The Nighthawks are a collection of blood-drinking, near-undead lords of various aristocratic personal kingdoms and empires. The Nighthawks, unlike their kin in the Bloodletters, have a centralized, organized military force, meant to protect their lords and see to their needs and protect the secrets of the Nighthawks form outsiders. No matter what foe they face, the Nighthawks, eager for the blood of the living, will face any foe. They are protected by hordes of undead, legions of professional soldiers, and bands upon bands of mercenaries. At the heads of these armies, are often powerful Vampire Lords, Necromancer Sorcerers and other essence-using masters of war.
Units
Commanders
- Weapons - Sword, Powerful Essence Abilities.
- Defenses - Heavy Armor
Vampire Lords are the oldest and most powerful of the Vampiric race, being who have had thousands of years to gather and hone their powers and abilities, and who stand above others as Lords of entire worlds and empires to call upon. Answerable only to the heads of the House, Vampire Lords command the dark forces of the night, the shambling hordes of the undead, and the loyalty of countless servants to do their bidding. A Vampire Lord is a living embodiment of death, a being who can end an entire world's existence with a well-placed word, silence entire legions of foes with but a gesture of his hand and raise entire fleets to ravage sectors with a mere thought. Vampire Lords command much fear and respect from those below them, and envy from rivals once they climb high enough. With their age, comes greater power, and less need to feed to maintain said power, making them near impossible to defeat.
As always, Lords prefer the elegant rapiers and dueling swords of their race over any other melee weapon. For one, it gives them the feeling of an elegant aristocrat, using balance and skill over their lesser peers and gain victory. The other, is that melee combat gives them the greatest chance to devour the blood of their foes and gain further strength form it. The devouring of blood allows a Vampire to briefly empower their essence abilities and heal any injuries they take. And, as Vampire Lords have the strongest essence and greatest regeneration and durability, there are few things that can injure or threaten them, especially when they are begin feasting in battle.
Vampire Lords are specially adapt at tapping into Essence, allowing them to bring whole armies to their knees, transform whole platoons of enemy troops into Vampires or mind-controlled thralls to throw at their foes. Vampire Lords are only as powerful as their imagination at this point, and the ability to command their hordes of Zombies, Shai'Ghouls and mortal soldiers is practically limitless. These abilities are unknown to the outsiders, but are taught to Vampires once they reach a certain age and can control their inner desires and needs without falling into savagery.
Vampire Lords, due to their power and strength, are rarely questioned. Being so old, powerful and wise makes them privy to any underhanded plans by their underlings, and capable enough to combat and destroy them when confronted in battle. Vampire Lords' only real weakness is other Lords, the bounties placed on their heads due to their infamy and power, and their age itself. For a Vampire Lord that lives too long, every century passed raises the risk of insanity and instability. While Few Lords think of it, the eldest Household heads and their most prized Lordly advisors are well aware of the weakness, and shudder at every centennial they celebrate. For, with every 100 years, they edge closer to losing themselves.
- Weapons - Power Staff, Essence Abilities
- Defenses - Light armor, robes.
Necromancers are a separate cabal and order from the Vampiric rulers of the original Houses, and each Coven of Necromancers is separate and hold their holdings, smaller housings and other bits of land to practice their devilish arts and powers. They are, strangely, the highest ranking of the Non-Vampires, masters of Essence who use their powers to help master and raise the dead for their masters. These beings are of mysterious background, for none know when the first Necromancers appeared to stand alongside the Vampires and assist them in their quest for power and knowledge. Likewise, the newest Necromancers usually come about from the most diverse of backgrounds, from those desperate to save the ones they love, others seeking immortality, to some just wanting knowledge and power with it. It is considered near impossible to describe all of the Necromancers, for there are as many different Necromancers as there are people in a galaxy.
All share a use of powerful Essence. While Vampires must focus on the running of their states and houses and keep an eye out for rivals, Necromancers do not care for backstabbing each other, the knowledge of one often shared with the others so that they may double check their rituals, share their knowledge of certain abilities, and make good on their quest for power, so all may benefit. This makes their powers more fine-tuned and powerful then the Necromancy Schools of the Vampires. As such, while often physically weaker then a Vampire, their Essence powers far outstrip those used by their Vampiric brethren.
