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INDEX ASTARTES: DESERT EAGLES SONS OF GUILLIMAN Renowned for their adaptive warfare and righteous fury, few can resist the overwhelming onslaught of the Desert Eagles in their stride. Serving the Imperium since the earliest conflicts of the Great Crusade has earned the chapter numerous honours, as well as bitter enemies from the ranks of those who fled their advance. The Desert Eagles are proud descendants of Guilliman and honour his name with a storied list of campaigns won over his enemies. In contrast to the measured tactics of their progenitor the Desert Eagles utilise highly responsive advances, shifting entire frontiers of battle to exploit opportunities. This characteristic descends from the forging of the Chapter during the vicious battles against the Word Bearers of Lorgar in the Horus Heresy, when a Chapter of their Ultramarine forebearers were left isolated and betrayed on the deserts of Calth. The resourcefulness of the Astartes in reclaiming critical supplies and positions and their unrelenting nature during those crucial hours earned them the nickname ‘Carrion Eagles’ during the siege by local forces. The brown-and-crimson armour of the Desert Eagles now reflects the desert that defined them over mere hours, as well as the commemorating the lives lost in those cursed sands. A Desert Eagles assault unleashes The Emperor's Mercy upon a Chaos Warband Desert Eagles Astartes with Bolter When the Desert Eagles Chapter was brought into being during the Second Founding, Captain Catius Thassor, a renowned commander of the Ultramarines Legion, was chosen to be its first Chapter Master. Thassor's reputation was steeped in legend from the Battle of Calth, where he led what would become the Desert Eagles chapter against Word Bearers forces in desperate survival on the planet's surface. The savagery of the Word Bearers' assault upon the planet's surface was secondary only the conflicts within orbit. Even as Ultramarines forces were shattered at Komesh the fighting in the deserts of Cuneth grew fierce, where the planned betrayal faltered under sandstorms. Thrice Thassor led the united Imperial forces into the sands to reclaim vital communication facilities to allow their evacuation, splintering the ammassed followers of Lorgar under blinding walls of dust and fire. Such conditions proved fatal for many of the allied Imperial Guardsmen within the deserts, however the loyalist forces made frequent use of their littered supplies as the hours of desperate fighting bore continued. Battletanks and artillery positions were scavenged for shells and explosives, and the Ultramarine defence bore on. Communications reached the loyalist positions of the dire state of Calth, and with it news of impending destruction. The Word Bearers' obliteration of the system had destabilised its integrity, and soon the surface would prove fatal for any who remained on its surface. Thassor's forces turned their scavenged ammunition earthbound, and were able to detonate their way into the nearby subterranean networks where they would continue waging the Underworld War against Chaos forces until Ultramarines fleets returned several years later. By the time Thassor was able to return his Chapter to the Ultramarines Legion less than half of those he had led beneath the desert of Cuneth remained, and himself a hero of the Legion. With the completion of the Codex Astartes by Roboute Guilliman at the conclusion of the Horus Heresy, he commanded his sons to divide into 1,000-member Space Marine Chapters so that no single commander could ever control the power of an entire Astartes Legion again. As the Howling Griffons and Genesis Chapter ventured into the galaxy at the dawning of the Second Founding so to did the Desert Eagles, now united in their brown-and-crimson and once again being led into the unknown by Catius Thassor, Chapter Master of the storied survivors of Calth. The Desert Eagles' homeworld is located on the planet Audax, an Imperial Feral World in Segmentum Ultima. The planet consists of a pair of hive cities, both heavily damaged due to solar radiation, as well as the Desert Eagles' Fortress-Monastery Basilica Solitudinem. Audax's population still resides within the ruins of the two cities, as the remaining landscape of sun-scarred rocks and salt flats proves fatal to those who pass through. Life is fierce within the crumbling towers with scarce resources and even scarcer allies, and attempts to unite the cities by those residing fall quickly due to mistrust and infighting. The Desert Eagles Battlebarge "Heavenfall" hangs in orbit over Audax Watch the full animation here! The present-day Chapter utilises a variety of trials to select neophytes from those that remain clinging to the cities of eons past, their skills honed by the trials of living upon Audax. Representatives of the Desert Eagles descend upon each city twice within a normal human's lifetime and take the most skilled aspirants from the population, forcibly if required. Many that fail the trials are returned as servitors, and are tasked with rebuilding for the remnants of their short life-span. Some have noted that the cities may have yet been recovered if not for the recruitment and removal of their most hopeful youth who now litter the alleyways as glistening mechanised corpses. The method of fighting forced upon those of Audax for survival has served the Desert Eagles suitably over the millennia. Their modus operandi consists of fluid and interchanging attacks conducted by highly trained forces, destroying the enemy before any attack can be properly responded to and never allowing the enemy to force a static engagement. The Chapter emphasises the usage of shifting terrain and resources to their advantage, and each unit has a vital role within the overarching structure deployed. As a result, on some occasions that the tide of battle turned against the Desert Eagles the losses were significant, such as in M36 when they were ambushed by Drukhari forces who were able to interrupt communications systems between the Chapter. Although preferring to keep the foe at arms-length, the Desert Eagles are still capable of engaging in bloody close-combat just as readily as at range, and are readily feared by the enemies of the Imperium. Despite their seemingly indecisive nature when employing tactics, the Desert Eagles disdains the notion of recklessly charging against an enemy without sufficient intelligence of the situation or the surrounding landscape which could be used to their advantage. The Desert Eagles are classified as a Codex Astartes-compliant Chapter, and they follow the sacred tome with few variations in terms of organisation. They follow the tactics presented in the Codex, efficiently making use of different standard units, but frequently intermix and alter tactical decisions so that the Chapter cannot be readily countered. The addition of Primaris reinforcements has been received poorly due to their slow uptake of these decisions, a reflection of their Terran upbringing and previous engagements rather than ability. Desert Eagles Shoulder Pad (6th - 10th Company) The Desert Eagles are currently operating at near full-strength and organise their Chapter into 10 companies. In a reflection of the two cities of Audax the Chapter is often divided as two 5 Company forces known as Strikes, with the 1st - 5th Companies' shoulder pads being crimson to denote this whilst the 6th - 10th Companies have brown shoulder pads with a crimson trim. The appointment to