Fun History Lesson - Requiem

[Glacier Peak]

According to game lore, Ridolfo Uzzano was born somewhere in Italy during an unspecified time at the start of the 20th century. In his youth, Ridolfo sought connection to a higher power and became a Priest. Capitalizing on his greater access to ancient texts as a Priest, he sought out records stored in the Vatican. During his research, Ridolfo would find information pertaining to an ancient cult called Path of the Dark which was founded back in Roman times (think Cimerora). The cult's members would join together with otherworldly hosts (later known as Nictus) - sometimes successfully, creating superpowered beings with awesome power (though they'd be forced to create intricate keybindings to really maximize their efforts 😅). Other times, only partial fragments of this otherworldly creature would be imbued in the skin of cult members, creating either Galaxy Soldiers as we know them in modern times, or War Wolves in other cases.  

 

In 1926, upon acquiring more detailed information on this cult, Ridolfo decides to hire some mercenaries and find them out in Ravenna, Italy. Ridolfo eventually discovers the location of the cult's leader, Emperor Augustus (*cough* Romulus *cough*) in an underground cavern and attempts to talk to him. Instead, a band of adventures interrupts and chaos ensues. Ridolfo's mercenaries are swallowed up by the darkness of the caves and Ridolfo is never seen again...

 

...until a month later when he shows up as Requiem in front of Il Duce (Mussolini) in the below uniform - which brings me to the the fun part of this history lesson. The below image is the in game NPC Requiem. On his chest, you will see a series of medals:

 

 

Upon closer inspection:

 

To anyone who has had the pleasure of serving in any armed forces of any nation, you may be familiar with medals, ribbons, and other accouterments. For those who are not, seeing some of these medals on Requiem may not be unusual. In-game lore did say he started working for the Italian government in the 1920s. Perhaps Requiem was given these medals and ribbons by Mussolini for his excellent achievements and merits. The problem is, every time I see these medals on Requiem I can help but cringe a little....

 

AND HERE IS WHY!

 

1. The badge in the top left of the image is a reskin of a United States Army Combat Infantryman Badge (third award) which was first awarded in World War Two (specifically, 6 December 1941). The badge was meant to make the wearer stand out among his contemporaries, as the Infantry had lower recruitment numbers. The blue in the badge represents the Infantry military occupation specialty (MOS) and seeing how a graphics artist recolored that portion red, one could only assume they were in the Artillery MOS or were just trying to meet a deadline 😁.

 

   

 

2. The medal below that is United States Armed Forces Legion of Merit, awarded across all branches of the United States Military for exceptionally meritorious conduct in the performance of outstanding services and achievements. First awarded in 1941, this medal appears to have been modified slightly by the graphics artist to show gold bars connecting each of the edged leaves.  

 

  

 

3. Moving on to the ribbon rack on the right side of the image, there is cause for alarm here as well for those unfamiliar with such things. For sake of brevity, I will simply link the names and images of each ribbon. The graphic artist made some minor changes to each medal, but they can still be discerned by a close eye. Needless to say these are all United States military medals as well and are not in the correct order of precedent.

 

 

 

             [???}

     

 

The Silver Star / The Medal of Honor  

The Soldier's Medal /                           

The Army Service Ribbon / The Army Good Conduct Medal  

The Purple Heart Medal / The Army Achievement Medal (with Oak Leaf Cluster)

NCO Professional Development Ribbon (third award) / National Defense Service Medal

 

.... and that is not even halfway through the rack! So yeah, Requiem is a god-damn American hero! He's a regular Audie Murphy! 

[SuperPlyx]

I am struggling with the leap to American. He is Italian, so he is an Italian hero......, are you saying he fought for the USA in his "gone" period oorr The guy who made his costume used American stuff to do?

[Glacier Peak]

3 minutes ago, SuperPlyx said:

I am struggling with the leap to American. He is Italian, so he is an Italian hero......, are you saying he fought for the USA in his "gone" period oorr The guy who made his costume used American stuff to do?

