Lightning Demons were hostile creatures native to the Demon Dimension. They were tall and thin, with grey or dark, purplish bodies. In place of hands they had large pincers that conducted electricity. They could discharge this offensively both in melee attacks and by firing ranged attacks. They were very fast and would often attack in groups. Lighting demons were powerful enemies at all ranges, employing a range of attacks that could easily cause major damage: including powerful lunge and charge attacks at close-range and at lightning projectiles at longer ranges along with teleportation abiltiies. Although quicker and more agile than Fire demons, Lighting demons were still fairly slow moving, and could be easily sidestepped and outflanked. Like other demons, they could follow Raziel into the Spectral Realm and could also create Combat barriers to prevent escape.[Defiance][Defiance/10][Defiance/12][Defiance/13][Defiance strategy guide]
Description: This variant of abyssal demon seemingly has been spawned from lightning pummeled depth of some wind blown and storm enraged dimension. This demon prefers close range usually but can easily supplement itself at long range with its quick and accurate lightning projectiles. Whether at close or medium range, the demon's options of attack are many in number and all brutal.
Special Attacks •Crack of Lightning: This bread-and-butter attack of the Lightning Demon utilizes its massive pinchers to call out and focus the tremendous electrical forces that writhe within the confines of its infernal body. These blasts are as quick and deadly as a lightning bolt from the sky.
•Electrical Displacement: The secondary ability of the Lightning Demon is the ability to teleport itself between two points. As quick as a bolt of lightning, the Lightning demon is able to dissolve its physical form into pure electricity. Thusly transformed the Lightning Demon can instantaneously travel through the material realm and reform its body at a completely different location. This ability is extremely devious as it provides both a quick escape in times of trouble and as well a devious and offensive strategic move.
Lightning Demons and the overarching Demon creature-type are based upon the Demons of myth and folklore - supernatural entities which are often seen as malevolent in Christian and Abrahamic religious traditions. In later Western mythology demons are particularly associated with fire and a red horned appearance, could be 'summoned' to appear, and were blamed for tricking or possessing humans.[1][2][3][4]
Both Fire Demons and Lightning Demons were previously listed as titles for similar demon classes in Soul Reaver 2 - listed as "Fire Demons" and "Lightning Demons" respectively. The Defiance classes are notably similar to their predecessors and could be considered to represent the same classes, however there are notable differences between Soul Reaver 2 and Defiance variants, with the Defiance variants sporting a much darker skin tone - which appeared to be a purple-maroon-brown tone compared to the grey-lightbrown seen in the Soul Reaver 2 class - along with a number of brighter blue or purple highlights - notably on the chest and rear spikes. Their sharpened teeth also appeared to be much better defined compared to the single piece 'beaks' seen in Soul Reaver 2.
Gameplay changes have changed some of the Demons attributes from those of Soul Reaver 2:
Demons in Defiance are no longer able to talk after their open taunting at the end of Soul Reaver 2 - this has subsequently been explained by developers as the talking demons being a consequence of Hyldenpossession before the visual effect had been designed.[Defiance][Soul Reaver 2][5][6]
The combat of Defiance being solely weapons based also means that there are no unique unarmed finishers on demons such as the neck twist or crouched impale as seen in Soul Reaver 2. [Defiance][Soul Reaver 2]
The Defiance Lightning Demons do not have a soul for Raziel to feed on however but they can still be used to feed theSoul Reaver or Wraith Blade.[Defiance] Developer comments suggest this was done for gameplay purposes and was not intended to indicate a lack of souls.[7]
The Lightning Demons of Defiance are notably similar or related to several other Gray/Electric Demon variants. Originally, Blood Omen featured the similarly colored and similarly lightning/electricity related Lightning spitters which arguably were the inspiration for later Lightning Demon variants.[Blood Omen]Soul Reaver 2 featured another different grey demon - explicitly named Lightning Demons - these were very similar to the forms of the Defiance Lightning Demons but with some notable changes.[Soul Reaver 2] Ultimately it is unclear if these similar variants were intended to be the same Demon sub-species (with differing artistic interpretations, or perhaps at different stages in its life-cycle) or if they were different sub-species altogether.
The Legacy of Kain: Defiance: Prima's Official Strategy Guide official strategy guide offers the following further comments of Demons, explaining their origins and plane shifting abilities: "After the corruption of the Pillars of Nosgoth, the barriers between dimensions began to weaken.Slowly Nosgoth began to be overrun with dark creatures from outside the bounds of normal reality. These massive creatures are a prime example of the types of beings that now roam and stalk the face of Nosgoth. Appearing in two major varieties, these highly aggressive behemoths can easily move from the spectral to material plane at will, because of the weakening of the boundaries between the planes themselves." The section on Lightning demons specifically offers the following: "This variant of abyssal demon seemingly has been spawned from lightning pummeled depth of some wind blown and storm enraged dimension. This demon prefers close range usually but can easily supplement itself at long range with its quick and accurate lightning projectiles. Whether at close or medium range, the demon's options of attack are many in number and all brutal."[Defiance strategy guide]
This article is about the Demon enemy variant seen in Defiance . For the Soul Reaver 2 variant, see Lightning demons (Soul Reaver 2). For similar Blood Omen variant, see Demons (Blood Omen). For other Demon variants, see Demons.
Demon at Wikipedia
