Mere months later, a combined force of Minotaurs Space Marines, Adeptus Mechanicus war maniples and Custodians from the Dread Host annihilates the traitors in their captured strongholds. The Ominous Gift Halo-belt augurs reveal the space hulk Ominous Gift advancing inexorably out of the dark void towards Terra. Using his status as a High Lord to overrule objections by the Imperial Navy, Captain-General Aesoth Koumadra orders a strike by several shield companies to gut the craft from the inside and ensure its corruption is wholly purged.
Those outside the Adeptus Custodes do not understand the significance, but the attack is led by the Lockwarden of the Shadowkeepers and a band of his black-armoured comrades.
The Ominous Gift is destroyed — the wider Imperium need never know any more than that. Guardians of Greatness A controversial act of insubordination sees Lieutenant Nathasian of the Cadian 86th slated for execution. Yet he is spared when a band of grim-faced Custodians from the Aquilan Shield appear at his side in a blaze of golden light, and wordlessly cut down his would-be commissariat executioners. With his remarkable bodyguards at his side, Nathasian is free to exercise his flair for unconventional tactics, which soon sees his promotion to Commander Army Group, then to Warmaster of an entire Imperial crusade.
The Shuddering Stars are swept clear of Ork tribes, stopping Waaagh! The Years of Madness A time of strange omens and ominous whispers engulfs Terra, beginning with the disappearance of the notoriously conservative Captain-General Galahoth.
Reports from the Dark Cells cite a growing sense of agitation amongst the hidden inmates, and numerous support servitors have to be destroyed by the Shadowkeepers after they exhibit sudden, violent madness. Worse is to follow as possession is revealed amongst a sub-sect of the doomscryers themselves, though not until the false predictions of the fallen psykers send Captain-General Launceddre to his death at the Battle of the Gilded Pyre.
Sensing a deeper level still to this perfidy, Lencilius continues his investigations with cold, deliberate patience until at last he has concrete proof: the Inquisitors have struck a deal with High Lord Sennaca, who is contriving to hide their activities in exchange for being allowed to sell the stolen psykers on to wealthy nobles for exorbitant fees. At last the Shield-Captain is able to release his pent-up fury, assembling a combined force of Custodians, Sisters of Silence and Imperial assassins to pull the corrupt operation up by its roots.
They annihilate dozens of hidden cults, purge the polar underhives, eliminate a vermillion-classified xenos threat amidst the Plutonian void-fortresses, and launch thirty-two separate extrasolar interdiction strikes. Several, it is rumoured, even utilise shattered spars of the webway to reach their targets.
As word reaches Terra of ever increasing warp storm activity, and cries for help sweep in from every corner of the galaxy, Valoris assembles the High Lords of Terra to discuss their response to this gathering storm. Yet it is at that moment that word reaches their closed session of an incredible disturbance on the surface of Luna, of demigods battling through the airless void at the head of great armies, and of a Primarch restored by the strangest of roads.
Riding their boiling crests comes a horde of Khornate Daemons, who burst through the skin of reality to assail Terra itself. Victory is bought at a steep price in irreplaceable lives, but it is victory nonetheless.
Bringers of Greatness Roboute Guilliman announces the Indomitus Crusade, a desperate and determined undertaking by a combined Imperial force to drive back the rampaging armies of Chaos. As part of this crusade, the Ultramarines Primarch intends to bear Primaris Space Marine reinforcements and the secrets behind their creation to the far-flung and hard-pressed Space Marine Chapters.
On the eve of his decision, a large number of Emissaries Imperatus step forwards, compelled by the spirit of the Emperor to accompany the crusade. As their Dark Apostles summon creatures from beyond the veil, the fight turns viciously against the Imperial defenders.
Sure enough, even as hordes of traitors and abominations mobilise to attack, the Emperor answers the cries of his followers. Teleport flares erupt through the heretic lines, gold and silver lightning leaping as a combined force of Custodians and Grey Knights storm into battle.
Bolters roar and crackling blades tear through heretic flesh, Trajann Valoris and Grand Master Voldus leading an assault that sees the traitor army shattered into battling warbands. Inspired by the sudden arrival of veritable demigods, the Mordians and Sisters of Battle advance, hymnals rising from their ranks over the roar of flamers and the scream of massed lasgun fire.
Blood slicks the streets around the macro-cathedrum, corpses piling in gory heaps as the Word Bearers and their daemonic allies fight back furiously. Yet after three days and nights of unremitting savagery, the Chaos host is broken in the Battle for the Statue Steps.
