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This is unbelievably stupid. The whole point of the Crown of Karsus is that it can turn a mere mortal into a bona-fide god; Raphael (already several steps above a mere mortal) with its power is SUPPOSED to be powerful enough to become Archdevil Supreme, that's the entire point of his plan. Saying "he didn't account for being weaker" when his entire plan is to make himself the strongest is willingly ignoring what the game is telling you and the narrative significance of his deal. This is supposed to be a wiki, not some infantile death battle forum where deluded fanboys talk about how their god could totally beat up another god.
And no, pointing to some obscure lore bit from some ancient Dn D manual from thirty or so years ago is not at all pertinent to BG 3, which already contradicts "established" older Forgotten Realms lore, because Larian Studios took creative liberties with their story.
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* DontCelebrateJustYet: A rare villainous example. His ending scene has him practically revelling in his victory at becoming the new ruler of the Hells, despite only having started to conquer one of them. Notably, his plan doesn't seem to take into account [[GodOfEvil Asmodeus]].
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* FatalFlaw: Ambition. Raphael's biggest flaw is that his desire to acquire the Crown of Karsus allows him to make lapses in judgment. In Act 3, Raphael plays his hand too early by revealing his intentions and the location of the tools the player needs to free Orpheus, giving the player enough wiggle room to steal the Orphic Hammer or their contract while leaving Raphael with nothing. And then there's the ending if he succeeds, where he gloats about his victory, but fails to account for [[AlwaysABiggerFish Asmodeus]], who is not only the ruler of the Nine Hells, but one of the universe's best schemers and [[GodOfEvil also a literal god]].
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* FatalFlaw: Ambition. Raphael's biggest flaw is that his desire to acquire the Crown of Karsus allows him to make lapses in judgment. In Act 3, Raphael plays his hand too early by revealing his intentions and the location of the tools the player needs to free Orpheus, giving the player enough wiggle room to steal the Orphic Hammer or their contract while leaving Raphael with nothing. And then there's the ending if he succeeds, where he gloats about his victory, but fails to account for [[AlwaysABiggerFish Asmodeus]], who is not only the ruler of the Nine Hells, but one of the universe's best schemers and [[GodOfEvil also a literal god]].
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** He accuses the party and Karsus of overreaching their limits, seemingly unaware that a Cambion trying to unite the hells and end the Blood War would draw the attention of Asmodeus and the Gods and likely end in his own failure. The player even asks him why he thinks he can succeed where Karsus failed and he'll simply scream that "he's NOT MORTAL".
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* SmugSnake: Is fully confident that the group will ultimately end up making a deal with him, and makes no secret of how much he'll enjoy watching their increasing desperation to avoid it. His ending also has him assured that he'll soon end the Blood War and conquer all the Hells, seemingly unaware that Asmodeus and the other Gods would have something to say about that.
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* SmugSnake: Is fully confident that the group will ultimately end up making a deal with him, and makes no secret of how much he'll enjoy watching their increasing desperation to avoid it. His ending also has him assured that he'll soon end the Blood War and conquer all the Hells, seemingly unaware that Asmodeus and the other Gods would have something to say about that.
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* TooCleverByHalf: Should he play his cards right, Raphael can end up getting what he needs to end the Blood War. However, he never takes into consideration why Mephistopheles, for all his aspirations to supplant Asmodeus, never bothered to use the Crown of Karsus against the Lord of the Ninth.
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Nubaldin is not unstable enough to qualify for Ax Crazy, he's just a cruel person who punches down.
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* AxCrazy: Quite violent and bloodthirsty, Nubaldin enjoys regalling the time where he spent them hurting the prisoners which includes Gortash. Being reassigned to the Chamber of Egress means that he can no longer indulge in his urges. In your quest to find and save Hope, convincing him to help you requires tricking him into believing that you want to torment Hope yourself. If you tells him that Gortash is dead, Nubaldin will happily help you for free, being satisfied that his former charge is dead.
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* {{Sadist}}: Nubaldin enjoys regaling the party with the times he spent hurting the prisoners of the House of Hope, which included Gortash when the latter was a child. Being reassigned to the Chamber of Egress means that he can no longer indulge in his urges. In your quest to find and save Hope, convincing him to help you requires tricking him into believing that you want to torment Hope yourself. If you tell him that Gortash is dead, Nubaldin will happily help you for free, being satisfied that his former charge is dead.
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Not entirely accurate as the Emperor IS being honest about its intentions to destroy the Brain, and whether or not it actually sees you as nothing more than a pawn is deliberately left ambiguous.
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* VillainHasAPoint: Probably the most dangerous thing about Raphael is that he is ''always'' worth hearing out. The best example of this is when he makes his deal for the Orphic Hammer. He is entirely right about ''everything'' - you will eventually have to fight the Elder Brain to remove your tadpole, Orpheus is the reason you're still alive and does work with you when freed, and the Emperor does ultimately view you as the 'beast of burden' to take it to the brain and shows itself to be incredibly untrustworthy throughout Act 3. All his theatrics and bluster are mixed with cold, hard truth that makes him all the more dangerous and tempting to bargain with. Several characters comment on how dangerous this makes him, since he knows what to say to get people to listen to him.
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* VillainHasAPoint: Probably the most dangerous thing about Raphael is that he is ''always'' worth hearing out. The best example of this is when he makes his deal for the Orphic Hammer. He is entirely right about ''everything'' - you will eventually have to fight the Elder Brain to remove your tadpole, Orpheus is the reason you're still alive and does work with you when freed, and the Emperor does ultimately view 'is' manipulating you as to an extent, even if its sincere about wanting to destroy the 'beast of burden' to take it to the brain and shows itself to be incredibly untrustworthy throughout Act 3.Netherbrain. All his theatrics and bluster are mixed with cold, hard truth that makes him all the more dangerous and tempting to bargain with. Several characters comment on how dangerous this makes him, since he knows what to say to get people to listen to him.
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* SmallRoleBigImpact: If he has been a little better at his job and prevented Gortash from escaping, the story would not have happened.
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* SmallRoleBigImpact: If he has had been a little better at his job and prevented Gortash from escaping, the story would not have happened.
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* AmbigousSituation: At first glance, Hope is Gold Dwarf like her sister, Korilla. But it is hinted that there is more to her than meets the eye. She is able to astral project herself outside her prison and communicate with the party. There is the fact that despite centuries of torture, Hope remains physically unscarred. She has her own spell called Revoke Guest Status, which allows her to banish enemies from the House of Hope despite Raphael currently rulling it. It is implied that either the House of Hope was originally hers or centuries of torture, the faith of the tortured souls and her determined belief has allowed her to become an embodiment of hope. In the letter that you can receive from her during the epilogue, her last sentence is this:
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* AmbigousSituation: AmbiguousSituation: At first glance, Hope is Gold Dwarf like her sister, Korilla. But it is hinted that there is more to her than meets the eye. She is able to astral project herself outside her prison and communicate with the party. There is the fact that despite centuries of torture, Hope remains physically unscarred. She has her own spell called Revoke Guest Status, which allows her to banish enemies from the House of Hope despite Raphael currently rulling it. It is implied that either the House of Hope was originally hers or centuries of torture, the faith of the tortured souls and her determined belief has allowed her to become an embodiment of hope. In the letter that you can receive from her during the epilogue, her last sentence is this:
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* AmbigiousSituation: At first glance, Hope is Gold Dwarf like her sister, Korilla. But it is hinted that there is more to her than meets the eye. She is able to astral project herself outside her prison and communicate with the party. There is the fact that despite centuries of torture, Hope remains physically unscarred. She has her own spell called Revoke Guest Status, which allows her to banish enemies from the House of Hope despite Raphael currently rulling it. It is implied that either the House of Hope was originally hers or centuries of torture, the faith of the tortured souls and her determined belief has allowed her to become an embodiment of hope. In the letter that you receives from her during the epilogue, her last sentence is this:
-->'''Hope:''' Am I happy? I don't know. But I am Hope, and I persist because of you.\\
-->'''Hope:''' Am I happy? I don't know. But I am Hope, and I persist because of you.\\
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* AmbigiousSituation: AmbigousSituation: At first glance, Hope is Gold Dwarf like her sister, Korilla. But it is hinted that there is more to her than meets the eye. She is able to astral project herself outside her prison and communicate with the party. There is the fact that despite centuries of torture, Hope remains physically unscarred. She has her own spell called Revoke Guest Status, which allows her to banish enemies from the House of Hope despite Raphael currently rulling it. It is implied that either the House of Hope was originally hers or centuries of torture, the faith of the tortured souls and her determined belief has allowed her to become an embodiment of hope. In the letter that you receives can receive from her during the epilogue, her last sentence is this:
-->'''Hope:''' Am I happy? I don't know. But I am Hope, and I persist because of you.\\
-->'''Hope:''' Am I happy? I don't know. But I am Hope, and I persist because of you.
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* KickedUpstairs: Worse things could have happened to Nubaldin given Raphael's cruelty than being relocated to the Chamber of Egress and being tasked to watch over a room of portals. But to be fair, Nubaldin stills bemoans his current position because he can no longer abuse his prisoners and Raphael fully intends to replace him once he find someone who can take his place.
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* KickedUpstairs: Worse things could have happened to Nubaldin given Raphael's cruelty than being relocated to the Chamber of Egress and being tasked to watch over a room of portals. But to be fair, Nubaldin stills still bemoans his current position because he can no longer abuse his prisoners and Raphael fully intends to replace him once he find someone who can take his place.
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* AmbigiousSituation: At first glance, Hope is Gold Dwarf like her sister, Korilla. But it is hinted that there is more to her than meets the eye. She is able to astral project herself outside her prison and communicate with the party. There is the fact that despite centuries of torture, Hope remains physically unscarred. She has her own spell called Revoke Guest Status, which allows her to banish enemies from the House of Hope despite Raphael currently rulling it. It is implied that either the House of Hope was originally hers or centuries of torture, the faith of the tortured souls and her determined belief has allowed her to become an embodiment of hope. In the letter that you receives from her during the epilogue, her last sentence is this:
-->'''Hope:''' Am I happy? I don't know. But I am Hope, and I persist because of you.\\
-->'''Hope:''' Am I happy? I don't know. But I am Hope, and I persist because of you.\\
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* YouHaveFailedMe: After Nubaldin failed to keep Gortash in check, Raphael reassigned him watch the Chamber of Egress.
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* YouHaveFailedMe: After Nubaldin failed to keep Gortash in check, Raphael reassigned him watch the Chamber of Egress.Egress, which is surprisingly merciful considering Raphael's cruelty. But a record that you can find makes it clear that Raphael fully intends to duly punish Nubaldin once he finds a better replacement.
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* YouHaveFailedMe: After Nubaldin failed to keep Gortash in check, Raphael reassigned him watch the Chamber of Egress.
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[[folder:Nubaldin]]
!!Nubaldin
->'''Race:''' Rock Gnome
An angry and sadistic rock gnome who serves Raphael as the keeper of the Chamber of Egress.
----
* AxCrazy: Quite violent and bloodthirsty, Nubaldin enjoys regalling the time where he spent them hurting the prisoners which includes Gortash. Being reassigned to the Chamber of Egress means that he can no longer indulge in his urges. In your quest to find and save Hope, convincing him to help you requires tricking him into believing that you want to torment Hope yourself. If you tells him that Gortash is dead, Nubaldin will happily help you for free, being satisfied that his former charge is dead.
* KickedUpstairs: Worse things could have happened to Nubaldin given Raphael's cruelty than being relocated to the Chamber of Egress and being tasked to watch over a room of portals. But to be fair, Nubaldin stills bemoans his current position because he can no longer abuse his prisoners and Raphael fully intends to replace him once he find someone who can take his place.
