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I'll be using the Legionary Kill Team (gasp!) to represent my very loyal Fire Claws Adeptus Astartes kill team. There are three main reasons for this: No Primaris. It's not that I'm against Primaris. It's just that I'm representing a kill team from the Chapter prior to the introduction of Primaris. Librarians. The Fire Claws are known for having a large and influential Librarium and I want to include a battle-psyker in my kill team. Daemon weapons. The Fire Claws collect and, more importantly, use the relics of Chaos in battle. Models will accurately portray loyalist Adeptus Astartes, but will follow the rules of their traitorous brothers. I'll probably make datacards for each model (once I get them done and photographed, that is) so that I can use them in games without getting too confused. They'll be accurate to the official Legionary Kill Team, so usable in games, but they'll be re-named proper loyalist names. In the post-Captor of Sin Fire Claws, this is a Quæstor Squad - a squad jointly led by a Sanctifier (see below) and a Lexicanium and tasked with the covert recovery of Chaos relics. Here's the tentative roster (actual Legionary Kill Team rules hidden - just highlight the grey bars to read the text). Sanctifier Skeptukhos armed with a bolt pistol and crozius arcanum Legionary Aspiring Champion armed with tainted bolt pistol and power maul A Sanctifier is a cross between a lieutenant and a chaplain, a pre-Primaris precursor to the Judiciar. The Sanctifiers are the members of the Chapter tasked by the Conclave with recovering Chaos relics. While the Sanctifiers don't practice vows of silence like Judiciars, I'm going to model this guy so that his mouth is covered, evoking the concept. The "crozius arcanum" will be more mace-like. Lexicanium Vrotoktónus armed with a bolt pistol and force dagger Legionary Balefire Acolyte armed with a bolt pistol and fell dagger Honored Brother Adámastos armed with a boltgun and bearing an Icon of the Emperor Enthroned Legionary Icon Bearer armed with a boltgun and fists Honored Brothers are a special type of standard bearer in the post-Captor of Sin Fire Claws, the Icon of the Emperor Enthroned serving to bolster the faith and zeal of the Fire Claws battle-brothers. Veteran Brother Phriktós armed with a bolt pistol and eviscerator Legionary Butcher armed with a bolt pistol and double-handed chainaxe Veteran Brother Megasthenes armed with a heavy bolter Legionary Heavy Gunner armed with a heavy bolter Veteran Brother Oplophoris armed with a boltgun Legionary Warrior armed with a boltgun Each of the models will have purity seals, representing the fact that they have been tested for purity by the Conclave and have been found to be suitable to the task. These are most definitely loyalist Space Marines. It's just that the [Heretic Astartes] Legionary Kill Team rules give me the tools I need to accurately represent the team as I envision them. In the back of my head, there are plans to expand this to include other members of the Legionary Quæstor Squad Kill Team. The Anointed would be a Veteran with a lightning claw and the Shrivetalon would be a Veteran with a bolt pistol and a pair of power blades. The Chosen would be the most interesting, simply being the same character as the Sanctifier (Aspiring Champion), but replacing his power maul with a daemon blade (I have some Bloodletters and one of those may sacrifice his blade to the Emperor's Angels). I would avoid the reaper chaincannon, but most other things have loyalist counterparts.

