Allies & Enemies
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The legions of chaos are led by an entity called King Malaut. Originally, he was one of several feuding chaos princes, but most others remained for too long in the east, and faded out of existence when disaster wracked Lyonesse.
Malaut, however, followed the conqueror knights to their new realm, and is now firmly established as the leader of Agon’s chaos forces. He lives to disrupt the order established by Morgaine, and to corrupt the hearts of her most noble followers. Malaut instigates strife among the clans of Mercia, and tempts knights with promises of wealth, luxury and power.
The Chaos Prince is as a twelve meters tall humanoid clad in silver and gold plate mail. He is surrounded by an aura of immense heat that distorts the air around him, as if he were standing in the middle of a raging, invisible fire. Malaut speaks with a voice that resembles the intertwined roaring of distant fires. His sword, called Silvertongue, spews forth golden strands of chaos-matter, which tear into the souls of anyone who is struck by them.
Malaut automatically scorches everything within five feet of his body. The flames are invisible, and nothing ever bursts into flame, but Malaut still leaves a trail of burnt vegetation and blackened soil. Malaut appears as a golden-haired, beautiful male human with a disdainful expression. His facial features are slightly chubby and he has a scar under his left eye.
The Shadelands
Malaut’s stronghold is the beautiful and opulent Castle Perilous which stands at the heart of the Shadelands, a small dimension controlled by the Chaos Prince. The Shadelands resembles a petrified swamp which has had all life sucked out of it, leaving stagnant ponds and the empty husks of trees. The Shadelands are permanently covered in dense, dark fog.
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The Gifts of Malaut
Malaut is the demon of excess, pleasure and greed, and he offers great rewards to those who worship to him. He commands immense wealth, and is extremely generous with his subjects, who are expected to give their loyalty in return. Malaut enjoys manipulating the debasement of his followers, and he regularly issues commands that seem designed to further deprave them morally.
The Followers of Chaos
Malaut's cause is aided by an ancient society called The Below, whose agents are secretly present in many parts of Mercian society. Although they were human once, centuries of perversion have turned the Below into twisted mockeries of mankind.
Their wrinkled thick skin is a sickly shade of greyish yellow. Their heads and bodies are completely hairless, and their large, oval eyes have vague, gray pupils which give an illusion of milky-eyed blindness.
The Below are the height of tall humans (190 - 195 cm.) but their bodies are extremely thin, and their long limbs seem stretched and vaguely elastic. They move quite gracefully, and are capable of running quicker and leaping further than ordinary humans. However, their less-than sturdy build means that they are vulnerable to physical damage.
While aboveground, the Below hide behind several layers of thick clothing. They shun the daylight and prefer to dwell in subterranean hideouts, while sending their human henchmen on aboveground errands.
The Below tend to establish themselves in dungeons, crypts and sewers near centers of human habitation. From their hideouts, they attempt to infiltrate the nearby communities, offering power and wealth to people who are willing to worship Malaut.
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Servants of Malaut
Whenever they infest an area, the Below will at some point start turning people into Servants of Malaut. Human collaborators kidnap paupers, homeless people, and others who will be little missed. The Below then subject these poor wretches to a depraved ritual which turns them into undead Servants.