* SmallRoleBigImpact: If he has been a little better at his job and prevented Gortash from escaping, the story would not have happened.
* YouHaveFailedMe: He lost his position as a warden for the prison of the House of Hope after he made a mistake that allowed Gortash to escape. Raphael punished him by reassigning him to watch the Chamber of Egress.
[[/folder]]
!!Nubaldin
->'''Race:''' Rock Gnome
An angry and sadistic rock gnome who serves Raphael as the keeper of the Chamber of Egress.
----
* AxCrazy: Quite violent and bloodthirsty, Nubaldin enjoys regalling the time where he spent them hurting the prisoners which includes Gortash. Being reassigned to the Chamber of Egress means that he can no longer indulge in his urges. In your quest to find and save Hope, convincing him to help you requires tricking him into believing that you want to torment Hope yourself. If you tells him that Gortash is dead, Nubaldin will happily help you for free, being satisfied that his former charge is dead.
* KickedUpstairs: Worse things could have happened to Nubaldin given Raphael's cruelty than being relocated to the Chamber of Egress and being tasked to watch over a room of portals. But to be fair, Nubaldin stills bemoans his current position because he can no longer abuse his prisoners and Raphael fully intends to replace him once he find someone who can take his place.
* SmallRoleBigImpact: If he has been a little better at his job and prevented Gortash from escaping, the story would not have happened.
* YouHaveFailedMe: He lost his position as a warden for the prison of the House of Hope after he made a mistake that allowed Gortash to escape. Raphael punished him by reassigning him to watch the Chamber of Egress.
[[/folder]]
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* VillainHasAPoint: Probably the most dangerous thing about Raphael is that he is ''always'' worth hearing out. The best example of this is when he makes his deal for the Orphic Hammer. He is entirely right about ''everything'' - you will eventually have to fight the Elder Brain to remove your tadpole, Orpheus is the reason you're still alive and does work with you when freed, and the Emperor does ultimately view you as the 'beast of burden' to take it to the brain and shows itself to be incredibly untrustworthy throughout Act 3. All his theatrics and bluster are mixed with cold, hard truth that makes him all the more dangerous and tempting to bargain with.
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* VillainHasAPoint: Probably the most dangerous thing about Raphael is that he is ''always'' worth hearing out. The best example of this is when he makes his deal for the Orphic Hammer. He is entirely right about ''everything'' - you will eventually have to fight the Elder Brain to remove your tadpole, Orpheus is the reason you're still alive and does work with you when freed, and the Emperor does ultimately view you as the 'beast of burden' to take it to the brain and shows itself to be incredibly untrustworthy throughout Act 3. All his theatrics and bluster are mixed with cold, hard truth that makes him all the more dangerous and tempting to bargain with. Several characters comment on how dangerous this makes him, since he knows what to say to get people to listen to him.
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* NobleDemon: Always polite and respectful to the player character. If they work with him against Raphael, he'll help you to break into the House of Hope later and side with you. If you fight him in the Gauntlet of Shar, he views you as a worthy opponent and you can even convince him to side with you. He'll also gladly help you against the Elder Brain if you ally with him.
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[[center:[-''VideoGame/BaldursGateIII'' | [[Characters/BaldursGateIII Main Character Index]]\\
[[Characters/BaldursGateIIIOriginCharacters The Origin Characters]] | [[Characters/BaldursGateIIIOriginCompanions Origin Companions]] ([[Characters/BaldursGateIIIAstarion Astarion]])\\
[[Characters/BaldursGateIIIClasses Classes]] | [[Characters/BaldursGateIIICompanionsAndFollowers Other Companions & Camp Followers]] | [[Characters/BaldursGateIIINPCsAndFactions NPCs and Factions]] ([[Characters/BaldursGateIIITheCultOfTheAbsolute The Cult of The Absolute]] |[[Characters/BaldursGateIIITieflingRefugees The Tiefling Refugees]] | '''House of Hope''')-]]]
[[foldercontrol]]
!!The House of Hope
[[folder:Raphael (Spoilers Unmarked)]]
!!Raphael
[[quoteright:920:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/image_2023_08_09_061118174.png]]
[[caption-width-right:350:[[labelnote:Click here to see his true form (spoilers)]]https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/image_2023_08_09_061447961.png[[/labelnote]]]]
!!!'''Voiced by:''' Andrew Wincott
->'''Race:''' Cambion
->''"What's better than a devil you don't know? A devil you do."''
The son of Mephistopheles, the Archduke of Cania, he is a powerful cambion with dark aspirations to unite the Nine Hells under his banner and become Archdevil Supreme. During the age of the Netherese Empire, Raphael witnessed the creation of the Crown of Karsus and the subsequent fall caused by Karsus' Folly. Despite his attempts to get the artifact, his father took it before Raphael could get his hands on it.
After cooling down from his rage and frustration, Raphael spent the next thousand years keeping an eye on the crown and continued to scheme to claim it. When the plot of the Absolute was kickstarted, Raphael took an interest in our heroes, planning to use them for his own plans to get the Crown that he desired for so long.
----
* AchillesHeel: Though insanely dangerous during his boss fight, having access to powerful spells, tons of health and multiple minions, his Wisdom is a relatively meager 13. Even with his innate resistance to magic, a well-prepared party can reliably render him helpless with such spells as Hypnotic Pattern or Hold Monster.
* AlwaysSomeoneBetter:
** Though he prides himself as a dangerous schemer, the player, depending on their choices, can prove themselves an even smarter back-stabber than he is by [[TakeAThirdOption taking a third option]] in their deal by stealing from him so they won't owe him anything.
** An Ascended Gale in the epilogue can invoke this on him, pointing out that for all of Raphael's [[AmbitionIsEvil ambitions]], he stands no chance against the God of Ambition himself. He proceeds to show that he's not all talk by sending Raphael back to where he came from with a snap of his fingers, daring him to take the Crown of Karsus back from him.
* AmbitionIsEvil: Not an unusual motivation for a devil, much of Raphael's motivation is driven by a desire for power and more. He sees the Crown of Karsus as the perfect tool to provide him more of it.
-->'''Raphael:''' Power. Ancient and full of wonders.
* AnimalMotifs: When reciting a Cormyrian rhyme about a cat and a mouse in his introductory scene, the player can ask which animal he considers himself to be. Raphael responds that he is the fox who will strike once the time is right. Foxes are considered to be crafty and opportunistic animals, which befits a ManipulativeBastard like Raphael. It also overlaps with FairytaleMotifs, as Raphael considers himself the third party who will come out on top in the player's inevitable conflict with the Cult of the Absolute.
* AntagonisticOffspring: An EvilerThanThou variation. He's at odds with his own father, Mephistopheles, the Archduke of Cania.
* BadBoss: Going to the House of Hope reveals that he regularly mistreats his staff and debtors, with the exception of those he favors, such as Korrilla Hearthflame.
* TheBadGuyWins: If he is unopposed in the game and the party takes his deal, Raphael succeeds in his goal of gaining the Crown of Karsus. As shown in the post-credit scene, he is commanding his legions to besiege Zariel's fortress and he makes it clear that he won't stop with the Nine Hells and plans to continue conquering other worlds in the universe.
* BerserkButton:
** Chaos. He ''desperately'' wants to be in control of everything and does not take it well if you act unpredictably or derail his plans. In fact, that's the main reason he's so ballistic if you infiltrate the House of Hope, given that you'll almost certainly lead a trail of destruction behind you if you try to steal the Orphic Hammer or your contract from it.
** Doubting his power or his bravery. If when encountering him at the entrance of the Temple of Shar you insinuate he's scared of Yurgir, he'll quickly abandon his (up until then) suave, genial demeanor and outright [[OOCIsSeriousBusiness insult and threaten you]] in a fit of quiet, seething rage. This hints that your words hit the nail on the head.
** A smaller one is insinuating that he is a lousy lover. While robbing the House of Hope leaves him seething with TranquilFury, making a jape about his sexual prowess (or lack thereof) is what sends him [[SuddenlyShouting over the edge]].
* BigBadEnsemble: Shares the title of BigBad alongside the Cult of the Absolute, wanting to claim the Crown of Karsus that's in their possession for himself. Unlike the Cult, who is the more active threat the player must face, Raphael prefers to work behind the scenes by manipulating the player into doing his dirty work. Not to mention that he's also the cambion whom Enver Gortash's parents sold him to when he was a boy, which likely contributed to molding Gortash into the man that he is today.
* TheChessmaster:
** Best demonstrated in Act 2, with the way Yurgir's quest is handled. The player can either convince Yurgir to kill himself, fight him, or aid him. Regardless of the choice the player makes, Raphael is able to manipulate events to lead to his desired result, which is Yurgir serving him again. Of course, the most easy option for Raphael would be for you to either convince Yurgir to kill himself or kill Yurgir yourself - and Raphael is immediately there at the Thorm Mausoleum to try to ensure this outcome by offering Astarion a deal where if you kill Yurgir, he'll translate the scars on his back - vastly increasing the odds of his best outcome by offering you precious information as an incentive to help him.
** In Act 3, you will have the option of stealing the Crown of Karsus for him in exchange for the Orpheus Hammer. Aiding him will result in him becoming the Archdevil Supreme. Failing to do so will result in him owning your soul. Breaking into the House of Hope to either steal the hammer or tear up your contract with him will result in a very difficult boss fight. Unless you manage to beat him, he still comes out on top.
* ChessMotifs: Takes the aforementioned trope above literally. He plays the Forgotten Realms' version of chess, lanceboard. When the player meets him again in Last Light Inn and Mol survives, he is found playing a game of lanceboard with her.
* ChildByRape: In the lore, Mephistopheles has sired a huge number of half-fiend children over the years, but his M.O. is to KillAndReplace some unfortunate mortal male and pull a DemonicPossession on their corpse, before violently raping and impregnating their spouse with a cambion child whose birth is typically agonising and fatal.
* ControlFreak: Absolutely despises "the noise and the chaos" of the mortal world, using "litters of kittens" and "chattering children" as examples. His own values center around order and strict rules, and his ultimate goal is to "impose perfect order" on the Hells using the Crown of Karsus. If you instead bring "chaos" into the House of Hope by breaking your oath or stealing from him, he will be incensed.
* ContrastingSequelAntagonist: To Sarevok and Jon Irenicus. Like his predecessors, Raphael's main goal is achieving power, but his methods differ from them:
** Like Sarevok, he schemes and manipulates people to accomplish his goal. However, Sarevok violently opposes anyone he sees as his enemy and continuously sends assassins and bounty hunters to kill Gorion's Ward. Meanwhile, Raphael is very much willing to work with the heroes as long as he gets closer to his goal and ensures their safety by sending Korilla to keep an eye on them and save them if necessary. Sarevok's manipulation is aimed toward the people of Baldur's Gate, while Raphael prefers manipulating people on an individual basis.
** Like Irenicus, Raphael is an ancient being with supreme command over magic. But unlike Irenicus who prefers to solve his problems through overwhelming arcane might, Raphael prefers to stay in the shadows and only reveal his full might once he is forced into a confrontation. Unlike Irenicus who seemingly wanted to help Gorion's Ward achieve their potential, but in actuality, simply wanted to steal their divinity, Raphael, although motivated by self-interest, is genuine in his offer to assist the party in defeating the Elder Brain.
** Unlike his predecessors who have a direct connection to Bhaalspawns, Raphael's link is an indirect one and his goal is entirely unrelated to their connection to Bhaal. Sarevok is Gorion's Ward's half-brother and Irenicus' main goal is to steal their divinity. Meanwhile, Raphael's connection to the Dark Urge is through his father, Mephistopheles, who was the victim of their theft of the Crown of Karsus.
