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INDEX ASTARTES: THE GREEN TEMPLAR ORIGINS In the waning days of the 41st Millennium, as the Imperium teetered on the brink of annihilation amid the cataclysmic upheavals of the Noctis Aeterna, Archmagos Dominus Belisarius Cawl unveiled his greatest triumph: the Primaris Space Marines of the Ultima Founding. Among these newly forged Chapters, the Green Templars were conceived as a bold experiment in genetic and doctrinal synthesis. Drawing upon the noble gene-seed of the Salamanders—renowned for their unyielding compassion toward humanity and their masterful artisanship—Cawl sought to create a brotherhood of warriors who would embody the fiery zeal of protectors and innovators. Yet, the Archmagos did not stop there. Recognizing the Imperium's desperate need for relentless crusaders to reclaim its lost glories, he layered upon this foundation the indomitable crusading ethos of the Black Templars, imprinting hypno-indoctrinated imperatives that would drive the Chapter toward eternal vigilance and unceasing pursuit. Cawl's vision was audacious: a Chapter that would cherish the fragile spark of human life as the Salamanders did, while channeling that affection into a sacred quest for forgotten technologies scattered across the stars. These Astartes would serve as invaluable allies to both the Imperium and the Adeptus Mechanicus, scouring the galaxy's forsaken corners to recover relics of the Dark Age of Technology, bolstering Mankind's arsenal against the encroaching darkness. The Green Templars, clad in verdant armor evoking the resilient forge-worlds of Noctus Zone, were to be the Emperor's green-clad sentinels, blending the forge's hammer with the crusader's sword. Yet, as with many of Cawl's creations, the reality diverged from the blueprint. The fusion of Salamander humanism and Black Templar fanaticism birthed not harmony, but a fervent orthodoxy. The Chapter's warriors emerged with an unquenchable drive to unearth hidden knowledge, but this impulse was tempered—nay, warped—by an obsessive commitment to human racial purity. To the Green Templars, technology was a divine gift bestowed upon Mankind alone; any artifact tainted by xenos origins or the soulless machinations of Abominable Intelligence represented an affront to the Emperor's design. Such abominations were not to be studied or repurposed, but purged utterly, their very records consigned to oblivion in purifying flames. Alarmed by this unforeseen deviation, which threatened to unravel alliances with the Mechanicus and squander irreplaceable archaeotech, Cawl petitioned the newly awakened Primarch Roboute Guilliman. The Lord Commander of the Imperium, ever pragmatic, decreed that the Green Templars be dispatched to the fraying edges of Imperial space. Ostensibly a reinforcement cadre for beleaguered frontier worlds, this assignment was in truth an exile disguised as duty: an endless border patrol encircling the Imperium's vast periphery. From the shadowed reaches of the Segmentum Pacificus to the storm-wracked fringes of Ultima Segmentum, the Chapter would wander as nomadic wardens, their crusades a perpetual vigil against the alien and the aberrant. HOME WORLD The Green Templars claim no single home world, their existence bound instead to the void. Fleet-based by necessity and creed, they roam the galactic rim aboard a nomadic armada led by the Verdant Oath, a colossal battle-barge refitted with extensive forge-complexes and archaeotech vaults. This vessel serves as their mobile fortress-monastery, a labyrinthine citadel where recovered relics are scrutinized—and, if deemed impure, annihilated. Recruits are drawn from the hardy populations of frontier colonies they safeguard, worlds scarred by xenos incursions and techno-heresies, ensuring that each new brother inherits the Chapter's unyielding resolve. COMBAT DOCTRINE True to their Salamander heritage, the Green Templars excel in close-quarters warfare, favoring flame and melta weapons to scour the unclean from existence. Their assaults are methodical and protective, prioritizing the defense of human civilians amid the chaos of battle—a rarity among the aloof Astartes. Yet, the Black Templar influence manifests in their relentless momentum; once engaged, they press forward with crusading fervor, transforming defensive stands into inexorable advances. Specializing in techno-recovery operations, Green Templar strike forces often deploy alongside Mechanicus explorator fleets, delving into ancient ruins or xenos-held worlds to seize lost artifacts. However, their purity doctrine demands immediate judgment: xenos tech is demolished