Military - Ba'lith

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Category	Militaries
State	Ba'lith
Leader	Emperor Raxcvillibus

Ba'lith used to be a chaotic empire with tactics and unit composition that could vary considerably. This was a product of minotaur nature and outside generals that came in and taught them warfare. This happened a few decades after the Great Minotaur Revolt (785 - 796) when Ba'lith begin to carve out territory at the expense of their neighbors, particularly those of Merorarg. The most interesting part of this training was that a few of these foreign trainers were half-demon descendants of Varelay. Ba'lith's mode of warfare, modeled on what is done in Abyssal armies, remained as such until the arrival of Raxcvillibus. His Generals of Hell, a military training manual, changed Ba'lith's military to be modeled on styles and tactics used by Hells generals. The imposition of law and order on Ba'lith's military had big changes because what was loosely organized and prone to internecine conflicts became tighter and disciplined. Soldiers were no longer allowed to loot their victims in the midst of combat and sacking enemy holds was not a guarantee. Disputes over who deserves what after a battle, regardless of who contributed to the victory no longer applied according to the rule of war precepts of the Generals of Hell. The spoils of war were also no longer distributed by the strongest but divided out by rank.

After the Brothers Enmity War (1697 - 1723), Raxcvillibus and his death knight generals, all part of the Lix Tetrax retrained Ba'lith's armies. They instilled discipline, élan, and hierarchy of command. They also built military crèches where young minotaurs, ackairon, and other select candidates could be trained in the art of war.

Maravapthân Strategic Command

The general staff of Ba'lith's armed forces is called the Maravapthân Strategic Command, or shortened to MSC. Their headquarters is the great fortress Maravapthân. Because of their abilities, and loyalty to Emperor Raxcvillibus, half of the MSC is comprised of death knights from the Lix Tetrax.

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Ba'lith Army

Emperor's Own

The Emperor's Own is a brigade sized force that came about during the Brothers Enmity War. It began as a hand-picked force that served alongside Emperor Raxcvillibus Dumu-loc.

Negagandolus Army

This elite fighting force is the backbone of Ba'lith's land armies. The Negagandolus Army was established by Emperor Raxcvillibus Dumu-loc. Many of the first members of this army were veterans of the Terror March. Soldiers of the Negagandolus Army are heavy infantry. They commonly wear carapace armor. The ingredients for making this armor type are readily available, with husks of Hive creatures scattered about the southern borders of Ba'lith, victims of the Sonic Horns. The sap for hardening the armor is extracted from Urgunn.

Some of army's more exotic units:

• Bloated Sacs
• Spinebreaker Brigade - troops outfitted with hammers, maces, and man-catchers, led by a huge death bringer

Horgmidia Army

This army is tasked are composed of light infantry, tasked with scouting and skirmishing.

Starless Army

The Starless Army is a force comfortable with operating in the dark. With garrisons underground, it is comprised of Mîmêk, cambions, trogs, derro and others accustomed to the subterranean realm.

Urgunn Brigade

see entry

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Ba'lith Navy

Horn Navy

Ba'lith's waterborne military arm is the Horn Navy. They prefer to use small, fast, and maneuverable ships. Their tactics are "hit and run", picking off stragglers, and wearing down their foes. Their heavier ships are lightly armored and used primarily for closing and boarding. Instead of sending them to the bottom of the seas, they try to capture ships.

Cloud Guard

In 1719, the capture of Ilfongrak resulted in the seizure of eight skyships. These flying vessels gave them the power to challenge the Azrik Blockade (1693 - 1729).

Ba'lith's largest shipyard is Gúrkúm-Ghak.

Horns of the Void

Up until 1824, when Ba'lith joined the Drachdekai Pact, the Horns of the Void was a small void navy of less than six ships. The empire desired more, but nobody would sell them the required engines. The Drachdekai Pact changed that. They needed allies for the vast world they intended to feed upon.

In 1829, Ba'lith launched the most powerful voidship in existence, the Pillar of Horns.

The acquisition of voidships from the Drachdekai Pact changed the strategic planning of Ba'lith. Their naval commander proclaimed that "air-power" paves the way for military supremacy.

Fleet Roster

Ship Name	Naval Base	Commanders	Other
Pillar of Horns	Gholím	Captain Rax

Thrawkrall Navy

Since the early days of the Ba'lith Empire, pirates of the Minotaur Inlet had support and protection of an empire. This put Ba'lith at odds with just about everyone with merchant ships sailing this channel sea. Ba'lith, a warmongering state, earned a lot of money from this, sometimes up to 30% of pirate's booty. In 1693, Ivory Asylum joined the Pact of Behemoths, a free trade group looking to end Ba'lith's open support of pirating. What followed was a three decade blockade of the air and sea, the Azrik Blockade (1693 - 1729). It ended with Ba'lith giving up support of the pirates, and scratching the Thrawkrall Navy from their military assets.