Strike Captain is an incredible honour within the Chapter and often precludes appointment to Chapter Master, as a Chapter Master cannot himself lead a Strike as he must focus on the operation of the Chapter as a whole. The Desert Eagles were established in the Second Founding (M31) from a Chapter of Ultramarines that survived the Battle of Calth, and are therefore descended from Roboute Guilliman. They have not experienced any significant issues from their gene-stock and answered Guilliman's call for aid upon his return, though the deviation of their combat doctrine has brought issues when fighting alongside other Astartes forces. PRE-HERESY Chapter Master Catius Thassor - Catius Thassor was a former Captain of the Ultramarines Legion during the Great Crusade and Horus Heresy, achieving esteem for his service during the Battle of Calth. He became the Desert Eagles' first Chapter Master during the Second Founding and led them to their Homeworld of Audax, establishing the fortress-monastery Basilica Solitudinem upon the planet's weathered surface. POST-HERESY Chapter Master Martellis Riol - Martellis Riol is the current Chapter Master of the Desert Eagles following the death of his predecessor during the early Indomitus Crusade. Riol was formerly the Captain of the 5th Company and inherited Talonstrike, a Master-Crafted spear with attached bolt-pistol that is the pride of the Chapter. He was notoriously besieged by Desert Eagles forces for three days at the peak of one of the few remaining towers on Audax where he had made his lair prior to joining the Chapter, a feat thrice that of any previous aspirant. Utilising the crumbling nature of the ferrocrete building against them he was able to combat the incapacitating weaponry deployed against him in a cruel reflection of the Chapter's tactics. Only the intervention of an apothecary saved him at the conclusion of the siege from dying due to exhaustion, and the legend of his stand spread quickly throughout the Chapter. Strike Captain Adonis Rake - Adonis Rake was a former Captain of the 1st company and Strike Captain in M36, when he led the 1st, 3rd and 4th Companies as a Strike against a significant Drukhari pirate threat. The two forces tactics were each a reflection of the other, however the lightning speed of the forces of Commorragh caught Rake both unaware and unprepared. The ensuing destruction led to the complete obliteration of the Strike, and the loss of experience and resources was a severe hit against the Desert Eagles, who sorely swear vengeance upon those who inflicted their destruction. Ever since the Chapter has favoured younger leaders and highly commemorates exceptional service of an individual, rather than solely years in service. "Fluid/interchanging/responsive tactics" is justification for my terrible choices during actual games of 40k, thought it might reflect nicely in the lore as well. I understand that Calth was an Agri-World prior to the Horus Heresy, and though I haven't read the books covering the Battle of Calth I'm banking on an image of Calth pre-heresy containing what appears to be deserts. If there's any issues I could switch the planet that the desert fighting takes place on, I just imagined that the Battle of Calth would be such a significant and defining moment in the Ultramarines' history that it'd send shockwaves even 10,000 years later in how some chapters function. Full credit for the images goes to two very talented artists on DeviantArt, Kai Lim for the first which was for a series of Soul Drinkers novels, and Algrim-Whitefang for the Astartes image which I combined from a few of their images. I believe the shoulder pad is from the 5th ed. Space Marine Codex? Very easy to find on the various wikis. All were recoloured in Photoshop using Hue/Saturation layers. I've now designed a custom insignia similar to the Necropolis Hawks, however it invokes the look of a saw blade. I enjoy the Flesh Tearers' iconography a lot, and used it as influence here. If you wish to replicate the banners I've used here I'm more than happy to send the Photoshop file through.

The Alpha Hounds Space Marines Chapter Intercepted Inquisitorial Report regarding subject 'Alpha Hounds'. "I have my doubts whether or not these 'Hounds' can be relied upon or trusted in a time of Imperial need. Should our Lords on Terra call, the Chapter is beyond lethargic to answer. Citing the Emperor against them seems to be the only way to direct them with any kind of haste." -Unknown Inquisitor Available Imperial records have proved mostly reliable regarding the Alpha Hounds Chapter. Their creation was a standard issue order from the High Lords of Terra during the first years of the 26th founding. Their purpose at that time was to keep at bay any enemy forces in the tail of the Sagittarius Arm, which were initially limited to Chaos raids attempting to strike through the frequent warp storms of the region. There is but one noticeable hole in the Chapter’s history that Imperial records cannot fill, which regards their homeworld. The Hounds themselves appear to have these records, but no one outside the Chapter has ever been permitted to see them. Within three hundred years of their founding, the threats they faced evolved into something more substantial with the first expansions of the xenos Tau Empire. Because of the tenacity of the Tau in defending their worlds, the Chapter’s primary objective has become patrolling the border space to prevent them from gaining new foothold worlds and expanding further. This has also brought them into conflict with splinters of the Tyranid Hive Fleet Gorgon. Though they keep largely to themselves, the Chapter has been regularly sighted patrolling assigned space, from the coreward stars of the Tau Empire almost to the end of the Sagittarius Arm. The Triplex Phall forgeworld reports regular supply requisitions from the Chapter. Full Circuit "These systems are backwater, forgotten and unattended by the Imperium. With this last jump here, we have our course; a route to the Arm's end that follows endless night and offers free reign." -Fyvush Feyne The unfortunate mutation of the Alpha Hound gene-seed has at least complemented its fleet based nature, which allows them to avoid the would-be blinding light of a homeworld's sun. The fleet maintains patrols along a series of subsector to subsector planetary systems that has taken Chapter Librarians and Navigators the better part of a century to compile, and completed by a Navigator called Fyvush Feyne. The course, named the Feyne Circuit in his honor, consists of planets used as staging grounds and supply caches, largely uninhabitable and lost in shadow for most of their respective day periods. The Circuit also includes three asteroids which have been equipped to move, providing variables in the course that only the highest ranking Hounds can know. The Alpha Council considers this an essential precaution as all untithed gene-seed produced by the Chapter is kept in the facilities along the Circuit. While each of these 'Night World' bases is fortified, the defenses don't amount to much more than a few orbital defense guns and sensors for tracking activity in each system. The protection of the Night Worlds depends largely on the proximity of the fleet, and secrecy. The Battle Barge called Bastion Alpha houses the Chapter's monastery. Despite receiving supplies from multiple sources, the prolonged campaigns favored by the Hounds quickly drain these resources, and without the stockpiles on the Circuit, the Chapter would be regularly exposed