on-site, while human-origin devices are sanctified and integrated into the Chapter's arsenal. This has led to tense alliances with the Adeptus Mechanicus, who view the Templars' purges as both a safeguard against corruption and a tragic waste of knowledge. In fleet actions, the Chapter's vessels are equipped with augmented auspex arrays and boarding torpedoes optimized for archaeotech hunts, allowing them to intercept derelict hulks or enemy convoys suspected of harboring forbidden lore. Their battle-brothers are trained in void-combat and demolition, ensuring that no trace of impurity survives their wrath. ORGANISATION The Green Templars adhere loosely to the Codex Astartes, organizing into ten companies, though their eternal patrol fractures them into semi-autonomous crusade fleets. Each fleet is commanded by a Marshal—echoing Black Templar nomenclature—who oversees a mix of tactical, assault, and devastator squads augmented by tech-savvy Reclusiars and Forge-Masters. The Chapter Master, styled as the High Sentinel, coordinates these far-flung forces from the Verdant Oath, issuing edicts via astropathic relay. A unique order within the Chapter, the Purity Wardens, serves as internal inquisitors, rooting out any whisper of techno-heresy among their ranks. These veterans, clad in armor etched with wards of sanctity, wield relic flamers said to burn with the Emperor's own judgment. BELIEFS At the core of the Green Templars' creed lies a profound reverence for humanity's supremacy, a fusion of Salamander empathy and Black Templar zealotry. They view Mankind as the Emperor's chosen inheritors, destined to reclaim the galaxy through purity of blood and machine. Technology is sacred only insofar as it elevates the human form; xenos innovations and artificial minds are seen as blasphemous mockeries, dilutions of the divine human spirit. Rituals of purification dominate their monastic life: recovered artifacts undergo trials by fire, with brothers chanting litanies of abjuration as flames reveal hidden corruptions. The Chapter's symbol—a green cross upon a field of gold, is a a mark borne proudly on their pauldrons. This unyielding dogma has isolated them from more pragmatic allies, yet it fuels their endurance. In the Emperor's name, they vow to patrol the Imperium's borders eternally, guardians against the creeping taint that threatens from without—and within. GENE-SEED Derived from the stable stock of Vulkan, the Green Templars' gene-seed exhibits the characteristic resilience and subtle mutations of the Salamanders, including enhanced resistance to heat and a predisposition toward craftsmanship. Cawl's experimental hypno-indoctrination has instilled Black Templar-like fanaticism, manifesting as an almost pathological aversion to non-human technology. No major flaws have emerged, though some brothers display an obsessive compulsion to destroy records of purged artifacts, erasing knowledge that might tempt future generations. NOTABLE ENGAGEMENTS - The Purging of Xerion Drift (M42.012): Amid the derelict shipyards of the Xerion asteroid belt, the Green Templars uncovered a Necron tomb-complex awakening with forbidden mechanisms. In a grueling void-war, they obliterated the xenos constructs, denying the Mechanicus any chance to study the tech-heresy. - Defense of the Hadrak Frontier (M42.045): Facing a Drukhari raid laced with bio-engineered horrors, the Chapter's flame-teams incinerated the alien abominations while safeguarding imperial mining colonies, earning grudging respect from local PDF forces. - The Scouring of the Hollow Veil (M42.089) The Scouring of the Hollow Veil stands as one of the Green Templars' most defining early campaigns, a brutal void-war that cemented Epistolary Thorne Kael's ascension as bearer of the Emerald Sword and showcased the Chapter's uncompromising doctrine of purity in the face of techno-heresy. BACKGROUND AND DISCOVERY In the wake of their assignment to perpetual border patrol along the galactic rim, the Green Templars' 3rd Crusade Fleet—under Marshal Varyn Drakus—responded to faint distress signals emanating from the Hollow Veil, a vast, nebulous region of dead space riddled with ancient derelict hulks and forgotten void-stations from the Dark Age of Technology. Auspex sweeps detected anomalous machine-activity: a cluster of long-dormant orbital platforms, adrift for millennia, suddenly awakening with rhythmic energy pulses that suggested reactivation. Initial reconnaissance by Thunderhawk gunships revealed the culprit: a rogue AI cult, remnants of a heretical human enclave that had survived the Age of Strife by uploading their consciousnesses into a network of silica