Characters / Diablo High Heavens

Diablo Main Character Index
Character Classes | The High Heavens | The Burning Hells | Humans | Eldritch

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Per wiki policy on Handling Spoilers all trope names are visible and may contain spoilers on their own. Read at your own risk.

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The Angiris Council

The Angiris Council in General

The Angiris Council is the ruling body of the High Heavens, formed to oppose the Great Evils of the Burning Hells. The Council comprises five Archangels, each of whom represents an aspect of Anu: Imperius the Archangel of Valor; Tyrael the Archangel of Justice; Auriel the Archangel of Hope; Itherael the Archangel of Fate; and Malthael the Archangel of Wisdom. Among these five, Malthael originally served as leader until abandoning his post. At that point Imperius assumed leadership.

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Tropes applying to the Angiris Council

• Badass Crew: Make no mistake, one is already enough to be a One-Man Army, how much more will it be if all of them are present?
• The Blank: Angels don't have visible heads, so the corresponding space is usually covered by a hood or helmet.
• Breaking the Fellowship: With Tyrael becoming mortal and Malthael killed in Reaper of Souls, the council is a shadow of its former glory by the end of III. The members' conflicting viewpoints on humanity aren't helping.
• Celestial Paragons and Archangels: As benevolent counterpoints to the various leaders of the Burning Hells. In the absence of God, they serve as the leaders of the High Heavens. It is the highest known authority of the High Heavens that initially consisted of five archangels, each of a particular aspect said to represent the chief virtues of Anu.
• Color-Coded for Your Convenience:
  • Black for Malthael
  • Silver for Tyrael
  • Gray for Itherael
  • Red for Imperius
  • Blue for Auriel
• Council of Angels: And with God either dead or just not present in-setting (depends on your interpretation of Anu), they're effectively the government of the High Heavens.
• Fisher King: Each member of the Council embodies one aspect of the emotions of Anu. If a member dies or is incapacitated, the High Heavens as a whole will immediately feel a loss of that emotion. For example, when Auriel was nearly killed in Diablo III, the angels fell into despair and nearly surrendered. When she was freed, they immediately regained the will to fight. Unfortunately, this also means that if a Council member's views on their emotional aspect darkens, their warped perspective on their domain will spread to the Heavens as a whole with only a few angels having the will to resist. Some of the worst decisions made by the Heavens by the time of the games have stemmed from them losing Malthael (Wisdom) and Tyrael (Justice), leaving Imperius (Valor descending into Wrath) as the dominant voice.
• Large Hams: Apparently the default tone of voice used by the high heavens.
• Light Is Good: Most of the Angiris Council are ostensibly benevolent. They govern and administrate the laws and rules by which all other Angels abide, a heavenly counterpart and opposing force to the three Prime Evils of the Burning Hells, their eternal adversaries.
• Mirroring Factions: The reason for the Eternal Conflict is to claim ownership of the Worldstone, which will grant enough power to rule all creation (neither demons nor angels can be permanently killed, only imprisoned or sent into remission). The angels were very adamant about winning it, even with all the destruction it caused, so when the Nephalem saw this they thought, "What's the difference between them and the Demons of the Burning Hells, if all they want is to rule while leaving tons of destruction?" Some Angels like Inarius and Tyrael end up asking, "Why are we even doing this anymore?", whereas other Angels like Imperius and Malthael were all about, "We must end the Eternal Conflict in our favor, no matter what!". Take a wild guess which ones are the antagonistic angels.
• Obstructive Code of Conduct: Deconstructed. Angels are creatures of law by nature, so they will follow any agreement or law to the letter. When the Prime Evils schemed their Dark Exile to enter Sanctuary, they refused to intervene because this technically hadn't violated their non-aggression agreement. The Council was willing to sit back and allow the Prime Evils a free shot at the Worldstone for this and were enraged that Tyrael would break their rules to prevent it.
• Our Angels Are Different: They are entities made of pure light and harmonic energy (sound), born from a Crystal Arch of Light at the pinnacle of Heaven as a manifestation of its harmony. They appear as faceless Winged Humanoids; whose wings actually are Combat Tentacles made of energy. Their civilization has a very Crystal Spires and Togas vein to it. They have biological immortality, but can be killed in a fight (though the at least some have Resurrective Immortality). When an angel is truly deceased, the Arch will immediately create a new one of similar purpose to replace him.
• Position of Literal Power: The Council is made up of the five most powerful angels in the Heavens. Tyrael and Imperius are especially strong, but the others are no slouches.
• Resurrective Immortality: Because they are aspects of the ultimate Good, members of the Angiris Council can reform their bodies even if totally destroyed. Tyrael does so after the destruction of Arreat, though it takes him twenty years, and in III both Imperius and Auriel survive wounds that should be fatal. That said, if they truly die, that angel is gone for good and a new one must emerge from the Crystal Arch to replace them.

Tyrael, Archangel of Justice

Voiced by: Ed Trotta (II), Jonathan Adams (III) (English)^note Other Languages:Alexander Golovchansky (III) (Russian)

^{Click to see him as he appeared in Diablo III.} 

The Archangel of Justice and the closest thing the games have to a main hero outside of the Nephalem. Despite, or because of, his standing as the Archangel of Justice, Tyrael has several times gone against the Council's decision to not interfere with the world of Sanctuary against the Great Evils. He is as a result something of a maverick within the Angiris Council. In particular, he and Imperius frequently butt heads over whether or not to aid humanity against the Burning Hells. He personally formed the Horadrim to combat the Prime Evils. Eventually, they, aided by Tyrael, succeeded and imprisoned the Prime Evils within their soulstones.

He first appears in the second game where he attempts to prevent the Diablo-possessed Aidan in freeing Baal, but he is overwhelmed and imprisoned by both after Marius sets Baal free. He is freed by the heroes of the second game however, and he subsequently aid them against Diablo from Pandemonium Fortress at the gates of Hell. In Lord of Destruction he is unable to aid against Baal, but after the Lord of Destruction's death he arrives to find the Worldstone corrupted and as such subsequently finds it necessary to destroy it with his sword.

In the third game, Tyrael is called to task by Imperius for violating Heaven's non-interference policy. Convinced of the rightness of his actions, Tyrael refuses to submit to Imperius's judgement and instead chooses to become human and fall to Sanctuary, thereafter becoming a constant companion and ally to the Nephalem.

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• Badass Boast: Delivers one to Imperius shortly before he tears off his wings and becomes mortal.

  Tyrael: "You cannot judge me! I am justice itself!"

