Full Body View of Diablo
Posted 3 November 2011 by Flux
We just debated the female rumors about the BlizzCon 2011 Diablo artwork, but that was based on a straight-ahead view of just the upper body of “Sheablo.”
Happily, a full-body view of the creature has been located, and I think it shakes up the argument a bit.
Diablo looks a bit wasp-waisted, and lacks the muscular chest and arms male monsters and heroes always seem to sport. But in this view you can clearly see a second set of arms, and they’re quite slender and not at all manly. The wide hips look different too; much less “child-bearing” and more like armored bone protrusions. Also, I’m not seeing any trace of breasts on that chest, unless those are the worst implants ever — located on the shoulders and staring back in anger.
On the whole… well Hell, I don’t know. She/he/it has elements of male and female, and weird. Four arms? Tiny mouths on the shoulders? Massive overgrowths of bone everywhere? Could Diablo be a combination of numerous individuals? Leah corrupted, plus Mephisto and Baal as the mouths on the shoulders? Hold the anchovies and pepperoni?
Click the image to see it much larger, and you’re free to form your own opinion, but I don’t think I’d have had any, “Wait, is that a chick?” thoughts just from seeing this image….
This may be Diablo in a different form and not the Leah form. This is probably the form where he is combined with Baal and Mephisto.
Diablo may be like Buu from DBZ where he just keeps changing forms based on absorption? Maybe he got rid of Leah here and became even more powerful because her form only weakened him?
Hasn’t Blizzard confirmed that the three-headed dragon-thing at the end of the cinematic trailer was Diablo? This thing doesn’t look identical but it does look remarkably similar, like a smaller version of it. It’s got to be a precursor to that ultimate form. It also seems conceptually similar to Tathamet from The Book Of Cain… maybe Diablo III wil see the rebirth of the Beast.
Three-headed dragon thing? It was just a close up of his face and the shoulder mouths… it’s the exact same form as seen in this and the Blizzcon art… you can see it in the portraits page as well…
It looks like a dragon to me, what can I say? Or a Balrog, on second thought. You know the one I mean though…
I guess they could be the same, after another viewing. I just had an impression of size from the trailer that I don’t get from this pic, I guess. But I suppose there’s no reason the thing in the pic couldn’t be fifty stories tall.
What people seem to forget is that Diablo is the Lord of Terror and may have multiple forms to match the viewers most deepest fears and horrors. So this is by no way the “original” form just like Diablo 1 & 2 weren’t.
Not to mention Diablo on the first two games was “stuck” in an human host through the soulstone because of the Worldstone’s defenses, so his form was “limited” This is no longer the case so we might see a full-strength Lord of Terror this time around.
This form is indeed more feminine, although I think the “it’s Leah possessed by Diablo” seems too obvious and I dont think Blizzard would reveal the “end-plot” so easily, it could be however the manifestation of Leah’s worst fear – Leah herself becoming possessed.
P.S – Check Uldyssian’s fight versus Diablo on the Sin Wars books if the multiple forms seem weird to you
Now that is great food for thought.
Seems to obvious? Did you play Starcraft 2? Everything was so obvious there too.
Unfortunately for those who enjoyed SC1′s plot, it appears Starcraft’s storyline is clearly the least important to Blizzard at the moment. Although it shook things up a tiny bit by making Kerrigan human again, frankly the plot was iffy to begin with.
Chris Metzen has stated several times that he loves Diablo’s plot the most. It gives me the hope that they are going to make sure this game has a plot fitting for the franchise.
I’m pretty sure you didn’t have concept art images of Kerrigan back to human form or other important plot pieces flashing around at Blizzcon before Starcraft 2 was released (like this Diablo form that even wason a Blizzcon wallpaper). Was it obvious, however, while playing the game that those things would happen? Yes.
Considering how they’re limiting the Beta to 1/3 of Act1 in order to avoid revealing too much of the plot, I’d say they wouldn’t shove in our faces such an obvious and vague ending as Leah being possessed and becoming a “female diablo”
I’m pretty sure this Diablo is stuck in a (female) humanoid host as well and will be limited to this form unlike how he was in the Sin War trilogy… otherwise we would probably not be seeing so many pictures of him looking the same…
The point is, why would they show more when there’s still months until a release and risk spoiling the game?