Since I'm working on a kill team for the Knives in the Shadows 2025 challenge (you can enter the challenge here, and since that challenge requires me to provide some background, I felt it appropriate to discuss the reasoning behind my (poor?) choices. If you examine my pledge in that challenge, you'll see that I committed myself to a kill team from the Fire Claws Chapter. Most of you will probably recognize that name, and many of you may know that it is the original (?) name of the Relictors Chapter. If you're not familiar with the background of the Relictors Fire Claws, or even if you are and just want to see what I know, I examined some key elements of that lore in this article. I didn't give my own theory about the Chapter in that article, however, as I wanted it to serve as a launching point for discussion of different theories (rather than promoting any one in particular). One of the interesting things about the Relictors Fire Claws is that every hobbyist has their own take on the Chapter. We've seen several other members present their Relictors Fire Claws over the years here at the B&C, and each is different and distinctive while drawing upon the same reservoir of lore. Back in 2021, I committed to my vision of the Fire Claws in another community challenge, the Liber Astartes Swap Challenge. That challenge required participants to create a DIY Chapter (or Heretic Astartes warband), and then for submitted Chapters/warbands to be randomly assigned to other participants. So participants had to develop sufficient information to give the other randomly assigned member an idea of what the DIY Chapter looked like so that they could assemble/convert and paint a model representing a member of that Chapter. So I had to come up with something. Before I present what I decided upon, I think it might be interesting to discuss the evolution of my ideas over the years. I've been a fan of the Relictors Fire Claws ever since they were first introduced during the 3rd edition of the Warhammer 40,000 game; and my views on the Chapter have evolved over the years. In fact, at this point it would be fair to say that there are two different theories that are in competition within my squirrely brain, though I definitely favor one. Actually, there are two origin theories and one current status theory (both of the origin theories feed into the same current status theory). Before we get to the theories, however, here's a very basic description of how my vision of the Chapter has evolved over the years. Note that this has all the weight of a feather - it's nothing more than my own personal take based on my attempts to reconcile the known lore and incorporate my own views (some of which aren't quite mainstream). So take this with a grain of salt - I'm not saying that this is the way it is - only that this is the way that I prefer to think about it. First and foremost, I intensely dislike the notion that the Fire Claws simply accepted the "Relictors" cognomen. The Adeptus Astartes are proud - proud of themselves and proud of their traditions. They are the Fire Claws Chapter and have carried that proud name since the Chapter's founding during the Age of Apostasy (M36). If the events of the Captor of Sin took place in the later centuries of M41 (which is what I infer, though the lore never explicitly states this to be so), the Chapter carried that proud name for over five millennia. It's difficult for me to envision the Chapter deciding to change their name to "Relictors." I think it much more likely that "relictor" was simply a term that connotated that the subject collected and used the artifacts of Chaos - something that would denote radical tendencies (in the language of the Inquisition). I hypothesize that the term had come into use long ago, most likely when one or more individuals/organizations followed the practice, and the term had come to be a sort of code word. To me, it seems much more likely that third parties began calling the Fire Claws by the "relictors" name, both describing their observed (suspected?) practice and condemning it. If that is indeed what happened, then the Fire Claws should have been insulted by the name. After all, the source of the Relictors Fire Claws deciding to collect and use Chaos relics was pride. They were prideful in thinking that they could wield such relics without succumbing to corruption. To me, it would have been more plausible for the Fire Claws to be indignant about the "Relictors" name, not adopt it with pride. Another issue to consider is that the skull icon that we refer to as the Chapter badge/icon was actually a penitent marking. This means that the Fire Claws had some other image as their Chapter icon. In the early evolution of my theories about the Chapter, I assumed that the grey and black color scheme was carried over from their Chapter approved Fire Claws livery and that the leering skull icon replaced the original Chapter icon to indicate that the Chapter was on its