Who is Elias and what role might he play in the future of Diablo 4?

One of the most pivotal figures in Diablo 4 is Elias, a former Horadrim who was first introduced in the announcement cinematic. While his origins and powers were still unknown before the launch of the game, those who have played the main campaign to its conclusion have unlocked his backstory. There remains a lot unknown about “the Pale Man,” however, and the role he might play in the future of Sanctuary.

This post contains spoilers for Diablo 4, both the main campaign and side quests. Tread carefully, adventurer!

While Elias may have been unknown to the player, the main NPCs of D4 — the Horadrim members Lorath and Donan — were all too familiar with him, the three of them having worked together in the Horadric order. Elias’ greatest fear was the fate of Sanctuary and the eventual return of the Prime Evils after the events of Diablo 3. Friction between Elias and Lorath grew over the fact that the former had no compunction about using any and all methods to defend humanity while the latter believed there were lines that should not be crossed. Eventually Elias felt he had no choice but to leave the order behind to fulfill his mission.

The Pale Man and Lilith

His initial concern was Rathma, first child of Lilith and Inarius, and the temple where he hoped to gain the wisdom of the first Nephalem in his mission to defend Sanctuary. The information he had learned as a member of the Horadrim aided Elias, and he was eventually to locate Rathma’s temple and the knowledge therein.

Elias’ research among the writings of Rathma led him to a singular conclusion, as aptly noted in the flavor text of the Unique Ring Mother’s Embrace:

“Every tome, every book, every scroll in this temple produces the same answer. The only being willing to stand against the Eternal Conflict, against the Prime Evils, was Lilith.”

While he had become single-minded in his quest to defend Sanctuary, Elias was still pragmatic. Dealing with the children of Hell — or Heaven for that matter — was a prospect fraught with danger, so he sought immortality as a defense. Rathma was also the first Necromancer, and Elias was able to discern a method in the writings to ensure that any death was temporary, and left behind a piece of his finger as a tool for preservation while he went out in search of Lilith.

But Elias hadn’t been able to figure out where Lilith was imprisoned in Sanctuary despite all of his research. However, there was another method he could try: the Tree of Whispers. Of unknown origin, the Tree of Whispers was decorated with the heads of those who had come seeking knowledge from it — and payment for an answer was an eternity hanging from its boughs. Elias was essentially able to “cheat” the Tree by virtue of his immortality, and the Tree told him where Lilith waited.

Elias, priest and target

In preparation for Lilith’s return Elias worked to reform the Triune, the cult created by and in service to the three Prime Evils. Through promises that Lilith would save humanity, he was able to grow the Triune significantly, although their previous devotion to the Prime Evils was not removed simply due to their newfound adherence to Elias’ teachings.

With the Triune behind him and his own immortality as a fallback plan, Elias freed Lilith from the prison where Inarius had placed her. His next mission was to summon the Lesser Evil Andariel into Sanctuary as a source of power to be used to bolster their armies for the assault on Hell, where Lilith’s true target awaited.

Elias was not unopposed at this point, however, as the Tree of Whispers — having realized Elias had a workaround to the required payment for its services — had sent the Witch Taissa after him. But she underestimated Elias, and was captured to be used as the vessel for summoning Andariel… at least until she was rescued by the player and Lorath, who stabbed Elias in the neck, thinking him still mortal. Elias vanishes afterwards, but Loath — and the player — are left with the impression that he simply hadn’t been killed. But it’s not long after that his immortality is clearly revealed, in a series of fights in which he is defeated several times in quick succession. And so Loath, Neyrelle, and the player start searching for the secret that’s keeping him alive.

Even though Elias succeeds in summoning Andariel, he isn’t able to stop this small band, and the hero is able to retrieve the joint of finger keeping Elias alive from the temple of Rathma — and then throw it into a campfire, restoring Elias’ mortality. After one final fight Elias is at last defeated, and the Tree of Whispers claims him for its branches.

Elias and the future of Sanctuary

Elias is now a permanent fixture of the Tree of Whispers, his head dangling amongst all the others. This does not necessarily mean his story has come to an end, though, as there are both direct and indirect ways that he could become a factor in the future.

For one thing, his knowledge is now joined to the Tree therefore it’s assumed he could communicate answers to any questions we might have — although the cost is likely not worth it. That’s not the only way he could influence upcoming events, however.

One thing the Diablo franchise is a fan of is leaving behind documents for the player to read; one can easily imagine that we’ll find “Elias’ Letters to the Western Truine” or similar as we adventure, or perhaps a codex or three with important information we need to defeat whatever perils await us in upcoming content.

There’s also Elias’ pragmatism to consider — he came pretty close to outwitting the ostensibly smartest entity on Sanctuary, and was sure to take ample precautions for dealing with Lilith. While I don’t expect any further resurrections, there is a strong chance that not all of his machinations have been revealed.

Elias is dead, but with immortality as his backup plan we should not expect that we have dealt with him for the last time.