The High Heavens are the spiritual location of the forces on the side of the Light, described by the Archangel Inarius as "a place of eternal illumination". The armies of Heaven, or the Heavenly Host, are commanded by the five ruling Archangels of the Angiris Council. The Council usually gathers in the legendary Silver City.

ConflictEdit

The war between the High Heavens and the Burning Hells had been raging long before the time of mortals, with both sides having gained and lost much from the conflict. Heaven strove for discipline and order, upholding the ideals and virtues of Justice, Hope, Wisdom, Fate and Valor, while Hell in contrast worked to corrupt, seduce, and entice all into the ways of Destruction, Terror and Hatred. The High Heavens believe in the preservation of an absolute, unquestionable, and perfect order for all non-demonic beings, attempting to instill a resilience of character and a strength in virtue within the peoples of Sanctuary, who exist dangerously vulnerable to the taint of demonic influence.

(From The Kingdom of Shadow)

The archangel had opened the very gates of Heaven to the mortals of Ureh, opened to them a place where not even all three Prime Evils combined could have made the slightest incursion. All the people of Ureh had to do was find their way there.

Captain Dumon had always imagined Heaven as a place of light, a place where darkness could never invade.

The Heart of the High Heavens is the Crystal Arch, a probable analogue to the Burning Hell's Hellforge.

Notably, as Deckard Cain mentions in the Book of Cain, many humans of Sanctuary believe or believed that the souls of the virtuous were committed to the High Heavens (with the spirits of evildoers sent to the Burning Hells), but as Cain notes, there is no evidence as of yet to actually support this belief.

The humans of Sanctuary also call upon the power of the High Heavens in combat with the forces of the Burning Hells. For instance, the Horadrim priest and warrior Cathan found that by invoking the powers of the High Heavens and then infusing them with the essence of Fire, a bolt of great speed and intensity could be created and used by those otherwise untrained in the use of magic against the undead, and skilled Paladins of the benign Zakarum faith, striving to serve the very Light that the Angels themselves follow, can summon the Hammer of Ghrab Thaar and call down lightning from the skies to smite their enemies.

Diablo IIIEdit

In Diablo III, the High Heavens is attacked by Diablo and his Demonic Legion, and the Lord of Terror razes the Diamond Gates for the first time in history. He severly wounds Imperius, and the Host of Heaven is scattered. Diablo sends Iskatu and Rakanoth to stop the nephalem, and they capture Itherael and Auriel. On the way to the Silver Spire, Tyrael and the group of nephalem encounter Tyrael's old lieutenent, Izual, and slay him. Diablo manages to corrupt all of Heaven, until a group of heroes slay him and cast him off the edge of the Silver Spire.

FeaturesEdit

The following are confirmed features and locations of the High Heavens. Many of the listed locations are located within in the Silver City, which is to be visited in the final Acts of the third Diablo game.

• Silver Spire (consisting in-game of five Levels) and the Crystal Arch
• Diamond Gates
• Courts of Justice (domain of Tyrael)
• Gardens of Hope (domain of Auriel)
• Halls of Valor (domain of Imperius)
• Pools of Wisdom (domain of Malthael)
• Library of Fate (domain of Itherael)
• Holy Sanctum
• Blessed Chancel
• Radiant Chapel
• Tabernacle of Light
• Vestibule of Light
• The Crystal Colonnade
• Girth's Ascent

Locations in the Diablo universe
Burning Hells • High Heavens • Pandemonium • Void Sanctuary — Aranoch • Entsteig • Kehjistan • Khanduras • Mount Arreat • Scosglen • Ureh • Westmarch • Xiansai Related — Towns