* DealWithTheDevil: He tries to tempt the player with one of these by promising to remove the mind-flayer tadpoles. However, he insists that he'll only do it when they've lost all hope even if they agree right off.
** When you do deal with Raphael, be that to translate Astarion's scars, or to give Raphael the Crown of Karsus in exchange for the Orphic Hammer, Raphael is absolutely impeccable at holding up his end of the deal. However, his deals do notably favour him massively, even if they don't involve selling your soul - Yurgir is one of the more difficult boss fights unless you can roll very good Persuasion checks to skip the fight, and the Crown of Karsus is literally the most powerful magical artifact in existence.
* DontCelebrateJustYet: A rare villainous example. His ending scene has him practically revelling in his victory at becoming the new ruler of the Hells, despite only having started to conquer one of them. Notably, his plan doesn't seem to take into account [[GodOfEvil Asmodeus]].
* EvenEvilHasStandards: At least in regards to {{Squick}} factor, Raphael literally gets intimate with an Incubus that is made to look exactly like himself, but if you tell him that the Emperor, an Illithid, is your lover, he's completely grossed out and replies with this:
-->'''Raphael:''' I have seen all the torments of the Hells in lurid detail - none compare to the image you just conjured.
** In act 2, when Asterion asks him for assistance in escaping his master, if the PC is unaware of the scars on Asterion's back and mentions this when Raphael brings them up, Raphael will magically remove Asterion's clothing to show you the scars on his back. If you are in the graveyard outside of Shar's Temple when this conversation occurs, Asterion is stripped completely naked. However, if you have this conversation at the inn, he will at least let Asterion keep his pants and a level of dignity around all those strangers in the inn.
** He refers to Cazador's plans to become the Vampire ascendant as "A grim tale, even for my tastes." Coming from Raphael that's really saying something.
* EvilVsEvil: In the past, Morfred, the architect of Moonrise Tower, made a deal with Raphael, that in return for his soul, Raphael will destroy Ketheric's army of Dark Justiciars. As agreed, Raphael hired Yurgir and his army of merregons to fight Ketheric's army.
* EvilIsHammy: He simply oozes theatricality, alternating between [[ColdHam delivering grandiose, dramatic speeches in a cool tone of voice]] when calm, and [[LargeHam spouting threats and insults at the top of his lungs]] when angered. He can even be found ''rehearsing his lines'' for one of these speeches, which you can call him out on.
-->'''Player:''' How long have you been standing around practicing that little recital?
-->'''Raphael:''' Until it was ''perfect''.
* EvilPowerVacuum: If the player kills Raphael, Helsik informs them that his death has already caused a stir in Avernus. Karlach will also comment that other devils will inevitably try to claim his House of Hope for themselves.
* EvilVirtues: Ambition and compassion are his. Raphael lends his help to the desperate, but always at the price of becoming his slave for eternity. As for his ambition, his greatest is to take over the Nine Hells as Archdevil Supreme but then moves onto taking over the universe if he gets his hands on the Crown of Karsus.
* FatalFlaw: Ambition. Raphael's biggest flaw is that his desire to acquire the Crown of Karsus allows him to make lapses in judgment. In Act 3, Raphael plays his hand too early by revealing his intentions and the location of the tools the player needs to free Orpheus, giving the player enough wiggle room to steal the Orphic Hammer or their contract while leaving Raphael with nothing. And then there's the ending if he succeeds, where he gloats about his victory, but fails to account for [[AlwaysABiggerFish Asmodeus]], who is not only the ruler of the Nine Hells, but one of the universe's best schemers and [[GodOfEvil also a literal god]].
* FauxAffablyEvil: He introduces himself politely to the party, invites them to his home, the House of Hope, and offers to provide them with a solution to their problems. It quickly becomes clear that his politeness is just a cover for his self-serving evilness and pride. Even when he offers deals, it is simply done to serve his interests.
* {{Foreshadowing}}: In Act 3, he'll claim that a confrontation with the Elder Brain is inevitable, and that even if you don't kill the remaining Chosen, the Brain itself will instead. This proves true if you cooperate with Gortash, as the Elder Brain will promptly take him out while he's trying to subdue it.
* {{Foil}}: To Enver Gortash, which is rather fitting considering that Gortash spent his childhood enslaved to him.
** Both of them prefer to use their cunning and charisma to further their goals rather than brute force, with Gortash using the Cult of the Absolute to politically take over Baldur's Gate, while Raphael tempts people with deals that always end in his favor.
** Both of them take an interest in the PlayerCharacter and want to work with them rather than antagonize them, and if you decide to turn on them, both of them will make note of the fact that you could've cooperated with them instead. However, while Raphael approaches the PlayerCharacter very early in the game, he very clearly looks down on them and considers them a mere pawn in his schemes, and consequently misleads them with ExactWords and half-truths that obfuscate his true agenda. Gortash, by contrast, takes notice of them in Act 3, but is far more upfront about his goals and respectful of them, especially if they're the Dark Urge. Gortash also makes it clear that he wants an equal partnership, to the extent of subjecting the PlayerCharacter to a SecretTestOfCharacter to see if they can stand up for themselves.
** Dealing with Raphael can be completely circumvented if you side with the Emperor and don't free Orpheus, while Gortash has to be dealt with one way or another to get his Netherstone.
** And lastly, both of their plans are doomed to be undone by their hubris, but while Gortash's downfall occurs onscreen as the Absolute kills him, Raphael's downfall is merely implied, as his ambition to end the Blood War and unite the hells under his command will doubtlessly pit him against powerful forces he does not stand a chance against, even with the Crown of Karsus.
* TheFourthWallWillNotProtectYou: In his ending, Raphael appears to talk ''directly to the player'', looking straight into the screen and even following the camera as it changes angles. This makes his promise of looking for "new worlds to conquer" particularly sinister.
* GracefulLoser:
** If you let Gale claim the Crown of Karsus for himself instead of handing it to Raphael. Although the cambion is furious that he's been denied his prize, he's managed to calm down by the post-credit scene. He plans on biding his time until Gale's ambitions will finally get the better of him, after which he will swoop in and claim the Crown.
** If Gale gives the crown to Mystra instead, he's similarly confident that her machinations will eventually lead to another crisis he can take advantage of.
* GreaterScopeVillain: In a sense, Raphael had an indirect role in starting the plot of the game due to having been responsible for no less than two of the future Chosens of the Absolute, Ketheric and Gortash. Raphael was the aforementioned devil who raised Gortash. His abuse of Gortash shaped him into a cruel and tyrannical villain under the servitude of Bane, and indirectly caused Karlach to suffer the unfortunate fate of becoming a warrior for Zariel. Although not confirmed, but given Raphael's own obsession with the Crown of Karsus, Gortash likely learned about the artifact's existence and location during his time under Raphael's servitude. On an indirect note, Raphael's involvement with Ketheric's war against the Harpers and the Emerald Grove by enlisting Yurgir and his army ensured Ketheric's first death, which gave Myrkul the opportunity to covert Ketheric into becoming his champion who then returned to plague the Shadow-Cursed Lands.
* HoistByHisOwnPetard: When he offers you his deal, he tells you exactly where to find the Orphic Hammer, his House of Hope. Thus making sure the player has absolutely no reason to take his deal, since they know exactly where to get his hammer without giving him the most powerful magical artifact in existence. Or giving them a perfect out by telling them where their contract will be.
* HopeCrusher: Raphael weaponizes the idea of hope to manipulate people and lure them into crossing the DespairEventHorizon and make them take his offer.
--> '''Raphael:''' Try to cure yourself. Shop around - beg, borrow, and steal. Exhaust every possibility until none are left. And when hope has ben whitted down to the ''very marrow of despair'' - that's when you will come knocking on my door. Hope... Hahaha! Such a tease.
* HumanDemonHybrid: He's listed as a cambion, so only one of his parents could've been a devil. Helping him acquire the Crown of Karsus reveals that his father is the archdevil Mephistopheles.
* {{Hypocrite}}:
** Raphael is very vocal about his desire for order, especially when you break into his house and bring your chaos into his domain. However, he doesn't mind sowing chaos and disorder when he stages a coup against Zariel once he acquires the Crown of Karsus.
** He rants about how the party could've been heroes if 'they only dealt fair with him'. This is despite the fact that he lies to the party's face about his intentions for the crown by claiming he'll keep the devils inside their walls when he plans to be a MultiversalConqueror.
** He accuses the party and Karsus of overreaching their limits, seemingly unaware that a Cambion trying to unite the hells and end the Blood War would draw the attention of Asmodeus and the Gods and likely end in his own failure. The player even asks him why he thinks he can succeed where Karsus failed and he'll simply scream that "he's NOT MORTAL".
* InLoveWithYourCarnage: Implied with the Dark Urge. He calls meeting them a "true, bloody pleasure" if only because, as a Devil, he knows they're the most bloody serial killer to ever stalk the streets of Baldur's Gate.
-->"It's not every day one meets such a cavalier sinner as yourself. A true, bloody pleasure."
* KilledOffForReal: If the party kills him in the House of Hope then he's not coming back given that the location is in the Hells.
* LikeFatherLikeSon: In the sense that he grumbles about his father Mephistopheles being "ever the archivist", while himself keeping what's essentially a museum that according to ''his own archivist'', people able to reach are even welcome to look at his collection.
** There's also the fact that Mephistopheles is infamously known as TheStarscream who is constantly plotting to usurp Asmodeus as ruler of the Nine Hells. Like his father (and pretty much any devil powerful and cunning enough to do so), Raphael also plots to take over the Hells by using the Crown of Karsus to stand a chance against the archdevils that would oppose him, including his own father.
** And for some extra points, if you play as the Dark Urge, you learn that before the game, you went into Mephistopheles's vault and stole the Crown of Karsus. Later, Raphael's inadvertently invited the attention of you, the same thief who stole from his father's vault by revealing that he had the Orphic Hammer. And just like his father, Raphael's private sanctuary became the target of a heist done by you, which might explain why he was so incensed by your theft.
** He shares many personality traits with his father on the tabletop. Like him, Mephistopheles is known for being charming, sophisticated, polite, pleasant in conversation and a schemer with nearly infinite patience. Like Raphael, his friendly persona is also a facade, and Mephistopheles is also infamous for his anger and temper when he feels provoked or his schemes backfire. Mephistopheles is also known for his flair for the dramatic, his great pride and his sense of entitlement. Both are egomaniacs: Raphael has his sex slave take on his appearance, while his father names his capital (Mephistar) after himself.
* LousyLoversAreLosers: According to his Incubus lover, he's terrible in bed, which fits with his {{Narcissist}} nature. If the players learn this, they even have the option to mock Raphael about it, and he's very unamused.
-->'''Raphael:''' If you have any last words, make it quick. It will only take a moment to finish you.\\
'''Player:''' That's [[SpeedSex twice as long as Haarlep said it takes to finish you]].\\
'''Raphael:''' You contemptuous CREATURE!
* ManipulativeBastard: Comes with his territory, as a devil. His main approach is to find those who are already desperate and give them hope, at a price.
* MeaningfulName: Raphael means "Gods heals" in Hebrew, and he offers to heal the party of their parasite infections, although he hasn't specified the price.
* {{Narcissist}}: Clearly thinks a great deal of himself, to the degree that he prefers sleeping with an incubus that he's glamoured to be a "perfect copy" of himself.
* MovingTheGoalposts: His contract with Yurgir is this in a nutshell, with it being an ImpossibleTask that he deliberately sabotaged in order to keep Yurgir bound to him forever.
