Hanged Men

Not much is known about the *Hanged Men*. But according to hints in the lore found throughout the game it refers to them as a group of defectors from both Warden and Colonial side who are trying to get away by selling weapons and ammo.

## Lore Mentioning Hanged Men

#### Mouldy Letter

Mouldy Letter

Excerpt from a mouldy letter.

...they fled through an old mine.

Nothing in there but iron. Though, I heard some of the boys mention gold below sea level. Suppose you'd want to be informed if we’d found anything valuable.

The island fell quickly, for what it’s worth, but this brutish woman managed to escape. She led at least a dozen refugees through far side of the mine. Seems the workers had built a hidden alcove oceanside and loaded up supplies for months.

We're still not sure where they got the boats, however. Perhaps she cut a deal with those petty smugglers, the Hanged Men. Once they'd pushed off, the damned rebels collapsed the mine with explosives. Unfortunately, we couldn’t cut them off. Credit to them, it was a well laid out plan.

We'll send word to our men at the coastline to keep an eye out.

Location of Mouldy Letter - Fisherman's Row - J8k9

 Mouldy Letter

#### Explorer's Journal

Explorer's Journal

Buried in the sand, you find a bedroll and rucksack, the bag sunbleached, the roll teeming with tiny crabs.

*You rifle through the abandoned gear looking for something useful but find only a tattered notebook.*

*It’s filled with indiscernible drawings of what appear to be maps, each marked with an X. Some are paired with another strange symbol. Scrawlings fill the blanks, but you can only make out one paragraph near a map you recognize as the Vale.*

. . . The Hanged Men, it must be them. Who else? It yields to nothing I’ve tried thus far. Small arms are useless. We’ve tried setting a hefty charge, and the damn thing hardly creaked. If we could only find something from before.

Those made in the ways of old, they had more kick. Yes. That crater, to this day I’ve not seen another like it. Find them, yes. A hefty payload, a hefty treasure.

Location of Explorer's Journal - The Linn of Mercy - M7k8

 Explorer's Journal

#### Inner Dialogue

Inner Dialogue

In the field ahead, you spot several ominous-looking stakes driven into the ground.

*As you approach the stakes, something ancient weighs down on you. The wood has rotted and splintered, and the bones of the dead can hardly be recognized as human. It’s no wonder the Hanged Men have taken it for their sigil; a defiance of fate.*

*The field surrounding you, now overgrown and wild, was once the staging ground for an ancient battle. Horrors have been committed here and will be committed again. The futility weighs on you.*

*You laugh at the irony of it all. Why did these men die in such a grisly fashion, if, after all this time, war rages on?*

Location of Inner Dialogue - Loch Mór - D5k3

 Inner Dialogue

#### A Personal Treatise on the Impact of the Hanged Men

A Personal Treatise on the Impact of the Hanged Men

There are scattered pages from a newly written manuscript.

*The name "Tobias Zephyr" is signed on the title page.*

*You leaf through the treatise and stop, skimming over a few paragraphs.*

Though the vaults were first discovered by sycophants and scheming thieves, exposing the inner workings of the vaults and allowing us access to relics of old has had its advantages. It is no surprise that many schematics and blueprints had become unfortunate victims in the various raids on our plants in the south. The engineers did what they could, but a mere imitation will always be just that, a second-rate copy.

Now through reverse engineering these beasts, new schematics have been drawn up, and we do believe we can manufacture a suitable replacement alloy for those no longer in abundance. What is more, various improvements to the overall structure, and we have made many modernizations. Such are the insights of these discoveries that we believe some rediscovered processes may yet make their way back into our modern arsenal.

The Hanged men, the greedy bastards, have done us an extraordinary service in hoarding the past—Colonial and Warden both—behind their mountainous vaults. It is a damn shame we had not discovered them sooner. In consequence, more intel on Warden manufacturing has landed in our lap, details behind the superb structural engineering use on the vaults themselves, and we have reclaimed a piece of our history.

The Magisters will be all too eager to study these schematics and their impact on the war effort. I dispatched copies by courier to Alympia College. Though Paeon would like to see their order abolished, I have found the Magisters to be quite helpful in my time on the council. In truth, it is a shame more are not trained. Mayhaps we would have fewer scoundrels. It is a foolish thought; the classless are like rats: stamp one out, and a dozen more take their place.

Forgive these digressions; they are the ramblings of an old, optimistic fool. Now, onto matters concerning the identities of the Hanged Men . .

Location of A Personal Treatise on the Impact of the Hanged Men - Shackled Chasm - I12k7

 A Personal Treatise

#### Letter From the Office of the Archon

Letter From the Office of the Archon

A stack of letters from various parts of alliance territory rest on the table.

*Return addresses from Nicnevin, Whedon’s Row, Sorovia, while some come from as far west as Wenitai.*

*You open a letter from Whedon’s Row.*

From the office of the Archon.

Judith Abell,

These pirates must be dealt with. It’s bad enough that such sensitive Warden intel has leaked, but now we’re dealing with gutless cowards too. Did you know they’re mostly deserters, the Hanged Men? I’d like to get a noose around their necks myself.

Now I’m hearing that you’re tearing apart our arsenal and fitting them with . . . with what? It seems like a buffoonish vanity project to me. The Archon is not pleased and expects a full report explaining why resources have been spent on nonsense. It would behoove you to act quickly, lest he sends the Hands. Were it a Callahan in the chair, you might have your requests placated, but alas.

Stop acting impetuously, Judith, or you will forfeit your position. There are plenty of sharks in the sea.

Location of Letter From the Office of the Archon - Viper Pit - E8k9

 Letter From the Office of the Archon