I am struggling too! Either the graphic artist didn't know the difference between American military medals and Italian military medals, or Requiem was secretly Captain America basically lol

[Luminara]

28 minutes ago, Glacier Peak said:

I am struggling too! Either the graphic artist didn't know the difference between American military medals and Italian military medals, or Requiem was secretly Captain America basically lol

 

Could he have been taking medals from the soldiers he killed, either during or after the wars?

[Glacier Peak]

8 minutes ago, Luminara said:

Could he have been taking medals from the soldiers he killed, either during or after the wars?

This could very well be the case. The fact that the ribbons are not ordered by precedent could support this hypothesis, along with the majority (or all really) of the medals and ribbons not being awarded until World War Two, where such grab could've taken place.

[Glacier Peak]

I'd also note that a few in game badges are actually reskins of real military ribbons as well. For example, the Member of the Vanguard badge is actually a color polarization of the United States military National Defense Service Medal with the Vanguard logo added.

 

   

 

 

 

Same goes for Master at Arms being a recolorization of the Joint Service Achievement Medal. 

 

 

Welcome to Earth... may be a unique one though!

 

Edit: @Apparition for future MSR shenanigans, image above!

Edited January 7, 2022 by Glacier Peak

[Major_Decoy]

2 hours ago, Luminara said:

 

Could he have been taking medals from the soldiers he killed, either during or after the wars?

He strikes me as the type of guy who buys medals off of e-bay and awards them to himself in solemn ceremonies. He definitely has a spread sheet somewhere to remind himself of what each medal is for.

[cranebump]

He wouldn’t be stealing ribbons off soldiers he killed unless they were somehow fighting in their class A’s. (I guess he crashed the Army Ball?)

[Glacier Peak]

39 minutes ago, cranebump said:

He wouldn’t be stealing ribbons off soldiers he killed unless they were somehow fighting in their class A’s. (I guess he crashed the Army Ball?)

Right?? 

[TraumaTrain]

Clearly a case of stolen valor.

 

I'm surprised he doesn't have a SEAL team or a SWO pin.

[Luminara]

10 minutes ago, TraumaTrain said:

Clearly a case of stolen valor.

 

 

[Glacier Peak]

2 hours ago, TraumaTrain said:

Clearly a case of stolen valor.

 

I'm surprised he doesn't have a SEAL team or a SWO pin.

He does have jump wings though 😄 

[JasperStone]

Nemesis Plot

[SeraphimKensai]

I have 5 of these in my own collection at home.

 

Probably a good idea to update his awards with Italian or even Nazi awards or remove them in general. He sure doesn't deserve the American medals and ribbons.

[Glacier Peak]

10 hours ago, SeraphimKensai said:

I have 5 of these in my own collection at home.

 

Probably a good idea to update his awards with Italian or even Nazi awards or remove them in general. He sure doesn't deserve the American medals and ribbons.

To your point, yeah I recognize that, even alluded to it a little in my original post. Some folks unfamiliar with military service might not be aware of it though. Either way, the original graphic artist who used those as the starting point could've done a better job at either selecting Italian military medals and ribbons or just made them up for the fictional game.

 

Its the little things!

 

Edit: Just reread your post and realized I missed the first part. Awesome! I've got 5 of those mentioned as well. It was honestly the CIB that was colored red that I noticed the most 😆 

Edited January 7, 2022 by Glacier Peak

[Andreah]

Most likely, the artist who created the uniform just grabbed a bunch of medal images and pasted them together without thought to the lore implications.

[Glacier Peak]

4 minutes ago, Andreah said:

Most likely, the artist who created the uniform just grabbed a bunch of medal images and pasted them together without thought to the lore implications.

Yeah that was my point in the original post - folks who aren't familiar with military service, let alone the difference between American and Italian military medals and ribbons wouldn't think twice about this. It is something I notice every time I run an arc with Requiem as the big baddy or watch a cutscene with him. Just a really cringy thing to see considering the context that I put forth in my original post.