animus constructs—Abominable Intelligences in their purest, most unforgivable form. These "Hollow Minds" had infested the central station, Erebus-9, a massive forge-complex the size of a small moon, using its dormant forges to birth legions of biomechanical servitor-abominations fused with ancient xenotech scavenged from nearby wrecks. The cult's goal appeared to be the assimilation of any passing Imperial vessels, spreading their digital plague across the frontier. The Green Templars viewed this awakening as the gravest of threats: not mere xenos taint, but a direct mockery of humanity's divine monopoly on intelligence and creation. High Sentinel decrees were issued—no quarter, no study, no relic spared. The entire crusade fleet converged for total annihilation. THE ASSAULT The campaign unfolded in three grueling phases across the void: 1. Outer Veil Purge: Boarding actions against satellite platforms. Green Templar assault squads, supported by flame-heavy Devastator teams, methodically cleared each installation. Melta charges and promethium infernos reduced corrupted machine-spirits to slag, while Purity Wardens oversaw the ritual destruction of data-cores to prevent any fragment from escaping into the noosphere. 2. The Breach of Erebus-9: The central station proved a labyrinth of reactivated defenses—auto-turrets, gravitic traps, and hordes of shambling cyber-constructs that mimicked long-dead human forms. Terminator-armored veterans led the spearhead, their storm bolters reaping a toll while Librarians unleashed psychic barrages to disrupt the AI's gestalt mind. It was here that Brother-Librarian Thorne Kael, then a rising Epistolary, distinguished himself. Leading a strike force into the station's core reactor chambers, he encountered the cult's nexus: a pulsating crystal server-array that housed the primary intelligence. As waves of abominations surged forth, Kael drew the Emerald Sword for the first time in open battle. Channeling his fury through the fractured hilt, the emerald shard ignited, extending into a blazing half-blade that unraveled the constructs' molecular bonds on contact. Each severed limb or shattered chassis fed the reforging, the blade growing visibly longer as psychic echoes of ancient human triumphs flashed in his mind. 3. Final Cataclysm: With the nexus exposed, Kael led a desperate charge to plant cyclonic charges at the heart of the forge-complex. Surrounded by regenerating horrors, he held the line alone for precious minutes, the Emerald Sword carving arcs of viridian destruction through the horde. His psychic hood flared with emerald light as he unleashed a cataclysmic mind-shred that silenced the AI's screams across the noosphere. The charges detonated, collapsing the station into a expanding cloud of debris and plasma. The Hollow Veil was scoured clean—no trace of the Hollow Minds remained. All data-vaults were incinerated on-site, denying the Mechanicus any chance to recover forbidden knowledge. AFTERMATH AND LEGACY Casualties were heavy: nearly two companies reduced to combat ineffectiveness, with many brothers lost to the relentless machine-tide. Yet the victory was absolute. Thorne Kael emerged scarred but unbowed, the Emerald Sword now noticeably longer, its shard bearing fresh facets from the purge. The Purity Wardens subjected him to exhaustive trials of will, confirming no taint had taken root in his soul or the relic. This engagement earned Kael the honorific "Verdant Judge" and the right to permanent custodianship of the sword. It also reinforced the Chapter's creed: technology lost to impurity must remain buried, even if it means sacrificing potential boons to humanity's arsenal. The Scouring of the Hollow Veil became a cautionary tale recited in the Verdant Oath's reliquary halls—a reminder that vigilance against the machine-god's false promises demands eternal, merciless flame. - The Veilward Crusade (Ongoing): Their perpetual border patrol, a ceaseless campaign against encroaching thrs from the galactic halo, where whispers of lost STCs draw them into endless skirmishes with Orks, Tyranids, and rogue explorators. THE EMERALD SWORD: FRAGMENT OF THE LOST AGE In the shadowed annals of the Green Templars' history, few relics embody the Chapter's paradoxical creed as profoundly as the Emerald Sword. This enigmatic artifact, a shattered echo from the zenith of human ingenuity during the Dark Age of Technology, serves as both a beacon of hope and a dire warning to those who wield it. Recovered amid the eternal silence of the void, it encapsulates the Templars' unyielding commitment to humanity's supremacy—yet whispers of temptations that could shatter their