Hey everyone! It’s been awhile since I’ve done a lore post but I’ve come back swinging with 2 at once. To find the other, “Cabal Arsenal”, check my Archive: https://www.bungie.net/en/Forum/Post/217384398/0/0
(This post does not include enemy types seen aboard the Leviathan)
[b]Ranks:[/b]
Legionary: the basic soldier of the Cabal, Legionaries march slowly across the battlefield, using jump packs to advance their forces in segments. Red Legion Legionaries also have short swords built into the wrists of their armor.
Phalanx: this Cabal unit forms the defensive lines for other units to regroup behind or use as a point to support an advancement. The Legions we saw in the first Destiny used massive metal shields big enough to block most of their bodies, while Red Legion Phalanx bear energy shields that can close up to allow free movement, expand to make a stationary barrier able to defend multiple troops, or take on a form machine the size of the metal shield. Red Legion Phalanx are also equipped with the jump packs possessed by Legionaries for big movements.
Psion: a species enslaved by the Cabal, Psions are hyper intelligent and used by the Cabal to interact with foreign technology. They serve as pilots, technicians, spies, etc. Psions can unleash a wave of energy with their mental power that repels and damages opponents, amongst other psionic abilities.
Psion Flayer: a Psion that has undergone a right of passage to prove its power and earn the title Flayer. Flayer candidates are supposedly chosen from the most powerful and intelligent of the Psions, and it is rumored that the few Flayers that accompanied the Skyburners to Mars were somehow able to change the orbit of Phobos around the red planet. Flayers are deployed to hack into weapon and computer systems that proved too difficult for lesser Psions.
Freeborn Psions: some Psions were not captured and enslaved by the Cabal empire, but later made peace with and joined the empire when it was ruled by Calus. Any Psion not born a slave to the Cabal is called Freeborn, and it is a very high status in their society.
Centurion: Cabal that command small numbers of lesser troops and are equipped with energy shield generators and jump packs that they use for big movements, small evasive movements, and even sustained hovering.
Colossus: large Cabal covered with thick armor and wielding Heavy Slug Throwers. The Colossus is a high rank because of their physical superiority (a very important trait to the Cabal) and serves under Centurions as a heavy unit in a method much like one would use a tank.
Gladiator: large Red Legion Cabal weilding two large blades and a bigger helmet than other Cabal. They use their jump packs to close in on targets. Like the Colossus, their rank marks them as tanks/battering rams, which is actually a high and respected position amongst the Cabal.
Incendior: a Red Legion unit sporting a flamethrower that can spew flames or release a concentrated pulse of fire that knocks back enemies. They rank under Centurions.
War Beast: an almost dog-like but scaly species used by the Red Legion as hunting hounds, the War Beasts have large fangs and claws and their armor sports a few more spikes. Red Legion armor incorporates War Beast skins as a liner, and it’s possible that this is a method to control the War Beasts by making them afraid of whoever wears the skin or by somehow earning their trust through the familiarity of the skin.
Bracus: a high ranking Cabal that commands platoons of lesser ranking troops. They usually have a preference to what unit fills their platoon, such as Psions or Phalanx.
Val: Val are members of the Valus High Guard and eliminate threats without the need of Valus intervention. They can command Bracus and other lesser ranks.
Valus: serving directly under the Primus, Valus keep all the troops in line and eliminate the largest threats as well as directing the forces of their legion in war.
Primus: the highest rank in a legion, the Primus has full command of all troops and resources in their legion and serves as the main coordinator of strategy. The Primus must be a symbol to their forces so usually act more encouraging than the Valus do on the battlefield. Oddly enough, Primus do risk themselves on the battlefield against dire threats, probably following the Cabal beliefs of strength and honor. Primus are part of a larger power pyramid that spans all of the Cabal military; a Primus will defer to the Primus of a superior legion and can command the Primus of a lesser legion. The Skyburner Primus, for example, has complete control over all of the Blind Legion, Dust Giants, etc while the Blind Legion probably has superiorities over the Dust Giants and so on. Being the leader of a scouting legion, the Skyburner Primus defers to the orders of the core army legions like the Red Legion.
