AWESOME!!!!! I AM SO EXCITED FOR THAT VIDEO! The ethergaunts became my ultimate villain faction in my decade long campaign I ran for my wife

[@gobbo1917]

Asmodeus is merely the snake gods avatar, one of the two snakes that made creation. Upon the ending of their fight, one ascended to mount celestia, while the other decended to the nine hells. And from the blood that's spelled out over the nine hells, the first devils were created and sprang up in place. The reasons the devils are always lying and deceiving is because they're just echoes of their actual god, a God that literally lies to them, in the form of asmodeus. A God that continuously lies to them about the blood war to propagate it, so as to have more time to lick its own wounds. Because right now it's vulnerable to death. But once it's not, and it's all powerful again, it plans to take the war of creation back to the world, and finally kill the coatl that sits upon the top of Mount Celestia. To usher in destruction and darkness and make his inverted mountain of the hells, the center of the universe that it should have been.

[@brettwood1351]

Well one edition anyways. I swear they make a new backstory for Asmodeus every edition.

[@shiwanabe]

@@brettwood1351 That they do.

[@Comrade2261]

​@@brettwood1351I like to think that, since he is the Lord of Lies, he spreads multiple legends of himself to the multiverse.

[@brettwood1351]

@@Comrade2261 Yeah, I can totally see that being the case. Next edition, he's actually Demogorgon's missing third head, Ozzy!

[@thatoneguy2288]

Anything else on these snake gods that made creation? Like a yt video that exists or something? This is super cool shit i never heard before lol

[@TheSlackerNamedJack]

5:40 Interestingly enough, this seems to apply to all the outer planes except the upper plains, which have the inverse. That is to say, they can be killed everywhere, except their home plane, which makes invading an Upper plane kind of a.... chore. This is the 1% that dont work that way Everywhere else from the lower plains to the elemental planes, it's still true though.

[@lordyathnon]

So that means a gulthir would make an excellent shock troop to invade the heavens! Since its stomach contains a pocket dimension of the nine hells you could kill a celestial in it

[@TheSlackerNamedJack]

@@lordyathnon excellent point.

[@aierie-dragonslayer]

So what you're telling me is that the upper planes operate on Wreck-It Ralph rules.

[@TheSlackerNamedJack]

@@aierie-dragonslayer I didn't even think of it that way, but now I do and I thank you for that.

[@lucamckenn5932]

The Gulthir first shown from mm 5 is uncannily similar to iron maiden's Eddy character. Especially his original iteration.

[@DungeonDad]

I feel like Eddy MUST have been an inspiration.

[@jaecaldwell5667]

THAT EFFECT AT THE INTRO IS SO COOL! the thumbnail coming apart to reveal the video is SO smart oh my god.

[@eliotoole4534]

Also promoting a devil (especially a gluthir) might be a way to get out of a soul deal even without specific language since you could make another contract or you (rarely) might make one grateful enough to willingly give up the soul claim

[@Shammoria]

I love the idea of a Sorlock BEG having one of these not just as a patron, but also has them as a summoned fiend and the pact is that they only get the pact boon if they cast enlarge on the Gulthir, meaning that you think they are just a Sorc till you get in the fight and they summon and enlarge a Gulthir onto the battle field and all of a sudden are empowered by pact of the tome.

[@theespacioguy]

8:03 i watched this ad out of respect from how smooth the transition was

[@lordyathnon]

I really like the idea of a party actually working together with a gulthir to take down a fiend that they'd nirmally have no chance against, and getting it swallowed is their win con. And based on their bargaining and actions they now either have a devil ally, ... or a spireful gulthir who just got a TON of temp hp, lol

[@DargorV]

F@ck HR its all about the Union 😂 But seriously, HR are not your friend guys. Had to say it since its a common misconception.

[@Dragowolf_Rising]

Now imagine Attack on Titan with these guys instead of titans. Yay your eaten friends aren't dead! Buuuuuut they want to drag you off to be swallowed too. Edit: The original artwork also looks just like an Elden Ring zombie. Especially the scarlet rot variety.

