There are plenty of ghosts, liches, and spectres in games set in Renaissance and Medieval times. But how did people at the time, in our world, explain things like static electricity and diabetes? Robert Burton (1577-1640), in investigating depression in his Anatomy of Melancholy, digressed into a study of spirits, or devils, explaining that the air is full of devils all the time. The existence of devils explained all the weird things that happened that couldn’t be otherwise explained. However, combined with the Greek idea that all dichotomies have their equal opposites, angels appeared to be sorely lacking:

If God’s angels matched the Devil’s minions in extent and power, if they were just as ubiquitous, just as smart and maybe smarter than their counterparts, then why were angels so relatively absent from human life, and unable or unwilling to do as much good for humans as the devils were to do harm? If the Devil gave false (though usable) goods, shouldn’t angels proffer modest but real goods? It was generally agreed that we are each accompanied by our own angel guardian as well as our demon tempter, right shoulder and left shoulder, but the angel seemed always short on tangible rewards. You could sell your soul to Lucifer; why couldn’t you make a profitable covenant with Michael?

While some records of angelic magic exist, it’s for things like sending messages, not to have impressive power over others. So I can sacrifice the life of a child for increased stats in Dragon Age, but I can’t sell my soul to angel for increased righteousness? Sometimes being righteous is so unfair.