==][== A History of the Grey Knights Faction ==][==

[Valerian]

A History of the Grey Knights Faction throughout 40k

1st Edition (Rogue Trader), Part 1:

Warhammer 40,000 was first released in 1987 in the form of the Rogue Trader rulebook. A lot of universe development and adjustments occurred in that first year, and the Realms of Chaos: Slaves to Darkness supplement was released in 1988, which included a ton of new fluff, rules, and several army lists, including lists for the World Eaters, Emperor's Children, Black Legion, and the Ordo Malleus. The background section on the Ordo Malleus described the origins and history of oldest order of the Inquisition, and described how the organization operates. It also described several of the Chambers of the Ordo, including its Chamber Militant, the Grey Knights Chapter. Later in the book, the Order Malleus Army List provided the details on how to construct an army of Daemonhunter Inquisitors and Grey Knights units in games of 40k.

Lore:

The Ordo Malleus:

“The Emperor has seen the dangers that Chaos holds for Humanity, and long ago established the Inquisition to search out all threats to the Imperium. In maintaining Imperial rule, the Inquisition devotes much of its efforts to seeking out and controlling emergent packers. By destroying the weak and dragooning the strong into Imperial service the Inquisition attempts to hold the line against the rest of wild psychic talent.

One part of the Inquisition has a slightly different purpose. Unwitting and ignorant packers are a danger, but the threat from those who worship Chaos and the warp is altogether greater. Imperial policy can offer no mercy to those who choose to serve Chaos, make allies of Daemons and offer themselves and others as hosts for Possession. The instrument of such policy are the Daemonhunters of the Ordo Malleus.

The Ordo is an inner college within the Imperium, its activities and existence shrouded in secrecy. The Inquisition goes to great lengths to hide the existence of Chaos and its warped servants from the bulk of Humanity. The Emperor and his advisors fear that such knowledge would have a terrible attraction for Humanity, and Chaos would be hastened. The Ordo, when it is mentioned at all, is always referred to as a watchdog on the Inquisition itself. Its purpose, as the Imperium’s elite (and only) Daemonhunters, is altogether more serious and sinister.

The origins of the Ordo Malleus are very ancient, and predate the Emperor’s confinement in his throne-machine. The Ordo was originally established to police the thoughts and deeds of the Inquisition itself. It is still responsible for the moral purity of all Inquisitors, but it is now also charged with seeking out and destroying all manifestations of Chaos within the Imperium. Its chief targets are the raiders of the Traitor Legions, covens of Chaos worshippers who infect the Imperium, and the Sensei, who are regarded as a great threat to the good order of the Empire.

Unlike the rest of the Inquisition, the Ordo has a rigid and formalized hierarchy. It is controlled by a council of 169 Masters, who have the right to direct audience with the Emperor. Their authority extends even to the Master of the Inquisition who has, on more than one occasion, been tried and executed by the Masters of the Ordo.

Below the Masters are the Proctors and Proctors Minor, each of whom control a Chamber of the Ordo. The Chamber, named for their founding Proctor, are the basic unit of the Ordo. The rank and file of these are the Inquisitors Ordinary. Within a parallel organization ‘Chambers Theoretical and Historical’ are the Inquisitors Historical. These are the older members of the Ordo who can no longer carry out active duties for reasons of ill-health or infirmity. They are assigned to research and collation projects in the vast Administratum Libraries. The number of Inquisitors Ordinary and Historical in a Chamber varies from only a few score for the Chambers Theoretical and Historical (which are engaged in research and disputation) to hundred for some of the Chambers Practical (the sector establishments of the Ordo in the field.

The Ordo acts directly under the Emperor’s Warrant, and has a completely free hand. An Ordo Inquisitor Ordinary can demand anything in carrying out his duty. No explanation needs to be offered; an Imperial servant faced with an Ordo Inquisitor must simply obey. The commonest demand by Inquisitors Ordinary is for troops to support their action. Such forces never survive under an Inquisitor Ordinary’s command, but posthumous honors are heaped upon units attached to the Ordo.”

Military Units and the Ordo:

“The Ordo has a complete Chapter of the Legiones Astartes attached to it on a permanent basis. The Grey Knights were a single Chapter created during an unregistered Founding shortly after the (official) Third Founding. Although technically Marines of the Adeptus Astartes, the Grey Knights are, to all intents and purposes, part of the Inquisition. They are listed as a Third Founding unit and, by the Emperor’s instruction, were designated Chapter number 666. However, they have never been attached to any Marine force, and by tradition their Chapter Master has always been an Inquisitor of the Ordo rather than a Space Marine.* In effect the Grey Knights are a ‘Chamber Militant’ of the Ordo Malleus, and occasionally refer to themselves as such.

*Note- the original organizational structure of Space Marine Chapters separated the Chapter Master and his functions from those of Commander of the Chapter.