[@davidbickford1665]

The Gulthir works great as a plot hook. In addition to the ways you mentioned, you could easily have a particularly powerful individual recruiting an army of former lesser devils, demons and yugoloth that it has transformed into its own likeness. It is determined to destroy its former Master for its eons of humiliation.

[@kathyfancher5826]

The beginning transition of this video was amazing

[@someepicnerd7821]

Since Gulthirs can convert any fiend I could see them being extremely valuable assets to the blood war since any demons that are killed in Avernus will just come back later after they regenerate in the abyss but if you manage to capture a powerful demon the devils could permanently get rid of them by feeding it to a gulthir. A lot of demons are pretty big and capturing a demon in the middle of a battle would be EXTREMELY difficult there is probably plenty of demons that are medium or smaller that are worth taking out of commission.

[@GentleBreeze-72]

So when it comes to the Pie fiends, Gulthirs do swallow?

[@DungeonDad]

They're certainly not quitters

[@lexsamreeth8724]

I got a Gulthir equivalent in my writing setting named Gehudamesh, AKA Jawless. A former cruelty demon, he got caught undermining Lucifer's authority, so he wound up having his massive, muscular form taken away and stuck in a chimeric body and forced to serve as a familiar for an entire lineage of sorceresses. He got his nickname because among the many animal parts cobbled together to make his new body, he was given the head of a hagfish - a primitive fish famous for not having a jaw.

[@CreepSteep3]

I can just imagine a player trying to get out of a deal by saying that the devil isn't doing his job correctly and they're going to complain to their supervisor and get them demoted to a Gulthir as an intimidation tactic

[@hoi-polloi1863]

You mean... the PCs are going to ask to speak to a manager? ;D

[@CreepSteep3]

@@hoi-polloi1863 yep

[@ChucktheSpicyChicken]

Ah yes, the Vore Devil… Also, I imagen an advanced Gulthier to be like the scrapped Maipol enemy from Fallout 4.

[@epicmelonman]

4:13 hard band name: "devil on the spectrum"

[@Volti-Vagra]

14:27 idea: what if the caveat to get out of the contract was the roles are inversed, Gulthir in the punished position while the one (presumably with some sort of leverage) gets the demons original rank, if not just somehow on par with that power level in their original form

[@JohanFaerie]

This made me think of a way to give a party a "trustworthy" contact. Say the game is set in the 9 hells, decent into Avernus for example, the party comes across a recently demoted Gulthir. So recently they believe that death is a better alternative, so they beg the party to kill them so they can be reborn and work their way up again, because any other fiend would annihilate them instead. So the party does, and eventually the now imp comes back to the party swearing loyalty. The party could continue to help the now imp rise in status returning to its former glory, gaining more favor with it. After all it pays to have friends in low places. But even if it ends there and the party wants to return to the main quest, it would still give them a contact, and you know what they say: better the devil you know, then the devil you don't. Alternatively the party could use the Gulthir's desire to die as leverage for something they want; maybe escort into someplace they need to get into for a quest but have no right(narrativly or in terms of levels) to be there, but no one would mess with them if the terrifying Gulthir was with them.

[@OvenGlobalDomination]

I propably said it somewhere already but your editing is peak 🗻

[@t2nwolf]

Have you ever taken a look at the deadlands or deadlands reloaded critters? the duster is an interesting encounter creature (rascals, varmints, and critters 1) and i'd be interested to see what you do with the Kangee (Horrors o' the weird west). understand if they aren't quite up to your speed but interesting none the less.

[@DungeonDad]

I am aware of deadlands, but haven't had taken the time to look through it yet. I definitely will do so very soon!

[@Lee-yl4ul]

Deadlands is one of my favorite settings. Old West steampunk powered by the souls of the damned. Good stuff. The way the monsters work is great too, since they're literally created from the fears and superstitions of the locals, so you get everything from actually terrifying stuff like skinwalkers to goofy stuff like jackalopes and hoop snakes (which will still kill you of course) Plus, it's got zombified, demon possessed Abe Lincoln being in charge of the old west version of the MIB. Which makes more sense in context.