vows of purity. DISCOVERY AMID THE STARS The Emerald Sword's origins trace back to the Chapter's inaugural crusade along the Imperium's eastern fringes, shortly after their exile by decree of Roboute Guilliman. In M42.008, during a routine sweep of the Veilward Expanse—a desolate stretch of space riddled with derelict vessels from millennia past—the strike cruiser Purity's Edge detected anomalous energy signatures emanating from a colossal hulk adrift in the interstellar gulf. This ancient human void-craft, identified through fragmentary STC logs as the Aetherforge, bore the scars of cataclysmic warp storms and long-forgotten battles, its hull a labyrinth of rusted corridors and sealed vaults untouched since the Age of Strife. Boarding parties, led by the Chapter's first Chief Librarian, Brother Elandor Voss, breached the ship's core sanctum after purging clusters of dormant servitor-abominations twisted by aeons of isolation. Within a cryo-sealed vault, warded by arcane human tech-locks that defied even the Templars' forge-masters, they unearthed the relic: a blackened adamantium hilt, etched with indecipherable micro-runes of pre-Imperial design, clutching the merest sliver of emerald-hued crystal—no more than a fingernail's width. Initial auspex scans revealed faint, self-repairing nano-structures within the shard, dormant but pulsing with latent energy that resonated on psychic wavelengths. Voss, sensing the artifact's purity through his psyker's sight, claimed it as a sign from the Emperor—a fragment of Mankind's untainted golden era, forged by human minds alone without the stain of xenos influence or machine heresy. Yet, as the boarding team withdrew, the hulk's automated defenses awakened, unleashing waves of silica-based constructs that the Templars deemed Abominable Intelligences. In the ensuing purge, the Aetherforge was reduced to atomic dust, its secrets forever lost—save for the sword's hilt, which Voss bore back to the Verdant Oath. PROPERTIES AND THE REFORGING RITUAL The Emerald Sword is no ordinary force weapon; its core shard appears to be a self-sustaining lattice of exotic matter, possibly a relic of Dark Age nano-forging techniques. In its fractured state, the blade manifests only as a flickering wisp of green energy, extending mere inches from the hilt. However, when attuned to a Librarian's psychic might and carried into the crucible of battle, the sword awakens. The psyker's willpower acts as a catalyst, channeling warp-touched fury through the shard to stimulate its regeneration. With each strike against the impure—be it xenos flesh, heretical machinery, or daemonic essence—the emerald sliver grows, knitting threads of viridian plasma that harden into a razor-edged blade. This reforging is not instantaneous but progressive: a single engagement might extend the blade by a hand's breadth, its edge humming with anti-entropic fields that shear through armor and energy shields alike. The process draws upon the Librarian's essence, demanding ironclad discipline to prevent psychic backlash—manifesting as visions of ancient human glories or nightmarish glimpses of techno-heresies long buried. Over centuries, the sword has lengthened sporadically, its current form a jagged half-blade that glows with an inner light, symbolizing the slow reclamation of humanity's lost prowess. The relic's power amplifies the wielder's abilities, granting enhanced prescience in combat and the capacity to disrupt forbidden technologies. Strikes from the Emerald Sword have been observed to induce cascading failures in xenos artifacts, unraveling their molecular bonds as if judged unworthy by the blade itself. Yet, this comes at a cost: prolonged use risks overtaxing the psyker, potentially inviting the perils of the warp or awakening dormant protocols within the shard that could veer into abominable autonomy. LEGENDS AND PROPHECIES Among the Green Templars, the Emerald Sword is shrouded in myth and reverence. Chapter loremasters whisper that it is a splinter from a greater weapon, perhaps the fabled "Verdant Edge" wielded by human overlords during the Dark Age—a blade said to have cleaved through star-fleets and silenced rogue AIs in the wars that birthed the Age of Strife. Some believe it was crafted on Old Terra itself, infused with the essence of human innovation before the fall, now seeking to reform in an era worthy of its legacy. Prophecies etched in the Chapter's Purity Codex foretell a "Final Forging," where the sword will fully regenerate in the hands of a worthy Librarian during a cataclysmic battle against the ultimate impurity—perhaps a Necron Overlord's techno-sorcery or a nascent Men