With fresh Imperial reinforcements flooding in to the wider Gathalamor war zone, the Custodians set course for Terra, leaving the Grey Knights to deal as they see fit with the unfortunates that they rescued from the macro-cathedrum. Before they can lay claim to this mysterious structure, two of the warships known as the Moiraides appear in orbit.
The Custodians of the Dread Host deploy in force, securing the mountain pass that leads to the Echovault with squads of Wardens who hold firm against wave after wave of attacks. Meanwhile, multiple shield companies strike at the flanks of the traitor force, pulling their formation apart and dividing their strength. Finally, a decisive force of forty Allarus Terminators teleports into the very heart of the Black Legion lines, tearing their command structure apart and slaying Lord Hadrexus and his Chosen to the last.
Though dozens of Custodians fall during the fighting, they smash the Black Legion invaders utterly and send their remnants fleeing back into the warp.
As for the Echovault, it is left undisturbed, and a permanent garrison of Custodian Wardens left to watch over it. The Dangers of Excellence Amidst the horrors of the ongoing war against Chaos, it is deemed heresy for Administratum clerks to suggest the Adeptus Custodes could ever lose a battle, regardless of the odds. Fearing for their safety and their souls, many adepts record campaigns as Imperial victories even before the first shots are fired, should so much as a single Custodian be reported active in that war zone.
Despite their best efforts, systems continue to fail, and no one still living knows how to repair them. He gathers a band of his finest warriors aboard the cruiser Scion of Argo, and sets off following a lead that points to the lost forge world of Morvane. Their advance is spearheaded by the renegade armoured companies of the Vostokh 7th, led by the traitorous Marshal Griegor, whose battle tanks repel every Imperial force sent to stop them.
At last, upon the rocky plains of Pallus, Griegor meets his match. Screaming into battle upon their ornate steeds come Shield-Captain Aadilus and his company of Vertus Praetors, melta missiles streaking from their salvo launchers to annihilate the lead vehicles of the Vostokh spearhead.
The traitor tanks open fire with everything they have, seeking to swat the seemingly outmatched jetbikes from the air. Yet the Praetors weave effortlessly between the shots, weathering those blasts that do hit home and suffering only scant casualties before they split into hunting packs and begin criss-cross strafing runs over and between the enemy armour.
More renegade vehicles explode by the moment, the Vostokh gunners panicking as they find themselves unable to track their hurtling tormentors. Several shield companies launch strikes against the xenos, with the Allarus Custodians of the Gilded Fist leading the attack.
The surviving Drukhari flee aboard sleek warships that swiftly vanish, while the Custodians evacuate in good order. As their raiding The Orks of Waaagh! Zagstomp overrun the Iron Warriors Citadel of Miseries after a gruelling three-year siege. Guns blazing, the Custodians hold off the Orks long enough to plant vortex implosion detonators on every ship.
The survivors then teleport back to their own ships and jump away into the warp. In attempting to give chase, the Orks trigger the vortex bombs, and their vast fleet — which Imperial doomscryers warned would appear on the fringes of the Sol System if left unchecked — is consumed by the ferocious energy storm that follows. Duty unto Death Silent Crossing Since the inexplicable escape of Cypher, the mysterious Fallen Angel, from a highsecurity cell in the Imperial Palace, the Custodians charged with apprehending him have tirelessly attempted to reacquire their captive.
Unable to find him on Terra, and following a trail of fading clues, ShieldCaptain Daryth and his men have pressed out into the stars to continue their mission.
The presence of the Silent Sisters seems to calm the madness of the empyrean, at least enough to aid the Custodians in making their dangerous journey into the Imperium Nihilus. Amidst the madness, their augurs do not detect the heavily shielded Space Marine cruiser that follows in their wake, its hull night-black and its insignia veiled.
Captain-General Valoris refuses a request by the Deathwatch to send Kill Teams against this threat, instead leading the purge in person at the head of a huge Adeptus Custodes shield host. The Cult put up a brutal fight, their sheer numbers and fanaticism allowing them to drag down one Custodian after another and tear them limb from limb.
