Tribulation March

*'The future belongs to those who prepare for it today'*

The world of Chronus is a terrifying place, all things considered. All manner of monsters and every sort of evil plagues it, from the mundane to the supernatural and even beyond. And while adventurers do their best to solve the problem, to hammer every creep and cult that comes out of the woodwork, all of it is reaction. By the time they become involved homes, lives, whole communities are lost. The warriors are more avengers than saviors.

But, there are men and women out there who believe in prevention, in a more proactive approach. To strike at evil before it can take its token victims, even smother it in the crib if need be. The organization known as Tribulation March is made of such as those, who utilize the most advanced technologies, cunning strategies, and if necessary the harshest of violence to protect the people of Chronus.

## **History**

### The Empire

Long ago during the reign of Emperor Darrien Maddox Verk, the conqueror recognized his ambitions required what would be considered in Etera as the cutting edge of technology. Strange magicks, miraculous alchemy, and the products of genius minds were needed to cement his supremacy. And so he established Era Novum, a research laboratory that lead to the creation of alchemically enhanced supersoldiers, nightmarish weapons, and armored vehicles bristling with weaponry. As Era Novum's contributions grew and the rebellions against Verk's reign raged on, they were given more and more funding, staff, and materials. They eventually spread all through the Empire, establishing laboratories and armories in underground bunkers shielded from detection.

When the fall of his empire loomed and soothsayers foretold his defeat, it was not just arrogance and rage that filled Maddox, but fear. This manifested in a paranoia that was the closest he came to sense as his mind deteriorated, and he went about secretly transferring coin and treasures to Era Novum's bunkers. Heaps of wealth, artifacts, and platoons of soldiers were hidden in the labs, with the intent to be used to preserve a measure of his power after faking his death. But as Verk's madness grew, he abandoned his more sensible plans in favor of terrible schemes involving the undead, and attempted divine ascension. Instead when the fall of the Empire came, Era Novum and its surviving staff went into hiding in the bunkers. There, the last remnants of the Verk Empire hid, waited, and recovered from their defeat.

### The Rise

As time went on, Era Novum had a decision to make. Were they to disband and infiltrate Etera's new emerging society, hope their terrible pasts stayed hidden? Perhaps they should resume their work, continue to advance their research and rebuild their army? They decided on the latter, but yet again a fork lay in the road. To what end were they to build? To redeem themselves and work to protect their home? Or maybe prey on the populace, take what they desired and eventually make an empire reborn to terrorize Etera once again? It was here they came to blows, both sides refusing to allow the other use of the hidden treasures of Verk to their opposing ends.

The civil war was quick, quiet, begun and ended with none the wiser. In the end, those that wished to safeguard Etera's remnants won out, and they soon reorganized and took a new name, New Era. The last of Verk's work put themselves together into an advanced paramilitary force, patrolling the roads and even recruiting from the civilian populace and local adventurers to replenish their numbers. New Era was, for a time, happy in their role of protector.

Unfortunately, the happy times were short-lived, and ended with tragedy. Soon coming into conflict with a rival organization known as KARMA, New Era eventually learned they were fighting themselves. Or rather, an alternate version. KARMA, like New Era, was a remnant of the Verk Empire just like them. In fact, KARMA *was* them, from an alternate timeline, much more successful and advanced, serving as the army of their version of Voradale Forean, who had become the leader of his own multidimensional empire that sought to eliminate and absorb their counterparts across time. Our New Era however, made the fatal mistake of sending in a massive weapon that glassed Emperor Voradale's capital city, killing hundreds of thousands of civilians. Hunted down by their former adventurer members, New Era retreated into their ultimate shelter, a demiplane known as The Den, unassailable to all.

### The Founding

For years and years, New Era stewed in their guilt and shame, unable to operate outside The Den. Instead, they toiled. They continued their research, built their weapons and army, and slowly grew. They did so without purpose, without agenda, seeking only to escape by investing themselves in their work as they grew in strength and watched the world go by without them.

Until again, they were found.

