Fallen

Fallen Shaman

Fallen return in Diablo III, in a familiar form. Though they remain small, cowardly, impish little demons, they have been upgraded in appearance and tactics. Their strength is also bolstered by more powerful chieftan units, and the Shaman and Overseer types can whip the common Fallen into a murderous assault force.

Contents

Known Fallen Types

Fallen were officially confirmed in May 2009, when Blizzard debuted their bestiary page. It contained information on the various types of Fallen found in Diablo III, along with screenshots and some concept art. The following pages offer details on the individual types of fallen.

• Fallen Imps
• Fallen Lunatics
• Fallen Hounds
• Fallen Shamen
• Fallen Overseers

Two other types of Fallen are hinted at on the official Bestiary page, but no details are given.

I suspect the existence of at least two other types of fallen, but I will need to conduct further research before I reveal my theories as to the ultimate familial structure of these fiends.

Also, during the Monster and Art Panel at Blizzcon 2009, one of the Blizzard developers said this about the Fallen:

Are there going to be some more Fallen? I'm inclined to say probably. We can't really confirm anything yet.

Fallen Queen?

During the Monster and Art panel at BlizzCon 2009, a slide was shown with the silhouettes of various Fallen. The Imp, Hound, Shaman, Overseer, and Lunatic are easily recognizable, but what's the huge blob in the center?

No one from Blizzard has ever spoken of a "Fallen Queen" but the question of where all these male warriors come from has often been asked by fans, without any adequate answer being provided. A huge, egg-laying queen of some sort seems a viable answer, and that center silhouette certainly doesn't look like an ambulatory combat unit.

Fallen silhouettes. Unidentified blob in the center?

Fallen Varieties

An army of assorted Fallen.

The only Fallen seen so far in screenshots are the red-skinned "Fallen" type. There were four types of Fallen found in Diablo I and Diablo II: Fallen, Carvers, Devilkin, and Dark Ones. A fifth type, the Warped One, was added as a Guest Monster in the D2X, v1.10 patch. It's not known if all, or any, of these subtypes will return in Diablo III. It does seem likely that we'll see subtypes, since the other monsters so far revealed in D3 are slotted into the same organizational system that was used in earlier games in the series.

Diablo 3 Fallen Development

Fallen concept art.

The Diablo 3 developers knew that the Fallen type monster would be returning very early in their development cycle, though they did not reveal the Fallen until early 2009, nearly a year after the game's announcement.

Fallen are used as a sort of comic relief, and are meant to be funny and entertaining, as well as potentially dangerous.

The development and design of the monsters is covered in the first 3:30 of this video of the Monster and Art Design panel from BlizzCon 2009.

Diablo III Fallen Lore

From the writings of Abd al-Hazir, his 10th entry - about Fallen:

Fallen Ones (Nanus Improbus)

As hard as it is to believe, the fallen ones were once exalted demons of the Burning Hells. They served as Azmodan's hands, performing acts that he would not, could not involve himself in. They were the instrument of Azmodan's first failed attempt to usurp power from Diablo and his brothers, and after that failure, the fallen were subjected to the full wrath of Diablo. They were twisted into small, ridiculous imps, in contrast to their previously powerful forms. Moreover, if they expected Azmodan to reverse their condition, they were sadly mistaken. The infuriated Azmodan held them responsible for the Prime Evils' continued reign, and so he left the fallen in their new bodies, where their degradation would serve to amuse him for all eternity. Their failure provided him with the information he required to succeed in dethroning Diablo and his brothers - the event now known as the "Dark Exile" - but that fact did nothing to soften his heart toward the fallen.

When unleashed upon our realm by their master, Azmodan, these impish terrors display a tendency to swarm like flesh-hungry locusts, and they have been known to tear apart a sleeping village in minutes. Small of stature and simian in appearance, these creatures possess surprising strength and unnatural agility. Other than feasting on human flesh, the only act that gives these unspeakable horrors pleasure is breeding; hence the tendency to encounter them in large packs.

However, due to their small size, cowardice appears to be one of the chief features of this species. They quickly retreat when one of their brethren falls in battle.

Fallen ones display no obvious tendency towards greater organization beyond their predisposition to swarm. This is fortunate for humanity, for they are so numerous that if they were to band together in large numbers, they might easily overwhelm a small city.

Pre-Confirmation Hints

Prior to the official announcement of the return of the Fallen, their return was hinted at by the forum icon of Diablo III Community Manager Bashiok, which featured an early animated render of the Fallen Shaman. There were also some hints to be found in the The Writings of Abd Al Hazir.

Fallen History

Fallen have featured in both previous games in the Diablo series.

Diablo I

Fallen debuted in Diablo I. See their page in the Diablo I Wiki for more details. In that game they were simple little enemies, memorable chiefly for their annoying AI and swarming behavior.

Diablo II History

The Diablo II Fallen are very similar to the first game's little demons. They are slightly different in that they wear more clothes, and use a wider variety of tools, but they all have the same basic behaviour, which is milling about, attacking the player and running away if they see a friend get killed. They no longer use "War Cry Mode", but they have Diablo II Fallen Shamans that can resurrect them with a little waving of their staves.

Blizzard also introduced the Fallen personalities, Bishibosh, Rakanishu and Colenzo the Annihilator, implying a sort of somewhat sophisticated culture.

Diablo II Lore

Quoted from the Diablo II Fallen lore.

These demonic imps have of late become very common throughout the woodlands of the Western Kingdoms. Small and vicious, many worry that if these beings were to band together in large numbers, they might easily overthrow some of the smaller cities in the region. Luckily, cowardice appears to be one of the chief features of this species, and they quickly retreat at the sight of one of their brethren falling in battle. Although Fallen seek to congregate together, so far only small encampments have been found, with no obvious overall organization. While there are wild rumours of Fallen Shaman Priests leading camps of Fallen, supposedly with the power to raise them from the dead, this has yet to be substantiated. Carvers and Dark Ones, tougher cousins of the Fallen, have also been seen closer to the fringes of civilization, indicating that the Brothers' sway may be stronger than previously understood.

SuperUnique Fallen

There were several memorable SuperUnique fallen heroes found in Diablo II. It's unknown if any of these will return in D3, or if the Fallen heroes we do see will pay some sort of homage to their predecessors. The following links point to the appropriate SuperUnique pages in the D2 wiki.

• Bishibosh
• Rakanishu
• Colenzo the Annihilator
• Snotspill

Diablo 3 Fallen Media

Fallen of all types are featured in screenshots and concept art in the Image Gallery.

• Fallen in Act One Screenshots.
• Fallen in Act Two Screenshots.
• Fallen Monster Art.

• 

  Fallen Battle Portrait

• 

  Fallen Imp

• 

  Fallen Lunatic

• 

  Fallen Hound

• 

  Fallen Overseer

• 

  Fallen Shaman

• 

  Army of different Fallen

• 

  Fallen Overseer raging Fallen Imps into a frenzy

• 

  Fallen concept art.

• 

  Fallen Imp concept art.

• 

  Fallen silhouettes. Queen?

• 

  Mega spawn of Fallen, from early development days.

References

• Abd al-Hazir's 10th entry - Fallen Ones
• Diablo I Manual
• Diablo II Manual

Fallen battle portrait.