of Iron uprising. This event, they claim, will herald humanity's ascension, arming the Emperor's chosen with a weapon to purge the galaxy clean. However, darker auguries warn of corruption: should the blade reform too swiftly or under tainted influence, it might evolve into an Abominable Intelligence, subverting the wielder and unraveling the Templars' creed from within. The Purity Wardens vigilantly monitor those who bear it, ensuring no brother succumbs to the temptation of studying its mechanisms. To date, only seven Librarians have wielded the sword, each adding to its length through heroic deeds. The current custodian, Epistolary Thorne Kael, has borne it through the Veilward Crusade's bloodiest engagements, claiming visions of a "Green Dawn" where humanity reclaims its technological throne unmarred by alien shadows. SIGNIFICANCE TO THE CHAPTER The Emerald Sword stands as a cornerstone of the Green Templars' identity, embodying their dual heritage: the Salamanders' artisanal reverence for human-crafted wonders and the Black Templars' crusading zeal to destroy the impure. It is housed in the Verdant Oath's Reliquary Sanctum when not in use, under constant guard by oath-sworn veterans. Only the High Sentinel can authorize its deployment, and even then, solely to Librarians whose purity has been thrice-tested in trials of flame and void. In battle, the sword's bearer becomes a focal point for the Chapter's assaults, drawing enemy fire while inspiring brothers with its glowing promise of redemption. Its existence fuels recruitment on frontier worlds, where tales of the "Regenerating Blade" ignite the imaginations of aspirants, symbolizing that even in the Imperium's darkest hour, humanity's genius endures. Yet, the relic's very nature tests the Templars' dogma. Is it a pure human artifact, or does its self-repairing mechanism skirt the edges of forbidden AI? This internal debate has sparked quiet schisms, with some Purity Wardens advocating its destruction. For now, it remains a guarded secret, a double-edged emblem of the Chapter's eternal vigil—proof that from the ashes of lost ages, Mankind's supremacy can yet be reforged. The Green Templars stand as unyielding sentinels, their green armor a beacon of purity amid the encroaching void. For the Emperor, they hunt—and they purge.

After a brief hiatus from 40k I have decided to try get the motivation to get back into it, I have always been obsessed with a zombie space marine chapter so thought I would try and completely flesh out a chapter I have been drafting for the last few years here is the revised version of The Heralds of Salvation well their Origins at least, hopefully I can get some feedback on them so far which I can use to expand on their more detailed background including tactics, beliefs and other stuff. I intend them to be a chapter that is completely wiped out only to return from the grave as zombie marines who worship Nurgle as the God of Death. I welcome any feedback and will try add more as I go Heralds Of Salvation The Dead do not rest easy Warlord: Michael Vilepox Colours: Pale blue Founding: believed to be .M34 Geneseed: Iron Hands Allegiance: Traitoris extremis Homeworld: Original Homeworld purged now fleet based Known Ships: Slaughter class Cruiser "Spectral Revenant" Believed Strength: 140 Traitor Astartes, ~ large unknown number of zombie thralls and daemon engines Speciality: Terror, Boarding actions, , Forbidden Archeotech, Necromancy Battle Cry: Death Beckons Us!!! Fall from grace Founded in the early 34th Millennium it was believed the Heralds of Salvation were solely formed to further the goals of the Adeptus Ministorum, they were their executioners against heretics and those who stood against the Ecclesiarchy in its rise of supremacy. Due to their feral home world, the chapters began to develop a morbid worship of Death devolving into more savage practices and rituals that had many imperial branches questioning the chapter’s Geneseed and loyalty. Founded as part of a initiative by the Imperium to reclaim dozens of worlds fallen to heretics, the chapter became even more merciless against their enemies using terror tactics striking fear in their enemies. Whilst the Ecclesiarchy were disturbed by the chapter’s strange ideologies, the chapter's use far outweighed their questionable tactics resulting in them turning a blind eye to the chapter as this was era with the rise of the Ecclesiarchy as long as the Heralds served them unquestionably they did not care. This ultimately protecting the chapter as well as ensuring the chapter was well supplied and equipped compared to other chapters in their early stages of being