Balan
| Greyhawk Deity | |
|---|---|
| Balan | |
| |
| Balan, as depicted in Dragon #360 (2007). | |
| Title(s) | Duke of Hell |
| Home Plane | Baator |
| Power Level | Duke of Hell |
| Gender | Male |
| Class(es) | n/a |
| Alignment | Lawful evil |
| Portfolio | n/a |
| Domains | n/a |
| Alias(es) | None |
| Superior | Belial |
Balan is a Duke of Hell in the service of Belial.
Description
Balan appears as a giant, yellow-skinned man with fierce black brows and a beard which grows in tufts (something like a catfish's lower whiskers). He has gray hooves and a body which darkens to scarlet about his legs and his forked tail. He typically wears only a leather weapon belt and girdle, and shuns armor. He has red or blue flaming eyes visible at some distance, and a hoarse voice. His grin has been described as both idiotic and drooling, but his sense of humor, despite its coarseness, is quite witty. He wears a badge upon his belt depicting his own head next to a bull’s head (signifying his brutal, aggressive nature) and a ram’s head (denoting the lusty side of his nature), as well as the heads of those he has slain. He tends to be incautious in his fights, charging in with twin axes.
Relationships
Balan is a duke of Phelegethos and one of Belial's loyal supporters. He is little-liked at Belial's court; the opinions of his peers range from respect to mere toleration. Balan is belligerent and roaring, and never backs down from a fight, although he is intelligent enough to avoid being drawn into conflicts with superior foes if he can at all help it. He loves fighting with weaker opponents, however.
Before the Reckoning of Hell, Balan was an ally of Bathym, a fellow duke in the service of Belial. After that conflict, however, Bathym shifted his alliance to Fierna, while Balan continued to support Belial first and foremost, as Belial had long helped him fulfill his unspeakable desires. More than any other baatezu, Bathym is now Balan's greatest enemy; Bathym hopes to increase Fierna's control over Phlegethos and his own position with it, while Balan desires to keep Belial as the power behind the throne. For a time, they were at least civil with one another, but as Fierna continues to assert herself, it looks as if Balan and Bathym may soon come to blows.
Vassals
Balan commands 40 companies of bearded devils. Each company consists of 333 devils. He has no mortal followers.
Dogma
Balan considers death to be a state of absolute order, and so strives to bring all others to that state. He strives for the deaths of demons first, then women, then everyone else.
Bibliography
- Greenwood, Ed. "The Nine Hells Part I." Dragon #75. Lake Geneva, WI: TSR, 1983.
- Schwalb, Robert J. "Infernal Aristocracy: Dukes of Hell." Dragon #360. Renton, WA: Wizards of the Coast, 2007. Available online: [1]
