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Adeptus Custodes - Dreadnoughts: Contemptor-Achillus Dreadnought - In those isolated cases where the body has been all but irrevocably destroyed but the Custodian's mind remains intact and their will to survive undimmed, internment within the cold and unyielding body of a cybernetic Dreadnought is the next step. To this purpose, the few Dreadnoughts of the Legio Custodes were as singularly advanced as their other wargear, outfitted with weapons and systems artificer-made by the servants of the Imperial Court. At the time of the outbreak of the Horus Heresy, the most widely employed was the Contemptor-Achillus, a general battle unit which combined phenomenal strength and speed with the echoes of the interned Custodes' own unmatched martial skill. In battle, the Contemptor-Achillus often utilised a deadly Achillus Dreadspear for close combat. These were scaled-up versions of the iconic Guardian Spear of their Legio that possessed devastating power. For fighting at range, they also often utilised a pair of wrist-mounted Storm Bolters, Infernus Incinerators or Adrathic Destructors. This unit is still deployed by the Adeptus Custodes of the 41st Millennium.Contemptor-Galatus Dreadnought - A sub-variant of the Contemptor-Achillus, the Contemptor-Galatus was designed to provide a mobile anchor point for a Legio Custodes battleline in the field. To this end, the Galatus was analogous to the specialised Sentinel Guard formations of the Legio Custodes, and was armed with a potent combination of a huge Galatus Warblade and vastly enlarged version of the Praesidium Shield. The warblade allowed the Contemptor-Galatus to swiftly and efficiently reap a murderous toll of any massed infantry assault at close quarters, or indeed hack through armoured vehicles and monstrous xenos with equal ease. It was the defensive power of the hulking Praesidium Shield, however, that was the Contemptor-Galatus' most significant feature, as with it the already durable Contemptor chassis became nigh on impregnable, even against the heaviest of heavy firepower. This unit is still deployed by the Adeptus Custodes of the 41st Millennium.Telemon Heavy Dreadnought - Fewer than a handful of Telemon Dreadnoughts were to be found within the ranks of the Legio Custodes, each intended to stand sentinel over its charges no matter the force brought against it. In part this rarity was due to the cost in labour and resources for the creation of such a superlative engine of war, for each bore at least one plate worked by the Emperor's own hand, and also the rarity of appropriate candidates to control them. The honour of interment in one of the few existing Telemon sarcophagi was awarded only to the most celebrated warriors within the sodalities of the Legio Custodes, and until a worthy candidate found his end in battle, the Dreadnoughts stood silent and empty. Despite this, the sheer power of an unleashed Telemon class Dreadnought far outweighed the trials of its construction, for few could stand against the array of esoteric, hand-crafted weapons that graced its chassis or the ferocious will and warrior skill of the master Custodian interred within. This unit is still deployed by the Adeptus Custodes of the 41st Millennium.Venerable Contemptor Dreadnought - 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. 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. The Custodian becomes a god of war, able to stride unharmed through hails of fire and crush the Master of Mankind's foes with their hydraulic might. In return, they face an eternity cut off from the outside world, bound to mechanical systems that can never truly replicate the feel of sunlight upon their skin, or the satisfying crunch of their blade through an enemy's flesh. 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. |
Adeptus Custodes - Relics of Terra: During the Great Crusade, the Custodians hoarded some of the most powerful and esoteric weapons technology ever encountered by the Imperium. Though much of it was expended during the Horus Heresy, some of these ancient artefacts still exist, locked away in vaults deep beneath the Imperial Palace, waiting to be borne to war when the need is greatest:Gatekeeper - Gatekeeper is an ancient, master-crafted Guardian Spear. This potent weapon thrums with barely contained power. Its Machine Spirits are capable of near-prescient predictive targeting, allowing the wielder to mow down the enemy before they can come within blade's reach.Raiment of Sorrows - Handwoven by the sisters of the Order of Lamentations and allowed to sit in state at the foot of the Golden Throne for a full Terran century, this shroud-like raiment is a potent reminder of the Custodians' one great defeat at the Siege of Terra. Its presence fills them with a cold determination to never fail again.Eagle's Eye - This magnificent helm incorporates sensorium-gheists, trapped within micro-reliquaries and compelled to shriek their technomantic warnings to the wearer whenever danger threatens.Auric Aquilas - Incorporating forbidden secrets of ancient archeotech from the Dark Age of Technology, Auric Aquilas is a truly magnificent gravitic jetbike. Swift as thought and protected by a shimmering golden force field, it bears its rider swiftly and safely into battle.The Praetorian Plate - This suit of Allarus Terminator Armour -- itself a hand-crafted relic of great antiquity -- has been adapted to incorporate a still more ancient empyric beacon and archeotech teleport-shunter that allows its wearer to leap directly through the Warp to the aid of those he or she is sworn to defend.The Veiled Blade - An ancient blade that burns with a bitterly cold and dark energy, the Veiled Blade is bestowed upon a Custodian who has vowed to recover that which should remain hidden from Humanity and return it to the Dark Cells.Emperor's Light - Said to have been crafted from a crystallised shard of the Emperor's glorious light, this masterwork Misericordia has been borne into battle by three separate Captain-Generals. It is said to flood the heart of its victim with holy radiance, and is an object of dread to Traitors and Heretics alike.Wrath Angelis - This ancient and expertly crafted vexilla was created for the battle against the Orks upon the world of Ullanor during the Great Crusade. During that conflict, pinpoint fire support was key to victory. Thus, this vexilla incorporates a multi-spectral targeting shrine that links to warships in orbit and guides in trans-atmospheric strikes with remarkable accuracy.Auric Shackles - These fetters were forged in the Dark Age of Technology, and adapt themselves to shut down the neural nets of any sentient beings, rendering even the thought of escape impossible. They are used to capture the Imperium's most dangerous foes.Obliteratum - This dread vambrace weapon incorporates several forbidden technologies whose possession would be death to any beyond the Adeptus Custodes. It