I had it all -- here, in the palm of my foul hand! It was all mine, Lurgo -- all the power, all the evil any demon could ever want... And I lost it -- like ashes running through my claws... Like the sweet stench of brimstone fading into air!
- — Asteroth src
History
Asteroth was an ambitious Archduke of Hell whose schemes were thwarted more than once by the demon, Etrigan.
Hell
When the wizard Merlin was banished from Earth by coming in contact with hawthorn, Asteroth held him captive in in his castle.[1] Suspended by thorns, Merlin was slowly bled so Asteroth could drink his life essence.[2] He did this three times a day for three years,[3] but Merlin was only one piece of his master plan, as Asteroth manipulated Jason Blood and his friends, Glenda and Randu, into venturing into Hell to save one another.[4] Capturing them all, he bound them to a pentacle slab to complete a five-way blood sacrifice that would give him the power to overthrow the Satanic Triumvirate. Before Asteroth could begin the ritual, Merlin mustered the last of his power to reactivate a shard of the Philosopher's Stone while he channelled through Randu's psychic powers to Etrigan. The Demon broke free, stopping Asteroth and escaping with Jason Blood, while Merlin fled with the others. Defeated and weakened, Asteroth's castle soon fell siege to the army of Morax who called out the Archduke to battle. His servant, Lurgo tried to convince his master to face the challenge, but Asteroth was defeatist, and threw Lurgo into the invaders below before setting up his armour as a decoy and fleeing.[5]
Powers and Abilities
Powers
- Demonic Physiology
- Immortality
- Superhuman Strength
- Superhuman Durability
- Enhanced Senses
- Enhanced Sense of Smell: Asteroth claimed that demons can smell despair which had an odour similar to "burnt hair".[6]
- Enhanced Hearing: He also claimed he could hear despair.[6]
- Claws[5]
- Fangs[5]
- Magic[5]
- Clairvoyance: Asteroth could see, and show others, events happening in real time.[2]
- Retrocognition: He could do the same with past events.[7][6][8][1]
- Teleportation
- Eldritch Blast: Asteroth shattered the Philosopher's Stone with a blast from his hand.[5]
- Necromancy: Asteroth raised a zombie from the grave.
- Pyrokinesis
- Chronokinesis
- Size Alteration: Asteroth appeared before Blood approximately three times his height.[5]
Abilities
Weaknesses
- Vulnerability to Theology
- Summoning: Demons can be conjured by those with occult knowledge, and controlled if the summoner is powerful enough.
Notes
This character is an adaptation of Astaroth, a character in traditional stories. These include, but may not be limited to religious texts, myth, and/or folk lore. More information on the original can be found at Wikipedia.org.
- Asteroth has a very specific chuckle ("heh...heh...heh...") which has been a consistent character trait since Wagner's introduction.
- Asteroth originally was depicted by Mark Pacella with green skin and hair in Action Comics #638, but was later changed to red skin with dark hair throughout all of Demon (Volume 3).
- Pacella also drew Asteroth with a serpent around his neck which was often dressed up with different props (such as glasses, a fez, bow-tie, gas mask) for comic effect.
Trivia
- Asteroth mentioned that he preferred maidenheads over blood sacrifice,[6] yet both rituals he conducts require sacrifice.[5]
- The five-way blood sacrifice required; two from Hell, two mortals, and one who is both, yet neither.[3]
- When Lurgo drew Asteroth a bath, he asked his master if he required his "ritual duckie," to which Asteroth replied, "Of course."[9]
Related
- 14 Appearances of Asteroth (New Earth)
- 3 Images featuring Asteroth (New Earth)
- 5 Quotations by or about Asteroth (New Earth)
- Character Gallery: Asteroth (New Earth)
Links
Footnotes
  This character has been an ally or antagonist to either The Demon Etrigan or his counterpart Jason Blood in any of their various incarnations. |
