Bibliotheca Aeterna

[靜海聆]

迪斯 DIS

当凡人在心中想象地狱城市的景象时——颤抖血肉筑成的围墙、喷吐着火焰的嶙峋塔楼、受诅咒者的破碎残骸宛若旗帜一样悬挂在炼狱庭院上——他们想象的正是迪斯。炼狱之城（Infernal City）构成了地狱的整个第二层，它是多元宇宙中最大、最黑暗宏伟的城市之一。在这里，在迷宫般的林荫大道和铁质的建筑中，凡人若能够忍受迪斯的恐怖，他们便可以轻易地进入这里并在城市的魔鬼居民之间寻求财富。但离开迪斯则完全是另一回事，因为那些从这片污秽之地逃出生天的人往往会发现，他们的灵魂已经永远地落入邪恶的商人、复仇的欲魔（erinyes）手中，甚至更糟的是——迪斯帕特本人（Dispater）的手中。


在贪婪的骗子、虚伪的顾问和剥削的高利贷者心中挥之不去*的是一座凡人不敢直呼其名的城市，在那里，灵魂将因其掠夺行径而受到永恒的折磨：迪斯，构成了整个第二层地狱的灾祸城市。迪斯是一个充满狂野极端的地方——地狱风光的大都市，在凡人甚至还未诞生“大都市”的概念之前就已然存在。这里有近千万个魔鬼、被诅咒的祈并者（damned petitioners）、链魔和其他受苦灵魂在城市的铁塔和复杂街道之间扭曲挣扎，要么承受着烈火的折磨，要么沉醉于城市的奢华，全凭他们在城市中的地位而定。迪斯庞大的市场里充斥着堕落的交易，每次谈判都伴随着受诅咒者的尖叫声，而交易的货币从寿命到大量的灵魂不等。地狱中最执着的魔族的黑暗野心以痛苦尖叫的形式回荡在迪斯的血色天空中，而在迪斯帕特宫廷顶峰发出的低语甚至可以传至天堂（Heaven）的墙壁。

【*原文Lurking on the lips of greedy liars, false counselors, and rapacious usurers is......琢磨了几遍，感觉应该是Lurking on the minds of......才符合后半句】

最绝对、最残酷的秩序贯穿了迪斯，甚至可能比地狱的其他层级还要显著。每一个行走于这片炼狱街道的生物都有自己的位置，从最低贱的小魔鬼（imps）到最狡猾的堕落凡人，一直到城市邪恶的贵族。贵族们位居迪斯阶级制度的顶端，他们的计划甚至能让城市根据他们的心意来重塑。魔鬼大公迪斯帕特，亦称“初王“（the First King），既是一名完美的宫廷统治者，也是一名无情的魔族，他以这两种矛盾的特性统治着迪斯。“迪斯王后”艾蕾卡拉（Erecura）是这位魔鬼大公的妻子，她所统筹的阴谋诡计在不朽统治者和炼狱堡垒之中显得奇特而又出奇地仁慈。然而，在迪斯所有强大的魔族之中，最难以捉摸的或许是“艾希斯”（Eiseth），亦称“地狱女武神”（Hell’s Valkyrie）或“无拘者”（She Who Defies Limitation），她那不断壮大的军队掩藏着一场宇宙规模的炼狱叛乱。

“铁杖宫”（Iron Scepter* ）是迪斯帕特、艾蕾卡拉和城市中其他高阶魔族的宏伟宫殿，地狱的整个第二层巢穴以这座宫殿为中心向外散开。虽然“都市迷宫”（Oppidan Maze）的硫磺大道和腐败运河似乎无限地延伸，但它们并非迪斯的全貌。被遗忘的附属建筑在城市核心之外颓败不堪，它们由黄铁与钢铁建成，远处被高如山脉的呻吟屏障所包围。迪斯布满血迹的尖刺城墙后面是一片荒芜的平原——地狱军团在这里集结，而那些生前邪恶且身居高位的傲慢灵魂也堕入这里并永远地蜷缩在地狱无尽奇迹的阴影下。

【* 原文写的是“......the Iron Heart—the mighty palace of Dispater......”，Iron Heart是城区名，所以应该说的是 Iron Scepter 这个宫殿，虽然好像也有点不对】

无论人们走到这片炼狱之地的哪个地方，有一件事总是显而易见。迪斯是地狱的化身，所有在此沉沦的人都属于大深坑（the Pit）本身。

劇透 -   :

DIS

When mortals conjure images of the cities of Hell—siege walls forged of quivering flesh, plumes of fire jutting from jagged towers, and the broken corpses of the damned hanging like banners over infernal courtyards—it’s Dis they’re imagining. The Infernal City makes up the entire second layer Hell, and it is among the largest and most darkly magnificent cities in the multiverse. Here, amid labyrinthine boulevards and iron architecture, mortal souls who brook Dis’s horrors can find easy entrance to seek their fortune among the city’s resident devils. But leaving Dis is another matter altogether, for those who escape this foul place with their lives often find that they’ve forever lost their souls to a wicked merchant, a vengeful erinyes, or worse—to Dispater himself.

Lurking on the lips of greedy liars, false counselors, and rapacious usurers is the city mortals dare not name, where souls are damned to suffer in eternity for their predations: Dis, the urban scourge that forms the entire second layer of Hell. Dis is a place of wild extremes—a hellish vision of a megalopolis, brought to profane life before mortals even knew the concept. Here, nearly 10 million devils, damned petitioners, kytons, and other blasted souls writhe among the city’s iron towers and convoluted thoroughfares, consumed by either fiery torment or urbane luxury, depending on their status in the city. Decadent bartering takes place in Dis’s sprawling markets, each negotiation accompanied by the screams of the accursed, with currency ranging from years of life to legions of souls. The darkest ambitions of Hell’s most determined fiends echo through Dis’s sanguine skies in the form of tormented screams, while the whispers spoken at the pinnacle of Dispater’s courtly palace can reach the walls of Heaven itself.

Order of the most absolute and brutal nature permeates Dis, perhaps even more so than in the other layers of Hell. Every creature that treads its infernal streets has a place, from the lowliest imps to the most cunning of damned mortals all the way up to the city’s wicked nobility. These last perch at the top of Dis’s hierarchy, their schemes literally rebuilding the city to suit their whims. The archdevil Dispater, the First King, rules Dis with the paradoxical traits of both the perfect courtly ruler and the unforgiving fiend that he is. Erecura, Queen of Dis and the archfiend’s wife, oversees machinations that are peculiar and oddly benign among immortal rulers and in a bastion of Hell. Of all Dis’s powerful fiends, however, perhaps the most inscrutable is Eiseth, Hell’s Valkyrie and She Who Defies Limitation, whose aerie of growing armies belies an infernal uprising of cosmic proportions.

The entirety of Hell’s second lair fans out concentrically from the Iron Heart—the mighty palace of Dispater, Erecura, and the city’s other high-ranking fiends. Although the brimstone boulevards and putrid canals of the Oppidan Maze seem to stretch infinitely, they are not the entirety of Dis. Forgotten outbuildings of pyrite and steel languish beyond the city’s core, bounded in the distance by moaning barriers that stand as tall as mountains. Blasted plains lie past Dis’s bloodily spiked walls, where Hell’s legions marshal and where those arrogant and privileged souls that were evil in life are damned to huddle forever in the shadows of Hell’s infinite wonders.