[@Fyre19]

FATHER IS BACK WITH THE DEVIL MILK

[@azel7056]

Oooo Im Early early, Wow. It’s an Honor Dungeon dad🫡

[@DungeonDad]

Welcome to the "pre-1000" club

[@idigamstudios7463]

I had a Gulthir who was one of the most feared being on the setting's mortal plane. They actively chose to remain a Gulthir because of that ability and were used by Asmodeus as the enforcer on the setting. A sword of damocles lurking in the background always looming over even the commanders (a special form of minimus containment meant that even the bigger threats were on the dinner table.)

[@Zxr-r6q]

I can easily see this becoming a kindof UNO reverse type situation, where a higher demon turns another demon into a Gulthir, in which that higher demon immediately gets one-shot or turned into another Gulthir, also considering that Gulthir are supposedly immortal and can eat others to gain power without a ceiling, at least according to lore, Gulthir might actually be the strongest demon type in the 9 hells, which is EXTREMELY ironic.

[@harrymusson7266]

Love seeing you uploading again. I can imagine a cool villain party vs hero party each with a gulthir, with each trying to capture and give their gulthir powerful devils to increase its power to help the group supplant a devil lord.

[@WorldWalker128]

"What really happens when a Devil gets demoted in D&D" That depends on the DM. Sometimes they're forced into the occupation of Customer Service. Usually that only has to happen to them once and from then-on once they've moved up again they're terrified of being demoted again.

[@rickengle7208]

14:50 Gulthier would know, and might even secretly help as it wants to be restored. 1 soul for its pride back is ridiculously cheap

[@H3xx99]

The Curst would be a really cool creature to cover, because like the Revenant, it's a template that can be added to a normal creature that makes you undead, and unkillable, but highly susceptible to magic.

[@someepicnerd7821]

I like the idea that devils almost always make contracts in tiers. First they make a deal where they get something beneficial that they don’t mind being the only thing they get (like someone’s soul) and then now that they have a mortal in their pocket they can make a new deal that gets the devil exactly what they want in exchange for giving the persons soul back. I think a gulthir would go out of its way to try to make a deal with someone who can help it get promoted again since while getting another soul is nice going back to the way things used to be is infinitely more valuable to a gulthir.

[@parcormasteryesiknowispell4337]

That concept with the contract expiring could make this monster a really interesting warlock patron. I imagine the Gulthir giving some power or even minions to the warlock in exchange for the warlock helping it to get promoted.

[@crepyplays5517]

Dungeon dad i wish you a devilishly good day

[@DungeonDad]

You as well my friend!

[@tschobal9839]

Nice intro an well spoken overall. I like when creators speak at a speed normal humans do.

[@Khornecussion]

These devils would have an easier time if they took to heart the wisdom of the Great Demon Lord Wu-Tang. " Protect ya' neck. "

[@LoudYapper]

It would appear Dungeon Dad has fully moved on to the inferior monster stat block base of Saves and Scores in one bar and 3 reactions per turn... Such a shame, I loved your content, got some very cool monsters out of it ;-;. Thank you Dungeon Dad!

[@James09892]

I haven’t really mentioned this but I like the new intro, when I first saw in the platinum dragon video I fell in love with it

[@saulflores2131]

Should have said "with a regular HR department"

[@privpi]

A contract could also be fascinating leverage to restore it to its previous rank. The contract specifies the previous rank somewhere so it doesn't come into effect while it's still demoted. So if you want the benefit of your contract, you gotta help it get back to former status

[@TheJones_gaming]

Love this video also love the lore please keep up this I love having this stuff in the background and learning about the lore of dnd even though I’ve never gotten to play

[@Xterminator9876]

I had an idea with the villagers one that even without holy water that regular water could wash it out for about 30 seconds as the villager screams in horror ranting with the party having no idea what’s going on, before the slime grows back thicker and can’t be washed off at all without holy water Another was trying to awaken a 10000 year old golthir to destroy an incredibly powerful devil or demon, only to then have to deal with the golthir when it turns on them

[@johncrowley685]

An upstart devil lord who has a trapdoor to a dimensionally anchored chute that funnels into an enlarged gulthir's mounth.

