The Infernal Legion

    Despite being so common in appearance throughout history as to appear in the tales and legends of mankind for millennia, what little is known of the immense mobs of martially-inclined demons and damned mortal killers that form the ranks of the Infernal Legions could fill a thimble — and is mostly an exercise in superlatives. They carry the most hideous weapons spawned in the minds of men and demons alike, show a disregard for their own unlife that can only be matched by those who have died already, and are whipped up into constant fervour by an eternity of sadistic training and manoeuvre, caring for nothing save battle and bloodshed. Their officers, however, tend to be subtler — the inhumanly manipulative demons of myth and legend who scout out and subvert targets centuries in advance.

Which is not to say every demon is a member of Hell's legions, but the popular image of demons as "Hell's Armies" is not far off. Even the more cunning ones are never averse to boosting mankind's suffering with some old-fashioned combat — and mortal fundamentalists have got one thing right, Hell is fond of evolution and survival of the fittest. Promotion up (or down, depending on how you look at it) the social ladder Below is most firmly by eliminating those between you and higher ranks.

Despite this fearsome reputation, aided and abetted by the use of mortal occultists and knowledge-seekers as a crude propaganda corps, Hell prefers to keep their armies on a tight leash — apparently the common view in the dark strategy centres Below is that small raids or disruptive stirring up of trouble — riots, revolutions, and uprisings - will keep mortals uncertain and off-balance, still unsure of their existence in the modern secular age. There will be time enough for a Big Push come Armageddon. With this in mind, when a raiding party of infernal horrors does materialise they tend to be designed to cause as much misery and chaos as possible rather than actually seek a significant target, favouring in particular the blitzkrieg tactic of wounding or maiming rather than killing — slowing down the enemy with wounded and ensuring valuable mortal souls are twisted by pain and fear.

Only when a demonic lord or other great figure in the hierarchy of Hell makes an appearance will the more disciplined units appear — or when their Overlord commands it personally. Such orders were once rare, but as whatever long-term plans the Adversary has in mind begin to approach completion the Legion is beginning to receive more and more specific targets to be neutralised — and to bring and heavier arms to assault them, in the face of increasingly organised resistance from brave mortals and Boardies alike.