Yet for every one of the Custodians that falls, hundreds upon hundreds of malformed cultists and Aberrants are slaughtered. At last, Valoris himself beheads the monstrous Broodlord that ruled over the cult. Pursued by Tyranid swarms, the Wardens retreat into the fumechoked volcanic highlands and prepare to defend their precious cargo to the last. Wave after wave of Tyranids surge up the perilous lava-channels, but the Custodians — cleaving to their oaths of indomitable defence — repulse every attack.
A month later, a relief force of Marines Malevolent arrives in orbit and drives the hive ships away with thunderous firepower. On the planet below they find a single living Warden, grievously wounded yet still standing guard over the untouched boon of technology amidst a fortress of heaped Tyranid corpses.
Into Shadow Upon the direct orders of Trajann Valoris, a small, fast-moving force of Custodians makes haste for the ruined remains of Cadia. Details of their mission are suppressed, even amongst their comrades, but they are accompanied by a number of warriors drawn from the ranks of the Shadowkeepers. With gilded blade and thundering bolter did the Ten Thousand march out to meet Waaagh! It confers full responsibility for the overall defence of the Sol System, Terra, the Imperial Palace and — ultimately — the Golden Throne and the Emperor himself.
The Captain-General is the master of the Adeptus Custodes, and, on many occasions during Imperial history, has stood amongst the ranks of the High Lords of Terra. He is further charged with leading the greatest military campaigns fought by the Ten Thousand, and must display a degree of warrior prowess that approaches that of the Primarchs of old. Allarus Custodians. If Valoris showed a weakness, it was his reluctance to stand back and wait for his enemies to come to him.
He lasted only twenty-two years amongst the Companions before his desire to participate in a more proactive strategy of defence saw him reassigned. He gained the rank of Shield-Captain soon afterwards, and spent several centuries leading sorties against emergent threats throughout the Sol System and beyond.
Valoris became well known for his tendency to observe his enemies carefully, predict their movements, then deliver a sudden and decisive blow. He cultivated networks of agents and informers across the Segmentum Solar, and even further out into the wider Imperium. Valoris recognised his own proclivity for aggressive action, and took constant steps to temper it with comprehensive foreknowledge. Thus his strikes always fell where they should, and no comrade was ever lost to reckless commands.
In the millennia since the Great Crusade, there have been just seventeen incumbents of this weighty mantle. Most have died in battle, either on the holy soil of Terra or whilst leading crucial campaigns amidst the stars. Several have become Eyes of the Emperor, while three — including Constantin Valdor himself — simply vanished, their disappearances wreathed in mystery even amongst their own comrades. The current Captain-General is Trajann Valoris. Many claim that he is the greatest warrior to hold the title since the Emperor bestrode the stars.
Within his first decade of service, Valoris ran not just one, but two successful Blood Games, a record that remains unbroken. With his remarkable grasp of battlefield strategy and his naturally aggressive streak he earned a place for himself amongst the When Captain-General Andros Launceddre fell at the Battle of the Black Pyre, Valoris was named his successor.
As tradition dictated, he took up the armour and weapons of his former lord. The second of these great relics is an elaborate suit of powered armour known as the Castellan Plate, which incorporates a heraldic tilting shield, an auramite halo, and a magnificent cloak woven with adamantine thread so that it flows like cloth but yields to neither blade nor blast. At his belt the Captain-General also carries a strange device known as the Moment Shackle. A relic of Dark Age technology released from the vaults beneath the Imperial Palace, this artefact allows Valoris to trap fragments of temporal energy and turn them to his use, excising split-second events from history or slowing the localised temporal flow enough to tip a desperate fight in his favour.
Trajann Valoris has proven a dynamic and effective CaptainGeneral. Under his rule the number of Blood Games have increased tenfold, the defences of the stable warp routes into the Sol System have been strengthened, and long-hidden cults have been purged from the Terran underhives. Little escapes the eyes of his ever expanding spy network and, armed with the certainty of the truly righteous, his covert strikes have annihilated dozens of threats to the Golden Throne. Perhaps, some whispered, the halfunderstood power of the Moment Shackle allowed him to do just that.
After all, it was this very practice within the Legiones Astartes that allowed the Horus Heresy to occur. Every Custodian has a voice, and is expected to use it. As such, the Ten Thousand respect only those leaders who have proved themselves worthy, whose judgement, strategic skill and strength of mind and character have been shown time and again.
Such Custodians are called Shield-Captains, and their fellows follow them with loyalty and dedication. Conversely, a Custodian who has stood amongst the Companions will forever be known as Honoured Watchman, while one who has triumphed in a Blood Game will forever after bear the title of Shieldsmith. Shield-Captains are amongst the greatest assets of the Imperium.