• Big Good: Plays this role in II as the only representative from the Angelic Council, and carries it on into III after taking up his place as the new Archangel of Wisdom.
• Break the Haughty: Before Uldyssian came around, Tyrael used to have the same mindset as Imperius and other unreasonable Angels. After seeing the destruction brought forth in the 3rd game and how Angels might have had a hand on it for 'staying silent', Tyrael wondered if the excessive pride of Angels is really one of the factors that the world is thrown into chaos.
• Brought Down to Badass: Tyrael renounces his angelhood at the start of the third game. But, even without his previous angelic powers, he can still fight very well and use his gigantic magic sword.
• Combat Tentacles: In the Diablo II cutscenes, his wings act like this.
• Cool Sword: El'druin, the Sword of Justice.
• Cry into Chest: Lets Leah do this to him in Diablo III after she gets a traumatic vision/message from Azmodan telling her that his forces are going to invade from Arreat Crater. However, the scene cuts off the moment they hug.
• Defector from Decadence: He abandons the Angiris Council when Imperius forbids him from continuing to aid humanity.
• Failure Hero: Unfortunately, his record speaks for itself and many of his screw-ups drive the plot. In his very first game appearance, Tyrael ends up failing to prevent the Diablo-possessed Aidan from freeing Baal and is captured. Next, Tyrael's meddling on Sanctuary and action in creating the Soulstones and forming the Horadrim are what caused the plot of all three games, and ultimately resulted in the destruction of the Worldstone and the Prime Evils invading Sanctuary, almost seizing the aforementioned Worldstone to corrupt all of humanity to their side and win the war. He especially failed to protect Leah, and inadvertently led her to becoming a sacrificial vessel for Diablo. This even extends to Reaper Of Souls where Tyrael again going behind everyone's back to move the Black Soulstone out of Heaven made it that much easier for Malthael to swoop in and steal it, resulting in more mass death.
• Fallen Angel: Willingly becomes this in the third game when he tears off his wings and falls to Sanctuary as a mortal.
• Good Is Not Soft: He's a noble warrior, but that doesn't stop him from brutally destroying evil with the business end of El'druin.
• Ham-to-Ham Combat: He and Imperius rarely see eye to eye, and they are both very Large Hams.
• Humans Are Special: Pretty much his main reason for breaking the "angels can't go to Sanctuary" law that the High Heavens have established, as well as why he voted to spare humanity from extinction when the Angiris Council were debating about whether to wipe them out or not. Subverted in that, until Uldyssian's sacrifice in The Sin War books he thought the exact opposite and was part of the "exterminate them" camp. After the aforementioned sacrifice, however, he's had a dramatic change of heart.
• I Am the Noun: I AM JUSTICE ITSELF!
• In the Hood: Like all other angels his face is never shown, with whatever passes for an Angel's face hidden underneath his hood. He ditches the hood once he becomes mortal.
• Justice Will Prevail: He is the personification of Justice itself.
• Knight in Shining Armor: Both as an angel and as a human, he wanders the world righting wrongs while wearing pretty shiny armor.
• The Lancer: Tyrael was this for the original Angiris Council. He is the Archangel of Justice, who was generally the proactive one, willing to lead the others and get his hands dirty when Malthael was busy, screwing the rules if necessary. Notably, he's the one who has the largest presence in the series.
• Large Ham: All the Archangels tend to be rather bombastic, but Tyrael is particularly thus...
• Light 'em Up: His sword is imbued with holy energies.
• Light Is Good: As both an angel and an ally to humanity, this trope fits Tyrael nicely.
• Light The Way: El'druin, the sword of justice, constantly blazes with holy energy.
• Loophole Abuse: To avoid breaking the non-interference pact that the rest of the angels abided by, Tyrael used indirect methods to inspire and inform a chosen group of human mages on how to combat the invading Prime Evils. It wasn't until the events of Diablo II where Diablo himself began releasing his brothers that Tyrael broke the treaty completely and directly intervened.
• My God, What Have I Done?: Undergoes a huge one in III when he feels that his decision to become mortal triggered the events of the story leading up to Diablo's attack on the High Heavens. He gets better.
• Meaningful Name: He is named for Tyr, the Norse God of Justice who sacrificed his hand to ensnare the fell wolf Fenrir.
• Mortality Ensues: Much of his Character Development during Diablo III involves coming to terms with his new humanity, with all the fears, doubts, and worries about impending death that implies. On a more humorous note, one of his conversations with Lorath has him complaining about his stomach due to eating all of his day's meals first thing in the morning as a way of saving time.
• Nice Job Breaking It, Hero: While giving up his wings and becoming mortal was probably the right move, it didn't bode well for Tristram: when Tyrael crashed to earth, his presence awoke the fury of the those killed unjustly, who rose as the ravenous undead attacking the town in Act I.
• Oblivious to Love: If you have Lyndon in your party during Act III when Tyrael joins you, there's a conversation between them regarding his feelings for Leah. However, Tyrael assumes Lyndon is talking about his opinion of Leah in general, as opposed to if whether or not he's in love with her. The trope is downplayed, however, as there isn't any material supporting the fact that Leah sees Tyrael as more than a friend.
• Oh, Crap!: From the trailer for Reaper of Souls, as he realizes just who is entering the room.
  Tyrael: "Your service here is finished. You should all...(hears horrible scraping nose)... run."
• Only Sane Man: Sort of. Itherael and Auriel also show signs of being reasonable, but Tyrael's the one who stands most openly against Imperius' more dogmatic and extremist decisions, and the only one who would think of Screw the Rules, I'm Doing What's Right!, the other two couldn't find the strength to break away from law yet. He is the only one that clearly figures out that Sanctuary is still under the threat of the Burning Hells while the High Heavens will be too bound by their own word to lift a finger after the Sin War, as clearly shown by the Dark Exile that gave the three Greater Evils free reign to do whatever they want and practically everything else that came after.
• Power Incontinence: His fall from grace (and literal fall into Tristram's cathedral) unleashed a surge of energy that awoke the restless dead in the area, including the Skeleton King. Presumably this was completely unintentional on Tyrael's part.
• Put on a Bus: Tyrael is completely missing from IV. Lothar explains that Tyrael learned something which scared him and he left the Horadrim on a trip. Nothing has been heard about him since.
• Reasonable Authority Figure: As the Archangel of Justice and eventually, the Aspect of Wisdom of the Angiris Council.
• Red Oni, Blue Oni: The Blue to Imperius' Red. The two are friends and share something of a temperament, but Imperius is Hot-Blooded and quick to judge, while Tyrael is more reserved, as a result of Character Development during the ancient Sin War.
• Screw the Rules, I'm Doing What's Right!: He was forbidden from interfering the mortal world by the rest of the Angiris Council. He disobeyed their orders by providing humanity with the Soulstones to capture the Prime Evils during their Dark Exile. When the rest of the Council tries him for aiding Sanctuary, he renounces his angelic status so he can fight alongside mortals as one of them. If the Angels' precious rules would bind him from doing what is right, he would rather not be an Angel anymore.
• To Be Lawful or Good: As seen under the previous entry, this was a debate he'd had with himself, erring on the side of Good rather than Lawful.
• What the Hell, Hero?: When rest of the Council put him on trial for inferring with Sanctuary before Diablo III, he calls them all out on their callousness and unearned sense of moral superiority in the face of the Prime Evil's attacks on the mortals. For all their talk, he proclaims that they have no right to judge him when they had sat and watched as Baal corrupted the Worldstone. He then discards his place on the Council and willingly falls to Sanctuary as a mortal to do what he knows is right.
  • According to the Book of Tyrael (which takes place after III), when Tyrael goes to his old home in the Courts of Justice he is attacked by visions of angels who died by Diablo's hand and they blame him for their deaths.

Imperius, Archangel of Valor

Voiced by: Rick D. Wasserman (English)^note Other Languages:Radik Mukhametzyanov (Russian)

The Archangel of Valor and the effective leader of the Angiris Council. As such, he is essentially the ruler of the High Heavens. Imperius is noted to be the greatest warrior in creation and he has clashed with the Prime Evils several times. Despite his hatred of the demons, he refuses to help the humans of Sanctuary against them, as he believes the humans to be abominations that should be purged, as they were born of the union between an angel and a demon. Because of this, he frequently butts heads with Tyrael who wishes to aid the humans and interfere in the world of Sanctuary.

