Mētia Arīsi

Guardians of Alminthian Liberty

While other countries murder and enslave their most gifted members of society, we embrace them. We give them the knowledge and gear, and in return, they will defend our liberty and our ways.

— General Janis Elengārsis

Mētia Arīsi are elite units of vitality mages who fight for the army of the Federal State of Alminthas. Due to the rarity of vitaemancism, the condition that allows one to become a vitality mage, there are only a few Mētia Arīsi units and each solider in those units is highly valued and respected. A single unit consists of ten mages, one of who is the unit's commander, and two noncombatants and their primary purpose is to eliminate enemy leaders from a distance.

Gear and Tactics

A typical soldier in a Mētia Arīsi unit is provided with a gambeson, cuirass, pauldrons, a helmet, bandages, a knife or dagger, and the vitatie supplies they need for casting their spells. If the army they are in has supply units, then the Mētia Arīsi can replenish their supplies.

Since their units are tiny and could be easily overwhelmed, they aren't supposed to engage in a straight-up fight with anyone. Ideally, their units stay close to the rest of their army, relying on them for protection.

What makes the Mētia Arīsi units excellent and has earned them their renown is their ability to function as battlefield assassins who are capable of hunting down the commanders of their enemies and killing them with their powers. Murdering the leaders of their foes isn't the only method of demoralising the enemy that the elite Alminthian mages are capable of. By using their other spells, they can frighten enemy units, causing their men to panic, which may result in their lines collapsing.

Potatoes by Marco Antonio Victorino

Dangers of Vitaemancism

Vitaemancism is as much as a curse as it is a blessing, even more so for those in countries such as the Empire of Pallernia where simply having the condition is illegal. Those affected by it suffer from hallucinations, they see flash-visions of death, corpses of their closest family members, whether they are still alive or long dead, and their night thoughts are often haunted by suffering and horror. How often a vitality mage sees such visions depends on the individual, but from what has been recorded, those with more intense mental problems cause more powerful effects with their abilities.

Orange Pumpkin by Jessica Lewis

The link between severe mental illness and vitaemancism is why they are feared and persecuted against. Authorities in many parts of the world believe that for the safety of the majority of the populace, the vitality mages have to be either locked away or killed.

The government of Alminthas on the other hand believes that with enough care, the vitality mages can serve in an army without too many complications. Alminthian tales and legends are full of tragic heroes who were vitality mages, but fought for freedom and liberty, often sacrificing themselves in the process. Such myths led to the societal acceptance towards them and so instead of getting rid of those with vitaemancism, the Alminthians aspired to take good care of them. Unfortunate incidents do still occur with some of the members of the Mētia Arīsi units, but those are rare enough.

Type

Magic

Founding

1441 AA

Overall training Level

Elite

Used by

• Federal State of Alinhas

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Soldiers

10

Noncombatants

2

Retired Arīsi

Veteran soldiers in the Mētia Arīsi are encouraged to get into politics for they are already respected for their deeds. Since they are mages, they are eligible for positions in the government.