Bastion Elites

Standing guard in the deeps of the world, protecting Bastion and the surface world, the Bastion Elites are a powerful force of Dwarfs dedicated to the duty of exploring the Titanic Deeps and protecting against incursions from Elementals. They wield weapons and wear armor that never sees the light of the surface, secretly standing their duty where the rest of the world will hopefully never know of them.

An Honor and a Service

The true nature of what the Elites fight against is not fully known across the whole of Bastion. Most dwarfs know that the Deeps are dangerous and that there are enemies of powerful stature. The existential threat posed by elemental chaos is not one that is widely known, however. The threat that the Elites fight against is not exactly kept secret - dwarven society is not one of keeping secrets from their people - but those that face it are not often keen to talk about it.
Members of the Elite who are on leave or who have retired from the force - most terms of service within the Elites last around ten years - do not tend to make a large deal about their service. Dwarfs on the whole value humility and respect for the contributions of others. So while a lot of dwarfs know that the Elites perform an important duty and grant them a huge level of respect for what they do, the true nature of what they stand against is not common knowledge.

A Hand Picked Elite Force

Dwarfs are chosen to serve in the Elites after proving themselves for years within their clan. The bulk of the Elites are from the various military-focused clans, who gain experience through fighting the more mundane enemies the dwarfs face while expanding underground - enemies such as Deep Goblins, Minotaurs, and occasionally Ratlings. Those that prove themselves as skilled, steady, and stout-hearted are put forth for selection by their clan leadership.

Other clans also lend their support to the Elites. Knowledge is extremely important so there are always Archivists around. The Elites wield extraordinary weapons and even large battle machines in their fight; crafters, machinists, blacksmiths, and others are chosen to directly support those creations. Magic users of all types spend years supporting units in their training and battles. The whole of Bastion's society is structured in a way that those with excellence are easily recognized, and their contributions are easily leveraged where needed.

Advanced Weapons and Armor

The dwarfs in the Elites frequently face enemies of enormous stature, and must manage extremes of temperature and darknessd both from the environment and their enemies. They have, over the centuries, developed many specialized tools for these fights.
The most prominent mark of a member of the Elites will usually be their stark white armor. Crafted of ceramic plates overlaying a metallic framework, Elite armor is designed to dissipate heat as well as to deflect blows. Its strength is not as high as that of well-crafted steel but it is significantly lighter and it's much easier to swap out a cracked ceramic plate than to repair a dented steel armor piece. Similarly, dwarven crafters have developed weapons imbued with cold or with elements designed to dissipate or disrupt heat - both magical and mundane - as well as weapons designed to penetrate rocky "armor".

The most powerful weapon of the dwarfs - and one that would absolutely shock anybody from the surface - air their gigantic mechanical suits of armor. Resembling nothing so much as a twelve foot tall dwarf, the machines stride through underground caverns to do battle with enormous elementals, trading blows and firing magic-powered weapons into them. Battles between these battlesuits and the mightiest elementals is a sight that would astonish even the most jaded of the Mages, and the thundering blows dealt in these fights can leave entire cave systems collapsed under the tectonic shaking caused by their impacts.

Risk of Death - and Worse

Main Article - Service in the Elites is dangerous, though that does go without saying. Risk of debilitating injury or death is assumed; serving in any military group carries that, much less one facing such an extreme environment. But death is not the worst potential risk faced by the Elites. Certain sorts of Elementals, with particularly strong magical personalities, are capable of possession.

When one of these powerful elementals attacks, it does so with such a forceful magical attack, carrying a strength of chaotic will, that it is capable of overwhelming a mortal's mind. If an Elite suffers an attack from one of these, and is unable to fend off the will of the elemental (extremely difficult even before factoring in that it may be attacking physically as well), the elemental could take absolute control of its mind and body.
A dwarf possessed in this way feels their mind being chained, shoved into the back of its consciousness. Their body ignites into flames, the magic of their soul enflamed. The dwarf's comrades witness this possession with horror and must defend against another suddenly present enemy. A possessed that is not captured or killed will then be a lone horror, lurking within the Titanic Deeps, seeking out others to attack and potentially turn into their own thralls and minions.