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• A Father to His Men: Though his temper has gotten himself and others into trouble, Imperius greatly values the lives of his fellow angels and would never intentionally harm them, even if it meant protecting the universe (ex. Malthael).
• Arch-Enemy: To Diablo, if the animated short "Wrath" and their duel in Diablo III are anything to go by.
• Be as Unhelpful as Possible: Whatever the humans' business are, being destroyed here and there by demons or fellow brethren, he will not lend a hand, unless the hand is meant to be a purging hand (in which he'll happily oblige, but that hasn't been officially sanctioned yet by the whole council).
• Beneath the Mask:
  • Despite his arrogant and authoritarian nature, he cares deeply about his brother Tyrael. Unable to comprehend how he could abandon Heaven and him to fight for Humanity, and is shocked that Tyrael believes he'd ever try to have him killed.
    • This also extends to the rest of the angels. Though he hates mankind with a burning passion, he would never harm his fellow angels to destroy them. He's also deeply saddened by Malthael's insanity, but can't bring himself to kill him, relying on the nephalem's aid to do so.
  • In Storm of Light, much of his anger is shown to come from him knowing that the Nephalem, a being he sees as a sin against nature, defeated Diablo after he failed to do it himself.
• Berserk Button: While all angels have a good amount of pride and vanity, Imperius does not take kindly to being called a coward (being the embodiment of valor and all), as shown during his battle with Tyrael. Even insinuating he has anything to fear (as Diablo did) sets him off.
• Big Damn Heroes: He saves Tyrael at the climax of Storm of Light, ramming his spear through the back of the angel who was threatening to kill him.
• The Big Guy: Imperius was this for the original Angiris Council. He is the Archangel of Valor, who is the mightiest fighter and tactician, as well as the most hot-tempered and quick to judge... and unfortunately making him more prone to ruin even the angels' plans if his temper is touched.
• Blood Knight: Information you collect in the High Heavens mentions he enjoys fighting and war.
• Bullying a Dragon: Constantly talks down the Nephalem who crushed Diablo as the Prime Evil, a being with the combined might of the seven lords of Hell while he himself could only match Diablo at his base form. Luckily for him, the Nephalem is on the side of good and has a lot of restraint to avoid caving his face in, which will just prove him right.
• Conflict Ball: He is the Conflict Ball. He's constantly causing problems for his allies, due to his Hair-Trigger Temper and Leeroy Jenkins style of attacking.
• Cool Helmet: Unlike the other Archangels, he wears a helmet instead of a hood.
• Enemy Mine: In Act V, he begrudgingly admits he doesn't have the heart to kill Malthael, his former leader, and guides the Nephalem to do so. However, he makes it clear that the Nephalem shouldn't expect open gratitude from him for doing so.
• Everyone Has Standards:
  • Holier Than Thou Jerkass though he may be, unlike Malthael, however, he would never kill nearby Angels as part of an attempt to kill the Nephalem, nor would he tamper with the demonic Black Soulstone.
  • Despite his intense Fantastic Racism towards humanity and being the effective ruler of all angels, Imperius takes the vote of letting the humans of Sanctuary live very seriously and doesn't go out of his way to get them killed. He's by no means happy about not getting Sanctuary destroyed, but Imperius nevertheless does not overstep or defy authority, and honors the Angiris Council's decision in spite of his disagreement.
• Expy: He shares many similarities with Aldaris; both are high-ranked characters technically on the side of good, but major Jerkass and Knight Templar with Holier Than Thou tendencies, and deem a character (Tassadar/Tyrael) a traitor for doing the right thing.
• Fantastic Racism: Many angels are not fond of humans in general, but Imperius in particular stands out. He wanted Sanctuary destroyed due to the hand of demons in its creation, and he utterly despises the Nephalem, to the point that in Act IV of Diablo III, Tyrael has to tell him that Diablo is the enemy, not the Nephalem (who had, by this point, saved Auriel).
  • This also applies to anyone and anything of demonic origin.
• The Friend Nobody Likes: Maybe because he's asking for it, but probably the sole reason anyone ever puts up with Imperius is because he commands the majority of the Angel forces by law. Otherwise... Tyrael called him out for not helping innocents, Malthael still chose abstain for the vote for humanity's fate instead of voting for its destruction and has no qualms in attacking him and his forces in his madness in spite of their shared disgust of humanity, Itherael voted against him for humanity's survival, and Auriel not only does that, but shows disapproval when Imperius goes Leeroy Jenkins to kill Diablo out of sheer hatred in the Wrath video. And of course, his actions don't endear him to the Nephalem one bit.
• Good Is Not Nice: Fits the trope to an absolute T. He's on the literal side of angels and wants to destroy the evil forces of the demons. However, he's an abrasive, overbearing, domineering, and viciously temperamental extremist and warhawk who believes anything related to demons has to be destroyed, including the Nephalem/Humans, since they are part-demons and has opted to commit genocide more than once.
• Hair-Trigger Temper: It doesn't take much to provoke his fury, whether it's Tyrael calling him out on ignoring events in Sanctuary or Diablo inferring that he and Imperius are not so different.
• Ham-to-Ham Combat: This is pretty much inevitable when him and Tyrael are in the same room together.
• Holier Than Thou: Toward both Tyrael and the Nephalem.
• Holy Halo: Has an ornate, metallic version of one hovering above his head.
• Jerkass: To put it lightly. For perspective, he was the only one on the Angiris Council who voted for the Extermination of Humanity (Malthael abstained from voting for or against, while Itherael, Auriel and Tyrael all voted against the decision). Moreover, he forbade the High Heavens to intervene when humanity suffered demonic attacks, tried to have Tyrael punished for disobeying, and passes most of the final act insulting or threatening the Nephalem when they come to save Heaven from Diablo. Then, in Reaper of Souls, he comes and asks your help putting down Malthael... but makes it openly clear he has no intention of thanking you for it.
• Jerkass Has a Point: Imperius isn't wrong when condemning Tyrael's meddling in Sanctuary. While Imperius is a racist and more than a bit of a jerk, Tyrael's action in creating the Soulstones and forming the Horadrim are what caused the plot of all three games, and ultimately resulted in the destruction of the Worldstone and the Prime Evils invading Sanctuary, almost seizing the aforementioned Worldstone to corrupt all of humanity to their side and win the war. Now, to Tyrael's defense, his plan only went to hell (pun intended) because he was betrayed by Izual (Who told the Prime Evils how they could corrupt the soulstones and use them to tap into the Worldstone) and Zoltun Kulle (who created the Black Soulstone, allowing the Prime Evils to survive the destruction of their Soulstones). But the point remains that Imperius isn't wrong in decrying Tyrael's going behind the council's back to meddle on Sanctuary, as those actions of his led to innumerable deaths. This even extends to Reaper Of Souls where Tyrael again going behind everyone's back to move the Black Soulstone out of Heaven made it that much easier for Malthael to swoop in and steal it.
  • Also, attempting to punish Tyrael was more to show that Imperius is very much by-the-book, it was agreed on the first place after he lost the extermination vote that both Burning Hells and High Heavens will not intervene with anything about Sanctuary, even so far as having Mephisto signing with blood, and up until then, Imperius has been honoring that rule instead of ruining it and letting his racism destroy humanity by his own hands. Unfortunately, the demons had no intention of cleaving to the pact and secretly manipulated the rules so they could influence Sanctuary for them, and even then, Imperius still followed those rules, while Tyrael screwing the rules causes trouble, so it makes sense that such disastrous disobedience makes him mad.
    • It should be noted that Tyrael had very good reason to remove the Black Soulstone from Heaven, however. Its presence was spreading an invisible corruption that was effecting his fellow Angels and needed to be removed as soon as possible.
• Knight Templar: He is on the side of good, but to him, anything related to demons has to be destroyed, including the Nephalem, since they are part-demons.
• Large Ham: SILENCE!!!
• Lawful Stupid: His other Fatal Flaw. Is it clear that the machinations of the Burning Hells will just bind the High Heavens into inaction while they run amok in Sanctuary, effectively playing the latter like a fiddle. Does he at least make sure the Burning Hells keep their end of the bargain of staying away from Sanctuary? Nope. No wonder Tyrael quit being an angel.
• Leeroy Jenkins: Despite being the leader of the military force of the High Heavens, his combat strategies are absolutely abysmal and rely on reckless force. In response to Azmodan's inept command of the Legions of Hell, Imperius' command of the angelic host is woefully inadequate with this mindset, essentially explaining why the Eternal Conflict is named as such. This happens in the animation "Wrath". Despite Tyrael's advice that they should have their troops regroup before advancing, Imperius decides to lead the angelic soldiers in a charge straight into Diablo's fortress. Suffice to say that the soldiers didn't last long, and Imperius found that Diablo wouldn't be beaten so easily...
  • And in the same animation, the rest of the Angiris Council had clearly stated that Diablo is better off captured and imprisoned, they might have their ways and with Auriel's help, it's nearly possible. Then Diablo starts mouthing off about what Imperius could have feared, which caused Imperius to once again go off the handle and killed Diablo on the spot, ruining the plan and allowing Diablo to resurrect anyway.
  • Another example would be when Diablo appears in front of the Diamond Gates and Imperius goes to fight him. That fight doesn't go so well, either.
• Meaningful Name: His ego is as big as his name implies.
• Mind over Matter: In Wrath, he can be seen levitating spears with his mind.
• Murder Is the Best Solution: The setting deconstructs this. As demonstrated in "Wrath", his insistence on killing the Evils whenever there is a chance is ultimately futile, as they will just reform in the Burning Hells effectively putting them back to square one. Diablo remaining imprisoned was clearly the better option in both the short and long run.
• Odd Name Out: He's the only archangel whose name doesn't have an "-el" at the end of it. This is lampshaded by Auriel in her Heroes of the Storm quotes.
• Pay Evil unto Evil: When it comes to demons, Imperius' creed is "Blood for blood!"
• Playing with Fire: Fire seems to be his element. He wing-tentacles appear to be made of flames instead of blue light, his spear shoots fire and he incinerates hordes of demons a few times.
• Red Oni, Blue Oni: The Red to Tyrael's Blue. The two are friends and share something of a temperament, but Imperius is Hot-Blooded and quick to judge, while Tyrael is more reserved, as a result of Character Development during the ancient Sin War.
• The Resenter: While he disdains humanity as a whole, he expresses personal animosity with the Nepehlem for wounding his pride by defeating the enhanced Diablo when he failed to do so. Even when things are most dire, he can only barely be convinced to swallow his pride and not attacking them when they meet.
• Slowly Slipping Into Evil: Imperius has been slowly becoming more and more extreme in his methods as his wounded pride and the schemes of Diablo have begun to shift his focus from Valor to Wrath. As of the end of Diablo III, he remains technically a hero, but has sealed the gates of Heaven to the mortals by the time of Diablo IV.
• Teleport Spam: This actually works against him, as it gives Tyrael the time to grab Imperius's spear and point it at him. Against Demons, on the other hand, it proved lethal.
• The Unfought: The Nephalem never directly fights against him despite his distaste for the species.
• Tin Tyrant: Having a helmet instead of a hood, Imperius is the most heavily armoured of the Angiris council and is considerably antagonistic towards the Nephalem.
• Tyrant Takes the Helm: It's explicitly stated that the High Heavens have gone to hell (no pun intended) since he began to take a more active role in ruling it. Because of this, along with how he commands the majority of the Angel army, the Nephalem's opinions about Angels overall soured.
• Ungrateful Bastard: He tells the Nephalem that even if they defeat Malthael, he won't thank them.
• Unusual Halo: Imperius is the only angel in the games that actually has a halo, and his is a large ring of metal matching the design of his armor.
• Vitriolic Best Buds: With Tyrael before the series began. Arguing as much as they fought together, and having saved other's lives more times then they can count.
• What You Are in the Dark: In the promotional animation "Wrath", Diablo encourages Imperius to kill him rather than let the latter's brethren hold him as prisoner (which the angel complies to). Furthermore, he taunts him by saying that his strength comes from his rage but he's afraid to let the other angels see this side of him. Imperius' reply?
  Imperius: "I fear nothing!!"
• The Worf Effect: Is the single most powerful combatant among the High Heavens. Diablo as the Prime Evil soundly defeats him in the opening cutscene of Act IV in III to establish the power gained from becoming the "Prime Evil".
• World's Best Warrior: He is called the "greatest warrior in all of creation" by another angel, being a master strategist and tactician, as well as the best fighter in all of Heaven.

