Avernus Catacombs

"As the handsome coffin hides the putrefying corpse within, the great Cathedral of Avernus seemed to hold its own secrets, hidden in the catacombs beneath its vaulted chambers. Was this the source of the corruption that infected Nosgoth? Vorador had hinted at something more."

- Raziel

The Avernus Catacombs were a set of underground tunnels and burial chambers in the city of Avernus beneath Avernus Cathedral. Often associated with the worship of the Hash'ak'gik cult and demonic forces, the tunnels were hidden from the ordinary citizens of the city and were visited by Kain and Raziel in Blood Omen: Legacy of Kain and Legacy of Kain: Defiance respectively.

Role
In the course of his quest in Blood Omen Kain visited Avernus and its Cathedral in the chapter Defeat Azimuth seeking to challenge the Guardian of Dimension - Azimuth the Planer. Beforehand he was advised before by Ariel that he would have to "rise and fall and find [his] salvation in between" and when Kain arrived in Avernus Cathedral he found it was apparently split into several 'realms', with teleporters linking them. The regular Cathedral was effectively mirrored in a shadowy alternate realm and along with those Kain breached a bright white 'heavenly' realm that rose up to the clouds, and a dark, shadowy gory 'hellish' realm that descended underground - as well as a secret chamber underground in the catcombs dedicated to the worship of the 'god' 'Hash'ak'gik'.

The Catacombs were revisited in Defiance, apparently a short while after the young Kain had been through. Raziel, coming to the Cathedral in search of the Heart of Darkness was able to gain entry to an underground chamber beneath the Cathedral which contained a warp gate leading to the Earth Forge within the Vampire Citadel where Raziel was able to imbue the Earth Reaver.

Returning to the Cathedral with the Earth Reaver, Raziel was able to summon a set of Earth platforms which allowed him to climb high in the Cathedral to a balcony where he could pick up a Dark Scripture which opened up a portal to the Catacombs when placed in the altar of the Cathedral. Inside the Catacombs Raziel was confronted by Cenobites who summoned Red Fire Demons and he soon discovered murals of the Elder Wars, except this time they were from the Hylden perspective and showed the Ancient Vampires as terrifying aggressors, descending from the skies to attack their enemies for refusing to submit to the Wheel of Fate. He also found an image of how the Hylden saw their own champion - a dark silhouette in the shape of Raziel himself, whose flaming sword now seemed much more like the Wraith Blade. This champion was prophesied to "destroy the shackles of the vampires tyrannous god".

Further along the chambers he found his way to a large pit where Mortanius and the Cenobites were apparently worshipping and giving sacrifices to the Hash'ak'gik himself. When they had finished Raziel moved close enough to the pit to be telekinetically dragged into it by the entity within, which was revealed to be his devolved brother from the far future - Turel - who was being possessed by several Hylden and used as an impressive vessel to command the disciples of the Hash'ak'gik cult. Battling Turel, Raziel was able to devour his soul and finally gain Enhanced telekinesis (a newer version of the Amplified Force Projectile that was removed from Legacy of Kain: Soul Reaver along with Turel) which brought his telekinetic abilities up to the same level as Kain. Exiting the Pit, Raziel met the Mortanius as he was leaving a message for the younger Kain. Mortanius, much like Turel was possessed by the Hylden, although this time by a single Hylden - the Hylden Lord - who confirmed that it was he who put the chain of events that led to the Corruption of the Pillars in motion by murdering Ariel. Raziel also got Mortanius to admit to hiding the Heart of Darkness inside Kain and replaced his own heart. As Raziel exited the Catacombs and returned to the Cathedral, Kain entered and the two battled - believing they represented the opposing champions of ancient prophecy. Raziel won the battle, claiming the Heart of Darkness and blasting the apparently dying Kain through the portal back to the Catacombs.

Some time later the heartless Kain awoke and found himself in Turel's pit in the Demon Realm. Attacked by a 'demon horde', Kain was able to fight them off and make his way back to the Material Realm through the portal. Shortly afterward he left the Catacombs and Avernus itself and returned to the Vampire Citadel -apparently feeling the pull of the Spirit Forge.