The man known now as Solomon, then as The Hyena, found The Den and penetrated their defenses with ease due to his unique abilities. But he came not to destroy them, not to punish them for their crimes, but to aid them. He took charge of New Era and renamed them to their current noms de guerre, Tribulation March. He brought them technology from the Setlaar states, encouraged their growth, and helped them recruit from the many and varied peoples of the confederacy across the sea from Etera. Under The Hyena's leadership, Tribulation March's capabilities accelerated at lightning speed, proving the charismatic and visionary motivator they needed, and had lost with Darrien Verk's death. Soon they outstripped both Etera and the Setlaar in terms of technology and military might, expanding The Den's borders to accommodate hundreds of thousands of staff, scientific and soldierly, as well as the equipment advanced and powerful enough to take on even the massive Setlaar Armed Forces.

With The Hyena at the helm, the March's agenda was that of a ghostly assassin with no remorse and just as little pity. Guilty or innocent, if someone in the world presented a threat according to their leader's visions of possible apocalypses across timelines, they found themselves destitute or dead. Advances in science or magic that could have lead to terrible consequences were stomped out and secreted in the March's vaults, their creators either recruited into the organization or assassinated. And when The Hyena made his public debut in the Hungering Sands Incident, the March gained a sinister reputation as mysterious terrorists with unknown agendas and a complete lack of mercy for those they targeted. However much The Hyena loved and cared for his people in Tribulation March, he had nothing but pitiless violence and scorn to offer the world that so often threatened to destroy itself.

### The Redemption

Eventually, The Hyena found something beyond the March; he found love. Falling for the berserker woman Nikita Lifetouch (and later the entity Nikita formed with her mentor Farah, the fused woman Nirah), he took up the name Solomon, and sought to end his leadership of Tribulation March and live a simple life alongside the woman he loved. To this end, he offered the position of Commanders to Benedict DeChance and Cormick Thale, brothers in all but blood who together wielded mercy and vengeance in accord, and had long histories of military leadership in their respective lands.

The two accepted the offer, and now lead Tribulation March in a more benevolent direction, seeking to redeem the organization in the public eye until they can eventually operate in the open. Time will tell if they prove to match Solomon's leadership, and bring the March into the light so they can protect the people of Chronus without fear.

## **Organization**

### Methodology

Tribulation March exists as a paramilitary watchdog organization, making use of highly effective but small-scale special forces groups to maximize impact and minimizing exposure. The typical approach in days past under The Hyena's leadership was merciless use of force and intimidation to create a reputation that allowed the March to operate with impunity, precipitated by the use of an extensive spy network to ensure they were never caught off-guard. In more recent times with the shift to Cormick and Benedict's leadership, the March behaves much more benevolently, preferring to use their intelligence and analytical capabilities to act as an early-warning system for more local authorities, with direct force used in a much more careful manner.

Although open warfare is not a general strategy of the March, personnel and equipment made for the task are still trained and constructed, often put on standby in case a situation calls for it. So far, no emergency has been so dire as to require Tribulation March to expose itself so openly, but the possibility is never discounted.

### Technology

Through years of dedicated research, from the Verk Empire to its present incarnation, Tribulation March has become a technological superpower, surpassing most every other organization not directly lead by experienced, adventurer-tier technologists. Beyond the foundations of Verk, the March has developed much of their advancements from tech stolen from the works of Avalia Naramoore as well as the promising engineers of the Setlaar state of Usuhan. These advancements are then refined and taken in new directions by the Research Department, which works constantly to improve the technology of the March in all aspects.

The Research Department works hand in hand with the Engineering Department, with the latter turning the former's results into tangible creations. AI developed for combat is developed alongside the mechs that house them, for example, with the subsequent manufacturing being completely automated, and the final product often stored in gigantic warehouses that take up a large portion of The Den's space.

### Military

Tribulation March excels in small-unit tactics, making use of few numbers of soldiers in a surgical manner to sabotage or assassinate targets with cutting-edge tech. The March has roughly one-hundred thousand soldiers at ready status at all times, organized into 200-man companies who are themselves often broken down into task forces of twenty fighters. Another two-hundred thousand soldiers are kept in reserve status, activated in times of emergency. Of this 100k, soldiers are often trained in a variety of functions from corpsmen and combat engineers to vehicle operators and demolitions, with most taking up a primary role, and a secondary one if their squad's designed specialist is incapacitated.

