|
| Wraiths
|
|
Plagueis
|
|
Ascendant Legion
|
|
Slaves
|
- Snipers
- Scouts
- Combat engineers
- Heavy weapon teams
|
|
|
- Sniper rifles
- Blaster pistols
- Heavy repeaters
- Precision explosives
- Macrobinoculars
|
|
|
Wraiths are soldiers within the enslaved ranks of Clan Plagueis. Unlike the savage Ravagers or the obedient Subjugates, Wraiths are designed for mobility and skill in combat. Where the Ravagers are the hammer of Plaguies, the Wraiths would be the knives. Conditioned to feel jaded and to disregard the worth of life, they are significantly warped during the procedures to create them; passion and aggression are weakened, and the ability to love and empathize are totally eliminated. Their training focuses on executing quick battlefield movements and lightning strikes, making the Wraiths the ideal scouts or snipers in service to the Ascendant Clan.
History
Following the decimation of the Jusadih System, House Plagueis found itself struggling to survive on board the damaged Ascendancy. Following their near defeat, Quaestor Reith was forced to rely upon the skills of the Saraask'ar slaving guild that he had recently brought to heel. As the slave population grew, it became clear that there were certain skills that neither Ravagers or Subjugates were trained for.
Following the seizure of new fleet elements at Ord Padron, General Ranthe Benzayn suggested creating a new class of slave: Wraiths. Whereas the Ravagers focused on direct combat engagement with the enemy, the Ascendant Legion also required scouting forces and skirmishing parties, not to mention trained snipers. Selected from those who balanced murder and deception in equal amounts, certain slaves were subjected to different processes. Trained for effective maneuver warfare and utilizing lighter weapons meant to enhance mobility, these newly minted troops first saw action during the Dark Crusade in battle on Nfolgai. Their success throughout the conflict proved Benzayn's plan to be the correct course.
Skills and Abilities
Two varieties of Wraith exist, though the standard Wraith scout is by far the more numerous.
- Wraith Scout: Trained to operate as highly mobile units in the field, Scouts are trained to be more athletic and less confrontational than their fellow Wraiths. Taught stealth, camouflage, and survival techniques, they come lightly armed and are oftentimes given missions other than executing kills directly, instead relaying enemy positions and establishing targets for insertions and bombing runs, taking out enemy infrastructure, or indirectly causing the deaths of hundreds.
- Wraith Reaper: The most skilled Wraiths are separated from their fellows and trained in the role as snipers or heavy weapons teams. Snipers operate in pairs, these Wraiths are trained to be perfect marksmen. Learning how to gauge wind and trained to set up in an area and stay there until they have a shot, or have other orders relayed to them, these snipers execute orders without hesitation. They often wear weather-equipped gear and are equipped with gear to contain bodily wastes in the event that they cannot move from their posts. Other Reaper units are trained as elite heavy weapon teams. Unlike Wraith Scouts, Reaper missions are entirely focused on enemy asset elimination.
All Wraiths operate with cold, heartless efficiency. They are trained to move and strike quickly, favoring mobility and speed above all else. Their lives are cycles of training, killing, and waiting for the end - when his duties are done, a Wraith is happy to pass into the Force.
Weapons and Equipment
Wraith gear is a combination of jumpsuit and medium armor, not truly black but in actuality a combination of light and dark grays. This is only swapped in different climates such as arctic or desert warfare; otherwise, their colors make them blend perfectly into the shadows.
Their helmets are more sophisticated than those issued to the more numerous Ravagers. The faceplate covers a system that serves to enhance both visible and non-visible energy spectrums, giving the Wraith's powerful sensor systems routed directly into their eyes. The rest of their armor is far less bulky than that standard issue Ravager set, favoring freedom of movement and stealth over protection. Wraiths also carry a backpack containing survival gear, a cylindrical canister that captures and breaks down human waste, and a series of belts and pockets for special weapons and tools. Certain missions will even see them outfitted with oxygen tanks or aquatic gear for deployments underwater or in other hostile environments.
Wraith weaponry includes a variety of compact blasters, sniper rifles, heavy repeaters, vibroblades, and tactical explosives. Aside from their armament, Wraiths will often utilize 74-Z speeder bikes, Flash speeders, or Ultra-Light Assault Vehicles for specific missions.
The Wraith Process
Wraith creation is a process in between that of Subjugates and Ravagers. They are selected from those candidates who show the proper attributes - an inclination toward observation skills, indicators of agility and athleticism, and most of all, an inclination toward negativity. Those who would be Wraiths are taken immediately to undergo a dizzying amount of conditioning.
They are given injections, subjected to surgery, and forced to imbibe or otherwise take alchemical compounds that force them into a receptive state. Their brains are tampered with to weaken their memories of the past, while the centers of their brain that process positive emotion are modified to respond favorably to the execution of their duties. Their bodies are inflicted with venoms and compounds that accelerate muscle damage, while at the same time dealing with steroidal medicines that accelerate healing. While this occasionally results in tumors or abnormal growth, most Wraiths end up in far better physical condition than they normally would.
Once this is done, Wraiths are subjected to dogma that enforces their duty as soldiers in the service of Plagueis; they learn to obey and to take life as their only sources of purpose. They are trained in the ways of mobility and lightning warfare. This training takes longer than with Ravagers, but results in greater loyalty; this is why there are fewer Wraiths, but also why they are so skillful and obedient. Altogether, the process takes from six to eight weeks.