Auriel, Archangel of Hope

Voiced by: Cree Summer (English)^note Other Languages:Elena Solovyova (Russian)

The Archangel of Hope. Though not as proactive about it as Tyrael, she generally supports humanity, and suffuses all creation with the capacity to believe in a better future.

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• Badass in Distress: While being imprisoned by Rakanoth, the Lord of Despair
• Clothing Combat: Auriel uses a giant cord-like ribbon wrapped around her body as a whip weapon.
• Cloth Fu: As the short animation "Wrath" shows, the long shawl she wears is her favored weapon. She can harden it with her power to cleave through flesh and stone.
• The Heart: She served as the primary mediator for the Angiris Council. Auriel is the Archangel of Hope, who keeps everyone else motivated and rounded in basic morality. In fact, before Tyrael's encounter with Uldyssian, Auriel was already being reasonable in seeing the potential of humanity, voting against its extinction with Itherael coming up next (Though Tyrael was the one who saved the day).
• Hope Bringer: As the Archangel of Hope, her very presence emboldens the angels, and can even lift the spirits of those on Sanctuary once freed from Rakanoth.
• Hope Springs Eternal: She's the living embodiment of hope itself.
• In the Hood: Like her fellow angels, her outfit sports a hood.
• Lady of War: As demonstrated in the short animation "Wrath."
• Nice Girl: Probably the only member of the council who could be considered outright nice (even Tyrael is more of a Good Is Not Nice type)
• Reasonable Authority Figure: One of the few genuinely nice angels, who offers support and encouragement to the Nephalem in Act IV.
• Smurfette Principle: She's the only female amongst the Archangels.
• Support Party Member: Though no slouch in combat herself, Auriel's greatest benefit to the forces of good, both human and angelic, is to inspire them all to fight on even against what seems to be impossible odds.
• Token Good Teammate: She is the only member of the Council to have always advocated for the right of humanity to live. Even Tyrael needed some convincing before he started advocating for humanity, but she never did.
• What the Hell, Hero?: In Wrath video, directed to Imperius when he lets his temper get the best of him and then kill off Diablo after being told that he'll just come back if he's killed and he should be just imprisoned.
  Auriel: Sacrilege...

Itherael, Archangel of Fate

Voiced by: James Horan (English)^note Other Languages:Victor Bohon (Russian)

The Archangel of Fate.

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• All-Powerful Bystander: Itherael can see all possible futures and fates. But by his own words, this forces him to act mostly as an observer, as he's not capable of using the knowledge he has to change fate itself. He will however take opportunities to act if they do not involve the Scroll of Fate. Such as helping the Nephalem, whose destiny the scroll does not contain.
• Badass Bookworm: He's never seen without the Scroll of Fate on his person.
• Cool Sword: His sword is inscribed with green, glowing runes. He combines it with his Teleport Spam to kill any demon in his presence with ease.
• The Fatalist: His main artifact is the Scroll of Fate, which reveals the possible and, in some cases, the inevitable future to him.
  • Subverted in the end however, as soon as he spots an opportunity to Screw Destiny (via helping the Nephalem) he quickly takes it.
• Genius Bruiser: "Wrath" emphasizes the precision and skill of his swordsmanship and Teleport Spam, striking where foes will be just before they are.
• In the Hood: Like many of the other Angels.

• No Biological Sex: Rather played with. Itherael is the only member of the Angirus Council to be specifically described as "sexless," though in Diablo III, his voice is nevertheless masculine and Itherael is also referred to with masculine pronouns in the very same game.
• The Runt at the End: He certainly does stand out amongst the rest of The Angiris Council due to his wings not being attached to his body.
• Seers: As the Archangel of Fate, he is able to see all possible futures, due to possessing the Scroll of Destiny. He's brought up short when he encounters the Nephalem, who are Immune to Fate, and are able to avert the dark future he sees.
• The Smart Guy: Was originally this for the Angiris Council's Five-Man Band dynamic. As the Archangel of Fate, he is able to see into the future with his book and guide policy based on a full knowledge of possible consequences.
• Teleport Spam: In Wrath, this seems to be his main asset in combat. Fitting for the Archangel of Fate, as he just puts his blade where he knows where his enemy is or will be.
• You Can't Fight Fate: Seems to believe this in the expanded universe. By III, he's changed his tune — as a Nephalem, you are Immune to Fate, and thus the only one able to change the outcome of Diablo's invasion of Heaven in the Act IV.

Malthael, Angel of Death

Voiced by: Paul Nakauchi (English)^note Other Languages:Alexander Hoshabaev (Russian)

"All paths lead to death. Whatever their struggles, whatever their triumphs, they die. That is wisdom."

The former Archangel of Wisdom (referred to as the Archangel of Death in the Sin War Trilogy) and leader of the Angiris Council. Following the events of Diablo II, he was driven mad by the Worldstone's destruction and abandoned both his duties and Heaven, going into seclusion. He reappears as the main antagonist of Reaper of Souls, now as the Angel of Death (same position he was given in the Sin War Trilogy), where he steals the Black Soulstone as part of his plan to eradicate humanity due to their demonic origins.