[Andreah]

Isn't there a regulars costume chest ornament filled with medals? Are they the same ones?

[Glacier Peak]

21 minutes ago, Andreah said:

Isn't there a regulars costume chest ornament filled with medals? Are they the same ones?

That is a great question!

 

 

 

Chest Decal > Award Ribbons / Requiem's Chest Decal 

Edited January 6, 2022 by Glacier Peak

[Redletter]

On 1/5/2022 at 2:31 PM, Glacier Peak said:

According to game lore, Ridolfo Uzzano was born somewhere in Italy during an unspecified time at the start of the 20th century. In his youth, Ridolfo sought connection to a higher power and became a Priest. Capitalizing on his greater access to ancient texts as a Priest, he sought out records stored in the Vatican. During his research, Ridolfo would find information pertaining to an ancient cult called Path of the Dark which was founded back in Roman times (think Cimerora). The cult's members would join together with otherworldly hosts (later known as Nictus) - sometimes successfully, creating superpowered beings with awesome power (though they'd be forced to create intricate keybindings to really maximize their efforts 😅). Other times, only partial fragments of this otherworldly creature would be imbued in the skin of cult members, creating either Galaxy Soldiers as we know them in modern times, or War Wolves in other cases.  

 

In 1926, upon acquiring more detailed information on this cult, Ridolfo decides to hire some mercenaries and find them out in Ravenna, Italy. Ridolfo eventually discovers the location of the cult's leader, Emperor Augustus (*cough* Romulus *cough*) in an underground cavern and attempts to talk to him. Instead, a band of adventures interrupts and chaos ensues. Ridolfo's mercenaries are swallowed up by the darkness of the caves and Ridolfo is never seen again...

 

...until a month later when he shows up as Requiem in front of Il Duce (Mussolini) in the below uniform - which brings me to the the fun part of this history lesson. The below image is the in game NPC Requiem. On his chest, you will see a series of medals:

 

 

Upon closer inspection:

 

To anyone who has had the pleasure of serving in any armed forces of any nation, you may be familiar with medals, ribbons, and other accouterments. For those who are not, seeing some of these medals on Requiem may not be unusual. In-game lore did say he started working for the Italian government in the 1920s. Perhaps Requiem was given these medals and ribbons by Mussolini for his excellent achievements and merits. The problem is, every time I see these medals on Requiem I can help but cringe a little....

 

AND HERE IS WHY!

 

1. The badge in the top left of the image is a reskin of a United States Army Combat Infantryman Badge (third award) which was first awarded in World War Two (specifically, 6 December 1941). The badge was meant to make the wearer stand out among his contemporaries, as the Infantry had lower recruitment numbers. The blue in the badge represents the Infantry military occupation specialty (MOS) and seeing how a graphics artist recolored that portion red, one could only assume they were in the Artillery MOS or were just trying to meet a deadline 😁.

 

   

 

2. The medal below that is United States Armed Forces Legion of Merit, awarded across all branches of the United States Military for exceptionally meritorious conduct in the performance of outstanding services and achievements. First awarded in 1941, this medal appears to have been modified slightly by the graphics artist to show gold bars connecting each of the edged leaves.  

 

  

 

3. Moving on to the ribbon rack on the right side of the image, there is cause for alarm here as well for those unfamiliar with such things. For sake of brevity, I will simply link the names and images of each ribbon. The graphic artist made some minor changes to each medal, but they can still be discerned by a close eye. Needless to say these are all United States military medals as well and are not in the correct order of precedent.

 

 

 

             [???}

     

 

The Silver Star / The Medal of Honor  

The Soldier's Medal /                           

The Army Service Ribbon / The Army Good Conduct Medal  

The Purple Heart Medal / The Army Achievement Medal (with Oak Leaf Cluster)

NCO Professional Development Ribbon (third award) / National Defense Service Medal

 

.... and that is not even halfway through the rack! So yeah, Requiem is a god-damn American hero! He's a regular Audie Murphy! 