fires concentrated antimatter, compressed within splinterglass canisters that shatter upon impact. Victims are annihilated on a molecular level by the night-black blasts caused by this weapon's fire, vanishing in terrifying eruptions of nothingness.Fulminaris Aggressor - This vexilla was fashioned after the fall of Goge Vandire in the 36th Millennium to honour the wrath of the Emperor in punishing traitors and tyrants. Its micro-thundercoil generatorum crackles with barely restrained power that arcs out to annihilate nearby foes.The Castellan's Mask - This finely worked pauldron is awarded to whichever living Custodian currently holds the greatest tally of victories in the Blood Games. It is rare, of course, that even the resourceful warriors of the Adeptus Custodes succeed in these endeavours, and so to honour one who has done so more times than any other is only right. He who bears the Castellan's Mark is guaranteed to be a superlative strategic genius, an expert in spotting and exploiting weaknesses with merciless efficiency.Faith Absolute - This ominous vexilla was created for the infamous Witching Wars. It is able to discharge a pulse of disruptive contra-empyric energies that can unmake an onrushing psychic manifestation in a heartbeat, blunting the assaults of enemy psykers. |
Adeptus Custodes - Forces of the Adeptus Custodes: Adeptus Custodes ForcesCommandCaptain-General • Custodian Tribunate • Captain-Commander (Guardian Captain-Commander • Allarus Captain-Commander • Vertus Captain-Commander) • Shield-CaptainElitesBlade Champion • Hetaeron Guard • Aquilon Terminator • Ephoroi • Allarus Custodian • Custodian Warden • Vexilus Praetor • Custodian ApothecaryFast AttackAgamatus Jetbike Squad • Vertus Praetor • Venatari CustodianTroopsCustodian Guard • Sentinel Guard • Sagittarum Guard SquadDreadnoughtsContemptor Pattern Dreadnought • Contemptor-Galatus Dreadnought • Contemptor-Achillus Dreadnought • Telemon Heavy DreadnoughtVehiclesCoronus Grav-Carrier • Caladius Grav-Tank • Pallas Grav-Attack • Venerable Land Raider • Rhino • Grav-Rhino • Grav-Raider • Grav-SpartanAircraftStormbird • Storm Eagle • Orion Assault Dropship • Ares Gunship • Aquila Lander • Talion • Equinox Interceptor • Zenith Gunship |
Adeptus Custodes - Canon Conflicts: In Warhammer 40,000: Rogue Trader (1st Edition) the Custodes were the Guardians of the Emperor and the Imperial Palace. They wore simple but effective clothing: boots, leather breeches and a black cloak, their torsos naked and corded with tattooed muscle, and they carried laser-tipped halberds said to have been built to resemble the traditional Guardian Spears.Their helms were tall and ornate works of art, giving the Custodes a threateningly impassive appearance. They were considered superior to the Adeptus Astartes of the time, although not as loyal to the Emperor. Clearly, this version of the Custodes has long since been superseded in current canon.The Legio Custodes and the Adeptus Custodes were originally described as an all-male force, similar to the Space Marines. With the release of the 10th Edition Codex: Adeptus Custodes in April 2024, an in-universe fictional piece on pages 14-15 described events as seen by a viewpoint character named Calladayce Taurovalia Kesh who was noted to be female. Fans at first believed this to be a reference to a Sister of Silence, as the women of that all-female order of anti-psyker Blanks often worked alongside the Custodians.However, on April 14, 2024, the official Warhammer account operated by Games Workshop on the social media platform X, formerly known as Twitter, indicated that, "Since the first of the Ten Thousand were created, there have always been female Custodians." The company's representatives later claimed that this was not, in fact, a ret-con of the previous lore; however, as all prior references and models had referred to or depicted only male Custodians, the change was clearly one made retroactively to alter the nature of one of the Warhammer 40,000 universe's major factions. |
Adeptus Custodes - Trivia: The names of the five castes of the Adeptus Custodes that distinguishes their various combat roles come from ancient Terran history:Hykanatoi - The name of the Hykanatoi (from Greek: Ἱκανάτοι, "the Able Ones") sometimes Latinised as Hicanti, were one of the Byzantine tagmata, elite guard units based near the Eastern Roman Empire's capital of Constantinople. Founded in the early 9th Century, the Hykanatoi survived until the late 11th Century.Tharanatoi - The name Tharanatoi was likely derived from two sources. The first is Celtic mythology, which references Taranis, the god of thunder and Thanatos (from the Greek: Θάνατος "Death") who was the personification of death in Greek mythology.Kataphraktoi - The name of the Kataphraktoi was most likely derived from the word "cataphract", a form of heavy armoured cavalry used in ancient warfare by a number of peoples in Europe, East Asia and the Middle East. The English word is derived from the original Greek (κατάφρακτος Kataphraktos (plural: κατάφρακτοι Kataphraktoi), literally meaning "armoured" or "completely enclosed". An entirely appropriate name for Jetbike-mounted Custodians.Ephoroi - Ephoroi is a derivative of the ancient Greek "ephor". The ephors were leaders of ancient Sparta and shared power with the two Spartan kings. The word "ephors" (Greek ἔφοροι éphoroi, plural form of ἔφορος éphoros) comes from the Greek ἐπί epi, "on" or "over", and ὁράω horaō, "to see", i.e. "one who oversees" or "overseer".Moritoi - The name Moritoi comes from the ancient Latin word mortis, "death". An appropriate name for those Custodians who have suffered injuries so terrible that they cannot go on living without being interred within the cybernetic life support sarcophagus of a Dreadnought to sustain their biological functions. |
Adeptus Custodes - Sources: Codex Adeptus Astartes - Space Marines (8th Edition), pg. 20Codex: Adeptus Custodes (7th Edition) (Digital Edition), pp. 1-9, 18Codex: Adeptus Custodes (8th Edition), pp. 6-43Codex: Adeptus Custodes (9th Edition), pp. 7, 11, 24Codex: Adeptus Custodes (10th Edition), pp. 14-15Codex Imperialis (2nd Edition) by Rick Priestley, pp. 12-14The Horus Heresy: Collected Visions (Artbook), pp. 10, 28-31, 67, 73, 143, 148, 150-152, 239, 241, 286, 312, 322-323, 347, 350, 354-355, 366, 368, 371-373, 379, 381, 392-393, 400, 404-405, 407, 412-413The Horus Heresy - Book Seven: Inferno (Forge World Series) by Alan Bligh, pp. 20-21, 25, 28, 34, 40-41, 46-48, 50-53, 57, 59-60, 61, 63-65, 112-121, 242-246, 252, 256-257, 260-262, 264-265, 268-269, 272-275, 277-279, 282-283The Horus Heresy - Book Eight: Malevolence (Forge World Series) by Neil Wylie and Anuj Malhotra, pp. 257-287Warhammer 40,000: Rulebook (4th Edition), pg. 94Warhammer 40,000: Rulebook (5th Edition), pp. 105-106Warhammer 40,000: Rulebook (6th Edition), pp. 134, 139, 403Warhammer 40,000: Rulebook (7th Edition) (Digital Edition), pp. 267, 275, 280, 541Warhammer 