Legion of Cinder

The **Legion of Cinder** was an army of undead warriors, known as the **soldiers of cinder**, created by the Three Kingdoms to combat the Ember Lord during the Age of Ash. The Legion consisted of the resurrected bodies of those drowned by the ash that fell on Dol Elga during the Age of Ash.

## History

### Origin

#### Background

Shortly after the world entered the Age of Ash, Mount Volos, the tallest mountain in Pydwell, underwent an eruption that would last for nearly a thousand years, just as the Gesserit had predicted. The resulting ashfall was constant and blown over a massive area by the eastward wind. Dol Elga, Pydwell's largest valley, lay directly in the path of the ashfall and pyroclastic flows, and hundreds of towns and villages were buried in ash and fire, killing thousands. The largest city in the valley, Gradec, was almost entirely submerged, leaving only its tallest buildings poking above the dunes of ash.

Most of those who drowned or burned in the fire and ash were common peasants and workers; a rare few were warriors or knights that died in their armour, sword in hand. Many were burned, but most were suffocated and buried beneath the constant ashfall or debris.

The Age of Ash coincided with a greater understanding of the magical art of pyromancy, long known to be the most destructive of the conventional magics. In southern Niildard, near the border with Kihirrin, a lake of fire erupted in a crater, from which emerged an armoured entity called the Ember Lord. Using fire and dark magic, the Ember Lord forged an army of abominations - those possessed by demons - and cultists, all of whom were, like the Lord himself, fervent believers in the Lŷrian Flame. The Ember Lord began a campaign of destruction across eastern Pydwell, aiming to "purify" the land with fire.

With their crops burning and their water poisoned by ash, the realms of Niildard and Kovric formed a trade alliance with Tarv called the Confederation of the Rhina, or the Three Kingdoms. As the Ember Lord advanced north, the Confederation became a defence alliance; it quickly became apparent, however, that the starving armies of the Three Kingdoms had no chance of defending their home, let alone repelling the Ember Lord entirely. The Confederation sought aid from the Circle of Magi, who refused the call for help due to their own conflict with the Drakengard Empire. Secretly, however, the Circle dispatched three magisters to provide what little aid they could offer; these magisters became the Magisters of Ash.

#### Creation

The Magisters, seeing first-hand the weaknesses of the kingdoms' armies, sought to build an army that did not require food, water or rest and thus could be fully dedicated to battling the Ember Lord's legions. Using forbidden spells, the Magisters of Ash stood before the ash-filled valley of Dol Elga and cast a curse that caused the buried dead to emerge from the ash dunes, their memories foggy and their bodies mostly restored.

Their curse compelled the undead to make for the Ashen Watchtower, where they met their fellows and their new lords. Torn from the peace of death, the risen soldiers were promised a peaceful passing if they proved victorious over the Ember Lord, while also warned that their souls would aimlessly wander the Beach forever if they fell in battle. Thus was formed the Legion of Cinder.

## Overview

An undead legion formed with the unique purpose of defending the living rather than destroying them, the Legion of Cinder was a formidable force that numbered in the thousands. Forcibly dragged from the peace of death to fight until their second death, the soldiers of the Legion formed a brotherhood, granting solace to themselves and one another in an attempt to come to peace with the agony of their fate. Each soldier of cinder was reborn with no recollection of the people they once were, and assigned themselves names once they survived long enough to be distinguished from their fellows.

## Known Members

* Aegon of the Fire
* Arsissoris