No matter where one goes in this infernal hellscape, one thing is always clear. Dis is Hell incarnate, and all who languish here belong to the Pit itself

迪斯（DIS）
守序邪恶 都会
腐败 +3；犯罪 +2；经济 +11；秩序 +9；文化 +5；社交 -6
特质 学院，炼狱管制，位面首都^PA（planar capital，经济 +2, 秩序 +2, 社交 –8)，位面大都市^PA（planar metropolis）, 种族歧视（非魔鬼，非魔鬼崇拜者），战略要地
危险度 +10
人口统计
政府 霸主统治
人口 9,500,000 (5,700,000 魔鬼; 1,425,000 被诅咒的祈并者； 950,000 链魔; 190,000 阿修罗; 1,235,000 其他)
重要NPC
领事查伊特（Consul Chayte，守序邪恶 金骨链魔 [oitos，永罪之书 第249页] 催眠师^OA 12）

迪斯帕特（Dispater，守序邪恶 城市、监狱与统治的魔鬼大公^B6)

“迪斯王后”艾蕾卡拉（Erecura, Queen of Dis，守序中立 推理、读心与精明的半神）

“欲魔女王”艾希斯（Eiseth, the Erinyes Queen，守序邪恶 战斗、复仇与愤怒的暗夜女王）
市场交易
基础购买价值 25,600 gp；购买限额 200,000 gp； 施法服务 9环
次级物品 所有；中级物品 4d4；高级物品 3d4
特质
炼狱管制 Infernally Regimented 迪斯帕特对迪斯的控制让所有人几乎没有逾越法律的空间，而那些试图走法律捷径的人往往会付出高昂的代价。（腐败 -4；当生物参与贿赂或其他非法行为以规避法律时，如果他在涉及打破或扭曲法律的技能检定上骰出了自然 1，那么无论检定本身是否成功，他的灵魂都可能会在此过程中遭受地狱的诅咒（damned to Hell）

劇透 -   :

DIS
LE metropolis
Corruption +3; Crime +2; Economy +11; Law +9; Lore +5; Society –6
Qualities academic, infernally regimented, planar capitalPA (Economy +2, Law +2, Society –8), planar metropolisPA, racially intolerant (non-devils, non-devil worshipers), strategic location
Danger +10
DEMOGRAPHICS
Government overlord
Population 9,500,000 (5,700,000 devils; 1,425,000 damned petitioners; 950,000 kytons; 190,000 asuras; 1,235,000 other)
NOTABLE NPCS
Consul Chayte (LE oitos [Pathfinder RPG Book of the Damned 249] mesmeristOA 12)
Dispater (LE archdevil of cities, prisons, and rulershipB6)
Erecura, Queen of Dis (LN demigoddess of deduction, mind reading, and subtlety)
Eiseth, the Erinyes Queen (LE queen of the night of battle, revenge, and wrath)
MARKETPLACE
Base Value 25,600 gp; Purchase Limit 200,000 gp; Spellcasting 9th
Minor Items all available; Medium Items 4d4; Major Items 3d4
SPECIAL QUALITIES
Infernally Regimented Dispater’s control of Dis leaves little room for anyone to operate outside the law, and those who try to cut legal corners often pay a high price. (Corruption –4; creatures engaging in bribery or other illicit efforts to skirt the law may find their souls damned to Hell in the process if the skill check involved in breaking or bending the law had a result of a natural 1 on the die roll, regardless of whether the attempt was otherwise successful.)

外观 APPEARANCE

无论隐晦还是直白，每个城市景观都在提醒着人们——迪斯是地狱那黑暗而璀璨的城市之心。参差不齐的塔楼组成了迪斯的天际线，它们由黑钢、铁、黄铜、黑曜石以及一种独特的魂肉（soul-flesh）混合物交替建成。这些塔楼（belfries）直指一片平坦而病态的天空，那天空的颜色如同焚烧血肉时升腾而起的烟雾。由锁链和雕刻的骨头组成的吊桥穿梭在许多大小足以媲美一整座定居点的地狱高楼的护墙和屋顶之间。无数手持炽焰弓的欲魔翱翔在迪斯的天空中，其中许多人肩负着地狱女武神本人的命令。众多角魔、深渊炼魔和其他恐怖生物都喜欢从迪斯的街道上抓走倒霉的凡人，然后在高空中如玩偶般将其抛掷玩弄。这座城市地狱的中心是巨大的“铁之心”区（Iron Heart），那里矗立着地狱中最恐怖美丽的宫殿群，当中也包括了迪斯帕特本人那座数英里高、大教堂般的宫廷。

在街道层面，迪斯的恐怖细节将会明显得多。整个城市弥漫着一股病态甜腻的气味，仿佛灼热血液的味道，而在许多地方，有大量腐烂的尸体让空气腐臭得难以呼吸。环境通常烟雾弥漫，但即使身处这种朦胧的阴霾里，也能轻易地从在大多数街区角落中冒出的针状突岩（outcroppings）上辨认出那些正在无休止受苦的蠕动躯体。

城市的主干道和街道从”铁之心“（Iron Heart）精确无误地向外延伸，沿途点缀着亵渎的纪念碑、毛骨悚然的剧院、以及骨与血的广场。迪斯有两条运河系统：安德拉马尔河（Andramal），它流淌着液态火焰，是迪斯统治精英的游乐场；忘却河（Lethe），它引导致命的冥河（Styx）之水流经城市。这些运河既是交通方式，也是地位或奴役的象征。它们蜿蜒穿过迪斯的贫民窟——在那里，被诅咒者（the damned）深陷凄惨的命运，活生生的躯体被堆放成一排排。然而，运河也穿过迪斯的宏伟大道与长廊，它们就如多元宇宙中的其他大道一样奢华。在这些高档社区中，黑曜石和红宝石的石板铺成了喷泉周围的广场，而这些喷泉里有着仍然活着的石化天使——他们无声地尖叫着，而地狱的精英阶层走过他们身边，毫无争议地彰显着其炼狱辉煌。

劇透 -   :

APPEARANCE

Each cityscape holds reminders, both subtle and overt, that Dis is the darkly glittering urban heart of Hell. Dis’s skyline consists of jagged towers made of alternating black steel, iron, brass, obsidian, and a unique blend of soul-flesh. These belfries spear into a flat, sickly sky the color of the smoke that rises from burning flesh. Suspension bridges of chain and sculpted bone thread between many infernal skyscrapers amid parapets and rooftops the size of entire settlements. Winging throughout Dis’s skies are countless erinyes with flaming bows, many carrying orders from Hell’s Valkyrie herself. Innumerable horned devils, pit fiends, and other horrors delight in plucking hapless mortals from Dis’s streets and tossing them around from on high like ragdolls. At the center of this urban inferno is the massive Iron Heart district, hosting the most horribly beautiful palaces in Hell, including the miles-high, cathedral-like court of Dispater himself.

At street level, the details of Dis’s horrors are far more palpable. A sickly sweet odor, not unlike the smell of searing blood, permeates the entire city, and in many places the sheer masses of rotting bodies can render the air too putrid to breathe. The atmosphere is generally smoky, though even through the haze it’s easy to pick out the writhing bodies that suffer endlessly upon the needle-like outcroppings that jut from the corners of most city blocks.

The thoroughfares and streets of the city proper fan unerringly from the Iron Heart, with profane monuments, macabre theaters, and plazas of bone and blood dotting the landscape. Two canal systems fester in Dis: the Andramal, which runs with liquid fire and serves as a playground for Dis’s ruling elite, and the Lethe, which guides the deadly waters of the Styx through the city. These canals are used both as a method of transportation and a sign of prestige or bondage. They wind through Dis’s slums, where the fates of the damned are unbearable, with living bodies stacked in great rows. Yet the canals also navigate through Dis’s grand avenues and promenades, which are as decadent as any in the multiverse. In these exclusive neighborhoods, flagstones of obsidian and ruby pave the plazas around fountains of still-living, petrified angels who scream silently as the elite of Hell march past them, uncontested in their infernal glory.