40,000: Rulebook (8th Edition), pp. 27, 50-51, 53, 79, 90, 278Warhammer 40,000: Rogue Trader (1st Edition), pp. 133, 139A Thousand Sons (Novel) by Graham McNeillDeliverance Lost (Novel) by Gav ThorpeNemesis (Novel) by James SwallowProspero Burns (Novel) by Dan AbnettThe First Heretic (Novel) by Aaron Dembski-BowdenThe Outcast Dead (Novel) by Graham McNeillThe Grey Raven (Short Story) by Gav ThorpeBlood Games (Short Story) by Dan AbnettHands of the Emperor (Short Story) by Rob SandersInquisitor (Novel) by Ian WatsonVaults of Terra: The Carrion Throne (Novel) by Chris WraightDuty Unto Death (Short Story) by Marc CollinsWatchers of the Throne - The Emperor's Legion (Novel) by Chris WraightWolfsbane (Novel) by Guy Haley, Chs. 6-9, 15-27Dark Imperium (Novel) by Guy Haley, pp. 61-62, 66-68, 152, 234, 263-264, 268-269, 273, 275, 277Forge World Webstore: Legio Custodes Sagittarum GuardForge World Webstore: Legio Custodes Aquilon Terminator Squad with Twin-Linked Andrathic DestructorsForge World Webstore: Legio Custodes Aquilon Terminators with Infernus FirepikesForge World Webstore: Legio Custodes Aquilon Terminator SquadForge World Webstore: Legio Custodes Aquilon Terminator Armoured Assault ForceForge World Webstore: Legio Custodes Contemptor-Achillus DreadnoughtForge World Webstore: Legio Custodes Contemptor-Achillus DreadnoughtsForge World Webstore: Legio Custodes Telemon Heavy DreadnoughtForge World Webstore: Legio Custodes Telemon Heavy Dreadnought BodyForge World Webstore: Legio Custodes Dreadnought CollectionForge World Webstore: Legio Custodes Gyrfalcon-Pattern JetbikeForge World Webstore: Legio Custodes Agamatus Jetbike SquadronForge World Webstore: Legio Custodes Full-Strength Agamatus Jetbike SquadronForge World Webstore: Legio Custodes Pallas Grav-AttackForge World Webstore: Legio Custodes Coronus Grav-CarrierForge World Webstore: Legio Custodes Caladius Grav-TankForge World Webstore: Legio Custodes Caladius Grav-Tank AnnihilatorForge World Webstore: Legio Custodes Caladius Grav-Tank Annihilator & Caladius Grav-TankForge World Webstore: Legio Custodes Orion Assault DropshipForge World Webstore: Legio Custodes Orion Assault ForceForge World Webstore: Legio Custodes ArmyForge World Webstore: Legio Custodes CollectionForge World Webstore: Talons of the Emperor Incursion ForceWarhammer Community - The Golden Legion Goes ForthWarhammer Community - Adeptus Custodes Preview - Part 1: The HeroesWarhammer Community - Adeptus Custodes Preview - Part 2: The TroopsWarhammer Community - Adeptus Custodes Crush Foes With Devastating Battle Stances in the New CodexForge World Legio Custodes Custodian Venatari SquadForge World Custodes DatasheetsWarhammer Official account post on X (formerly Twitter) confirming there have always been female Custodians (14 April 2024) |
Adeptus Fidicius - Adeptus Fidicius: The Adeptus Fidicius is a division of the Adeptus Terra that essentially acts as the Imperium's revenue service, ensuring that the Imperium's central coffers on Terra receive all of the resource tithes due from its member worlds. Additionally, one of its most important duties is investigating other organs of the Adeptus Terra to root out fraud and corruption. |
Adeptus Mechanicus - Adeptus Mechanicus: The Adeptus Mechanicus is the official Imperial name within the Adeptus Terra for the Cult Mechanicus or Cult of the Machine based on Mars which provides the Imperium with its scientists, engineers and technicians.The tech-adepts of the Mechanicus are the primary keepers of what is viewed as sacred wisdom, a privileged caste of Tech-priests who jealously guard the knowledge required to maintain and construct much of the Imperium's advanced technology.In ancient times, before the current Age of the Imperium officially began following the end of the Horus Heresy, the Adeptus Mechanicus was instead called the Mechanicum. The Adeptus Mechanicus was formally separated from the larger Mechanicum of Mars by order of the Council of Terra in 012.M31. This occurred after the Red Planet had fallen to the control of the Hereteks who represented the Traitor faction of the Mechanicum loyal to the Warmaster Horus later called the "Dark Mechanicum."The Mechanicus acknowledge the Emperor of Mankind as the ruler of the Imperium of Man, but not the religious truth of the Imperial Cult or the Ecclesiarchy, and are granted an unusual amount of political and religious autonomy within the Imperium's structure, a role protected by the ancient Treaty of Mars. The Mechanicus essentially maintains an empire-within-an-empire in Imperial space, and its interests usually, but not always, coincide with those of the wider Imperium.Instead of the Imperial Creed, the servants of the Mechanicus follow their own dark and mysterious scriptures and worship the strange deity they call the Machine God or the "Omnissiah."As part of this faith, the Adeptus Mechanicus believes knowledge is the true manifestation of divinity in the universe, and all creatures and artefacts that embody knowledge are holy because of it. The Emperor is the supreme object of worship for the servants of the Mechanicus, for He is the living avatar of the Machine God that is the Omnissiah.The Emperor was recognised by the ancient Mechanicum as the fulfillment of the prophecy of the coming of the Omnissiah because He comprehends so much, and understands more about the true nature of reality than any other being in existence.The Tech-priests of the Adeptus Mechanicus also regard organic flesh as weak and view the removal and replacement of biological tissue with mechanical, bionic parts as sacred. Most elder Tech-priests have few organic parts left and eventually become more machine than man.The Adeptus Mechanicus is based on Mars, the very first Forge World of the Imperium, and they are the sole rulers of the Red Planet. They provide the technical and scientific experts of the Imperium and field armies of massive Titans, Questor Mechanicus Knights, Electro-priests, Skitarii and Combat Servitors. |