 

Presidemperor Nemesis gave them to him, clearly!

[Major_Decoy]

3 hours ago, Redletter said:

 

Presidemperor Nemesis gave them to him, clearly!

He's the leader of a countryless militia. All of the titles and badges of his organization are as grounded in reality as the Salvation Army's. (The 5th Column should totally have people on the corner ringing bells by cauldrons during the winter event)

 

He recognizes no power higher than his own. He does not report to anyone, he has no accountability to anyone. Honestly, the only badges he will have are the ones he decides to give himself.

[Glacier Peak]

That reminds me of a related tangent about fictional super powered characters whose creators sprinkle in their backstory things like: "he won two Medals of Honor" or "he or she got PTSD from the war."

 

It's just lazy writing! Sure it gives the audience the impression that the character is awesome or tragic quickly, but it's a cheap cop-out that I think lessens the meaning of such acts of heroism and achievement that military service awards mean to promote.

Edited January 7, 2022 by Glacier Peak

[Redletter]

4 hours ago, Glacier Peak said:

That reminds me of a related tangent about fictional super powered characters whose creators sprinkle in their backstory things like: "he won two Medals of Honor" or "he or she got PTSD from the war."

 

It's just lazy writing! Sure it gives the audience the impression that the character is awesome or tragic quickly, but it's a cheap cop-out that I think lessens the meaning of such acts of heroism and achievement that military service awards mean to promote.

While I totally appreciate the sentiment, I think there's the implementation of rewards of honor, and war trauma can be very potent if done well. I'd cite Disco Elisium and Spec Ops: The Line as games that explore recognition of service and the mental toll of armed conflict respecitvely. Without spoiling either game, I think the crux of quality lies in HOW we find out about these things. For instance, if youre TOLD by a character or the narrator or something, to the tune of "Oh man, that's John Warhero! He got 11 purple hearts, and 6 medals of honor as well as the two galatic stars of infinite celestial valor! He's probably, if not definitely, the most honorable and well decorated and successful and humble soldier OF. ALL. TIIIIIME! He saved the President! And the UN! And his platoon! and an orphanage! ALL. AT. ONCE." then it's a blatantly transparent attempt at building up a character as a hero without any effort, which defeats the point OF these recognitions of service.

 

Likewise, if you have a character or the narrator go "That's John PTSD, he was the battalion commander of the Doomed Souls brigade and he and his team got stuck in the Death Woods for 666 years and he watched all his friends get eaten, melted, skewered, and worse! All while he had to shoot puppies and children with chemical weapons against his moral conscience but man, war sure is hell, so he did it and now he's a loner who doesnt talk about annnnny of this. He also has a token drinking problem, probably because of the total horror of all this traumatizing backstory that's just been exposited" you also due a massive disservice to those who pay for their survival with their sanity, It's not fair at BEST, and at worse it flanderizes mental trauma.

 

Mass Effect is a good example of doing it wrong, AND right at the same time. The begining of the game (with the right background) has a group of characters sitting around talking about Commander Shepard's traumatic service history. It's incredibly disengenious. But, later in that same game, you encounter quite a few OTHER survivors of traumatic events - who were under the command of Shepard in both cases (again, depending on shepard's service history) and those situations are handled fairly well in my opinion, and the "Paragon" responses for Shepard in those situations are appropriately respectable.

[Redletter]

9 hours ago, Glacier Peak said:

That is a great question!

 

 

 

Chest Decal > Award Ribbons / Requiem's Chest Decal 

Requiem really did just take a look at the chest decal and say "I want THAT but BIGGERER!"

[Glacier Peak]

58 minutes ago, Redletter said:

Requiem really did just take a look at the chest decal and say "I want THAT but BIGGERER!"

I'm almost certain Requiem came first, then the chest decal was added a few issues later.