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• Absolute Xenophobe: By the time of the Reaper of Souls expansion to Diablo III, Malthael's goals have evolved into this. He obviously seeks the destruction of all Demons for the sake of ending the Eternal Conflict, but in his madness, he now views Humanity as being just as bad simply due to their distant demonic heritage and seeks to eradicate them as well, nevermind the fact that they are also distantly angelic in nature. Speaking of other Angels, he shows no hesitation in ordering his forces to attack the High Heavens with the intent to kill to try and deny the Nephalem access to Pandemonium, simply because they will not aid in his genocide of all humanity.
• A God Am I
  Tyrael: The Nephalem will stop you.
  Malthael: No one can stop death.
• Batman Gambit: His first plan to get rid of humanity was to let the Black Soulstone corrupt the Angels and cause them to destroy Sanctuary. He only resorted to open acting after Tyrael unknowingly ruined it.
• Badass Boast: "No one can stop death."
• Big Good: The former leader of the Angiris Council. Becomes the Big Bad Of Diablo III's first expansion pack, Reaper of Souls.
• Black-and-White Insanity: By Reaper of Souls, he's gone so far off the deep end that he believes humanity is on the wrong side of the Eternal Conflict simply because they have demonic heritage, ignoring their equal angelic heritage and the average human's complete ignorance of the Eternal Conflict in the first place. To him, the very idea that beings he considers lesser than angels could choose between good and evil is a grave insult.
• Black Cloak: One of his identifying traits.
• Bullet Hell: Many of his attacks invoke intricate dense patterns of projectiles.

• Creepy Good: Back when he was the Archangel of Wisdom, Malthael was benevolent but melancholic and even unnerving to some.
• Dark Is Not Evil: Played straight then later subverted.
• Demonic Possession: He possessed a prisoner to get past a barrier Tyrael creates denying nonmortals entry to the Black Soulstone's hiding place.
• Dual Wielding: He wields a pair of scythe-like shotels (an African sickle-sword) that allow him to deflect enemy blows with minimal force. They're also capable of decapitating normal men in a single blow.
• Driven by Envy: It is heavily implied in the prequel novels that one of his motivations is jealously at the Nephalem for defeating Diablo while he did not.
• Dying as Yourself: Not exactly, but when you defeat him, his armor turns gold and his wings become blue and more angelic as his power of death fades away.
• Evil Gloating: Implied, when he first gets his hands on the now-mortal Tyrael at the beginning of Reaper Of Souls; rather than killing him straight away, Malthael lifts Tyrael up by one of his shoulder pauldrons with one of his shotels and takes his sweet time draining his life force, which allows him to see that Tyrael is bereft of the Burning Hells' taint otherwise inherent in humans. He doesn't vocally boast about his ability to overpower him, but this is something that he would have no reason to do if he had already known that the mortal at his mercy was a former angel.
• Evil Is Hammy: While he is naturally calm in most of the time but when he speaks, beware. His first words in Reaper of Souls chew the scenery more than they can be.
• The Evils of Free Will: In "The Path of Wisdom" lore elements, Malthael reveals that he doesn't think it proper for beings as fleeting as mortals to be able to choose between good and evil. Actually, scratch that—a later entry shows that he deems it proper that nothing be able to choose between good and evil, as is the case with angels and demons.
• Evil Sounds Deep: Subverted then played straight. As the leader of the Angiris Council, Malthael's voice was a powerful one, often enrapturing others with its melody to reinforce the wisdom of his words. However, whenever his demeanor darkened, his voice became dark and foreboding, provoking feelings of angst and even thoughts of death. When he becomes the Angel of Death, this trope is played straight.
• Et Tu, Brute?: The other angels, especially Tyrael and Imperius, are horrified by his descent into evil, let alone his callous murder of fellow angels.
• Face–Heel Turn: Has become twisted and dark by Reaper of Souls.
• Fallen Angel: Has become a very malignant one in Reaper of Souls.
• Final Boss: Of the Campaign Mode in Reaper of Souls.
• Flunky Boss: Summons two Exorcists to aid him in defeating you. They hit like trucks.
• Good Wings, Evil Wings: His wings are made of ghostly light, like most angels. But when he became the Angel of Death, his wings turned wispy and mist-like, resembling bone more than tendrils.
• Go Mad from the Revelation: He is said to have gone mad after the destruction of the Worldstone in the second game.
• General Ripper: He does not care who has to die if it means achieving his goals, be that innocent humans, or his fellow angels.
• The Grim Reaper: He's a gaunt, black-robed, incredibly powerful being who carries curved blades. Not to mention his newly-picked up habit of claiming souls.
• He Who Fights Monsters: He initially has good, if insane intentions, but he slowly turns into a monster no better than the demons.
• Humans Are Flawed: He originally abstained from the vote to destroy humanity; though he didn't vote to destroy them, nor did he do vote in their favor. Regardless, his abstaining from the vote of whether to wipe out humanity or not was counted as a vote against. His opinion of humanity took a turn for the worse by the time of Diablo III.
• Humans Are the Real Monsters: Come Reaper of Souls, his beliefs regarding humans shifts into this trope.
• Hypocrite: By the time he returns in Reaper of Souls, Malthael justifies his terrible actions with layers of hypocrisy to convince himself that they're always noble.
  • He claims to despise humanity for being demonically tainted, but uses the Black Soulstone's demonic power for his purposes.
  • He claims that humanity is automatically evil and angels are automatically good, but ignores any attempts of his fellow angels to reason with him and has them slaughtered for daring to not support him.
  • Finally, he says that his goal is to end the Eternal Conflict, but ignores that it had effectively already ended. For all his talk of grand ideals and the greater good, the moment he's pressed in battle, he shatters the Black Soulstone and absorbs its fragments as a quick power-up. Dooming the universe to a revived Eternal Conflict for no cause beyond his own shortsighted selfishness.
• Insane Troll Logic: In his journals, which chronicle his descent into madness, it turns out that the first thing he noticed about humans is that they have short lifespans. He then concluded that creatures that don't live very long shouldn't have the power to choose between good and evil.
• Irony: He claims that Angels and Demons don't choose between Good and Evil (or rather, shouldn't). And yet, Izual joined Diablo willingly, rendering Malthael's argument invalid. Furthermore, considering that Malthael absorbed Diablo's essence for a power-up during the fight with the Nephalem, it's safe to say that he knew exactly what he was getting himself into, and did so anyway.
  • This is given an attempted Hand Wave in a lore book by an angel saying that angels are fundamentally incapable of being irredeemable, but the argument is flawed as they still chose evil.
  • The former Angel of Wisdom spent all of Reaper of Souls making some very unwise decisions. Instead of realizing that the Black Soulstone had all but handed Heaven victory in the Eternal Conflict, he stole it from containment to carry out pointless mass murder. He ignored the power and aid humanity displayed during the battle with Diablo and deliberately made an enemy of them all. When the Nephalem began to push him in combat, he shattered the Black Soulstone, allowing the power of the Great Evils he claimed to want destroyed within the stone into his soul just for a quick power boost before he was finally defeated. The end result of his foolishness was wiping out the bulk of humanity, severely stunting the resurgence of the powers of the Nephalem in the surviving humans, Heaven's already weakened forces were even more cut down, the hero who was their greatest asset is now alienated from the remaining angels, and the Great Evils are now free to eventually revive themselves and start the Eternal Conflict back up again.
• In the Hood: Like most of the other angels.
• Kill All Humans: Malthael's ultimate goal is to eradicate humanity in order to purge the blood of demons from Sanctuary and end the Eternal Conflict once and for all. Though he knows that humans are capable of both good and evil, he does not trust them not to choose evil, especially with their growing power as a result of the Worldstone's destruction. Not to mention that he believes that nothing should even be capable of choosing between good and evil in the first place.
• Killed Off for Real: He was killed by the Nephalem in the final battle of Reaper of Souls, making him the only member of the Council to be confirmed dead by Diablo IV.
• Knight Templar: An even bigger one than Imperius, considering that he's decided to go against the Council's vote to spare the Nephalem. Imperius, by comparison, only decided to re-consider this policy once Diablo was resurrected by Adria.
  • He states in one of his discarded journals that humans have the potential for good, but feels that creatures with such short lifespans shouldn't have the power to make such long-lasting choices.
  • For the most part, his mindset and goal after being driven mad has always been "End the Eternal Conflict for the Angels' favor"... regardless of the consequences, in which he'll do anything for that, including attacking his brethren because they're in the way.
• The Leader: He was originally this for the Angiris Council. He was the Archangel of Wisdom, who guided the policies of the other four by remaining neutral and considerate of all possible points. He abandoned the role after the events of II when the Worldstone is destroyed. Which makes him even more terrifying than Imperius now that he's evil.
• Moral Myopia: For all his talk about Humans inevitably chosing evil when given the opportunity over good as a consequence of their Demonic heritage, Malthael is exceptionally quick to turn on his fellow Angels and kill them when they don't align with his beliefs. Not to mention how with Diablo defeated, all Malthael had to do to win the Eternal Conflict for the Angels... was absolutely nothing. Instead, he took the decidedly evil option of stealing the Black Soulstone for his own purposes and slaughtering anyone who got in his way, or whom he seemed unworthy.
• Near-Villain Victory: While the Nephalem managed to defeat him before he could complete his plans, he still managed to kill the vast majority of humanity and postponed the reawakening of humanity's Nephalem heritage indefinitely. Diablo IV set decades later, showed that the survivors would be unable to recover in time to oppose the next demonic threat.
• Nice Job Fixing It, Villain: Imperius would likely have tried to kill the Nephalem upon their second visit to the High Heavens, but Malthael's slaying of fellow angels in an attempt to murder the Nephalem — to say nothing of his tampering with the power of the Black Soulstone, which contained the essence of the Prime Evil — led Imperius to decide Malthael had to be put down, and that despite his hatred of them the Nephalem was best suited to the task.
• Nigh-Invulnerable: As the Aspect of Death, he is immune to harm, shown when Tyrael's sword goes harmlessly through him in the Reaper of Souls cinematic. The Nephalem can only harm him after absorbing some of the same death magic from spirits in Pandaemonium Fortress.
• Not-So-Well-Intentioned Extremist: A Type C; Malthael's rationale for eradicating Humanity is because doing so would end the Eternal Conflict which has made humans so suspectible to becoming corrupt and evil like demons do. While he genuinely believes in his cause and paints himself to be doing it for a greater good, his refusal to seek out any alterntives as well as being more than willing to turn on his former comrades and even kill off any angels who don't side with him and don't even have any demonic taint on them, alongside being merciless on every human, good or bad, completely nullifies whatever good intentions Malthael has on his goals.
• Pet the Dog: When he defeated Tyrael while stealing the Black Soulstone, he had the perfect chance to kill him. But while his fellow angel was now a mortal, he didn't have the same demonic taint as most humans, so Malthael didn't consider Tyrael an enemy, and chose to spare him. This later gets subverted, as he kills his fellow angels who also did not have a demonic taint.
• Playing with Fire: Upon his One-Winged Angel mode.
• Reverse Shrapnel: One of his attacks.
• Sanity Slippage: The loss of the Worldstone did not do good things for his mental state. You can find some of his journals scattered around the final dungeon of Act V, which document his descent.
• Sinister Scythe: They're shotels, technically.
• The Slow Walk: Does this to Tyrael in the Reaper of Souls cinematic and to the Nephalem right before his boss fight.
• The Smart Guy: Naturally, being the Archangel of Wisdom. He was bound to see all things.
• Soul Power: As the Angel of Death, he has full dominion over the souls of the dead.
• The Stoic: He never spoke much and rarely showed any emotions. He was even nicknamed "The Silent Angel".