Environment
Like many of the areas from Blood Omen that are revisited in Defiance, the catacombs changes radically between its appearances and much depends upon which areas are counted and compared - although both retain the feel of darkened underground caverns fashioned into a cult-like atmosphere and lit by low-level candlelight. In Blood Omen, the walls are piled high with bones and there are numerous blood splatters and gory remains covering the floors, whereas In Defiance the bones are seen to be merely bone-like ribbed walls.

In Blood Omen, the altar of Hash'ak'gik is devoid of inhabitants, although there are many Undead creatures, Demons, and the cultist-like Fire mages in the nearby underground areas of the Hell realm. In Defiance fewer undead supernatural creatures are seen but Demons are featured as well as the cultist-like Cenobites.

These main area of the catacombs in Defiance consists mainly of a series of winding darkened corridors with tiled floors running through through bare earth and rock along with a low ribbed ceiling supported by pillars. Occasional blank walls were filled with candlelit murals and patterns. The first corridor of these opened out into a wider clearing with murals along one side before narrowing into another curving corridor - this too opened into a second clearing before narrowing into a third smaller corridor which contained a mural of the Hylden champion and the door which led onto Turel's pit and Mortanius's chambers. (see below)

The exact borders of what constitutes the Catacombs are not conclusively discussed. The main area of the catacombs is obviously identified by Raziel in dialogue in Defiance and includes all the underground areas after the portal from the Cathedral - but by strict definition any artificial underground location associated with religious practice could be considered to represent part of the catacombs, including nearby underground areas such as the Hell realm and the secret altar of Hash'ak'gik in Blood Omen: Legacy of Kain, and the Earth forge warp room in Legacy of Kain: Defiance.
 * The Hell realm seen in Blood Omen: Legacy of Kain in particular could be considered to be the same location as the catacombs - with both representing somewhat similarly designed underground areas beneath Avernus Cathedral that are populated by demons and their worshippers and were similarly skeletally or hellishly themed. It too was unclear how it related to the rest of the Cathedral, appearing to be underground but only entered via portal - some of its area also bore particular resemblance to those in the catacombs.
 * The secret altar of Hash'ak'gik in Blood Omen - which is entered from the main Cathedral but passes through the top of the descending chamber of the hell realm on the way to the altar room - is noted by Chris Bruno as being placed in the catacombs, but it is unclear if this implies the entire hell realm is in the catacombs or just the altar itself.
 * The Earth forge warp room of Legacy of Kain: Defiance is an area of bare rock and earth positioned slightly behind and beneath the main altar of the Cathedral. It was never acknowledged as part of the catacombs but it's apparent underground location could potentially qualify it as a part of the catacombs.

The most significant area of the Cathedral included several important areas and rooms that could be considered to represent areas of the catacombs - some were explicitly confirmed to represent part of the Catacombs while others were not but seemed to be highly related:

Turel's Pit and Mortanius's chamber


Turel's Pit was perhaps the most significant area of the Catacombs visited in Legacy of Kain: Defiance. Similar to Hash'ak'gik's altar in Blood Omen the pit was an area dedicated to the worship of dark god Hash'ak'gik.

The pit was first visited by Raziel in the chapter Seek Mortanius as Raziel explored the Catacombs and found Mortanius and a crowd of Cenobites performing a sacrificial ceremony over the pit. After the conclusion of the ceremony Raziel was telekinetically dragged into the pit and found that his brother Turel was trapped there, possessed by several Hylden and used as a vessel to act as the god Hash'ak'gik to command the disciples of the Hash'ak'gik cult. The area acted as the arena of the boss battle with Turel as Turel attacked Raziel to strenthen himself against the Hylden. Shortly after, Raziel would confront Mortanius in a small chamber off the side of the pit.

