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Legion Organization


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It has been confirmed that Legions were around 100,000 strong.

Companies in the Luna Wolves appeared to be around 600 strong. Were they grouped into Great Companies?

Furthermore, the Emperor's Children had companies that appeared to be roughly the size of Luna Wolf Companies.

So were they grouped into Great Companies themselves?

 

Simply put, are the companies we see in the novels (Fulgrim and Horus Rising) Great Companies? (with the exception of the Space Wolves as we know those are Great Companies)

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I think in the short story book there were 2 dark angel chapters (pre-heresy) invading a planet and they were organised into chapters like we have today. But I wouldn't trust my memory as I have had to revise for 1/3rd of an alevel between now and then.

I guess it's just a matter of naming, really.

 

A Company to the Emperor's Children may be a Great Company to the Iron Warriors may be a Chapter to the Dark Angels may be a Clan to the Iron Hands.

 

Depending on the Legion though, some may be named "Assault Company" or "Clan Sorgol" or "XY. Great Company".

But the novels so far were way too uncertain to really support any theories...

It has been confirmed that Legions were around 100,000 strong.

Companies in the Luna Wolves appeared to be around 600 strong.

 

The Horus Heresy artbooks stated that even the smallest legion was at least 100k strong with most legions following a basic template of being divided into 1,000 marine 'Regiments' each comprised of ten 100 man companies grouped into two 5-company strong battalions.

 

Great Company, Chapter, Wing etc were stated to be legion-specific names for Regiments.

 

Horus Rising gave the Luna Wolves 600 strong companies but contradicted the bit about 100k by stating that there 100k marines on Ullanor and that that included several entire legions.

Horus Rising gave the Luna Wolves 600 strong companies but contradicted the bit about 100k by stating that there 100k marines on Ullanor and that that included several entire legions.

Apparently some authors were still using the GW Codex numbers instead of the new BL numbers at that time.

Horus Rising gave the Luna Wolves 600 strong companies but contradicted the bit about 100k by stating that there 100k marines on Ullanor and that that included several entire legions.

 

I reread that last week and I'm fairly sure it said that there were companies from most of the legions but not entire legions.

It really depends upon the Legion as the Death Guard just had 7 Companies these would have been large companies compared to most.

 

Dark Angels and Word Bearers have Chapters with Companies within them but then they are the only ones i know of.

 

The Space Wolves had the thriteen great companies and if you read Prospero burns these companies are very uniquely desgined.

 

The Sons of Horus seemed to have lots of Companies but no Chapters.

 

The Emperor's Children had multiple Companies much like the Sons of Horus there difference were 2 senior Officers the Lord Commanders, who make me think of Chapter Masters.

 

All in all i would say that the Legions are too varying to know of a standard template of Organisation. If they eventually to an Ultramarine book i think that will have the best example of Legion organisation.

So how would the legions deal with being split down? If the ultramarines had 100,000 marines and divided into 30 chapters after the re-organization that would leave them with 40,000 marines left over. Or were their numbers reduced from fighting the Word Bearers and Alpha Legion?
Horus Rising gave the Luna Wolves 600 strong companies but contradicted the bit about 100k by stating that there 100k marines on Ullanor and that that included several entire legions.

 

I reread that last week and I'm fairly sure it said that there were companies from most of the legions but not entire legions.

 

Chapter seven: ‘All of us. Fourteen Legions were represented, either in total or by a company.'

 

Or were their numbers reduced from fighting the Word Bearers and Alpha Legion?

 

Theres no way the 100k numbers (the fluff that gives other legions 100k gives the smurfs 250k) work without massive casualties, but massive casualties were the order of the day in the original fluff for the Heresy:

Hatred drove us.

 

Hatred and fear.

 

Aye, fear. For we were the finest warriors in the universe, elite among elite, the chosen of humanity.

Once we had acknowledged no foe as our equal. Now we must – for were not these men the same as

ourselves? Spawned from geneseed, trained by masters, armed and equipped with the best from

humanity's realm. Finally we faced a for worthy of fear, a mirror image of ourselves and all we

believed in. In this nightmare, brother against false brother to the death. Is it any wonder we knew

fear?

 

We fought like tigers but were met with equal ferocity. We shot accurately. Our eyes were like those

of hawks. Yet equal numbers fell from our ranks. We met at close quarters. Weapons flashed and

gouged but who was to say which was faster? For every Traitor who fell, so fell a loyal brother.

The battle surged back and forth till finally in the end true faith prevailed and we had the mastery.

Yet we were slaughtered. But one in ten survived.

Yep, after the HH they probably lost a lot fighting the Alpha Legion and Emperor's children. Nobody is sure exactly how many successor chapters were founded from the ultras. The apocrypha of skaros lists 23... the apocrypha of davio only lists 8!
So how would the legions deal with being split down? If the ultramarines had 100,000 marines and divided into 30 chapters after the re-organization that would leave them with 40,000 marines left over. Or were their numbers reduced from fighting the Word Bearers and Alpha Legion?

 

Following the HH was the time of scouring a period of several years where the loyalist pushed back the Traitors, brought compliance to a huge chunk of the Imperium and managed to hold back the tide of Xenos trying to capitalise on the civil war. The Ultramarines were the leading Legion during this period, ny guess is that the losses to the loyalists were so high they could not keep up with the domand of Astartes quickly enough. Thus by the time this period ends and the Codex comes into place there is not enough Astartes for so many Chapters, plus without Legion strength the enemies of the Imperium find it a much easier target which brings 30k-40k together nicely.

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