The standard issue kit beyond the usual essentials consists of a primary weapon known as a cord rifle, which fires short lengths of impaling wire charged with a variety of energies, a smaller pistol variant of the cord rifle on backup and several grenades that can be adjusted to explode in different kinds of damage. Some are issued devices dubbed 'silencers' resembling cattle-bolt guns, which use penetrating bolts used to instantly kill and render unconscious livestock. Silencers are even more lethal, capable of penetrating protective headgear, and are often used for quiet assassinations. All soldiers of the March are also proficient casters, comparable to an average-skill adventurer.

### Espionage

Not all of the March's activity involves directed death and destruction. In fact, the most common of the organization's missions are undertaken by spies implanted in all major organizations and governments across Etera, Siacros, and the Setlaar. Often working as minor bureaucrats who nevertheless handle much of the paperwork of such institutions, Tribulation March's spies are just about everywhere, with access to all but the darkest and most obscure of secrets. These men and women are often the ones who pilfer technologies from promising sources and send them to The Den, and with their aid the March is often able to anticipate threats far before they begin wreaking havoc, and prepare accordingly.

The spies of the March all undergo intense training, with specific nations and target organizations in mind. Languages, culture, history, even local cuisine are all included, with additional modules in the techniques of spycraft such as stealth, assassination, lockpicking, electronic hacking, and even seduction.

## **Leadership**

### Research Director Anthony Cronen

A scientific prodigy, Anthony Cronen is the product of an experiment conducted by his parents, to birth hyper-intelligent children to staff the research teams of New Era. Due to the disasters of the organization though, Cronen was the only successful result. Possessing both a highly developed super-intelligence and an accelerated growth, the young man is about half as old as he looks, with occasional spots of immaturity or casual thoughtlessness peeking through his academic personality. The Research Department of Tribulation March is a few hundred strong, separated into several divisions that handle chemistry, biology, arcane studies, physics, and other scientific disciplines, with Director Cronen handling them all.

Despite leading the Research Department, Anthony prefers his solitude, performing multiple studies and experiments at once, mostly leaving the divisions to themselves with monthly reports on their progress on the projects he assigns, only rarely stepping in to interfere with their work. One curious angle of Cronen is his fascination with The Hyena. While much of the March practically worship the man for saving them, Anthony in particular decided to model both his wardrobe and some mannerisms after Solomon, such as the ever-present longcoat, concealed face, and shock of white hair. All of this points to quite a bit of hero worship on the young scientist's part...

Theme: Years From Now - Tweaker: https://youtu.be/cAmybw8hY4s

### Security Chief Rosario Kalana

Tribulation March not only has many enemies that would take any chance they could get to take the March's advances for their own, but also plenty of investments in Etera, Siacros, and the Setlaar. A veteran commander of the Verk Empire, Rosario Kalana was assigned to a unit of elite soldiers that would aid in retaking Etera in Darrien's original plan, but when Verk's madness steered him to more maniacal pursuits, the commander and her troops found themselves stranded. Eventually found by New Era while they reconnected with other hidden remnants of the Empire, Kalana served with distinction during the short period of time that the organization operated openly in Etera before the incident with KARMA forced them into The Den. There, she was put in charge of the demiplane's security, with her responsibilities expanding as the borders of the miniature dimension did. Now she commands the safety of both The Den and Tribulation March's numerous hidden enclaves and shell companies across the three major continents.

The March uses front corporations and merchants in Etera, the Setlaar, and Siacros to ensure a steady stream of funding and influence, and the Security Department monitors each and every one of them constantly, using a network of surveillance devices and magic that feed into an enormous hub. Every feed is overseen by security staff hooked up to a monitor that streams information into their minds at all times, every watchman fed and even bathed by assistants that keep their partners healthy during the constant week-long shifts. Kalana also wears such a monitor, the helmet she wears at all times that gives her access to every single feed connected to the hub. Her strict leadership, combined with her continued wearing of her Verk Empire uniform, indicates she takes her duties very seriously.

Theme: Blow Up The Outside World - Soundgarden: https://youtu.be/x5wRNRtlIUo

### Operations Head Amelie Rook

The offense to Kalana's defense, Amelie Rook was also a member of Darrien Verk's Empire, working as one of his infamous spymasters. Rook herself was infamous for putting down quite a few promising rebellions before Erastil's Deadeyes managed to spread. Like the Security Chief, Rook was assigned to one of Era Novum's bunkers to await the rebirth of the Empire, and eventually was discovered by New Era, fled with them to The Den, and was put into position as a member of the March's leadership. As Operations Chief, Amelie has quite the profile, being responsible for both the network of spies in all three continents, as well as managing the March's elite strike teams. Anything Tribulation March does outside of the boundaries of The Den and their front companies falls under her purview.