with no means of retaliation, making the Feyne Circuit a necessary supply line asset to defend. Obscure archival footnotes mention a homeworld for the Chapter. Though older navigational charts note the planet as an agri-world, more recent visitors report the planet as destroyed. Cracked nearly in three, the few ruins still visible have clearly been the subject of intense orbital bombardment. No Imperial reports detail what transpired there, and the death of that world is remembered only by the Alpha Hounds. The history kept by the Alpha Hounds tells that less than a century following their founding the Chapter was drawn away from its wards by a chaos fleet, allowing the world to be invaded. The invasion forces did not count on nearby Imperial Navy elements, who notified the Hounds as they engaged the invaders, advising them to make the long journey back. Before long, the commander of the Naval forces began to report that the battle was going poorly, the planet was falling, and exterminatus was beginning to look like the only option. The Hounds still on the planet said otherwise, certain the world could be saved. The Chapter Master and his council of leadership petitioned more than once for more time to bring reinforcements, citing the loyalty of the natives and their faith in the Imperium, but were answered with silence. Sacrificing no more time to leave the Warp for reports, the fleet made all haste towards home. When they emerged from the Immaterium over the homeworld, they found a burning husk. An indelible mark was left on the young Chapter, but in the Emperor’s eyes and their own, they were still bound to serve…and so pressed on. However, not even the Hounds kept any record of what became of the Naval elements that oversaw the death of their homeworld. Rite of Passage Finally, an opportunity. Two of the Kroot had separated, leaving the camp to forage. Waiefei's long wait was ending. Sighting through the Stalker's scope, he led the pair for fifteen seconds til they were just out of sight of the camp. At their next step, he squeezed the trigger with trained precision. The bolt bored through the nearer Kroot's skull, then clipped the further Kroot's shoulder. Instantly adjusting, Darius fired again before the howl of pain could sound, his tactical display registering near simultaneous weapons discharges from his brothers hidden around the camp. The hunt was on. The Alpha Hounds see the honor of living and serving as a Space Marine as a privilege to be earned, not only for new recruits, but for the Chapter as a whole. If a mission should fail, or an engagement is lost and the Alpha Council determines that it stains the Chapter's honor, recruitment will cease until the Chapter distinguishes itself once more. Recruits are usually gathered as willing payment from worlds aided by the Hounds. They are brought to the Circuit for trials and training. The primary qualifications of character for Neophytes are loyalty and ingenuity, and the most frequent challenges throw groups of recruits into lethal situations such as the hunting grounds of nocturnal predators, or squad versus squad combats in different settings. Given few, if any resources, and only each other to depend upon, those recruits who demonstrate a willingness to sacrifice for their would-be brothers and can adapt to their surroundings on the fly are the only ones who have a chance at beginning the implantation process. These groups are often permanent, and the final test of the Initiates before joining the Scout Company is a test of their strength and prowess, and ability to hunt together. Alone on a shuttle, the team of recruits is dropped on a world occupied by the Tau's Kroot allies. Sometimes the Chapter has withdrawn forces to allow the Kroot to establish a presence, only to recover the lost ground with the Initiates. Each team must hunt down and consume a Kroot hunting party, which is usually twelve to fifteen Kroot in strength. If the squad succeeds without casualties, their trials are complete and they are fully inducted into the Chapter. Some initiates follow the Hound tradition, tracking the enemy by use of the Omophagea and forcing the Kroot to isolate themselves before picking them off rapidly, in small groups. Other Initiates are satisfied simply tracking the party, and then falling on them in a frontal ambush. These particular marines tend to become powerful close combat fighters, but are historically rare. After consuming the first kill, the interaction between the Kroot genetic material and the flaw in the Omophagea invariably begins a lifelong desire for Kroot flesh. While not as drastic as in other Chapters with similar gene flaws, the Alpha Hounds have never taken a Kroot prisoner, giving them the honor of dying on the battlefield before the battle-brothers prepare and eat them, usually in camps on the same battlefield. The tradition of Kroot hunting as the final Rite is believed to have supplanted the original indoctrination ritual of apex predator hunts. The change is a reverence to a battle during the Chapter's first encounters with Tau, in which a Kroot kindred ambushed and destroyed almost half a company of marines. Under the direction of their Shaper, the Kroot began consuming the fallen marines, but fled at the first sign of reinforcements. One squad sergeant alone, Brother Anton Windhark, was rendered unconscious, but survived the ambush and witnessed the Kroot feeding on his brothers' flesh. The following night, without orders, the vengeful sergeant tracked down and slaughtered the entire kindred save for the Shaper, who beheld the marine's first bite into the Kroot that had eaten his brothers, before being reduced to slag by Windhark's plasma pistol. Since then, Kroot are viewed as the ultimate prey and the Chapter relishes every encounter with Tau for the chance to scourge the Kindreds. The induction ritual itself is a subdued occasion. Successful recruits go under the Apothecary’s blade once more, and the second bone in the middle finger is removed and replaced with an alloy substitute. Following the operation the neophyte carves his name and the date of his induction into his bone and presents it to the presiding Chaplain. The bone is dipped in adamantium and placed on a chain, to be worn at all times. Over time Alpha Hounds will gather other bones, mostly from foes, but sometimes from brothers, on which to inscribe the deeds of battles and campaigns. These hang from the same chain, forming part of each brother’s legacy. Second Campaign against the Orks of Fi'rios "A riff from the heavy bolters on that hillside, NOW! Jameth, make it rain, brother!" The swarming Orks retreated from the blistering bolter fire behind a rubble-strewn hill, waiting for an opening. What they saw instead were the red tongues of flame falling towards them from the sky, ready to seal them in against any hope of escape. Though a fleet based Chapter, the Alpha Hounds have a marked preference for ground combat, and haven't developed the advanced boarding skills of other fleet based Chapters. They regard their fleet only as their essential conveyance through the void, and respect their original fleet elements as such. Captured ships or those taken as payment are not afforded such respect, mostly due to how rarely these ships mount the weapons or defenses needed to be useful to Astartes. This mentality has led to many of the fleet's lesser vessels often being treated as expendable and used in highly unorthodox maneuvers, including abandonment as battlefield debris or fireships, blockade