The destroyer of individualism and personality

Department of HumanitiesPsychology/Sociology Section

For: Chief EngineerSubject: Overview of Acheron's mental state.

Acheron is a battle torn plane. It is as all have said it to be, but they have never really tried to delve into the mind of the machine here. Sir, I believe a great and terrible secret has been kept from the multiverse at large. We all strongly agree with the general consensus that the planes are conscious to some extent. Each has a purpose and to further understand that purpose, our Department has undertaken this great project. So, it has befallen to us, the Department of Humanities to seek out the hidden meanings of the planes through first understanding their most fanatic elements: their militaries. This will then in some way give us a better understanding of psychology and the ecology of each plane in order to complete the Limbo Project.

To help better understand the military machine, I have undergone the indoctrination process with a few various Acheronian battalions. Acheron foremost and above all is the ethical belief that rigorous adherence to the military machine is the perfection of society. Each battalion has its own unique structure by which they attempt to merge with the mind of the plane to become the perfect machine. I have observed a few horrible events, which have led me to believe that the planes really are aware.

Have you ever noticed that none of the great battalions in Acheron are ever crushed under the cubes? Instead, it seems that the more prominent and most mechanical are pulled away from other armies to be saved when the inhabitants start to loose sight of what the perfect military machine is? Time stops as the cubes drift away from other cubes. Those caught on these cubes do not age, but they notice the passing of time. And as the military mind slackens from it's current standards, the plane calls forth one of it's great battalions to mop up the sloppy work of these lesser militaries. Then, forced to rethink their machining, the other battalions are forced to evolve to these higher standings or die. Acheron accepts no substitutes. It drives ever onward to reach its perfect state of military precision.

Now the drawback for such armies comes in the form of the death of individual spirit and the sense of personality and identity. I have seen these great machines of beings strike with such precision and swiftness that if they ever grew in power to stand up to a Baatezu unit of similar size, they would make the Baatezu think twice in their plans. The machine is so great, that the individuals no longer concern themselves with tasks outside of their unit. And then depending on their rank, the majority of them only concern themselves with their perspective squads.

Have you ever met a Modron that truly thought for himself without being rogue? Well, I tell you, after being here, all Modrons have a personality compared to these soldiers. The armies follow a strict schedule on how they will operate. Meals are always at the same time, as well as sleep periods. They wake up at the same time every day, perform their exercises for the morning then take care of their garrison duties before the day is half over. Of course, this is while they are encamped and not currently engaged in a war.

During wartime, they follow a rest schedule that's shortened to maximize the time they have to war. When the battle is through for the day, sentries are always alert to protect the logistic support elements of each military camp. This ensures the overall preservation of the forces through providing them with the rations needed to sustain such long and grueling campaigns. In this environment, the squads are never separated, unless that is their military specialty in combat missions. The squads fight together, rest together, eat together, and rape & pillage together. Never are they apart for long. Nor do they think solely on their own. They have developed an artificial hive mind of sorts. This group mind allows them to act as one body in a fight. Let me assure you, it is a hard sight to see when each force is nearly equaled in precision. The victors of these wars are those who have best adhered to the plane's nature.

In my next letter, I shall go in-depth on how the training sessions work and also give you more insight as to how the cubes seem to be working.

Calix Arvandus, Shaper 2.