The Grey Knights are fully as effective as any other Marine Chapter. They are specially screened to exclude all but the strongest and most resilient psykers, a measure designed to prevent any Daemonic contamination. As a result, very few of the Grey Knights have any psychic power whatsoever. Their training and surgery rituals are, if anything, more demanding than those of ‘ordinary’ Marine units.

Recruits are conditioned to ignore pain and fear, and undergo neurosurgery to isolate and bypass their fear centers. They are exposed to wild packers, mutants and deviants of every kind. They are trained to destroy them without conscious thought. This training produces a rigidly disciplined and controlled mind to which the presence of Daemons is less of a shock than for normal beings. The Grey Knights are also imbued with a zeal and purpose to dwarf that of any other Marine chapter. Often entire companies are granted an audience with the Emperor, a privilege normally reserved for the Adeptus Custodes.

Added to this spirit is the finest equipment in the Imperium. The Grey Knights are given only the best Marine equipment, with battle-proven and improved designs being given to them before any other Marine unit.”

Weapons:

Slaves to Darkness also introduced the Psycannon, which was described as "a long, elegant handgun, a development of the trusty and brutal bolt pistol. It fires a tiny bolt which is heavily impregnated with negative psychic energy, as used in the manufacture of psych-out shells. A Psycannon bolt does some damage by bolt impact, and causes one Wound. However, its devastating effect on the psyche (as well as the physical body) is only apparent when it is used against a psychic target... Only the Ordo Malleus and other High Inquisitors, the most trusted and valued of Imperial servants, regularly carry psycannons. Difficulties in manufacture, in particular a dearth of negative psychic energy (even with the discovery that Sensei can be rendered down for such energy), make psycannons rare weapons. Partly because of this rarity and partly because of their limited utility against non-psykers, the psycannon is a badge of office for Imperial Daemonhunters.“

In addition to the Psycannon, Psyk-out grenades and missiles were introduced, and rules provided for their use in games.

In the Ordo Malleus army list, the Grey Knights heroes and squads had access to all of the options, upgrades, and random equipment tables that were standard to other Space Marine army lists at the time. The Ordo Malleus Daemonhunters, however, were unique in that they had access to the Psycannon, Force Swords and Force Rods, Psyk-out Grenades, and even a Daemon Weapon!

Armor:

In the Ordo Malleus army list, the Inquisitors, Ordo Malleus Daemonhunters, and the Grey Knights units all came with Powered Armour as part of their basic equipment. At this point, there was no description of the color scheme or the heraldry used by the Grey Knights. All of the artwork in this section was black and white "line art,” so there was no way to extract an official position on what the Grey Knights were supposed to look like. I believe that most folks assumed at the time, as I did, that they should be painted some version of Grey, given their name, the Grey Knights.

Rogue Trader era Daemonhunter Inquisitor with Psycannon model:

[Valerian]

Rogue Trader, Part 2:

The concept of Tactical Dreadnought Armour, or Terminator Armour, didn't arrive to the game until the publication of White Dwarf #109 (January, 1989), and the first rules for Grey Knights Terminator Squads was released a few months later in White Dwarf #114 (June, 1989).

Lore:

When the Grey Knights Terminator Squads were released, most of the earlier background material was repeated in the White Dwarf article, however an important new section was added:

“Grey Knights Marines are specially screened to exclude all but the strongest and most resilient psykers. Most Knights have no psychic ability at all, and thus are relatively safe from daemonic possession. Some, however, are extremely potent psykers, judged strong and pure enough to pit their powers against creatures from the warp. Equipped with Nemesis Force Weapons and protected by Tactical Dreadnought Armour, these elite warriors can hope to oppose even the Greater Daemons of Chaos.

The Grey Knight psykers are trained to work in small, extremely mobile strike forces, typically in squads of five men each. These squads, and the necessary support and transport units, are deployed at strategic locations throughout the Imperium, ready to move rapidly to any planet facing daemonic invasion.

Grey Knight Terminator Squads may be stationed in the field for decades at a time. And though to many the Chapter’s homeworld is but a distant memory, it is every Knight’s most cherished with to be buried in the chapel beneath the beloved fortress-monastery.”

Weapons:

In White Dwarf #114, we see the introduction of the now-iconic Grey Knights’ armament:

“The Nemesis Force Weapon is the standard armament of the Grey Knights Terminator Squads. This halberd-like weapon is a more sophisticated and powerful version of the force sword. Each Nemesis is uniquely built to match the psychic field of its bearer, enhancing his hand-to-hand combat abilities far beyond those of an ordinary Marine. In addition, the Nemesis contains a compact bolter, cunningly built into the haft of the weapon.”

The Nemesis Force Weapon incorporated a short range, limited ammunition, bolt weapon (only 3 shots in a game, with a 4” range) in the weapon's haft.