running, and ramming enemy fleets. If it is possible to draw an enemy force into a land battle, the Hounds will choose a sunlit world over fighting in the confines of a ship's belly. While their tactics frequently make unpredictable changes, the constant is their preference for catching the enemy by surprise and attacking at night. Ambushes, troop lures, and trap laced fortifications are a regular part of Alpha Hound warfare. It can be noted that scouts are frequently at the fore front of an attack, pulling the main force behind them. Leading scout squads are often given the honor of the first shot fired at the enemy, and these first strikes are often combined with simultaneous drop pod assaults, and low altitude Thunderhawk strikes. The most planning goes into capitalizing on the confusion sown by the sudden loss of leadership and the element of surprise. Frequent maneuvers include 'Black Out' attacks aimed at cutting off enemy visibility to allow friendly forces to redeploy, 'Crush' ambushes meant to catch the enemy between two or more units, and 'Base Dropping', a shock and awe strategy that drops a heavy fire base made up of tactical marines, Terminators and Dreadnoughts into the heart of the enemy formation in an effort to scatter them and sweep them as they flee. The normally superior reflexes and enhanced senses of a Space Marine are all but nullified for the Hounds by the glare of sunlight, due to the oversensitive nature of their Occulobes. In daylight conditions, their reactions are hardly any better than a unit of Imperial Guardsmen, or even the Tau they so frequently fight. The battle-brothers of the Alpha Hounds appear to revel in extended campaigns; the longer lasting, the better. Kill markings are considered irrelevant, replaced by campaign marks distinguishing consecutive weeks or months of successive battles. With years at a time spent pursuing enemies across worlds with little time for concentrated maintenance, Hounds marines have made numerous modifications to their weapons and equipment, few of which would be sanctioned by a sane techpriest. These modifications are most commonly based on adapting to the environment of the world where the battle group is fighting. They are also skilled at using their surroundings to complement their weapons, or turning the environment itself into an exploitable asset instead of using specialized gear. The Chapter has trouble maintaining both its Terminator armor and Jump Packs units, and these are rarely seen on the battlefield. Called to serve Him "You are not the Imperium's marines, you are not the tools of Terra. You are the Emperor's Angels of Death, and you will trample His foes beneath your feet and rend them as you go over! We are the Alpha Hounds, and our crescendo will burn the galaxy clean in the Emperor's name! -Chapter Master Moonstride The Alpha Hounds stand at approximately nominal strength and are codex adherent, their only particular variance being the Chapter Command, or Alpha Council, composed simply of the Chapter Master and the Masters of the Companies. It is unknown how or if the companies not on the council are represented, but the will of the Council is unquestionably accepted by all. Neophytes spend at minimum the first ten years of their services as Scouts, integrated into the Battle Companies and rotated whenever a Reserve Company steps in to relieve their attachment. Likewise integrated are the Assault specialists. Because the Chapter so rarely deploys its few jump packs, the Assault marines can afford to go into battle with their brothers, where they not only lead charges, but excel at flanking on foot and serving as decoys for drawing the enemy into the open. The Devastator company remains separate, according to the Codex. The Chapter’s Devastators tend to be the loudest and most abrasive marines, to the degree that it is part of the reason they remain a separate company. It is also noteworthy that the Devastators have more experience with drop pod maneuvers than any unit in the Chapter, with the possible exception of its Dreadnoughts. A Cause for the Lost Sighing, the gray-headed Librarian closed his tome before answering his brother. "No, Sinef, they cannot know or understand that their Imperium is dead. They will never recognize this as the true root of their misery. That is why we watch over them. They have lost their Master as much as you and I." -Cheif Librarian Morianton The Alpha Hounds Chapter cult has never been observed, but what contact Imperial agents have had has made note of the regular absences and gatherings of Chapter members between combats, suggesting that whatever rituals the Chapter does maintain are regularly attended. While as a whole the Chapter appears to be of acceptable demeanor, their attitude towards serving the Imperium leaves much to be desired. The Chapter has never ignored or refused an order from Terra, but in handling local requests for assistance the Hounds have been known to refuse aid without the promise of payment, sometimes going as far as demanding control of a planet's warp worthy ships. Behind closed doors the Chapter Cult is a startlingly somber body, despite the usual boisterousness of its adherents. The Hounds praise one thing only, and that is the Emperor. Here any similarities with the Ecclesiarchy and most similarities with other Astartes beliefs end. The Hounds recognize the Emperor as a Champion of humanity, but a lost one. While they don't dispute that the Emperor may be sustaining his life from century to century, they have no delusions of any distant return or reawakening of their Master. They see their lives as gifts, fruits of the Emperor's labor and recognize no other hand, in giving thanks for their existence. Any semblance of ‘faith’ is seen as wasted. Older Chapter members know the root of this belief to be the result of the tragedy that destroyed the world meant to be their home. It could be said that the Chapter was reborn from this event. The once eager and obedient Hounds took to their fleet, and became lethargic to answer the call of Terra. If faith in the Imperium were of so little value, they would treat it as such. Likely because of this, the Alpha Hounds privately believe that the Imperium died with the Emperor, and is now an empty shell. In the eyes of the Hounds, the Adeptus Astartes exist only to soften the blow for the rest of mankind when the truth strikes them. Only out of respect for the Emperor do the Hounds follow any orders from the High Lords. For governments and leaders both military and civilian, however, they have no regard other than perhaps mild suspicion. While their responses to local requests for aid are justifiably frowned upon, they would never cruelly abandon a world in need, and have sometimes appeared without request to aid a planet in danger. They always, however, demand payment. The payment is always proportional to the planets resources, and is sometimes no more than commissioning a team of locals to collect the bolt casings from a battlefield, just so that they can appreciate the Space Marines' efforts. In truth, the Hounds have a grain of pity for the rest of humanity, even more lost than they without the Emperor. Great respect and reverence is also afforded to the Chapter’s dead. Simple tombs are maintained on several of the Night Worlds where the remains of the fallen are interred. The adamantine bone removed in the induction ritual ensures that something of each brother can endure even the most extreme destruction, and every chain is paired with a plaque displaying