century-long penitent crusade. Just as important, upon successful completion of the crusade and being granted the Emperor's forgiveness, the Chapter would remove the penitent marking and resume use of its actual Chapter badge (though I could see [some] survivors of the penitent crusade incorporating the penitent marking into their panoply as a permanent reminder of their brush with heresy. So when I first began planning a Relictors Fire Claws army, I looked at the Chapter shortly after the incidents of the Captor of Sin but prior to being sent on a penitent crusade. My Relictors Fire Claws, then, would bear the original Chapter icon. Here's what I first conceived: I used the talon image from the Brazen Claws Chapter, turned it to reach upwards (instead of forwards), and incorporated a flame motif such as the Salamanders and Fire Hawks Chapters often used. I really liked how the 3rd edition rendition of the Salamanders Chapter incorporated individualized flame decorations on armour, as well as how the Fire Hawks similarly decorated their armour with flames, so I took the yellow flames of the Salamanders and the red flames of the Fire Hawks and used orange for the Fire Claws. As you can see from the shoulder pad rims, I kept the rest of the color scheme for the Chapter as shown for the Relictors. At one point, I even used that design on an image from the B&C's Space Marine Painter, resulting in: That's a veteran sergeant wielding a power sword. Later, the Angron's Monolith novella revealed that Chapter's original scheme was black and orange, though the arrangement of those colors was never described. So I went back to the drawing board, this time coming up with the scheme below: And this was where the Fire Claws Chapter sat within my brain until the LASC 21 challenge arose. While I loved the black flaming arms of the second scheme, it bothered me that I was limiting the concept of the custom flames that had been inspired by the 3rd edition Salamanders, and which were reinforced in the Horus Heresy black books. So I went back to the drawing board again, coming up with a scheme that allowed for more custom flame designs while using predominantly black and orange armour. The main design conceit here was making the hands orange while leaving the rest of the arms black. This played on the "fire claws" idea, substituting hands for claws. This also allowed me to use personalized flame decorations on models. The concept I used in my artwork was that the more senior the Fire Claw, the more likely they would be to have more personalized flame decorations. For example, the (assault) Veteran shown below only has personalized flames on both wrists whereas the Captain has personalized flames on both arms (up to the shoulder pads, modifying the Chapter icon somewhat), on both legs, and on his loincloth. The black flames on the loincloth are actually significant in that they indicate that this member of the Chapter has passed whatever tests there are to wield the relics of Chaos in battle. My original idea was that such members would be identified by a black laurel. I finally decided that there might be options for these indicators, including the (original) black laurel, the black flames, and a white crux (which the Captain above also has). So my conception of the Relictors Fire Claws Chapter is that they dislike the "Relictors" name and color scheme, and that they reverted to their original Fire Claws livery at the first opportunity (though my personal Fire Claws models would represent the Chapter prior to their penitent crusade). My basic view of the Chapter is that they are prideful, almost to the point of hubris. They see themselves as morally and spiritually superior, able to wield the relics of Chaos without taint or corruption. They are doing the Emperor's work, not succumbing to heresy. Their warrior cult is one of purity and stoicism, enduring hardships in their never-ending quest to fight for Humanity and the Emperor. Origin theory 1, the one I favor, is that the key elements of the Relictors Index Astartes article are correct. If you want to see origin theory 2, click the NEXT PAGE button that appears at the top and bottom of this post. Otherwise, you can skip forward to my current status theory. As for the Fire Claws Chapter's current status, I like the notion that they have Primaris among their ranks, but I think that the rendition of Primaris in the Relictors colors was wrong. By my way of thinking, that was a notional concept rendered by some scribe who was familiar with the Chapter as the Relictors, but who never saw them after the Torchbearer fleet actually arrived at Neutra and delivered the Greyshields. And this was all for good reason, because I enjoy the notion that the Torchbearer fleet that travelled to Neutra was special, that Roboute Guilliman was accompanied by a much larger contingent of Adeptus Custodes as well as members of the Inquisition and, perhaps, one or more other Chapters of the Adeptus