- "We have Ozzie who... ok, he's not all bad, but he did make a pass at Lily at some point which I found very offensive! I've seen better fire twirling from Envy demons! Then we have Belphegor! The insufferable layabout who never shut his yap about sleeping and ALWAYS ran late to our rehearsals. Then Beelzebub, who wouldn't be so annoying if wasn't constantly eating all the food in our gatherings with that constant smug, self-satisfied smirk on his stupid, bug-eyed face. Then Mammon, who ripped off my beloved Lu Lu World! I mean... I don't BLAME him for wanting to mimic my genius ideas, but he could have asked! And don't get me started on Leviathan.... (Lucifer rubs his brow, as if the mere thought of Leviathan brings him physical pain) A total party-pooper who spent all his centuries moaning and groaning about how unfair everything was and how he never could be as perfect as me. He should have accepted his place and realized that none could hope to measure up to me. There's nothing worse than a bitter, self-pitying, entitled crybaby with zero respect for his superiors. All I wanted was a troupe of loyal disciples to bring their own, fun flavor of sin AND INSTEAD I WAS FUCKED WITH THESE CLOWNS!!!! ...and I mean 'clowns' derogatorily!"
- — Lucifer on the Sins.
The Seven Deadly Sins, also known as the Ringleaders, are a class of supernatural entities who each represent one of the cardinal vices. Each of them preside over one of Hell's seven rings (with the exception of the Wrath Ring, which was ruled by Azazel until his death), with the highest-ranking member being the fallen archangel Lucifer Magne, who reigns over the Pride Ring and all of Hell. They are second most powerful class in Hell's hierarchy (only surpassed by the royal Magne family) and collectively serve as the highest authority within Hell itself.
Before they ruled Hell, the Ringleaders were once-close, family-like, traveling circus trope of universal "outcasts" who sought to dazzle everyone with their talents. Upon founding Hell, the Ringleaders traveled the rings, their performances captivating everybody. However they had a falling out as each Ringleader had a very different idea of how to run the "circus". Thus, all members grew to bitterly resent each other and disbanded the troupe, running their respective rings how they pleased.
They are the infernal counterpart of the Seven Heavenly Virtues and their assembly is the Temple of Sin.
History
Background
Billions of years ago, after Lucifer fell from Heaven, the fallen angel came into contact with the archdemons Beelzebub, Belphegor, Asmodeus, Mammon, and Leviathan. Realizing they had a common enemy, that being Heaven, made an agreement to consolidate their immense power by forging an alliance. Seeing themselves as outcasted "freaks" in the eyes of Heaven, the Sins forged a close bond with each other, determined to make their mark on Creation.
Shortly after traveling world-to-world proved ineffective, Lucifer used his divine powers to create the seven rings of Hell to serve as their personal "circus" and, being easily the most powerful among the group, appointed himself as the ringmaster of the Pride Ring and Hell itself. The Sins traveled the seven rings as a circus troupe, captivating billions with their performances. However, the Sins dream of making their marks together fell through when each Ringleader had a significantly different idea of how to run Hell. The Sins went through a brutal falling out over creative differences, which led to a destructive, Hell-wide war where the former performers vied for control over Hell. In the end, Lucifer reigned over the Pride Ring while Asmodeus, Leviathan, Belphegor, Mammon, and Beelzebub were left in control of the Lust, Envy, Sloth, Greed, and Gluttony Ring respectively.
Afterward, the six entities reigned over Hell with an iron fist, amassing an army of millions, and ruled completely unopposed as dictators, establishing the Inferno as a realm of complete sin and evilness, where the strong ruled over the weak and the scum of humanity could indulge in any crime they desired with no repercussions so long as they obeyed the laws set by their sinful monarchs. The six rulers would frequently subject the masses, but more often the dissidents to their rule, to deliberate starvation, hard labor, or unsafe conditions as a power play.
Events of Hazbin Hotel: Journey to the Light
Chapter 3
In the Chapter 3 finale "Despite Everything, It's Still You", Lucifer called forth Leviathan, Beelzebub, Mammon, Asmodeus, and Belphegor to his castle for an important discussion. Once the gathering commenced, King of Hell informed his cohorts that his daughter, Charlie, had brought the angel Manco, as well as seven other angels into Hell intending to shelter them until she could find a method to return the children to Heaven, which both intrigued and agitated the demonic rulers. Mammon and Beelzebub were angered over the presence of angels in Hell, while Leviathan claimed that their presence was a clear violation of the laws between Heaven and Hell. With malevolent intentions in mind, Lucifer reminded his cohorts that while angels are protected in Heaven, Manco and the other children were now "fair game" as they were in Hell. The King of Hell wickedly asked his partners if they knew what happened to "rule breakers", to which Beelzebub, Leviathan, Mammon, and Asmodeus responded by smiling maliciously.