the date of the marine’s death. The Alpha Hounds have developed a strong relationship with, and faith in, the families of the Navis Nobilite, and greatly respect the Navigators in service to the Chapter, and these connections have contributed to nuances in the Chapter's beliefs. Some of the principles used by the Navigators are magnified in Alpha Hound beliefs and doctrines. They study the terrain more often than they study the enemy, knowing that while the enemy may change on the eve of battle, the battlefield itself is likely to remain the same. There are scouts in the Hounds who are rumored to know entire planetscapes from memory. As the Navigators say, the better one knows the territory, the more rapidly to traverse it. This study usually takes the place of prayers in the daily routine of other Adeptus Astartes, as well as a major part of the Chapter's tactical indoctrination. The Blind Lead Better So this was war by the light of day. It was truly hellish. Doing all he could not to squint at the filtered light that passed his optics, Brother-Sergeant Miantono fired a burst at the distant Tau squad, barely noting in time the battlesuits moving towards the right flank. Squad Uncas had fallen, then. Miantono rallied his marines, "Incoming on the right flank! Sergeant Requias, prepare your squad to spring a Crush on inbound battlesuits! Let us not leave Captain Longrun to clean up after us!" Cursed be this world and its xenos defenders, he thought as he caught himself squinting. With another five hours til nightfall, their position could not be lost. Records and tithes show that the Alpha Hounds were formed using the gene-seed stock of the Shadow Wolves, who also provided the cadre of warriors that trained the Chapter, making the Alpha Hounds marines of Dorn's lineage. Near the beginning of the Chapter's history, failed attempts by the Apothecarion to restore the flawed organs of Dorn's sons led, as it so often does, to further issues with the Chapter's gene-seed. Already lacking the Betcher's gland and Sus-an Membrane, the Hounds now suffer other defects as well. Most grievous was the mutation of the Occulobe, which has become the blessing and the curse of the Alpha Hounds. The organ has now become dramatically more sensitive, with the naked eye of a Hound able to see the landscape of a moonless night as if it were clear daylight, but barely able to stand the true light of day. Without the modifications made to the optics of their helmets, the Alpha Hounds would be useless on a sunlit battlefield. They can only adapt by seeking to strike first, at night, and inflict as much damage as possible before dawn. Very few individuals outside the Chapter can claim to have seen the face of a Hound. Another mutation has also been introduced through the Chapter's initiation rituals. After the discovery of the Tau, the tradition of hunting the deadly game of one of the Night Worlds was replaced with the more challenging task of hunting the Tau's tribal allies, the Kroot. Successful marines are required to consume the Kroot's flesh, but whether due to the tampering of the Apothercaries or the Kroots' own malleable DNA combining with the workings of the Omophagea, the Alpha Hounds now have something of an addiction to Kroot. Battlecry: Chaplain/Sergeant:"Rend the heel!" Battle-Brother:"Tear the throat !" Notes -Minor changes

Index Traitoris The Thornbacks Origins Barren "There is no deeper meaning, Iron Brother." Semesius interjected coldly as he examined the inner workings of his right hand. A slow smile spread on his face as he caught a glimpse of an ironical tear glistening on the inquiring marine's face, "Hm, the weak lean on meaning. Inancas showed us that. In time you will overcome it," he clenched his bionic fist, testing servos and gears, "or become just another weakness for us to remove." Among the later Chapters created during the 25th founding of the Adeptus Astartes was a successor Chapter of the Red Talons known as the White Hawks, created to crusade the fringes of Segmentum Pacificus. Though the Chapter's centuries of service were honorable, the White Hawks did not endure a millennium. Their downfall, caused from within, was rooted in the Chapter's founding. The same reading of the Emperor's tarot that called for the new Chapter made an unusual specification: the founding Chapter Master was to be the Red Talons' youngest first company veteran. A handful within the training cadre, led by one Captain Iacomas Inancas, was vehemently opposed to the tarot's appointment of Chapter Master. The marine indicated by the tarot was known as Agreus Nomios. If records are to be believed, Nomios was the youngest inductee to the Red Talons' first company. The subject largely of awe and respect turned to one of disbelief, and suspicion when the training cadre was informed, but as soldiers, and brothers, the remaining marines fell in. As the Chapter grew through the decades, there was no outward sign of disquiet, but as the decades stretched into centuries, with each passing act by the Chapter Master, the malcontent grew in certain hearts. What Nomios and his faithful brothers called adaptation and welcome change, Inancas claimed to be the trampling of their gene-fathers' traditions beneath their boots. What Inancas called the preservation of their gene-legacy, Nomios regarded as undermining authority. Even so, Inancas swayed many marines, both veteran and neophyte, with a silver tongue. What had started as little more than collective mistrust of the Chapter Master grew into a vitriolic hate shared by an ever growing following. The situation came to a head during an oratory by Nomios broadcast to the entire fleet as it made its way to a new battlezone as the fleet passed a temperate deathworld known as Direita II. Few remember what words were actually said. Some believe Nomios suggested that the traditions of their primogenitors contradicted the true wishes of the Primarch. Others justify what happened next by claiming that Nomios decried the Talons and the Iron Hands as fools with heretical beliefs. Whatever the words, the result was almost immediate, and some still say it was the plan all along. Ships loyal to Captain Inancas broke formation, and cut off communication with the rest of the fleet. Those marines loyal to Nomios that found themselves on traitor vessels were taken by surprise and quickly subdued, while on the other ships, marines under Inancas were inciting chaos with sabotage and ambushes, ensuring that their deaths would cost the loyalists dearly. Civil war erupted. Many of those that remained at the Chapter Master's side were the skilled pilots for which the White Hawks were reputed, while those that followed Inancas were more from the assault elements, favoring bloody boarding actions and personal combat. Within minutes, fleet guns had been turned on former brothers. The element of surprise gave Captain Inancas' smaller fleet time to concentrate fire on the Monastery Barge, the Black Castle, crippling its weapons and engines and setting it adrift. The battle raged for little more than a day and night above the planet. The Black Castle was soon caught in the planet's gravity, and pulled from the sky even as repairs to its engines were being completed. In the rest of the fleet, Nomios' pilots had not been able to hold back Inancas' assaults, and several loyalist ships were captured with the help of those traitors still on board, while a number of others were scuttled by the loyalists to keep them out of enemy hands. Their staggering losses