The pit would be visited again after Raziel confronted Kain in the main Cathedral and blasted him through a portal to his apparent demise. Kain awoke in Turel's pit in the Demon Realm and had to fight off waves of Demons before returning via portal to the Material Realm. From here he could proceed back through the catacombs to the main Cathedral and on towards the Vampire Citadel.

The chamber itself was a wide open cavernous area dominated by a large circular pit filled with murky smoke. The outside of the chamber had a pair of balconies extending along the outer walls, with one terminating and then extending into a false balcony - the other led around the outside of the chamber to where a raised platform extended out over the pit flanked by torches - from which Mortanius made the sacrifices of the cult.

Directly behind the platform was a private chamber of sorts used by Mortanius. This appeared as a roughly square shaped chamber with a curved back decorated with four pillars and a skeletal throne flanked by two tall pillar-like braziers. The centre of the room was dominated by a circular floor pattern consisting of two sets of golden rings made out of various Arcane symbols with a pale red circle at the centre - this too was flanked by two tall pillar-like braziers. A health talisman was positioned in the back left corner.

The pit itself was a wide deep hole with vision blocked by a dark layer of murky smoke. Beneath the smoke was a wide circular room filled with scattered skeletal human remains. Several spherical lights on chains descended into the pit from the ceiling above. One side of the pit was dominated by four circular gongs covering square alcoves and held in place by chains. On the opposite side of the pit a large ornate doorway was visible but it was permanently locked and immovable. The high platform above was supported by a pillar which descended into the pit. This was flanked by Scalable walls and the pillar itself could be broken with Enhanced telekinesis, allowing it to be climbed through to continue the ascent back to the rim of the pit. The demon and spectral realms both lacked the gongs and instead featured empty spaces, with the demon realm also showing a number of deep red cracks in the ground.

Additional Notes

 * Turel's Pit has the dubious honor of being one of the only places in the entirety of Nosgoth that is seen in the Material Realm, Spectral Realm and the Demon Realm, allowing something of a comparison between the realms and their effects - and one of the few places in the series where the Demon Realm is directly seen. This highlighted that the Demon Realm was even more warped than the Spectral realm, featured a large amount of wispy smoke, a distinct orange hue and several deep red cracks. It did not strictly mirror the other two realms with the area above the pit appearing to have a much lower ceiling and the areas above the pit appearing to be entirely absent of completely changed. Later developer interviews confirmed that the Demon Realm only intersected with the other two in certain weak areas like Avernus.


 * Despite appearing to be the same area, the Demon Realm version of Turel's pit in Defiance is actually counted as a separate area unconnected to the rest of the level - in contrast to the Spectral Realm variants of levels which are usually counted as the same area. When examined using a free camera it becomes clear that even discounting the visual effects a number of stark differences exist between the demon realm and other variants. Notably the ceiling in the demon realm is a lot lower with a number of hanging rocks. Passing through it reveals the high platform above the pit still present and fully constructed above the ceiling but it is backed by a bright orange background. An apparently unused health talisman - which may be the same as the one from in Mortanius's chamber - can be seen in the distance.
 * Turel's pit features several subtle Turel/Turelim symbols in its design. Most obviously the symbol can be seen on the doors that lead into the pit area, but additional symbols are placed on the high platform and on the poles of the braziers atop it and in Mortanius's chambers. Concept art and Bonus materials show the symbol on the side of the pit itself, but this is not visible in game. . A Death symbol can also be seen on the side of the throne of Mortanius.

Hash'ak'gik's altar
Hash'ak'gik's altar was a secret area within Avernus Cathedral, visited by Kain during the Blood Omen era. It was a perverse, occult shrine to the god Hash'ak'gik, and contained battle artifacts and a tome recounting his commands to human worshippers. The altar could be visited in Blood Omen: Legacy of Kain.

In the first timeline, while exploring Avernus Cathedral in his search for Azimuth, Kain discovered the Soul Reaver and the Wraith Armor, but these were not the only curiosities he could uncover within its nooks and crannies before confronting the Dimension Guardian. At the north-east end of the Cathedral's main hall, near the public altar, a well-hidden door led to the uppermost balcony of the Hell realm. The balcony led to one adjacent passage - a stone corridor containing many battle artifacts, which, when followed, culminated in a second, much darker shrine.