Chapter 4
In the Chapter 4 finale "It's Never Too Late", the remaining members of the Ringleaders gathered at Lucifer's castle to discuss the deaths of Leviathan and Belphegor and the aftermath of Leviathan's hostile attempt of taking over all of Hell. Lucifer, in a fit of rage, destroys Leviathan's chair for the betrayal, while claiming that he should have known that the erased King of Envy would betray him one day, to which Asmodeus responded that his betrayal was rather obvious, due to erased sea serpent's title. Asmodeus expresses annoyance for God not erasing Leviathan and having the Ringleaders deal with him instead after the Almighty banished to their realm and that his flood managed to destroy Ozzie's as a result and mockingly calling him a "Loser", while mildly upset about Belphegor's demise, all while the rest of the Ringleaders agree that the former fallen angel was a "prick" and are all too happy to forget about him. The Sins discuss about a vast number of Hell's population uniting together against the Ringleaders. Lucifer sat down and begin deviously informing his allies on their next moves and plans on destroying new threats that are uniting against them.
Members
- Lucifer Magne: The head Ringleader, ruler of the Pride Ring and Deadly Sin of Pride. Regarded as the most powerful angel in all creation, Lucifer was once the most beloved Prince of Heaven, however he turned against his family, and subsequently waged a devastating war against him in an attempt to overthrow him and rule all of creation. He was ultimately cast out from the heavenly plane, from thereon he founded the Seven Deadly Sins and created the Seven Rings of Hell. He is easily the strongest in the group and the sovereign of the entire Inferno.
- Satan: Satan is an enigmatic fallen member of the Light Beyond the Stars who is currently imprisoned in Purgatory. It serves as the leader and creator of the Army of Darkness, as well as acting as the master of Lucifer and Beelzebub, although it and Lucifer are more so equals than master and servant. Due to its hatred for all life and the sadistic joy it gains from the horrific torment of others, it represents the sin of Wrath. It is a member by technicality and does not rule over the Wrath Ring.
- Leviathan Von Eldritch: Leviathan was the covetous and traitorous Deadly Sin of Envy, and the water performer when the Sins were a troupe. Formerly a vicious sea monster that terrorized Earth, Leviathan held Lucifer in great contempt for his superior power and reputation, scheming to usurp the King of Hell's throne for himself. He was considered the "black sheep" of the Sins and was a figure of ridicule within their circle, which only increased his resentment of them. He was the patriarch of the Von Eldritch family, one of Hell's most prestigious and respected families, and formerly the long-time family friend of the Magne family.
- Beelzebub: An entity known for hoarding food for himself and thriving off of the flesh of Hell's lowborn, Beelzebub was a sadistic and voracious spider demon and the Deadly Sin of Gluttony, and the former troupe's trapezist. He was one of the more mysterious members of the Ringleaders, as he rarely made public appearances, only showing up to events when Lucifer himself ordered him to.
- Asmodeus: Charming, domineering, aberrant in every sense of the word, Asmodeus is the Deadly Sin of Lust and the troupes magician and fire twirler. He presides over Lust, tempting others into submitting to and embracing their sexual desires, and sending succubi and incubi to Earth to spread lust and degeneracy. He is one of the more neutral and reasonable members of the Seven, although still quite malevolent.
- Mammon: Seeking to financially own the entirety of Hell through his businesses, Mammon is the shameless, acquisitive, and corrupt Deadly Sin of Greed and the clown of the troupe. He is the owner of the Moneymakerz Bank and the Mint City Casino, a famous and beloved rock star, and the former owner of the destroyed knock-off theme park, Loo Loo Land. Mammon's insufferable and exploitative demeanor has earned him the title of the most openly disliked member within the Ringleaders' circle. Among them, Lucifer, Asmodeus, and Leviathan hold the strongest contempt for him.
- Belphegor: Belphegor was the languorous and incompetent Deadly Sin of Sloth and the troupe's animal tamer. A fallen angel who developed advanced technology designed to seduce or corrupt others into depending on technology for everything, thus removing them of their free will and rendering their lives completely automated. He was the CEO and namesake of Belphe-Tech, a company that developed most of Hell's technology. Having terrorized Hellhounds and used them for entertainment in his circus acts, he is responsible for the system in which Hellhounds are treated as an inferior slave race.