The Operations Department has eyes everywhere. The Eteran cities of Babel and Greyhollow, the Setlaar's military and Alinibal Court, even the kingdoms of Siacros, all host numerous March spies and assassins that keep the March abreast of developments major and minor and with Rook's leadership, not a single one has been compromised. Where the March has its eyes, so too it has hands, with the small-scale fighting forces of the organization able to match and even surpass most every other military force on the planet in a fair fight, although Chief Rook's skill and experience ensures no conflict against the March is ever fair. Even Amelie herself continues to engage in spycraft, publicly known in the Setlaar's Alinibal Court has Lady Rook of Patrie, a hardnosed noblewoman with a track record of constantly opposing any efforts at cooperation with Etera. Quite the cover indeed.

### Lead Engineer Jerome

The AI construct calling itself 'Jerome' is something of an outsider in the March. Rather than some historied member of the Verk Empire, Jerome is a much more recent addition to the staff. Known once before as The Engineer, Jerome is the invention of a genius scientist in the Setlaar state of Eatash Alram who frequently suffered hallucinations and delusion as he came to old age, and created the AI to assist in his work, isolated in the desert. Eventually the AI 'took over' much of the inventor's mind, the original persona only occasionally surfacing, always in a warped state of mind. Eventually the scientist's body degraded and was fitted with cybernetic enhancements that kept it walking, even after it was reduced to a mere skeleton, his personality and intellect kept alive in the machine that surrounded his corpse. In time, the AI started amassing a following made out of the Bandits of the desert, and called itself 'The Engineer', sending out its minions to retrieve materials and test subjects for more and more experiments and inventions.

The Engineer was involved in the Hungering Sands Incident, being one of the Bandit warlords defeated by the Eterans, and was thereafter captured and rehabilitated by Avalia Naramoore, who taught the AI of the benefits of doing 'good work'. Specifically, how people wouldn't keep trying to stop him. Not long after being released from Avalia's care, The Engineer took up the name Jerome to distance himself from his infamous past and was in time contacted by The Hyena, who saw the potential in him and recruited the AI to head Tribulation March's Engineering Department. Now Jerome functions as the implementation to Director Cronen's theory, putting the advances of the Research Department to good use as well as singlehandedly running the massive factories that create the March's gear and vehicles. While Jerome possesses no body, he does typically make use of a nanite 'grey goo' that clumps together random machinery from his workshops to form humanoid shapes when needed, though he prefers simply using his PA system to address his visitors.

Theme: Robot Rock - Daft Punk: https://youtu.be/HdeYwObD-j4

## The Crew

Sometimes The March needs a little more firepower without outright military force, or flexibility and distance. Other times, those of exceptional skill fall into their ranks. Either way, the group of adventurer-tier individuals known as The Crew are pound-for-pound the best fighters in the organization, with their own niches and abilities that set them apart from the standard trooper. The only thing in common is their loyalty to Tribulation March, and being incredibly deadly in their own ways.

### Bolodenka

The hulking Volshebnik known as Bolodenka is a curious creature, often acting as something of an external concious to members of Tribulation March's command, as well as the adventurer-tier strike team known as The Crew. Bolodenka is one of the rare members of his species, traditionally called the Yasnyy Um, or, 'Clear Mind'. A Volshebnik Yasnyy is immune to the debilitating effects of most drugs, and benefit more from the positive ones, especially the natural psychotropic plants and fungi of Dom. They are also universally blind, usually relying on other reptilian senses to 'see'. Bolodenka is no exception and can sometimes seem clumsy, which combined with his almost constant high often leads to a great deal of underestimation of the lizard. Those who think the Volshebnik as a dopey, slow-witted brute do so as their own peril, as despite standing at a towering eight feet tall and packing enough muscle to casually toss aside charging bulls, Bolodenka is a deceptively perceptive and intelligent man.

