Monster Hordes
The Monster Hordes were a frightening army of mind-controlled kíndallans during Eden’s First Age. Bound to the will of Zaragon by the Sword of the River, the Hordes were led in the field by Stagnekad the Defiler.
At the height of their reign of terror in the year 28 CE, they controlled large swaths of the Edenian South and were making ready to push across the Oadü to invade the North. Only through the combined efforts of the Bekiskapan at the Battle of Frankburg Bridge and the sacrifice of Augustus Might in the Zone Forbidden was the age of the Monster Hordes brought to an end.
Structure
The organization structure of the Hordes was loose at best. Though every soldier was bound to the will of Zaragon by the spell he cast with the Sword of the River, the wicked sorceror gave only three instructions to his legion of shapeshifters:
- Assume the most horrifying shape you can imagine;
- Strike fear into the hearts of any and all Edenians who will not bend the knee; and,
- Follow the leadership of Stagnekad during great battles.
Thus, the only kíndallan who stood above the rest was Stagnekad. And the only person that Stagnekad answered to was Zaragon himself.
Culture
A culture of fear, anger, and hate was pervasive throughout the Hordes. The kíndallans were aware of what they were doing, and able to communicate with one another their grief and remorse over their actions, but they were ultimately powerless to resist Zaragon’s commands. Eventually their sadness festered and became anger, anger which twisted them into mindless brutes.
It was easier to do hateful things, after all, when one surrendered one‘s will—when one used their ability to shift their cells into different shapes to turn off one’s higher cognitive functions entirely.
Fueled by hate, the Monster Hordes committed unspeakable acts with only one hope left inside their increasingly empty souls. One day, they dared to dream, there would be nobody left to kill but their master himself.
Public Agenda
Zaragon promised the free peoples of Eden that the Horde’s reign of terror would end if and only if rule of this purgatorial paradise was turned over to him.
Assets
Beyond the tens of thousands of subjugated kíndallans, the cavalry of the Hordes was mounted on monstrous nahnlaríx—beasts originally from the kíndallan homeworld of Gadalla who took on a variety of nightmarish forms.
A small, elite group of infantry wore ríxtahnian armor, and air support was provided by three well-paid dragons.
Interesting idea that the soldiers of the Horde felt bad about their actions, but couldn't resist the power and control of their leader
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Thank you. Yes, the Sword that he used to bind them to his will was irresistible to them because it was created by the goddess they most love and revere. She never expected it to be used for such nefarious means.