[@blazingtoken1162]

Can they get *fired?*

[@DungeonDad]

All devils are fired (except for ice devils I guess)

[@eliotoole4534]

Yes, from a cannon

[@drakox9603]

Yes, and I my world, they got sold to lich as either food or a servant

[@scotus708]

Ive never been this early before! I hope you know that your uploads are all awesome and I love how deep you can get when talking about the lore and ramble without going on too long! I would 100% watch a longer form video if you ever decided to make one.

[@DungeonDad]

Hey, thanks for watching! I am in a never ending battle with myself to not ramble until my camera battery dies lol

[@joshuazane3210]

How does a Gulthir eat an entire Sybriex? One bite at a time.

[@kayn9651]

A pact with a Gulthir could be the plot for a smart warlock, signing a contract with one that states they receive their fiend warlock powers with the charge of helping the gulthir be reinstated, if they fail to do so before the warlock dies then their soul belongs to the gulthir, but if they succeed then they get to keep their pact magic for the remainder of their mortal life, however without their soul being forfeit to the fiend.

[@anthonyeaves4145]

Have y’all ever thought of trying to format creatures or characters from other games (non-tabletop specifically ) and turn them into something that’d work in DnD?

[@cernunnos_lives]

Love your coverage of this. Blood War, Hell, and Abyss is an awesome topic. I always pick up more usable details i come across.

[@notquitenil]

That ending tidbit about them getting larger over time brings up the interesting possibility of a truly ancient Gulthir, colossal in size, now worshiped as a dark god of hunger.

[@jamescanjuggle]

ok whoever did the intro but where the thumbnail drops and swivels out, give em a high five please that was so smooth and just works. Feels like i stepped into the video xD

[@Cosmic-Sorceress-17]

3.5 really has so many cool monsters. I'll be looking back on this one, thinking about how it'd nicely serve for a devil centered story. Also, since Numenera was mentioned as a source, I'd like to suggest a couple favorites of mine from the games if it hasn't been suggested already: the Jurulisk. It's a kind of colony creature consisting of a bunch of one-dimensional entities all formed together in this frame-like structure that feeds on the dimensional energies of others as an attempt to further adapt themselves to a three dimensional world. I don't know that much, as I only know them from a Numenera/5E crossover book I got and I haven't gotten all the Numenera bestiaries yet. But I know they are uniquely hard to kill due to them being so alien and often have other creatures called Ribbon Wraiths tangled in their bodies: essentially people who thought travelling to a one-dimensional world was a good idea and got flattened into living ribbons. Ribbons that are driven mad with pain and trying to restore themselves by feeding on the dimensional mass of three dimensional creatures. Numenera is a wonderfully weird setting and I could on and on about it.

[@almasyelesbayev736]

Asmodeus: You are accused of treason and anti Hell behaviour. How do you plead? Accused: F U! I'm not scared of you! Asmodeus: Take him to Detroit. Accused: No! Please, no Detroit! Nooooooooo...

[@retroicdescent]

Good reference

[@clockworkmonkey411]

The artwork for this one strongly reminds me of the Hungry Ghost or Preta. Conceptually very different, but still pretty fitting.

[@ThatReplyGuy]

A homebrew of this as a playable race would be mighty interesting. There's a lot of story potential in this.

[@blueggaround8113]

This is really cool. The new art looks absolutely horrific, and I love it.

[@DungeonDad]

Tam absolutely crushed it this week

[@mementomori771]

This is a cool monster. I wonder if demons have some equivalent

[@DungeonDad]

That's a good question! Off the top of my head I'm not sure, but this warrants investigation

[@spottedslash4256]

Closest Thing i can think of is the Nabasuu. A Gargoylish Demon in the Abyss.

[@TheKirbstomper]

A plot hook I was thinking of could be a devil the party has met may have once been a demon swallowed and transformed into a Gulthir and then PROMOTED to a proper devil later, and other devils are gunning to take them down due to their true past.

[@tsifj]

Nothing inspires me to write plots and adventures as much as, MONSTER OF THE WEEK! ...the show that you make.

[@eviesanders1344]

Anybody else think this monster kinda sounds like Kirby? The whole eating as its main attack, the stomach being another dimension and using engines as friends?