Armor:

“The Grey Knights’ Terminator suits are highly ornamented. They are heavily embossed, in an almost baroque style, with the standard Terminator symbol on the left shoulder and right knee, and the Grey Knights’ distinctive badge (a sword through a tome) on the right shoulder and left knee. Each Knight goes into combat with a copy of the Chapter’s sacred book of battle rituals, the Libra Daemonicus, in a special ceramite case on his breastplate. Purity seals are prominently displayed on his legs and thighs, signs that he is uncontaminated by the slightest taint of Chaos.

Each suit is equipped with a psychic hood, similar to those on the Aegis suits worn by Librarian Marines.”

The article also included a one-page narrative of a Grey Knights Terminator Squads deployment to defend a planetary governor from an assault into the governor’s palace by Khorne cultists and a Bloodthirster. Notably, the Knights are described as wearing Terminator Armour, grey in color, and covered with intricate embossing.

Army List:

One page of the White Dwarf article included two entries for “army list additions,” which were to be added to the Grey Knights section of the Ordo Malleus army list found in Slaves to Darkness. The new entries included a Grey Knights Terminator Captain and up to four Grey Knight Terminator Tactical Squads. The Grey Knight Terminator Captain came with only his Nemesis Force Weapon and Tactical Dreadnought Armour, with no options for upgrades or additional equipment. He was, however, also a Mastery Level 4 psyker. Likewise, the Grey Knights Terminator Tactical Squads were equipped similarly, and acted in a way that we would now call ‘brotherhood of pyskers,’ together having a psychic Master Level of 4, as a unit.

White Dwarf pictures of the first Grey Knights Terminators:

As you can see from these Rogue Trader era pics from White Dwarf magazines, the color scheme appears to be a base of silver or grey with gold trim, and the familiar red, white, and black heraldry.

[Valerian]

2nd Edition:

 

 

The Second Edition of Warhammer 40,000 was published in late 1993, and the boxed set consisted of the Rulebook, Wargear Book, and the Codex Imperialis (background information), as well the Codex Army Lists pamphlet of the initial army lists available for immediate play.  The Army Lists did not include the Grey Knights, but did include Inquisitors under the Imperial Agents section.  

 

A selection for the Grey Knights was introduced to 2nd edition with the publication of the Dark Millennium expansion boxed set the following year, in 1994.  Dark Millennium provided expanded rules for the use of Psykers in 40k, including the introduction of what we might now call Psychic Disciplines.  The Inquisition psychic powers were “mostly directed at combatting daemons and psykers or bringing down mass destruction on the foe.  Though Inquisitor-psykers and Grey Knights must always take at least one power from this discipline, it’s worth considering taking some from the Adeptus and Librarian disciplines if you aren’t battling Chaos or Tyranids, though the bulk of Inquisition powers are still useful against most opponents.”  The Inquisition powers included: Purge Psyker, Aura of Fortitude, Vortex, and Holocaust (two of which would be familiar to Grey Knights players today).

 

In addition to the details on Inquisition psychic powers, Dark Millennium reintroduced the Grey Knights Terminator Squad back into the game, and these were the only Grey Knights available for use for the duration of this edition of the game.

 

 

Lore:

 

“The Grey Knights Chapter of Space Marines serves as the fighting arm, or Chamber Militant, of the Ordo Malleus - the elite daemon-hunters of the Inquisition.  The Grey Knights Chapter was the sole creation of the Seconding Founding in the 31st Millennium.  Legend has it that the Knights were created upon the direct orders of the Emperor to form a special Chapter of Space Marines dedicated solely to rooting out and destroying daemons in face to face combat.  The Grey Knights are part of the Inquisitorial forces and their Chapter Grand Master is traditionally a member of the Inner Conclave of the Inquisition. 

 

Bio-engineering and psycho-surgery were lavished on the Grey Knights at their inception to make them the hardiest and most loyal Space Marines ever created.  In addition to the considerable stoicism they share with their brother Space Marines, the Grey Knights are heavily psycho-conditioned against the horrors of daemonic incursions and the whispered seductions of Chaos.  Their lives are ones of self-denial and spartan purity, filled with rituals to strengthen the mind and the heart against the horrors they must face.  To date these extraordinary measures have been effective; in 10,000 years of combat against the forces of darkness not one Grey Knight has faltered in battle or betrayed the Emperor in word or deed.

 

The Grey Knights are based in a secret fortress-monastery on Titan, the largest of Saturn’s moons.  Here the young aspirants are sent to undergo hundreds of trials of both body and spirit.  Finally the handful of survivors (for none who fail survive) are implanted with the Chapter’s gene-seed and begin their real training.  Their bodies are hardened to withstand pain and fear and their minds are disciplined to fight against the foul machinations of Chaos.

