Tartarus



Tartarus. Also known as Hell, The Abyss, Hades, Gehenna, Abaddon, The Pit, and many other names, it is a place that strikes fear into the hearts of ponies worldwide, and what awaits those who are evil after death. It exists on it's own dimensional plane that is intertwined with Equestria, Heaven, and Purgatory... and little was known about it until today.

There exists a portal that leads there somewhere in Equestria. According to Myth, it was built as a joint effort by Ponies and Demons to appease Death and make her duties easier. It's guardian, Cerberus, was provided by Heaven, it's holy nature making it relatively harmless to average ponies, but deadly to those who might try to escape from the Depths...

Locations
Equestria is a place of diversity, and Tartarus is a twisted reflection of that. When some think of Hell they think of great fiery pits full of tortured souls. For others, they see spires with peaks stretching seemingly to infinity. Yet more see a void, or a flat wasteland with seemingly no end. A place of Ice. A great rippling stream filled with Windigo... and all of these images are true.

Many of these locations are dominated by twisted, predatory monstrosities molded by their harshness and the powerfully evil taint that hangs over the realm like a velvety curtain that can't be pushed aside. There are Bugbears and Imps, great sweeping beasts of shadow and malice. Colossi of teeth and claws twisted morbidly into a grotesque imitation of true life. In a way, every place in Tartarus has a sense of beauty to it unique to itself. A place of pure magic and unabashed evil. A realm of just as much wonder as terror. And all within it bow to the Hierarchy.

The Hierarchy
The Hierarchy is a conglomerate of demons of demonstrated sentience, rated predominantly by power... For this semi-lawful sect that handles the sorting and punishment of souls, temptation, and many other foul things is governed by one. Brief. Code, which itself is a perversion of a similar code that Angels posess: The Hierarchy is a necessary business, created in sin, driven by selfishness, and maintained by power. The Hierarchies are sorted into four levels, which are as follows:
 * 1) Corruption is the highest principle.
 * 2) Suffering is a form of corruption.
 * 3) Power justifies itself.

The Non-Hierarchy
Comprising the majority of Demons, these are those that do not have enough power, or intelligence, or influence to be hierarchy members. Their jobs will always be low and usually menial, and generally they are looked down upon as hardly better than Imps... which is not to say that they are to be trifled with, as many a seasoned adventurer has lethally discovered.

The Third Hierarchy
The lowest of the Hierarchies while still garnering enough respect to be truly worthwhile. Many feared names in Equestria have come from this Hierarchy including: Dagon, Belphegor, Moloch, Caim, Mammon, Drade, Gaddun, Helia, and of course Kiriai. The Third Hierarchy is seperated into three tiers:

Tier 3 (Demons): While no innate title upgrade is associated with being in the third tier, individuals are still allowed to state their Hierarchy status which to many is more than enough. The lowest in this category are characterized by their ability to destroy at least part of a city block in a single shot, while the highest can lay waste to a small town. Kiriai and Helia both are only Tier 3.

Tier 2: (Archdemons): The word 'Archdemon' alone can be incredibly scary- and for good reason. All within this class can bust Cities and mountains of various sizes. Their powers are evolved compared to run-of-the-mill demons, and they are a force to be reckoned with. Olivier, Seoron, and Kiriel are Archdemons.

Tier 1 (Principalities): The last time a Principality showed up in Equestria and got into a fight, historians dubbed the event 'Krakatoa'. Islands fall before their might, and they rule over the Third Hierarchy with Iron Hooves.

The Second Hierarchy
The middle-ranking Hierarchy deserves perhaps the least amount of detail, with Belial being one of the only publically known names anymore- none of the second Hierarchy have been seen in Equestria for... an extremely long time, though many have dedicated their lives to combating their influence with varying degrees of success. Documentation here is still required for thoroughness, so I will once again mention that they are separated into three tiers:

Tier 3 (Virtues): Even the weakest virtues can lay waste to an entire County (no R in that word, but soon) with a single attack. Their powers are almost incomprehensible in function, and rarely direct. Virtues are extremely rare, and the numbers only dwindle from here.

Tier 2 (Dominions): Now we can add an R. Dominions are capable knocking a country off the map.

Tier 1 (Powers): Powers are true to their name, especially in that they are the last category of demons whose powers (and the nature thereof) are even classifiable. Speculation states that multiple countries or even continents could fall before them, but of course this has never been tested or observed.

The First Hierarchy
If you have encountered the name of a demon that by it's very nature demands respect, odds are you are thinking of a Demon of the First Hierarchy. Asmodeus. Beelzebub. Leviathan. Astaroth. Berith. Lucifer. Satan. Their strength defies measure, and their rankings unknown.