In the world of Diablo - angels and demons fight for control in the Eternal Conflict.
But recently, it seems that the power of the Heavens and even HELL itself PALES in comparison...
to man?
If that doesn't seem right to you then you
may want to... stay awhile, and listen - I’m Jason with Curse here to shed some light
on the history of the Nephalem, what they can do, and why they’re so powerful.
Before we explore the power of humans, first it would be prudent to understand their origins
and also, more importantly how the Angels and Demons gained their own power.
In the beginning, before even Creation itself existed, there was a great being known as
Anu.
Anu was the sum of all things.
Anu sought perfect harmony and perfection, and so banished the darkness from himself.
This darkness would coalesce into the being known as Tathamet - the first prime evil.
These two great beings would fight for time unmeasurable, but eventually they would both
strike the other down, and from their fury and power - creation was born.
From the corrupted husk of Tathamet came the Burning Hells, and the race of demons.
From the spine of Anu came the High Heavens and the Angels.
These two factions would be forever locked in combat, known as the Eternal Conflict.
It would not be long before many angels and demons alike were tired of the Eternal Conflict,
and in a stroke of fate, the Archangel Inarius would meet the demoness Lilith, and form a
band of renegades who sought their own world.
With that in mind, they stole the one item capable of granting their wish: The Worldstone.
Now, the Worldstone was an item of unimaginable power, a nexus of realities, and capable of
rending and twisting reality in nearly any direction the operator desired.
It was with this device that Inarius and Lilith would form Sanctuary.
Over time many of the angels and demons would fall in love and bear offspring.
Their children were known as the Nephalem.
Their mixed parentage brought about some interesting changes to the Nephalem, most notably that
they were considerably more powerful than either of their parents.
This realization frightened both the angels and demons, so much so that shortly thereafter
- Inarius would attune the worldstone to weaken the Nephalem over time.
Some of the Nephalem knew what had happened, others did not.
Many thought they were succumbing to some sort of virulent plague.
But the end result was that even the mightiest Nephalem cities crumbled to dust, and Sanctuary
would experience a “dark age”.
This dark age, led to the rise of humanity, mortal beings with little to no knowledge
of their ancestors, only mere whispers of the mighty Bul-Kathos, or fearsome Rathma.
The Nephalem potential remained however, coming to light on at least one occasion.
Uldyssian had been a simple farmer until he had been framed for murder.
During this time, he discovered the latent power of the Nephalem within him, and began
to recruit followers who believed in the raw magic, which was later “unlocked” by Uldyssian
- their Nephalem powers coming to light.
The goal was the destruction of the two major cults at the time - the Triune and the Cathedral
of Light.
Ironically, the Triune was led by Lilith, and the Cathedral of Light was led by Inarius
in disguise.
The Triune was targeted first, and their temple destroyed - although Lilith did escape.
Uldyssian then set his sights on the Cathedral of Light.
Eventually he came to meet Inarius in combat.
Their fight had been interrupted by the Heavenly Host and Burning Hells however, who had finally
discovered the hidden world of Sanctuary.
During this time, Uldyssian released his full power, driving the forces of Heaven and Hell
back to their realms.
It was with this explosion that Uldyssian realized just how powerful the Nephalem birthright
is.
His power, and that of his followers was far too much for Sanctuary to handle all at once.
It was tearing the world apart.
Uldyssian realized that if humanity’s Nephalem power came back fully, it would run the same
risk.
And so in a final act of self sacrifice - Uldyssian withdrew his powers back into himself, chose
humanity over godhood, and was then consumed and erased from existence.
His actions would reverberate around Sanctuary, resetting the Worldstone and once again strip
humanity and the rest of his followers of their powers.
This was not to last however, as some time later, Baal - one of the Great Evils, managed
to corrupt the Worldstone, seeking to use humanity as weapons.
Tyrael was faced with no choice but to destroy the Worldstone in an effort to prevent this
outcome, and by doing so, the negative influence over humanity began to dissipate.
This led to a rebirth of true Nephalem, including the playable characters in Diablo 3.
Their powers only just beginning to be realized after Tyrael’s actions.
Who’s to say how far the Nephalem will go, or where their power will end.
They have already defeated the Prime Evil Diablo, and the Archangel Malthael - even
when he was amplified by the black soulstone.
Uldyssian showed us what a single Nephalem could accomplish.
Could a Nephalem eventually become a god?
A being to rival Anu or Tathamet?
Which begs the question.
Has Blizzard gone too far?
Are the characters too powerful now?
Previously the Worldstone held power in check, but with it gone, where can we expect to go
from here?
If you’re interested in content like this, keep an eye out here for more, and be sure
to let us know your thoughts in the comments below.
Check out *Diablo fans* for other Diablo related information!
I’m Jason with Curse saying thanks for watching, and enjoy the game.