* NiceJobFixingItVillain: If the player character decides to go the route of breaking into the House of Hope to steal either the Orphic Hammer or their contract so they can get the hammer without giving up the crown, then his arrogance and confidence in his ability to manipulate them leads to his downfall and puts crucial tools to bring down Vlaakith in the party's hands. Thanks to him, the player character also has the chance to recruit Yurgir, who can help out in the final battle. And on top of ''all of this'', if the party also successfully frees Hope, they've potentially granted respite to all of Raphael's suffering debtors and definitely created a rare place of safety and Hope in the Hells. However, if the party makes a deal with him and they don't break it, it becomes a ''massive'' NiceJobBreakingItHero.
* NumberOfTheBeast: If you end up fighting him, you'll have to chew through his massive 666 hitpoints, significantly more than any other enemy in the game.
* OneWingedAngel: Should you destroy one of his soul towers in his boss fight, he will transform into an ascended fiend. In this form, he looks less like a devil and more like a monstrous abomination with three heads.
* OOCIsSeriousBusiness: He typically conducts himself jovially and politely. If you break into his House of Hope and steal the Orphic Hammer, however, he will be absolutely '''''[[TranquilFury pissed]]'''''.
* OutGambitted: For all his scheming, he can potentially be out-smarted by the player should they infiltrate his House of Hope and steal either the Orphic Hammer or the contract signed between them. He isn't amused by this in the slightest.
* PrideBeforeAFall: Being confident in his power, Raphael never conceived the idea that the party would refuse his deal and instead dare to enter his domain to steal the Orphic Hammer.
* {{Sadist}}: In the alternate dialogue in Last Light Inn if Mol is not present, the player can ask Raphael if he would like to drink with them. He rejects the offer, and tells them that prefers his liquor "served in a quivering belly button, distilled in fear and arousal". A plaque in the House of Hope best demonstrates his penchant for torture and inflicting terror.
--> Pain. Become its bedfellow, and you will know true pleasure.
* SayingTooMuch: Raphael's conversation with the player in Act 3 can provide the player with the clues necessary to get what they need from him without taking his deal, namely that the Orphic Hammer is in his House of Hope and that a diabolist can provide the means to enter secure locations in the Hells, such as his home.
* SecretKeeper: He knows full well the Dark Urge is in fact a Bhaalspawn, if not one of the most depraved and vile of their kind. While he won't tell them who they are when they first meet, he does tell them they've had no prior affiliation. Unlike Withers and potentially the Oathbreaker Knight, however, Raphael keeps silent purely out of amusement.
* SmugSnake: Is fully confident that the group will ultimately end up making a deal with him, and makes no secret of how much he'll enjoy watching their increasing desperation to avoid it. His ending also has him assured that he'll soon end the Blood War and conquer all the Hells, seemingly unaware that Asmodeus and the other Gods would have something to say about that.
* {{Superboss}}: He has the bite to match his bark. While he's not without his weaknesses, he's a rather out-of-the-way optional endgame combat encounter who's statistically more dangerous than anyone else you can fight in the game.
* TooCleverByHalf: Should he play his cards right, Raphael can end up getting what he needs to end the Blood War. However, he never takes into consideration why Mephistopheles, for all his aspirations to supplant Asmodeus, never bothered to use the Crown of Karsus against the Lord of the Ninth.
* TranquilFury: When you steal the Hammer from the House of Hope or destroy your contract, he is absolutely ''furious'', but quietly so.
* TroubleEntendre: He first appears in a human guise and magically teleports the party to a sumptuous banquet. All the while, his dialogue ''reeks'' of smugness and veiled threats to the party, something you can quickly catch on to and call him out on.
* TheHedonist: Going to his boudoir in the House of Hope reveals that he glamoured and transfigured an incubus to become his exact copy, Haarlep. He keeps him as his personal toy. Sleeping with the incubus reveals that when he sleeps with someone, the person whose skin he wears can feel everything. By sleeping with Haarlep while he wears his skin, he's deriving twice the pleasure.
* UndignifiedDeath: It's possible to give him one. Due to his AchillesHeel, it's quite possible (and heavily encouraged) that the player uses a Hold Monster spell to render him helpless, meaning he spends the entire fight unable to move while the party beats him to death. And even besides that, he's KilledOffForReal in his own home, likely with the help of a woman he's spent centuries torturing.
* VillainHasAPoint: Probably the most dangerous thing about Raphael is that he is ''always'' worth hearing out. The best example of this is when he makes his deal for the Orphic Hammer. He is entirely right about ''everything'' - you will eventually have to fight the Elder Brain to remove your tadpole, Orpheus is the reason you're still alive and does work with you when freed, and the Emperor does ultimately view you as the 'beast of burden' to take it to the brain and shows itself to be incredibly untrustworthy throughout Act 3. All his theatrics and bluster are mixed with cold, hard truth that makes him all the more dangerous and tempting to bargain with.
* VillainousRescue: If you break off your alliance with the Emperor during the endgame without having secured the Orphic Hammer beforehand, Raphael will follow you into the Astral Prism and make it very clear that you have absolutely no choice but to accept his deal now, as the fate of the very realms is at stake and you just threw away your only other option of dealing with it.
* VillainSong: A rather unique example. Raphael has a singing part in his own boss theme titled "Raphael's Final Act", and it's just as gloating and theatrical as you'd expect.
* VillainTakesAnInterest: The ongoing plot involving the Cult of the Absolute intrigues him, but he finds the party, particularly Tav or the Dark Urge to be very interesting characters. So much, in fact, he offers them a way to remove the tadpole in their heads...[[DealWithTheDevil for a fee, of course.]]
* WeaksauceWeakness: Despite being a Cambion (who are exceptionally good at inflicting Charm and Domination spells due to their infernal nature), Raphael's ''incredibly'' weak to spells that inflict Bind and Hold conditions, which allows the party to freely whale on him and makes his boss fight significantly easier. This also has implications for specifically why he wants the Crown of Karsus in the first place -- his need for control and his ability to ''be'' controlled are why he wants a trump card in his pocket. The effect is downplayed in that each of the four soul pillars in the room where his boss fight occurs give him +4 to saving throws while they're intact (for a total of +16), so it's necessary to destroy them before you can properly exploit his weakness.
* WellIntentionedExtremist: Played with. Raphael reveals what his true intentions are in his quest to acquire the Crown of Karsus: He wants to end the Blood War and unite the Hells under one kingdom, making him Archdevil Supreme. He claims he'd control the borders and keep the Hells within them, which on paper sounds promising. [[NotSoWellIntentionedExtremist However]], his ending reveals he has no intention of stopping there, and is looking for "new worlds to conquer."
* TheWorfEffect: In the epilogue where the party took his deal but Gale managed to claim the Crown and become the God of Ambition, Raphael arrives at the celebration to attempt to force Gale give up the crown. Unfortunately for him, by this point Gale's godlike power easily outclasses the devil and Gale merely whiskers him away with a snap of his fingers.
* {{Yandere}}: Part of the reason he keeps Hope prisoner and tortures her is because he wanted her as a lover and she refused.
[[/folder]]
[[folder:Korilla Hearthflame]]
!!Korilla Hearthflame
!!!'''Voiced by:'''
->'''Race:''' Dwarf
Raphael's mortal assistant.
----
* AlasPoorVillain: Hope is sad when Korilla is slain. She hopes Korilla will return to hell so the two might have a chance to make up.
* CainAndAbel: The Cain to Hope's Abel. She's a willing follower of Raphael and refuses to be swayed away. Even if she's also willing to just let you rob his house only so she can see Raphael kick your ass.
* EarlyBirdCameo: After meeting Raphael for the first time, it's possible to see Korilla skulking around your camp (she teleports away before you get too close) or out on the map at random. It's easiest to spot her in the Shadow-Cursed Lands, where her bright colors stand out more (as does her flame-based teleportation effect).
* GoodCopBadCop: [[spoiler:If you refuse Raphael's offer in Act 3 and talk to Korilla afterwords, she'll try using this approach to get you to reconsider. While Raphael is utterly smug and condescending in his interactions, she tries to frame the decision as the lesser of all evils and repeatedly emphasizes how you'll be saving yourself a lot of trouble if you just make a contract with him.]]
* SmugSnake: Just like her master, she's rather assured of that party being beneath her. Even worse in her case since she doesn't have near the amount of power Raphael has and has a paltry ''24'' HP, meaning she'll likely fall in the first round of combat.
* VillainousRescue: Raphael tasks her with spying on the party and saving them if they're about to be foolishly killed. If the player gets captured by Priestess Gut and doesn't manage to free themselves, Korilla will pop up seemingly out of nowhere, kill Gut with a SlashedThroat, and frees you while casually introducing herself.
* WorfEffect: Can be introduced in this manner, as she'll casually dispatch of Priestess Gut and Palma if the player ends up captured and is about to be killed, illustrating that Raphael and his servants are just as dangerous as he boasts.
[[/folder]]
[[folder:Hope Hearthflame]]
!!Hope Hearthflame
!!!'''Voiced by:''' Creator/AislingGrovesMcKeown
->'''Race:''' Dwarf\\
'''Class:''' Cleric
Korilla's sister, whom Raphael desired as a lover. She repeatedly turned him down, so Raphael kidnapped her, torturing her hoping that her spirit would break, which it has not yet. Hope acts as the sentience of Raphael's House of Hope.
----
* BeautyIsNeverTarnished: Still looks like a cute Dwarf despite decades if not centuries of torture. No explanation is really given for this.
* CainAndAbel: The Abel to Korilla's Cain. Hope is friendly, optimistic and helpful, and opposed to Raphael.
* TheDogBitesBack: Free her and she'll help the party fight against Raphael.
* GoMadFromTheIsolation: Her time spent chained up has left her sanity fragile - her view of reality (so much as Hell is) seems intact, but her speech is peppered with non-sequiturs and SuddenlyShouting. Even after being freed, she still shows notable quirks when talking.
* EasilyForgiven: Still loves her sister despite Korilla willingly serving Raphael and being complicit in her torture.
* GuestStarPartyMember: If freed she will join the party in the fight against Raphael. She's a middling cleric with one powerful ability: The ability to revoke anyone's status as a "Guest" of the house, causing them to be teleported out akin to a Banishment spell (and using the same level spell slot of 4). She can thus be used to banish Raphael's cambions. She also has a Divine Intervention, allowing the party to turn the tides if used at the right moment.
* HeroicWillpower: She refused to break and serve Raphael despite all the years of torture he put her through.
* IChooseToStay: If freed she opts to remain in Avernus, as the House of Hope can't be such without Hope, and Hell really needs some form of hope.
* ImNotPretty: Because of her extensive torture, she assumes she must look horrible. The player telling her she looks normal or beautiful has her assume they're just being nice or they must have something wrong with them.
* MeaningfulName: Her name is fitting considering her kind personality and refusal to give up hope despite all her torments.
* ThePollyanna: Despite spending god knows how long she's been tortured by Raphael, and it having clearly taken a toll on her psyche, Hope remains chipper and hopeful.
* SuddenlyShouting: She randomly transitions from normal (if panicked) dialogue to screaming her next sentence and back again. Most likely it's a result of her [[GoMadFromTheIsolation being trapped for so long]].
[[/folder]]
[[folder:Yurgir]]
!!Yurgir
!!!'''Voiced by:''' Creator/StewartScudamore
->'''Race:''' Orthon
An old enemy of Raphael, now bound to him via a contract.
----
* AffablyEvil: While he is every bit the brutish, battle-hungry monster he looks like, Yurgir is also well-spoken, calm and nothing but polite and respectful towards the player characters, especially if they bested him one way or the other beneath the Shadowlands.