They are superlative warriors who are able to take on an entire squad of Heretic Astartes in close combat, strike the heads from xenos beasts the size of tanks, and fell rank after rank of lesser enemies with pinpoint fire. Whether they hack their enemies apart with powerful swings of a castellan axe, slice and stab with a sentinel blade, or impale their victims upon a crackling guardian spear, Shield-Captains display absolute mastery of their chosen weapons.
Some — the swiftest in thought and action — soar into battle in the saddle of a Dawneagle jetbike. Whatever their preference, Shield-Captains are the masters of those disciplines required to become heroes of legend. When the Custodians march to war, it is not unusual to see multiple Shield-Captains leading them in battle. Sometimes these warriors fight alongside each other — groupings such as the Golden Brothers or the Heralds Three have won remarkable renown through their impressive accomplishments.
The decision of who leads at such times is rarely difficult, for the Shield-Captains are frank in discussing their respective merits and quick to recognise whether they, or one of their fellows, is the appropriate choice.
More than just exceptional fighters, Shield-Captains are highly intelligent and tactically gifted battlefield commanders, able to read the ebb and flow of the wider war at a glance and direct their forces accordingly. They know neither fear nor self-doubt, and can appear arrogant and aloof to other warriors of the Imperium.
This is a misconception, however, for Shield-Captains are untroubled by such self-serving notions as egotism. They are absolute realists, fully aware of the stakes involved in the wars they wage. They act accordingly, every statement declarative, every action decisive, suffering no impediment to their mission — be it the machinations of the foe or the pomposity, ignorance or superstition of their allies.
This is not to say that Shield-Captains lack for charisma. Rather, they exude it. To the common soldiery of the Imperium these gilded figures seem to have stepped from the pages of religious scripture. Their presence fills faithful men and women with rapturous euphoria, banishing fears and doubts, replacing them with the absolute certainty that the Emperor watches over his servants and will preserve their souls should they fall in battle that day. Shield-Captains are also master diplomats, well versed in the intricacies of Imperial high society, privy to secrets and traditions that allow them to charm, inspire, threaten and manipulate as required to see their will done.
The rank of Shield-Captain is a purely martial one. It signifies that the Custodian in question has the responsibility of leading a force of his comrades into battle. Beneath that umbrella honorific are hundreds of more symbolic or traditional titles.
These warriors are rank-and-file infantry only insomuch as their numbers are greater than those of the other, more specialised Adeptus Custodes warriors. Even a single one of their number is a terrifying force of destruction, his every shot perfectly placed, his every cut, thrust and stab a masterclass in bladesmanship, footwork and combat awareness that sees enemy corpses fall like dead leaves at his feet.
Custodian Guard are steadfast in defence and unstoppable on the attack. Such squads do not have formal memberships, and Custodians may swap from one squad to another before each new campaign, or even each new battle. With their individualistic fighting styles, the Custodian Guard do not fight as one in the way that a conventional squad of soldiers would — it is enough for them to know that they fight shoulder to shoulder with respected comrades, and that their fellows will watch their backs when the enemy press close.
As with all of the Adeptus Custodes, Custodian Guard have the might of the Emperor flowing through their veins, and his aegis of protection hanging around them like a shield. Their traditional armament is the guardian spear, a golden halberd so heavy it would take several men to lift it.
This composite weapon is both a powered blade capable of hewing a Chaos Space Marine in two, and a boltgun to engage threats from afar. Conversely, some Custodian Guard prefer to enter battle armed with a sentinel blade and storm shield. The sentinel blade is a broadsword of daunting size, so large its hilt is flanked with the double barrels of a bolt caster that can lay down a hail of short-range fire.
It is a testament to the strength of the Custodians that they can wield these powered blades one-handed. When coupled with the armoured bulwark of the storm shield — whose protective powers are augmented with an inbuilt energyshield generator — this potent combination allows the Custodian Guard to cut their foes apart while weathering even the most devastating of attacks.
As befits their elevated status, Custodian Guard squads can call upon ancient Land Raider battle tanks to carry them to war. The combination of demigod-like warriors and enormous war engine is a terrifyingly potent one, and when several such squads advance at once, even super-heavy armour and towering daemonic abominations cannot endure their wrath.