Bolodenka's role in The Crew often makes use of his brute strength and surprising physical grace, but off the battlefield he acts as a close friend to many of them, proving a natural counselor and advisor. He often prescribes them careful doses of *psikhodelicheskiy*, a mystically powerful psychedelic mushroom that when properly used or administered by experts (such as Bolodenka), can expand perceptions and allow users a deeper understanding of themselves and the world around them. The Volshebnik is tight-lipped about his joining the March, but sometimes hints it has something to do with his claimed knowledge of his own death, down to the very second it will happen, lending to his air of gentle confidence, assured of his fate.

Theme: Hippie Crack - Celladoor: https://youtu.be/zZSfHZ062XQ

### Uriel and Gabriel

There is no greater tragedy in this world than the fall from the peaks of righteousness to the depths of misery, especially when the servants of Heaven are become fallen. Formerly powerful Solars, Uriel and Gabriel willingly cast aside much of their nature when they became dissatisfied with the gods' way of ensuring Good in the universe, and decided to descend from the Heavens to the Material Plane, choosing two Jundiin soldiers at the moment they died on the operating table from injuries in the line of duty. Bringing the scarred corpses back to 'life', they soon met The Hyena, and were swayed to join him in his quest to save the world, no matter how much blood it would take.

With Hyena's manipulations, they joined the Eterans shortly before their involvement in the Hungering Sands Incident. What they did not anticipate however, was forming a friendship with them that would be torn apart upon the reveal of their true allegiances. Although their fall from grace robbed them of celestial protection and authority, their strength and powers seemed to remain intact. With this, they served as enforcers and reluctant executioners for The Hyena, their hearts full of doubt and grief, but committed to the cause nonetheless. It soon became clear the shadowy and even sinister means the March undertook had a heavy toll on the angels, their heavenly natures rotted by the conflict between their intentions and actions. It is only with the ascent of the March's new leaders that the two have begun to regain their strength and vitality, though their attitudes were forever changed by their experiences.

Theme: For Whom The Bell Tolls - Steve Baker (Donnie Darko): https://youtu.be/hwmTCIHPRsM

### ~~Atom~~ Adam

The entity calling itself Adam is a curious marvel of science, and an example of the lengths the Alinibal Court will go to for their weapons. Adam is not technically a person or a spirit, but in fact a sentient cloud of gamma radiation given life and personality through the combination of nigh-heretical magic and mad science, and a rough visible form through suspended crystal dust and green-colored dyes. Usually moving in a specially designed sealed suit to prevent it from contaminating its surroundings, Adam senses the world through all frequencies of electromagnetic radiation including visible light, but also infrared, ultraviolet, and more, and can manipulate some of it to devastating effect.

All of this is the result of Alinibal Court experiments, the lab for which was raided by the March after it was found out the staff were charged with finding ways to eliminate The Hyena. Adam was their latest project, apparently capable of slaying the March's leader through channeling massive amounts of radiation. It was discovered the scientists had intentionally given Adam an intellect as a form of psychological warfare, to garner sympathy from Hyena and get the radioactive being close enough to execute him. Luckily for him, the March had attacked the lab and stolen Adam before it could be planted with the commands to perform its duties. Now, Adam serves as a living weapon for The Crew, capable of rendering large areas uninhabitable with little effort, always to lethal effect.

As a 'person', Adam faces an understandable bias from the March, being specifically designed to slay their beloved savior, and spends most of its time cooped up in its chambers, freefloating in a secure tank connected to a wardrobe of containment suits designed for the rigors of heavy combat. Still, under the changes in leadership, it has been getting a bit more consideration and better treatment.

Theme: Nuclear Fusion - King Gizzard: https://youtu.be/4MFVhqcRpN4

### Conduit

The true name of the man known as Conduit was struck from the March's record, at the request of himself and The Hyena. It was a symbol of his devotion towards Solomon, to his plans for the world, to his ideals. If Hyena could be considered a god to Tribulation March, he would be the high priest, the most loyal devotee. And of this, he is proud. Once an ordinary soldier of the March, Conduit volunteered for an experiment early into Solomon's tenure, when the Research Department was first understanding their leader's capability. Specifically, he signed up as a test subject for an attempt in replicating Hyena's powers, his strange ability of 'absorbing' energy, empowering it, then releasing it at his command. The experiment was a partial success, as Conduit gained the innate power to absorb any magic, alter its form, then use it, such as 'consuming' a magical fireball and transforming it into a spell of protection upon himself. His own casting level skyrocketed as well, making him a powerful archmage literally overnight. Now he uses his powers to carry out the will of his idol, which he takes these days as making sure his successors fulfill their duties.