** If you free Yurgir from his contract by discovering [[spoiler: that all the rats in the Gauntlet of Shar hide the last kill for Yurgir's contract]], he will work with you and your party so you can break into the House of Hope and steal either the hammer or your contract, and immediately side with you to help beat Raphael.
* BecauseYouWereNiceToMe: If you manage to break the terms of his contract in the Gauntlet of Shar, he claims this as a reason why he's helping them against Raphael in Act 3, being grateful for the torturous song being gone from his head.
* BloodKnight: He absolutely lives for a good fight, so much that [[spoiler: it can be used as an argument to turn him against Raphael at the House of Hope.]] Should he survive the events of the game, his first urge is to return to the frontlines of the Blood War.
* DreadfulMusician: Yurgir's contract to Raphael was made in song form, as he painfully demonstrates to you. The player even has the option of telling him just how horrible of a performance it was!
* EvenEvilHasLovedOnes: His pet displacer beast. If you convince him that he needs to kill it in order to be free of Raphael's contract, then he'll hesitate and speak to it in order to comfort her before putting her down. Compare how he had his merregon guard murder themselves without a second mere moments earlier. Of course his Merregon will just reincarnate in hell, while the Displacer Beast is dead for good.
* InterspeciesRomance: Borders on HotSkittyOnWailordAction; Yurgir's displacer beast Nessa calls him her heart's chosen and strongly implies that their relationship is sexual as well as romantic. Takes a darker turn as you can discover that Yurgir is feeding her with spider meat saturated with succubus saliva that makes her attracted to him to ensure her loyalty, essentially making him a manipulative rapist.
* {{Invisibility}}: Will constantly turn himself invisible during his boss fight as a bonus action, which is a racial feature of Orthons.
* ALighterShadeOfBlack: He ''is'' a devil, with everything that entails, but compared to Raphael or Mizora he's much less of a problem for mortals. He has no real interest in wandering the Realms, he just wants to get back to the Blood War which from the point of view of mortals [[EvilVersusEvil is about the best thing for a devil to be doing.]]
* LongRangeFighter: In his boss fight, he will try to maintain distance and attack the party with his custom crossbow.
* ReminiscingAboutYourVictims: If the player tries [[TalkingtheMonsterToDeath bargaining with him]], he'll wryly remark that a Kara-Turan warlord tried to do the same a long time ago... before Yurgir ate the man's concubines [[EatsBabies and children]] and made a codpiece out of his skull.
* TacticalSuicideBoss: If fought, he'll [[ThrowDownTheBomblet throw grenades at the party]] in bunches of two or three at a time. These don't explode on impact; they have a short fuse and can be [[GrenadeHotPotato picked up and thrown]], which will [[HoistByHisOwnPetard make short work]] of Yurgir and his minions.
* TalkingTheMonsterToDeath: He's a boss encounter at the Gauntlet of Shar, and fighting him [[SkippableBoss can be skipped]] via speech checks where the player convinces him to commit suicide, although he does it because he thinks he'll be reborn in Avernus and escape Raphael's contract.
* WorthyOpponent: Considers the player characters this, should they defeat him the first time. So much so in fact, [[spoiler: he can be turned to your side with a very high Persuasion check, and if he lives, he'll join you in the final battle.]]
[[/folder]]
[[folder:Spoiler Character]]
!!Haarlep
[[quoteright:679:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/image_2023_08_10_061935584.png]]
[[caption-width-right:350:[[labelnote:Click here to see their female form]]https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/image_2023_08_10_061726892.png[[/labelnote]]]]
!!!'''Voiced by:''' Creator/AndrewWincott
->'''Race:''' Incubus
Raphael's "personal incubus"... glamoured to look [[ScrewYourself exactly like him]].
----
* AmbiguousSituation: [[spoiler: Why it was that Mephisopheles did send Haarlep, specifically them or anyone at all, as a distraction to his son.]]
* BorrowedCatchphrase: Smugly echoes Raphael's "better the devil you know", in regards to the Raphael only wanting to sleep with himself.
* FemmeFataleSpy: Sometimes femme and presumably [[spoiler: reports back on Raphael to who sent them.]]
* HaHaHaNo: Reacts this way, word for word, if the player asks them if Raphael is actually any good in bed. They're so delighted by the question they give you another of Raphael's secrets (and the one you're actually there for - the location of the Orphic Hammer) for free if you ask that.
* TheHedonist: Haarlep's reaction to [[spoiler: the player breaking into the House of Hope]] is to immediately try and seduce them.
* OtherworldlyAndSexuallyAmbiguous: The narrator initially uses male pronouns, but switches to 'they' after Haarlep shapeshifts into "the Archduchess".
* SexShifter: Can effortlessly change between male and female 'versions' of Raphael, depending on what the player prefers.
* SexSlave: Their sole purpose is to satisfy Raphael's lust and narcissism. [[spoiler: If you play their game and lose your saving throws, you will become a "loving doll" for Haarlep and Raphael to use, and will receive a [[GameOver Game Over]]. Given Haarlep was sent by Raphael's own father to "distract" his "naughty son" it's not that Haarlep had a say in their own role either.]]
* SignificantAnagram: "Haarlep" is an anagram of "Raphael".
* WalkingShirtlessScene: Wears studded leather bondage gear that leaves little to the imagination.
[[/folder]]
[[folder:Infernal Mason]]
!!Infernal Mason/[[spoiler:Morfred]]
[[quoteright:728:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/800px_infernal_mason.png]]
!!!'''Voiced by: Crispin Redman'''
->'''Race:''' Skeleton
->''"I was an architect in life, a builder of tombs and temples, but mostly of towers. My proudest work reached for the stars and sought to dry Selûne's tears."''
One of Raphael's many debtors who is currently wandering the halls of the House of Hope, forever bound to the devil's service for selling his soul.
----
* DealWithTheDevil: In the past, he made a deal with Raphael which caused his current damnation in the House of Hope.
* PetTheDog: If you [[spoiler:killed Ketheric, purged Shar's curse from the Shadowlands and restored Thaniel]], you can tell the Infernal Mason that [[spoiler:Moonrise Towers stands proudly and beautifully once more]]. There's no reward for doing so other than to ease the mason's worries and burdens, and the news brings him no small amount of relief.
* SmallRoleBigImpact: [[spoiler:The actions of this unsuspecting debtor has influenced many important events in the story. In life, Morfred was a follower of Selune and served as Ketheric's architect, having built many temples and tombs, with Moonrise Tower being his masterwork. When Ketheric's grief drove him to Shar and began a reign of terror, Morfred built a Selûnite resistance that was eventually defeated by Ketheric. In his desperation and with the Harper alliance on the verge of defeat, he made a deal with Raphael who hired Yurgir to fight and destroy Ketheric's army of Dark Justiciars. This allowed the Harpers to defeat and kill Ketheric for the first time, but also caused him to curse the land. Eventually, Ketheric will be resurrected and become a Chosen of Myrkul and help kickstart the plan to use the Absolute to conquer the Sword Coast in the name of the Dead Three. This is an impressive series of impact for an otherwise minor character that you can easily miss in the game.]]
* SpannerInTheWorks: [[spoiler:Ketheric was on the cusp of defeating the Harper and Emerald Grove alliance and even refused their surrender. Unbeknownst to Ketheric, Morfred made a deal with Raphael who enlisted Yurgir to defeat the Dark Justiciars in Grymforge and Gauntlet of Shar. The loss of his strongholds and most of his army caused Ketheric to be defeated and killed by the Harpers, with both parties being unaware of Morfred's action.]]
[[/folder]]
----
[[Characters/BaldursGateIIIOriginCharacters The Origin Characters]] | [[Characters/BaldursGateIIIOriginCompanions Origin Companions]] ([[Characters/BaldursGateIIIAstarion Astarion]])\\
[[Characters/BaldursGateIIIClasses Classes]] | [[Characters/BaldursGateIIICompanionsAndFollowers Other Companions & Camp Followers]] | [[Characters/BaldursGateIIINPCsAndFactions NPCs and Factions]] ([[Characters/BaldursGateIIITheCultOfTheAbsolute The Cult of The Absolute]] |[[Characters/BaldursGateIIITieflingRefugees The Tiefling Refugees]] | '''House of Hope''')-]]]
[[foldercontrol]]
!!The House of Hope
[[folder:Raphael (Spoilers Unmarked)]]
!!Raphael
[[quoteright:920:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/image_2023_08_09_061118174.png]]
[[caption-width-right:350:[[labelnote:Click here to see his true form (spoilers)]]https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/image_2023_08_09_061447961.png[[/labelnote]]]]
!!!'''Voiced by:''' Andrew Wincott
->'''Race:''' Cambion
->''"What's better than a devil you don't know? A devil you do."''
The son of Mephistopheles, the Archduke of Cania, he is a powerful cambion with dark aspirations to unite the Nine Hells under his banner and become Archdevil Supreme. During the age of the Netherese Empire, Raphael witnessed the creation of the Crown of Karsus and the subsequent fall caused by Karsus' Folly. Despite his attempts to get the artifact, his father took it before Raphael could get his hands on it.
After cooling down from his rage and frustration, Raphael spent the next thousand years keeping an eye on the crown and continued to scheme to claim it. When the plot of the Absolute was kickstarted, Raphael took an interest in our heroes, planning to use them for his own plans to get the Crown that he desired for so long.
----
* AchillesHeel: Though insanely dangerous during his boss fight, having access to powerful spells, tons of health and multiple minions, his Wisdom is a relatively meager 13. Even with his innate resistance to magic, a well-prepared party can reliably render him helpless with such spells as Hypnotic Pattern or Hold Monster.
* AlwaysSomeoneBetter:
** Though he prides himself as a dangerous schemer, the player, depending on their choices, can prove themselves an even smarter back-stabber than he is by [[TakeAThirdOption taking a third option]] in their deal by stealing from him so they won't owe him anything.
** An Ascended Gale in the epilogue can invoke this on him, pointing out that for all of Raphael's [[AmbitionIsEvil ambitions]], he stands no chance against the God of Ambition himself. He proceeds to show that he's not all talk by sending Raphael back to where he came from with a snap of his fingers, daring him to take the Crown of Karsus back from him.
* AmbitionIsEvil: Not an unusual motivation for a devil, much of Raphael's motivation is driven by a desire for power and more. He sees the Crown of Karsus as the perfect tool to provide him more of it.
-->'''Raphael:''' Power. Ancient and full of wonders.
* AnimalMotifs: When reciting a Cormyrian rhyme about a cat and a mouse in his introductory scene, the player can ask which animal he considers himself to be. Raphael responds that he is the fox who will strike once the time is right. Foxes are considered to be crafty and opportunistic animals, which befits a ManipulativeBastard like Raphael. It also overlaps with FairytaleMotifs, as Raphael considers himself the third party who will come out on top in the player's inevitable conflict with the Cult of the Absolute.
* AntagonisticOffspring: An EvilerThanThou variation. He's at odds with his own father, Mephistopheles, the Archduke of Cania.
* BadBoss: Going to the House of Hope reveals that he regularly mistreats his staff and debtors, with the exception of those he favors, such as Korrilla Hearthflame.
* TheBadGuyWins: If he is unopposed in the game and the party takes his deal, Raphael succeeds in his goal of gaining the Crown of Karsus. As shown in the post-credit scene, he is commanding his legions to besiege Zariel's fortress and he makes it clear that he won't stop with the Nine Hells and plans to continue conquering other worlds in the universe.
* BerserkButton:
** Chaos. He ''desperately'' wants to be in control of everything and does not take it well if you act unpredictably or derail his plans. In fact, that's the main reason he's so ballistic if you infiltrate the House of Hope, given that you'll almost certainly lead a trail of destruction behind you if you try to steal the Orphic Hammer or your contract from it.
