Asmodeus (Dungeons and Dragons)
Asmodeus was the lord of the Nine Hells (Baator), and ruler of all who dwell there. According to the text Serpents of Law, Asmodeus was once Ahriman, one of the Twin Serpents of Law. Along with his counterpart, Jazirian, he formed the Great Ring of the Outer Planes. However, the pair differed on where the center of the multiverse should lie. Ahriman favored Baator, the plane of lawful evil, while Jazirian favored Mount Celestia, the plane of lawful good. The two struggled against one another, each stretching towards their chosen plane, until they broke apart.
Ahriman, wounded and wingless, crashed down into Baator, creating nine levels where there once had been seven. Lying wounded at the bottom of the ninth level, Ahriman's blood spawned the baatezu, who eventually took the Nine Hells from their previous rulers, the Ancient Baatorians. Ahriman renamed himself Asmodeus, and became the supreme ruler of the entire plane. Since then, he has survived several attempts by the other Lords of the Nine to oust him.
While weakened from his former state, Asmodeus is a still as mighty as a greater power, able to manifest avatars. These avatars appear as official meetings of the Lords of the Nine and the Dark Eight. No baatezu truly knows the true nature of their ruler, believing him to simply be the most powerful of all devils.
