Kharonean Martyrs Armorial

"Great is the service we perform, and so our payment must be of equal worth. Our blades will carry you over the great rivers beyond, and our fires shall purify that which is impure. Nothing may be given freely, for the debt always comes due." —Chapter Master Orthus  

The Kharonean Martyrs is a loyalist Chapter of the Adeptus Astartes, created during the 18th Founding, though the exact date of their inception has been lost to the shifting tides of time. They belong to the gene-line of Lion El'Jonson, which makes them a part of the Unforgiven successors of the Dark Angels Legion. They are, for the most part, adherent to the structures of the Codex Astartes, though many of their methods are somewhat unorthodox when stood beside other Space Marine Chapters.

On the field of battle, the Kharoneans Martyrs prefer to look their enemies in the eyes as they tear their bodies apart with the teeth of their chainswords and burn what remains in the purifying fires of their melta guns. As far as their beliefs are concerned, death is a personal affair that deserves due respect, for all brothers of the order see themselves as the ferrymen who carry the souls of the living, both saintly and foul, across the endless rivers of the afterlife. All who meet their fury are delivered to the other side of the veil, so that they may find the rest that must follow all life. This service, as they like to think of it, does not come without cost, however.  

Whenever the Chapter comes to the aid of a beleaguered system or fights alongside other Imperial forces, they will demand compensation for the blood they shed. Once their blades are pledged to a cause, the ferrymen will perform their duty with utmost dedication and unrelenting determination, gladly accepting the martyrdom that awaits them in the fires of war. Even so, their services are never given freely, nor is their zeal. To replenish the high numbers of men, equipment, and other resources they expend, the officers of the Kharonean Martyrs will name a steep price to whoever possesses the means to pay them. It is merely their due reward, for a debt incurred through the sacrifice of Astartes lives, and so they feel little shame about taking what is rightfully theirs.  

Many additional structures and roles have been incorporated into their organisation to facilitate the managing of resources and tithes collected by the Chapter, though much of their Chapter Cult is also dedicated to ensuring that their warriors do not succumb to greed and avarice. As important as the acquisition of resources is for the Martyrs, such wealth, in the end, is meant to serve a need.

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