Satannish

1st app.- Doctor Stange # 175

Satannish (also known as Satannish the Supreme) is in fact a spawn of the extradimensional being known as Dormammu. Dormammu created Satannish of mystical energy and placed him in an extradimensional nether-realm (one of many known as "hell") at the beginning of time. Dormammu hoped that Satannish would work as an unknown agent of his, which he could then subvert control to Dormammu's own dimension and thus rule over more and possibly even Earth.
Satannish became known as one of the Earth's most powerful demons to have dealings with the people of Earth. He hid his true origins by leading people to believe that he originally existed as apart of a great mass of evil mystical energy, which eventually divided itself into a number of individual entities and created entities such as Mephisto and other unidentified demonic beings.
Satannish inhabited a pocket dimension accessible from Earth, and over the centuries he has had frequent dealings with many of the people of Earth. Satannish has granted his human worshippers supernatural powers in exchange for their souls. Many of Satannish's worshippers who have made such bargains with him garbed themselves in red ritualistic costumes and referred to themselves as the Sons of Satannish.
Earth's current Sorcerer Supreme, Doctor Strange, has on occasion invoked Satannish when casting a spell, but he prefers not to do so, since calling on demons for power can be dangerous. Strange, of course, has never traded his soul to Satannish for power. However, Strange's first recorded encounter with Satannish came as a result of such a bargain by a minor mystic named Lord Nekron. Nekron challenged Doctor Strange, intending to defeat him and to present his soul to Satannish in Nekron's place. Strange ultimately defeated Nekron, and Satannish then claimed Nekron's soul, taking him prisoner to his own dimensions.
Shortly afterward, a group of the Sons of Satannish, led by Asmodeous, who was actually Dr. Benton, a respected New York doctor, began to move against Doctor Strange. Asmodeus ultimately stole the Book of the Vishanti, Strange's greatest collection of occult lore, and banished Strange, Clea, and even his fellow Sons of Satannish to other the dimensions. Asmodeus set in motion a spell to destroy the world but was ultimately died in battle with Strange. Strange and Clea rescued the other Sons of Satannish from Tiboro's world, and Strange used certain crystals filled with Satannish's own power to combat the two creatures unleasehed by the spell.
Later, Satannish gave Asmodeus the chance to returned to life if he could capture another soul to give Satannish in exchange for Asmodeus' own. Asmodeus attacked the Defenders, a team that then included Doctor Strange, intending to turn the souls of Strange and the other active members to Satannish. But the Defenders thwarted Asmodeus, who was unable to defeat them before the time limit Satannish gave him expired. Hence, Satannish carried off Asmodeus' soul instead.
Strange teamed with Mephisto and other demons as a member of the Six-Fingered Hand. Recently, a figure with supernatural powers who attempted to ensnare the soul of Glorian claimed to be Satannish in disguise.
Strange's longtime rival, Baron Karl Mordo, made bargains with both Mephisto and Satannish, each of whom intended to claim Mordo's soul for his own and was willing to destroy the Earth to prevent the other demon from getting the soul intended. Mephisto and Satannish waged a great battle over Manhattan, unseen by most of its residents. Finally, Strange cast a spell that would cause Mephisto and Satannish to merge back into a single being unless they left the Earth. Each unwilling to sacrifice his own individuality, Mephisto and Satannish fled back to their respective dimensions before the merger became irreversible. Apparently the to demons have renounced their claims on Mordo's soul.
At one point, Satannish made a deal with actor Jason Roland, who had previously traded his humanity with another demon in exchange for fame in the movie business and, as a result, had gained a body that resembled his movie-monster costume and make-up. Satannish gave Roland his original appearance back as well as the powers to become the second Hangman. On behalf of Satannish, the Hangman sought out the villain team Night Shift, and its members also received enhancements to their powers from Satannish. The Hangman then led the Night Shift against the Avengers' West Coast branch, resulting in a battle that would be filmed by numerous local reporters and worldwide cable stations.
Satannish hoped that the resulting battle would allow Satannish to manifest on Earth, and, by way of his televised appearance, he would be able to take the souls of all who viewed him. The Avengers' Scarlet Witch managed to contact Doctor Strange, who in return made the members of the Night Shift realize they had been tricked by Satannish and the Hangman. They betrayed Satannish, forcing him to flee to his native plane. Just before he disappeared completely, he managed to take the soul of Jason Roland, the Hangman, with him.
Dormammu later tried a direct invasion to invade and take over the regions of Hell, beginning the with realm of Mephisto. Mephisto joined with fellow Hell-rulers Satannish and Daimon Hellstrom (Hellstorm) to oppose him, but was betrayed by Satannish, who revealed his true origins as a "stalking horse" for Dormammu. Dormammu and Satannish nearly succeeded in annexing Mephisto's realm, but the hero Hellcat, who had stumbled onto the plot, managed to bring together the Hell-rulers Hellstorm, Pluto, and Hela to defeat Dormammu. Mephisto destroyed Satannish with a blast of mystical energy as he reclaimed his world.
Then Dormammu revealed his ace in the hole-- that Satannish was in fact a demon of his own creation and was the demon who had fathered Hellstorm. This allowed Hellstorm to assume control over Satannish's realm. Dormammu had planned this so that if Satannish's attack failed, he would still have a second hidden agent and gain an edge with dominion over more dimensions of Hell. However, Dormammu was ultimately defeated. Hellstrom inherited Dormammu's right to rule. Even so, without his "fathers" to back him up, Hellstorm was forced to retreat to his own dimension