The shrine room was gory and chaotic, and it contained a blood-stained tome which read as follows:

"And Hash'ak'gik spoke to the world, and all who heard trembled. "Bring me your first born, and shed their blood on the altar of the world, so I might take nourishment from them. Do this without question, or suffer my wrath for eternity." And its will was done."

- Hash'ak'gik's altar

The floor of this altar room was decorated with a demon-like image, but Kain had yet to recognize its significance. When he confronted Mortanius at the end of his quest, he realized that the Death Guardian had been possessed by a malevolent entity - an entity which, through him, had orchestrated the death of Ariel and the corruption of the Pillars. As he died, Mortanius's body was transformed by the entity, taking on the shape of the monster depicted in the shrine's image. It was the "Unspoken" which Ariel had warned him to be wary of; he defeated it handily.

When Raziel later visited the Avernus Catacombs in the fourth timeline, he discovered the truth behind Hash'ak'gik and his worship. Hash'ak'gik was a pseudonym forcibly used by Turel, his vampire brother from the Soul Reaver era: Azimuth, a devout worshipper of the Hylden, had summoned Turel back through time using a time-streaming device stolen from Moebius. The Hylden were an ancient race whose banishment in the Demon Realm was sustained by the Pillars of Nosgoth; they and the Unspoken were one and the same, and they were capable of possessing creatures in the Material Realm to do their bidding.

The entity behind Hash'ak'gik and the possession of Mortanius was the Hylden Lord, a leader among the banished militants. Turel, in his devolved state, was trapped, and utilized as the mouthpiece for the Hash'ak'gik cult; periodically possessed by various Hylden, he was used to command the cenobites of Avernus, thus facilitating the downfall of the Pillars, which would eventually give rise to Kain's empire. The words in the tome which Kain had discovered implied that it was all a cyclic phenomenon; Turel had taken part in Raziel's execution under Kain's command, and his order to his disciples that they "shed their [first born's] blood on the altar of the world" to sustain him appeared to emulate the fate which would befall his brother in the distant future.

The passageway leading to the altar area was very dimly-lit, and was wrought from stone spattered with blood. The altar area itself was a grim sight, shaped to resemble a jaw (with teeth for walls), and decorated with skull imagery. Innumerable real skeletons filled pits on either side of the trail towards the altar itself, with a few skulls, ribcages spilling over onto the walkway. Nine toppled marble pillars were also strewn around the rubble-laden room, possibly lending suggestion to the ultimate intent behind the Dark Entity's plan.

