The Red Iron Horde.

 

Everyone knows about The God Kings - how they built glittering towers that pierced the heavens. 

How their citadels and palaces spread out from the tops of those towers like flowers of crystal and steel.  

Everyone also knows how the towers fell, how The God Kings and their palaces came crashing to earth, how the forests burned and the seas turned to steam.   

Everyone knows these things. 

The Red Iron Horde 

When The God Kings fell many of their servants perished with them... but some survived. 

Among these were machines, possessed with their own relentless will. Cut loose from the guiding designs for which they'd been created many of the machines had only one directive remaining - persist. 

The Red Iron Horde is a semi nomadic army of thinking machines. They patrol the lands where the towers first took root. With the plas-steel extruders and star-metal foundries that birthed them no longer functioning, they have have resorted to scavenging suitable materials wherever they can find them. 
Consequently most Red Iron warriors are a motley collection of improvised, rusty (hence 'red') parts, taken from travelers that got too close to their territory. 

Over the centuries the horde's need to maintain itself has taken on something of a fanatical aspect; they believe all metal (and other useful elements) rightfully belong to them:

Is that a metal sword? It is about to be requisitioned by the horde. 

Are those horse shoes metal? Better get them off quick before the red iron collectors put their circular saw arms to good use. 

Were you hiding a gold filling in your mouth? Sacrilege!! 

The discovery of a pre-cataclysm artifact can send them into an absolute frenzy, often inspiring horrifically violent excursions into neighbouring lands. 

Fighting the Red Iron Horde has taken an enormous toll on the kingdoms to the south. Oceans of blood and treasure have been spent pushing them back beyond The Windy Waste. The crablike red iron scouts are soon crawling over the field of even the greatest victory - collecting the scraps, rebuilding. Even maintaining a stalemate required the southern cities to adapt - This is what led to the creation of the Knights of East Lake. 

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 Ok, so that was a bit of lore from one of my home games. I've never done a lore post before so hopefully that suits anyone reading this (because I'm going to do another one on the Knights of East Lake). 

As a little offer of game-able stuff, let's make some Red Iron Horde monsters (for cairn - that's what I'm playing at the moment). 

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Red Iron Scout
 4 Hp, 8 STR, 13 DEX, 5 WILL, Needle limbs (d6+d6) 

• Small, crab-like automata that seek out metal scraps for The Red Iron Horde
• Often carrying weapons and armour 
• Combine with other scouts into Red Iron Tumblers 

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Red Iron Tumbler 
3 Armour, 6 HP, 15 STR, 6 DEX, 5 WILL,  Rolling over you (d12) 

• A collection of rolling scrap metal (guided by the Red Iron Scouts that have combined to create it). A Tumbler's prime goal is to get back to a red iron smelter.   
• If destroyed (or significantly impeded) 2d4 Red Iron Scouts emerge from the Tumbler

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Red Iron Collector 
2 Armour, 5HP, 13 STR, 9 DEX, 8 WILL, Circular Saw (d10) 

• A violent machine resembling an armoured ape. Considers all metal the rightful property of the Red Iron Horde.  
• May incorporate useful pieces of armour and weaponry.
• Critical Damage: Severs an extremity - probably the one connected to the most valuable piece of metal (E.g. sword, shield, helmet etc)