When Blizzard North began developing Diablo, the team mainly used Judeo-Christian mythology
as its reference-point, but the lore of the series has now expanded to include nods to
many different beliefs and legends; drawing on faiths that still exist today, and some
that have not existed for thousands of years. Still, there’s plenty of biblical allusions
to be found: Diablo 3’s Leah shares her name with Jacob’s wife in the book of Genesis,
Archbishop Lazarus alludes to the man who Christ resurrects in the Gospel of Luke, and
Baal, one of the three Prime Evils, is a reference to Ba’al, an ancient god from the Middle
East whose followers can be found tempting God’s prophets in both the Bible and the
Qur’an.
Now, I know what many of you are thinking, that I somehow left out Deckard Cain, one
of the series’ most well-known characters. But surprisingly, “Cain” is not a reference
to Genesis’ first murderer at all but the result of a contest run by PC Gamer in 1996.
A father submitted his infant son’s unique name to the publication and it was chosen
as the winner. The family even received a copy of the game, some memorabilia and a note
from Diablo producer Bill Roper that read “Congratulations! Your postcard was chosen
as the winner in PC Gamer's Name In The Game contest for Diablo by Blizzard Entertainment.
As you will notice, the town elder near the fountain located in the center of Tristram
is your namesake.” At that point, not even the developers knew that the character would
go on to appear in every Diablo game, as well as Diablo role-playing games and tie-in books.
The real Deckard Cain is now almost twenty and resides in South Dakota.
Another instance of the Diablo series finding inspiration from Middle Eastern culture is
the Dune Dervish. Although it may seem like a fairly common video game enemy, its name
and concept is actually a reference to the followers of the strict “Sufi path” found
in the Islamic faith, Dervishes are well-known for their Sema ceremonies where they fall
into a trance as they dance, and whirl around for hours without stopping, in an attempt
to achieve religious ecstasy. This practice is what inspired the creature’s constant
spinning and “whirlwind” attack.
It’s obvious that Blizzard dug deep into religious history when creating the world
of the series, and there are many small details that even hardcore players may have not picked
up on. In Diablo lore, Anu was the first creature in all of time, his death leading to the creation
of heaven and hell, as well as angels and demons. In the real world, Anu is the name
of a god worshipped by the Sumerians and the Babylonians, and is believed by some historians
to be one of the first gods worshipped in known history. There are also demons named
after the Egyptian god of harvest, Renenutet (also known as Ernutet) and the East Semitic
god Assur that appears throughout the series.
Not every creature is inspired by religious history, there’s a few things pulled from
legends as well. One of the main antagonists, Mephisto, is an allusion to Mephistopheles,
who comes from the Faust legend and went on to be a huge part of German folklore, eventually
becoming synonymous with the devil in that region.
Another big example is the evil Warlock brothers
Ennyo, Pemphrido and Dieyno, they are known as the “Eye of the Graeae” and their names
of witches who only had one eye to share between the three.
Many fans believe that the game’s city of Caldeum was inspired by Constantinople (now
known as Istanbul); both cities were world centers of trade and connected the west to
the east. The most notable similarity though is the architecture; Caldieum’s epic structures
There’s even a few, more modern, references found in the series.
The item description text for
the one-handed “Monster Hunter” sword warns to "Be wary when you fight monsters,
lest you become one", this is a quote from Friedrich Nietzsche, the influential German
philosopher and author. And lastly, the Vault Sentry Cornelius Panderbelt, is thought to
be a name modified from Cornelius Vanderbelt, an incredibly wealthy railroad tycoon in the
1800s.
Do you know some Diablo historical or literary references we didn’t cover here? Share them
in the comment section below and we might include it in a future episode. If you liked
this show and its format, don’t forget to ‘Like’ and ‘Subscribe’ for more.