I purchased this recently, despite owning both Descent to Avernus and Chains of Asmodeus, which were not available when this came out for 5e. I'm one of the coauthors of Gates of Hell by Dicefreaks, and fairly obsessed with all things infernal.

As a collection of 1-4e diabolical lore, this book is top notch. It attempts to reconcile even drastic shifts in lore, like the change from 3e to 4e where the very planar structure was upended, and in my opinion, does so as decently as possible.

Statistically, the book is ok. I wouldn't say any of the stats are unusable, and none have any CR issues greater than any of the official material from the time. It tends towards recreating the abilities the creatures had before over brand new abilities, but both approaches can be found.

Artistically, the book is fairly amateur. While every single piece in it is better than I could ever do, I get the feeling that most pieces were done by buddies of the author or very low cost freelancers. It's definitely not Larry Elmore and Todd Lockwood. That said, I don't know how I would populate a 246 page supplement with super high quality art, and every artist has to start somewhere.

For me, this was a very enjoyable read, and a bargain. Natasha and Emirikol's voices were great. I did actually laugh aloud at the 'rides around on a horse shooting magic missiles at people' (paraphrased) comment. Such a great callback. I would have liked a PoD option, but as the song says, you can't always get what you want.

Review originally posted here: https://theotherside.timsbrannan.com/2023/10/reviews-im-going-to-hell.html

Emirikol's Guide to Devils

PDF, 246 Pages. Color art. $15.00

From Sean McGovern, of The Power Score RPG blog. So right away I knew this was going to be a well-researched product. Sean has been one of the best at deep lore D&D research in the blogging scene for years. He is meticulous and encompassing on any topic he tackles.

This is a massive volume at 246 pages and covers the Hells and its inhabitants. It takes D&D lore from as far back 1st/2nd Edition (I noticed that details from "Politics of Hell" are not really included though, but everything else is) and tries to bring them all together. It leans heavily into the 5th edition versions of Hells (naturally), and the book is presented like many of the newer 5e books, with notes from Emirikol the Chaotic and Natasha the Dark.

The information makes for a great read, and there are some details I really enjoy. I like how the author explains the shift from Demon to Devil to Fiend for Succubi. There are plenty of stat blocks, which is good if you don't have all the devils and Archdevils. And there are plenty of new devils and backgrounds on playing characters associated with devils and the Hells.

The art is a mixed bag, as with any DMsGuild product, and I am not 100% on board with all the lore choices made here. But there is enough text and information here to keep me busy. Plus any choice I don't like I can simply say "well, Emirikol got it wrong" or even "This was from Natasha when she was younger and not yet Iggwilv."

In any case, it is good to have multiple points of view on something as complex as the Nine Hells.

I do wish there was a printer-friendly version. This would be nice in my big red binder of devil information.

This is more than enough stuff to warrant the price. As a long-time (1E+) player and DM, I really appreciate how the author weaved in so much stuff from past material. I found myself nodding along to a lot of it, remembering things I had long since forgotten. I was planning an adventure that took my players through all nine levels, and this definitely fit the bill.

This is a great, great resource for a campaign through the lower planes, and you won't regret getting it.

This book is some of the most well thought out and well organized content I have ever seen on the lower planes. It has become a cornerstone of my game as my party begins plane hopping.

This really is an awesome product and one of the coolest DMs Guild titles I've purchased. I'm DMing Out of the Abyss and many of the PCs have ties to devillish entities (warlock, paladin, tieflings). This will help me flesh out their character arcs (love the backgrounds included in this guide!) and introduce devil themes in this demon-filled campaign.

Honestly, wish I could get a refund. There's some good info in here, but I bought this for the new monsters and sadly they all seem pretty lame to me, probably won't use many of them, and the overall quality of the pdf is not good. The statblocks are strangly faded and blurry, and the artwork, with a few exceptions, is atrocious.

this is an astonishing suppliment tho im not an expert on d&d as ive only been playing for a little over a year i found this to be a great read it gives me lots of ideas on certain things i want to do i reall hope the writer comes out with a similar suppliment on angels and the like.

this is definetly worth the price btw

So my favorite 3/3.5 book was the Fiendish Codex II: Tyrants of the Nine Hells, and this guidebook is the perfect spiritual successor. With an updated history and politics which made Codex II such a genuinely fun read.

I love that McGovern has taken the details given in previous books (both 5e and earlier) and expanded it to the most comprehensive guide to one of the most interesting places in the D&D multiverse!

I was also so happy to read information on Archduchess Zariel, I have been utterly fascinated with this character since I first heard mention of her, and I am happy to report she is just as wicked and awesome as I could have dreamed.

It's a perfect book if you love Fiends as much as I do and you aren't turned away by spending 15 bucks.

Real Talk

It’s a fantastic sourcebook for putting together an encounter/adventure/campaign focusing on the Devils and the Nine Hells they call home. It’s full of vibrant art, detailed descriptions and usable resources for expanding your game. Ace rating all the way around, and i hope this author puts together a similar book for the Demons of the Abyss.

A great product in my opinion as essentially what it does is sift through four previous generations of D&D products to bring to you an in depth look at the politics, culture and even biology of the Baatezu. The writer does more then just use previous sources but also utilizes his own creativity to help fill some holes in the confusion caused by the nuanced lore changes that are inevitable with the advent of each new edition. This really appeals to me as one of the biggest problems I run into with 5th ed is constant edition confusion where players understandably think that either old rules or old cannon still apply. It gives stats on not only many different kinds of devils that could not be included in the official WOTC releases but gives you all the necessary lore you’ll need to understand their place in the infernal hierarchy and how to employ them. Given as I am hardcore geek the thing that really appealed to me was that he also included stats on all the most note worthy Arch devils. It has always been my experience that most D&D fans tend to favor demons over devils, and WOTC’s choice to include the stats on demon princes in the Out of the Abyss story arc would seem to hint in that direction. After all who doesn’t awe at the psychotic, two headed psychosis of Demogorgan or tremble at the vile undead power of Orcus and his dreaded wand. However the problem with demons can be that when a party encounters them, with the exception of the Glabrezu and minions of Graz’zt, most Tanar’ri just want to eat you. Devils want souls, and to that end this book makes it clear the more pure the soul the more power they can wring from it. Thus it has been my experience that devils can offer a much more gratifying role playing experience in which you can test the moral metal of your players, or just give them a first class ticket to hell if they think that it’ll be more fun. With this book you know which devil is likely to tempt the players most, how they’ll go about doing it, and which Arch devil they most likely report to. All in all I think this is exactly the kind of product that 5th ed needs and I sincerely hope the writer does in fact do exactly as he hints at in the text and gives the Demons of the abyss the same treatment he gave the devils of the nine hells.

Great book realy informative well worth the price for anyone who wants to know more about the findish side of DnD >^.^< I would say a must have for more Advanced dms.

Amazing product. I bought it because I like the power score blog by the same author, and I was still blown away.

A great read for any fan of devils, planescape or the history of the Baatezu. Vast amounts of 'historical' information in a easily accessible format, and inspiring ideas for many hooks.