Astartes. I think it would have been fitting for Roboute Guilliman to have purged the Chapter of all members of the Conclave, forcing the Chapter to return to its Fire Claws colors and installing Primaris in officer positions. I can see this as a revision of the old story about the Grey Slayers from the 1st edition of the game, replacing the Grey Slayers with the Relictors Fire Claws and adjusting the elements of the story to align with the Fire Claws. If Games Workshop/Black Library ever paid me to write about the Relictors Fire Claws and didn't force me to the party line, Roboute Guilliman's purging of the Chapter would be my choice. If you're interested, I present a version of the Fire Claws' path to damnation (i.e., the Inquisition manipulating them) here. That's my story and I'm sticking to it. If you're interested in my other theory (which I decided to not use), click NEXT PAGE. If you just want to read about the Fire Claws kill team I'm planning for the Knives in the Shadows challenge, you'll have to wait for the next installment. This theory attempts to reconcile two things: The mention of the (a) "Relictors" Chapter operating in M33 (when the Index Astartes article told us that they are believed to have been created during the dark days of the Age of Apostasy - M36), and The notion that the Chapter may not have been indignant at the Relictors name, that they chose it. This theory is that there was a Chapter known as the Relictors back in M33, and this was the same Chapter that would later be known as the Fire Claws and then the Relictors (again). A Chapter active during M33 would have to be from the 7th or earlier founding, and could possibly be some (unknown?) 2nd founding Chapter. This Chapter wasn't originally known as the Relictors, but had some other name. For some reason, however, they began collecting and using the relics of the Great Enemy; and when this became known to others, the Chapter began to be called the "Relictors" by others. Few knew of this practice, however, and the Chapter was able to operate relatively unmolested for millennia. With the Age of Apostasy, however, and with Goge Vandire's antipathy towards the Adeptus Astartes, the Relictors Chapter saw an opportunity. They re-branded themselves as the Fire Claws, likely adopting a new color scheme and claiming to have been founded in M36. Their prior practice of collecting and using Chaos relics was repressed, though the members of the Librarium knew about this practice. The Chapter's influential Librarium preserved the secrets of the Chapter, but inculcated warrior cult practices that emphasized spiritual and moral purity. When Decario defeated the Excoriator with the daemon prince's own Chaos weapon, and with the added influence of Inquisitor De Marche, the Librarium was finally able to restore the previously proscribed practices. The Chapter then proudly reverted to its Relictors cognomen and livery (whatever the Chapter's icon was, it wasn't the leering skull penitent icon). And then everything went pretty much as the official material has described, though it branched into my current status theory (click PREVIOUS PAGE above/below and scroll to the bottom for a refresher). That's my very different and much more grimdark theory. I still favor origin theory 1, but the notion that the Relictors Chapter of M41 is just a continuation/resurgence of the original Relictors Chapter of M33, with all of the conspiracy and deceit, makes for an interesting story. Still, I'm sticking with the prideful Fire Claws version and not the relapsed Relictors version. If you just want to read about the Fire Claws kill team I'm planning for the Knives in the Shadows challenge, you'll have to wait for the next installment.

The Relictors: An Examination of the Lore By Brother Tyler The Relictors Chapter exploded onto the setting with the Third War for Armageddon (the second invasion of that world by the forces of Ghazghkull Mag Uruk Thraka). Their introduction was via a brief web page at the now-defunct Third War for Armageddon website, providing information that was considerably less than what we later came to expect in the Index Astartes articles (the modern version of which hadn’t started appearing yet), but which captured the imaginations of numerous hobbyists nonetheless. If you never saw that page, here it is (sort of) for your viewing pleasure (the format isn’t quite right): RELICTORS On its initial founding, this Chapter was known as the Fire Claws and fought primarily in warzones surrounding the Eye of Terror, fighting alongside companies of the Cadian Regiment. When the Emperor's Tarot revealed the existence of a badly damaged space hulk emerging from the warp near the Forge World of Stygies in Segmentum Obscurus, the Fire Claws mobilised to intercept it. The hulk, codified as the Captor of Sin, contained a renegade warband led by a Tzeentchian Chaos Champion known as the Excoriator. The Space Marine strike cruisers crippled the vessel