 

The fortress monastery also contains a unique repository of knowledge about the warp and Chaos which has been painstakingly pieced together by the Ordo Malleus down the millennia in the Librarium Daemonica.  This gloomy and forbidding place contains tens of thousands of tomes of arcane lore and diabolism, cracked with age and heavy with the psychic evil they have brought upon the universe.  Every Grey Knight carries the Chapter’s sacred tome of battle rituals, the Liber Daemonicus, in a special ceramite case on his breastplate.  This holy book contains the essential tenets of warp lore rendered from the dusty shelves of the Librarium Daemonica and is one of the Grey Knights’ greatest weapons.

 

The majority of the Chapter’s strength is scattered across the Imperium in fast ships guided by the finest naviagots of the Navis Nobilite.  The forces are typically organized in small teams that have trained and fought together for their entire lives.  Thus they stand ready to respond instantly to the first reports of daemonic incursions anywhere in the Imperium.  Grey Knights may be stationed in the farthest reaches of the galaxy for decades at a time.  All Grey Knights hope to be returned to their adopted homeworld of Titan when they die.  There they can rest at last from their constant vigilance in the hollowed crypts far beneath the monastery amongst some of the Imperium’s greatest and most unsung heroes.

 

The Grey Knights are screened to exclude all but the strongest and most resilient packers.  The strongest and purest of them are rigorously trained to combine their psychic abilities together into a gestalt power far greater than any of them could muster individually.  Once they have distinguished themselves in battle these Grey Knights may become part of the elite First Company.  The Knights of the First Company fight in heavily ornamented and modified Terminator tactical dreadnought armour and are armed with the fearsome Nemesis force weapon.  Squads of Grey Knight Terminators are the utter bane of daemons who enter the material universe and one of the few forces strong enough to face a Greater Daemon and banish it back to the warp. “

 

Finally, as an additional point important to the lore of the Grey Knights, the White Dwarf article included a two-page narrative that introduced us to Brother-Captain Stern and the ongoing conflict with his nemesis, the Lord of Change known as M’kachen.

 

 

Weapons and Armor:

 

As with the Terminator Squads from Rogue Trader, these came standard with Nemesis Force Weapons and Terminator tactical dreadnought armour.  

 

 

Army List:

 

Only one unit entry was provided, which was the Grey Knights Terminator Squad.  Like the earlier Rogue Trader version of this unit, the squad acted together as a psyker, however the player would spend a variable amount of points to pick the unit’s psychic Mastery Level, from level 1 to level 4 (the Mastery Level would decrease in the game, as the unit took casualties).  Also, this version of the unit came with the wargear option to equip the entire unit with Aegis Suits (which provided a 4+ save against psychic attacks), and Refractor Fields (which provided a 5+ unmodified save), as additional options.

 

Since this was the only Grey Knights unit provided for use in the game’s Second Edition, players would typically ally in a single squad of Grey Knights Terminators to their Imperial force.

[Valerian]

3rd Edition, part 1:

When 40k’s 3rd Edition was published in 1998, it was a complete overhaul of the game, which invalidated all of the codices and unit options provided from the 2nd Edition.

Eventually, an Index Astartes article for the Grey Knights (and Death Watch) was released in White Dwarf # 259 (August 2001). The Index Astartes article provided the following version of updated and recycled background information.

Lore:

“Founded in great secrecy around the time of the Second Founding (although this is uncertain), the Grey Knights are amongst the most highly specialized defenders of Humanity in existence. Uniquely amongst the Space Marines of the Adeptus Astartes, the Grey Knights Chapter has no antecedents, having been created from specifically engineered gene-seed. Legion has it that the Emperor himself ordered the creation of this unique Chapter to form a force designed to fight the dread creatures of Chaos, through, of course, this is impossible to verify. Following the awesome scale of bloodshed during the Horus Heresy, the necessity for such a force was clear. Designated Chapter 666, the Grey Knights are permanently attached to that most secretive of organizations, the Ordo Malleus. The Ordo Malleus is only ever spoken of in whispers and though its stated purpose is to keep watch on the Inquisition itself, its true purpose is far more sinister, the destruction of the daemonic.

The Grey Knights form the main fighting strength of the Ordo Malleus and, traditionally, its Chapter Master is a member of the Inner Conclave of the Inquisition. The men of the Grey Knights are no ordinary warriors. Plucked from the fiercest warrior cultures on a dozen different worlds, only the bravest and strongest youths are selected for the training. Aspirants are taken to the Chapter’s base on Saturn’s moon, Titan, where they undergo arduous tests of faith, strength, endurance and courage that break all but the strongest warriors. Those few that survive the tests are then implanted with the gene-seed that will transform them into superhuman Space Marines. Now the aspirants are ready to begin their real training.

