Lesser demon
Lesser Demons are the lower of the two classifications of demon. This includes but is by no means limited to minor demons. Demons of the lesser class range in power from weak, nonsentient animals to powerful sentient beings, capable of destructive magic or possessing significant battle prowess.
Lesser Demon is also synonymous for the upper level demons of the lesser demon class. To elaborate, minor demons are the weakest of the lesser demon class, and lesser demons are the strongest of the lesser demon class. Lesser demons are also sometimes called greater demons, to avoid confusion between the class and the specific designation assigned to upper level lesser demon class. This has caused significant confusion of its own, creating confusion over whether or not the person is speaking of lesser demons or demons of the major class.
Lesser demons can be only be summoned by the most powerful beings and the Faendryl. This information is considered by the Faendryl to be a tactical superiority, and as such, the knowledge is not shared. The summoning of lesser demons is rather complicated, and only the strongest summoners can keep a lesser demon under his or her control without much effort. In the hands of a weaker summoner, lesser demons can break free and attack whoever they desire, most often the summoner.
Behind the Scenes
The term "lesser demon" has warped over the years. When it was used in the first base History of Elanthia document, lesser demons were those summoned by spell slot 714 which would have inflicted elemental damages, while specific kinds of demons of varying powers would have been summoned by spell 725. The repel spells in the Cleric base list at the time scaled the power of the undead relative to the demonic, where "lesser demonic" was Level 16 to 25 and "greater demonic" was above Level 25. GemStone III was a much lower leveled game when this document was written. The lesser demonic would have been more powerful than the bulk of Despana's horde, and under the Rolemaster conception the mindless undead probably would have had no instinct to fight them, possibly even obeying them. The banshees were the most powerful undead at the time being around Level 50. The Legend of the Necropolis of Etrevion had earlier used "minor demonic", which may have been even lower than Level 10.