The Grim-hats

Amongst the most renowned groups of mages on the Long Stretch, the Grim-hats are an organization of mages who specialize in using magic in military conflict and have participated in several major events in Az's history.  

Origins

  Before the formation of the Grim-hats, the Long Stretch was home to countless traditions concerning the use of magic, with many wandering mages and hermit druids moving from place to place, while offering services in exchange for payment. This practice was most popular around the countries of the Emerald Coasts and the Central Corridor. However, many of these wandering mages would come under severe persecution at the start of the Epoch of the Warlords, where many minor tyrants, bandits and more consolidated powers alike attempted to cull any of these roaming magicians, fearing they could pose a threat to their territories.   This situation worsened when the Gimea-Massidi Alliance began pushing past the Rain-forest Belt, with the religious dogma of the Insaelid faith acting as a catalyst for the Massidians to ruthlessly execute any mage which did not submit to their deity. This impacted the wandering druids the most, with thousands being put to the death, and many obscure disciplines and traditions of magic were wiped out altogether.   In order to survive such a hostile environment, a great enclave of the remaining nomads was held, where it was decided they would band together to protect their customs. In keeping with their traditions, these mages would continue to wander from place to place, offering their services to those willing to pay. There were two key differences to their approach going forward, one being that these mages would always travel in groups of three to seven individuals, as to minimize the risk of being targeted for ambushes. The second, more important change, was that these mages would use their talents for the express intent of mercenary work, utilizing whatever tactics necessary to attain victory.   Due to each member of this enclave originally being a vagabond magician, they all exhibited wildly different attire and methods for casting magic from each other, though the relative isolation from civilization meant that most of these wizards were proficient in the application of Isolate magic. This would prove to be a boon, as no one caster would use the same spells and tactics, making it very difficult for enemies they met on the field to effectively counter them. That being said, as to recognize each member of the enclave, the wizards decided to adopt large brimmed hats with a somewhat comedic central peak, most likely derived from the hats of beggars in some countries on the northern side of the Long Stretch.   With these iconic headpieces, the Grim-hats were established, the name having been acquired after their first few decades or so of military successes. Most of these mages are described as having permanent dour expressions, which in conjuncture with their reputation as reapers of the battlefield, meant that any army facing them would be hesitant to engage them, their large hats serving as a grim omen of the deaths that were sure to follow.  

Hierarchy and Recruitment

  While the Grim-hats do not adhere to much of a hierarchy at all, the existence of the grouping system all members adhere to results in each group organizing themselves independently of the others. These groups can have many names, though the most common descriptor is a skulk, in reference to a group of foxes. Each skulk can have a different form of hierarchy, such as one skulk being lead by the eldest wizard within, another being lead by the wizard with the greatest power or success in battle. Otherwise, the only unifying factor between the Grim-hats as a whole is the Enclave, where every few decades the skulks converge at an agreed location to discuss matters relating to political events on the Long Stretch, and areas where the Grim-hats should avoid due to said events. There are no defined leaders at an Enclave meeting, every Grim-hat present has an equal say in discussions and any action taken by these wizards must have the support of the majority before it is taken.   In regards to the recruitment process of the Grim-hats, initiates may be taken into a skulk whenever they request membership, granted that they show a satisfactory ability in magic and willingness to adopt a nomadic lifestyle. Because of the harsh conditions of such a lifestyle, the majority of initiates taken are either from traveling communities or are orphaned boys who have lost their homes in conflicts. The few exceptions to this are state employed magicians, who become disgraced or discontented in their home country and must make do any way they can, opting for a position with the Grim-hats, whose mercenary nature allows for such mages to continue using magic for a living.  

Equipment

  While no two Grim-hats use the exact same equipment, it is inevitable that there will be some common affinity for certain items in many a Grim-hat's kit.  