历史 HISTORY

正如地狱是最古老的位面之一，是根据阿斯摩蒂斯的绝对炼狱秩序而创造的，迪斯亦是黑暗亲王（Dark Prince）对城市生活的原始构想。这座城市的历史可以追溯到史诗的大出走（Exodus）时期，当时阿斯摩蒂斯因自由意志的分歧而谋杀了他的兄弟，但尽管如此，他还是容许了兄弟的愿望，让凡人拥有自由意志。阿斯摩蒂斯随后创造了地狱及居住在其中的炼狱军团。在那远古的岁月，迪斯远远小于今日的规模——更像是一座炼狱前哨，“大深坑”的军团在开始对抗天界敌人的战役之前会在这里集结。这座城市的未来之王“迪斯帕特”当时是巴尔泽布（Baalzebul）麾下的一名将军，而巴尔泽布本身则是阿斯摩蒂斯的冠军。迪斯帕特对魔神“阿斯摩蒂斯”的服务展现出无情、精于算计、高傲的行事风格，但他也拥有高雅的风度，是地狱领袖中最彬彬有礼的一位。当阿斯摩蒂斯任命魔鬼大公掌管地狱各层的时候，他将第二层的统治权赏赐给了迪斯帕特。正是迪斯之父“迪斯帕特”（Dispater, the Father of Dis）将这座城市建设成了如今这个邪恶得令人窒息的广阔大都市。

数以千年的时间以来，迪斯的物理边界呈指数级增长，其颤抖的城墙不断地向隔都（ghettos）扩展。这座城市的顶层统治者，尤其是迪斯帕特，进一步保留了随意重建或改造迪斯建筑的权力。无数英里的城市景观都经历了这样的重建，从绞架转变成了吊笼刑场（gibbet displays），再转变成了炼狱公寓，亦或是反过来转变。这种城市改造往往会与被困在这些城区的灵魂的永恒惩罚交织在一起。这些不幸者的痛苦肉体组成了许多建筑的墙壁的一部分，给那些仔细观察城市景观的人增添了新的恐怖细节。

不管迪斯经历了什么变化，这座城市的所有地图都会发生魔法转变，以反映其当前的布局，无论它们处于迪斯帕特的宫廷内还是其他地方。事实上，这些地图的变化甚至可能会在观察者眼前直接发生，明确地表示城市的统治者再次对他们的邪恶统治产生了积极的兴趣，也意味着迪斯的最高阶层中正在酝酿炼狱的阴谋。据说，即使在物质位面也存在一些被盗的迪斯地图（也可能是刻意流出的）。如此强大的炼狱魔法将会如何影响凡人仍然是一个谜。然而，某些古老的传说讲述了格拉利昂的一些城市开始改变自身以匹配迪斯（Dis）的布局，直到那些危险的神器被发现并摧毁，才消除了这种炼狱影响并使城市恢复正常。

劇透 -   :

HISTORY

Just as Hell is one of the oldest planes of existence, created according to Asmodeus’s prescription of absolute infernal order, Dis is the original picture of city life according to the Dark Prince’s view. The city dates to the great Exodus, when Asmodeus murdered his brother over the question of free will but nevertheless allowed his brother’s wish for mortals to have free will to stand. Asmodeus then created both Hell and the infernal legions that populate it. In those early days, Dis was a far smaller city—more an infernal outpost for the Pit’s legions to muster before embarking upon campaigns against their celestial enemies. The city’s king-who-would-be, Dispater, was then a general of Baalzebul, who in turn was Asmodeus’s personal champion. Dispater’s service to Asmodeus the God-Fiend was ruthless, manipulative, and arrogant, though not without a refined gentility that marked him the most urbane of Hell’s leaders. When the time came to install archfiends in each of Hell’s layers, Asmodeus rewarded Dispater with rulership over the Second, and it is Dispater, the Father of Dis, who built the city into the breathtakingly evil and expansive metropolis it is today.

Over the millennia, the physical borders of Dis have grown exponentially, their quivering walls ever expanding into the ghettos beyond. The city’s top authorities, particularly Dispater, further reserve the power to remake or repurpose Dis’s architecture at will. Untold miles of cityscapes have undergone such redevelopment, morphing from gallows to gibbet displays to infernal apartments or vice versa. Often, such urban refinement is woven into the eternal punishments of the souls trapped in those districts. More than a few of Dis’s structures have walls made partially from the agonized flesh of such damned unfortunates, adding a new macabre detail to those who examine the urban landscape closely.

Regardless of the changes Dis undergoes, any maps of the city magically morph to reflect its current layout, whether said maps are within Dispater’s court or elsewhere. In fact, changes to these maps can happen right before an onlooker’s eyes, which is a sure sign that the city’s rulers have once again taken an active interest in their wicked charge and that infernal schemes are afoot at the highest levels of Dis’s hierarchy. It’s said that a few such stolen—or perhaps strategically planted—maps of Dis exist even on the Material Plane. How such potent infernal magic affects mortals is a mystery. However, certain ancient legends tell of cities on Golarion that began to morph their own layout to match Dis’s until the treacherous artifacts were uncovered and destroyed, quashing the infernal influence and returning the cities to normal.

社会 SOCIETY

在地狱中，没有秩序便无以存在。在迪斯，这一原则被推向了极致——所有铁、钢、魂肉和火焰的构件都遵循了”初王“的最终旨意来排列。正如每一块鹅卵石在迪斯都有它的位置一样，每个生物也都有其应属的阶序。迪斯帕特统治着一切，他的顾问唯有在他的允准下才能对城市的日常运作发挥影响。在迪斯帕特及其周围的人之下是一个令人眼花缭乱的魔族阶级制度，每个魔族都指挥着迪斯的一个居民圈子。这些魔族手底下又有自己的下属，层层往下直到最低级的魔鬼和最悲惨的灵魂。迪斯的阶级大致对应了其所处的地点。最高阶级的公爵（dukes）住在”铁之心“——直接邻接迪斯帕特铁杖宫的一个圆圈。在这之外就是一圈又一圈的同心圆，魔鬼的阶级越低，他们所居住的同心圆就离宫殿越远。忤逆与抗命通常会招来迅速而严厉的惩罚，罪行越是严重，所受到的惩罚也会更加残酷和更有创意。偶尔，迪斯帕特本人会介入公爵之间的权力或威望之争，许多人认为迪斯之父是地狱中较为活跃的统治者之一。但事实上，“初王”早已厌倦了这种单调乏味的统治职责。每当他的王后“艾蕾卡拉”请求承担这些责任时，他往往就会毫无疑问地交给她，或者交给她指定的几个深渊炼魔（pit fiends）。

这个残酷的结构有几个例外。首先，都市迷宫的生息市场（Market of Breaths）是各种商人的家园，甚至也有一些既不是地狱本地生物，也并非来自其他外层位面（Outer Plane）的商人也在这里。无论商品的来源是什么，那些拥有奇特或贵重物品的商人都能在此受到欢迎，因此市场的门廊里挤满了各种各样的生物——从各种魔鬼到各种异界生物，再到勇敢或鲁莽的凡人位面旅行者——他们在炼狱蓝龙“厄兹莉安”（Erzylian）的铁腕和警惕监督下开展业务。另一个主要的例外是暗夜女王“艾希斯”的国度，她会在觉得合适的时候违抗迪斯的秩序，并自豪地在迪斯帕特可能希望施加的任何苛刻规则之外行事。地狱女武神随着自己的意愿来统治她的巢穴并指挥她的欲魔和处刑魔士兵（executioner devil，《永罪之书》第247页）。她的领地更像是她自己的王国和大使馆，而不仅仅是迪斯帕特国度的一部分，尽管大多数魔鬼表面上声称她的领域和统治无关紧要，但她在第二层地狱乃至更远的地方拥有比她自己想象的还要多的盟友。

劇透 -   :

SOCIETY

In Hell, there is no existence without order. In Dis, this principle is taken to the extreme, for there is not a single building block of iron, steel, soul-flesh, or flame that is not arranged according to the First King’s ultimate prescription. As every cobblestone has its place in Dis, so does every being fit into a hierarchy. Dispater rules all, and it is only at his pleasure that his advisors have ample say in the city’s day-to-day functions. Below Dispater and those who surround him is a dizzying hierarchy of fiends, each of whom commands a circle of Dis’s residents. These fiends in turn have underlings reporting to them, all the way down to the lowest devils and most wretched of souls. Rank in Dis roughly corresponds to location. The highest-ranking dukes live in the Iron Heart—the circle that immediately surrounds Dispater’s palace, the Iron Scepter. Devils of descending rank live in concentric circles each farther from the palace. Disobedience and insubordination is typically punished swiftly and harshly, with more torturous and creative punishments for worse infractions. Occasionally, Dispater himself intervenes in a dispute of power or prestige among his dukes, and the Father of Dis is considered by many to be one of the more active rulers in Hell. In truth, though, the First King has long become bored with such rote duties of rulership. He often leaves these responsibilities to Erecura, his queen, without question whenever she asks for them, or to any of the several pit fiends she designates in her place.