Necromancers are often at the center of the armies of the undead, using their powers to keep them moving and their zombie and Wight hordes staggering towards their enemies without delay. This allows Vampire Lords to focus their abilities on defeating their foes and strategizing, and the more Necromancers and Vampire Counts they surround themselves with, the easier it is to command their legions. Of course, should a Necromancer fall, many undead will simply collapse and return to being inert once more without the essence coursing through their bodies.
The price paid by Necromancers is often high, for the powers and abilities they call upon ravage their bodies and leave little more then a husk of a being shambling in it's wake. The Necromancers are so reduced to lurching, moaning, groaning mockeries of what they once were, that some wonder if they are already amongst their dead thralls, and simply do not realize it.
- Weapons - Swords, Essence abilities
- Defenses - Armor
Arising from the small cabal of Vampires that surround a Lord, Vampire Counts are slightly older Vampires, who have become trusted aides and figures within the inner-circle of a Vampire Lord. While normal Vampires have difficulty controlling their urges and desires for blood, and act more like animals then warriors, lashing out and devouring those that might be a succulent meal, the Counts are much more controlled and directed in their feasts, and prefer to not act without forethought, and consider their meals carefully. They are not wild hunters. but patient and meticulous planners. Though each is gifted with ambition and bloodlust in equal measure, many of the Vampire Counts are loyal to their Lord, and gladly manage affairs and small estates in his name. It is their duty, when war comes, to raise armies from their provinces and estates, send their money and supplies to the lord, and prepare any fleets they hold for the Vampire Lord.
Often leading sections of an army or fleet under the Command of a Lord or higher ranking Count, The Vampire counts are among the most deadly and powerful of the leaders the Nighthawks can field, using fine cutting and fencing blades to hack and slash through their foes, dancing and weaving through countless living foes, and stopping only to clean the blood off their blades, which doubles as something of field rations for them. Feasting on blood grants them enhanced regeneration and healing, as well as empowering their many essence abilities.
All Vampires are masters of their own essence abilities, but it is only when they become Counts or the equivalent age to one, around 100 or so years in their vampiric state, do the Vampires finally begin to manifest and master these powers in full. Thus, nearly every vampire can manifest Essence abilities, usually focused around powers of the night and controlling their undead legions. While a single Lord can control armies, his Counts and Countesses can make this process easier, as well as assisting him by thinning out their foes with their essence abilities.
Vampire Counts wear armor worthy of an Aristocrat, and always modify it to resemble their original species' armor, but far more catching to the eye and powerful looking. Intimidation and even divinity play a large role in their design and look, so that when their lesser peers look upon them, they know a Vampire is truly a god made flesh, who can prey upon the blood any mere mortal in sight.
Frontline Units
- Weapons - Claws, teeth, crude weapons
- Defenses - Nothing
Zombies are the meat and main force of the Nighthawks, driven by their Vampire Lords to fight and kill for their masters. The Zombies are resurrected form the various graves and tombs of the worlds the Nighthawks visit and find, using their darkened energies and necromantic energies to bring their numbers into the Nighthawks military. With no mind of their own, Zombies are filled with the desires and drive of their Vampire and Necromancer lords, and have little to no drive amongst themselves or within their minds.
Zombies are either armed with their savage teeth and jaws to claw open their targets and feast on their often still-living flesh to satisfy a never ending hunger, or primitive spades, rusted swords and cudgels to bash down their victims with clumsy, but brutally powerful strikes. No matter what however, Zombies are just as likely to tear apart the victims after enough beatings are given out.
Any clothes they wore in death, become their armor in undeath, and as such, the range of effectiveness varies among the Zombies. their main defenses are, however, their ability to shrug off and ignore the worst attacks and keep going. From having half their head blown off, losing their lower body, or losing limbs, means nothing to such implacable forces. Their hunger for the flesh of the living will drive them to fight on, no matter what.