The Hat

  The only universal piece of attire all Grim-hats use is their trademark pointed hats, which are often combined with various types of helmets. Depending on the period and location, certain helmets were more popular than others, though in general the most popular style of combination was to use a helmet which didn't impede on the wearers vision, such as a kettle hat or bascinet. The fabric aspect of the hat would then be incorporated into the helmet, either being tied on with twine string or woven directly through slits in the headpiece. The floppiness of the hollow cone hat would often pose issues in the midst of combat, so many Grim-hats would make it so the hollow part could function as a sack, being able to untie the top section and then fill the opening with any material the wizard may choose. Historically, the choice material for these 'hat-sacks' was a powdered substance of some description, such as flour, which had a dual purpose in softening blunt force trauma directed at the head, as well as an offensive tool which could be used in conjuncture with a burst of magically induced wind to blind a large number of opponents. Other less common items stored range from spare provisions and currency to small familiars. In the most recent periods of the Enlightened Era, the most used substance in filling a Grim-hat's headpiece is refined forms of gunpowder, a risky filling, yet rewarding, as only the smallest quantity of soul-force is needed to detonate a fistful of the stuff from afar, proving many times more efficient than if a mage was to force an explosion to occur through sheer magic.  

Staffs, and Other Enchanted Implements

  Not mandatory, but still heavily used, the Grim-hat's use of staffs is almost as recognizable as their namesake. This is not unique to this group of mages, with staffs being popular catalysts for countless cultures across all of Az. However, the fact that the Grim-hat's are so prone to encounter situations that may leave them physically impaired in some way means that a staff's capability as a crutch lends itself well to their profession. Additionally, a substantial portion of the founding Grim-hats would have been using staffs even before the groups formation, being so heavily associated with magic as they were. With this in mind, staffs of the Grim-hats are generally quite plain in contrast to other groups of mages. Often, they are hewn from a suitable tree branch, and only the most minor adjustments are made to its shape, as to bear a man's weight and perhaps hold a jewel in its crown. This gives a distinctive ruggedness to them, in keeping with the more haggard appearance of the Grim-hats as a whole, which serves as a deterrent for would be robbers from snatching their belongings.   There are countless other enchanted items and tools used by Grim-hats, all of course dependent on the individual, ranging from cloaks which confer short term invisibility, all the way to rare and powerful artifacts that have been either won in battles hard fought, or plundered from burial sites of ancient heroes. It goes without saying that albinidite is highly sought after by the Grim-hats, its invaluable magic-storing quality serving many uses in and off the battlefield.  

Armor and Weaponry

  The most dynamic aspect between Grim-hats is their taste in armor and apparel that is not explicitly magical (though such items usually are enhanced through magic regardless). Depending on location, one will find the wizards of the Grim-hats in certain places favor heavy plate armor and blunt weapons, while in others they prefer light leather-wear and ranged weapons like bows, cross-bows and, if admittedly very rarely, firearms. The locales of the Long Stretch and the preferences of the Grim-hats attire are as follows; the fair country of Ganneoux and its many Great Houses are the hunting grounds where Grim-hats are most likely to don steel plate for protection and heavy weaponry for bypassing other heavily geared opponents. The neighboring realm of Frynn is where the few present skulks of Grim-hat choose to use thick woolen clothing and heavy set boots, often using only daggers as a weapon due to the treacherous mountains and almost never having need to engage in full-scale battles. The majority of the Emerald coasts are much the same in this regard, though the greater number of bandits prompts the use of gambeson jackets or chain-mail, with bows and crossbows the weapon of choice when skirmishing amongst the thick forests of this region. The wide expanse of the Central Corridor is where the greatest amount of change has occurred since the Epoch of the Warlords, with the Grim-hats tendencies reflecting this. During the Epoch of the Warlords, when the Grim-hats were still young, armor and weaponry was hastily acquired and often poor in quality, but quickly the popular combat attire of the Corridor became mail in addition to some leather cuirasses. With the rise of the Cericonian Dominion and their dominance over the corridor, the Grim-hats began adapting to the increased use of void-steel weaponry by incorporating shields and more steel plate to their designs. This trend was swiftly reversed with the arrival of firearms on the Long Stretch around a thousand years ago, with heavier apparel being almost completely dropped in lieu of lighter cuirasses and armor which would allow the Grim-hats maximum speed in evading potential fire.   Beyond these areas, the Grim-hats historically never ventured far into the Rainforest Belt and for most of their existence have avoided the regions of Gomaiy and the Massidian Peninsula entirely, save for the times when the Cericonian Dominion began pushing back the Gimea-Massidi into these areas, at the end of the Epoch of the Warlords. The country of Gurn is avoided entirely due to the ruling theocracy's hostility to foreign magic, while the Amber Coasts are seldom frequented by Grim-hats on account of the various mercenary and warrior-mage orders that exist wherein, posing competition. Because of the few operations in these areas, there is no "semi-general" equipment used by the Grim-hats recorded.