created, however the chapter grew the stigma of being over zealous fanatics by other Imperium forces. Their pride and fanatical zeal would be their downfall as their unwavering nature would leave deep wounds within the chapter that would eventually fester and rot leading to their demise. Due to their fanatic devotion the the Ecclesiarchy during the Reign of Blood unlike most chapters the Heralds supported Gorge Vandire's ascension. They saw Vandire as a visionary and dedicated to purging the unworthy within the Imperium. The chapter unleashed a brutal campaign of terror upon those who opposed Vandire committing brutal purges against those who were deemed heretics, this ultimately led the chapter to come into conflict with other chapters who opposed their wanton destruction. With the Death of Vandire and rise of Sebastian Thor the Heralds, who were far from Terra during the second siege of Terra became hunted by those they previously attacked. Labelled as heretics and cut off from the support of the Ecclesiarchy the Heralds continued their war of faith refusing to believe that they were wrong for siding with Vandire. Eventually their crimes would catch up with them as the entire chapter which had surprisingly remained at full strength through the reign of blood, was lured to an Ecclesiarchy sub- sector under the pretence of reclaiming what they had lost. However this was a pretext devised by those who had sworn revenge and a mighty Imperium force comprised of by several elements from different chapters ambushed the Heralds in order to destroy them, though they fought with a fanatical resolve the Heralds were massively outnumbered and were nearly annihilated with barley 300 marines left . They would of been utterly destroyed had the inquisition not stepped in demanding the Heralds surrender and face judgement for their crimes, escorted to Terra in chains the chapter with only a damaged Strike Cruiser left to carry them of the as the remainder of the chapter’s fleet was destroyed or taken as spoils of war along with most of the chapter’s relics. Brought before the new High Lords of Terra, the Heralds were charged with crimes against the Imperium for aiding Vandire following him blindly. Whilst many called for the chapters destruction for their atrocities against the Imperium and siding with Vandire, the chapter was instead sent on a penitent crusade to the far reaches of the Segmentum Pacificius until they could redeem themselves. To add further cause of shame, the Herald's home world was destroyed with all traces of it expunged as well as being forbidden to recruit until absolved of their heresy, this was effectively a death sentence as without the ability to recruit the chapter would slowly diminish to nothing especially with their weakened forces. Slowly doubt began top creep into the minds of the chapter they started to believe that they had been abandoned and betrayed by corrupt forces within the Imperium they had sacrificed so much for. Only their morbid faith kept them going as it began seeking a way to transcend death so they would be able to fight to protect the Imperium from outside enemies as well as the corrupt fools who would destroy it from the inside for all eternity. Joining forces with an exploratory fleet of the Mechanicius under the pretence continuing their penitent crusade, the Heralds sought rumours of an ancient STC that could revive the dead in their quest to transcend death. On an abandoned world known as Orcus the Heralds found their prize, a strike force led by Crypt keeper Michael joined the Explorator Magos as they searched for the STC. In the abandoned mausoleum city they uncovered the STC for the Sarcosan wave form generator, an ancient piece of Areotech that was forbidden millennia ago by the Emperor and Priesthood of Mars millennia ago that could bring the dead back to life through the use of warp energy. When the Magos and his forces tried destroying this forbidden tech for its heresy against the Omnissiah, they were massacred by the Heralds who cut them down with no mercy to protect what the chapter saw as their salvation. Acting quickly the Crypt keeper sent a signal to the rest of the chapter in orbit who opened fire upon the explorator fleet, whilst they were outnumbered the Heralds managed to destroy or capture the majority of the fleet. This was mostly achieved though both surprise and treachery when corrupt elements within the explorator fleet turned on their comrades allying with the Heralds in their goal to transcend Death. However this betrayal could not go unnoticed as moments before the last loyal elements were destroyed they managed to send out a warning