[@eviesanders1344]

Sorry Enemies

[@cameronpearce5943]

I love the lateral promotion punishment. Where Devils haven't done anything wrong, so they're rewarded with a dead end job that can only be progressed by getting demoted and working their way back up again, in a few 100 years (insert battlefield earth laughing scene)

[@madnessacolyte9823]

You are getting joust better and better

[@quinnbrentson151]

Thank you for the twist in my campaign's endgame. I ran Out of the Abyss, and Graz'zt escaped to the surface, where he's been taking behind the scenes control of governments. Now when the party is closing in on him, Zariel (who they've had dealings with in the past) is going to send a Gulthir to prevent Graz'zt from returning to the Abyss and rejoining the blood war. The party will have to protect the Gulthir from Graz'zt and his minions, while compromising the demon prince enough to be consumed. And probably keep the Gulthir from terrorizing the city too much during the hunt.

[@sirgideonofnir6840]

Ooo imagine a strike team of these kitted out with magic equipment. Like a penitent group. They complete their difficult missions, and their reward is reinstatement. It's just suicide squad, but they can die repeatedly.

[@mateokirstine9782]

The Lillend would be super cool to see returned. Bard-like chaotic good celestials.

[@eRasputin]

Gulthier: **grabs bard** Bard: Yes! Vore me daddy! Make me your minion! Gulthier:... Bard: Eh? **bedroom eyes** Gulthier: I don't wanna. Bard: WHAT?!? That's your whole thing!!! Gulthier: No. You've made it weird.

[@failurenotsorry6600]

that's how you avoid any possible violent situation

[@connordarvall8482]

A wizard can summon one with infernal calling. combine that with planar binding and boom! Instant army creator.

[@babymordred121]

Wicked! Damn, for a devil, this creature really reads like it should have been a Yugoloth! The material greed, the miserable spite and envy, and the bizarrely corrupting influence that even other fiends are disgusted by... Heck, even your plot hook idea of "give me gold, and I'll just straight-up eat the fiend you've contracted with" seems exactly like the kind of scummy scheme a Yugoloth would peddle! Alternatively, they could make for an interesting alternative origin-myth for Yugoloths in general - a Gulthir employed in the Blood War somehow consumed and metabolized the raw essence of Gehenna, and started devouring and regurgitating other fiendish warriors to spawn an awful civilization in its own petty, avaricious image. I think even official Yugoloth lore claims they were originally a failed, hellish experiment, so this might be an interesting direction to flesh out that concept.

[@sinistermonocles]

These are really fun fiends. My party just help/freed and ultraloth from a domain of dread and isblook to rebuild his power. Now i have some fiends just desperate enough to make deals with him.

[@nicolasv6031]

Campaign idea centered around this monster: The players have made a noteworthy impression on Asmodeus; whether it be from defeating a Duke/Duchess or Archduke/-duchess, performing a notable act of evil on a large scale, or something along those lines. Either way, he sees great use and promise in them, and approaches them with an offer. The Blood War isn't going how he'd like; whether it's lasted too long, or the Demons are making dangerous headway, immediate action should be taken. Fortunately, an ancient Gulthir has grown large and powerful enough to swallow and devour a mighty Demon Lord, maybe even the Demon Prince Demogorgon themselves. Asmodeus offers the players this fearsome monster as an ally, as long as they travel into the Abyss, find their Demon Lord quarry, and both keep the target in place long enough and weaken it enough for Asmodeus to bring the Gulthir to their location to devour the Demon Lord, which would strike a devastating blow into the forces of the Abyss, potentially turning the tides of the Blood War. In return, Asmodeus may offer them rewards that surpass their wildest dreams. However, all is not as it seems. Asmodeus tells the party of the annihilating property the Gulthir wields against Fiends, he neglects to mention that they can also regurgitate a creature they swallow, gaining complete control over it, if for a limited time. Asmodeus would prefer to use this ability to bend a Demon Lord to his will, primarily by getting it to divulge the location of its Soul Gem, an object powerful Demons infuse with their demonic essence, allowing them to cheat death, but gives its holder complete and utter control over the demon. Furthermore, Asmodeus isn't the only one with their own scheme. This Gulthir is actually the previous Ruler of the Nine Hells. Everyone thought them slain by Asmodeus, who afterwards wiped all knowledge of them out of existence. However, Asmodeus instead turn the former Ruler into a lowly Gulthir, subjecting it to an eternity of suffering and torture, with no allies or minions to support them. The late Ruler, however, never forgot their former position and power, and has longed for it ever since. They also hope to either seize control over the Demon Lord, gaining a powerful servant to begin its return to glory, or absorb the Demon Lord's power, establishing its own kingdom within the Abyss if need be. If the Gulthir sees enough merit in the players, it may request their aide, promising them gran positions at its side upon its inevitable victory. Of course, there can be many other Fiendish machinations in place, whether it be Devil Deals with players or their loved ones, Demonic Cults the players have run into before or may even be a part of. Anything and everything goes!