as it entered the Stygies System and Terminator Assault Squads led by Librarian Decario and the shadowy figure of Inquisitor De Marche stormed the vessel. Realising they were doomed, the renegades made their stand in a cavern sized engine room where furious battle was joined and Decario and De Marche fought the Excoriator. The Champion was a mighty warrior and carried a weapon forged in the heart of the Eye of Terror, a terrible Daemon sword, with the essence of a greater daemon bound within its steel. The Inquisitor hacked at the Champion with his power axe, but the unnatural armour of the Excoriator was impervious to his blows. The Chaos champion retaliated, his daemon weapon easily cutting through De Marche's armour and grievously wounding him. With one strike, the Excoriator shattered Decario's force sword and laid open his Terminator armour. Decario staggered, but struck back with his power fist, ripping the Chaos Champion's sword arm from its socket in a welter of blood. Even mortally wounded and unarmed, the champion fought with hideous ferocity, smashing the Librarian to the ground and slaughtering four Terminators. Decario muttered a prayer to the Emperor, grabbed the nearest weapon to hand and struck out at the Champion. The Excoriator's head was chopped from his shoulders and Decario realised he had picked up the daemon sword, killing the champion with his own weapon. Decario was filled with a sense of utter purpose as he wielded the Chaos sword, and instinctively felt that this was a weapon that could be turned against the forces of Chaos. The wounded De Marche cautioned the Librarian to put the weapon down, that only he was trained to handle such artefacts. The Librarian handed the Inquisitor the weapon and the Space Marines returned to their ship, leaving behind an Adeptus Mechanicus survey team to search the hulk for the remains of any archaeotech. De Marche explained that he also believed that such weapons could be used to fight Chaos and should not be destroyed out of hand as was current policy. With the aid of Decario, he was able to convince the Fire Claw's Chapter Master of this and under De Marche's guidance, the Fire Claws embarked on a crusade to explore the worlds around the Eye of Terror and uncover more such relics. Over the decades that followed, many such artefacts were discovered and the Fire Claws Chapter became known as the Relictors. However, it was only a matter of time before the practice of the Relictors using Chaos weapons in battle became known to others. A cell of Inquisitors, backed up by no less than four Chapters of Space Marines and an Emperor class battleship descended upon the Relictor's fortress monastery and demanded they hand over De Marche and all recovered Chaos artefacts or be destroyed. Faced with destruction the Chapter had no choice but to obey. As penance for dealing with heretical weaponry the Chapter was despatched on a century-long penance crusade. De Marche was taken by the Inquisitors and executed as a heretic. As part of their crusade, the Chapter has deployed all ten companies to Armageddon, with a greater concentration of forces in the Equatorial Jungle, particularly in the region surrounding Angron's Monolith. Here was a Chapter of the Adeptus Astartes that defied accepted norms, collecting and, more importantly, using the tools of Chaos against Chaos. They were one of several Chapters presented at that time that stood out as defiant (others including the Celestial Lions, who defied the Inquisition, the Exorcists, and the Marines Malevolent). How could anyone not love this Chapter? Later, when the Eye of Terror campaign (the Thirteenth Black Crusade of Abaddon the Despoiler) occurred, it was revealed that the Relictors participated in that worldwide campaign, which occurred almost immediately after the conclusion of the main period of the Third War for Armageddon, and that the Chapter may have been among the Astartes Praeses (or Praesus, depending upon your source) Chapters. An Index Astartes article for the Chapter was later published in White Dwarf magazine, and that article expanded upon the original lore and provided rules for using a Relictors army in Warhammer 40,000. The rules and lore in that article were largely consistent with the original lore, providing the basis for numerous hobbyists’ efforts at portraying these Adeptus Astartes anti-heroes on the tabletop. The Extremis Diabolus story was published in issue 295 of the UK White Dwarf magazine, but didn’t appear in the counterparts for other countries. This story took place after the events of the Eye of Terror campaign and saw the Relictors declared extremis diabolus and the few survivors fleeing into the Eye of Terror. Despite this, the Relictors continued to be presented as loyalist Adeptus Astartes in other publications, with the exception of a librarian that joined an Alpha Legion warband subsequent to the Chapter’s [supposed?] excommunication. In addition, confusion was