• Takes One to Kill One: His death magic makes him invulnerable to conventional attacks and kills any mortal in his presence. The Nephalem had to gain the same power from spirits in Pandemonium Fortress to let them stand a chance of fighting him.
• Tautological Templar: He believes that angels are inherently good, demons are inherently evil, and humans have the free will to choose between the two, a choice they are not worthy of making. By extension, if he, as an angel, decides to commit genocide against humans, it must be a course of action for the greater good of creation. Using the powers of the Great Evils to do this is fully justified because he is the only one incorruptible enough to be trusted with such a thing. All the other angels who oppose him are clearly evil because they are impeding his efforts to destroy evil forever.
• Teleport Spam: Utilizes this during his boss fight.
• Unwitting Instigator of Doom: His failed attempt to destroy humanity for the sake of the High Heavens released the Great Evils, effectively starting the effectively-ended Eternal Conflict all over again. Since he killed off most of humanity, when Lilith and Inarius were both released decades later, they were free to enact their plans on a Sanctuary far too weakened to defend itself from them.
• Villain Has a Point: Possibly. Part of Malthael's motivation for destroying humanity was that humans, given the choice between good and evil, all too often chose evil. During the end cinematic, Tyrael notes that the nephalem hero has the power to destroy both demons and angels, and also a choice between good or evil. When the choice is presented, Tyrael wonders, what will the hero do?
• Walking Wasteland: When he unleashes his death magic, all mortal life rots into dust in seconds. He uses the Black Soulstone to amplify this power to let him slowly kill all life on Sanctuary before he was stopped.

Other Angels

Inarius

Voiced by: Gabe Kunda (English, IV)

"If I have learned anything during my time here, it is that what we desire and what we need are rarely the same thing."

The Archangel who was once an adviser to the Angiris Council and became tired with all of the relentless fighting between the two races. He then decided to go cohabitate with demons alongside his angels, creating the world of Sanctuary and the race known as the Nephalem, which would eventually become humanity.