- Weapons - Primitive Guns
- Defenses - Nothing
Though their weapons have long lost their effectiveness, hordes of dead soldiers can be found on many, many battlefields, and in the tombs of the Warrior races of Mirus, ready and willing to be called upon again to serve, this time for the undead rather then their nation's leaders. Though they prefer fresh battlefields, as the corpses are less rotted, and the graves less protected, Necromancers and Vampires are not picky regarding their newest troops, and any are welcome to join the dance of the vampiric lords and their armies.
Though armed with rifles and pistols, these weapons are as random as the creatures that populate their armies. Ranging from relic weapons made for show, to 21st century weapons with barely enough bite to them, to modern blasters and plasma guns that can melt flesh and steel alike, Gunners are armed with any assortment of tools that their cold hands grip in their sarcophagus. Their aim is abhorrent to most military commanders, but are packed in such numbers, that the sheer volume makes up for it.
Like all Zombies, their defenses are as random as the creatures they are pulled from, and few can really be relied upon to stay together in a dragged-out fire fight with their foes. Despite this, the Zombie Gunners make an effective show of force, commonly softening up enemy positions with blast after blast, as the rest of the zombie hordes close in to devour and tear part victims.
A Kulaung State Trooper of Sith'Hani.
- Weapons - Blaster Rifles
- Defenses - Battle Armor
- Equipment - Grenades
The Troopers are the bog standard foot soldiers of the Vampire armies, made up of the living citizens of their Houses and territories, Troopers are drawn from the living, but willing serve the Dead out of either fear, or more likely, genuine devotion to their masters. Though their lands are gloomy, shadowy realms of death and misshapen, skulking creatures, the living who reside there, though never leaving at night alone, still love and devout themselves to their lords, seeing their vampire lords as immortal leaders and saviors.
Troopers are given effective blaster rifles, firing off burning red-plasma onto their targets with excellent aim and discipline, able to keep cool and maintain their skill even when under fire from superior numbers. Troopers rely on their effective battle armor to shrug off most ranged attacks during battle and keep going, even shrapnel being blocked by the black and red plates of armor. Often times, the Troopers of the Nighthawks carry grenades to deal with other foes that might have superior numbers, or to clear out vehicles and any blockage on the path to victory.
Troopers are fanatically devoted, strong in their faith that their leaders and lords will guide them to victory, and provide for them. Despite living in some of the darkest, dejected lands of Mirus, their Lords provide them with strong food and good drink for their families and themselves, providing not only loyal followers, but strong blood and able bodies in war.
Support units
- Weapons - Claws, poisonous maw.
- Defenses - Natural hide.
Zombie Animals are savage, brutal beasts, chosen from zoos and corpses of animals that they find when raiding the worlds of other alien worlds. Made up of hunting hound beasts, big cats, and other predatory beasts, the Zombie Animals are designed to act as fast attack mobs and war beasts for their masters, patrolling their castles and forts, searching for enemies in the fields, and moving ahead of the rest of the army. These war beasts are treated as lovely little pets by their masters, despite their ravenous appetite for flesh that could put a normal zombie to shame.
They have the same claws and teeth that they used in life, using them to maul, pull down targets, and tear them to pieces, ravenous for fresh meat to slick their hunger. Due to the effects of the blighted essence of the Necromancers and Vampires, the corruptive influence of Vampiric energies, or the natural rot in their teeth and their living hygiene, these claws and teeth become horrifically dirty and poisoned to any that have the mistake of being grazed by one.
Zombie Animals are treated as loyal pets by their masters, and often are trained to hunt with peasants and servants that disappoint their master, and gloated on the best meat after their masters get their fill of blood from a corpse. With their meaty, decayed hides, these beasts make excellent additions to the undead hordes under Vampire control, shrugging off the odd blaster, as they leap at scouts, attack vehicle crews, and pull down soldiers as the rest of the Zombies stagger into battle.
- Weapons - Teeth
- Defenses - Flight
Dyre Bats are fearsome, dog-sized flying beasts, horrific predators used by their masters to fly down into their victims and tear apart the living and dead enemies alike to slick their thirst for blood. Originally pets of the Great Palidori lords, these creatures were used in Vampire experiments, and became corrupted and gained abilities similar to the Vampire Lords. Treated as other earthly lords might treat their prized hunting falcons, Vampire Lords often travel to the great home to find Dyre Bats to tame and bring under control, bringing a number of peasants and servants to sacrifice to gain their prize.