Those Wardens that do not carry the iconic guardian spears of their order wield heavybladed castellan axes. The Wardens are known amongst their comrades as level-headed and endlessly patient watchmen. Upon accepting the robes that mark their station they swear binding oaths to fight as immovable 38 sentinels, a living fortress of auramite and sinew that no foe will ever breach.
To break their vows would be worse than death to these warriors, and their determination to uphold them bolsters their already formidable wills to something of truly frightening intensity.
Where a strongpoint must be cracked wide open, a traitor warship boarded or a foul demagogue slain even as he stands amidst his dedicated bodyguards, there are the Allarus Custodians deployed. These warriors wear suits of Allarus Terminator plate, expertly crafted armour whose worth can be measured in worlds. Driven by magnatomic generator-shrines, articulated with leonus-class actuators, and fashioned from layered auramite and adamantium, Allarus armour is a marvel of craftsmanship.
It provides its wearer with an exceptional range of movement and near-unencumbered speed, augmented strength and resilience, and the survivability to stride unharmed from the blast of a macro-cannon shell. Coupled with the protective blessings of the Emperor, Allarus Terminator plate is arguably the most effective man-portable combat armour in the entire Imperium. Just as well, for the battles fought by Allarus Custodians demand nothing less.
Their weapons, too, are formidable. They heft guardian spears twice the height of a man, or swing massive castellan axes that can bisect a Chaos Lord or lop the head from an Ork psyker with a single blow. To supplement these weapons, Allarus Custodians also wield balistus grenade launchers upon their left forearms.
These drum-fed weapons can be triggered with a thought, spitting salvoes of sanctified projectiles in saturation patterns through the enemy ranks. They are also capable of launching concussion grenades that explode amidst bursts of electroexorcist chaff and overwhelming light and sound.
Enemies subjected to these barrages are sent reeling, their senses rebelling against the onslaught even as their weapons and equipment falter and they spasm in pain. Unusually for Custodians, these warriors have fought side by side for decades now, asserting that they can best serve the Emperor operating as a single, tightly fraternal force. Hand-picked by the Captain-General from amongst the most bellicose of the Ten Thousand, Allarus Custodians relish the chance to plunge into the most lethal battles.
Their killer instincts are razorsharp, their wrath honed to a fine point. Yet these are no maniacal berserkers. They land every blow with murderous strength, but also with surgical precision. It is an effective tactic that has seen more than one heretic fortress fall from within.
In the earliest days of the Imperium they marched to war alongside the Emperor himself, presenting a magnificent spectacle which echoed the majesty of the Master of Mankind.
Just as their weapons and armour have always been fashioned to reflect his martial glory, so too are the proud standards known as vexillas, which are borne to war by some of the most veteran Custodians. Whether this effect is purely psychological, or if there is some crypto-technological aspect to the phenomenon, is unknown beyond the Tower Aquilane.
It is enough that it works, and works well. The Vexilla Defensor is borne into battle where the foe brings overwhelming firepower to bear. Built into this proud standard is a refractor-field generator of prodigious power, whose protective umbrella crackles out to ward all nearby allied forces from harm.
The deployment of these vexillas has spawned more than one legend and parable; to the unenlightened, the effects of the Vexilla Defensor look as though the Emperor is extending direct protection to those who fight at the side of his favoured warriors. The Custodes alone are permitted to display it as their foremost heraldic icon, and its inspirational effect upon those around them is nothing short of electric.
Hefted high above the anarchy of the battlefield, the vexilla forms a golden beacon of truth and light that fills true servants of the Emperor with awe. Beneath the winged shadow of the Aquila, even the humblest defender of Humanity feels the touch of the Emperor upon their soul.
The Vexilla Magnifica incorporates photophantasmic fluctuators and psychoamplifactor clarions. Such standards are borne at the forefront of an attack, placed where they can best blunt any attempt by the foe to launch a counter-offensive of their own. Each vexilla is created on Terra, painstakingly fashioned over a period of one hundred years by the oath-sworn artisans of the Tower Aquilane. Upon their completion, these beautiful standards are borne amidst processions of craftthralls, Ministorum Priests and heraldic servitors to the Auric Eyrie, where they are held upon stasis-podia until required.
Most, however, incorporate potent technologies suited specifically for deployment upon the field of battle. Those vexillas carried by the veterans of the shield companies typically belong to one of several patterns. More than just standards to inspire adulation or terror, their inbuilt technologies provide invaluable battlefield support to the Custodians fighting in their shadow.