Adeptus Mechanicus - History: The Adeptus Mechanicus is the one Imperial adepta that as the Cult Mechanicus actually predates the Imperium of Man itself, and was known originally as the Mechanicum of Mars. Though the Adeptus Mechanicus was formally integrated into the Imperium by the Treaty of Mars (known as the Treaty of Olympus Mons to the Mechanicum) over 10,000 Terran years before the "present" of the 41st Millennium at the dawn of the Emperor's Great Crusade to reunite Mankind in ca. 800.M30, it retains an unparalleled degree of autonomy from the rest of the Adeptus Terra for an Imperial Adepta.This autonomy was guaranteed to the Mechanicus in the Treaty of Mars to provide the Tech-priests with immunity to the dictates of the atheistic Imperial Truth and to allow the Mechanicus to continue to exercise sovereignty over all of the Forge Worlds it had settled across the galaxy during the Age of Strife. In return, the Mechanicus agreed to aid in the construction of the massive fleets and the provision of the technical aid necessary for the Imperium of Man to launch the Great Crusade.Whereas nearly all the citizens of the Imperium observe the tenets of one of the various sects of the Imperial Cult that worships the Emperor of Mankind as the God-Emperor, the Adeptus Mechanicus is virtually synonymous with the Cult Mechanicus, another faith that could easily be considered heretical by the rest of the Imperium if the Adeptus Mechanicus was not essential to the survival of the Imperium and if the Tech-priests had not proven their loyalty to the Emperor in countless ways.The Adeptus Mechanicus is vitally important to Humanity because the Imperium, despite its technologically advanced state, has a very limited scientific knowledge of how its technology actually functions. This has only reinforced the prevailing Imperial view that the building and use of advanced machinery is almost a magical or religious act, fraught with ritual and inviolable instructions.The Adeptus Mechanicus, with its inherent understanding of the Machine Spirit and the Machine God, has a near-monopoly on Standard Template Construct (STC) designs and other advanced Imperial technological knowledge. As a result, the Mechanicus wields a tremendous amount of power in the Imperium as the primary manufacturer, maintainer and repairer of everything from basic farming equipment to interstellar warships. |
Adeptus Mechanicus - Mars: The birthplace of the Adeptus Mechanicus was the ancient Forge World of Mars. Mars was colonised very early in human history, long before the start of even the Dark Age of Technology, and developed a society different from Terra both culturally and in terms of technological advancement. The arid, rusty surface of Mars was terraformed, and under a man-made oxygen-nitrogen atmosphere, the Martian colony flourished, though it remained politically independent from Terra. When the era of human interstellar colonisation began, both Terra and Mars served as the co-equal mother worlds of countless new human colonies across the galaxy.During the Dark Age of Technology, the two empires of Terra and Mars co-existed under the aegis of the decentralised human interstellar government of that era, to the mutual benefit of both. At the height of its splendour during that era, and even later in the anarchic Age of Strife, Mars despatched hundreds of colony fleets into the void. Many perished in the terrible Warp Storms that engulfed the galaxy at that time before the birth of the Chaos God Slaanesh, but others survived or made their way forward at sublight speeds in realspace. Those who did founded new Forge Worlds in the name of the Machine God and built on them a likeness of the great manufactorums and temples of their distant homeworld. These Forge Worlds also forged new empires for the Mechanicus among the feudal Knight Worlds and added their unique combat walkers, the Knights, to the Mechanicus' own powerful arsenal.The onset of the Age of Strife brought an end to the glory and peace of the ancient interstellar human domain. Across the galaxy, Mankind suddenly turned upon itself as a new breed of Warp-attuned psykers emerged and Warp Storms engulfed the galaxy, rendering interstellar travel and communication dangerous to the point of impossibility. Civil war engulfed thousands of human worlds, even the twin human homeworlds of Terra and Mars.Many warring factions vied for power on Mars and waged a brutal civil conflict using arcane and unimaginably destructive weaponry, including psychic abilities. The carefully constructed atmosphere of Mars was burned away, and once more the rusty surface of the planet was exposed to the deadly radiations of the Sun. The terraformed Martian environment, which had teemed with Terran life for centuries, was rendered a barren crimson desert again. The Martian combatants now fought in the same blood-hued wastelands that the first human colonists from Terra had found millennia before. Much of the Martian population retreated underground, as any who were not equipped with a radiation and life support suit could not long survive on the Red Planet's harsh surface.In time, one faction emerged dominant over all the others that had contended for dominion over Mars -- the Cult of the Machine God, the Mechanicum. Believing deeply in a strange theology which held that the expression of the universe's divinity, the Omnissiah, was embodied in advanced technology and machines, the Cult Mechanicum established its rule over the Red Planet and erected massive new manufactorums and hive cities across the world, divided into different city-states known as forges or forge cities. Each forge was ruled by a high-ranking Tech-priest, and the entirety of the Mechanicum's hierarchy bowed to the high priest known as the Fabricator-General.For millennia the Mechanicum ruled over Mars, sending out colony expeditions to spread its faith and its way of life across the galaxy, which led to the founding of the first Forge Worlds. Mars also made war upon the divided techno-barbarian states that ruled Terra at this time, as many of these ignorant savages had access to advanced technologies left over from the Age of Technology that they did not understand or know how to venerate properly. This innate hostility between Mars and Terra lasted for centuries until in the late 30th Millennium, following his victory in the Unification Wars on Terra, the Emperor of Mankind came to Mars and landed atop the great volcano of Olympus Mons.At their first sight of the Master of Mankind many Tech-priests were overcome with the feeling that they had met the living embodiment of the Omnissiah, the Machine God clad in human form. In return for peace between Terra and Mars, the recognition of the Tech-priests' right to practice their faith and their right to maintain control over both Mars and the other Forge Worlds they had settled, the Mechanicum agreed to build Imperial starships at Mars' Ring of Iron orbital fleet yards and provide all of the war materiel necessary for the Emperor's Great Crusade.In addition, the Mechanicum agreed to be bound by the Emperor's commandment to never develop certain forbidden technologies such as artificial intelligence. Though the Mechanicum had no knowledge of it, it was artificial intelligence that had nearly destroyed humanity once before during the rebellion of the Men of Iron in the Dark Age of Technology and the Emperor was determined not to repeat history. With the signing of this agreement, known as the Treaty of Mars or the Treaty of Olympus Mons within the Mechanicum, the Cult Mechanicum became the Adeptus Mechanicus of the new-forged Imperium of Man, and the Imperial Aquila was refashioned to bear two heads, one for Terra and one for Mars.Yet the terms of this agreement did not sit well with some within the hierarchy of the Mechanicum. A minority of Tech-adepts believed that the Emperor was not the Omnissiah, for the Machine God that