Myrkul's Legion

Myrkul's Legion, sometimes called the Legion of Myrkul, was an undead army amassed by Szass Tam, the Zulkir of Necromancy in Thay, in the mid–14 century DR. It was named for Myrkul, the patron god of necromancers and of Tam himself.
==History==
The Legion was formed sometime after Tam's invention of the animate dread warrior spell in the , with the goal of using powerful dread warrior troops to invade Rashemen. Much of the Legion was comprised of animated corpses of veteran warriors from the armies of Azhir Kren, the Tharchion of Gauros, or from the bodies of those who fell in battle against the Legion. By the mid–1350s DR, Tam had fuly manned the Legion, and was itching to test them in battle.
In the , Tam and Kren launched a joint invasion of Rashemen, and Myrkul's Legion was unleased on the coastal cities supported by the powerful military of the Tharchion of Surthay, Homen Odesseiron. Rumors began circulating of the undead hoard advancing northward from the Gorge of Gauros, providing time for the Rashemaar to prepare to counter them. They sought out adventurers to infiltrate behind the Legion's lines to destroy the more powerful undead commanding the lesser troops.
While designed to outclass the Rashemaar berserkers, the dread warriors were no match for the spells of the witches of Rashemen nor for the powerful nature spirits of Rashemen. Furthermore, the place magics of Rashemen appeared to interfere with the commands of the Legion's dread warriors, who turned on each other, decimating entire companies. Still, the Legion was only turned back after viscous fighting against the berserkers and when the growing urgency of the Salamander War forced Tam to redirect some of his forces to southern Thay. In the aftermath of the Legion's defeat, relations between Tam and Tharchion Odesseiron soured as the latter felt betrayed by a lack of support or reward during the invasion.
Following the Time of Troubles, Tam had replaced Myrkul's Legion with his new Cyric's Legion.
==Members==
Myrkul's Legion was an army of over 1,000 heavy infantry comprised of dread warriors commanding zombies, although subsequent reports suggested it was comprised entirely of dread warriors. It was generally accompanied by living priest-sergeants who set the Legion's pace with drumbeats, and by necromancer subordinates of Szass Tam. Perhaps because of these living members, the army was known to stop and make camp despite the undead troops not requiring rest.
==Appendix==
===See Also===
* Cyric's Legion
* Dread warriors
===Appearances===
:;Adventures
::Adventures in Thay: Invasion of the Living Dead
===References===
FR:Légion de Myrkul
Category:Military organizations
Category:Undead organizations
Category:Organizations in Gauros
Category:Organizations in Thay
Category:Organizations in the Unapproachable East
Category:Organizations in East Faerûn
Category:Organizations in Faerûn
Category:Organizations on Toril