The most advanced bio-engineering and psycho-surgery is utilized to condition the Grey Knights into warriors of great prowess. The six hundred and sixty six Rituals of Detestation enable the Space Marines of the Grey Knights to face terrifying foes without fear and withstand pain that would cripple a ‘normal’ Space Marine. Their lives are filled with ritual, meditation, and self-denial, designed to strengthen the mind and steel the soul against the horrors of the daemonic. The Chapter’s warriors are heavily conditioned to resit the whispered seductions of Chaos and the honeyed lies of daemonic creatures. These precautions are vital and, thus far, have proven to be effective, as not a single Grey Knight has faltered in battle or become a pawn of the Dark Powers.

It is through unprotected psykers that daemonic creatures can gain entry to the material universe and it is for this reason that the Grey Knights are screened to exclude all but the most resilient psykers. The strongest and purest of the psykers are then trained until they reach a level of mastery that equals the powers of Librarians of the Adeptus Astartes. Those who distinguish themselves in battle may be elevated to the honored position of the Grey Knights 1st Company and take to the field of battle in modified Tactical Dreadnought armour, more commonly known as Terminator armour, with bolt weaponry incorporated into the gauntlets. The Librarians of the Grey Knights are taught to combine their abilities in a gestalt power that far exceeds anything they could achieve alone. They Grey Knights fight in baroque, heavily ornamented suits of armour with the Chapter’s symbol, a sword through a tome, prominently displayed. They fight with the finest equipment and weapons the Imperium can manufacture, mighty sigil-encrusted swords and halberds. These warriors alone can stand before the might of a Greater Daemon with any hope of banishing it back to the Immaterium from whence it came.

The millennia the Grey Knights have spent in battle against the forces of darkness has furnished them with blasphemous knowledge, painstakingly pieced together by the Inquisitors of the Ordo Malleus. This damned collection of knowledge is gathered together on Titan in the Librarium Daemonica, a gloomy repository of ancient tomes, crumbling parchments and data crystals that groans under the weight of the psychic evil that dwells within its walls. This is one of the most heavily guarded locations in the Imperium, and the threat of such knowledge falling into the wrong hands is taken very seriously by the Grey Knights. Each warrior of the Grey Knights carries a copy of the sacred Liber Daemonica, the holy battle rites of the Chapter, in a ceramite case on his breastplate and it is this which symbolizes a Grey Knight’s faith in the Divine Emperor. The book contains the essential tenets of lore culled from the Librarium Daemonica by psychically monitored servitors. These servitors are permanently wired to toxin dispensers that can be activated immediately should some daemonic entity attempt to force a passage into real space through the servitor’s brain.

The threat of Chaos permeates the entire galaxy and while the Chapter maintains a fortress-monastery on Titan, much of its strength is scattered across the Imperium. Guided by the finest Navigators of the Navis Nobilite and conveyed by the fastest ships produced by the Adeptus Mechanics, the Grey Knights stand ready to meet the foul minions of Chaos wherever they may strike. Typically, the warriors of these forces have trained together for their entire lives and the bonds of loyalty and honor that bind them are stronger than adamantium. Every Grey Knight is ready to lay down his life to ensure the safety of the Imperium and should that sacrifice be necessary, it is the fervent wish of all those who fall to be transported back to Titan and buried in the hallowed crypts beneath their fortress. A great basalt wall in the heart of the monastery is carved with the names of all those who have fallen in defiance of evil and, though no one outside the Chapter will ever know of their bravery, some of the Imperium’s greatest heroes lie buried on Titan.”

This article doesn't mention anything about the color scheme in the text, but did include a picture, which has the Grey Knights in the heretofore unseen Black (or dark charcoal grey) scheme.

Grey Knights in Power Armor and Terminator Armor from the Index Astartes article:

Other important points drawn from the picture is the depiction of a Nemesis force sword (all previous Nemesis weapons had been described as the halberd), as well as the gauntlet-mounted storm bolters (previously the bolt weapon had been incorporated into the Nemesis halberds themselves).

[Valerian]

3rd Edition, part 2:

 

 

Despite the significant change from earlier versions of the scheme commonly seen in White Dwarf magazines and studio painted models, the change to Black was short-lived, as the Grey Knights were back to their base Silver scheme by March 2003, when the Codex: Daemonhunters was finally released, five years into the edition’s lifecycle, and a full nine years since the publication of the last Grey Knights unit for use in the game.  The silver armor with gold trim and black, red and white heraldry is seen throughout the photos of the Studio army in the codex’s gallery and painting section.

 

The Daemonhunters codex modernized the Grey Knights, and introduced a few of the units that we are familiar with today.  Importantly, the codex is really an Ordo Malleus book and the Grey Knights are but one faction within that broader organization, exactly as the original army list in Slaves to Darkness was presented.  Because the Ordo Malleus and the Grey Knights were getting their first full army codex, the existing body of background material was greatly expanded.  Much of the earlier work, particularly from the most recent version found in the Index Astartes article was reused, but there are some bits worth highlighting, below. 