the Mechanicus had always worshipped actually lay sleeping deep beneath the crust of Mars in the Noctis Labyrinthus. These Tech-priests particularly chafed at the end of Mars' political independence and the imposition of the Emperor's restrictions upon what technologies the Tech-priests of the Mechanicum could research and develop. As the Great Crusade progressed into the early 31st Millennium, these simmering discontents would ultimately cleave the Mechanicum just as it would the wider Imperium.During the Horus Heresy many Mechanicum units declared for the Warmaster Horus and fought against those of their faith who remained loyal to the Emperor, becoming known in later times as the Dark Mechanicus. These Traitor Mechanicum units initiated a civil war on the Red Planet known as the Schism of Mars that mirrored the larger conflict raging across the galaxy. The Fabricator-General himself sided with the Warmaster, but his deputy, the Fabricator Locum Kane, remained loyal to the Emperor.Horus swayed the Fabricator-General of the time, Kelbor-Hal, to the side of Chaos by promising him a complete STC database from the planet of Drakonis-Three-Eleven and brought the senior Tech-adept in his 63rd Expeditionary Fleet named Regulus over to his side with other STCs recovered from the Imperial conquest of the Auretian Technocracy. Horus promised much else in terms of technological knowledge to the Mechanicum, including the right to develop technologies like artificial intelligence previously forbidden by the Emperor in the Treaty of Mars in return for their allegiance to his cause.Many Master Adepts like Kelbor-Hal longed to pursue these restricted lines of research and had long believed that the Emperor was not the Omnissiah of the Machine God, for the true Machine God dwelled in the Noctis Labyrinthus deep below the crust of Mars. That this legendary creature may actually have been the C'tan shard known as the Void Dragon is a disturbing possibility. |
Adeptus Mechanicus - The Quest for Knowledge: Over the long millennia since its inception, the Cult Mechanicus has been riven, reformed, brought to the brink of catastrophe, and has engaged in conquests that span the galaxy. Calculus Logi labour night and day to catalogue its history, though they disclose it not. Only a handful of events are allowed to reach the annals of Imperial truth: |
Adeptus Mechanicus - M15-M25 The Age of Technology: Although existing accounts of the Age of Technology in the 41st Millennium are incomplete and unreliable, it is generally considered to be a golden era of technological development and interstellar expansion as Mankind first spreads across the galaxy.The development of Warp-Drive, Navigators and Standard Template Construct (STC) database technology herald this new era of discovery. The first of what will later become known as Knight Worlds are established by Long March sublight cononisation vessels during this period. The Human mutants known as psykers first appear in ever-increasing numbers at the end of the period. |
Adeptus Mechanicus - M25-M30 The Age of Strife: The collapse of Mankind's first interstellar civilisation comes with terrifying swiftness. It is difficult to unravel the truth, but tales abound of anarchy, Daemonic possessions, the coming of the Warp-entities known as the Enslavers and the betrayal of Humanity by its own thinking machines in the so-called "Cybernetic Revolt."With the collapse of the Aeldari Empire and birth of the new Chaos God Slaanesh, the galaxy is engulfed by Warp storms that isolate vast swathes of settled space from FTL travel and communications. Those Human civilisations not destroyed outright are cut off from one another at the start of what Imperial historitors will later call the "Age of Strife."Many people, particularly on Old Earth and Mars, come to know this era as "Old Night," and it descends like a shroud over the galaxy. During this time, the Human-settled Knight Worlds fare best among Mankind's colonies, for they eschew psykers and purposefully regress technologically. They grow superstitious and hidebound in their own traditions while they stand alone in a galaxy besieged by evils.Mars Expands and the Founding of the Mechanicum (M25-M30) - The beleaguered people of Mars overcome strife and disaster to reunite beneath the aegis of the newly-established theocracy of the Cult Mechanicus and the governing organisation of the Tech-priests known as the "Mechanicum." The Mechanicum Parliament is established, comprised of senior Tech-priests and magi, to govern the Red Planet. As lulls between the waves of Warp storms allow, the fleets of Mars travel outwards, raiding for lost technology and establishing new colonies of Tech-adepts dedicated to the worship of the Machine God that will grow into new Forge Worlds. With a few exceptions, such travels remain limited in scope and stay within the confines of what will later become known as the Segmentum Solar.Treaty of Mars (712.M30) - The Emperor, fresh from uniting the techno-barbarian tribes of Terra, arrives on Mars. Many of the Tech-priests declare him to be the Omnissiah, the avatar of the Machine God in the physical universe, and so the Emperor forges a successful political and military alliance with Mars. It is the adepts of the Cult Mechanicus that equip the Emperor's Space Marine Legions for the Great Crusade. In recognition of the fact that to achieve His galactic plans, the Emperor needs the technological and scientific aid of the Mechanicum, Mars becomes an ally to Terra rather than her subject, which is cemented by the signing of the Treaty of Olympus Mons, known as the Treaty of Mars on Terra, which also allows the Cult Mechanicus to maintain its religion in contravention of the newborn Imperium of Man's official atheistic doctrine of the Imperial Truth. Of the countless worlds that the Imperium soon claims, only Forge Worlds dedicated to the Cult Mechanicus are esteemed in such a way. |
