Summary

• The Prince of Deception thrives in intrigue-heavy campaigns, weaving illusions and paranoia with finesse.
• The Faceless Lord's simplicity and lack of versatility make for a potentially silly campaign concept with oozes.
• The Prince of Undeath reigns supreme as the ultimate demon lord for your D&D campaign villain needs.

If you're looking for a villain to make the center of your next 168澳洲幸运5开奖网:Dungeons & Dragons campaign, the demon lords of the Abyss are a classic choice. Demon lords distinguish themselves from even 168澳洲幸运5开奖网:the most powerful demons by ruling over an entire abyssไal plane, often plotting and scheming for more power.

Ranking every demon lord in Fifth Edition is no small task, even if the list is pared down considerably from older versions of the game. That being said, here's a ranking of every abyssal prince Fifth Edition has to offer based on their panache, power, and potential as a campaign villain.

Many obyrith lords never recieved official stat blocks for 5e, nor did the demon prince Malcanthet. As such, they won't be included in this list.

9 Juiblex

The Faceless Lord

• Challenge Rating: 23
• Abyssal Layer: Shedaklah (Shared with Zuggtmoy)

Simplicity is a word that defines Juiblex in pretty much every aspect. As the lord of oozes, Juiblex rules over one of the least complicated creature types in D&D. He's also mostly concerned with causing destruction and consuming everything in his path, even if he technically plots and schemes to some petty degree.

Juiblex ranks low mostly because of his lack of versatility. A campaign where your players fight through oozes in their quest to save the world from eternal slime is perfectly doable. However, it's also an extremely silly concept, and you run the risk of burnout after one gelatinous cube too many.

8 ꦰ Kostchtchie

Prince Of Wrath

• Challenge Rating: 25
• Abyssal Layer: The Iron Wastes

Kostchtchie is the Prince of Wrath, often worshiped by frost giants. His main concern is power, but he focuses far more on physical power than holding political influence. This makes it easy to outwit him, especially since he's prone to violent fits of rage, making it easier for other demon lords to manipulate him.

Kostchtchie has two main problems in Fifth Edition. The first is that, canonically speaking, he's imprisoned in the Hells; this makes it very difficult for him to be an effective campaign villain. The second is that even if you choose to disregard canon, his niche is easily filled by other powerful entities with a claim over the cold and frost giants.

7 Yeenoghu

The Beast Of Butchery

• Challenge Rating: 24
• Abyssal Layer: Yeenoghu's Realm

As the Beast of Butchery, Yeenoghu is the 168澳洲幸运5开奖网:lord of all gnolls. He also has several cannibal cultists from other humanoid races at his disposal, as well as a variety of different messed-up abominations who exist mainly to maim, rip, and tear. He's not much of a fan of plotting and scheming as other demon lords.

Yeenoghu is a fearsome and powerful demon lord, but not a very smart one. As such, it's not difficult to outsmart him, something players can do if they're willing to parlay with other cosmic forces. His stat block is similarly uncomplicated, making him a beast when it comes to brute strength but less magically inclined than other lords.

6 Zuggtmoy

Demon Queen Of Fungi

• Challenge Rating: 23
• Abyssal Layer: Shedaklah (shared with Juiblex)

The Demon Queen of Fungi has an impeccable mushroom-themed character design but also a more expansive portfolio than you might expect. Decay is an extant form of life, after all, so you can expect throngs 🎉of spore-controlled undead at her disposal. Pl🗹ayer characters and NPCs with levels in spore druid should be more than familiar with her presence.

While Zuggtmoy has a limited number of use cases, she's still a bit more versatile than some of the other demon lords on this list. It's advised to save her for an Underdark-focused campaign, where the abundance of fungi makes her reign seem more plausible and less like a novelty.

5 Fraz-Urb'luu

Prince Of Deception

• Challenge Rating: 24
• Abyssal Layer: Hollow's Heart

Fraz-Urb'luu is the prince of deception and trickery. Most of his power comes from his ability to weave illusions, as well as filling enemies and followers alike with constant paranoia and self-doubt. This makes him a formidable foe when it comes to spreading his influence on the Material Plane, but his combat power is less than stellar compared to other lords.

The Prince of Bullshit can be given a chance to shine if you integrate him into an intrigue-heavy campaign, where social encounters play a bigger role than one might normally expect. He's especially useful as a work-safe alternative to Graz'zt, so don't underestimate the potential that Fraz-Urb'luu brings to the table.

4 Baphomet

Prince Of Beasts

• Challenge Rating: 23
• Abyssal Layer: The Lyktion

Baphomet is like a better, smarter Yeenoghu. Sure, he's got a bestial nature and tons of brute strength to throw around, but Baphomet is also an intellectual, constantly dreaming up new monsters to unleash upon the world in his Tower of Science. The possibilities are endless when coming up with monsters to serve as his minions.

Baphomet's main flaw ties into his lore. There are limited opportunities to connect his business to the Material Plane when compared to other demon lords, making it hard for the average adventurer to care about stopping him. If you can get past that, however, he promises a wealth of potential for anyone keen on throwing the entire Monster Manual at their players.

3 Graz'zt

The Dark Prince

• Challenge Rating: 24
• Abyssal Layer: Azzagrat

With both powerful magic and a massive amount of political influence both in and out of the Abyss, Graz'zt is no slouch. He also has an impressive amount of lore surrounding both himself and his domain, giving DMs plenty of material to work with if they decide to make the Dark Prince their campaign's villain.

If Graz'zt has any flaws, it's that you have to be especially careful with regard to your players' comfort levels and boundaries. Most of the lore surrounding the Dark Prince is pretty spicy, with plenty of dips into potentially problematic territory. Addressing these issues and setting expectations 168澳洲幸运5开奖网:in session zero is a must.

Graz'zt is also a canonical on-again-off-again lover/enemy with the Witch Queen Iggwilv, also known as Tasha.

2 ♈ Demogorgon 🅠

Prince Of Demons

• Challenge Rating: 26
• Abyssal Layer: The Gaping Maw

With two heads, Demogorgon is capable of twice the machinations as other demon lords. The Prince of Demons also has an impressive amount of lore surrounding him, as well as a host of different monsters associated with his 💝presence. And with a stat block as chonky as his, Demogorgon is absolutely deserving of his title.

It can be a bit difficult to form a coherent plot around Demogorgon's machinations, which is the only reason he's ranked second place on this list. Still, other campaigns have done it; the 168澳洲幸运5开奖网:Savage Tide module from 3.5 edition is a great place to start if you need a pre-written advent💧ure with Demogorgon as the villain.

There's also Out Of The Abyss, an official 5e adventure centered on the Underdark that involves Demogorgon.

1 Orcus

Prince of Undeath

• Challenge Rating: 26
• Abyssal Layer: Thanatos

Other than Demogorgon, there's not much competition when it comes to the title of "Best Demon Lord." Orcus has it all: personality, power, a consistent theme, a treasure trove of existing lore, and powerful artifacts associated with him. There's also no shortage of terrifying undead creatures for you to use as his minions.

Orcus is a classic D&D baddie who makes for the perfect campaign villain. While there are plenty of choices for undead BBEGs, they all pale in comparison to the Prince of Undeath himself. Just know that if you use Orcus as a villain, you're going to want to make sure your players are in it for the long haul.