notwithstanding, a strike team of Nomios' most trusted brothers, along with the Chapter Master himself, infiltrated Inancas' ship, the Void Rogue and attacked him on its bridge. Captain Inancas challenged Nomios to a duel, discarding all his weapons except a combat knife. Nomios accepted, but as the duel went on, it began to turn in the traitor Captain's favor. Raging as his own blade was knocked away, Nomios landed a punch on the soft armor beneath Inancas' raised arm and triggered hidden digital weapons, a burst lazer that all but removed Inancas' right arm. The Captain had enough time to claim Nomios an unworthy coward before his throat was slit by his own knife. Nomios and his marines abandoned the ship after locking into a crash course with the planet. Their attack, however, did not go unnoticed. Inancas had dispatched his own team before being cornered, and the bomb on Nomios' Thunderhawk detonated spectacularly as it made its escape from the Void Rogue. At that point, the scales tipped in favor of the traitors. Though they died fighting to a man, every loyalist ship was blasted into fiery rain over the plains of the planet below. The victory of the traitors, though complete, had come at a bitter cost, and marooned them with much of the Chapter's wargear and remaining gene-seed trapped on the planet's surface. At first, Direita II was hostile, as it had evolved to be, dangerous even to Space Marines. In time, though, the remaining traitors came to master it and call it home. Now under the command of Inancas' right hand, a former Captain known as Semesius the Disinherited, traitor remnants of the White Hawks have begun to grow once more. Casting aside their old identity, they now call themselves the Thornbacks, a name adopted from the planet's deadliest predators. Homeworld "This world, untainted, it is the perfect challenge of our might. It has bred strength. It will do the same for us." ~Sergeant of Recruits, Omester Direita II is a world roughly similar to ancient Terra, with geographic diversity and a multitude of accompanying climes. The White Hawks' War not only showered vast areas with debris, but several of the Chapter's ships are still buried in its surface. The Thornbacks have concentrated themselves around the remains of the Black Castle and the Void Rogue which both fell in a marshy region between a large river and the planet's single great ocean. The Thornbacks have since discovered small pockets of native humans, tribals that manage to survive on the knife's edge of life on Direita II. The planet earned its classification as a deathworld for two primary reasons. A toxic mineral laced throughout the planet's crust has rendered it undesirable for colonization. The mineral, known to natives as 'skull rock' for its coloration and recognizable deep pock markings, often releases lethal hallucinogenic dust residue into the air, making it unbreathable by any but the Space Marines until it is subdued by the rains. Due in part to this, the natives usually settle in the forests or swamps in elevated or treetop communities, where the dust is both less likely to penetrate, and too heavy to rise. The only real guarantee of safety is to avoid the surface deposits, and these areas have been avoided by the tribes for generations. The raised dwellings are also necessary to escape from the planet's dominant life, the Aoulef, a native term combining the words for pebble and man. Named for their scaly, ridged backs, the pebble men are four legged reptiles of immense size and brutal strength. With jaws up to half as long as their considerable bodies, and keen senses, Semesius' scouts have encountered these predators hunting in every environment on the planet except the barren mountains. They hunt in large family groups led by a single elder. These particularly ancient beasts are believed by the tribes to be immortal, and their distinctly more weathered hides give them their name: thorned men. These are the beasts that now serve as the traitors' name and symbol. Apparently immune to the toxic dust, and with bottomless appetites, these predators have been attributed to the disappearance of more than one careless recruit. Worse still, as the most fertile part of the planet, the swamps are host to the yearly mating migration of the pebble men. As a result, both the tribes and the traitors must also endure the yearly influx of predators. This is the greatest trial of the natives, for when the hunger of the reptiles reaches its zenith, as many as fifty of the beasts may converge on potential prey. This has taught the natives a degree of patience to rival that of the creatures themselves, as a wrong movement can endanger an entire settlement. Recruitment Induction The recruit roared in pain and defiance at the stump of his right hand, twisting away from the chained form of the snapping predator as the echoes his cry filled the chamber. The Apothecary quickly lifted the blood spattered neophyte, kicking away the still-seeking maw with a ceramite boot as he led away his charge. In the hundred years since the war with the White Hawks, the Thornbacks have cultivated a healthy gene-seed supply, largely as a result of paranoid self preservation. A portion of the surviving gene-seed was immediately given over to implantation, both to replenish the supply and to reinforce the remaining traitors. Those native tribals deemed pure enough made excellent recruits. Their knowledge of the planet's dangers was invaluable, and evolutionary mutations that had strengthened them against the lethal mineral dust resulted in marines with powerful lungs who have even influenced the Thornbacks' strategies and tactics. Unfortunately, the hazardous environment has also caused countless minor mutations among many of the natives, and for the most part the Thornbacks find them unfit for dedicated recruiting. Their preferred source is for recruits is Trinovantum, previously the hiveworld from which the White Hawks recruited. With a simple lie, the citizens of Trinovantum have never questioned the abrupt change in livery of their supposed custodians. The recruitment process includes many common Astartes tests of skill and strength, but when it comes times for recruits to receive the traditional bionic right hand replacement, the brutal nature of Semesius and his men becomes much more apparent. A number of pebblebacks, as the marines call them, are captured and blinded. Even blind pebblebacks can survive in the wild, and they hunt by simply opening their mouths while partially or fully hidden underwater, and waiting. Their mouths and tongues are highly sensitive, and at the slightest touch from a foreign object, be it a fish or a log, the powerful jaws snap shut, easily cleaving through its prey. The specimens kept by the Thornbacks are used in a ritual 'amputation' in which recruits are made to sit beside the chained beasts, and hold their hand between its open jaws. At the first drop of sweat that falls, the deed is done. Combat Doctrine Lurkers Vile The fishing village's sturdy docks had been largely destroyed in battle, the remaining one tightly held by the planet's PDF. It was their one reliable method of getting troops across the lake after the attack on the airfield. The tiny fishing port had to be held. In the still dimness of dawn, a single guardsman stood watch at the pier's end, while his compatriots huddled around a fire a hundred meters away on land. Slowly, silently, a bald head studded with metal rose from the water just outside the guardsman's field of vision, followed by