A M I T I E L
DEMON PRINCE OF DECEPTION

The world is a lie.

The Demon Prince of Deception is, naturally, a Balseraph. His Servitors have done more to encourage lies than any other Prince, and are very good at it.

Amitiel is ancient, and was the first Balseraph born in Hell. Through his exceptional skills at lying and deception, he managed to conceal his own rank and the existence of his Servitors for centuries, only revealing himself when accidentally discovered by Asmodeus.

Nominally, he goes along with official policies but is well known for his abilities. His Servitors are everywhere, and are all accomplished liars and deceivers. No-one knows how many Servitors he has, or where they are, suiting his Word; anything he tells you will be a complete fabrication, and of course you'll believe him. Even Asmodeus is somewhat unsure about the scope of his activities, and hates Amitiel for it. It drives him absolutely crazy. Kobal loves him for that.

His Principality, The Forest of Illusions, is situated somewhere near Stygia, but again, no-one is sure exactly where. It is near impossible to find unless one is a Servitor of Deception. This disability even extends to other Princes. The only other people who can find him if he doesn't want to be found are Lucifer, and Alaemon, the Prince of Secrets. Alaemon can only find him because of the close overlap between their words, and because, well, he finds out stuff.

True to his Word, his Servitors spread Deception and untruths throughout Diabolical and human society, staying in the cracks of both. Lucifer has given him and his servants the task of spreading lies and improving Hell's image. News of their efforts is often greeted with his fearsome smile.

Amitiel is exceedingly paranoid and devious, trusting no-one, assuming that everyone is lying to him. He keeps constant tabs on his servants and enemies alike, often treating them the same way.

DISSONANCE
It is dissonant for any of Amitiel's demons to ever tell the complete truth. They must put at least one lie into any given conversation or communication. If put into a situation where they are forced to tell the truth, it is dissonant for them to not hold something back. If possible, they should always lie. It is also dissonant for them to overturn a lie, unless they immediately replace it with another.

BAND ATTUNEMENTS
Balseraphs
Amitiel's Balseraphs are his favourite minions, and make up nearly half of all his Servitors. When using their Resonance, they can choose which of the d666 is the check digit, and which are the resolution dice.

Djinn
Djinn of Deception automatically succeed on Lying rolls, with a check digit equal to their Ethereal Forces, when lying to a person they are attuned to.

Calabim
Amitiel's Calabim are able to destroy evidence of their celestial nature. Whenever someone sees signs that the Calabite is a demon, with a successful Resonance roll, he can change the memory, so the target will explain it away as something completely different. This ability also extends to any celestials the demon wishes to target, but at a - 1 penalty to the roll. This power can affect a number of targets equal to the demon's Celestial Forces. Also, Calabim of Deception do not disturb the Symphony when using their Resonance.

Habbalah
Habbalah of Deception are able to inflict a special effect on targets with their Resonance: Self-Deception. For a number of hours equal to the check digit of a successful roll, the target will believe anything the demon tells him, so long as it is a lie. On an Infernal Intervention, the duration will be measured in days, not hours. The target can resist the effects with a normal Will roll; if it backlashes, the demon will believe anything that anyone says to him. For this reason, Habbalah of Deception will only use their Resonance on targets they know to have a weak Will. Some have been driven mad by the aftermath of a failed Resonance roll . . .

Lilim
If a Lilim of Deception is able to convince someone that he needs something, and then fulfils that 'Need', she automatically gains a Geas on him! This must, however, be something which the target could believe to be a Need, such as causing him to believe that he wants a new car. They are saleswomen par excellence.

Shedim
Shedim of Deception are able to sway their hosts just a little more than usual. If they win the Contest of Wills against their hosts with a check digit which is higher than the target's Will, the target's Perception roll to realise he is being possessed is reduced by the difference. If this reduces it to 0 or less, the target may not roll again until the cumulative daily Perception bonuses bring him or her back up to at least Perception 1. Note that this does not reduce the host's Perception for anything else, just detecting the demon's presence.

