The Emperor's Fist - Lagash's Legions

By sword and spell, by steel and fire, by duty and sacrifice.

— Lagash 1st Legion's motto

Lagash is a single city that sprawls wide enough to consume countries and city-states whole. It's borders are vast and varied, much like the inhabitants within the planar scattered ruins that make up for its cityscape. To defend both border and citizen, to conquer new lands, and to punish the emperor's numerous enemies, the city raises its Legions to be the sword, shield, and avenging hammer of the Empire-City.
In times of peace - and they are as scarce as diamonds in a heap of horse dung - the legions disband and settle conquered lands or are rewarded with managerial positions among the city's many districts. In war, they march, ever onwards, ever to battle. Now, the trumpets of war herald an age of war unlike any before it, and the call has gone out through the city for its citizens to join the rank of the legions.

by Pixabay

Every legion is different, branded by its function and the personality of its commander. The Emperor allows the Legion cohorts great leeway in how they arm and recruit, as long as they get the job done - the Sewer Raptors, for example, eschew heavy armor entirely but have become experts in marshlands, swamps, and sewer fighting.
Most legions, however, are relatively straight-forward and similar. They are a mix of a citizen levy, usually comprising of slingers, skirmishers, and light infanstry, and a core of professional warriors in heavy arms and armor. Richer citizens are allowed to send indentured servents on their behalf, and it is a mark of some prestige to raise more than required for the Empire's legions, even if the commanders themselves might find it more a headache than helpful to suddenly recieve a thousand slave-warriors.

by http://www.tribalartasia.com/

Every kind of creature calls Lagash home, from humans to the four-armed, insectoid Aragashi. As a result, the ranks of a legion can be a chaotic, colorful one.

These regular forces are supported by many but weak wizards that act as both artillery or by bolstering the warriors with enchantments. The Imperial Wizards are key to the Empire's fighting sources, able to neutralize (or at least face) threats that take no heed of steel, sling, or arrow. In addition, the same wizards and the sources of the city allow the Legions to summon many, though usually weak, magical creatures to supplement the mortal forces. Each Legion has their own way of using them, with "suicidal charge" remaining a favorite.
Then, there are the legendary (and infamous) Free-Leagues. These are irregulars and mercenaries of a thousand different kidns from within Lagash, all usually operating some minor racket or scheme within the city, from fighting in the sewers to exploring the Gloom. In times of serious war, and such time are now upon us, the Emperor hands out mercenary contracts like raindrops in a storm. Every fighting outfit is thrown together and sent to the mix, where they either fight according to their speciality, or are poorly used by idiots who then blame them.
Many simple loot, pillage, and make an awful lot of noise among the enemies of Lagash, which is sometimes just as well. Compared to the well-ordered, well-equipped ranks of the legion's regular forces, the Free-Leagues fighters are hopelessly mismatched, diverse, and chaotic.