The Functionaries of a Thousand Hells

Tall and immaculate, these beings take the form of mortal functionaries, save for some inhuman aspect.  Six fingers or three eyes or fangs instead of teeth, things begins delight in the screams of the guilty.  Though usually tall and authoritative, they seem to belong to whatever place are summoned to.  Despite this, however, they are universally unsettling.  

They do tend toward a fondness for wide-brimmed hats, though...


Though the Functionaries vary wildly in form and personality, they do have certain traits in common.  They delight in suffering, especially that caused to the sinful.  They are also incredibly vindictive and legalistic, viewing every infraction of morality as needing to be scourged from an individual.  Finally, and perhaps perversely, they are intensely hidebound.  While deathly beings mostly concerned with torture, they cannot act against their nature.  


There Must I Ever Be
The justice of the Hells are inescapable. Those whom the Functionaries have marked for purging cannot escape. They have the ability to manifest in the presence of a being so marked, regardless of distance or obstruction. The Minsters are also fond of ambush tactics, allowing a subject to escape only to reappear later when their guard has lowered.  

System:  Teleportation power.  The Functionary can teleport to a space within 10 meters of a subject, provided it can occupy the space.  This manifestation can vary based on the nature of the demon: a swarm of flies, smoke, or simply walking into a room despite the their being no path from that direction.  Note that the Minister can use this power to teleport a subject with them provided it is within the scope of their mandate.  

A Stranger Come Knocking
The demons are not natives to this world. Though the forms manifested by Jia are but hollow shadows, they are still puissant enough to give even the strongest hero pause. The Functionaries cannot be harmed by mortal means, and even supernatural ones are limited.  The manifestation of this effect can vary; from a body made of insects to flesh that does not part despite what is done to it.

System: 'Normal' Invulnerability; Resistance to Powers; Powers that specifically invoke a Bane or target Demons have full effect.

The Instruments of Suffering
Every Functionary tends to invoke a theme, typically based on a favored sin or a Hell they are associated with.  From men made of maggots to tall women with claws for hands, these torturers have all manner of sights to show their victims.  

Systems:  'Torture' power; essentially a personal weapon or short ranged effect that causes damage.  Though these are specific to each demon, they cannot reach far beyond their 'space' and are designed more to create harm and horror than death.  They have the virtue of being able to bypass many defenses, however.  


Succor the Innocent
The wicked must suffer; the innocent must be guided.  The Functionary's role is to cleanse a soul that it might be made pure in order to achieve reincarnation.  When a soul is purified, the demon no longer has any sway over it.  Indeed, they are charged with guiding a the unburdened to their next stage in the cycle of life and death.

System: The torturer will not harm an innocent, and will indeed act to move them to a place of safety within their reach.  

Children of a Dark Sun
The vessels that the Emissaries use are based on Lu Wei Jia's own power, which is heavily Yin infused.  High concentrations of Yang energies will disrupt their shells and allow them to be harmed.  Sunlight, fresh cut greenwood, and other strong representations of the positive life force will enact telling blows.

System:  Though the Functionaries are robust, Yang-infused objects or entities can harm them.

Savor their Screams
As beings created to cause suffering, so too does suffering sustain them.  Despair is their broth and pain is their meat, and they are gluttonous beings.  While this is typically not an issue outside of the hells, being trapped in a relatively peaceful world is perhaps the worst crash diet imaginable.  

System:  Though Jia can call them forth into this world, the demons cannot ignore their needs.  A Functionary must cause some significant source of pain at least every 4 hours, or immediately begin to dematerialize.  

The Power of Redemption
There are certain religious practices that allow the redemption of the soul through mortal agents or acts of self-chastisement.  From the giving of confession to self-flagellation to a small girl's prayer, each of these has the power to wash the soul clean if done sincerely.  

System: The goal of the Functionaries is to redeem the irredeemable, but a sincere cleansing of sin while in their presence will cause the person to be regarded as an innocent.  

Bound by Red Tape
The torturers summoned are many things: demonic, unrelenting, and bureaucratic.  The formalities must be observed when purging a sinner, after all, and the correct form presented in the correct way can bar them.  Indeed, even an objection to the execution of their office can result in a pause.

System:  Legalistic in the extreme, the Ministers of Transcendent Suffering can be barred by bureaucratic log jams.  Note that both Ancient Chinese Imperial Law as well as the Law of the Local Jurisdiction both apply.

Loquacious
The Functionaries summoned by Lu Wei Jia are diligent in their duties, but it is a bad habit of theirs that they like to talk at length regarding a number of topics.  Loquacious and intelligent, they will often pontificate about the nature of man and the role of sin in the nature of the universe. Engaging in a philosophical or intellectual debate can stall the Dread Minsters from their purpose.

System:  Challenging the Functionary on an intellectual level will often cause them to pause to engage rather than immediately carry out their duties.  Note that this must actually be engaging.  Asking what the definition of is will just be regarded as asinine.