 

 

Lore:

 

“The Ordo Malleus is a division of the Inquisition, those exceptional individuals that have waged a covert war for Humanity’s continued survival over the last ten thousand years.  Every Inquisitor has sworn potent oaths to defend the Imperium from its worst enemies, and those of the Ordo Malleus are concerned with destroying the physical manifestation of Chaos itself: the Daemon.  Members of the Ordo have pledged their every waking hour to the discovery and scourging of the daemonic wherever it is to be found.  An Inquisitor has at his disposal every member of the Imperium, and will not hesitate to requisition local troops at a moment’s notice.  Such is the influence of the Inquisitor that he can even call upon the Space Marines of the Adeptus Astartes, leading a force of the Imperium’s finest warriors against Humanity’s foul nemesis, wherever it appears.

 

But there are times when the scale of a daemonic infestation is such that even the most formidable and righteous Inquisitors need to call upon aid to triumph.  The slightest lapse in Humanity’s vigilance has the potential to allow ravening Daemons to pour into the material dimension in a gibbering tide, hungry for the souls of the innocent.  Only one force in the breadth of the galaxy has any chance of stemming such a daemonic infestation:  the Grey Knights.

 

Surpassing even their brother Space Marines in skill and ability, the level of expertise that each Grey Knight wields is such that they can exterminate a daemonic infestation that outnumbers them many times over.  Armed with psychically charged force weapons, storm bolsters and an unshakeable faith in the Emperor, there is little more daunting a foe for a Daemon to face.  It is certain that without the constant protection of the warriors of the Ordo Malleus, the Imperium would have fallen many centuries ago.”

 

“Legend tells that it was around the time of the Second Founding that the Emperor ordered the creation of this secret Chapter of Space Marines.  The fragile Imperium had only just survived the galactic civil war of the Horus Heresy, and was still very much at the mercy of the powers of Chaos.  The Emperor understood that it would require a dedicated band of incorruptible warriors to protect it from the dread creatures of Chaos in the days to come, and so the creation of the Grey Knights was undertaken in great secrecy.  Where other Space Marine Chapters were created from the gene-seed of existing Chapters, the Grey Knights were unique in that their gene-seed was said by some to have come from the Emperor’s own flesh.  The Ordo Malleus was in its infancy at this time, the corruption of Horus lending new impetus to the creation of an order tasked with the hunting and elimination of the daemonic.

 

The Grey Knights were permanently attached to the Ordo Malleus, becoming the hammer with which these servants of the Emperor would smite the forces of Chaos, and one of its Grand Masters is traditionally a member of the Inner Conclave of the Inquisition.  Space Marine recruits are often drawn from feral worlds and the Grey Knights are no exception; its recruits are emergent psykers plucked from the most savage warrior cultures imaginable, where only the bravest and and strongest survive.  Recruits selected to join the Chapter are returned to Titan to begin the long and arduous process which weeds out those without the physical strength and immense mental fortitude to become a Grey Knight.  Only the best of the potential recruits survive this selection procedure and are deemed worthy to begin the process of transformation for human to Space Marine.  Once their bodies are implanted with the precious gene-seed, the aspirants’ trudgen’s training can begin.”

 

“Perhaps the most insidious threat to the Imperium is the menace of uncontrolled psykers, for these dangerous individuals can act as conduits by which the spawn of the Warp can manifest themselves.  Powerful daemonic entities can force their way from the realm of the Immaterium into realspace via the psychic link forged by an unprotected psyker whenever they use their powers.  It is for this reason that the Grey Knights are screened to exclude all but the most potent psykers.  The strongest and purest of these psykers are then trained to even higher levels of mastery, where their skill in using these abilities can match those of the mightiest Librarians of the Adeptus Astartes.  Even amongst those who reach this level of mastery, there are those who distinguish themselves and they may be elevated through the ranks and take to the field in ancient and sacred suits of Terminator armour.  These baroque and heavily ornamented suits are holy relics in themselves and the Chapter’s symbol of a sword piercing a tome is prominently displayed on their surfaces.  The Grey Knights fight with the finest weapons and equipment that the Imperium can produce, the Nemesis force weapon and storm bolter being the most ubiquitous, and upon returning to the Chapter from battle, they are reverently purified and reconsecrated following battles with the daemonic.”

 

“Unlike almost all other Space Marine Chapters, the Grey Knights do not follow the tenets of the Codex Astartes in the matter of force organization.  Due to the unique manner in which the Grey Knights are recruited and trained, each warrior progresses through a series of preordained ranks and will operate in a particular squad led by an individual of higher rank rather than being assigned to a particular battle company.  These squads may be called upon to act independently from the main body of the Grey Knight force, and have to operate at full efficiency even when light years away from the rest of their Chapter.  As such, the leader of each Grey Knight squad is obeyed immediately and without question by those under his command.