Additional Notes

 * The correct usage of the term "Hask'ak'gik" is notably kept somewhat vague throughout the series. It is initially implied (but not categorically stated) that the Dark Entity confronted at the end of the Blood Omen is the demon "Hash'ak'gik" with it also taking on the image from the floor of Hash'ak'gik's altar at the end of the game. Some sources actively refer to the entity controlling Mortanius as such.  Later titles however cast doubt on this: showing that the Hash'ak'gik cult actively worshipped the Possessed Turel as "Hash'ak'gik"; showing a different explanation for the transformation of flesh seen at the climax of Blood Omen; showing the Dark Entity was a Hylden (the same individual as the "Sarafan Lord" from Blood Omen 2) and addressing him specifically as "Hylden Lord" and not "Hash'ak'gik" - with him not one of the trio controlling Turel. The Defiance design team addressed the complication as follows:  Within the story only Turel is directly addressed as "Hash'ak'gik" and it is ultimately unclear whether "Hash'ak'gik" is the actual name of the Hylden Lord, a story created by the Hylden to inspire worship, or an actual myth or legend adapted and co-opted by the Hylden.
 * The origin of "Hash'ak'gik" and the Hash'ak'gik cult is similarly kept vague with it suggested by texts in the Library of Willendorf that the cult was present in Nosgoth "ages" before the Blood Omen era. It was suggested by developers that Azimuth and Mortanius unearthed a "power" beneath Avernus that may have led to the formation of the cult, though what exactly this was was never specified. It was also mentioned that Azimuth had used the Time streaming device she had possessed in Blood Omen (or the Chronoplast) to summon Turel from the far future of the Soul Reaver era (or beyond) - therefore she at least was likely aware that Turel was simply a mouthpiece for the true leadership of the cult.
 * Before Crystal Dynamics obtained the Legacy of Kain intellectual property, Silicon Knights had different plans for what they described as the "Blood Omen series". Although these plans would not come to fruition, their next game, 2002's Eternal Darkness: Sanity's Requiem, focused very heavily upon a grimoire dedicated to a dark god and found in a secret room - the Tome of Eternal Darkness. It seems possible that Hash'ak'gik's altar was originally intended to serve as a "teaser" for a potential sequel to Blood Omen: Legacy of Kain, and that this concept was absorbed into Eternal Darkness: Sanity's Requiem when Silicon Knights lost control of the Legacy of Kain IP.
 * It is unclear whether the tome on Hash'ak'gik's altar was supposed to relate to the Dark Scripture in Legacy of Kain: Defiance. The maroon, leathery covers of the tome and the Scripture greatly resemble each other, but they were discovered in what seemed to be very different areas of the Cathedral.

The Earth Forge Portal Room
The Earth forge was a sealed chamber within the Vampire Citadel where the Wraith Blade could be forged with elemental Earth to imbue the Earth Reaver. Like all the forges of Defiance, the forge was linked to the outside world via a hidden warp gate.

The warp gate for the Earth forge was hidden in and underground chamber of bare rock hidden behind the altar of the Avernus Cathedral and though not named as part of the catacombs the underground nature of the room meant it could be considered a part of the catacombs.

Additional Notes

 * In stark contrast to the rest of the Cathedral the Earth forge areas would appear to be more associated with the Ancient Vampires the the Hylden, suggesting that both ancient races had some hand in settlement or worship at Avernus.

The Hell area
The Hell area was a supposed alternate realm featured in Blood Omen. Consisting of a number of 'hellish' underground chambers which descended into the earth to the bottom of the dungeon where Kain gained the Wraith Armor.

Significant chambers within included the oft-seen 'descending shaft' - with a number of bridges which Kain crossed progressively as he descended through the dungeon - and the final excavated chamber where Kain gained the wraith armor which featured a prominent golden circular pattern along with a bound skeleton - as well as the apparent skeleton of a dragon.

The Hell realm seemed to be highly related to the catacombs - it bore a similar design, a similar underground setting, similar enemies and similar theming. Although it was not directly implicated as part of the catacombs, the hell realm was passed through on the way to the secret altar of Hash'ak'gik - which was implicated as part of the catacombs and thus could indicate the inclusion of the Hell realm was as well.

Background
The Avernus Cathedral and Catacombs in Defiance had several areas removed from the game before completion due to timing and budgetary constraints, with some of of these deleted areas visible in concept art and Bonus materials. Ultimately the Defiance version of Avernus Cathedral and Catacombs is left as a much smaller area than the Blood Omen version of the Cathedral, and one of the smallest areas in the game.

Apocrypha
The destruction of Avernus was mentioned in the backstory to Nosgoth with the background of the Lost Seers of Avernus revealing them as descendants of a divinatory order of Cenobites known as "the Prophets" who had fled Avernus in shock at Azimuth's actions - taking rare treasures and artefacts from the cathedral and catacombs as they did.

The origins of the Prophets mean they are related to the religious groups and Cenobites seen in Avernus, particularly the Fire mages and Black fire mages seen in Blood Omen: Legacy of Kain and the Cenobite acolytes and Cenobite summoners seen in Legacy of Kain: Defiance. They are also related to the Witches and Witches' coven deleted from Blood Omen: Legacy of Kain and the Demon worshippers removed fron Soul Reaver 2.

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Cattedrale e Catacombe di Avernus