Horadrim

History

In the year 1004, the Prime Evils found a way to Sanctuary. Archangel Tyrael came to Sanctuary and gathered various mortal heroes to create the Horadrim. Tyrael bestowed the Soulstones upon them and tasked them with tracking down and imprisoning the Prime Evils. Five years later, Mephisto is captured near the jungles of Kahjistan and imprisoned under a Zakarum temple in what will eventually become Kurast. One year later, Baal is tracked to the desert near Lut Gholein. In their fight, Baal damaged the Soulstone, breaking it into pieces. The Horadrim feared that the largest shard of Soulstone would not be enough to contain the demon, so Tal Rasha, leader of the Horadrim, sacrificed himself to capture Baal in the damaged Soulstone. The Soulstone shard was driven into Tal Rasha's chest and he was bound by magic to wrestle with Baal for all eternity under the sands of Aranoch. In the year 1019, Diablo was finally captured by a group of Horadrim monks led by Jered Cain. The monks buried Diablo's Soulstone near the river Talsande in Khanduras and a Horadric monastery with a network of catacombs was built over the burial spot. Six years later, the town of Tristram was established around the Horadric monastery. In the year 1080, the Horadric monastery in Tristram was abandoned. Twenty years later, with no quests left to undertake, the Horadrim faded into history and legend.

During Diablo

Deckard Cain, who calls himself "the last of the Horadrim," is the descendant of Jered Cain. Deckard gives you tid bits of information about the town members and what's going on in Tristram, but he is just as clueless as everyone else in his knowledge of what is going on in the old Horadric monastery. It is only after the events unfold that he is able to write about them in his Journal.

During Diablo II

Once again, Deckard Cain is the only living contact you have of the Horadrim. This time around, however, the events surrounding the Horadrim are presented more directly. In Diablo II, we learn about Tal Rasha's sacrifice and the player also finds a couple of the Horadric artifacts, including the Horadric Cube and the Horadric Staff.

After Diablo II

It is unclear what has happened after the Worldstone's destruction by Tyrael, but the trailer and game-play footage shown at WWI in 2008 makes it clear that Deckard Cain does have a relative. This no doubt means that the story of the Horadrim will continue in Diablo III.