Adeptus Mechanicus - M30-M31 Dawn of the Imperium: Great Crusade (798.M30-005.M31) - The Emperor leads the massive Great Crusade outwards from Terra, with the purpose of reuniting the hundreds of thousands of lost worlds scattered across the galaxy. At the fore are the Space Marine Legions, supported by the growing Imperial Army. All are equipped by the factories of Mars. No less important are the Skitarii Legions, the Legio Cybernetica, the Legio Titanicus, and the Imperial Knights that join the expedition. Planet after planet is reconquered and offered the same choice -- bow before the Emperor of Terra or be destroyed. On and on the Expeditionary Fleets push outwards. The Tech-priests often refer to this time as the Great Expansion, for hundreds of Knight Worlds are rediscovered during this period alone.Horus Heresy (005-014.M31) - Like all of the branches of the Imperium, the Mechanicum finds itself rife with corruption during the epic civil war known as the Horus Heresy. Many Forge Worlds and Knight Worlds turn from the Emperor. Indeed, the Fabricator-General of Mars, Kelbor-Hal himself, declares his allegiance to Horus, and so begins the Schism of Mars, a bitterly-fought campaign that mirrors those taking place across the galaxy. Skitarii Legions square off against each other while Titan duels Titan. Those of the Cult Mechanicus that turn to the Chaos Gods are forever after known as the Dark Mechanicum. They are hated and feared in equal measure, for they dare to fuse daemons with the Machine Spirits of their war engines, creating twisted things that mock the Machine God and His true laws of order and reason.Birth of the Adeptus Mechanicus (012.M31) - A long-running political deadlock in the Council of Terra back on the throneworld of the Imperium is finally broken, facilitating the formal establishment of the Imperial Adeptus Mechanicus. The Adeptus Mechanicus is recognised as officially separate and distinct from the corrupted Mechanicum of Mars. Fabricator-General Zagreus Kane is appointed its first High Lord of Terra to serve on the council. Final judgement is enacted upon the captive followers of the Traitor Fabricator-General Kelbor-Hal, who are executed in their thousands. Immediately after, the union of Loyalist Titan Orders, under the umbrella of the Adeptus Titanicus or Collegia Titanica, is formed by the Grand Masters of several major Loyalist Titan Legions, although the future of other loyal former Mechanicum divisions such as the Legio Cybernetica and the regular military forces of the Taghmata remains unclear.The Great Scouring (014-021.M31) - Wars of recrimination follow the Horus Heresy. Led by Roboute Guilliman and the Ultramarines, the Imperial forces fight battle after battle, driving the remaining Traitor armies back until they finally flee, seeking refuge in the Eye of Terror. The Knight Houses, their honour tarnished by the vile deeds of fallen Knights, are especially vehement in their pursuit of battles of vengeance. Recognising the need for systemic change, Guilliman creates the Codex Astartes, and tasks Archmagos Dominus Belisarius Cawl with a secret task that will align the fates of the newly-forged Adeptus Mechanicus and the Space Marines for centuries to come. |
Adeptus Mechanicus - M31-M32 Age of Rebirth: The Mechanicum of old is reforged as the Adeptus Mechanicus following Lord Commander of the Imperium Roboute Guilliman's Reformation of the Emperor's realm and the new Fabricator-General of Mars is given a permanent position as a High Lord of Terra. Crippled by His wounds during the final Heresy battles, the Emperor is interred within the Golden Throne, a device so complex that only the Adeptus Mechanicus can hope to maintain its systems.The Shadow War (Unknown Date.M31-Present) - An intense paranoia drives the Cult Mechanicus to bury their secrets deep. When the Inquisitors of Terra's new order take their tithe of data-tapestries, they also unwittingly take the countermeasures that will unravel them. Aware of their mistake but unwilling to admit it, the Inquisition devises purge protocols that engage in an unseen battle with the self-replicating deletion-programs of the Cult Mechanicus. Though this shadow conflict flares up into several planet-wrecking wars before fading, battles between them still rage in secret to this day.The Giridium Experiment (011.M32) - The Cult Mechanicus builds a fortress around the "haunted" caves of Giridium. During the manifestation which occurs every equinox, the disciples of the Omnissiah blast apart rank upon rank of red-skinned daemons. The process is repeated for nine long standard years. Just as the Adeptus Mechanicus are compiling reports and preparing to withdraw, the sky above yawns wide and disgorges a rain of capering, whirling flame-daemons. The ensuing battle rages for solar months, and when a new wave of blood-horrors bursts from the caves at the next equinox, the combined daemonic onslaught sees the personnel of the Cult Mechanicus present slain to a man.A New Breed of Overseer (Unknown Date.M32) - House Taranis begins the practice of sending the Nobles that fail to enmesh properly with their Imperial Knights to the Adeptus Mechanicus. Though unfit for a place in Taranis' Knight armies, each of these cyborg warriors -- known as Psychosis-Neuracanium -- are from primaris-grade Imperial stock, and prove to be excellent raw material for the creation of Skitarii overseers. Similar exchanges between other Knight and Forge Worlds occur across the galaxy. |
Adeptus Mechanicus - M33-M34 The Forging: As the Imperium solidifies its measures of control across key star systems, including the adoption of the Imperial Cult as the official state religion, the Adeptus Mechanicus becomes ever more secretive.The Howling (401.M34) - An Adeptus Mechanicus Explorator fleet clashes with the Cacodominus, an alien cyborg of colossal psychic potential. The horrific creature learns well of Humanity and its agents. Within a standard year it controls the populace of thirteen hundred planetary systems. The resultant heresy is ended by a concerted attack from the Legio Cybernetica and their Black Templar allies. Alas, the Cacodominus' psychic death scream burns out the minds of a billion Astropaths and distorts the signal of the Astronomican itself. Entire sub-sectors slide into barbarism without the light of the Emperor to guide them.The Prophet of Cogs (979.M34) - The long-time rivalry between those Tech-priests who dwell in the north of Mars and those of the Martian south flares up into open war. As the conflict grinds on, both sides are assailed by the feral packs of malfunctioning Servitors and burnt-out war machines that haunt the desert wastes. The war reaches a gory conclusion when the self-proclaimed "Prophet of Cogs" broadcasts a control-chorus that binds millions of long-abandoned machines to his cause. Appalled by the half-living cyberghouls he sets on his foes, both the Martian north and south unite to drive him from the face of the Red Planet. Rumours persist that he haunts the Alpha Centauri System well into the 41st Millennium. |
Adeptus Mechanicus - M35-M36 Nova Terra Interregnum: The Time of the Two Emperors during the Nova Terra Interregnum pits many forces of the Imperium against each other, and all Forge Worlds are asked to declare their allegiance.The Moirae Schism (ca. Early M35) - During the secession of the Segmentum Pacificus during the Nova Terra Interregnum, the rebel Forge World Moirae is destroyed by retaliatory Exterminatus, but not before the Moirae Schism has split the Adeptus Mechanicus in two. The ensuing conflict draws Titan Legions and even those Space Marine Chapters affiliated with the Adeptus Mechanicus into the turmoil. The schism takes a heavy toll on the Adeptus Astartes, resulting in the destruction of dozens of companies and the excommunication of several Iron Hands clans. It takes over two millennia of desperate warfare before the Moirate doctrines are considered fully purged.The Fleet Wars (Unknown Date.M35) - Of all the battles of the Moirae Schism, none are so expansive or long-lasting as the prolonged naval engagement over the nebula space fields of the Gulf of Black Shadows. There, mining wars between rival Forge Worlds escalate to massive fleet battles. It is estimated that the wrecks of over ten thousand voidships -- from mining craft to vessels of war -- float between the gas clouds. Yet the battle is far from over, for within the floating graveyards, salvage crews continue the war for centuries, fighting each other in desperate boarding actions, each side seeking to reclaim valued technology. Entire robot maniples are recovered by opposing sides, and reprogrammed to attack their former controllers. |
