D&D 5E Demon Cults and Deals

[Hatox]

Hey everybody,

I have a question about DnD lore. For the next chapter in my campaign I thought about having some kind of cult. It´s undead-themed so Orcus came to my mind, but the problem is, is worshipping a demon of any use? I mean devils are known for making deals and empowering mortals to get their souls, but do demons do anything like this? When I hear demons I only think about them being captured and enslaved by magicians or as escaping the abyss and going on a rampage.

Would Orcus make "deals" and empower people who worship him if it helps him spread havok and death? It just seems a devilish thing to do and not really fitting to the chaotic demons.

Is there a Devil that focuses on the undead?

Thankful for all answers

 

[Bitbrain]

From what lore I have read, Orcus is only interested in cults if they both spread the plague of undead, and are willing to become undead themselves.
Basically, the universe outside of his own layer of the abyss is too bright and noisy for his liking.

 

[Jester David]

Sure. There's a couple pages of demonic boons in Tome of Foes that relate to various demon lords empowering their servants. And IIRC cultists can cast spells, implying demon lords can grant spellcasting.
Heck, that's where warlocks get their power from, right?

 

[Satyrn]

Thoughts on how I'd do it: Orcus wouldn't be making deals, no. As you say that's not a very demon thing to do.

Instead, the cultists are drawn to him because of this. Since there are no deals, the cultists are free to pursue their own nefarious plans instead of some Devil Master.

Orcus still gives them power, though, related in some way to creating undead. He might not be reliable in what he grants, though, being Chaotic. But in the end, the cultists are spreading chaos and creating undead without interference, and Orcus's influence spreads. Win-win.

 

[Hatox]

This gave me an idea: How about someone praying and doing evil deeds to get orcus attention, which they get and he actually "rewards" them to get them to do more of the stuff that he liked.

 

[Satyrn]

This gave me an idea: How about someone praying and doing evil deeds to get orcus attention, which they get and he actually "rewards" them to get them to do more of the stuff that he liked.

I like it. That's along the lines of what I was trying to say, but the bit about doing the evil stuff before getting Orcus' gifts is a nice touch.

 

[Dausuul]

Hey everybody,

I have a question about DnD lore. For the next chapter in my campaign I thought about having some kind of cult. It´s undead-themed so Orcus came to my mind, but the problem is, is worshipping a demon of any use? I mean devils are known for making deals and empowering mortals to get their souls, but do demons do anything like this? When I hear demons I only think about them being captured and enslaved by magicians or as escaping the abyss and going on a rampage.

Would Orcus make "deals" and empower people who worship him if it helps him spread havok and death? It just seems a devilish thing to do and not really fitting to the chaotic demons.

As I see it, demon lords seldom make deals. Instead, they throw power at mortals who seem likely to use that power in ways that spread the demon lord's influence. Orcus gives power to people who want to raise undead, not as part of a deal, but because Orcus wants more undead stalking the material plane. Demogorgon empowers insane killers, who will spread Demogorgon's own horror and madness. Graz'zt empowers people in pursuit of depraved pleasures. And so on.

Demon cults happen when a bunch of people make a deliberate effort to please the demon lord, hoping to get some of that Abyssal power tossed their way. Since the essence of the Abyss is corruption and madness, demon cultists are generally insane, and they get more insane the deeper they sink under their lord's thrall.

 

[Gwarok]

Orcus could for sure make deals. Sure, many demons are wild eyes engines of destruction, but some do rise to the top, and even Chaotic Evil can be part of a team. In my mind I always thought of Lawful Evil as represented by say, Nazi Germany. Sure, totally evil goals, amoral and ruthless beyond belief, but the streets were clean, and things worked in an orderly fashion behind the front lines and life might even be good, as long as you were one of them and never stepped out of line. Chaotic Evil I sort of imagine is more like the bad guys in a Mad Max movie. Wild savage bands of lunatics roaming the wastes. But to their own clan/tribe/whatever there is a hierarchy and a method to the madness. Even some loyalty from the minions to the bosses, who use them ruthlessly. They even managed to form communities, albeit brutally harsh ones. I imagine the Abyss is a lot like that. So yea, Orcus could cut a deal. In fact, given the propensity of mortals to abuse power and become corrupted by it it's likely Orcus would be not only willing but eager to live up to his end of bargains.

And as for devils who focus on undead, don't they all? They are punishers in the afterlife. Most of the devils listed in the last book seemed to have Animate Dead as an At Will ability, which in my mind makes them very powerful necromancers in addition to whatever else they can do. And if that is not enough, you can always make one up. But Hell is all about the afterlife, and so I don't think you should have to stretch anything too far to make a devil that includes death in its portfolio.

 

[aco175]

I more picture cults are like modern day cults where there is one charismatic leader that has power and the others follow him for their own purpose. Like Jim Jones having all those people drink Cool-Aid, fantasy cultists get power over others. There can be direct control like blackmail or even spells that enchant, but the best is the promise of power to be like him in that the devil gave him actual spells and powers.

 

[MNblockhead]

I think Mordenkainen's Tome of Foes describes this quite well.

More powerful and intelligent demons are still driven by their selfish desires and rule by force, fear, and whim; but they have grander visions and plans to achieve them.

While lesser demons may simply create minions using fear and subjugation, more intelligent demons will have subtler approaches. A demon's promise wouldn't be written down and is worth the paper it is written on. But that doesn't mean it is incapable of using sticks and carrots to corrupt and control.

The most common trope for demonic cultists is that they are mad. They are sociopaths, insane, overcome by desire, etc. Perhaps they didn't start out that way. Many may come to demon-worship out of desperation for power and are driven mad as they are corrupted by the demonic boons they receive. But there are also those who believe that they can learn to dominate and control demons and harness their powers. It is hard to beat a devil at its own game when it comes to contracts. Some may find it safer and more straight-forward to just over power demons. The cultists may have no interest in any relationship with demons, they may not worship them, they just want to harness their power. And perhaps not even harness, just release the destructive force on enemies.