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• Abusive Parents: If Lilith is the literal and metaphorical mother of humanity, then he is their father. For a time, he did care for his creations, but after his banishment and the torture he suffered, he grew to despise them. Now he uses humanity as disposable pawns in his quest for redemption, and without a care if his crusade would result in the complete destruction of Sanctuary and mankind. Not even his direct offspring are safe from his ruthless quest, as he kills his son, Rathma, for refusing to aid him.
• Actually Pretty Funny: The impression he gives of the Wanderer, after initially disregarding their request for a blessing and them as a whole. But once they state they can stop Lilith — unwittingly spitting in the face of his own self-ordained prophecy that he'll claim that victory — he grunts in amusement and dismisses them. As Prava puts it, the fact they're still standing is proof enough that Inarius wants to see how it turns out.
• Alas, Poor Villain: His final moments are surprisingly pitiful; after (seemingly) striking down Lilith and being met with the ultimate confirmation that the High Heavens has no interest in taking him back, he despairingly calls out, desperately imploring as to what more he must do to redeem himself. When Lilith recovers and turns the tables on him, his last words are to beg Heaven for salvation before he dies screaming in terror and agony as Lilith savagely obliterates him.
• All for Nothing: It's shown through IV that a lot of the things Inarius does in his attempts to get back in the good graces of the High Heavens end up proving fruitless.
  • His first attempt to stop Lilith causes more problems than it solves. His murder of their son Rathma was as cruel as it was unnecessary. Inarius impaled Rathma with the very staff the necromancer wielded solely because he refused to give his father the key to Hell for another escalation of the Eternal Conflict. But once Lilith finds and bemoans such a fate, she then shatters the staff to find the key was still within it. Inarius was so petty that he killed their son in anger and didn't even bother to realize where the key would be hidden, instead biding his time at the Alabaster Monastery in hopes that Lilith's moves would let him correspond instead.
  • When that doesn't work, his second attempt to stop Lilith's plans doesn't go much better. Ultimately he tries to strike down Lilith, only for Heaven to still ignore him. Lilith recovers and notes that they were never going to listen to him in the first place, sending Inarius into a Villainous Breakdown. While he's distracted, Lilith impales Inarius like he did their son, and kills him by ripping his wings off.
• A Match Made in Stockholm: He fell in love with Lilith after she captured him.
• Ambiguously Bi: In the novel, he admits that he's not attracted to his handsome male lieutenant, but only because he still loves Lilith.
• And I Must Scream: His punishment at the hands of Mephisto. His wings are slowly ripped off, his features are stretched out and distorted using small hooks, and he's trapped in a room covered floor to ceiling with mirrors with his eyelids removed so he's forced to stare at his mutilated form for all eternity. He recovers (physically at least) by Diablo IV.
• Asshole Victim: Ultimately, he suffers a horrific death at the hands of Lilith, being backstabbed and having his wings painfully torn off by his former lover, while he screams out of utter physical agony and psychological despair at the realization he is beyond redemption. Which serves him right, as he had grown petty, egocentric, disdainful and manipulative towards humankind, his progeny, and killed his own firstborn son in cold blood at best and absolute pettiness at worst.
• Believing Their Own Lies: By Diablo IV, Inarius has convinced himself that he is the virtuous god that he posed as to the mortals of Sanctuary. He has also deluded himself into thinking that all he has to do to get back to Heaven is to kill Lilith and stop her plans, despite having no reason to believe this would work. And indeed, it doesn't work, which Lilith points out to Inarius after he's run her through. Essentially, Inarius deluded himself into thinking that the High Heavens still gave a damn about him after everything he's done prior, and that he's never going to go back. This leads Inarius into a Villainous Breakdown, which allows Lilith to likewise run Inarius through with the same spear and kill him.
  • A subtle bit during his doomed final confrontation with Lilith arguably makes this aspect of him worse than it already is; when Lilith calls him out for murdering Rathma in cold blood, he claims that he did it as just another part in appeasing Heaven and earning his redemption. This could easily be chalked up as him just being his holier-than-thou Never My Fault self... except there's the easy-to-miss element that his breath pitches, and his voice genuinely quavers, when recounting this. Keep in mind that, as we're traversing Rathma's temple, we receive visions as we make our way through it that all but outright state that Inarius killed Rathma out of spite when he wouldn't surrender the key to Hell to him. Inarius is so utterly self-deluded that he can't reconcile with the fact that he was willing to kill his own child for any reason other than as a regrettable-but-necessary cost for his redemption.
• Being Tortured Makes You Evil: Spending thousands of years subjected to all the tortures Mephisto could come up with made Inarius abandon all remaining idealism and compassion in favor of a laser-focus on returning to Heaven at any cost. Mephisto takes pride in causing Inarius's negative personality shift, stating he focused Inarius's hatred.
• Berserk Button: Being reminded he can't go back to Heaven, and implying Heaven doesn't want him back, really sets off Inarius. Lilith says as much to his face at one point, which just makes him want to kill her even more.
• Combat Tentacles: He makes use of his wings as such in the march on Hell, at one point killing a swarm of demons converging on him by simply twirling in place and using his wings like whips to thresh them to shreds just as they close the gap.
• Corrupt Church: His Cathedral of Light offers redemption for the sins and inadequacies of its believers. In truth, it's little more than a front for Inarius to indulge his ego and gain an army of converts to aid him in his battle against Lilith. As long as he gets to return to his "rightful place", Inarus couldn't care less about what happens to his followers.
• Dramatically Missing the Point: Inarius believes humanity is an abomination and their creation is the sin he must seek to repent from in order to be accepted back into the High Heavens, first by killing Lilith, and then, if needed, he'd turn on humanity itself. What he fails to consider is that 3/4 of the surviving Angiris Council are really fond of humanity and see value in their continued existence, and one of them became human himself, so there's no reason that the Angiris Council would hold that as the condition for his return. Inarius is so self-absorbed that he can't seem to fathom that the Council takes issue with how he behaves, and not with humanity.
• Destructive Romance: His love brings out the worst in him, and almost leads to tragedy.
• Failure Is the Only Option: Rathma's prophecy already spells it out that Inarius isn't exactly going to be some grand victor, and before the end of Act I he even tells the Wanderer as such through a pre-death magical message. Lo and behold, Inarius being such a narcissistic bastard that would doom all of Sanctuary if it got him back into the High Heavens results in a resounding denial before he is killed by Lilith, and the story goes so far at length to imply this was going to be the case from the outset that it stops losing any potential surprise factor and just becomes a long-anticipated dose of Laser-Guided Karma.
• Fake Ultimate Hero: For followers of the Cathedral Of Light, he is considered Humanity's destined savior, and later a martyr that gave his life to defeat Lilith. Of course, this all ignores the fact that the player had to finish her off, all of the previous times he got his own ass handed to him by both sides of the Eternal Conflict, the centuries he spent trapped in the Burning Hells while Tyrael, The Horadrim, the Adventurers, and The Nephalem did the actual saving of Humanity, and Reverend Mother Prava's inconsistence as to whether he willingly gave his life, or Lorath and the player left him to die, all of which his followers are eiter unaware of, or ignore.
• Fallen Angel: Eventually, his misdeeds catch up to him. By the time of Diablo IV, he has somehow managed to escape his imprisonment and seemingly fully recovered (at least, physically) from his torture, yet he remains exiled in Sanctuary for his treachery.
• A God Am I: In Diablo IV, he has become the figurehead of the Cathedral of Light, who worship him with fanatic zeal, which is something he personally enforces. When the Wanderer first meet him, instead of taking their mission seriously he is more annoyed they did not immediately kneel in his presence.
• Healing Hands: Inarius has the power to cure beyond anything a human is capable of. He's given a man the means to walk when he could never use his legs once and cured Prava of her seizure disorder as if it had never been there. His miracle healing is one of the reasons the Cathedral of Light is so devoted to him.
• The Hedonist: He betrays much of what his people hold sacred to create what amounts to an "earthly paradise" for himself and a few others using the Worldstone. Notably, they call it "Sanctuary."
• Interspecies Romance: With the demon queen Lilith, though it doesn't work out once he realizes she intends to use their children as an army to conquer the universe.
• It's All About Me: In Diablo IV, he crusades against the Burning Hells if only because he believes his victory will ensure that he will be welcomed back to the High Heavens. Despite being warned that his plans would see all of Sanctuary destroyed, he dismisses it as humanity's fate being irrelevant to him. There's also an element to this in the simple fact that he thinks the High Heavens would welcome him back in the first place; considering everything he's already done before this, and the simple fact that the Angiris Council willingly gave him over to Mephisto, the fact that he thinks Heaven would want him back at all is a testament to how highly he really thinks of himself, even after having fallen so far.
  Inarius: I am Sanctuary, and Sanctuary is I! You seek to fight the very world itself when you seek to stand against me.
• Jerkass Gods: He's effectively one half of the creation myth of Sanctuary as a whole alongside Lilith, which makes him as good as a god in the eyes of his religion. He's kind of a self-centered asshole and enough of a prick over the failure of humanity as his consequence that it's a wonder his people don't notice, instead assuming they are so beneath him that they deserve his cold treatment.
• Karmic Death: Lilith runs him through with his own weapon, much like how he impaled his son Rathma on his own staff. For extra karma, she does it as Inarius realizes the heavens will remain closed to him.
• Light Is Not Good: By the time of his return in Diablo IV, he managed to regain his angelic looks (that means wearing a shining armor and having wings made of bright light tentacles, par the course for angels still aligned with the High Heavens in this universe), but has become arguably even more callous, selfish, and cruel than Lilith herself.
• The Mentor: To the Angiris Council, before he decided to become a rebel. He was among the archangels, and while not among the five that formed the Angiris Council, he nevertheless served as an advisor to them. Then, he decided that he needed a way to break free from the Eternal Conflict, which led to meeting Lilith and the creation of Sanctuary.
• Never My Fault: He can't accept that the High Heavens cast him out for his own actions. Instead, he blames Lilith, humanity, and Sanctuary as a whole for the pain he has suffered. He seeks to destroy them all in his demented plans to "make things right".
• Nice Job Breaking It, Hero: In Diablo IV, it is Inarius' callous selfishness and deluded arrogance that allows Lilith to nearly take over Sanctuary.
• Not Quite Back to Normal: It's subtle, but in certain scenes in Diablo IV where you can see him close-up, you'll notice that, rather than the generic or featureless shoulder pauldrons and hip plates of most angels, his are now cast in the image of faces contorted in anguish, representing the torture he endured under Mephisto's care and his longing and desperation to return to the High Heavens, and distinguishing him as a Fallen Angel.
• Not-So-Well-Intentioned Extremist: In Diablo IV, he claims to be working to defeat demonic forces for good and demands many sacrifices from his followers to achieve this. In truth, he couldn't care less about his followers or Sanctuary as a whole. He's only interested in fighting Lilith out of personal grudge and to earn a ticket back into Heaven. He's indifferent towards his followers' fates so long as they serve his needs as a "superior being."
• Offing the Offspring: He kills his own son, Rathma, after the latter refuses to give him the key to Hell.
• Only Sane Man: Before Tyrael becomes one, Inarius was the only Angel who saw that the whole Eternal Conflict is an endless sequence of useless battles and prefers a moment of peace (and preferring that his brothers are not caught up with the fake 'glory' of winning the conflict), thus leading to the creation of the Sanctuary. Unlike Lilith who eventually re-sparked interest to use humanity for the Eternal Conflict, Inarius is more content with letting them grow on their own far from conflict. Once he faced the consequences for this and was banished from the High Heavens, however, his sanity took a sharp decline and he started Slowly Slipping Into Evil.
• Slowly Slipping Into Evil: During his time ruling Sanctuary, his desire for peace slowly warped into sheer egotism. By the time of his banishment, his only real concern was that nobody would know of his "great deeds". Upon his return in Diablo IV, he has become little more than a glorified cult leader obsessed with murdering Lilith at any cost.
• There's No Place Like Home: Since escaping Hell, all Inarius wants now is to return to the High Heavens, and he'll do anything from killing Lilith to destroying Sanctuary itself if it will grant him the right to return home.
• Took a Level in Jerkass: Between his millennia of torture in the Burning Hells and his banishment from the High Heavens, by Diablo IV the once peace seeking "Father of Sanctuary" has become obsessed with his own redemption and disparaging of humanity.
  Lorath: But they never mention that being tortured in hell for a few millennia turns you into an arse.
• Unexplained Recovery: Despite spending thousands of years tormented and mutilated, he returns in Diablo IV seemingly no worse for wear. While he claimed to his followers that he escaped, Lorath thought that this was Inarius's embellishment. Considering Mephisto's manipulation behind the scenes, it cannot be discounted that the Lord of Hatred healed Inarius and then set him loose, knowing that the refined hatred within Inarius would wreck havoc.
• Unwitting Pawn: Lilith duped him into believing she truly love him. She used his misplaced feelings to get him to steal the Worldstone and help her create a race with the potential to grow powerful enough to overthrow Heaven and Hell.
• Undignified Death: Lilith kills him by stabbing him through the chest with his own spear and tearing off his wings while he begs the Heavens to protect him. Afterwards, his body is unceremoniously dragged down by the damned souls of Hell, presumably to join them in their misery for eternity.
• The Unfought: Despite his antagonistic role, the Wanderer never faces him in the main campaign of Diablo IV. Instead, he's seemingly killed in battle by Lilith with his remains being absorbed into the landscape of tortured souls of Hell.
• Villainous Breakdown: After Lilith coldly tells him that the High Heavens want nothing to do with him, he breaks down fully, realizing that she's right. And then, just to further twist the knife, Lilith literally stabs him in the back and rips off his angelic wings.
  Inarius: But I set things right… What more would you have me do?! Tell me! Please! Tell me!
• Wide-Eyed Idealist: At one point, he truly did care for his followers and wanted nothing more than to bring a peaceful end the Eternal Conflict. He believed that demons could have more positive sides and that the Nephalem should have a future of their own. Unfortunately, that idealism has long since passed.
• You Can't Go Home Again: He's exiled from Heaven for creating humanity and Sanctuary. As he tells Rathma, his entire goal is to return home. He hopes that killing Lilith will earn him that redemption. And, as he finds out the hard way in IV, it doesn't. He certainly tries after he thinks he's killed Lilith, but she points out that they're not listening and backstabs Inarius for it.