created when the (a) Relictors Chapters was mentioned as operating in M33 in one of the editions of Codex: Chaos Space Marines. The Index Astartes article previously mentioned that the Fire Claws (the Relictors’ original Chapter name) were believed to have been “founded during the dark days of the Age of Apostasy” which occurred during M36. Assuming that date was correct, this would most likely have put the Fire Claws in the 22nd Founding since the 21st (Cursed) Founding took place prior to the Age of Apostasy, starting in late M35, and the 23rd (Sentinel) Founding took place in either late M37 or early M38. Chapters operating during M33 would be from the 7th Founding or earlier. The 6th edition Codex: Space Marines indicates that the Relictors participated in the Blood Star Campaign in 748.M41 alongside the Rainbow Warriors and Fire Lords. Similarly, the Core Rulebook for the Deathwatch roleplaying game from Fantasy Flight Games/Cubicle 7 Games indicates that the Relictors took part in the Achilus Crusade circa 7252.777.M41. These dates are sufficiently close in time to the known penitent crusade, which overlapped 999.M41, to not create confusion. The earlier period of M33, however, is far too early to be consistent with the previously known lore. Significantly, the Eye of Terror campaign and all of its lore was revised in the 7th edition of the Warhammer 40,000 game. Where the 3rd edition version of the campaign saw the Imperium victorious, the 7th edition version was part of the larger Gathering Storm campaign and saw Chaos victorious, with the Fall of Cadia and the Fracture of Biel-Tan. For example, the Ulthwé farseer known as Eldrad Ulthran died aboard a Blackstone fortress in the original campaign, but survives at the end of the more recent campaign (though he appears to have left his craftworld and joined the Ynnari). Given that, the validity of the Extremis Diabolus is thrown into doubt. Most importantly, though the Relictors have been given little coverage in recent editions, Codex: Space Marines shows their homeworld of Neutra on the map of other Chapter homeworlds/crusade fleets (and no [other] renegade Chapters are similarly displayed). Also, Games Workshop (or a licensee) published a poster depicting numerous Adeptus Astartes Chapters in the Era Indomitus (i.e., in Mk X Tacticus – Primaris – armour), and that poster included the Relictors (with a revised Chapter icon, removing the jawbone). This would indicate that the (a?) Chapter is still extant under the “Relictors” name during the Era Indomitus. This might be the same Chapter, augmented by Primaris Space Marines; or it might be a new Chapter has replaced the renegades, much the same way that there is a new Soul Drinkers Chapter that has taken up the name and livery of another renegade Chapter. Different hobbyists have different takes on the Chapter, each based on their preferences and each interesting and distinct. Each is equally valid, reconciling different aspects of the lore that Games Workshop has presented over the years and focusing on those elements that the hobbyists find compelling. How do we reconcile the different pieces of lore, however? This is especially important in considering those elements that are in conflict – the date of the Chapter’s actual founding and whether or not they were declared extremis diabolus and became renegades. The date conflict can be parsed into two distinct elements: First, was the Chapter founded in M36? Or was it extant in M33 (and possibly founded prior to that millennium)? Second, since the Chapter was on a century-long penance crusade in 999.M41 and was known as the “Relictors” for a (short?) period prior to that, how could they have been identified as active in M33 when they were known as the “Fire Claws” prior to taking up the “Relictors” nomenclature? Both of those have to do with the M33/M36 disparity, but both address different aspects of that disparity. Before proceeding further, it’s important to acknowledge several real-world possibilities: First, people make mistakes. It’s entirely possible that the authors of the (later) Codex: Chaos Space Marines made an error in describing the (a?) Relictors Chapter being active in M33. Second, Games Workshop has been known to use the unreliable narrator device. It’s possible that the Chapter described as being active in M33 wasn’t the (a?) Relictors, but was some other Chapter that was mis-identified. Third, Games Workshop has been known to revise lore. This article has already described how the Thirteenth Black Crusade of Abaddon the Despoiler was revised between the 3rd edition campaign (Eye of Terror) and the 7th edition campaign (The Gathering Storm). That was a major event with galaxy-spanning consequences, so the founding date of a relatively minor Chapter of the Adeptus Astartes is trivial in comparison. If we ignore those possibilities, however, we are left with other interesting possibilities. One theory is that since the M36 founding is