Gallery
Trivia
- They are based on the real-life demons known as the Seven Princes of Hell from Binsfeld's classification of demons.
- Much like the canon Sins, each Ringleader is based on a one or two particular circus acts, befitting the general circus theme Hell has going on.
- Lucifer, being the King of Hell, represents the ringleader, with the demons and sinners of his domain serving as his "freaks".
- Beelzebub, who can contort his body in unlimited ways, fly, and crawl on walls, represents contortionists and other athletic performances, such as flying trapeze.
- Asmodeus, being a master of illusion, represents magicians and illusionists.
- Mammon obviously represents clowns, jesters, and merchandisers, being a clown himself and ruling over a capitalist ring populated by clown demons.
- Belphegor, who forced Hellhounds to wear shock collars and kept his denizens in a state of indolence and depression, represents animal tamers.
- Satan represents pyrotechnic stunts such as fire breathing and fire performances.
- Leviathan, a sea-dwelling creature, represents high-divers and water performers.
- In addition to their circus theme, each sin is themed after a particular genre of music:
- Lucifer's genre is polka and Broadway-style musical theatre.
- Asmodeus' genre is pop and soul.
- Mammon's genre is rock 'n' roll/hard/glam rock.
- Belphegor's genre is synthwave and chill-hop.
- Leviathan's genre is emo and hardcore punk, as well as swing.
- Beelzebub's genre is Halloween-themed novelty.
- Satan's genre is avant-garde metal and orchestral.
- Despite being a collective class, the Seven Deadly Sins hardly actually associate with each other, all of them still bitter and harboring resent towards certain other members for their falling out. They very rarely meet together and when they do, there is almost always a fight.
- The one exception to this is Asmodeus, who is on friendly terms with all the other Ringleaders, except Mammon and Leviathan.
- The series creators have said that the Ringleaders were made to be a dark parallel to the hotel crew (mainly Charlie, Angel Dust, Alastor, Husk, Niffty, Mimzy, and Baxter). In addition, they describe the Ringleaders as a dysfunctional, twisted family of sorts, and that they hold gatherings and get into "sitcom-level, royal bullshit shenanigans" a lot.
- The series creators have said that there are two different types of Ringleaders, that being the "nice ones" ("nice" being by Hell standards) and the "assholes"; Lucifer, Asmodeus, and Beelzebub are the nice ones, while Satan, Belphegor, Mammon, and Leviathan are the assholes.
- They hold "family gatherings" at the Temple of Sin every year or so.
- Within the Ringleaders' circle, Mammon is the most unpopular and disliked by his fellow peers, mainly for his habit of meddling with the other rings by paying demons to steal valuables from his fellow Ringleaders and bring it to him. While Leviathan is not popular among the Ringleaders, the Sins don't really dislike him as much as they simply don't take him seriously.
- During the Ringleaders war for control over the seven rings, Wrath was notably the only ring that was not claimed by any of the Ringleaders. This was both due to Wrath having an "undesirable" imp population, and because most of Wrath's inhabitants were born of incest, and not even the Deadly Sins wanted any part of that.
- The members of the Ringleaders (except Lucifer and Satan) have the title "Great King" in their Rings.
- Lucifer mentions that he sometimes makes the other Ringleaders count his rubber duck collection as a power move and for his own amusement.
- Lucifer actively holds tryouts to find replacements for Belphegor (this was before Belphegor's death btw, so he's not even trying to find a new Sin of Sloth he just really fucking hates Bel. And honestly? He's cooking, ngl).
- Since Leviathan, Belphegor, and Beelzebub's deaths, the Ringleaders' dynamics were thrown off, causing them to interact even less; Leviathan wasn't there to be the punching bag, Beelzebub wasn't there to eat all the food at their family dinner, and Belphegor wasn't there to be that uncle that says racist shit at the family dinner.
- They are ranked as the second highest class in Hell's hierarchy, just behind the royal family, including Charlie and Lilith Magne, and the highest of all, Lucifer.
- Despite it being their official title, the group is never actually referred to as the "Seven Deadly Sins" in-universe. Instead, they are either called the "Ringleaders", "Great Kings of Rings", "Rulers of Sin", or simply "The Sins".
- Each of the Ringleaders possess their own businesses - or have a business themed after them - which they use to facilitate and profit off the sins of sinners and demons. They include:
- Lucimaster for Lucifer.
- Lustinder for Asmodeus.
- Satan's Workouts for Satan.
- Bee Eats for Beelzebub.
- Moneymakerz Bank for Mammon.
- Sleepy Pillz for Belphegor.
- Envee for Leviathan.