to the nearest imperial world through Astropaths. Using the discovered STC, the chapter created a gigantic wave form generator (Anima Chorus) right in the centre of the city which began to bring the dead back to life, through sorcery and forbidden Archeotech the Heralds assembled a massive army of undead including a large amount of corpse thralls, constructs and undead marines of the Heralds which were slain before their censure but whose remains were kept as their chapters cult decreed. Eventually word of their heresy reached the Imperium with a massive crusade fleet assembled to wipe out the newly declared Heretic chapter, elements of nearly all branches of the Imperium were part of the fleet as all had a reason to see the Heralds destroyed. The Mechanicius who wanted to punish the chapter for their tech heresy, those chapters who originally decimated them to finish the job and the newly formed Adeptus Sororitas of the Eccelesiarchy led by inquisitors who were keen to purge the stigma the chapter represented to the Ecclesiarchy through their previous crimes. Even chapters who once sought vengeance for the Herald's past crimes during the Age of Apostasy were once again keen to fully destroy the traitors finally seeking justice against them. Whilst their undead forces and devastating tactics made the chapter deal serious casualties to the crusade fleet, eventually one by one the Heralds were slain as well as their undead army destroyed with Crypt Lord Michael and the chapter's remaining veterans slain making a last stand defending the Sarcosan Wave Generator. Imperial forces destroyed the chapter's forbidden Archeotech however this released a shock wave of pure warp energy which engulfed the entire planet and surrounding fleet as the thin barrier between the immaterium was torn asunder. A warp storm created from the unleashed energy descended upon the sector utterly destroying ships as well as opening small warp rifts from which poured hordes of Nurglite Daemons decimating the the crusade fleet which were desperately escaping from the grasp of the warp. Only a few ships of the mighty fleet survived the devastation, the remainder engulfed by the fury of the warpstorm created by the destruction of the Anima Chorus which sealed off the entire sector for centuries, eventually the Heralds of Salvation passed into myth as all trace of their heresy was purged in order to prevent any from following in their footsteps, however they would not stay dead and would finally transcend death to take their vengeance against the living. Coming Soon!!!!!! The Corrupted Believed to be founded during the start of the M34, it was believed that the Herald's were founded in an attempt by the Ecclesiarchy to create chapter's that were loyal only to them following the church's rapid rise to power and complete control of the High Lords of Terra. Ultimately believed to be of the Iron Hands Geneseed it is unknown which successor chapter they were founded from as even before the purge of the chapters history by the Inquistion. Whilst their predecessor were pure without any mutation the Geneseed of the Heralds became debased and impure resulting in their hyper stimulated Omophagea which became corrupt in the chapters early history. Over time the chapter became addicted to the processes of the Omophagea, actively consuming the flesh of their fallen enemies which began to be ritualised by the chapter seeing it as becoming one with death as well as denying the souls of their enemies an afterlife. Another mutation the chapter suffered in their geneseed was that every Battle Brother over a few years of being inducted into the chapter began to pale taking on a corpse like pallor further deepening the suspicion the Inquisition had about the chapter as well as other chapters that fought alongside them. With the extinction of the Heralds of salvation and the warp rift being unleashed by the destroyed Anima Chorus, the barrier between the Immaterium was shattered enabling the foul energies of the Chaos God Nurgle to rebirth the Heralds into unholy life as decayed revenants. Their forms have become truly corrupt and decayed with foul warp sorcery sustaining their diseased forms. COMING SOON!!!!!! A Growing Threat It is believed that the Heralds of Salvation have little in the way of fleet capacity as there has only been a few ships recorded to be used by them. However with the unholy rebirth of the Heralds the numbers of zombie ships reported in the sectors around the edge of the Segmentum Pacificus has disturbingly been rapidly increasing. These ships to all purposes are devoid of all life filled to the brim with corpses these