Most common is the Vexilla Imperius, the mere presence of which Not only do vexillas appear physically distinct, they also beam a constantly cycling set of data-ident codes that convey strategic information with friendly Imperial forces, and aid in tactical coordination. These are most commonly used by the Adeptus Custodes to call in sudden strikes by fresh waves of Custodians, or, on rare occasions, even summon a Contemptor Dreadnought or Land Raider from the especially large, ancient and powerful Godstrike-pattern teleportariums aboard their warships.
Veteran warriors who have seen battle on a hundred worlds, these Custodians know the true value of speed: not simply to bring the enemy to battle, but to direct their might precisely where and when it is needed most.
Wherever they see their comrades hardest pressed, there the Vertus Praetors strike like golden lightning to bolster them. Their auto-senses are optimised for this task, boasting suites of data-augurs, optical auspicators and multispectral motion-oracles that allow them to detect and track even hidden foes.
With a squadron of sharp-eyed Vertus Praetors circling overhead, a Shield-Captain can rest assured the enemy stands little chance of catching him unawares. Each Vertus Praetor is a master combatant who has already honed his superhuman skills amongst the ranks of the Custodian Guard. They are expert marksmen, able to place perfect kill shots even while screaming at breakneck pace through tangled ruins or dense forests.
Their closequarters prowess is no less exceptional; a Vertus Praetor can open the throat of a heavily armoured foe in a single pass. They can analyse even the most chaotic conflict in a heartbeat, reacting with incredible speed to evade obstacles and run down their foes, processing battlefield developments with breathtaking rapidity.
The exceptional skill of the Vertus Praetors is augmented by their superlative wargear. As well as being protected by auramite armour, these warriors wield enormous interceptor lances. Taller end-to-end than an Ogryn, and perfectly weighted, these fearsome weapons boast adamantium blades wreathed in disruptor fields.
Vertus Praetors are masters of hit-and-run strikes, driving their lances clean through their precisely chosen targets before ripping them clear again as they speed past.
The result is as devastatingly effective as it is explosively gory. The Dawneagle jetbike is an incredible vehicle, a crusade-era relic wrought in auramite and adamantium.
These bikes are almost as large as light fighter craft and — while they are still grav-skimmers — can deliver a near supersonic turn of speed. Their hulls are phenomenally durable, allowing their riders to slam through walls and enemy warriors without being unseated, and they react pugnaciously to the slightest touch of the controls, able to jink effortlessly through incoming fire.
When armed with hurricane bolters, the Dawneagle can plough bloody furrows through enemy hordes. However, it is when equipped with salvo launchers that Vertus Praetors truly come into their own as lightning-fast tank hunters. They scream across the battlefield, rapidly outflanking and encircling the heaviest enemy vehicles before annihilating them with strafing runs of melta missiles. Even enemy aircraft are not safe, for by combining their fire the Vertus Praetors are able to weave airborne webs of flakk blasts into which hurtling enemy aircraft slam with terminal results.
Heavy fire spits from its gun arm — either blasts of melta energy that reduce tanks to molten ruin or screaming hails of shells from the spinning barrels of the Kheres-pattern assault cannon. Wielding these weapons with a matchless skill characteristic of the Adeptus Custodes, the Contemptor blazes a trail of death and destruction through its enemies, tearing the heart from those who would stand against the Emperor and sending the terrified survivors fleeing in terror.
Though the physiology of the Custodians is remarkably durable, still there are wounds so severe that even they cannot survive them. When faced with certain death, a Custodian may choose to be preserved within a Venerable Contemptor Dreadnought so that he can continue to fight for the Emperor. There should be no mistaking that this is the act of a martyr, for life within a Dreadnought sarcophagus — even one as advanced as the Venerable Contemptor — is a twilight existence at best.
The pilot is shorn of all unnecessary flesh, rendered down to little more than a sack of organs and brain matter sustained within an armaglass amniotic tank. They are then permanently fused with the life-support systems of the Dreadnought. Its powerful limbs become theirs to operate. Its complex sensoria become their eyes and ears, its vox emitter their mouth. Each Venerable Contemptor Dreadnought is an ancient war engine, a relic that incorporates wonders of technology that the Imperium can no longer replicate.