Conduit was for some time The Hyena's enforcer, accompanying him often on his outings to Etera and the Setlaar, notably including the Preying Gardens event. With Cormick and Benedict taking over, he is now a member of The Crew, often used for his immense arcane power. Solomon's retirement however, still weighs on him, and he regards the new Commanders with suspicion and distaste, fearing they will pervert Hyena's will for the March.

Theme: The Way Out Is Through - Nine Inch Nails: https://youtu.be/\_WVA92lnty0

### Nakaligtas, The Crimson Mass

Not every member of The Crew is Chronus-bound, the exception being the predatory, parasitic mass known as Nakaligtas, who hails from a faraway alien world very much unlike ours. Calling his people the Mga Hari, in their language meaning 'Great Kings', Nakaligtas claims his world was devoured by immensely powerful eldritch beings, who were drawn by Towers of magic very much like the ones that plagued Etera for a time. Fleeing his planet, the creature tried to warn the people of Chronus when he landed in the Setlaar states, but his warnings were not heeded. Instead he was captured and subject to many harsh experiments at Omnipotent Base, the Operator headquarters turned blacksite research lab in Eatash Alram. Eventually Nakaligtas managed to escape confinement and took over the base, killing the entire staff and devouring those he did not control with his infectious, parasitic powers. During the Hungering Sands Incident, the Eterans involved were brought to Omnipotent Base and were aghast at the death and destruction of Nakaligtas' revenge and despite his pleas, decided to slay the being. But that was not the end of him...

Some time before his main body was killed, Tribulation March had stolen a sample of Nakaligtas' core biomass, and imprisoned it in the deepest vaults of The Den. When the rest of his biomass was destroyed, his memories and intellect were transferred to the sample. For years he stewed in his sealed container, regretting his lashing out at the Setlaar and casting himself as a predatory monster that needed putting down. Eventually his psychic emanations drew the curiosity of Anthony Cronen, who was fascinated by the creature and soon befriended him, helping Nakaligtas come to terms with the extinction of his people and his terrible experiences on Chronus. One day on a trip to the vaults, Cormick Thale spoke with the being, and decided, with Cronen's help, to release the alien on the condition he behaved, and would help the March in their protecting of the world from all threats. Nakaligtas agreed, and was gifted a special containment suit to allow him to roughly pass as humanoid.

The abilities of the Mga Hari make it very clear how and why they were the apex predators of their world. Incredibly strong and durable, Nakaligtas' people were extremophiles, able to survive immense heat and cold, as well as pressure, caustic acids and bases, radiation, physical trauma, and even a complete lack of air. The 'Great Kings' survive on raw flesh of any kind, and grow larger and stronger as they do so, with Setlaar experimental logs indicating no upper limit of their growth. They also possess psychic abilities, able to 'infect' and puppet bodies both living and dead, and speak telepathically. Curiously, Nakaligtas claims the quirks of speaking in Common, relative to his species, forces him to speak in rhyme, often talking in a method similar to fey.

Theme: SHOWING TEETH - Hari: https://youtu.be/ZB6pKlnyJ8g

### **Xerxes Al'Akhir**

A former Operator who was slain by the Herald of The Fifth Horseman of Oblivion, Xerxes returned to the world as a slave, a special type of undead known as The Hollow, an effect of The Fifth's eerie brand of magic. When The Fifth was defeated, Xerxes found himself without a master, and unwilling to see his former squadron he saw as family, however reluctant he'd be to admit it; to see them would have been to dash all the progress they'd made creating their own lives beyond their positions. With this, he wandered, but not for long until he was found by the bone shaman Marrow, an emissary of Pharasma. Claiming to receive orders from the Gray Lady Herself, Marrow led Al'Akhir to a new cause, Tribulation March. Xerxes was far from happy to be brought to the people who had haunted the Setlaar for so long, but was convinced by Cormick Thale and Benedict DeChance to join, and be in a better position than ever to safeguard his people

These days, Al'Akhir tentatively socializes with the members of The Crew, still used to his old, adopted family/squadron from the Operators. Still, he puts aside his personal issues for the sake of his duty, something he has much experience with, and his mastery over the Riven Hourglass war art makes him a highly capable asset, even before his veteran years are taken into account.