Dyre Bats need a fresh kill, not liking the taste of rot, and as such, Vampire lords will quickly kill a few victims, and apply his accursed blood into the bodies, all upon the midnight hour, when the Bats come to fed, and smell the scent of flesh upon the air. All of this must be done quickly, so the corpse is not fully resurrected by Vampiric ichor, and the bats do not smell fresher kills to feast on.
Once they have tasted the blood of both a servant slain, and a master Vampire, the Bats will flock to their master, and the massive hordes that can block out the full moons on a world are under his thrall forever, kept loyal by a constant supply of meat and blood.
These creatures are considered little better then teeth with wings, flying at their targets, shrieking and gnawing into their bodies over and over, until they have ripped out the flesh they desire, even able to chew through the heaviest armors to get what they want, in their insane hunger. As a consequence of being wild beasts, they have little protection other then their wings and natural speed.
Heavy Infantry
- Weapons - Ancient Swords and Axes, Blaster Rifles
- Defenses - Heavy Armor, Essence protection.
The Lich Warriors are the solid core and central line of the Nighthawks military forces and units that they deploy to fight their foes and subjugate their forces. Unlike Zombies, these beings are drawn from the long dead fallen heroes and champions of warrior race. These beings range from old medieval tribal kings, ancient Mendel champions, and other warrior nations who give their heroes special burials. When the Vampire Lords and Necromancers need powerful warriors to lead their forces and crush their victims, they loot the temples and graves of these ancient kings to beef up their armies and find elite warriors to strengthen their personal warhosts.
The Lich Warriors march into battle with large ancient swords and axes, that, although older and afflicted with age, they can still inflict horrific on their victims and strike and hold their own against enemy modern weapons in melee. The Lich Warriors, after all, are the best the Vampires can resurrect to serve their needs, and their tools of war, no matter the age, can still be infused with the Essence of a Vampire to serve just as well as any living forces. Their main weapon, however, are blaster rifles, heavy duty powerful weapons capable of reducing most forces to ash, and assisted further by their enchantment with Vampire energies to now necrotize flesh with every bolt.
Their armor is rusted from age and rot, much like their flesh and sinew, but armor is armor to the Vampires, and it can still do it's job. What will especially, after all, is the enchanting of essence to the Armor, giving even the more primitive protection a layer of shielding like that found in Mirusian Theocratic Congregation or Cognatus, and allowing the already durable Lich to keep fighting through hails of gunfire. Their resurrection also enables them to lumber through any punishment, even the loss of legs and arms not stopping them from carrying out their goals and missions for their masters, fighting until not two pieces remain to be put together again.
- Weapons - Clubs, basic weapons, teeth and claws
- Defenses - Thick muscled hide.
Shai'Ghouls are savage creatures, capable of overpowering a bull elephant, and cursed with claws with the ability to cut through metal bulkheads and teeth that can slice through any metal. The Shai'Ghouls are not a completely Vampire-creation, but rather, the result of Darkling manipulation. At one point, the Darkling Lord Bloran came to a world, and released a plague upon the crops and food, bringing famine and plague to them. As the inhabitants grew desperate for food, Bloran began to introduce a modified version of the blood kiss that Vampires used, onto them, causing to lash out, and devour the flesh of others, those who partook, slowly but surely transforming into Shai'Ghouls.
Shai'Ghouls are former sentients of many races, transformed into large, slobbering beasts that will lunge at targets, and attempt to tear them apart with claws and teeth to devour them. The most dangerous aspect, is their maw, filled not only with multiple sharp teeth, but a venom or toxin called the Ghoul Plague, that will transform others into Shai'Ghouls if bitten. Though they will retain their original features, those infected will slowly transform into Shai'Ghouls themselves, and hunger for fresh meat and to eat as much as they can. They will mutate into a version of the Shai'Ghoul, based on their appearance, and fight to spread and devour their influence.
Shai'Ghouls are also incredibly durable, able to shrug off most forms of fire and plasma to get to their targets and devour them. Their thick hides also make it difficult for them to be harmed by any forms of damage, from swords to guns, and Shai'Ghouls can regenerate from most injuries, due to their consumption of most flesh.