** Doubting his power or his bravery. If when encountering him at the entrance of the Temple of Shar you insinuate he's scared of Yurgir, he'll quickly abandon his (up until then) suave, genial demeanor and outright [[OOCIsSeriousBusiness insult and threaten you]] in a fit of quiet, seething rage. This hints that your words hit the nail on the head.
** A smaller one is insinuating that he is a lousy lover. While robbing the House of Hope leaves him seething with TranquilFury, making a jape about his sexual prowess (or lack thereof) is what sends him [[SuddenlyShouting over the edge]].
* BigBadEnsemble: Shares the title of BigBad alongside the Cult of the Absolute, wanting to claim the Crown of Karsus that's in their possession for himself. Unlike the Cult, who is the more active threat the player must face, Raphael prefers to work behind the scenes by manipulating the player into doing his dirty work. Not to mention that he's also the cambion whom Enver Gortash's parents sold him to when he was a boy, which likely contributed to molding Gortash into the man that he is today.
* TheChessmaster:
** Best demonstrated in Act 2, with the way Yurgir's quest is handled. The player can either convince Yurgir to kill himself, fight him, or aid him. Regardless of the choice the player makes, Raphael is able to manipulate events to lead to his desired result, which is Yurgir serving him again. Of course, the most easy option for Raphael would be for you to either convince Yurgir to kill himself or kill Yurgir yourself - and Raphael is immediately there at the Thorm Mausoleum to try to ensure this outcome by offering Astarion a deal where if you kill Yurgir, he'll translate the scars on his back - vastly increasing the odds of his best outcome by offering you precious information as an incentive to help him.
** In Act 3, you will have the option of stealing the Crown of Karsus for him in exchange for the Orpheus Hammer. Aiding him will result in him becoming the Archdevil Supreme. Failing to do so will result in him owning your soul. Breaking into the House of Hope to either steal the hammer or tear up your contract with him will result in a very difficult boss fight. Unless you manage to beat him, he still comes out on top.
* ChessMotifs: Takes the aforementioned trope above literally. He plays the Forgotten Realms' version of chess, lanceboard. When the player meets him again in Last Light Inn and Mol survives, he is found playing a game of lanceboard with her.
* ChildByRape: In the lore, Mephistopheles has sired a huge number of half-fiend children over the years, but his M.O. is to KillAndReplace some unfortunate mortal male and pull a DemonicPossession on their corpse, before violently raping and impregnating their spouse with a cambion child whose birth is typically agonising and fatal.
* ControlFreak: Absolutely despises "the noise and the chaos" of the mortal world, using "litters of kittens" and "chattering children" as examples. His own values center around order and strict rules, and his ultimate goal is to "impose perfect order" on the Hells using the Crown of Karsus. If you instead bring "chaos" into the House of Hope by breaking your oath or stealing from him, he will be incensed.
* ContrastingSequelAntagonist: To Sarevok and Jon Irenicus. Like his predecessors, Raphael's main goal is achieving power, but his methods differ from them:
** Like Sarevok, he schemes and manipulates people to accomplish his goal. However, Sarevok violently opposes anyone he sees as his enemy and continuously sends assassins and bounty hunters to kill Gorion's Ward. Meanwhile, Raphael is very much willing to work with the heroes as long as he gets closer to his goal and ensures their safety by sending Korilla to keep an eye on them and save them if necessary. Sarevok's manipulation is aimed toward the people of Baldur's Gate, while Raphael prefers manipulating people on an individual basis.
** Like Irenicus, Raphael is an ancient being with supreme command over magic. But unlike Irenicus who prefers to solve his problems through overwhelming arcane might, Raphael prefers to stay in the shadows and only reveal his full might once he is forced into a confrontation. Unlike Irenicus who seemingly wanted to help Gorion's Ward achieve their potential, but in actuality, simply wanted to steal their divinity, Raphael, although motivated by self-interest, is genuine in his offer to assist the party in defeating the Elder Brain.
** Unlike his predecessors who have a direct connection to Bhaalspawns, Raphael's link is an indirect one and his goal is entirely unrelated to their connection to Bhaal. Sarevok is Gorion's Ward's half-brother and Irenicus' main goal is to steal their divinity. Meanwhile, Raphael's connection to the Dark Urge is through his father, Mephistopheles, who was the victim of their theft of the Crown of Karsus.
* DealWithTheDevil: He tries to tempt the player with one of these by promising to remove the mind-flayer tadpoles. However, he insists that he'll only do it when they've lost all hope even if they agree right off.
** When you do deal with Raphael, be that to translate Astarion's scars, or to give Raphael the Crown of Karsus in exchange for the Orphic Hammer, Raphael is absolutely impeccable at holding up his end of the deal. However, his deals do notably favour him massively, even if they don't involve selling your soul - Yurgir is one of the more difficult boss fights unless you can roll very good Persuasion checks to skip the fight, and the Crown of Karsus is literally the most powerful magical artifact in existence.
* DontCelebrateJustYet: A rare villainous example. His ending scene has him practically revelling in his victory at becoming the new ruler of the Hells, despite only having started to conquer one of them. Notably, his plan doesn't seem to take into account [[GodOfEvil Asmodeus]].
* EvenEvilHasStandards: At least in regards to {{Squick}} factor, Raphael literally gets intimate with an Incubus that is made to look exactly like himself, but if you tell him that the Emperor, an Illithid, is your lover, he's completely grossed out and replies with this:
-->'''Raphael:''' I have seen all the torments of the Hells in lurid detail - none compare to the image you just conjured.
** In act 2, when Asterion asks him for assistance in escaping his master, if the PC is unaware of the scars on Asterion's back and mentions this when Raphael brings them up, Raphael will magically remove Asterion's clothing to show you the scars on his back. If you are in the graveyard outside of Shar's Temple when this conversation occurs, Asterion is stripped completely naked. However, if you have this conversation at the inn, he will at least let Asterion keep his pants and a level of dignity around all those strangers in the inn.
** He refers to Cazador's plans to become the Vampire ascendant as "A grim tale, even for my tastes." Coming from Raphael that's really saying something.
* EvilVsEvil: In the past, Morfred, the architect of Moonrise Tower, made a deal with Raphael, that in return for his soul, Raphael will destroy Ketheric's army of Dark Justiciars. As agreed, Raphael hired Yurgir and his army of merregons to fight Ketheric's army.
* EvilIsHammy: He simply oozes theatricality, alternating between [[ColdHam delivering grandiose, dramatic speeches in a cool tone of voice]] when calm, and [[LargeHam spouting threats and insults at the top of his lungs]] when angered. He can even be found ''rehearsing his lines'' for one of these speeches, which you can call him out on.
-->'''Player:''' How long have you been standing around practicing that little recital?
-->'''Raphael:''' Until it was ''perfect''.
* EvilPowerVacuum: If the player kills Raphael, Helsik informs them that his death has already caused a stir in Avernus. Karlach will also comment that other devils will inevitably try to claim his House of Hope for themselves.
* EvilVirtues: Ambition and compassion are his. Raphael lends his help to the desperate, but always at the price of becoming his slave for eternity. As for his ambition, his greatest is to take over the Nine Hells as Archdevil Supreme but then moves onto taking over the universe if he gets his hands on the Crown of Karsus.
* FatalFlaw: Ambition. Raphael's biggest flaw is that his desire to acquire the Crown of Karsus allows him to make lapses in judgment. In Act 3, Raphael plays his hand too early by revealing his intentions and the location of the tools the player needs to free Orpheus, giving the player enough wiggle room to steal the Orphic Hammer or their contract while leaving Raphael with nothing. And then there's the ending if he succeeds, where he gloats about his victory, but fails to account for [[AlwaysABiggerFish Asmodeus]], who is not only the ruler of the Nine Hells, but one of the universe's best schemers and [[GodOfEvil also a literal god]].
* FauxAffablyEvil: He introduces himself politely to the party, invites them to his home, the House of Hope, and offers to provide them with a solution to their problems. It quickly becomes clear that his politeness is just a cover for his self-serving evilness and pride. Even when he offers deals, it is simply done to serve his interests.
* {{Foreshadowing}}: In Act 3, he'll claim that a confrontation with the Elder Brain is inevitable, and that even if you don't kill the remaining Chosen, the Brain itself will instead. This proves true if you cooperate with Gortash, as the Elder Brain will promptly take him out while he's trying to subdue it.
* {{Foil}}: To Enver Gortash, which is rather fitting considering that Gortash spent his childhood enslaved to him.
** Both of them prefer to use their cunning and charisma to further their goals rather than brute force, with Gortash using the Cult of the Absolute to politically take over Baldur's Gate, while Raphael tempts people with deals that always end in his favor.
** Both of them take an interest in the PlayerCharacter and want to work with them rather than antagonize them, and if you decide to turn on them, both of them will make note of the fact that you could've cooperated with them instead. However, while Raphael approaches the PlayerCharacter very early in the game, he very clearly looks down on them and considers them a mere pawn in his schemes, and consequently misleads them with ExactWords and half-truths that obfuscate his true agenda. Gortash, by contrast, takes notice of them in Act 3, but is far more upfront about his goals and respectful of them, especially if they're the Dark Urge. Gortash also makes it clear that he wants an equal partnership, to the extent of subjecting the PlayerCharacter to a SecretTestOfCharacter to see if they can stand up for themselves.
** Dealing with Raphael can be completely circumvented if you side with the Emperor and don't free Orpheus, while Gortash has to be dealt with one way or another to get his Netherstone.
** And lastly, both of their plans are doomed to be undone by their hubris, but while Gortash's downfall occurs onscreen as the Absolute kills him, Raphael's downfall is merely implied, as his ambition to end the Blood War and unite the hells under his command will doubtlessly pit him against powerful forces he does not stand a chance against, even with the Crown of Karsus.
* TheFourthWallWillNotProtectYou: In his ending, Raphael appears to talk ''directly to the player'', looking straight into the screen and even following the camera as it changes angles. This makes his promise of looking for "new worlds to conquer" particularly sinister.
* GracefulLoser:
** If you let Gale claim the Crown of Karsus for himself instead of handing it to Raphael. Although the cambion is furious that he's been denied his prize, he's managed to calm down by the post-credit scene. He plans on biding his time until Gale's ambitions will finally get the better of him, after which he will swoop in and claim the Crown.
** If Gale gives the crown to Mystra instead, he's similarly confident that her machinations will eventually lead to another crisis he can take advantage of.
* GreaterScopeVillain: In a sense, Raphael had an indirect role in starting the plot of the game due to having been responsible for no less than two of the future Chosens of the Absolute, Ketheric and Gortash. Raphael was the aforementioned devil who raised Gortash. His abuse of Gortash shaped him into a cruel and tyrannical villain under the servitude of Bane, and indirectly caused Karlach to suffer the unfortunate fate of becoming a warrior for Zariel. Although not confirmed, but given Raphael's own obsession with the Crown of Karsus, Gortash likely learned about the artifact's existence and location during his time under Raphael's servitude. On an indirect note, Raphael's involvement with Ketheric's war against the Harpers and the Emerald Grove by enlisting Yurgir and his army ensured Ketheric's first death, which gave Myrkul the opportunity to covert Ketheric into becoming his champion who then returned to plague the Shadow-Cursed Lands.
* HoistByHisOwnPetard: When he offers you his deal, he tells you exactly where to find the Orphic Hammer, his House of Hope. Thus making sure the player has absolutely no reason to take his deal, since they know exactly where to get his hammer without giving him the most powerful magical artifact in existence. Or giving them a perfect out by telling them where their contract will be.