Its auramite armour plates are expertly crafted and maintained. Its limbs are articulated by fibre-bundles and servo-motors that afford it immense strength. Its weapons are perfectly calibrated, while its hull is sheathed in the crackling energies of an atomantic shield that can dispel laser blasts and artillery shells amidst bright flares of energy. Auto-repair protocols allow the Dreadnought to shrug off crippling battle damage, while motive shrines and auto-sanctified backup systems stand ready to take the strain should the Contemptor undergo serious combat trauma.
Yet for all this arcane technology, the most important component of the Venerable Contemptor Dreadnought is the living warrior interred in the sarcophagus at its heart. S hield-Captain Hasturias Calaxor first took up the mantle of command during the Siege of Terra, the last, great battle of the Horus Heresy. Despite this, there are tales of unharmed Custodians volunteering to pilot Contemptors whose previous occupants were slain in battle. Those soon to depart as Eyes of the Emperor, those who feel they have dishonoured themselves, even warriors who simply will not turn aside from what they perceive as their duty; all, it is said, have given their flesh willingly so that the Contemptor Dreadnoughts of the Custodes continue to stride to war.
During the battle for the star keep Magnificence, Shield-Captain Calaxor went bladeto-blade with the heretical Singer of Miseries, before mounting his jetbike and leading a band of Vertus Praetors to end the traitor threat. It was Calaxor, also, whose blade ended the threat of the rogue assassin Shae before she could come within a hundred miles of the Golden Throne.
Renowned for the controlled aggression of his tactics, Calaxor earned himself many more names in the centuries that followed. On Thade, 42 When the Shield-Captain finally fell in battle on the dead world of Palathrix, his sheer force of will kept him alive long enough to be interred within a Dreadnought sarcophagus. Now Calaxor is a living war engine and strategic advisor both amidst the ranks of the Adeptus Custodes. Possessed of a fearsome array of weapons, hyper-durable adamantium armour, and the transport capacity to bear a full squad of heavily equipped warriors into battle, the Land Raider can function as both war engine and assault transport with equal ease.
For ten thousand years these noble war engines have fought for the Imperium, and each has built a legend every bit as magnificent as those possessed by the greatest Imperial champions. Stories exist of these dauntless war engines fighting on even after their Custodian crews were slain, wreaking bloody revenge for their deaths.
For all this, Land Raiders are in comparatively short supply. Few forge worlds still possess the secrets of their creation, and even those that do must sink enormous resource and time into the making of each one. Land Raiders have bellicose and complex machine spirits that take time to tame, and for the material cost of but one of these tanks it is possible to churn out a hundred lesser vehicles.
Every Land Raider is thus venerated as a priceless relic, entrusted only to the most elite forces of the Imperium and deployed when victory is absolutely vital. It is considered a nearirredeemable sin to allow such a vehicle to be destroyed, and entire campaigns have been fought to recover Land Raiders lost upon the field of battle. These vehicles are the primary ground transport of the Adeptus Custodes, a statement of how unstoppable and elite the Ten Thousand truly are.
Tracks churning, guns thundering, Venerable Land Raiders ferry their passengers into the heart of battle, then support them with unparalleled armoured might once they disembark. In extreme circumstances these amazing war engines have even been teleported directly onto the battlefield, their hulls warded against the empyric corruption that is a common side effect of travelling through the warp, their passage assured through use of an ancient Godstrike-pattern teleportarium.
This tactic has won many victories for the Adeptus Custodes; it is a rare enemy indeed that can survive the sudden appearance of a Land Raider full of demigods in the middle of their battle lines.
The most ancient and honoured of these tanks are the Venerable Land Raiders used by the Adeptus Custodes. I am, yes. But their physiologies are no different- Logan Grimnar got the same enhancements during his transformation into a space marine as every other space marine got.
Higher toughness doesn't just represent a guy who is "tougher"- that's the wounds characteristic. Higher toughness indicates either being made of completely different stuff like why Necrons are T4 , or being drastically larger hence why Ogryn are T5. Just being a gruff and experienced commander does not remake your physiology or cause you to grow in size- it makes you more able to shrug off damage, which is what wounds are for.
Yes, I can see where you are coming from and there are some good points. On my behalf, I was always of the toughness is toughness school and generally wounds would reflect toughness. This has certainly changed over time in certain way's and I feel a little foolish for not noticing the mechanic. Nevertheless, I will be a stubborn bastard and say Marine Commanders should be toughness 5, and I always thought Ogryn's should have been toughness 6.