only “believed,” it’s entirely possible that the Fire Claws were founded in/prior to M33 and that the “Relictors” identification was nothing more than a misidentification of the Chapter under its original name (i.e., Codex: Chaos Space Marines should have said “Fire Claws” instead of “Relictors”). This begs the question of when the Chapter was originally created, however. In addition, one might wonder if the (first) Relictors Chapter name was even the Chapter’s original name. Perhaps they had some other name when first created (in M33 or M32) and they took up the Relictors name later. Then, with the events of the Age of Apostasy in M36, the Chapter adopted the “Fire Claws” name as a way of reinventing itself. The predilection to collect and use the tools of Chaos, then, wasn’t something new that Inquisitor De Marche and Librarian Decario convinced the Chapter Master to start – rather, it was a practice that had remained long dormant and renewing the practice was a sort of regression. An alternate take on this is that the watershed event that led to the Fire Claws collecting Chaos relics and later taking up the Relictors nomenclature occurred much earlier than thought, with the Chapter carrying this practice out for millennia before being confronted and forced upon a century-long penitent crusade. Under this theory, however, we then have to account for Inquisitor De Marche’s longevity for that entire period – though that’s possible with stasis and/or Warp shenanigans. Another theory is that there was an older Chapter known as the Relictors and that the Fire Claws took up the older Chapter’s name (and perhaps their livery). Perhaps the original Relictors Chapter collected Chaos relics and the later Chapter adopted their name in homage. The fate of the older Chapter is unknown, of course, but one might surmise that they were either destroyed for their heresy (I prefer to think of them as “unorthodox practices”) or they became renegades. A derivation of this theory is that the older Chapter’s name became synonymous with the radical practice of collecting and using Chaos relics, so the “Relictors” name wasn’t necessarily chosen by the Fire Claws Chapter, but was used by others with negative connotations and they simply owned it (which would be a very defiant act on their part). The issue of whether or not the Chapter was declared extremis diabolus also comes into question. While the lore for the Thirteenth Black Crusade of Abaddon the Despoiler may have been rewritten, that doesn’t mean that every aspect of that lore changed. Most of the online wikis dedicated to the Warhammer 40,000 hobby favor the renegade outcome, choosing to accept the Extremis Diabolus story as continuing to be relevant. While this is a valid choice, it is by no means certain, especially given later lore and the fact that Games Workshop has never mentioned the Relictors as renegades in any rulebooks. Hobbyists that accept the renegade interpretation have considerable freedom in how they might represent their Relictors – using either Codex: Adeptus Astartes (the Relictors are just misunderstood) or Codex: Heretic Astartes (the Relictors have gone down the path of damnation). Lastly, how do the Primaris Relictors fit into the equation? Are they a continuation of the original Chapter? Under this option, the Relictors were never declared extremis diabolus and remained loyal to the Imperium. Alternately, do the [new] Relictors serve as a replacement for the previous Chapter, with a full Chapter of the Ultima Founding to replace the renegades? Or are the presentations of Primaris Relictors and the Chapter homeworld of Neutra in the current Codex: Adeptus Astartes simply representative of some sort of mistake, either on the part of Games Workshop or some scribe within the Administratum? Naturally, different hobbyists are going to have their preference for how they choose to interpret and represent the Relictors. Each of these is perfectly valid, and this flexibility is a great demonstration of the creativity that the hobby allows. It would be presumptuous for anyone (other than Games Workshop) to assert that any one interpretation or theory is correct and that others are wrong (though that won’t stop anyone from trying). Over the years, numerous hobbyists have presented their own version of the Relictors Chapter, and each has been distinct and exciting. My personal theories about the Relictors Chapter combine elements of the theories I’ve described above, but also take into account other considerations to create my own unique view of the Chapter. What are your own theories about the Relictors Chapter? Brother Tyler has been a member of the Bolter & Chainsword since 1999 and has been involved in the Warhammer 40,000 hobby since 1987. He has been a fan of the Relictors Fire Claws Chapter since first reading about them in the Third War for Armageddon campaign during the 3rd edition of the game. This article represents his own views. View full article