Adeptus Mechanicus - M36 The Age of Apostasy: A new age of dissent washes over the Imperium. A growing distrust separates the Adeptus Mechanicus from the Adeptus Ministorum, with each side conspiring against the other. Few records of their internecine battles are ever recorded by the Adeptus Administratum, but each side keeps their own secret tally.The War of Recovery (104.M36) - Twelve Knightly houses are led by the Adeptus Mechanicus into the Mortuam Chain system. The campaign lasts over a standard century and many human worlds are freed from xenos rule. The interfering Aeldari are defeated when their own weapons are turned against them. Much ancient technology is rediscovered by the great quest. The fact that one of the conquered worlds had already been converted into a Shrine World by missionaries from the Ecclesiarchy is hastily covered up by furtive Tech-priests, who speak only of the triumphant return to Mars of several first-generation STC databases.The Xenarite Schism (335.M36) - The Forge World of Stygies VIII comes under attack from dozens of Deathwatch Kill-teams when news of the Xenarites' dabblings with alien technology reaches the Ordo Xenos. The Adeptus Mechanicus are forced to employ radical measures in order to survive the ensuing purges. |
Adeptus Mechanicus - M37-M40 The Age of Redemption: The Imperial Cult gains political momentum, and countless crusades are launched. As the Space Marines and Imperial Guard are drawn into more and more campaigns, the Adeptus Mechanicus conserve their strength, focusing on their own expeditionary fleets, as well as their manufacturing duties to supply the Imperial war machine.Missing from Imperial Records (Unknown Date.M37) - Fearful of the growing record of violations against its Tech-priests, the Forge World of Stygies VIII uses viral programming, machine canticles, and infiltration methods to destroy or alter the documentation of the Adeptus Administratum and even the datastacks of the Inquisition itself. Self-perpetuating programs ensure the obfuscation is continuous.The Occlusiad (550-560.M37) - The northwestern fringe of the galaxy is ravaged by the Apostles of the Blind King. Rogue Tech-priests who view Humanity as an affront to the Machine God, the Apostles uncover artefacts lost in the Dark Age of Technology that allow the creation of supernovae from the hearts of living suns. Constellations are forever changed as the Apostles purge the outer sectors of the Segmentum Obscurus. War rages for a solar decade as thousands of heretical macroclades and robotic Cohorts Cybernetica exterminate all human life from world after world with chilling efficiency. The tide turns only when Navigator Joyre Macran discovers the palace-warship of the Blind King hidden in a fold of Warpspace. Macran guides the Emperor-class Battleship Dominus Astra to the palace's location and the Blind King is slain. Without his prescience, the Apostles are overcome -- not least due to the efforts of Mars itself and the founding of the heroic Dark Hunters Chapter of Astartes.The Telok Expedition (383.M38) - The Radical Magos Vettius Telok leads a foray into the void beyond the Halo Stars in search of the fabled artefact known as the "Breath of the Gods." His expedition is reported lost with all knowledge.The Shadow of Silica Animus (Unknown Date.M38) - Proof is found of dangerous experiments being conducted by rogue cults within the Mechanicus. As the creation of complex and intelligent artificial minds is strictly outlawed, a search-and-destroy inquest begins that probes every single Forge World for signs of the forbidden technology.War of the Golden Cog (Unknown Date.M39) - The Fabricator-General of Mars claims ownership of the riches of the Fortress of the Soulless, lair of the Culexus Temple. A disastrous civil war between Mars and Terra is averted by a sniper's bullet, but the artefact known as the Golden Cog is left in Skitarii hands.Fires of Conscience (Unknown Date.M39) - The rogue Tech-priest Veriliad, after leading his Skitarii to a stomach-churning victory during the Cremation of Alcadia Secundus, knowingly destroys the STC for Phosphex Weapons. |
Adeptus Mechanicus - M40 The Waning: With Imperial armies stretched thin across countless campaigns, the Imperium becomes ripe for invasion. Xenos and Chaos attacks increase tenfold, occurring with alarming frequency all across the galaxy.Crushing the Mecha-WAAAGH! (Unknown Date.M40) - Led by House Raven, five different Knightly houses, along with no less than a dozen Freeblades, halt the mechanised hordes of WAAAGH! Gluttok. Across several star systems, the Imperial Knights are able to counter the Battlewagons and looted tanks employed by the wily Gluttok. It is on the factory planet of Blastoom that the Warboss' Stompa Mob is at last brought to final battle. Leading his Exalted Court into the thick of the fighting, Grevan, the Iron Duke, smashes into the wall of Ork walkers and uses his Reaper Chainsword to rip apart Gluttok's Stompa. The Stompa's head can still be seen, for it was taken for display and remains at the Keep Inviolate.Graia Assailed (Unknown Date.M40) - When attempting Warp travel with its "Graian Crown," Forge World Graia is assaulted by Necrons and nearly destroyed.The Forbidden Runes (Unknown Date.M40) - After the disastrous Battle of Elixia, Skitarii survivors are sent to extract the runic inscriptions upon the ancient standing stones of Grave's End. In doing so, they open a long-forgotten gate into the Warp. Elixia is consumed by a daemonic invasion, its remaining populace eliminated by a necessary Exterminatus within the solar week.The Reality Cage (743.M40) - The Tech-priests of Venatoria create cagefields of pure law and reason that magnify the material dimension's inherent resistance to the energies of the Warp. Forbidden to test the resultant technology in realspace, the Tech-priests lead an invasion fleet into the Ocularis Terribilis -- the Eye of Terror. Three Venatorians make it back alive to their Forge World. They devote the rest of their careers to the creation of a "reality bomb" that they believe will seal the Eye of Terror forever more. Sadly, their test run, staged upon the yawning Warp rift known only as the Maelstrom, ends in disaster. |