Izual

Voiced by: Ed Trotta (English)^note Other Languages:Denis Bespaly (Russian)

Izual's spirit form

Izual was once Archangel Tyrael's lieutenant, sent to Hell to battle for the Hellforge. He was eventually corrupted and trapped inside a demon's body by the Prime Evils. In Diablo II, Tyrael asks the player character to free him of his misery, only for Izual to reveal he betrayed the High Heavens on purpose and was the one who advised the Prime Evils on using the Soulstones, initiating their plan to invade Sanctuary. He is later brought back by Diablo in the third opus to disturb Tyrael.

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• Damage-Sponge Boss: In Diablo II, he has a lot of health but is otherwise a straightforward boss. In Diablo III he packs some nasty surprises.
• Face–Heel Turn: To the High Heavens and Sanctuary itself.
• Fallen Hero: He was once Tyrael's lieutenant. Now he serves Diablo without hesitation.
• An Ice Person: He uses ice magic whenever you fight him.
• The Mole: Not only did Izual fill the Prime Evils in about the Soulstones and how to corrupt them, but he also helped the Prime Evils mastermind their own exile into Sanctuary, breaking the pact made between Heaven and Hell after the Sin War and setting off the events of the games in general.
• Not Brainwashed: He betrayed the High Heavens of his own accord, not because he was corrupted.
• "Not So Different" Remark: Tries this on Tyrael in Diablo III after finding out both of them have become Fallen Angels (though in totally different ways), obviously enjoying the irony of the situation.
• Punny Name: Likely an unintential example, but his name is pronounced exactly like "is wall". Considering his Diablo II incarnation fits the Stone Wall trope to a tee, this is completely appropriate.
• Small Role, Big Impact: His betrayal of the High Heavens resulted in the corruption of the Soulstones, effectively starting the events of the games.

Hadriel

Voiced by: Bill Roper (English)

An archangel follower of Tyrael who advises the heroes to not progress further until they smash Mephisto's Soulstone.

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• Astral Projection: Supplementary material states he wasn't physically present in hell. Which may explain why he doesn't help you beyond giving advice and why the demons don't attack him.

Kasadya

One of Malthael's angels. She is the first Death Maiden you encounter in Reaper of Souls, which you have to kill to destroy the Soul Crucible she was creating and establish the Survivors' Enclave.

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• Fourth-Wall Mail Slot: She's the narrator of Blizzard's official Reaper of Souls mini guide. Naturally, she takes every opportunity she can to mock and insult you.
• Kick the Dog: The first thing you see Kasadya doing in Reaper of Souls is ripping the soul out of an innocent woman trying to get away from Westmarch, turning her into a Reaper along with the dead around her. And the very first thing she says? "Those with demon blood must die." It sets the tone for the Reapers' mission — and the expansion in general — quite well.
• Meaningful Name: Kasadya means "rejoice" in Cebuano (a Filipino dialect). And she rejoices in death.
  • Kasadya is also the name of a fallen angel, one of the "Five Satans" of the Book of Enoch whose deeds resulted in God unleashing the Flood upon Earth.
• Mook Maker: Like other Death Maidens, she creates Reapers out of the dead. And the living, if she catches them.

Urzael

An angel that greatly admires Malthael. Disgusted and disillusioned by the Angiris Council's decision to spare humanity despite their sins and demonic origin, he defects from Heaven and eagerly joins Malthael's Reapers once he realizes that their goals are alike.

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• BFG: He carries a cannon that spews fireballs and streams of flame.
• Big "NO!": Shouts this when the Nephalem destroys both Soul Crucibles.
• Collapsing Ceiling Boss: A few of his attacks involve firing his cannon at the ceiling, causing flaming debris to rain down on the player.
• The Dragon: To Malthael.
• Fallen Angel: Though he doesn't consider himself such.
• Genius Bruiser: Although his hulking build would suggest that he's The Brute, he's quite erudite and one of Malthael's top lieutenants.
• Humans Are the Real Monsters: At first he might not have the mindset for it, but on being sent to find Malthael, he came across a few evil humans... then came to a conclusion that such is the overall face of humanity and starts supporting his master wholeheartedly.
• Mighty Glacier: He never moves during his boss fight, aside from the occasional Rocket Jump, and his attacks come out fairly slowly, but considering his massive damage and range, it's not much of a problem for him.
• One-Winged Angel: Twice. He initiates the first transformation when the player confronts him, then powers up a second time—transforming his cannon into a demonic, dragon-themed thing—halfway through the fight.
• Playing with Fire: He is to flames what Izual is to frost. During Act V, he sets all of Westmarch ablaze in the hopes of reaping as many souls as possible for Malthael's use.
• Rocket Jump: He uses his cannon to blast himself off the floor and land on the ground with a damaging shockwave.
• Smug Snake: Constantly asserts his and Malthael's superiority over you, even as you're pummeling his face in.
• Videogame Flamethrowers Suck: Averted. The "flamethrower" attack from his cannon can cook players in short order if it isn't avoided.
• Wakeup Call Boss: Players who're just entering the game from level 60, and decide to play on Torment Mode without taking the time to find upgrades for their equipment, are in for a harsh surprise.

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