* HopeCrusher: Raphael weaponizes the idea of hope to manipulate people and lure them into crossing the DespairEventHorizon and make them take his offer.
--> '''Raphael:''' Try to cure yourself. Shop around - beg, borrow, and steal. Exhaust every possibility until none are left. And when hope has ben whitted down to the ''very marrow of despair'' - that's when you will come knocking on my door. Hope... Hahaha! Such a tease.
* HumanDemonHybrid: He's listed as a cambion, so only one of his parents could've been a devil. Helping him acquire the Crown of Karsus reveals that his father is the archdevil Mephistopheles.
* {{Hypocrite}}:
** Raphael is very vocal about his desire for order, especially when you break into his house and bring your chaos into his domain. However, he doesn't mind sowing chaos and disorder when he stages a coup against Zariel once he acquires the Crown of Karsus.
** He rants about how the party could've been heroes if 'they only dealt fair with him'. This is despite the fact that he lies to the party's face about his intentions for the crown by claiming he'll keep the devils inside their walls when he plans to be a MultiversalConqueror.
** He accuses the party and Karsus of overreaching their limits, seemingly unaware that a Cambion trying to unite the hells and end the Blood War would draw the attention of Asmodeus and the Gods and likely end in his own failure. The player even asks him why he thinks he can succeed where Karsus failed and he'll simply scream that "he's NOT MORTAL".
* InLoveWithYourCarnage: Implied with the Dark Urge. He calls meeting them a "true, bloody pleasure" if only because, as a Devil, he knows they're the most bloody serial killer to ever stalk the streets of Baldur's Gate.
-->"It's not every day one meets such a cavalier sinner as yourself. A true, bloody pleasure."
* KilledOffForReal: If the party kills him in the House of Hope then he's not coming back given that the location is in the Hells.
* LikeFatherLikeSon: In the sense that he grumbles about his father Mephistopheles being "ever the archivist", while himself keeping what's essentially a museum that according to ''his own archivist'', people able to reach are even welcome to look at his collection.
** There's also the fact that Mephistopheles is infamously known as TheStarscream who is constantly plotting to usurp Asmodeus as ruler of the Nine Hells. Like his father (and pretty much any devil powerful and cunning enough to do so), Raphael also plots to take over the Hells by using the Crown of Karsus to stand a chance against the archdevils that would oppose him, including his own father.
** And for some extra points, if you play as the Dark Urge, you learn that before the game, you went into Mephistopheles's vault and stole the Crown of Karsus. Later, Raphael's inadvertently invited the attention of you, the same thief who stole from his father's vault by revealing that he had the Orphic Hammer. And just like his father, Raphael's private sanctuary became the target of a heist done by you, which might explain why he was so incensed by your theft.
** He shares many personality traits with his father on the tabletop. Like him, Mephistopheles is known for being charming, sophisticated, polite, pleasant in conversation and a schemer with nearly infinite patience. Like Raphael, his friendly persona is also a facade, and Mephistopheles is also infamous for his anger and temper when he feels provoked or his schemes backfire. Mephistopheles is also known for his flair for the dramatic, his great pride and his sense of entitlement. Both are egomaniacs: Raphael has his sex slave take on his appearance, while his father names his capital (Mephistar) after himself.
* LousyLoversAreLosers: According to his Incubus lover, he's terrible in bed, which fits with his {{Narcissist}} nature. If the players learn this, they even have the option to mock Raphael about it, and he's very unamused.
-->'''Raphael:''' If you have any last words, make it quick. It will only take a moment to finish you.\\
'''Player:''' That's [[SpeedSex twice as long as Haarlep said it takes to finish you]].\\
'''Raphael:''' You contemptuous CREATURE!
* ManipulativeBastard: Comes with his territory, as a devil. His main approach is to find those who are already desperate and give them hope, at a price.
* MeaningfulName: Raphael means "Gods heals" in Hebrew, and he offers to heal the party of their parasite infections, although he hasn't specified the price.
* {{Narcissist}}: Clearly thinks a great deal of himself, to the degree that he prefers sleeping with an incubus that he's glamoured to be a "perfect copy" of himself.
* MovingTheGoalposts: His contract with Yurgir is this in a nutshell, with it being an ImpossibleTask that he deliberately sabotaged in order to keep Yurgir bound to him forever.
* NiceJobFixingItVillain: If the player character decides to go the route of breaking into the House of Hope to steal either the Orphic Hammer or their contract so they can get the hammer without giving up the crown, then his arrogance and confidence in his ability to manipulate them leads to his downfall and puts crucial tools to bring down Vlaakith in the party's hands. Thanks to him, the player character also has the chance to recruit Yurgir, who can help out in the final battle. And on top of ''all of this'', if the party also successfully frees Hope, they've potentially granted respite to all of Raphael's suffering debtors and definitely created a rare place of safety and Hope in the Hells. However, if the party makes a deal with him and they don't break it, it becomes a ''massive'' NiceJobBreakingItHero.
* NumberOfTheBeast: If you end up fighting him, you'll have to chew through his massive 666 hitpoints, significantly more than any other enemy in the game.
* OneWingedAngel: Should you destroy one of his soul towers in his boss fight, he will transform into an ascended fiend. In this form, he looks less like a devil and more like a monstrous abomination with three heads.
* OOCIsSeriousBusiness: He typically conducts himself jovially and politely. If you break into his House of Hope and steal the Orphic Hammer, however, he will be absolutely '''''[[TranquilFury pissed]]'''''.
* OutGambitted: For all his scheming, he can potentially be out-smarted by the player should they infiltrate his House of Hope and steal either the Orphic Hammer or the contract signed between them. He isn't amused by this in the slightest.
* PrideBeforeAFall: Being confident in his power, Raphael never conceived the idea that the party would refuse his deal and instead dare to enter his domain to steal the Orphic Hammer.
* {{Sadist}}: In the alternate dialogue in Last Light Inn if Mol is not present, the player can ask Raphael if he would like to drink with them. He rejects the offer, and tells them that prefers his liquor "served in a quivering belly button, distilled in fear and arousal". A plaque in the House of Hope best demonstrates his penchant for torture and inflicting terror.
--> Pain. Become its bedfellow, and you will know true pleasure.
* SayingTooMuch: Raphael's conversation with the player in Act 3 can provide the player with the clues necessary to get what they need from him without taking his deal, namely that the Orphic Hammer is in his House of Hope and that a diabolist can provide the means to enter secure locations in the Hells, such as his home.
* SecretKeeper: He knows full well the Dark Urge is in fact a Bhaalspawn, if not one of the most depraved and vile of their kind. While he won't tell them who they are when they first meet, he does tell them they've had no prior affiliation. Unlike Withers and potentially the Oathbreaker Knight, however, Raphael keeps silent purely out of amusement.
* SmugSnake: Is fully confident that the group will ultimately end up making a deal with him, and makes no secret of how much he'll enjoy watching their increasing desperation to avoid it. His ending also has him assured that he'll soon end the Blood War and conquer all the Hells, seemingly unaware that Asmodeus and the other Gods would have something to say about that.
* {{Superboss}}: He has the bite to match his bark. While he's not without his weaknesses, he's a rather out-of-the-way optional endgame combat encounter who's statistically more dangerous than anyone else you can fight in the game.
* TooCleverByHalf: Should he play his cards right, Raphael can end up getting what he needs to end the Blood War. However, he never takes into consideration why Mephistopheles, for all his aspirations to supplant Asmodeus, never bothered to use the Crown of Karsus against the Lord of the Ninth.
* TranquilFury: When you steal the Hammer from the House of Hope or destroy your contract, he is absolutely ''furious'', but quietly so.
* TroubleEntendre: He first appears in a human guise and magically teleports the party to a sumptuous banquet. All the while, his dialogue ''reeks'' of smugness and veiled threats to the party, something you can quickly catch on to and call him out on.
* TheHedonist: Going to his boudoir in the House of Hope reveals that he glamoured and transfigured an incubus to become his exact copy, Haarlep. He keeps him as his personal toy. Sleeping with the incubus reveals that when he sleeps with someone, the person whose skin he wears can feel everything. By sleeping with Haarlep while he wears his skin, he's deriving twice the pleasure.
* UndignifiedDeath: It's possible to give him one. Due to his AchillesHeel, it's quite possible (and heavily encouraged) that the player uses a Hold Monster spell to render him helpless, meaning he spends the entire fight unable to move while the party beats him to death. And even besides that, he's KilledOffForReal in his own home, likely with the help of a woman he's spent centuries torturing.
* VillainHasAPoint: Probably the most dangerous thing about Raphael is that he is ''always'' worth hearing out. The best example of this is when he makes his deal for the Orphic Hammer. He is entirely right about ''everything'' - you will eventually have to fight the Elder Brain to remove your tadpole, Orpheus is the reason you're still alive and does work with you when freed, and the Emperor does ultimately view you as the 'beast of burden' to take it to the brain and shows itself to be incredibly untrustworthy throughout Act 3. All his theatrics and bluster are mixed with cold, hard truth that makes him all the more dangerous and tempting to bargain with.
* VillainousRescue: If you break off your alliance with the Emperor during the endgame without having secured the Orphic Hammer beforehand, Raphael will follow you into the Astral Prism and make it very clear that you have absolutely no choice but to accept his deal now, as the fate of the very realms is at stake and you just threw away your only other option of dealing with it.
* VillainSong: A rather unique example. Raphael has a singing part in his own boss theme titled "Raphael's Final Act", and it's just as gloating and theatrical as you'd expect.
* VillainTakesAnInterest: The ongoing plot involving the Cult of the Absolute intrigues him, but he finds the party, particularly Tav or the Dark Urge to be very interesting characters. So much, in fact, he offers them a way to remove the tadpole in their heads...[[DealWithTheDevil for a fee, of course.]]
* WeaksauceWeakness: Despite being a Cambion (who are exceptionally good at inflicting Charm and Domination spells due to their infernal nature), Raphael's ''incredibly'' weak to spells that inflict Bind and Hold conditions, which allows the party to freely whale on him and makes his boss fight significantly easier. This also has implications for specifically why he wants the Crown of Karsus in the first place -- his need for control and his ability to ''be'' controlled are why he wants a trump card in his pocket. The effect is downplayed in that each of the four soul pillars in the room where his boss fight occurs give him +4 to saving throws while they're intact (for a total of +16), so it's necessary to destroy them before you can properly exploit his weakness.
* WellIntentionedExtremist: Played with. Raphael reveals what his true intentions are in his quest to acquire the Crown of Karsus: He wants to end the Blood War and unite the Hells under one kingdom, making him Archdevil Supreme. He claims he'd control the borders and keep the Hells within them, which on paper sounds promising. [[NotSoWellIntentionedExtremist However]], his ending reveals he has no intention of stopping there, and is looking for "new worlds to conquer."
* TheWorfEffect: In the epilogue where the party took his deal but Gale managed to claim the Crown and become the God of Ambition, Raphael arrives at the celebration to attempt to force Gale give up the crown. Unfortunately for him, by this point Gale's godlike power easily outclasses the devil and Gale merely whiskers him away with a snap of his fingers.
* {{Yandere}}: Part of the reason he keeps Hope prisoner and tortures her is because he wanted her as a lover and she refused.
[[/folder]]
[[folder:Korilla Hearthflame]]
!!Korilla Hearthflame
!!!'''Voiced by:'''
->'''Race:''' Dwarf
Raphael's mortal assistant.
----
* AlasPoorVillain: Hope is sad when Korilla is slain. She hopes Korilla will return to hell so the two might have a chance to make up.
* CainAndAbel: The Cain to Hope's Abel. She's a willing follower of Raphael and refuses to be swayed away. Even if she's also willing to just let you rob his house only so she can see Raphael kick your ass.