 

When a new recruit has completed the lengthy and grueling induction into the Grey Knights, he is honored with a suit of power armour and assigned to a Grey Knight squad under the command of a Justicar.  At this stage he is permitted to wear his own personal heraldry.  If he survives long enough to become a Justicar himself, he will lead a squad of Grey Knights in battle, perhaps specializing and joining a Teleport Attack or Purgation Squad.  The few who prove themselves truly worthy and master their psychic talents over centuries of active service will be granted Terminator Honors and take to the field in one to the hollowed Tactical Dreadnought suits of the Grey Knights.  This who excel amongst even these superhuman individuals are promoted to the rank of Brother-Captain.  It is the ultimate goal of the Grey Knight to reach the rank of Grand Master, but few survive long enough or achieve the complete mastery of their psychic potential necessary to be granted this supreme honor.  Those who do so are truly amongst the greatest of the Emperor’s servants.”

 

 

Army List:

 

The Codex Daemonhunters included an extensive army list for the faction for the first time since the initial Slaves to Darkness list published 15 years earlier.  The Ordo Malleus psychic powers, which were available to Inquisitors and Grey Knight Heroes, included: Banishment, Destroy Daemon, Hammerhand, Holocaust, Sanctuary, Scourging, and Word of the Emperor (again, several of these are reused in the contemporary Sanctic Psychic Discipline available to the current Grey Knights).

 

In addition to a large variety of Inquisitorial units available, the Grey Knights forces included options for Grand Masters and Brother-Captains and their retinues, Grey Knights Terminator squads, Grey Knights squads in Power Armour, (including an option to be taken as a Fast Attack choice and gain a Teleport Attack ability), Purgation squads, Dreadnoughts, and Land Raiders.

 

 

Weapons:

 

Nemesis force weapons were now available to all Grey Knights, regardless of unit type, and all had a gauntlet-mounted Storm bolter, as described in the Index Astartes article from a few years prior.  The Nemesis weapons increased in power as the psychic ability of its wielder improved, such that the Nemesis weapon carried by a standard Knight had only a strength bonus, whereas a Nemesis weapon carried by a Grand Master had the strength bonus, and acted as both a power weapon and a force weapon.  Additionally, the codex made a reimagined version of the Psycannon available as a squad heavy weapon option (slightly more powerful than a Heavy Bolter), along with the new Incinerator (a more powerful version of the Heavy Flamer found in other armies).  

 

Unique to this version of Grey Knights, in this codex Grey Knights Terminators could be armed with a Thunder Hammer and Storm Shield as an alternative to their standard Storm Bolter and Nemesis weapon.

 

In addition to two Inquisitors, Brother-Captain Stern is provided as the only Grey Knights special character option, and following his unit entry is the exact same two-page narrative of Stern in action that had been provided in the Dark Millennium expansion book.

[Valerian]

5th Edition:

 

 

From 3rd to 7th edition, the changes of Warhammer 40k were “evolutionary” and the release of a new edition did not invalidate the codices and army lists currently available.  The Daemonhunter codex did not get an update at all during the entire 4th edition of the game, so the 3rd edition version remained in use right up until the release of the 5th edition Codex: Grey Knights eight years later, in April 2011.  Although Inquisitors and most of their unique supporting forces from the earlier codex were still available, the focus of this army book had moved from the Inquisitors of the Ordo Malleus to the Grey Knights themselves.  This is clear in the change in title, as well as in the book layout, where the Grey Knights are brought to the forefront in the presentation of the background material, as well as the army list.

 

Closely tied to this change in focus in the codex itself, was the release of a whole new line of Grey Knights plastic models, which replaced the all-metal line of the 3rd, and earlier editions.  The Grey Knights were given flexible plastic boxed sets for Knights in Power Armor, which could be built to represent any of the Strike, Interceptor, Purgation, or Purifier squad choices from the new codex, another boxed set for Terminator and Paladin squads, and a boxed set for the new Dreadknight heavy support choice.  

 

With a whole new plastic model line, and a powerful codex, the Grey Knights faction surged in popularity during this edition of 40k. 

 

 

Lore:

 

This codex introduced a ton of new lore, really expanding on what had been made available with the previous codex.  In the past, most of the background information was fairly non-specific, and shrouded in mystery.  The 5th edition codex, however, unveiled much of what had been secret for nearly two decades.  The codex revealed heretofore unknown details about the founding of the Inquisition as well as the founding of the Chapter.  The book also fleshed out the description of the Chapter’s organization and introduced the eight Brotherhoods, as well as the Paladin and Purifier Orders.  It explained how Grey Knights use the Augurium to anticipate where and when daemonic invasion would occur.  It also detailed the number of Grand Masters and Brother-Captains, and described how they fit into the command structure under the new Supreme Grand Master, Kaldor Draigo.  Much of what is familiar to players that started with the Grey Knights in the game’s 7th edition was first presented in the 5th edition codex.