Dominus: the Dominus is basically the Primus of all Primus and is the highest position in Cabal society, holding complete military control and outranked only by the Emperor. Ghaul is the only Dominus we’ve known of, so it’s possible that he created the position, especially considering that before Calus became Emperor the military was led by a War Council. Ghaul actually serves as the Primus of the Red Legion as well as the Dominus, meaning that there is no one titled Primus in the Red Legion.
Emperor: the ruler of all of Cabal society, the Emperor has always ruled either independently or alongside the Praetorate. According to the Legend of Acrius, there have been at least several other Emperors.
Praetorate: a council of military leaders that ruled alongside the emperor for a time. Consul did away with the Praetorate during his rule, of which Consol was a member.
[b]Legions:[/b]
Sand Eaters: this group makes up the majority of the Cabal forces from the first Destiny and serve as the backbone of their forces. Identified by green and orange armor. This is probably a sub-legion that serves under a Valus, making their Primus either the Blind Legion or the Skyburner Primus.
Dust Giants: the Dust Giants are basically “cavalry” compared to the Sand Eaters “infantry” and reinforce areas that the Sand Eaters are having trouble in or strike weak points in the enemy line. Identified by forest green and orange armor. This is probably a sub-legion that serves under a Valus, making their Primus either the Blind Legion or the Skyburner Primus.
Siege Dancers: the Siege Dancers are basically the special ops and serve under Valus Ta’aurc. They strike out into enemy territory and defend that territory until the other legions can come to reinforce them. Identified by yellow and blue armor. This sub-legion serves directly under a Valus, so their Primus is probably that of either the Blind Legion or the Skyburners.
Blind Legion: the Blind Legion are the elite unit of the forces on Mars and appear to outmatch even the Skyburners they serve under in skill and effectiveness. Their tasks include exterminating problems that the lesser legions failed to handle, striking into enemy territory on suicide missions to capture valuable resources or eliminate threats, and defending valuable enemy resources that they have captured. They can be identified by their white armor and the trails of bodies, belonging to both their forces and the enemy’s, that they leave in their wake. They have their own Primus and may be a second legion that was deployed alongside the Skyburners or was formed specifically to combat Vex.
Skyburners: this Cabal Legion is a small scouting group with its own fleet and is marked by navy blue and red armor with mohawks on the helmets. The Skyburners have command over the Sand Eaters, Dust Giants, Siege Dancers, and Blind Legion and mostly based on Phobos and over the assault zone on Mercury. Following the Cabal tactic of only sending in more skilled units when deemed necessary, the Skyburners didn’t see nearly as much action as the other Legions under their command and mostly stuck to their Fleetbase on Phobos, but we do have records of the Skyburner Primus and his two Valus bond brothers leading battles against the Vex on the surface of Mars. The Skyburners were to be the second wave that would win it for the Cabal, but Oryx decimated their plans and forces.
Ice Reavers: the only units we have faced from this legion are Psion Flayers that served under the Skyburners. Nothing more is known of them.
The Broken Legion: in an attempt to free other Cabal from the Prison of Elders, Valus Trau’ug disobeyed orders and assaulted the Awoken. He and his followers were captured by the Awoken and deemed traitors by the other Cabal. Trau’ug formed the Broken Legion from his fellow mutineers and the prisoners he had tried to save, and with no hope of rescue they fight inside the Prison and work to escape, fueled by the knowledge that they fought for their brothers in arms even if it was against orders.
Red Legion: the largest and most powerful legion of the Cabal empire, the Red Legion has conquered and destroyed countless systems and never once lost against anything until the defeat of Ghaul in the Red War. They are marked by red and dark grey armor with trademark red War Beast hide incorporated into it, they sport technology superior to that of the lesser legions we’ve seen, and they have a massive war fleet. Through their Dominus Ghaul, the Red Legion has superiorities over every other legion. They are divided into Companies (like sub-legions) to help organize their large numbers.
Loyalists: Cabal that remain loyal to the Emperor Calus. There is no official legion name that we know of, possibly because they were all scraped up from separate places and no entire legion was incorporated, but they fight together under Calus’ Primus and alongside his Shadows. The Loyalists are easily identified by their gold and purple armor.
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Give us the primus or we blow the ship