There are a few exceptions to this brutal structure. First, the Oppidan Maze’s Market of Breaths is home to merchants of all stripes, even to some who are native neither to Hell nor any other Outer Plane. Those with curious or valuable wares to sell are wholly welcomed, whatever their origin, and so the market’s porticos are filled with creatures of all kinds— from various devils to outsiders of all types to brave or foolhardy mortal planar travelers— who conduct their business under the iron fist and ever-watchful eye of the fiendish blue dragon Erzylian. Another major exception is the realm of Eiseth, the Queen of the Night, who defies Dis’s order when she sees fit and proudly operates outside of any draconian rules Dispater might wish to impose. Hell’s Valkyrie rules her aerie and commands her erinyes and executioner devil soldiers (Pathfinder RPG Book of the Damned 247) as she sees fit. Her domain functions as a kingdom and embassy of her own making more than a part of Dispater’s realm, and though most devils outwardly claim her realm and rule is of no significance, she has more allies in the Second and beyond than even she might realize.

关系 RELATIONS

迪斯既是一个城市枢纽，也是地狱的一个军事集结区。各种类型的魔鬼、链魔、堕落天使和魔族——更不用说那些勇敢的位面旅行者——为了机会和事业而纷至沓来。有些人打算购买和交换稀有商品，有些人打算就某项业务事宜与迪斯帕特的公爵们接洽，有些人则想在城市可怕的阶级制度中占据一席之地。此外，无数好战魔（《怪物图鉴 5》第81页）在迪斯外域（Outlands）的驻军城市中集结常备军，准备与善良势力展开宇宙战争，又或是在战争后进行休整。后者的战争职能反映了迪斯曾经作为地狱军团集结区的历史。这座城市的贵族鼓励这些活动，既是为了致敬迪斯帕特在巴尔泽布麾下的日子，也是为了巩固这座城市在地狱的重要地位。

作为阿斯摩蒂斯青睐的魔鬼大公之一，迪斯帕特不仅与他的同僚保持着友好关系，还与其他位面的一些强大生物保持着友好关系。就连善良和中立的强大生物有时也会在初王的庇护下拜访迪斯，尽管他们的动机往往只有迪斯帕特和艾蕾卡拉知晓。无论如何，如果地狱某日要与超出其已知范围的势力开战，阿斯摩蒂斯计划要依靠迪斯帕特巧舌如簧的口才以及——令一些魔族意想不到的是——艾蕾卡拉深不可测的智慧。

对于其他位面城市的居民以及来自更远地方的朝圣者而言，迪斯是个既让他们感到恐惧，又往往让他们渴求的地方。即使与其他炼狱之地相比，它的名声也尤为险恶，因为那些来访者往往最终会永远被契约所束缚。即便如此，贪婪和绝望之人依然源源不断地前来，而城中的魔鬼居民对这些新涌入的灵魂（有时是无辜的）垂涎三尺，旅游业在他们眼中与其说是一门生意，不如说是一种可以榨取的资源。

劇透 -   :

RELATIONS

Dis serves as both an urban hub and a military marshaling zone within Hell. Devils, kytons, fallen angels, and fiends of all types—not to mention brave planar travelers— flock here for purposes of opportunity and enterprise. Some mean to purchase and barter rare wares, some to approach Dispater’s dukes about one business matter or another, and some to take their infernal place among the city’s terrible hierarchy. Further, countless warmonger devils (Pathfinder RPG Bestiary 5 81) marshal standing armies at the garrison cities in Dis’s Outlands, preparing for or recovering from cosmic battles against the forces of good. This latter, warlike function belies Dis’s history as a mustering zone for Hell’s legions. The city’s nobility encourages these activities, both as an homage to Dispater’s days at Baalzebul’s side, and to shore up the city’s vital status in Hell.

Dispater, as one of Asmodeus’s favored archdevils, maintains cordial relations not only with his peers, but also with some potent beings on other planes. Even powerful good and neutral creatures sometimes visit Dis under the First King’s protection, though their motivations are often obscured to all but Dispater and Erecura. Regardless, it is Dispater’s silver tongue and, to some fiends’ surprise, Erecura’s impenetrable savvy that Asmodeus plans to bank on, should Hell ever incite war with forces beyond its ken.

Dis is a place that residents of other planar cities and pilgrims from even further places both fear and often seek. Its reputation is sinister, even compared to other infernal locations, because those who visit often end up contractually shackled to the city for eternity. Still, the greedy and desperate often come, and the city’s resident devils slaver at this influx of new and sometimes innocent souls, viewing tourism less as a business and more as a resource to exploit.

城区 DISTRICTS

迪斯以铁之心为中心向外一圈圈延伸，每个有序的城区都环绕着前一个城区形成一个不断扩展的环。从炼狱之城的郊区到其中心，迪斯大致可以分为四个主要区域。

外域 Outlands：荒芜龟裂的灰色山丘从迪斯的城市中心向四面八方延伸。这些荒地构成了被称为“外域”的荒凉景象。破碎的道路蜿蜒穿过这片尘土飞扬的广袤之地，它们漫无目的地弯弯绕绕，折返自身，最终却没有通向任何地方。怠惰的灵魂在这些道路上无休止地徘徊，寻求着他们被诅咒永远无法再次体验到的舒适。唯有迪斯军队的巨大驻军城市打破了这片起伏的地貌。这些充满军事折磨（martial torments）的堡垒是炼狱军团进行战斗训练和制造可怕战争机器的地方。

流放者隔都 Ghetto of Outcasts：那些自以为是、居高临下之人的灵魂被诅咒永远无法踏足这座城市，只能在这片城区游荡，在城市废土中搭建起污秽不堪的帐篷避难所。随着城墙的扩张，这些营地将面临不可避免的毁灭，饥饿的城市核心会根据迪斯帕特的意愿，将石头和灵魂都一并重新利用。这片边疆上也矗立着炼狱之城的最外层城墙。这些呻吟的屏障由重塑后依然具有意识的灵魂所构成，上面布满了沾满血污的尖刺，高度足以比肩山峰，某些部分甚至厚达近半英里。

都市迷宫 Oppidan Maze：想到炼狱之城，人们所想的通常便是都市迷宫，它是这座城市目前最大的区域，里面有可怕传说中的燃烧巷子、林荫大道和塔楼。迷宫井然有序，由令人眼花缭乱的宽阔通道分隔开来，但很少有凡人能够理解其精妙的形态，因此得到了这种带有谬误的称呼。所有位面的建筑风格在此交融，构造出既奇幻又亵渎的建筑。

铁之心 Iron Heart：铁之心位于迪斯的中心，它是这座城市所有道路的起点与终点。只有高等魔鬼以及那些获得迪斯帕特或其顾问的特别许可的人，才能在其燃烧的纪念碑、宏伟的花园和高耸的宫殿之间穿行。

劇透 -   :

DISTRICTS

Dis circles out from the Iron Heart, with each orderly district forming an expanding ring around the district that preceded it. From the outskirts of the Infernal City to its very center, Dis can be loosely described in four major regions.

Outlands: Gray hills of barren, cracked earth stretch away from Dis’s urban center in all directions. These wastes form the bleak landscape known as the Outlands. Broken roads wind throughout this vast, dusty realm, weaving aimlessly, doubling back on themselves, and ultimately leading nowhere. The souls of the slothful wander these paths endlessly as they seek comforts they’re doomed to never again experience. The only features breaking the rolling landscape are the enormous garrison cities of Dis’s armies. These fortresses of martial torments are where infernal legions train for battle and construct terrible machines of war.

Ghetto of Outcasts: The souls of the condescending and entitled are damned to never set foot in the city, and instead wander this district, building squalid tent-shelters in the urban wastes. These outposts face inevitable destruction as the city’s walls expand, the hungry urban core repurposing stone and soul alike at Dispater’s whim. This frontier also sports the outermost walls of the Infernal City. These moaning barriers, made of reshaped yet still-sentient souls and spiked with bloodcrusted barbs, soar to the heights of mountains and are, in places, nearly half a mile thick.

