The Widow's Legion
"When the seven gods of Ozlith ventured into the domain of war, it was the widow who chose to focus on the cost, while her fellow gods latched onto things like joy, skill, and coordination. A goddess of death and rebirth, The Widow found herself at home on the battlefield. She was determined to do what the others would not. To join her legion, you will pay a price. " ~Ozlith: The Birth of an Empire and the Seven Legions
Due to some arcane power, the heart of the man is removed. The nominubus is removed, grown dirty over time, as the one woman capable of removing it was dead. It would be flipped and painted over with a black ichor. The festering wound would never heal and a miasma of death radiates from the man as he enters his new unlife.
Outfitting
They learned the art of death, forcing their fallen enemies to rise and fight their countrymen. The widowers were always silent, methodical and the miasma made them as much a liability as an asset. Widowers were only used in dire circumstances.
They showed up when a battle was lost. They were an omen of defeat and failure and were shunned from society.
Not much is known about them, as they kept to themselves and guarded their secrets. Those who wanted to join must be chosen by a priestess and make a pilgrimage to the long-forgotten island of Ozlith, where the empire originated and where the widow was said to live.
Training
Many entries state that when he arrives, the same priestess will transform into a spitting image of the mans wife and the rite, whatever it may be, begins.The widowers rarely fought face to face. Usually the only one's who can get close are those who use the arcane arts.
This is due to the miasma that flows from them. Inhaling the gas is to meet an unpleasant death. The legion was often referred to as "The Last Resort."
They were called when a battle was lost, but needed to be won. The generals of the armies would sound the black horn, a hollowed out fang of a giant eldritch spider. This causes the miasma around them to move and grow and they follow it to the fields of battle to purge it of enemies.
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Oooh.. Interesting! :D The magic part is interesting. How common is it to use magic in war? Has it changed from ancient times when these legions were more active? Is this another legion that is no longer part of the world or are they contemporary? How do they fit into the world now, if they are gone from it? Are there legends, myth and theater plays that feature them? Are there any successor legions who mimick this one, but without its unique magical elements? Keep on WorldEmbering! :D
Creator of Araea, Megacorpolis, and many others.
Thanks so much for commenting. I'm sure i owe several critiques which i will get too. I keep forgetting lol. Magic is commonly used it war and has been since its discovery but this more than magic, its the power of an outsider, a god from, well, somewhere else. Ozlith is inspired by an idea of making a pseudo roman and Greek society that is a cosmic horror itself. The real weirdness of the widows legion is they have their goddess with them and thay power is what radiates from them. A god influencing a battle is unheard of, but outsiders are not bound by cosmic rules. For the most part none of the legions have an active role in the present. They are believed to long dead. Not enough of this legion is known for plays or mimicking sadly. The quotes are from a character my players meet when the legions become particularly important in journeys of the expedition. They meet Mirrah who is kind of a messiah. Ozlith is a lost land that the people of Mhirriah want back and she has promised it. Maybe a little too much info but i think that covers your questions lol thanks again for the comment and I'll return your critique soon :)
A cosmic horror take on the Hellenic/Roman era sounds really fascinating! I look forward to seeing what else comes out of it! Do you think magic will have a soft or a hard system to it? :D
Creator of Araea, Megacorpolis, and many others.
Its actually a weird combination of both. Lore wise magic has a lot of fluff, especially enchantment which gets complicated and often times is more a method of showing off than efficiency due to how easy it can be to make a mistake. The sanguine legion were the first to use blood magic which is much softer than enchantment. So i guess it depends on the genre of magic you use and what kind of practitioner you are. More a matter of preference lol Bards cheat the magic mages use through art for example