The Mantid

The Temple of Metamorphosis is a cult that worships an entity that whispers from behind a doorway deep in Hell. Those who listen undergo spiritual, mental and physical transformation.

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Accounts speak of sprawling factories made of mutilated flesh and metal, their forges yielding endless munitions for the ongoing war. Guided by the teachings of Tartarus’ smiths, alchemists toil over colossal weapons and armoured behemoths, wielding the forbidden secrets of their patrons’ metallurgy to forge instruments of death and suffering beyond the grasp of any human engineer. These are once-proud cities of Earth, where churches have been toppled and entire populations are now dedicated towards bringing down the very Throne of Heaven.

Amongst the forsaken citizens that endure within the earthly domains of Hell, the greatest status is afforded to the soldiers fighting in the Great War. But joining the army of damnation is no easy task. Those who wish to win a place amongst the Heretic Legions must make an unholy pilgrimage to the burning bronze gates of Hell. Even from leagues away, the infernal heat emanating from this great edifice sears both flesh and spirit until the pain becomes unbearable. In the Valley of Tears the great road that leads to the gate, paved as it is with wailing souls and lamentations, is littered with endless mounds of charred bodies. Many are still half-alive, writhing in agony, trapped in a grotesque twilight between life and death, their wickedness deemed insufficient. These discarded souls are doomed to writhe in agony until the Day of Judgement.

Those who make it within sight of Hell’s Maw are considered worthy and are initiated into the Legions, taking unbreakable vows that chain them into darkness for all eternity, their bodies branded with the mark of the Devil Lord that has claimed them. Armouries of Hell then equip them for battle and Heretic Priests beckon forth new supplicants as dictated by the whispers of their patron arch-devils. Thus a new Heretic Legionnaire is born. They hail Archdevils as their masters and are thus damned for all eternity.

Yet there are some who push further on: to the very Gate itself and beyond. Their very flesh ignites, never to recover, but those with the blackest souls can enter Inferno itself. Amongst those the Anointed are especially revered amongst the Legions. They are the paragons of unhinged brutality – men and women of colossal vigour and unyielding devotion. Having tread the accursed path to the shores of the Lake of Eternal Flame, where the damned wither and contort in ceaseless torment, the Anointed emerge forever scarred by the embrace of abyssal fires. The blackened and burnt flesh of the Anointed will never heal, but in exchange they are granted the right to wear Heavy Gehenna armoured suits and they gain strength to wield weapons that a normal man could barely lift. It is said that glancing into their eyes one can see the reflection of the very flames of Hell, forever etched in their vision.

Yet some who witness go even further in their depraved devotion. Suicide is a mortal sin and one eagerly embraced by many. Most cry out for devils to notice their final sacrifice in vain, as the Infernal nobles are capricious and delight in betraying their own as much as their enemies. But those with truly wicked and depraved souls are resurrected in contempt of the Redeemer, coming back as Choristers, horrific mockeries of Creation whose severed heads sing unholy hymns praising the Devil, their voices causing the ears of their enemies to bleed.

Though the vast bulk of the Heretic Legions are made of mortal humans, Hell often sends their own abhorrent progeny to reinforce their mortal foot soldiers: nightmarish War Beasts made of captured and possessed creatures and dreaded Artillery Witches who act as mobile artillery supporting lighting assaults. Thus, in this accursed theatre of war, mortals and abominations march hand in withering hand, bound by the suffering ties of damnation. The wails of tortured beasts meld with the shrieks of damned souls, while the skies rain down fiery retribution upon all who dare to oppose the Heretics’ ceaseless crusade for a demented parity with their Creator.

The Naval Raiding Party is a Heretic Fleet that operates as a semi-autonomous entity under the command of its High Captain and other admirals. The Heretics have their own marine infantry that often operates in small bands, striking deep behind enemy lines and executing smash and grab missions.

The Knights of Avarice are a Heretic Legion that exclusively serve under the order of Mammom, Arc-Devil of Greed.

When the Gate of Hell was opened by the Ultimate Heresy of the Templars, it was the warbands of the Court that poured out and took the Levant by the storm, long before the first Heretic Legion was ever formed. They fell upon the people of Middle East, Asia and Europa. They crushed the mortal armies sent against them like fire burning dry chaff. Only at Antioch and at the Iron Wall were they eventually checked, though at a terrible cost. Meanwhile, awed even by these least of Hell’s servants, countless men and women fell to their knees at the sight of the dark splendour of the Court and worshipped them as gods. Those with truly wicked hearts were spared and they became the first heretics. Eventually their numbers would swell into the millions who now fill the teeming cities and domains under the shadow of the Hellgate.

Being both of the material world and of the world of spirit, the Court’s foot soldiers can march to make war on Earth without a fear of divine retribution as they do not break the Covenant of Hell. The Court also carefully limits the size of these warbands, so that most of the suffering and dying of the Great War is done by mortals, both to spite the God-Tyrant YHWH, but also to enhance their own power, as more humans are corrupted and die in the rebellion, the more God’s plan is disturbed and the greater the power of the devils waxes.

The missions of the Court against the Faithful do not follow the same logic as one a mortal commander might have. A mighty praetor could strike at a militarily insignificant village only to kill a new-born future saint, betray their own mortal followers by suddenly falling upon some unsuspecting heretic settlement or even clash with a warband of a rival Head of the Serpent. The wise do not question the motives of Hell’s rage and Heretics accept these occasional attacks against their forces as a fitting judgement for their lack of success in the war against the Faithful.