Oppidan Maze: Those who think of the Infernal City typically envision the Oppidan Maze, which is by far the largest of its regions and contains the fiery alleys, boulevards, and towers of terrifying legend. The Maze is perfectly ordered and split with great, dizzying avenues, but few mortals can comprehend its elaborate form, thus granting its fallacious name. The architecture of all the planes melds here, creating structures both fantastic and profane.

Iron Heart: At the center of Dis is the genesis and terminus of all its paths, the Iron Heart. Only greater devils, or those with special allowances from Dispater or his advisors, may walk among its burning monuments, magnificent gardens, and soaring palaces.

重要地点 SITES OF INTEREST

以下地点在炼狱之城的众多地狱景观中尤为突出。

1. 断链 Broken Chains：这座由锁链构成的山脉，被许多塔楼所贯穿，是链魔在迪斯臭名昭著的堡垒兼大使馆。各种类型的链魔居住在断链的大厅里，其中许多人与众多契约魔（contract devils）、欲魔和仆魔（handmaiden devil）并肩而行，这些魔鬼作为迪斯帕特的代表，与驻扎的链魔进行合作——传言称，甚至连堡垒本身也是一个巨大的链魔，它的皮肤和骨骼以某种方式被打造成为大使馆曲折的大厅。领事查伊特是一位 金骨链魔（oitos kyton）催眠师，由阴影位面的索瓦因领主（lords of Xovaikain）派往地狱担任首席大使。链魔是第二层乃至整个地狱的强大军事盟友，也是精湛的间谍。这些链魔的官方任务大多都涉及监视大深坑与阴影位面的共同敌人。

2. 煽动家 Demagogue：这座建筑由凡人位面中一些最臭名昭著的暴君和领袖饱受折磨却尚有意识的肉体所构成，既是一座半活的博物馆，也是一座永恒的牢笼。任何人都可以进入煽动家，参观这里怪诞的展品，只要支付从大量宝石到自身灵魂碎片不等的价格。此外，进入者被允许向煽动家墙内关押的任何生物（或生物的碎片）提出总共最多六个问题。神秘的祈并者（petitioners）和满怀希望的凡人经常会来访这里，但他们追寻的最终结果总是远比他们预想的要险恶得多。

3. 艾露西斯 Eleusys：铁之心这片广阔的侧翼是艾蕾卡拉的居所，她是迪斯王后，第二层地狱之主（Lord of the Second）的妻子。艾蕾卡拉的统治笼罩在神秘和诡计之中；她曾是法莱斯玛的凡人使者，后来从女主人那里窃取了神性的秘密，并因此被流放到地狱作为惩罚。随着她向魔鬼和大魔族（archfiends）传达精准得令人震惊的预言，这位未来的半神发现自己被炼狱之城的秩序和力量以及它那位复杂而优雅的统治者迪斯帕特所吸引。在意识到这位大魔族对她出人意料的真挚爱意后，艾蕾卡拉同意嫁给他，条件是她可以按照自己认为合适的方式在城中行使权力，并拥有一座符合她喜好的宫殿。迪斯帕特同意了，并信守诺言，而艾露西斯就是这份协议的产物。一年中有一半的时间，王后都会居住于此，身着她钟爱的绿褐色皇家长袍，周围环绕着她喜爱的茂密植物和炼狱宠物。她的宫殿充满了暗色美丽的枝叶和风景，宛如钢铁与熔岩构成的城市景观中的一处植被茂密的避风港（这里视作森林地形，这对于拥有“界域旅者”变体的游侠尤为相关；参见第22页）。一年中的其余时间，艾蕾卡拉居住在城市的铁杖宫中，身着与她作为城中主要权力人物之一的公众形象相符的黑色长袍。无论王后是否正住在这里，艾蕾卡拉也是菲利西亚（Felixia）、萝文（Rowane）和瑟莉丝特（Selieste）三位黑发织命女（norns，《怪物图鉴 3》第202页）的居所，她们是这位半神的侍女和顾问。

4. 堕落堡 The Fallen Fastness：这座巨大的图书馆收藏着多元宇宙中最邪恶的典籍，以及一份在整个地狱中独一无二的记录：一卷绵延数英里的卷轴。在这卷卷轴上，数以百计的学者魔鬼们孜孜不倦地记录着所有活着的凡人的罪孽，并在必要时将逝去凡人的罪孽存档。这座堡垒的形态是一根双尖巨刺，一端深深地刺入地狱的血肉，一端直冲燃烧的天空。据居住在这里的人们称，这座堡垒每年都会向两个方向扩张数层。

5. 加乌纳塔尔 Ghaunapthal：这座被油污覆盖的堡垒城市位于外域，烟雾不断地从它的铸造厂中升腾而起。这座城市的统治者是利爪公爵奥瑟（Ose, the Duke of Claws，守序邪恶 男性 深渊炼魔 战士 4），城市的 30 支魔鬼军团接受训练以操控公爵的魔鬼士兵们永不停歇地打造出来的战争机器。有传言称，最新的发明是一台巨大的自动机，利用了一件古老的幻蛇遗物（protean relic）——这件遗物能够驱使看见它的凡人自我伤害。

6. 铁杖宫 Iron Scepter：第二层地狱之主“迪斯帕特”的殿堂和私人居所，矗立于铁之心区的核心，比物质位面的任何山峰都高。无数的石像鬼——有些甚至巨大得难以想象——覆盖着这座不可思议的高塔，它直插迪斯的血色天空，其外墙的每一处表面上铭刻了精致的折磨场景。在塔内，迪斯帕特主持着他广阔的宫廷，审理炼狱内外的纠纷。想要与初王对话的人必须来到这里，在他权力的中心等候他的旨意，因为迪斯帕特很少离开他的城市或居所，并且只会响应阿斯摩蒂斯发出的召唤。虽然除了迪斯帕特之外，很少有人被允许登上他居所的顶端，但从铁杖宫的顶峰可以看到地狱的所有其他层。

7. 生息市场 Market of Breaths：来自地狱及其他地方的神秘兜帽商人聚集于生息市场，它坐落在一座由沥青和活舌头打造的浮塔的最高门廊上。这些商人出售来自多元宇宙各地的奇珍异宝——从珍贵的实体宝藏到更无形的情感、体验和概念，应有尽有。这些商品所使用的货币也同样抽象，包括宝石、奇异灵药、寿命、以及一个或多个灵魂。鬼婆、巫妖、邪恶魔法师、被放逐的魔鬼、被遗弃的天使和恶魔、以及其他形形色色的顾客，哪怕只是为了知道这些商人的存在都不惜砸下重金，而真正购买商品的时候甚至要付出更高的价格。所有交易均在厄兹莉安（Erzylian，守序邪恶 女性 炼狱古蓝龙）的严格监管下进行，她是一位卑鄙贪婪且精明的商人，据说她耳边能听见迪斯王后的声音。

8. 黄铁矿宝库 The Pyrite Vault：黄铁矿宝库建于铁之心的地下，位于第三层地狱“厄瑞波斯”（Erebus）的边缘，其中藏有在整个多元宇宙中恶名昭彰的异端秘宝（heresies）与诅咒宝藏。宝库的监管者和守护者是瓦普拉（Vapula，守序邪恶 异端魔^B5 审判者^APG 3），一个戴着标志性白色手套（gauntlets）的无情异端魔，他以超乎寻常的决心守护着宝库。若有任何魔鬼想要夺取这里蕴藏的邪恶宝藏，那他必须拥有十足的绝望才敢冒这个风险，并具备足够强大的力量才能避免自己的脑袋成为瓦普拉的战利品之一。

9. 寡妇之啸 Widow’s Cry：在这座由黄铜刃和铁刃组成的奇异山脉中，矗立着暗夜女王“艾希斯”的巢穴，她对天堂的仇恨如同地狱沥青之海中的璀璨宝石般燃烧。数以千年的时间以来，艾希斯一直在这片领域内训练欲魔和制造处刑魔（executioner devils，《永罪之书》第 247 页），并与地狱内外的其他人缔结了不稳固的契约以巩固她作为“无拘者”的声誉和强大的武力。艾希斯的优势在于她无法驯服的狂怒和专注的技艺，但她也拥有令人惊讶的强大政治联盟和影响力。她与阿达德·莉莉（Ardad Lili）以及地狱中的许多其他女王一起联手，在宇宙中展开了一场行动，以利用那些胆敢低估或误解她们的人。甚至她领域的绰号以及迪斯的魔鬼们所认为的“真相“也都是这场误导的一部分。有人声称，从艾希斯的巢穴中传出的叫声是饱受委屈的母亲和少女所发出的尖叫，也有人认为，这是受诅咒的灵魂被转化成魔族时遭受的折磨——但事实上，那是重生的灵魂挣脱凡人枷锁与束缚时所发出的呐喊，是胜利与力量的呐喊。寡妇之啸的真名只有居住在那里的人才知道，那便是“女武神重铸”（Valkyria Reforged）。更多关于艾希斯的信息，请参阅《永罪之书》第48-49页。

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SITES OF INTEREST

The following locations stand out among the hellscapes of the Infernal City.