No rules, no logic, just my Imperial bias. Thank you for the replies by the way. Sorry, if I was a tad grumpy. I thought the Deathwing Knights were great, actually. For starters, both they and Deathwing are one Power Level cheaper than regular termies no idea why. But really it comes down to that Mace. It's really the best hammer. Giving up 1 AP to not have -1 to hit?
You should always want that. Note also that the successor chapters have no Chapter Masters at all, since they can't use the unique ones and no neutral ones exist anymore. To be honest I don't know why they bothered with the restriction.
And with the new wound allocation rules i. I just want to use the thirty-odd year old models I have with mauls and axes as if they had mauls and axes! No powerfist, no chainfist, no non-sword power weapon. I do get that, but people are generally pretty forgiving with "counts as" on older models, particularly if there's no corresponding loadout so no confusion.
The lion helm has gone back to it's 3rd ed roots, only dark angel models not units. The Ravenwing medic has the mobility to get to the place he is most needed and the Deathwing doc will be hanging out with other multiwound models… The standard Apothecary is just going to be a source of band-aids for a Company Master.
He's not the "OMG must have! Remember Apothecaries can bring back dead models in addition to restoring lost wounds to injured models. That had me wondering as well. The Lone Wolf is a superb character, much cheaper, yet potentially more effective than Rag's. In fairness, Ragnar needs some buffs; however, I've repeated that so many times. Nevertheless, I'm generally pretty happy about things. It's a little nerfed from what I recall. Interesting to see if the SW's do get CA.
Thus far, it doesn't look promising. However, CA, was only ever bought in when they decreased the BC's weapon skill and the SW's had crappy assault troops. Hence, maybe the buff's to them have now made CA extinct as they can back up the GH's a little better now? Very cool. So Grey Hunters get their chainsword for free now, basically? If so, why not make them part of their basic wargear? Hmmm, interesting. What do you make of what you have seen so far in the lists? I'm a fun and fluff RT era gamer just getting back into 40K thanks to 8th.
It looks pretty balanced to me, which is cool. However, I'm more than interested in getting the opinions of current players.
I don't really know yet, I haven't had a great deal of time to wrap my head around the Indexes yet. Nvm, the Grey Hunters pay for their chainswords in their base cost 14 pts base vs 13 pts base Tacticals.
Looking over the list of "elsewhere in this book" units for the Dark Angels, I notice that they have access to all of the new Primaris Marines… But none of the Primaris Marines even the heroes like the Lieutenant are part of the Deathwing. At least, not in a Codex Astartes compliant Chapter. I only vaguely recall the fluff from GS3 because it was pretty bad, but wasn't the 2nd Company part of the rowboat's big party there, which got messed up pretty bad by Chaos?
That would make sense, then. I mean, presumably Big Bobby G has some kind of system figured out for how to reorganize chapters to integrate the Primaris marines; just throwing them into companies willy-nilly doesn't really seem like his meticulous, teetotaling style.
This is the current Edition's Space Wolves tactics. Just like their legendary progenitor, the Primarch Leman Russ, Space Wolves are fierce and aggressive warriors. Though they are not berserkers or madmen well, OK, maybe some of them are a little crazy their headstrong personalities and inherent sense of justice means that the Space Wolves are forever waging a war against the evils of the galaxy, fighting with the cunning of a hunting pack rather than the frenzy of a rabid dog.
Space Wolves like red meat, strong ale, bawdy songs and good old-fashioned brawls, but most of all,they like to hunt glory upon the battlefield. They see death in battle as a fitting end for a true warrior, and if they leave a long and exciting saga of heroic deeds as their legacy, so much the better. Recommend Documents. Warhammer 40k - Codex - Adeptus Titanicus Full description. Terminator Armour Grea Champion.. Hellbl asters. All Rights Reserved.
No part of this publication publication may be reproduced, stored stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording or otherwise, without the prior permission of the publishers. Time for another leak and rumor compilation, this time for Warhammer 40k 8th edition Space Wolves codex rumors and leaks. As with the other compilations the Warhammer 40k 8th edition Space Wolf codex will feature both Games Workshop community info and any other Internet leaks and rumors as they come!
His optional wolves went from 12 points to 16 for both. Wolf Lord now has its own profile and 5 variants normal, primaris, terminator, on thunderwolf, etc.
Rune Priest can no longer take items from SW combi weapon list, also now knows 2 powers instead of just 1 power. Murderfang increase attacks by 2 in turn in which has made successful charge, 7 attacks on charge, cannot be warlord, can now explode.
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