Tyrants

The Tyrants are a paramilitary group that appear in Deus Ex: Icarus Effect and Deus Ex: Human Revolution. They work in secret for the Illuminati, performing clandestine operations without question or hesitation. In the novel, D-Bar explains that they are similar to the Icarus Effect, a social phenomenon where, to maintain "Stability", society cuts down individuals who excel too far before the public is ready to accept radical advancement. In the Tyrants case, they either coerce, intimidate, or (in most cases) kill anyone involved in the spread and advancement of Mechanical Augmentation, as augmentation itself presents a challenge to the total power and rule the Illuminati hold. They are named after the latin word "Tyrannus", meaning "One who takes control with their own actions". Although in some cases, the Tyrants are asked to operate in secret, for more important operations they may openly kill people in public, and the Illuminati's contacts will cover it up (Some examples are the assassination of Caidin Global CEO Garret Dansky, which was framed on the Red Arrow Triad, and the slaughter of Secret Service agent Ron Temple with many of his friends in his own home, which was blamed on Secret Service Agent Anna Kelso.) The Tyrants are paid handsomely, have access to cutting-edge weapons and augmentations, and have their own private airplane. In their line of work, the Tyrants must all execute their orders without hesitation or question, even when it involves killing civilians in cold blood. Only the leader of the group, Jaron Namir, can actually communicate with his superiors, and then only through the Killing Floor, an online construct which stores small, unusable amounts of data across thousands of different drives. Because of this, it is nearly impossible to locate and use any data without legitamately logging in with the true password. Before joining the Tyrants, most of a persons close contacts are killed off, to remove most aspects of a Social life. The only exception to this rule is the leader, Jaron Namir, who retains a wife and children.

Members
Jaron Namir - Leader of the group, Jaron gives mission objectives to the other members and leads most operations. When he was 19, his sister, Melina, was killed in a "car wreck" (Mostly likely The Illuminati cutting off his friends and family). He is still very distraught over her death, and the password to the Killing Floor is her name. Jaron features several subdermal augmentations and at least one arm aug. Jaron somehow manages a double life, both as a black-ops super soldier and as a peaceful family man at home.

Lawrence Barrett - Born in Missouri, the United States, Lawrence is a very tall, muscular man with two artificial arms. During a fight with Ben Saxon, several concussion grenades around his belt detondated, severely scarring him.

Yelena Fedorova - A Russian woman who rarely speaks, Yelena has two augmented legs and an aug that makes her invisible. She is likely capable of speaking, she only chooses not to.

Gunther Hermann - A former member of the German Counter-Terrorism unit GSG-9, Gunther felt restricted by the extensive government supervision the job required. Gunther is a ruthless killer, feeling no regret slaughtering several civilians. He only owns a single prosthetic arm, though he wishes to augment himself as extensively as possible. During a fight with Ben Saxon, Gunther is shot in the eye with a tazer slug and breaks several bones in his torso, physically scarring him. He has somehow survived his carreer with the Tyrants, and 25 years later, he works for UNATCO and Majestic-12. By this time he has also augmented his entire body, including all limbs, his head, and torso. During the events of Deus Ex, he is killed by JC Denton.

Scott Hardesty - A former agent in the CIA, Scott felt close to Joe Wexler, though at the same time he is very skeptic of new recruits. He and Saxon clash, as he believes Saxon is too weak to be a Tyrant.

Joe Wexler - A former member of the CIA, Wexler was involved in the assassination of Garret Dansky, but was killed by Anna Kelso. His death was most likely why Ben Saxon was recruited for the Tyrants himself.

Ben Saxon - Ben first worked for the British SAS, and then worked for Belltower Associates, a private army after leaving. During an operation in the Australian Civil War, his own group, Strike Team 6, were all killed due to bad information from his superiors. After recovering from his injuries, he joined the tyrants to find those responsible for his teams death. Following an operation in Moscow, Russia, Ben first doubted the Tyrants, and grew increasingly uncomfortable working for them. Janus, a member of the Juggernaut Collective, an information based paramilitary group that opposes the Illuminati, contacts him and convinces him to break into Namir's secret room and access the killing floor. After visiting the killing floor, he discovers that the Tyrants are responsible for Strike Team 6's death, and is caught by Namir. He fights his way out of the Tyrant airplane, and eventually joins Juggernaut.