1. Broken Chains: This mountain of chains, pierced through with many towers, is the infamous kyton citadel-embassy in Dis. Kytons of all types populate the Broken Chains’ halls, many of whom walk beside the numerous contract devils, erinyes, and handmaiden devils who work with the resident kytons on Dispater’s behalf—rumors abound that even the citadel itself is a kyton of massive proportions, its skin and bones somehow crafted into the embassy’s tortuous halls. Consul Chayte, an oitos kyton mesmerist, serves as chief ambassador to Hell from the lords of Xovaikain on the Plane of Shadow. The kytons are a potent martial ally of the Second and Hell as a whole, and they make consummate spies. Most of these kytons’ official missions involve observing the mutual enemies of the Pit and the Shadow Plane.

2. Demagogue: This structure is created from the tortured, still-aware flesh of some of the mortal planes’ most infamous tyrants and leaders, serving partially as a half-living museum and partially as an eternal prison. For a price that ranges from a fortune in gems to a shard of one’s soul, anyone can enter the Demagouge and visit the grotesque displays here. What’s more, those who enter are permitted to as a total of six questions of any creatures—or pieces of creatures—housed within the Demagogue’s walls. Mysterious petitioners and hopeful mortals often filter through the facility, though the end result of their pursuits is always far more sinister than they ever suspect.

3. Eleusys: This expansive wing of the Iron Heart is the abode of Erecura, Queen of Dis and wife to the Lord of the Second. Erecura’s reign is shrouded in mystery and subterfuge; once a mortal emissary of Pharasma, she stole the secret to divinity from her mistress and found herself banished to Hell as punishment. As she proceeded to deliver shockingly accurate prophecies to devils and archfiends alike, the future demigoddess found herself drawn to the order and might of the Infernal City and its complex and genteel ruler, Dispater. After realizing the archfiend’s surprisingly sincere love for her, Erecura agreed to marry him on the condition that she could exercise power in the city as she saw fit and keep a palace to her liking. Dispater agreed and kept to the spirit of his word, and Eleusys is the result of that bargain. For half of the year, the queen resides here, draped in the green-and-tan royal robes she prefers and surrounded with the lush greenery and infernal pets she loves. Her palace teems with darkly beautiful foliage and scenery, a haven of vegetation within the steel and magma cityscape of Dis (it counts as forest terrain, which is particularly relevant to rangers with the realm wanderer archetype; see page 22). During the rest of the year, Erecura lives in the urban Iron Scepter, where she dons the black garb that suits her public persona as one of the city’s major powers. Regardless of whether the queen is in residence, Eleusys is also home to Felixia, Rowane, and Selieste, a trio of black-haired norns (Pathfinder RPG Bestiary 3 202) who are the demigoddess’s handmaidens and advisors.

4. The Fallen Fastness: This massive library is home to the most evil tomes in the multiverse, as well as a record unique in all of Hell: a single, miles-long scroll. On this scroll, untold hundreds of scholarly devils endlessly toil to catalog the sins of all living mortals and, as necessary, archive the sins of mortals who have passed on. The Fastness takes the form of an enormous, double-pointed thorn that pierces as deeply into Hell’s flesh as it rises into its burning sky. Those in residence indicate the fortress expands by several floors in both directions every year.

5. Ghaunapthal: Smoke rises endlessly from the foundries of this oil-encrusted Outlands fortress city. Ruled over by Ose, the Duke of Claws (LE male pit fiend fighter 4), the city’s 30 diabolical legions are trained to crew the war machines that the duke’s soldier-devils endlessly build. Rumors say that the newest creation is a titanic automaton that harnesses an ancient protean relic that has the power to drive mortals who view it to inflict self-harm.

6. Iron Scepter: The sanctum and personal home of Dispater, Lord of the Second, stands at the core of the Iron Heart district and reaches higher than any mountain upon the Material Plane. Countless gargoyles—some unimaginably massive—cover the impossible tower as it stabs into Dis’s sanguine sky, while exquisitely rendered scenes of torment are cast onto every surface of the tower’s outer walls. Within, Dispater presides over his expansive court and judges disputes both of infernal nature and beyond. Those who wish to speak to the First King must come and wait upon his pleasure here, at the heart of his power, as Dispater rarely leaves his city or his abode, and responds to no summons except those issued by Asmodeus. Though few besides Dispater are permitted to ascend to the top of his abode, one can see all of the other layers of Hell from the Iron Scepter’s peak.

7. Market of Breaths: Mysterious hooded merchants from Hell and beyond gather in this facility, which occupies the uppermost portico of a floating tower crafted from pitch and living tongues. These merchants sell fantastic wares from across the multiverse— everything from fabulous physical treasures to more intangible emotions, experiences, and concepts. These vital commodities are bartered using similarly abstract currency, including gems, strange elixirs, years of life, and one or more souls. Hags, liches, evil mages, outcast devils, pariah angels and demons, and other diverse customers pay fortunes even just to learn of these brokers’ existence, and pay much more to actually purchase their wares. All business is conducted under the strict purview of Erzylian (LE female fiendish ancient blue dragon), a despicably greedy and shrewd merchant who is said to literally have the Queen of Dis’s voice in her ear.

8. The Pyrite Vault: Built underneath the Iron Heart district on the cusp of Erebus, Hell’s third layer, the Pyrite Vault contains heresies and cursed treasures that are infamous throughout the multiverse. The vault’s curator and protector is Vapula (LE heresy devilB5 inquisitorAPG 3), a ruthless heresy devil with signature white gauntlets, who guards the vault with exceptional tenacity. Any devil wishing to claim the baleful treasures housed here must be desperate enough to risk and powerful enough to avoid becoming one of Vapula’s head trophies.

9. Widow’s Cry: From this strange mountain of brass and iron blades rises the aerie of Eiseth, the Queen of the Night, whose hatred of Heaven burns like a bright jewel in a sea of hellish pitch. For millennia, Eiseth has trained erinyes and forged executioner devils (Book of the Damned 247) within this domain, and she has formed rocky pacts with others in Hell and beyond to cement both her reputation as She Who Defies Limitation and her substantial martial might. Eiseth’s strengths lie in her untamable fury and focused skill, but she also has surprisingly powerful political alliances and influences. She has joined Ardad Lili and many of Hell’s other queens in a cosmic campaign to exploit those who dare underestimate or mischaracterize them. Even her realm’s moniker and the “truths” that the devils of Dis claim to know are part of this misdirection. The cries that ring from Eiseth’s aerie are claimed to be the screams of wronged mothers and maidens by some, and the torment of damned souls being transformed into fiends by others—but in truth they are cries of victory and of power, as reborn souls break free of their mortal chains and limitations. The Cry’s true name, unknown to all but those who live there, is Valkyria Reforged. For more about Eiseth, see pages 48–49 of the Book of the Damned.