Shai'Ghouls are not loyal to either Darklings or Vampires, merely to their own kind, and will only join them thanks to like-minded goals and other such things. As such, they do not command them, but rather, they fight side-by-side for the promise of meat and flesh. They are ravenous creatures, but focused on only a few things; devouring flesh and spreading their plague, be it mating or infecting others. Vampires regard them as useful shock troops, but avoid them, as the Shai'Ghouls can infect even Vampires, and are limited due to how fast they can infect others to spread their savage illness.
Elite Infantry
- Weapons - Swords, countless melee weapons.
- Defenses - Heavy Armor, Power shielding, Essence Protection.
The Blood Guard are warriors through and through, beings who have sought to master combat and warfare to the best of their ability. Each member is a prized warrior, who have shown themselves to be beyond the bounds of normal warriors, seemingly blessed with a spark of something other. Inevitably, these will draw the attention of the Blood Guard, who are not simply Zombie and Lich resurrected hordes. They are an Order of Vampiric Knights, wholly dedicated to battle and war.
They are not, like other warriors, loyal to One Bloodline or House over another, but simply serve and fight for whoever needs them and requires them. Their oaths are of loyalty to Vampire kind as a whole, and offer their services to Palidori, Vrykolakaks, Sith'Hani and all other Bloodlines, great and small. They will, however, refuse to draw arms upon a rival Vampire House in their great Dynastic feuds, an oath that started after the Blood Wars. Refusing after one catastrophic battle to ever raise a hand to another Blood-Blessed, the Blood Guard withdrew, and believed to have been the ones to awaken Lord Sheridan from his slumber.
In battle, the Blood Guards are armed with Swords, axes and other melee weapons, disdaining the use of ranged weapons and the like, finding it cowardly and dishonorable, and instead rush into battle to slice and carve through their victims. Their heavy, massive red-blood crimson armor is heavy and far more durable then most used by even their host species. This is what gives them the strength to shrug off the damage of battle, and keep charging into their foes without too much injury. Over it, are power shields to offer further protection, and their own essence abilities to further compliment that, giving them the durability of a tank.
The Vampires of the Blood Guard come from all Bloodlines, united by their love of battle, and also come from warriors that give the Blood Guard a challenge in their battles. The Vampires here are rarely know to feed on victims, choosing instead to feast on criminals, not wishing to dishonor even the lowest conscript or peasant by draining them. Warriors of all deserve respect, no matter how unskilled they may be.
- Weapons - Power Axes, Power Spears, Heavy Ranged Weapons.
- Defenses - Heavy Armor, Power Shielding, Essence Protection.
- Weapons - Teeth, Claws
- Defenses - Thick Hides, Regeneration.
Vaypargoi are the damned souls and kin of Vampires, who degenerate into massive, flesh eating beasts of terrible physical power and strength. How such a process comes to happen is unknown, and often left to Legend by those that cross the Vampires and have survived encounters with these terrifying beasts. Only the Vampires can know for certain what produces their cursed and twisted kindred who stalk the battlefields looking for flesh and blood to consume.
In the deepest, darkest depths of every castle and estate of the Nighthawks, are elaborate tombs and sarcophagi that are used to hold the remains of Vampires who have fallen. Some however, come to be thrown into their tombs prematurely by other Vampires who have risen to power, while those locked away by their rivals who come to lose in their struggles for power. Locked away for centuries away from the blood and flesh of the living, these Vampires will spend centuries screaming helplessly in the night. The Vampires' deepest crypts will often flood, and, effected by dark essence of the worlds the Vampires live in, comes to be the only substance they have to sustain themselves.
Effected by an influx of darkened essence and poisoned water, the Vampire slowly devolve into savagery, their minds dulling, bodies growing and tearing themselves apart as muscle slowly bulges and grows to unnatural levels. Teeth will grow horrifically long and nails transform into claws. Once they grow large enough, they will tear their way out of the tombs they are kept in, and tear their way to the surface to fly into the night and attack their prey.