 

Since there is way to much lore to cover exhaustively in this article from the 5th edition codex, I’ll leave you only with this: 

 

“The Imperium of Man is a realm engulfed in darkness and war, beset by enemies beyond counting.  Against these threats stand the armies of humanity: superhuman Space Marines, sprawling armies of Imperial Guard, god-machines of the Titan Legions and the void-roaming vessels of the Imperial Navy - an array of might that no mortal race can match. 

 

Yet there is one foe against which even these formidable forces cannot stand, a threat whose peril is rooted in corruption and carnage.  For the Daemons of the Warp, victory over Mankind lies not in its destruction, but in its subversion to the will of the Chaos Gods.  To fight against such a threat takes more than brute force - it takes an army so pure of purpose as to be utterly beyond temptation.  In all of the Imperium there is but one such force, an ancient order of warriors forged in humanity’s darkest hour.  For thousands of years they have stood between Mankind and the Daemon, dedicating their lives to the endless battle for humanity’s soul.  

 

They are the Emperor’s final boon to Mankind, an army of unfaltering and incorruptible warrior born of forgotten science.  They are the Grey Knights - the only true defense against the Daemons of Chaos.”

 

 

Army List:

 

The 5th edition codex truly heralded what is clearly the modern version of the Grey Knights, and added all of the units still seen today, adding Librarians, Brotherhood Champions, Interceptor Squads, Paladins, Purifiers, Techmarines, Nemesis Dreadnoughts and Stormraven Gunships to the small list of Grey Knights units that had been available in the earlier Daemonhunter codex.  The new codex also introduced a bevy of special characters adding Lord Kaldor Draigo, Grand Master Mordrak, Castellan Crowe, and Justicar Thawn as additional options to the returning Brother-Captain Stern.  

 

This codex also added the Psilencer weapon to the Incinerator and Psycannon squad weapon upgrade options from the earlier book.  It did, however, remove the option to have Storm Shields on Terminators, which we had with the 3rd edition codex, which invalidated some players’ models, and make TDA survivability challenging.

[Valerian]

And there you have it, the consolidated history of the Grey Knights faction in Warhammer 40,000.  I haven't bothered to provide an entry for 7th edition, as it is still (for a short time longer) the current edition of the game, and all current players and visitors ought to be familiar with it.

 

I hope this was helpful and informative for all Grey Knights players, young and old.

 

Best regards,

 

Valerian

[Plasmablasts]

Thanks very much for this: fascinating reading!

[Valerian]

Thanks very much for this: fascinating reading!

Glad you enjoyed it!

[Trevak Dal]

Hmm. So a "traditional" all Grey Knight army would be brother captain, and a couple of units of TDA grey knights.

[Rogue]

That’s a great summary. Thank you.

 

I know it’s outside your remit here, but I might add that Grey Knights appeared in Space Hulk (in the Genestealer expansion) back in 1990, not long after their introduction into 40k, and several years before 2nd edition.

 

From memory, they were introduced as incredibly powerful (certainly within the game context), with the suggestion that a single squad could replace the entire terminator force for any given mission and still come out on top...

[jeffersonian000]

That’s a great summary. Thank you.

 

I know it’s outside your remit here, but I might add that Grey Knights appeared in Space Hulk (in the Genestealer expansion) back in 1990, not long after their introduction into 40k, and several years before 2nd edition.

 

From memory, they were introduced as incredibly powerful (certainly within the game context), with the suggestion that a single squad could replace the entire terminator force for any given mission and still come out on top...

We call those Apothecaries, now.

 

SJ

[Valerian]

I've updated the whole History, added in sections for 7th and 8th edition, and moved the whole thing to my Google Drive, for easier editing and maintenance.  Please follow the link for the latest version:  https://docs.google.com/document/d/19GCGsGQtJF4i-HzpwlW_tR71yPtC_fhSdECL5QINInE/edit?usp=sharing

 

Val

[b1soul]

"Grey Knights Marines are specially screened to exclude all but the strongest and most resilient psykers. Most Knights have no psychic ability at all, and thus are relatively safe from daemonic possession."

 

This seems to be a contradiction in the original text?

[Valerian]

"Grey Knights Marines are specially screened to exclude all but the strongest and most resilient psykers. Most Knights have no psychic ability at all, and thus are relatively safe from daemonic possession."

 

This seems to be a contradiction in the original text?

Not a contradiction at all. They simply retconned it from almost no psykers to everybody is a psyker.

[Sgt. Reppep]

I really thank you. You put a lot of love and work in this history.

 

 

 

Despite the significant change from earlier versions of the scheme commonly seen in White Dwarf magazines and studio painted models, the change to Black was short-lived, as the Grey Knights were back to their base Silver scheme by March 2003, when the Codex: Daemonhunters was finally released, five years into the edition’s lifecycle, and a full nine years since the publication of the last Grey Knights unit for use in the game.

 

If I can help, there were rules for Grey Knights Terminator Squads in WD 234 (UK). More or less 8 months after 3rd edition is released.