broad shoulders. The Scout's hands rose just as slowly stopping about a foot above the surface. A twitch of a finger on his mechanical right sent the signal. The shot came from across the lake, taking the guardsman in the chest without a sound. He careened backwards into the Scout's waiting hands and disappeared beneath the surface. Below the water, dozens of yellow helmet optics blinked into life, moving towards the surface. Still comparatively small and with limited supplies, the Thornbacks do not involve themselves in major engagements with their enemies, but like the pebblebacks, will lie in wait and ambush vulnerable targets. Direita II neighbors one subsector with an Imperial colony, which has more than once been raided, and within a radius of only a few sectors are another colony, and an Astartes recruiting world. While all are appealing targets, the latter is the preferred victim of Thornback raids. The small size of their fleet enables a certain degree of stealth, which they use to surgically pick apart defenses and extract materiel and prisoners from their victims. This is of utmost importance to the renegades. While the obscurity of their homeworld has afforded them a good deal of security, they are all too conscious that drawing the full attention of the Imperium would be their undoing. With a combination of small numbers, and attacking isolated targets, they have been able to prosecute their grudge against the Imperium without bringing ruin on themselves. Though the Imperium has thorough documentation of the piracy plaguing the region, some of it even suggesting that rogue astartes are responsible, they still haven’t been able to pinpoint a source. More often than not, the Thornbacks will take only the few resources valuable to them, as they consider the true prize the opportunity to attack recruitment pools for loyalist forces. Under Semesius' direction more than one settlement has been razed to the ground leaving many a grieving parent, and not a single child, the precious youth whisked away to Direita II and an uncertain fate. Their preferred strategy for attacking ground targets is to make use camouflaging elements, particularly grasslands and local bodies of water. To maintain the element of surprise, landings may be made miles from targets so as to approach submerged. Scouts, especially those native to Direita II, are highly skilled at killing unseen from the water, and softening or marking targets for a Thornback assault. To further conceal their activity and movements, the renegades will often adopt the tactics and livery of loyal Astartes chapters, including the extinct White Hawks; some Thornback revel particularly in this deception, sowing dishonor and doubt among loyalists and their wards. Planetary attacks are relatively few and far between, considering the greater risk entailed, and far more often the Thornbacks simply wait for trade fleets plying the same lanes past Direita II that they once followed, and destroy or capture these. The Thornbacks maintain a marked preference for boarding actions, as the War cost them most of their armored assets, and still cripples their efforts to replenish standard supplies and even make simple power armor repairs. One venerable manufactorum ship, scuttled during the final battle of the Hawks, remains partially operational on the planet's surface. Though they haven't had any luck restoring additional systems, the Thornback carefully maintains those that do work, providing them with a steady supply of arms and ammunition. One of their most recent battle was also one of their greatest. It began as a carefully planned raid on a freshly completed orbital dock above the mining planet Magnabulum. Hoping to secure a more powerful and reliable setting to repair their ships and stage their attacks, the Thornbacks planned to seize the station before its full defenses and fleet escorts could arrive. The renegades employed every trick and tactic they had, disguising themselves as a combined force of White Hawks and Tauridae Astra, the chapter whose world the renegades sometimes raid for recruits. With the Tauridae impersonators playing the part of assigned escorts, they gained access to the station, and then subtly sabotaged control of docking bay defenses, opening the way for the larger “White Hawks” force to move in and gain a foothold. Staging a battle between the two teams, the Tauridae Thornbacks fell back deeper into the station with its other defenders, only to turn on them once inside, gaining near complete control of the station. Things were going well, until the actual defense fleet of the Imperial Navy arrived, earlier than scheduled, and with elements of the real Tauridae alongside them. Briefly the two forces clashed, but the loyalist force overwhelmingly outnumbered the renegades. Though they could hold the dogs of the Imperium at bay with the station’s defenses, they would never get away with the station, and the longer they remained, the more likely that their true identities could be exposed. Redirecting their efforts to preventing the loyalists from flanking them, a small detachment of Thornbacks penetrated deep into the station and began overloading the reactor. With a fighting retreat, the Thornbacks abandoned the orbital dock, their final escape covered by the detonation of the reactor. The field of debris remains down to the present, while the Tauridae have endured close observation from the Inquisition ever since. Though capturing the station was a failure, the results proved an unexpected boon when, scant years later, the Cicatrix Maledictum tore across the galaxy, cutting off the local loyalist forces from reliable naval repair and resupply, and leaving them exposed to more daring raids by the Thornbacks. Organization The Thornbacks very loosely maintain a loyalist Chapter organization for ground combat, with a little more than three and a half companies worth of marines to command, though the number dwindles as the years go on. Usually leadership on the battlefield is simply a continuation of leadership from a respective unit's fleet assignment. Ship 'crews' and contingents are far more strongly defined, and there is great pride among marines for their respective vessels, often with attached rivalries. Many of these associations were, and remain with, ships of the original Chapter fleet, most of which were destroyed. The most feared and respected Thornbacks were originally assigned to the Void Rogue, and though the ship will never leave the planet, those marines that truly distinguish themselves are still ceremonially inducted into its contingent. These marines now often take the lead on the Thornbacks' single working Strike Cruiser, the Cloud Gallows. Beliefs "Concern yourselves with only one thing, brothers. We must not only take and give nothing in return. We must take that which is of dearest cost to replace. Honor. Strength. Power." ~Semesius the Disinherited Semesius maintains a warped value for the purity that so concerns marines of Manus' line, believing that the truest purity is not only absent of weakness, but that which enables power. The Imperium and Adeptus Astartes appear unable to accept this 'natural truth', even the majority of the mighty Space Marines submitting to restrictive laws and imposed limits. While it is unclear if this was ever Inancas' real intent, it is preached as such. Much of the Thornbacks' beliefs revolve around the aggrandizement of Captain Inancas, and the rejection of the White Hawks, to whom is attached all the blame for the