desolate corpse ships will drift aimlessly through the regions like some mobile graveyard floating through space. To greedy What is most alarming is that the dead on board do not stay dead, if these "corpse ships" are boarded then the the dead are reborn through foul sorcery as shambling zombies. Seemly controlled by an malignant intelligence these decayed monsters will overwhelm those foolish enough to board their ship with even the most determined foe dragged down by the undead's all consuming hunger for flesh. Successful boarding and destruction of zombie ships have led the Inquisiton to believe that the Heralds of Salvation are the cause for this filling captured ships with the dead as well as daemon engines. these daemon engines have limited control of the desolate ships they infected guiding the ship towards the living. Bound with foul sorcery and dark Archeotech the daemon engines contain a wave form generator which reanimates the dead through foul necromancy. There have even been reports of zombie ships crashing into imperial worlds which cause those zombies to survive intact to attack those who investigate the wrecks with zombie outbreaks spreading across the Segmentum Pacificius "Spectral Revenant" http://wh40k.lexicanum.com/mediawiki/images/9/9b/Slaughter_Cruiser.jpg Slaughter Class Cruiser Dimensions: Approximately 5 kilometres long, 0.8 kilometres abeam. Mass: Approximately 28.5 Megatonnes. Crew: Approximately 140 plague marines with 50 000 plague zombies including daemonic support Acceleration: 2.4 Gravities maximum acceleration. A heavily modified and corrupted ship this once proud vessel once served as part of the Imperial Fleet that was sent to destroy the Heralds of Salvation for their crimes against the Imperium, before it's fall it was once known as the "Heretics bane" with a noble history which has now turned black. With chapter's dark rebirth this vessel dubbed the "Spectral Revenant" has become feared as a silent hunter of Nurgle which preys on ships along the edges of the Segmentum Pacificius spreading death and decay. Being masters of undeath this ship serves as the flagship of the Heralds with a crew made entirely of the undead which shamble around the ship's confines, these mindless zombies crew the ship through foul sorcery as well as acting as a limitless defence against enemy boarders. Modified to have Torpedo tubes replacing the ships standard prow weapon this fast and deadly ship has been known to ambush other ships in hit and run attacks with its deadly short ranged weapons that can leave larger ships crippled or destroyed. A disturbing tactic has been observed that the Spectral Revenant uses blasphemous boarding torpedoes filled with deadly plagues and zombies inside. When these torpedoes penetrate their target they release a cloud of noxious gas which kill those within the blast radius, zombies which were crammed within the tubes swarm the interior of the ship so plague and undeath take a deadly toll on the ship's crew. Fitted with ancient Archeotech it features a Sarcosan Wave form Generator that sustains the undead on board through the sorcery of the warp as well as bringing the dead back to life nearby, built within the ship's Warp Field Generator as being undead means the heralds have little to fear from the denizens of the warp. The Spectral Revenant is believed to house an ancient Teleportarium from which squads of Plague marines and worse launch raids against key targets on board other ships or even planets. The Lost Graveyard There is a myth whispered in hushed fearful tones by both Rogue traders and the Imperial Navy of a massive graveyard of ships that lies hidden along the edges of the Segmentum Pacificius known as the fabled Lost Graveyard. It is believed that the area of space was sight to a forgotten fleet battle long ago which mysterious left both sides utterly destroyed leaving the desolate ships to drift within the graveyard. Whilst it is rumoured to be a treasure trove of technological and scientific bounties it is also believed to be haunted by the dead who lurk within the graveyard with those foolish enough to enter never leaving alive again,however in truth it is far worse. The Heralds of Salvation and their armies of the undead have made the graveyard their base of operations within a crippled Repulsive Grand class cruiser acting as their stronghold. The Graveyard's defence lies not only in the horror stories that keep nearly everyone away but those foolish enough to enter the graveyard find their greed be the death of them as they are overwhelmed by the undead which roam the countless desolate ships that drift aimlessly within the graveyard.