* EarlyBirdCameo: After meeting Raphael for the first time, it's possible to see Korilla skulking around your camp (she teleports away before you get too close) or out on the map at random. It's easiest to spot her in the Shadow-Cursed Lands, where her bright colors stand out more (as does her flame-based teleportation effect).
* GoodCopBadCop: [[spoiler:If you refuse Raphael's offer in Act 3 and talk to Korilla afterwords, she'll try using this approach to get you to reconsider. While Raphael is utterly smug and condescending in his interactions, she tries to frame the decision as the lesser of all evils and repeatedly emphasizes how you'll be saving yourself a lot of trouble if you just make a contract with him.]]
* SmugSnake: Just like her master, she's rather assured of that party being beneath her. Even worse in her case since she doesn't have near the amount of power Raphael has and has a paltry ''24'' HP, meaning she'll likely fall in the first round of combat.
* VillainousRescue: Raphael tasks her with spying on the party and saving them if they're about to be foolishly killed. If the player gets captured by Priestess Gut and doesn't manage to free themselves, Korilla will pop up seemingly out of nowhere, kill Gut with a SlashedThroat, and frees you while casually introducing herself.
* WorfEffect: Can be introduced in this manner, as she'll casually dispatch of Priestess Gut and Palma if the player ends up captured and is about to be killed, illustrating that Raphael and his servants are just as dangerous as he boasts.
[[/folder]]
[[folder:Hope Hearthflame]]
!!Hope Hearthflame
!!!'''Voiced by:''' Creator/AislingGrovesMcKeown
->'''Race:''' Dwarf\\
'''Class:''' Cleric
Korilla's sister, whom Raphael desired as a lover. She repeatedly turned him down, so Raphael kidnapped her, torturing her hoping that her spirit would break, which it has not yet. Hope acts as the sentience of Raphael's House of Hope.
----
* BeautyIsNeverTarnished: Still looks like a cute Dwarf despite decades if not centuries of torture. No explanation is really given for this.
* CainAndAbel: The Abel to Korilla's Cain. Hope is friendly, optimistic and helpful, and opposed to Raphael.
* TheDogBitesBack: Free her and she'll help the party fight against Raphael.
* GoMadFromTheIsolation: Her time spent chained up has left her sanity fragile - her view of reality (so much as Hell is) seems intact, but her speech is peppered with non-sequiturs and SuddenlyShouting. Even after being freed, she still shows notable quirks when talking.
* EasilyForgiven: Still loves her sister despite Korilla willingly serving Raphael and being complicit in her torture.
* GuestStarPartyMember: If freed she will join the party in the fight against Raphael. She's a middling cleric with one powerful ability: The ability to revoke anyone's status as a "Guest" of the house, causing them to be teleported out akin to a Banishment spell (and using the same level spell slot of 4). She can thus be used to banish Raphael's cambions. She also has a Divine Intervention, allowing the party to turn the tides if used at the right moment.
* HeroicWillpower: She refused to break and serve Raphael despite all the years of torture he put her through.
* IChooseToStay: If freed she opts to remain in Avernus, as the House of Hope can't be such without Hope, and Hell really needs some form of hope.
* ImNotPretty: Because of her extensive torture, she assumes she must look horrible. The player telling her she looks normal or beautiful has her assume they're just being nice or they must have something wrong with them.
* MeaningfulName: Her name is fitting considering her kind personality and refusal to give up hope despite all her torments.
* ThePollyanna: Despite spending god knows how long she's been tortured by Raphael, and it having clearly taken a toll on her psyche, Hope remains chipper and hopeful.
* SuddenlyShouting: She randomly transitions from normal (if panicked) dialogue to screaming her next sentence and back again. Most likely it's a result of her [[GoMadFromTheIsolation being trapped for so long]].
[[/folder]]
[[folder:Yurgir]]
!!Yurgir
!!!'''Voiced by:''' Creator/StewartScudamore
->'''Race:''' Orthon
An old enemy of Raphael, now bound to him via a contract.
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* AffablyEvil: While he is every bit the brutish, battle-hungry monster he looks like, Yurgir is also well-spoken, calm and nothing but polite and respectful towards the player characters, especially if they bested him one way or the other beneath the Shadowlands.
** If you free Yurgir from his contract by discovering [[spoiler: that all the rats in the Gauntlet of Shar hide the last kill for Yurgir's contract]], he will work with you and your party so you can break into the House of Hope and steal either the hammer or your contract, and immediately side with you to help beat Raphael.
* BecauseYouWereNiceToMe: If you manage to break the terms of his contract in the Gauntlet of Shar, he claims this as a reason why he's helping them against Raphael in Act 3, being grateful for the torturous song being gone from his head.
* BloodKnight: He absolutely lives for a good fight, so much that [[spoiler: it can be used as an argument to turn him against Raphael at the House of Hope.]] Should he survive the events of the game, his first urge is to return to the frontlines of the Blood War.
* DreadfulMusician: Yurgir's contract to Raphael was made in song form, as he painfully demonstrates to you. The player even has the option of telling him just how horrible of a performance it was!
* EvenEvilHasLovedOnes: His pet displacer beast. If you convince him that he needs to kill it in order to be free of Raphael's contract, then he'll hesitate and speak to it in order to comfort her before putting her down. Compare how he had his merregon guard murder themselves without a second mere moments earlier. Of course his Merregon will just reincarnate in hell, while the Displacer Beast is dead for good.
* InterspeciesRomance: Borders on HotSkittyOnWailordAction; Yurgir's displacer beast Nessa calls him her heart's chosen and strongly implies that their relationship is sexual as well as romantic. Takes a darker turn as you can discover that Yurgir is feeding her with spider meat saturated with succubus saliva that makes her attracted to him to ensure her loyalty, essentially making him a manipulative rapist.
* {{Invisibility}}: Will constantly turn himself invisible during his boss fight as a bonus action, which is a racial feature of Orthons.
* ALighterShadeOfBlack: He ''is'' a devil, with everything that entails, but compared to Raphael or Mizora he's much less of a problem for mortals. He has no real interest in wandering the Realms, he just wants to get back to the Blood War which from the point of view of mortals [[EvilVersusEvil is about the best thing for a devil to be doing.]]
* LongRangeFighter: In his boss fight, he will try to maintain distance and attack the party with his custom crossbow.
* ReminiscingAboutYourVictims: If the player tries [[TalkingtheMonsterToDeath bargaining with him]], he'll wryly remark that a Kara-Turan warlord tried to do the same a long time ago... before Yurgir ate the man's concubines [[EatsBabies and children]] and made a codpiece out of his skull.
* TacticalSuicideBoss: If fought, he'll [[ThrowDownTheBomblet throw grenades at the party]] in bunches of two or three at a time. These don't explode on impact; they have a short fuse and can be [[GrenadeHotPotato picked up and thrown]], which will [[HoistByHisOwnPetard make short work]] of Yurgir and his minions.
* TalkingTheMonsterToDeath: He's a boss encounter at the Gauntlet of Shar, and fighting him [[SkippableBoss can be skipped]] via speech checks where the player convinces him to commit suicide, although he does it because he thinks he'll be reborn in Avernus and escape Raphael's contract.
* WorthyOpponent: Considers the player characters this, should they defeat him the first time. So much so in fact, [[spoiler: he can be turned to your side with a very high Persuasion check, and if he lives, he'll join you in the final battle.]]
[[/folder]]
[[folder:Spoiler Character]]
!!Haarlep
[[quoteright:679:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/image_2023_08_10_061935584.png]]
[[caption-width-right:350:[[labelnote:Click here to see their female form]]https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/image_2023_08_10_061726892.png[[/labelnote]]]]
!!!'''Voiced by:''' Creator/AndrewWincott
->'''Race:''' Incubus
Raphael's "personal incubus"... glamoured to look [[ScrewYourself exactly like him]].
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* AmbiguousSituation: [[spoiler: Why it was that Mephisopheles did send Haarlep, specifically them or anyone at all, as a distraction to his son.]]
* BorrowedCatchphrase: Smugly echoes Raphael's "better the devil you know", in regards to the Raphael only wanting to sleep with himself.
* FemmeFataleSpy: Sometimes femme and presumably [[spoiler: reports back on Raphael to who sent them.]]
* HaHaHaNo: Reacts this way, word for word, if the player asks them if Raphael is actually any good in bed. They're so delighted by the question they give you another of Raphael's secrets (and the one you're actually there for - the location of the Orphic Hammer) for free if you ask that.
* TheHedonist: Haarlep's reaction to [[spoiler: the player breaking into the House of Hope]] is to immediately try and seduce them.
* OtherworldlyAndSexuallyAmbiguous: The narrator initially uses male pronouns, but switches to 'they' after Haarlep shapeshifts into "the Archduchess".
* SexShifter: Can effortlessly change between male and female 'versions' of Raphael, depending on what the player prefers.
* SexSlave: Their sole purpose is to satisfy Raphael's lust and narcissism. [[spoiler: If you play their game and lose your saving throws, you will become a "loving doll" for Haarlep and Raphael to use, and will receive a [[GameOver Game Over]]. Given Haarlep was sent by Raphael's own father to "distract" his "naughty son" it's not that Haarlep had a say in their own role either.]]
* SignificantAnagram: "Haarlep" is an anagram of "Raphael".
* WalkingShirtlessScene: Wears studded leather bondage gear that leaves little to the imagination.
[[/folder]]
[[folder:Infernal Mason]]
!!Infernal Mason/[[spoiler:Morfred]]
[[quoteright:728:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/800px_infernal_mason.png]]
!!!'''Voiced by: Crispin Redman'''
->'''Race:''' Skeleton
->''"I was an architect in life, a builder of tombs and temples, but mostly of towers. My proudest work reached for the stars and sought to dry Selûne's tears."''
One of Raphael's many debtors who is currently wandering the halls of the House of Hope, forever bound to the devil's service for selling his soul.
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* DealWithTheDevil: In the past, he made a deal with Raphael which caused his current damnation in the House of Hope.
* PetTheDog: If you [[spoiler:killed Ketheric, purged Shar's curse from the Shadowlands and restored Thaniel]], you can tell the Infernal Mason that [[spoiler:Moonrise Towers stands proudly and beautifully once more]]. There's no reward for doing so other than to ease the mason's worries and burdens, and the news brings him no small amount of relief.
* SmallRoleBigImpact: [[spoiler:The actions of this unsuspecting debtor has influenced many important events in the story. In life, Morfred was a follower of Selune and served as Ketheric's architect, having built many temples and tombs, with Moonrise Tower being his masterwork. When Ketheric's grief drove him to Shar and began a reign of terror, Morfred built a Selûnite resistance that was eventually defeated by Ketheric. In his desperation and with the Harper alliance on the verge of defeat, he made a deal with Raphael who hired Yurgir to fight and destroy Ketheric's army of Dark Justiciars. This allowed the Harpers to defeat and kill Ketheric for the first time, but also caused him to curse the land. Eventually, Ketheric will be resurrected and become a Chosen of Myrkul and help kickstart the plan to use the Absolute to conquer the Sword Coast in the name of the Dead Three. This is an impressive series of impact for an otherwise minor character that you can easily miss in the game.]]
* SpannerInTheWorks: [[spoiler:Ketheric was on the cusp of defeating the Harper and Emerald Grove alliance and even refused their surrender. Unbeknownst to Ketheric, Morfred made a deal with Raphael who enlisted Yurgir to defeat the Dark Justiciars in Grymforge and Gauntlet of Shar. The loss of his strongholds and most of his army caused Ketheric to be defeated and killed by the Harpers, with both parties being unaware of Morfred's action.]]
[[/folder]]
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