Thornbacks' situation. The Iron Brethren, similar in function to the Iron Fathers of their parent legion, teach that the Hawks were the epitome of weakness. A Chapter given power, but unable to keep it. These views are projected on the Imperium as a whole, an empire feigning unity, and losing strength because of it, a sinking ship which the Thornbacks have abandoned. Though Semisius would restrict their beliefs to simple philosophies, recruits from Direita II have such deeply embedded tribal superstitions that they almost can't function without them. As a result, most recruits, who now make use of and perpetuate the damaged gene-seed of the White Hawks, associate the gene flaw with the spirit of the dead Chapter. Gene-seed Last Drop in the Well The Iron Brother did not move, and Semesius' smile became a snarl of disgust. "If they will not be satisfied, tell them what they want to hear," It was clear he hadn't had anything particular in mind, but as he finished a sudden pensive look fell over him, and after a moment's silence he added, "Say they are the tears of the White Hawks, despairing at their failings. Their vessels are ours now, their legacy dead and ours begun. All they can do is mourn for the children of the Imperium that fall by our hand." Though the White Hawks had no flaws in their genetic material, severe damage to the gene-seed stores was sustained when the Black Castle crash landed. Much of the gene-seed was rendered useless, the loss of which was intensified by the loss of over half the Chapter. What remained has proven surprisingly resilient, though an Occulobe flaw has perpetuated to the Thornbacks as a whole, causing a yellow discoloration to the eye as well as a facial nerve degeneration that causes marines to shed tears, most frequently during combat where it is attributed to heightened adrenaline levels and the usual contorting of the face that tends to accompany battle. Some Thornbacks train themselves to be completely impassive in combat to reduce the effect. Others embrace it, intrigued by the way it can disturb and confuse outsiders who see it. Battle-cry "Our blades hunger! Give us the taste!"

The Depthwatch Chapter Risen From the Unknown There exists only a small, albeit dedicated, sect of Imperial scholarship that still gives credence to stories of the Depthwatch Chapter of the Adeptus Astartes. Though a number of references to marines bearing the armor and heraldry associated with the Depthwatch exist, they are only that: references. No reputable accounts, much less recordings, have been found that would truly confirm that the Chapter existed. It has only been through the sponsorship of a small and relatively insignificant dynasty of Inquisitors that the search for information regarding the Chapter still continues. There is still much debate within their circles, but the majority belief among these scholars and Inquisitors is that the Depthwatch was created during the 24th Founding and came to be stationed in the Segmentum Tempestus, where most of the myths originate, and which aligned with the need for fresh Imperial defenses at the time. It is generally assumed that the Chapter must have restricted itself to patrolling reaches of empty border space, regions that might make tempting openings for xenos incursions. This fits with the few existing records of materiel requisitions to the region for which any notation on the recipients has been lost. Many of those searching for the truth behind the Depthwatch have long held the belief that somewhere in the galaxy, its progenitor may still hold records that would finally solve the puzzle, but between the reticence of many Astartes to allow Inquisitorial interference in their affairs, and the lack of any hint even to what genetic lineage the Depthwatch bore, no search has yet proved fruitful, and the trail has long been cold. The search has recently been rekindled, though, following reports of the bodies of Primaris marines vanishing from the battlefields where they fell, and the strange Astartes that always seem to be present when it happens. The Blasphemous Truth, whispered from tomes in the Black Library Home World It would be a great triumph for those pursuing knowledge of the Depthwatch to ascertain even what might have been their home sector, let alone a home world. In the past the stories and legends attributed to the Chapter have originated in the Segmentum Tempestus, and new attention has been brought to the region as separate forces of multiple space marine chapters, including the Champions Eternal, the Wolfspear, the Moritficators, and the Raven Guard have raised claims of unidentified, but ostensibly loyalist astartes, absconding with the bodies of fallen Primaris marines. With the voice of the Raven Guard involved, more groups within the Inquisition have begun to take interest, while the Champions Eternal have vowed to find and punish the desecrators themselves. Turn the pages. Go deeper. Recruitment Who or where the Depthwatch recruited to their ranks is impossible for Imperial scholars to know, given the much more fundamental questions that they still cannot answer. If some feudal world ever contributed its youth to their ranks, no record of it has been uncovered, though not for lack of trying. Read, mortal, know the truth hidden by the Empyrean. Combat Doctrine Collected myths and songs associated with the Depthwatch paint a picture of a force focused on ambush tactics. Epics, their origins lost to oral tradition, tell of "star sailors" who made use of celestial bodies like asteroid fields and nebulae to strike unexpectedly at invading enemies. More than a few of the tales describe them striking from all directions, always seeking to remove any chance of retreat in order to utterly destroy their foes, rather than simply repel them. That truth is dark should come as no surprise. Organization Like their recruitment methods, the scant information that researchers have gathered over the centuries is not nearly enough to support guesses as to how the Depthwatch was organized. Like knowledge, survival demands sacrifice. Beliefs Occasionally the debates that take place about the chapter broach the subject of their beliefs, more specifically their loyalty, but the discourse is only questions, never answers, and from decade to decade popular opinion sways on whether this lost chapter was traitorous or true. Reality and belief, eternally intertwined. Gene-seed The genetic origin of the Depthwatch is as lost to the Imperium as the rest of the Chapter's history, a subject of endless discussion among the tiny faction of scholars that still defend the Chapters existence. While a few go as far as to try inferring lineage from the scant descriptions of the Chapters character, most others deride anything less than verified genetic data, something that most researchers have given up ever finding. The same seed engenders both truth and lies. Chapter Tactic Warrior Apparitions Unnatural mist and improbable pools of water seed the battlefield moments before the Depthwatch arrives. Their sudden appearance, and the strange occurrences that seem to accompany them keep their enemies off balance until it's too late. When resolving an attack with a ranged weapon against a <Depthwatch> unit more than 12" away, the unit counts as having the benefits of cover. Enemy units within 3" of a unit with this tactic suffer -1 to their Leadership. Memory woven from the recollections of Men and Aeldari Discussion thread: HERE A semi-formal pdf version is now available in the downloads section HERE.