Sescheron

"Baal! The gates of Sescheron have stood for eons beyond remembrance and you shall not breach them now! Remove your foul demons from our lands! We stand on the side of Light. You shall not be allowed to reach Mount Arreat and that which you seek will not be yours!"

- A Barbarian messenger to Baal^(src)

Sescheron

Sescheron was the capital of the Barbarians, prior to its fall to the Army of Destruction. It is located roughly to the south of Harrogath.

Lore

"Ahhh, Sescheron, the once grand capital of the whole of your civilization. Every stone exudes memories of its violent fall."

- Abd al-Hazir^(src)

The gates of Sescheron

Sescheron was an extraordinarily large city; a living symbol of united Barbarian tribes. Its gates guarded the lone path to the Worldstone, and the Children of Bul-Kathos were tasked with defending them. It was believed that the city would never fall, and the people of the Northern Steppes would always stand vigilant.

History

The Day All Hope Was Lost

"I was not at the Barbarian city of Sescheron when Baal lay siege with is armies, though I have read accounts by the few survivors of that assault. They describe the Prime Evil atop his litter, surveying the city with ravenous malice and an insatiable lust for destruction. His vision for Sanctuary was a wasteland stained with blood."

- Lorath Nahr^(src)

By the time of the city's fall, the Barbarians had guarded Sescheron for countless generations. In its last days, it was ruled by Chief Elder Kanai.

Baal's forces attack Sescheron

In 1265, Sescheron was besieged by the Prime Evil Baal and his Army of Destruction during their assault on Mount Arreat. Barbarians from various tribes were present at the city during the siege. Baal was greeted by a lone emissary who demanded that Baal and his forces withdraw, and that the Worldstone would never be his. Infuriated, Baal summoned demonic forces to tear the emissary apart, before letting loose his forces upon the city. Baal had drawn first blood, but in what would be called "the day all hope was lost," far more blood would be spilt.

The gates of Sescheron, breached

Chief Elder Kanai and his people stood their ground against the impossible flood of Baal’s army with every fiber of their being. However, the defenses were overcome and the city was sacked over the course of a single day. There were only a few survivors, and they described Baal as remaining atop his litter, surveying the city with ravenous malice and an insatiable lust for destruction. With Sescheron having fallen, Baal's forces marched on Harrogath, leaving Sescheron in ruins, along with the hopeless madness of a failed people, and the cold, empty shadows of a once mighty civilization.

The Ruins of Sescheron

"The wind blows frozen wisps off snowdrifts, where they’re caught in the decorated grooves of a cold, iron bridge leading to the broken gates of Sescheron. Where once the sights and sounds of a bustling city could be found, now there are only the distant howls of madmen, glimpses of hungry beasts prowling in shadows, and air thick with the palpable weight of shattered hope. Behold, the Ruins of Sescheron."

^(src)

The ruins of Sescheron

Five years after its fall, Sescheron lay infested by Baal's Minions and other demons. With the opening of the Hell Gate, demons from Hell had clear access to Sanctuary, and began moving into the mortal realm, moving against Bitter Hearth. The Barbarians there requested aid from adventurers to thin out the demons before they reached the village.

Twenty years after its fall, Sescheron lay empty, standing in a frozen wasteland. The Hell Gate that had been opened 15 years prior had apparently closed by this point. Monsters came up from the forests and down from the mountains to infest its ruins. Months after the defeat of Malthael, the ruins were explored by the Nephalem and the spirit of Zoltun Kulle, as they sought to recover a Barbarian artifact.

The city ruins are now a dangerous place, infested to the core with khazra, lost demons and all kinds of beasts. However, they all pale in comparison with the Unclean, survivors of the Siege driven mad by Worldstone's destruction. Now a tribe of vicious cannibals, they are the only inhabitants of the ruined city. Other Barbarians spent years trying to rid the Ruins of Sescheron of both vermin and flesh-eaters, but with little to no success.

In-game

The Ruins of Sescheron are available in the Adventure Mode of Diablo III as of patch 2.3.0. Specifically in Act III, near the Arreat Crater.

Known Locations

• Elder Sanctum
• Immortal Throne

Known Inhabitants

• Chief Elder Kanai
• Aletur
• Garan
• Kala
• Korae
• Samae
• Skular
• Tala