Thanks to some prodding by Lord Ragnarok, I recently bought the Black Library ebook/novella Angron's Monolith, which describes some of the actions of the Relictors Chapter during the Third War for Armageddon. I just finished reading the story this morning, and found it to be quite good. To echo sentiments voiced by Lord Ragnarok, it should be considered required reading for any fan of the Fire Claws/Relictors. Codex: Chaos Space Marines mentions the (a?) Relictors Chapter operating in M33, whereas the Index Astartes article on the Relictors indicates that the Chapter was created in M.36; more importantly, the Chapter's practice of collecting and using relics of Chaos was a recent innovation. In one sense, this discrepancy may have been considered a retcon of sorts, effectively erasing the Fire Claws and shifting the Chapter's origins and nefarious practices back millennia. Alternately, it may have been considered an accident due to lack of familiarity with the previous body of work. A third option, which I favored, was that there was a previous "Relictors" Chapter that practiced collecting (and possibly using) Chaos relics. For reasons that have not been revealed, that Chapter no longer exists; but when the Fire Claws' similar practices became known outside of their Chapter, they were called "Relictors" to echo that previous Chapter (like in Wreck-It Ralph when everyone was accusing Ralph of "going Turbo"). When the Fire Claws were confronted and forced to go on a penitent crusade, they formally adopted the name of that previous Chapter. Their current color scheme and badge may even be drawn from that previous Chapter (the novella describes the Chapter's previous "Fire Claws" colors as being black and orange). This is fortuitous for me as I was working on the Nova Hawks and one of the branches I considered for them (and later discarded) was as the Fire Claws. At that time, I assumed that the "Fire Claws" color scheme had been grey and that only the badge had changed. With the revelations in the novella, I can use my nifty color scheme for the Fire Claws (don't worry - I'll just keep the background and name for the Nova Hawks and change their color scheme). So my personal version of the Fire Claws is from a time prior to the incident in which the Chapter first embarked down the road to collecting Chaos relics. This is, naturally, a speculative version as, aside from the use of black and orange as the Chapter's (primary) colors, we know nothing else about how they appeared. Also, I've made some revisions to badges and color schemes that were previously used. Here is what I thought the Fire Claws might look like if their scheme had been predominantly grey: Here's a better picture of the possible Chapter badge: Here is what the Nova Hawks were going to look like: I've taken the burny Nova Hawks color scheme, replaced the white hawk head badge with an orange claw badge, and here is my vision of the Fire Claws: Here's a Terminator-brother: And here's a hero (Honour Guard, probably): And here's the shoulder pad view of the Chapter badge: As for rules, I'm probably going to use the Ultramarines Chapter tactics. If I decide to play them as the proto-Relictors, it will simply be a matter of allowing some unique relics (drawing upon those from 3rd edition, updating them to mesh with 7th edition).

Hey, my name is Mat and as you're about to find out, I'm the same as a lot of people on here... I've been browsing this website for along time and with my brother, had an on-again-off-again relationship with Warhammer 40K. Well, this 8th edition has brought the fight back for both of us and we are delving into the grim darkness of the far future again. I've always been a Space Marine fan... Aesthetically anyway. That is because (maybe controversially) I have never liked the Emperor aspect of 40K - it just doesn't sit with what is happening across the galaxy... I'm not a fan... It has always been about how cool Space Marines look for me and the units I liked the look of are what always made it into my armies. I don't think that will ever change, so don't expect to see any Land Raiders posted anytime soon. Anyway, I love the idea of the Relictors - a renegade chapter that is obsessed with alien artefacts and weaponry. This is the chapter I've decided to work on and I think I can have fun adding weapons and accessories from other armies to show this chapter's traits. This won't be every single unit, just hints here and there throughout the army and in particular any HQ choices. I'm thinking of using some Chaos helmets mixed with some of the FW helmets to hint at the corruption and renegade nature of the chapter. Any skin colour will be really pale for the same reason. I'm quite a neat painter but not to some of the standard on here, however, I'm a little older and more patient so I'm determined to do a good job. Stay tuned for some build photos over the next few days. Any advice or thoughts are most welcome. Cheers.