And by the way, just to clarify, my point wasn’t that we will see more than one form in Diablo 3, just that the whole “scandal” that Diablo might be a “SHE/HE” is pretty ridiculous considering the lore behind the Lord of Terror (notice how it’s LORD and not Lady or something else). People are freaking out for no reason
1. You have no evidence to back up your claim of multiple forms.
2. “Lord” is a male title. The female version is “Lady”.
Read things properly next time
And now, with multiple forearms visible, and (I dont know why people keep missing it!!) HUGE TAIL clearly seen in the background, I once again say to you – LIZARD! HUGE, SPIKY lizard that will not be standing up like this in the final game….this is just an artist’s gimmick to confuse us!!
And when I said lizard in the last post, someone said that no way, and was I confusing Diablo with Mephisto? :O When has Mephisto been this reptilian?
PS: Diablo as a giant lizard in his true form has the potential to look absolutely terrifying. Cant wait…
That was me, Mephisto is described as having green, scaley skin in the third sin war novel, along with red eyes and big teeth, but they don’t describe him in full as he’s only partly visible, so we don’t know all that much… his form in Diablo 2 is heavily influenced by his human host so don’t think that’s what he really looks like… Diablo, on the other hand, is like D_TradeSs described, capable of changing forms at will and his true form is described as a great shadow… pretty much incorporeal… I don’t where you are getting all this lizard crap from…
I’m not saying you’re incorrect, but Chris Metzen said that the Sin War Trilogy was not to be held as canon, as the games are the only “canon” from which they are continuing from. While lore may resemble or take characteristics here and there from the publications, nothing is to be considered a direct continuance from them.
You played Diablo 2, right? He was a giant lizard in that one. The Bliz North artist who mainly created him actually told me the model was largely influenced by Godzilla, in the Godzilla 2000 movie, which was a mutated Iguana. Hence the quadrupedal running Diablo did in D2.
Why do people feel the need to see a demon in masculine/feminine ways? If we’re discussing whether or not the way Diablo looks may influence the story, then that’s great. However, I remember dozens of people complaining when part of this image came out during BlizzCon, saying that Diablo shouldn’t be female and whatnot. The worst were the sexist comments about how they didn’t want to be beaten by a woman. Seriously?
Diablo looks like a dissapointment
You are a disappointment.
yes ma’am.
Dunno I have the full sized poster from that Sheablo and definatly looks like childmaking hips to me. But Diablo takes many forms, as Blizzard said.
The 3 mouths I don’t think are supposed to be Meph and Baal. But instead a reference to the Devil as described by Dante’s inferno. In Dante’s Inferno the devil has 3 mouths each containing one of the greatest mutineers in history (at the time): Judas, Brutus and Cassius.
“Four arms? Tiny mouths on the shoulders? Massive overgrowths of bone everywhere?”
Truly a “heeedeous amalgamation of boadies.” Fitting for the Lord of Terror, eh?
Honestly I don’t really care that Diablo will (or may) have a feminine form this time around. I just hope it’s well explained and doesn’t involve a “cured Kerrigan moment.” It does seem a bit odd that his host appears to have such a strong influence on his form though. I always thought Diablo’s aesthetic changes between D1 and D2 were made simply because sequels have to be bigger and better, not because of the difference in hosts. I suppose it all makes a bit more sense in hindsight….
Umm nope its 6 Arms 2 normal looking ones and 4 huge clawed ones (the lower one are slightly faded out though by the misty stuff).
I don’t know what to believe anymore!!
Looks female to me. Beautiful artwork. Diablo never looked better.
I have to agree. Out of all the artistic renderings of Diablo (including fan art), I’d have to say that this single picture is my favorite version.
I much prefer this one
http://diablo.incgamers.com/gallery/showphoto.php/photo/3595/title/diablo/cat/513
Looks much more menacing imo