炼狱之城的王后 THE INFERNAL CITY’S QUEEN

虽然迪斯的等级制度理论上来说是绝对的，迪斯帕特位居一系列眼花缭乱的公爵、将军、副官和次级统治者之上，但这座城市的宫廷，尤其是其王后，往往独立于这个体系运作。具体来说，迪斯王后“艾蕾卡拉”可以在城中按照她认为合适的方式来行使权力。此外，迪斯帕特经常会请艾蕾卡拉来仲裁高阶魔鬼与其管辖范围内的其他人之间的纠纷。如果位面旅行者与迪斯帕特的下属发生冲突，或者在前往生息市场之前需要帮助，或在城内被欺骗或利用，他们可能会向艾蕾卡拉寻求解决方案。在极其危急的情况下，冒险者可能会向艾蕾卡拉求助，以推翻迪斯帕特下属或初王本人做出的决定。

然而，GM们应该牢记，与艾蕾卡拉会面绝非易事。王后的织命女侍女——菲利西亚、萝文和瑟莉丝特——通常负责决定谁能与艾蕾卡拉会面，而当王后居住在艾露西斯时，她们有时甚至会将这项任务委派给其他侍从。通常情况下，初出茅庐的 PC 无法亲自觐见王后；如果他们成功说服了织命女或其他侍女，证明自己的事情值得王后关注，侍从们就会代替 PC 去觐见艾蕾卡拉。

PC 应该牢记，艾蕾卡拉的动机和观点与大多数炼狱贵族截然不同。她既不是魔鬼，也不是邪恶的存在。相反，她是一位预言家、一个机会主义者和一个精明的政客，甚至连迪斯帕特都不清楚她未来的计划。如果能够获得她的庇护，那么 PC 将会拥有一个强大的盟友来面对地狱中最可怕的势力。然而，与她为敌则必定会让 PC 遭受地狱中最可怕的命运。

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THE INFERNAL CITY’S QUEEN

Although the hierarchy of Dis is technically absolute, with Dispater at the top of a dizzying list of dukes, generals, lieutenants, and lesser rulers, the city’s court and its queen in particular often function independently of that scheme. Specifically, Erecura, Queen of Dis, wields the right to exercise power in the city as she sees fit. Further, Dispater often calls on Erecura to arbitrate disputes between high-ranking devils and others under his purview. A planar traveler who has run afoul of one of Dispater’s designated underlings, who needs a favor before visiting the Market of Breaths, or who has been duped or exploited in the city’s bowels might appeal to Erecura for resolution. In particularly desperate cases, an adventurer might appeal to Erecura to overturn a decision that one of Dispater’s underlings or the First King himself has handed down.

However, GMs should keep in mind that gaining an audience with Erecura is never easy. The queen’s norn handmaidens—Felixia, Rowane, and Selieste— typically decide who meets with Erecura, and while she is in residence at Eleusys they even sometimes pass that duty to other servitors. Often, upstart PCs never make it before the queen personally; should they succeed in convincing the norns or other handmaidens that their cause merits the queen’s attention, the attendants approach Erecura on the PCs’ behalf.

PCs should keep in mind that Erecura’s motivations and outlook are far removed from those of most of Hell’s infernal nobility. She is not a devil, nor is she an evil being. Instead, she is a soothsayer, an opportunist, and a shrewd politician whose future plans are unclear even to Dispater. Gaining her patronage could grant PCs a powerful ally against Hell’s most sinister forces. Making an enemy of her, however, surely would doom PCs to Hell’s worst fates.

获得迪斯的力量 CLAIMING THE MIGHT OF DIS

作为人口最稠密的地狱层级（或许也是最微妙、最复杂的），炼狱之城影响着整个多元宇宙的生物。其中大多数是阿斯摩蒂斯、迪斯帕特或迪斯其他魔族的邪恶崇拜者。这些作恶者崇拜这座城市的邪恶荣耀、其绝对的秩序以及居民们令人难以置信的残忍，甚至那些没有直接崇拜迪斯的任何魔族统治者的人也会从其中的恐怖中获取力量。

然而，有的人则看中了迪斯在其对手、残酷的导师或不讲道德的领导者身上所体现的冷酷而高效的理念。这些人或许憎恨这些品质中固有的邪恶，但仍然认为它们是实现自身目标的高效手段。有些人甚至钦佩迪斯统治者的某些特质，从迪斯帕特的宫廷和军队所具备的精湛组织性，到艾蕾卡拉在魔鬼之间蓬勃发展的能力，再到艾希斯的炽热野心以及她拒绝向嘲笑者低头的精神。

以下角色选项面向那些拥抱迪斯邪恶力量的人——或者那些试图重新利用其核心理念以转向自身更高尚的目标的人。

艾蕾卡拉的游侠 ERECURA’S RANGERS

在那些从第二层地狱汲取影响和灵感的个体中，最复杂的或许便是那些敬仰迪斯王后“艾蕾卡拉”的孤立游侠。这些游侠很少是邪恶之人，而他们对地狱本身的邪秽也只会感到厌恶。相反，当中大多数人尊敬艾蕾卡拉——甚至直接崇拜她——因为她通过自身对自然与精明的力量在一个充满敌意的地方中获得了重要的领导地位。这些游侠通常接受过下述变体的训练，其中一些人在艾露西斯直接侍奉她。

界域旅者（游侠变体）Realm Wanderer (Ranger Archetype)

【见“DeoDeo”的帖子】

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CLAIMING THE MIGHT OF DIS

As the most densely populated—and perhaps most nuanced and complex—layer of Hell, the Infernal City influences creatures across the entire multiverse. Most are wicked worshipers of Asmodeus, Dispater, or another of the fiends that proudly stalk the streets of Dis. These evildoers admire the city’s unholy glory, its absolute order, and its inhabitants’ incredible cruelty, and even those who don’t outright worship one of Dis’s ruling fiends gain strength from the terrors that populate it.

Other individuals, however, look to the ruthless and efficient concepts that Dis embodies among its adversaries, cruel teachers, or unscrupulous leaders. These folks might hate the evil inherent to these qualities but nevertheless recognize them as an incredibly effective means to ends of their own choosing. Some even admire certain aspects of Dis’s rulers, from the masterful organization of Dispater’s courts and armies, to Erecura’s ability to thrive among truly diabolical beings, or Eiseth’s burning ambition and refusal to bow to those who would deride her.

The following character options are geared toward those who embrace the evil might of Dis—or seek to repurpose the concepts that make it tick toward their own more virtuous ends.

ERECURA’S RANGERS

Of those individuals who draw influence and inspiration from the Second, perhaps the most complicated are the isolated rangers who admire Erecura, Queen of Dis. Very few of these rangers are evil, nor do they feel anything but disgust at the wickedness of Hell itself. Rather, most pay homage to Erecura—or outright worship her—for translating her powers of nature and subtlety into a major position of leadership in a deeply hostile place. Such rangers are often trained in the archetype presented below, and a few such rangers serve her directly in Eleusys.

Realm Wanderer (Ranger Archetype)

Some of the most free-roaming rangers are those who tread between locales so varied that they may as well be separate worlds altogether—and quite often these disparate places are literally Hell and the Material Plane. Like the Queen of Dis, whom many of them admire, these rangers take to heart the lessons they’ve learned from their vastly contrasting experiences and know that creatively embracing this wisdom is sometimes the difference between life and death.

Class Skills: A realm wanderer adds Diplomacy and Bluff to his list of class skills, but does not gain Intimidate and Stealth as class skills.

This alters the ranger’s class skills.

Deceptive Subtlety (Ex): A realm wanderer adds half his level (minimum 1) to Diplomacy checks to influence a creature’s attitude, to make requests of creatures, and for similar uses of the skill. He also adds half his level (minimum 1) to Bluff checks to deceive, lie, or convey secret messages.

This replaces track.

Queen’s Bond (Ex): At 4th level, a realm wanderer must choose an animal companion for his hunter’s bond. This animal companion gains the fiendish template (Pathfinder RPG Bestiary 294), likely either due to time it spent near a gate to Hell or due to infernal influences in its place of birth. Due to this insidious influence, this animal companion always takes a penalty on attack rolls equal to one-fifth of the realm wanderer’s level (minimum 1).

