Molag Bal

"Revenge? No. I want submission. I want the priest who did this to bend his knee and give me his soul."

- Molag Bal

 (Daedric: ) is the Daedric Prince of domination and enslavement of mortals. He is the creator of Vampires as well.

His main desire is to harvest and consume the souls of mortals and to bring mortals souls into his sway by spreading seeds of strife and discord in the mortal realms. He holds much importance in Morrowind, where he is seen as the archenemy of Boethiah, the Daedric Prince of Plots.

Appearance and personality
"Fool! Did you think Molag Bal, the Lord of Domination, would so easily reward you?"

- Molag Bal

Molag Bal resembles a large, bipedal hybrid of bull and a reptile, and usually appears in a form adorned with horns, fangs, claws, and a long tail. His scaly appearance is matched by his demeanor, as this serpentine Daedric Prince is the master of corruption, and his entire realm of Coldharbour in Oblivion consists of nothing but death and destruction.

Gender
Like all the Daedric Princes, Molag Bal has no definite gender. Most often, however, he appears to his followers as male. Sigillah Parate mentions in her spiritual commentary that she belonged to a cult known as the "Witches of Molag Bal", where Molag Bal often appeared to its members in the guise of a mortal female.

Shrine
"Yes. It's an altar. Men would come and sacrifice the wretched in my name. The weak would be punished by the strong."

- Molag Bal

Molag Bal's shrine can be found in Markarth, in a tunnel underneath the Abandoned House. For a Daedric shrine, it is extremely small, consisting only of a sort of stone basin decorated with a stylized skull. A panel on the floor in front of it can extend spikes in order to trap sacrificial victims. The Rusty Mace — in reality the Mace of Molag Bal — is found here by the Dragonborn. If is installed there will be a shrine inside Castle Volkihar.

Plane of Oblivion
Molag Bal's plane of Oblivion is Coldharbour. The book The Doors of Oblivion says that his plane resembles a copy of Nirn, including the Imperial Palace, but desecrated and ruined. The ground is sludge, the sky is on fire, and the air is freezing.

Morrowind
He is the main source of the obstacles to the Dunmer (and preceding Chimer) people. In the legends, Molag Bal always tries to upset the bloodlines of Houses or otherwise ruin Dunmeri 'purity'. He is also the god of rape and is said to be the father (along with Vivec, whom he seduced) of a population of mutant degenerates living in the Molag Amur region of Morrowind. This race may have been the first eventual vampires, a corruption of Vivec's ties to the Heart of Lorkhan transmitted to mortals. It is possible he assisted Jagar Tharn in his temporary procurement of the Imperial throne. He was also responsible for the destruction of a city at the end of the First Era.

First Era
In 1E 2920, Molag Bal, under the summon of King Dro'Zel of Senchal, destroyed the city of Gilverdale. All the inhabitants were killed in a bright red mist. This Daedric massacre forced Sotha Sil to make a journey to Coldharbour, dealing with some of the prominent Daedric Princes in order to avoid the fate of Gilverdale happening to other cities in Tamriel, as Morrowind was still fighting a war against Cyrodiil.

Molag Bal will appear as the main antagonist in, an MMO recently announced by ZeniMax Online Studios.

Hero of Daggerfall
The Hero of Daggerfall received the Mace of Molag Bal in exchange for eliminating a heretic mage or priest, respectively.

Champion of Cyrodiil
Molag Bal was summoned by the Champion of Cyrodiil. He wanted the Champion to corrupt Melus Petilius, by forcing him to kill with the Cursed Mace. The Champion was able to enrage Petilius causing him to grab the Cursed Mace and use it to kill the Champion. Right before the final blow, Molag Bal transported the Champion back to his shrine and, pleased with job well done, gave him the Mace of Molag Bal. The same weapon was given also by Molag Bal to the Hero of Daggerfall some decades earlier.

Dragonborn
"The Mace of Molag Bal! I give you its true power, mortal. When your enemies lie broken and bloody before you, know that I will be watching."

- Molag Bal During the Fourth Era, the Dragonborn helped a Vigilant of Stendarr named Tyranus investigate suspicious activity at an Abandoned House in Markarth. After arriving in the house, Molag Bal forced them to fight each other resulting in Tyranus's death. Upon speaking with the Daedric Prince, he promised the Dragonborn his mace if he returned Logrolf the Willful, a priest of Boethiah to the abandoned house and made him pledge his soul to Molag Bal. Then the Dragonborn is told to kill the priest with Molag Bal's mace on his altar.

Creator and patron deity
The Dunmeri Temple's doctrine, Vampires of Vvardenfell, Volume II, states that The Daedric Prince Molag Bal is the father of vampires. It is recorded in his "Private Papers of Galur Rithari, Buoyant Armiger". Somehow, the Dunmeri Temple keeps this record from the world, for no clear reason.

Molag Bal as the father of Vampirism is also recorded in the book called "Opusculus Lamae Bal ta Mezzamortie." The book tells a story of Molag Bal, who in his hatred towards Arkay, corrupted the body of a Nedic female, Lamae Beolfag. Lamae later is known as Lamae Bal and she is also known as the Blood Matron and the First Vampire.

Pure-blood vampires are individuals who are granted vampirism directly from Molag Bal, the creator and patron deity of Vampires. It's process is somewhat similar to the creation of the first vampire, Lamae Beolfag. Mortals gain their vampirism through a ritual in which members of a family pledge themselves to Molag Bal. Females like Serana, and her mother Valerica, who survive the horrific ordeal are dubbed "Daughters of Coldharbour".

Galur Rithari, one of the Bouyant Armigers, was cured of Vampirism by Molag Bal.

Evolution
The Vampires of Iliac Bay and Vvardenfell are easily recognized by the common folks, but this is not entirely true for Cyrodilic vampires. It's obvious the Cyrodiil vampires have different blood. They have three states of vampire form; this all depends on the time since feeding. When the Cyrodilic Vampires are well fed, they are rarely recognized by ordinary people and can even walk in daylight.

When they are starving, all the vampire traits are apparent and they cannot fool anyone. This unique trait of Cyrodilic vampires, according to Manifesto Cyrodiil Vampyrum, was a gift from Clavicus Vile. Therefore the Cyrodilic vampires worship Molag Bal and Clavicus Vile.

Trivia

 * According to Darkest Darkness, the crocodile-headed humanoid Daedra called Daedroth are servants of Molag Bal.
 * Molag Bal is voiced by Christopher Corey Smith in Skyrim and by Malcom McDowell in The Elder Scrolls Online
 * In, it is said that pure-blooded female vampires have to "offer themselves" to Molag Bal. Serana says that those who survive become Daughters of Coldharbour, indicating that the ritual is traumatic. If asked, Serana refuses to talk about it, saying only that it was "degrading", indicating that he perhaps rapes the women in service to him.
 * It is likely the name Molag Bal intentionally resembles "Moloch Baal". Moloch and Baal were originally names for a Semetic deity who was portrayed in the Old Testament of the Bible as a "false god" worshipped by Israel's enemies and later in Western grimoires as a demonic figure who likely served as inspiration for Molag Bal.  He almost physically resembles Baphomet, the demon who is the icon in Satanism.