Impudites
These slimy deceivers are known as some of the best liars in the universe, even outdoing Balseraphs on occasion. They gain a bonus equal to their Celestial Forces on any roll to lie. Also, when they target their Resonance on people, the victim's Celestial and Ethereal Forces are reduced by the demon's Lying skill, but only for the purposes of Charm and Essence Stealing.

SERVITOR ATTUNEMENTS
Distortion
Balseraphs and Servitors of Deception alike are famous for their lies, but most lies are transient and ephemeral things at best. This Attunement changes that. When a demon with Distortion tells a lie, it can become true, as he imposes his will to temporarily change the structure of the Symphony. With a successful Lying roll and expenditure of 3 Essence, or use of the Balseraph Band Attunement (or the Baron Distinction), the Symphony will change itself to match the lie. This Attunement will only affect one person per use, but to him personally, the lie will become true. Only lies directly affecting him or the local environment will become true, and they can be resisted with a successful Will roll at -2. The effects last for a number of hours equal to the check digit of the initial roll + 2. Only one lie may be affected at a time.

Preposterousness
Normally, for a lie to succeed, it must be based on a premise which is at least halfway believable. Demons with this Attunement can ignore that. As long as the lie cannot be disproved with hard evidence, it can be about anything. "Of course you saw those pink elephants; everyone does. They just don't talk about it. Ever." This is used in conjunction with the Lying skill or the Balseraph Band Attunement, and can be used whenever appropriate at a cost of 1 Essence. The target can resist as per normal.

DISTINCTIONS
Knight of Falsehoods
Knights of Deception always succeed on a Lying roll, or Balseraph Resonance roll, with a check digit equal to their Ethereal Forces. The player should roll anyway, just in case of an Intervention.

Captain of Equivocation Amitiel's Captains gain the Balseraph Band Resonance (if not already a Balseraph), and the ability to use any Balseraph-specific Band Attunements if granted to them by Superiors. They also gain the Balseraph dissonance conditions when using this ability. Balseraphs of Deception automatically succeed with their Resonances, the duration time being equal to their Will in days. They should roll anyway, in case of Interventions.
Example: Semyaz, an Impudite of Deception, is given the rank of Captain by Amitiel. He gains the ability to use the natural Balseraph Resonance, and any Band Attunements specifically related to it, if granted by the appropriate Superior.

Baron of Mendacity
The Barons of Amitiel are his secret workers within the Symphony, disturbing it with impunity and not being detected. Barons of Deception gain the ability to lie to the Symphony itself. By succeeding at a Will roll, he creates an area which lessens, or even cancels, all Symphonic disturbances. Nothing which would normally create a disturbance does so at the normal strength; the disturbance is lessened by the check digit of the initial roll. On an Infernal Intervention, the disturbance is cancelled completely! On a Divine Intervention, however, the disturbance will be doubled in strength, and the demon will likely be severly rebuked by Amitiel.

RELATIONS
Amitiel is way too paranoid to trust the other Princes at all, assuming that they are all lying and plotting against him as much as he against them - and he's right. They just don't do it as well as he does. Not too many of them like him, because of his habit of framing other Princes for his plots - and getting away with it. Some like him; Alaemon and Kobal in particular, but he is sometimes too subtle even for them. Nybbas is also a particular ally, because of the great swamp of Deception which is the Media. Asmodeus and Kronos absolutely despise him, because he and his Servitors are too slippery ever to really be caught doing anything wrong. And if they are caught, they always blame it on everyone else. Kronos also cannot see Amitiel's Fate or Destiny, which makes him nervous and hostile. He is also quite closely allied with Malphas, as their Words often support each other.

Allied: Alaemon, Kobal, Nybbas, Malphas.
Associated: Valefor, Lilith.
Hostile: No-one.
Enemies: Asmodeus, Kronos.

BASIC RITES

• Tell someone an enormous whopper of a lie - and get away with it. (+2 Essence)
• Possess a valuable secret, and not reveal it.
• Succeed in three Lying rolls in a row.

+1 A secret object.
+2 A television set.
+3 Lying to someone more powerful, and getting away with it.
+4 A room full of lawyers.
+5 A famous politician, or someone's mistress.
+6 The White House Press Room or Oval Office.