A Brief History of Sanctuary (Diablo 2)

Events prior to Diablo 2, for those who did not know or have forgotten.

Eternal confrontation

From the very beginning of time, there has been an Eternal confrontation between Light and Darkness, in which both sides strive to achieve complete domination over the universe. The Angirian council of archangels and its heavenly warriors believed in the supremacy of impeccable order, while the demons from the Underworld, their opponents, under the leadership of the three incarnations of the One Evil - Diablo, Baal and Mephisto - considered chaos and darkness to be the support of the universe.

But despite the duration and incredible scale of the conflict, neither side could achieve final victory. Tired of the endless enmity between Heaven and Hell, the archangel Inarius decided to create a new world, a safe haven away from a destructive war. Together with the demoness Lilith, he gathered like-minded apostates from among the angels and demons to create the mortal kingdom of Sanctuary. Inarius hid it from the watchful gaze of Heaven and the Underworld as a powerful stone of the universe, for the possession of which both warring parties fought for a long time.

Rebel angels and demons gave rise to the ancestors of humanity - the nephalem. But the power of the nephalem surpassed even their creators, and some began to fear that their power would not escape the attention of Heaven and Hell. Startled, Inarius retired to think it over alone. And then Lilith, out of fear for her children, staged a massacre, exterminating all angels and demons in Sanctuary. Inarius had to banish her to the Void and enchant the Creation Stone to make the nephalem lose their power. Each generation of the Nephalem grew weaker, their lives shorter, and finally only ordinary people remained of them, almost forgetting their ancestors.

War of sin

For a time, humanity lived peacefully in Sanctuary, but the calm never lasts long: the lords of the Underworld discovered the kingdom of mortals, previously hidden from them. The great Sin War has broken out. In this confrontation, Inarius and the Underworld sought to gradually persuade humanity, each to their side. In the struggle for power over humans, the demons wanted to turn the mortal inhabitants of Sanctuary into weapons against the Light, while Inarius tried to keep control of his perfect creation.

In order to push humanity towards the desired goal, the incarnations of evil founded the Church of the Three. Three branches of this cult worshiped three deities: Mephis, Dialon and Bala. But mortals did not know that in fact they were only masks of the incarnations of the One Evil. The Church of the Three slowly and imperceptibly lured humanity to the side of sin. For many years, the Single Evil has freely spread its influence, and the number of adherents of the Church has grown. Trying to thwart the growth of the Church's influence, Inarius posed as a "Prophet" and created the Cathedral of Light to preach the dogmas of Heaven.

A futile confrontation between Light and Darkness swallowed Sanctuary just like Heaven and Hell. The Church of Three and the Cathedral of Light both carried their teachings to the world, converting thousands of followers ... until one day their intrigues were put to an end by the return of the mother of humanity, Lilith.

Lilith loosened the shackles that Inarius had placed on the stone of the universe, and the lost strength returned to the nephalem. She then subdued the farmer Uldyssian ul-Diomed and convinced him to use the awakened Nephalem power. Uldyssian led the Nephalem in rebellion against the Church of Three and the Cathedral of Light, further altering the Creation Stone to enhance their extraordinary abilities. His intervention did not go unnoticed by Heaven, who also entered the war. It ended only after Inarius once again banished Lilith into the Void and Uldyssian realized that the uncontrolled power of the Nephalem would lead to the inevitable death of Sanctuary. He sacrificed himself in order to weaken the stone of the universe again, which also caused the other Nephalem to lose their strength.

Uldyssian's sacrifice prompted the Angirian Council and Mephisto to agree on the future of Sanctuary. In the end, the warring parties came to an agreement: Mephisto would forever conclude Inarius in Hell, and in return, Heaven and Hell will abandon their claims to Sanctuary and allow future generations of people to choose the path of light or darkness on their own without being forced. And therefore, the memories of the War of Sin, the angels and demons that once walked among people were erased from the memory of mankind, and the memories of the conflict disappeared into eternity.

The Dark Exile and the Horadrim

Mephisto's agreement with the Angirian council angered the four lesser incarnations of evil, provoking their disobedience. They considered that the great incarnations of evil were no longer worthy to command the demons in the war with Heaven, and raised a rebellion throughout the Underworld. Having won the victory, they banished the great incarnations into the mortal realm. Mephisto, Diablo and Baal fell upon Sanctuary, ravaging its eastern lands and sowing only grief and chaos everywhere. After decades of their atrocities, Tyrael, the archangel of Justice, finally noticed. To defeat the great incarnations of evil, Tyrael founded an order of powerful horadrim mages who dedicated their lives to fighting the demon lords. The Horadrim pursued them throughout Sanctuary, and to help them Tyrael hewed soul stones from the debris of the stone of the universe, capable of imprisoning the embodiment of evil.

The Horadrim managed to capture two of the masters of evil, imprison them inside the soul stones and build a reliable defense around. After a long chase, Jared Cain, along with the other Horadrim, imprisoned the last incarnation of evil, Diablo, and hid his soulstone under the Cathedral of Tristram. When the Horadrim fulfilled Tyrael's sacred command and the One Evil ceased to threaten Sanctuary, their order gradually disintegrated. Peace has come again for humanity.

The fall of Tristram

Many years later, King Leoric, whom everyone recognized as a wise and just ruler, proclaimed Tristram as his capital. But Leoric did not know about the soul stone under the Cathedral, which Diablo slowly subjugated everything around to his will. Archbishop Lazarus, Leoric's advisor, could not resist the soul stone and the power it exuded. Diablo subdued Lazarus and made him free his weakened spirit. To be reborn again, the disembodied soul of Diablo needed a receptacle - the body of a mortal. Having tried to settle in Leoric, he was unable to completely subdue him and only turned the once sensible king into a madman.

Then Diablo turned his gaze to the son of Leoric, Prince Albrecht. The demon ordered Lazarus to insert the soul stone of Albrecht into his forehead to turn his body into a puppet. Leoric, distraught after invading his mind, accused the inhabitants of Tristram of the disappearance of his son and began to execute anyone he suspected of being kidnapped. The knights of Leoric had to kill their own king, and Tristram was left without a ruler and without an heir to lead the city in the fight against the oncoming darkness.

Lazarus took advantage of the general confusion and lured the people of Tristram into the catacombs under the cathedral, ostensibly to save Prince Albrecht. The inhabitants of the city followed Lazarus, but his lies only led them into a trap - they all died a terrible death at the hands of the nightmare Butcher. These sacrifices fed Diablo and gave him strength. Summoning the armies of demons, he began to devastate the surrounding settlements and regain his former power in order to free his brothers Baal and Mephisto from captivity.

But out of the darkness suddenly appeared a hero, one of many who went to Tristram to stop the invasion of demons. He descended deep into the intricate dungeons of the cathedral, destroying demonic creatures and thwarting Diablo's plans, until he came together in battle with the greatest incarnation of evil. The hero defeated Diablo in battle, but was forced to place the soul stone on his own forehead so that the Lord of Terror would not break free.

Evil Returns

Although the hero defeated Diablo, he could not resist the power of the soul stone. Becoming only an empty vessel for Diablo's soul, this broken man took on the guise of the Dark Wanderer and began his journey east.

This is how the story of a new unknown hero begins in a devastated world ... your story. Embark on a journey through the impending darkness of Sanctuary, uncover the secrets of the Dark Wanderer and discover the fate of the great incarnations of the One Evil.