If the realm wanderer releases his animal companion from service or it perishes, he can gain a new fiendish animal companion by completing the required ceremony. Alternatively, when the realm wanderer releases his animal companion or it dies in his service, he can use his influence over its fiendish nature to cause the animal to lose the fiendish template. If the animal companion is then raised or otherwise brought back from the dead after the realm wanderer removes its fiendish template, the animal companion no longer takes the penalty on attacks described above. (He cannot, however, gain a new nonfiendish animal companion by completing the ceremony to replace an animal companion.)

This alters hunter’s bond.

Dual Master (Ex): At 8th level, the realm wanderer’s bonuses from deceptive subtlety are doubled when he is in either of his two favored terrain types. However, this benefit applies only to the first two favored terrain types he selected; as he gains additional favored terrains at higher levels, this benefit does not apply in those additional terrain types.

This replaces swift tracker.

Shrewdest Monarch (Su): At 20th level, the realm wanderer has become a true master of the territories with which he is familiar. As a standard action, he can make a single attack at his full attack bonus against an enemy in one of the terrains chosen using the dual master ability. If the attack hits, the target takes damage normally and must succeed at a Fortitude saving throw or die. The DC of this saving throw is equal to 10 + half the realm wanderer’s level + his Wisdom modifier. A realm wanderer can instead deal an amount of nonlethal damage equal to the creature’s current hit points; the target can attempt a Fortitude save at the same DC to negates this damage. The realm wanderer can use this ability in these favored terrains only up to four times per day, but not against the same creature more than once in a 24-hour period.

Further, the realm wanderer gains a bonus on attack rolls equal to his Wisdom modifier against creatures that have successfully learned his alignment (using detect chaos/evil/good/law, as appropriate, or similar effects).

This replaces master hunter.

迪斯的地狱宫廷 THE HELLISH COURTS OF DIS

在迪斯帕特的宫廷中，最重要的特质莫过于保全自身的狡诈、高雅的机智和精明的政治手腕。第二层地狱的贵族们有着独具一格的优雅，但在他们优雅的外表下潜藏的却是残酷嗜虐的本性，这种微妙的堕落本性甚至足以让阿斯摩蒂斯咧嘴一笑。那些尝试这场炼狱游戏却失败的人很快就会发现自己被刺穿在炼狱之城每个角落街区装饰的血腥尖刺上。

位面旅行者来到迪斯的原因多种多样，从获取生息市场中的无价之宝，到追踪困在城市迷宫中的受诅咒或迷失的灵魂，再到与迪斯帕特的炼狱将军或贵族们进行谈判。这些任务并非胆小者能够完成的。那些对此类考验毫无准备的人，即便在大深坑中饱受折磨、疯狂地死去，都称得上幸运。对于最不幸的人来说，他们往往连灵魂本身都面临岌岌可危的命运。

那些胆敢前往炼狱之城的最勇敢的冒险者，会花费数年甚至数十年的时间来训练。那些精通迪斯帕特宫廷中最看重的狡猾品质的人，最有可能在试炼中幸存下来并取得成功。吟游诗人的巧舌如簧与机敏往往足以让他们在铁杖宫中生存下来，尤其是那些拥有“厚颜妄徒”（brazen deceiver ，《冒险者指南》第​ ​50 页）、“宫廷诗人”（court bard，《进阶玩家指南》第 81 页）或“俏皮客”（wit，《极限诡道》第 23 页）变体的人。同样地，迪斯帕特、艾蕾卡拉或艾希斯的聪明牧师常常会发现，迪斯的地狱大道在某种程度上就是为他们铺就的，而传音者（evangelist）、颂教者（exalted）或卫道者（sentinel）等进阶职业（《战役设定：内海诸神》第 198-203 页）的虔诚成员也是如此。拥有“界域旅者”变体的游侠（参见上文“艾蕾卡拉的游侠”）更容易讨好迪斯王后，而第二层地狱之主往往青睐那些特别机敏且魅力十足的游荡者以及拥有地狱血统（（infernal bloodline））的术士。虽然善良神祇的仆从在自己的信仰和生命上都会面临诸多挑战，但他们也能找到其他人无法找到的机会，因为魔鬼们乐于以善意的伪装对待这些存在，同时试图让这些纯洁的灵魂堕入地狱的军团。

传世名作 BARDIC MASTERPIECES

以下传世名作深受那些仰慕迪斯的特质或基于某种目的而有意前往或渗入迪斯的人们的欢迎。

黑暗王子序曲 Symphony of the Dark Prince

【见“Rivers”的帖子】

暗夜女王之怒 Night Queen’s Fury

【见“Rivers”的帖子】

劇透 -   :

THE HELLISH COURTS OF DIS

No traits are quite so vital in the court of Dispater as selfpreserving guile, urbane wit, and shrewd politicking. The nobility of the Second are uniquely genteel, but lurking under their refinement is a cruel, sadistic nature that’s subtly debased enough to make Asmodeus grin. Those who try their hand at this infernal game and fail quickly find themselves speared upon the bloody spikes that adorn each of the Infernal City’s corner blocks.

Planar travelers may find themselves in Dis for myriad reasons, from obtaining priceless goods from the Market of Breaths, to tracking down damned or lost souls stuck in the city’s labyrinths, to negotiating bargains with Dispater’s infernal generals or the nobility themselves. Such tasks are not for the faint of heart. Those unprepared for such ordeals are lucky to die torturous, maddening deaths in the Pit. For the unluckiest of these visitors, the fate of their very souls is often at stake.

The most brave-hearted adventurers who dare visit the Infernal City spend years—if not decades—training for the task. Those who are versed in the cunning qualities most valued in Dispater’s courts are the ones most likely to survive and succeed during their trials. Bards are often silvertongued and quick-witted enough to survive the Iron Scepter, especially those with the brazen deceiver (Pathfinder RPG Adventurer’s Guide 50), court bard (Pathfinder RPG Advanced Player’s Guide 81), or wit (Pathfinder RPG Ultimate Intrigue 23) archetypes. Similarly, clever clerics of Dispater, Erecura, or Eiseth often find that the hellish boulevards are somewhat paved for them in Dis, as do such infernally devout members of the evangelist, exalted, or sentinel prestige classes (Pathfinder Campaign Setting: Inner Sea Gods 198–203). Rangers with the realm wanderer archetype (see Erecura’s Rangers above) have an easier time ingratiating themselves to the Queen of Dis, and the Lord of the Second often favors particularly adroit and charismatic rogues as well as sorcerers with the infernal bloodline. While servants of good-aligned deities will face many challenges to both their faith and their lives, they can also find opportunities that others cannot, as devils delight in treating such beings with pretenses of kindness while attempting to corrupt these pure-hearted souls to Hell’s legions.

BARDIC MASTERPIECES

The following bardic masterpieces are popular among those who either admire aspects of Dis or aim to attend or infiltrate the city of Dis for any purpose.

Symphony of the Dark Prince

You contort your vocal cords to produce an eerie, melodious song about the wonders of Dispater’s court.

Prerequisite: Perform (sing) 15 ranks.

Cost: Feat or 5th-level bard spell known.

Effect: The sinisterly seductive song bores its way into the target’s flesh, levitating it as per reverse gravity as long as the bard maintains the performance. Although the symphony does have words—and is often sung in Infernal—this is not a languagedependent effect.

Use: 1 round of bardic performance
per round.

Action: 1 standard action.

Night Queen’s Fury

You lay a curse on those who have wronged you.

Prerequisite: Perform (act) or Perform (oratory) 7 ranks.
Cost: Feat or 3rd-level bard spell  known.
Effect: You scream out a litany of every way you have been harmed by others, from physical abuse, to verbal insults, to subtle harassment, to any other number of contemptuous actions that denied you something you were rightfully due. When you complete the performance, you fall prone, the emotion or power behind your speech driving you to your knees. Any creature that damaged you within the last round must succeed at a Will save or be cursed, as per the bestow curse spell.

Once per day, if you are reduced to fewer than 0 hit points, you can activate this bardic masterpiece as an immediate action before you become dying or dead as long as you have at least 3 rounds of bardic performance remaining.

Use: 3 rounds of bardic performance.

Action: 1 full-round action (see text)