[@Ins4n1ty_]

If you want cool weird monsters, the Gliminal in Pathfinder 2e is so fun. It's pretty easy to port it to 5e but still a very cool monster that can be super scary even though it is supposed to be a Good creature.

[@wdyd_masterattwitch4956]

I was literally thinking this yesterday, thank you.

[@alexinfinite7142]

This fills such a good spot for the lore

[@HiroZeroVirus]

as a player in a campaign that is having a bit of a devil problem, I may try out a planar ally/planar binding combo to have one of these ride with us to the final battle.

[@AssassinOfHatred]

These things are like Golb from adventure time lowkey, when swallowed by him, things return to their original form and for a being made of evil magic that is death. Maybe an elder version of this creature that acts as the divine version of this creature that eats dead or dying god. A gargantuan or collosal version of this horrific monster? Pants poopingly scary bbeg

[@dragonfan8647]

Oooh, I definitely have to watch this when I have the time. I'm currently playing (a heavily modified) Baldur's Gate: Descent into Avernus, so these might come in handy

[@whitereckless9320]

Finally Dad posted!!

[@Peptuck]

Malacath: *(sees a fiend that can swallow you whole and transform you and spit you back up)* Ah, shit, here we go again.

[@DEMONOFLOVEANDDEATH]

Bless the Dungeon Dad

[@BlueGriffin20]

I’m thinking a “whydunnit?” where one of these things is dominating a town to find the hidden devil/demon disguised in town. All the more better if you have the party get to know the towns folks and come back to find out this creature has been messing around with them. Do they find out it’s cause and then make a bargain to sacrifice the person they think it is? Do they kill it and the devil strays hidden unaware by the party?

[@eddiebendigo7317]

The title genuinely had me believing this video was about devil demotion, and not about a singular creature.

[@dmeep]

where did you get the demon ranking stair picture?

[@mitchhaelann9215]

Interesting creature. It bares considering that it may actually be a true native of the nine hells, instead of the Baatezu pretenders. Little reminder: Before the devils we all know and loathe even existed, before the Pact Primeval, when Asmodeus was an angelic servant of the pantheons, there was another race of lawful fiends which arose naturally in the nine hells. Lesser forms of them still occur in the nine hells, and they're able to evolve into greater forms, but the existing devils never allow that to happen. They're treated as the lowest of the low, lower even than Lemures, and they're often either destroyed or twisted and reshaped into the forms of more well known devils. Existing outside the hierarchy, the Gulthir may be a more advanced version of this Devil.

[@nettlesandsnakes9138]

Since you mentioned, it can swallow other things and destroy them. There is now going to be not safe for work out of that.

[@emilianorios4761]

Wonder if the other non devil fiends can get Un-Gulthired. Also as a player, Gulthir are eligible to be summoned by infernal calling. Also casting enlarge on one grants it the size needed to swallow the Ice, Bone, Horned devils, Orthon and the Pit Fiend.

[@atimidbirb]

A 10 foot tall horrifying monstrosity that can swallow you whole and cast misty step at will IS LITERALLY MY WORST NIGHTMARE WHAT THE FUCK

[@kchaystack]

Ooh, ancient gulthir comes to find and devour the tarasque

[@mistformsquirrel]

I just want to suggest re: the plot hook that one plays the Voltaire "brains!" song from the Grim Adventures of Billy and Mandy while this is going on. Thank you.