Once freed and having devoured, the Vaypargoi will congregate in large flocks, their minds warped to make them more easily cowed and dominated by the will of Vampire Lords. They will act as shock, their thick, muscled hides allowing them to ignore the damage thrown at them, as their claws and teeth shred the flesh and armor of their victims, as they feast. No longer the intelligent lords of the night, the Vaypargoi are just driven to feast and drink.
Monstrous Creatures
- Weapons - Teeth and Claws, Noxious Breath
- Defenses - Natural Armor, Regeneration.
The Necros Dragons are a race of Dragon-like beings who belong to the Persacatyrn, descendants of a race of monolithic, otherworldly dragon-like beings of Mirus, who could alter whole worlds to suite their needs, and where so advanced, their communication was beyond the comprehension of mortals. When the Alpha Grox won, these dragons fled into various worlds, and broke down over time, their bodies altering the worlds, and slowly giving rise to entire races descended from them. The Dragons on the world of Necros would arise, the world already blighted by artifacts similar to those used by the Vampires.
Over time, the Necros Dragons would seek immortality at any cost, wishing to live forever, and rule eternally, and this, combined with shared aspects, lead them to make common cause with the Vampires of Palidori. Imbuing their essence and blood into corpses, the Palidori offered them to the dragons, and their new allies greedily devoured it, twisted and turned into the gaunt, savage beasts they are today.
A Necros Dragon, due to it's name and savage appearance, maybe mistake for a Zombie Dragon, but they are in fact partially transformed into Vampires, having all of the strength, but feasting via devouring their foes rather then simply draining blood. As such, Necros Dragons use their brutal strength and might to rend whole legions asunder, and tear into enemy champions for flesh and blood. Due to the slow digestion of their bodies, a dragon can build up numerous disgusting gases in it's belly, and expel these as a ranged weapon upon it's victims.
Necros Dragons are near impossible to injury, their already impressive frames of muscle and strength enhanced by the mighty power of Vampiric Essence abilities and blood to make them almost impossible to injure or harm for long. Even if muscle is split or limbs are lost, a dragon may merely reattach it and eat great qualities of flesh to bring his limb back under control again.
Many would consider the Necros Dragons to be savage blights upon the world, mindless beasts of carnage and never-ending hunger, who only wish to devour and eat to their heart's content. The truth, however, is that the Necros Dragons are highly intelligent, articulate, cultured beings, who, off the battlefield, assist their various Vampire Lords and Necromancer Masters in various studies and such to understand immortality and improve their powers.
- Weapons - Teeth and Claws, Sonic Focusing Abilities
- Defenses - Armor, flight.
The Gyarias are powerful beasts of the night, ravenous beasts long ago developed as a weapon of some sort by some unknown race. Arising in modern times, most Gyarias start as small creatures, flying through the night to capture animals, beings and others sources of food and devouring them for meat, being rather indiscriminate with their feastings. However, feeding is needed to contribute to a larger size and more powerful abilities. These creatures are ravenous, eating a devouring whatever they come across, and even feasting on each other with nothing else to attack at times. For this reason, Vampire Lords find them easy to bind to their service and turn into servants.
The Gyarias are usually 12 feet long, red in color, and fly about devouring any meat they can find. The Gyarias will continue to grow as they eat meat, those that are strong enough, surviving until they reach 30 meters long, their coloration darkening and allowing them to focus their screeches and screams into sonic-focused beams of energy to slice through victims. These massive beasts are transformed from pack hunters meant to mob their foes, into living siege engines to attack their victims and devour whole ranks of foes in their feasts. The largest become 50 meters long, gaining a pure black coloration, and more durability and power as they grow. The Gyarias will follow their oldest members due to their size and strength.
The Gyarias fly into their victims mouth first, tearing into their victims with their teeth-filled maws, and devour them mid-battle. The Gyarias have little armor across their bodies, relying on their speed and flight to overcome their foes. Gyarias are so savage and brutal, they will often try to eat each other in battle, even as they charge at their foes. Such helps keep their numbers down, so the Vampire Counts can manage their "ravenous" pets. Gyarias still make effective shock troops and living weapons for the Vampires to use.
- Weapons - Massive Jaws, claws, noxious breath
- Defenses - Thick Armored hide.