Descent Into Avernus - Update & "Deleted Scene" (Patron Exclusive) (Patreon)

I've spent a few weeks now trying to gin up a version of the Zariel/Lulu back story that (a) makes sense and (b) is consistent with the rest of DIA's continuity.

I thought I'd cracked it over the weekend and was going to have a bunch of updates starting Monday, but on final review it's slipped out of sync with the Lore of Gargauth.

It's quite frustrating, but figuring out how to bend it all around is more than I was able to solve last night. Hopefully I'll be able to get some time later this week.

For a similar dilemma that came up at the end of last week, check out this thread on Twitter about Jander Sunstar: https://twitter.com/hexcrawl/status/1319147672503152641 

Below is the bit that I realized had broken continuity as I was shoving the pieces of Zariel's story around. It nicely tied a lot of bits together (for example, linking Gargauth and Bel to the historical event that saw Zariel rise to become Archduchess, which would have been a nice detail to leverage when roleplaying those NPCs). Quite a bit the basic plot beats will likely survive the revision I have in mind for fixing this, but the lore you see here will be gutted. I thought it turned out quite nicely, so I thought it might be a neat little "deleted scene" for patrons (and also a preview for what's coming soon).

INVASION OF THE DARK GODS (15th Century DR): In the early 15th century, an alliance of the Dark Gods (Bane, Bhaal, Loviatar, and Talona, along with Gargauth) invaded Avernus.

Bel blew it. He had left most of the war palaces Zariel had conquered before her imprisonment vacant and the Dark Gods were able to seize them for their own use. The Dark Gods had also made alliances with the demon lords of the Abyss, who kept pressure up on the Avernian frontier while the Dark Gods crossed the Styx with their armies.

With the “Avernian situation” rapidly deteriorating, Glasya, the daughter of Asmodeus, saw an opportunity, journeyed to Tiamat’s citadel, and arranged for Zariel’s release. (There are several stories of how she accomplished this: A secret deal with Tiamat. Delivery of an edict from Asmodeus himself. A daring jailbreak heist.)

Zariel’s Second Avernian March: For a second time, Zariel began a march across Avernus. Rather than fleeing this time, however, Zariel was gathering the scattered, routed units of the Blood Legions. As Bel retreated, Zariel attacked. She forded the Styx, sacked the war palaces she had first claimed two centuries earlier, and broke the Dark Gods’ supply lines. Then she turned around, marched back to the Styx, and intercepted the Dark Gods’ army as it was attempting to cross the river. In the bloody, muddy Battle of Lost Memories, the Dark Gods’ campaign was ended and Gargauth was captured.

The Archduchess: Asmodeus punished Bel for his failure by demoting him back to the ranks of the Dark Eight. In Bel’s place, he elevated Zariel as the new Archduchess of Hell. (He also imprisoned Gargauth in the Shield of the Hidden Lord and gave him to Zariel.)