Adeptus Mechanicus - M41-M42 The Time of Ending and Era Indomitus: As the galaxy darkens, new threats arise all across it.The Exhubris Portal (029.M41) - The rune-sealed portals upon the world of Exhubris II's grand archipelago are hidden within a landscape of leech-infested pyramids, but the Stygian Cult Mechanicus makes it their mission to open them. The excavation is well under way when a large force of Eldar from Craftworld Ulthwé arrive without warning to assail the Cult Mechanicus work teams. Stygies VIII requests aid from a nearby Martian fleet. So determined is their defence that the reinforcements have time to make planetfall in great number, and the Eldar ground forces are hammered to ruin. The runic portal is broken open, and Tech-priests from both Stygies and Mars enter the lambent labyrinth beyond.Gothic War (139-160.M41) - The Gothic War, also called the 12th Black Crusade, was a vast military campaign against the Imperium of Man launched by the Warmaster of Chaos Abaddon the Despoiler of the Black Legion in 139.M41 which lasted until 160.M41. The conflict consisted of hundreds of planetary invasions and naval battles within the Gothic Sector and only ended when Abaddon was forced to retreat to the Immaterium with the arrival of Imperial reinforcements. It saw the destruction of several planets and four of the six known Blackstone Fortresses, as well as the deaths of billions of Imperial citizens.The Baited Beast (173.M41) - The Cult Mechanicus deliberately triggers WAAAGH! Kragga in the tightly-held Urdeshi System. Though the WAAAGH! boils out of control planetside, the Imperial Navy keeps it contained to Urdesh and its neighbouring worlds. The Tech-priests greedily harness every screed of information; so much data is gathered their overheating archives have to be relocated to the cool of Urdesh’s underground catacombs. Eventually the greenskins are methodically exterminated clan by clan. The next three centuries are spent cleansing and rebuilding the Urdeshi System. In the process, the invaluable data-catacombs are filled with rockcrete to form foundations for a grenade manufactorum.The Macharian Conquests (392-399.M41) - Led by Mars, Graia and Gryphonne IV, many Forge Worlds send armies to aid the massive crusade of Lord Commander Solar Macharius, the Imperium's greatest Astra Militarum commander of all time and a recognised tactical and strategic genius on a par with the primarchs themselves. This Imperial Crusade took place on the far western edge of the galaxy within the Segmentum Pacificus, reaching as far as the border of the galaxy with intergalactic space and even reaching into the unknown regions of the Halo Zone. The furthest extent of this crusade reached just beyond the edge of the Segmentum Pacificus, where not even the blessed light of the Astronomican could penetrate the dark void.The Death of Tyran (745.M41) - A terrible new foe looms from the void. On the far reaches of the Eastern Fringe, the Adeptus Mechanicus research station of Tyran Primus comes under attack. Despite a stalwart defence by Skitarii cohorts and an entire regiment of Astra Militarum, the planet is conquered and its biomass devoured. Magos Varnak compiles a data-codex that reveals the dread truth of the planet's last few solar hours and fires it into space before triggering the outpost's runes of ending. The Tyranids enter the galaxy.Rain of Fire (Unknown Date.M41) - After the Battle of Macragge, a splinter fleet of Hive Fleet Behemoth winds its way into the Skitarii-held Daugel Helix. Using the knowledge recovered from the Tyran data-codex, the Skitarii fight back. The cohort commander Alpha 9-Thyrrc tuns the tide by saturating a stratum of the atmosphere with gas from the planet's Promethium refineries. After his Onager Dunecrawlers' neutron lasers set the skies aflame, each new rain of Tyranid Mycetic Spores incinerates those xenos planetside instead of reinforcing them. A triumphalist data-codex is compiled and sent to the nearby Forge World of Accatran, where it is swiftly filed away in the Archive Anomalis and forgotten.The War of Neotech (Unknown Date.M41) - The T'au settlers of Vesh'yo find themselves fighting for their lives against three Skitarii Legions. The ancient weapons of the Adeptus Mechanicus are pitted against he clean, cutting-edge technology of the T'au Empire. Many additional Skitarii reinforcements are deployed before victory is finally secured. Six star freighters full of T'au war materiel find their way back to the Forge World of Tigrus.WAAAGH! Grax (Unknown Date.M41) - The brutal juggernaut of WAAAGH! Grax terrorises the star systems near Ryza. Legions of Skitarii counterattack alongside Catachans and liberated human slaves. Word of the intense fighting attracts WAAAGH! Rarguts, which breaks through the Imperial Navy cordon to invade Ryza for the third time since the conflict began. The fate of a string of Imperial star systems hinges upon the Forge World at their heart.The Curse Entropic (865.M41) - A Chaos Warfleet of Iron Warriors and Daemon Engines unleashes a destructive machine curse upon Cypra Mundi. Soon the Forge World runs with rivers of molten metal, its surface dotted with a million burnt-out machines. Just as all seems lost, the Cult Mechanicus coordinate a psalmic banishment that lifts the curse, leaving the Chaos Space Marines bereft of their daemon allies. The planet is cleansed within a solar week.The Caverns of Calth (979.M41) - Rumours circulate of a unique Tyranid bioform unearthed from the ice of Calth's polar crust. Magos Locard leads an Explorator army into the Realm of Ultramar, delving deep under the planet's cold skin within solar minutes of planetfall. The Torsion Cannons of hundreds of Battle Servitors grind a path towards unsanctioned life signs in Calth's ancient tunnel networks. They do not find the legendary Carnifex they were expecting, but nest upon nest of burrowing, serpentine horrors. A desperate subterranean battle breaks out in the darkness, and Magos Locard is forced to leave empty-handed.To Punish the Usurper (983.M41) - Upon the lodestone world of Knuthor, a nation of feral humans worships their Ork slavers as prophets of the primitive deity King Thug. When the nearby Forge World of Graia learns one of the Ork Roks is built around a fabled Ark Mechanicus, it sends forth its legions on a priority intercept. Within a standard year of the travesty coming to light, both xenos and human alike have been scoured from the planet, and the salvaged pieces of the Ark Mechanicus borne reverently back to Graia.The Unknowable (Unknown Date.M41) - Skitarii from Stygies VIII are sent to the diluvian-class world of Magogue when the planet's industry dries up its oceans to reveal Necrontyr architecture. The Skitarii fight valiantly against the Necrons of the awakening tomb complexes, allowing the planet's islander people to evacuate. Only the commanding Tech-priests, hunting for knowledge behind the lines, escape the ensuing carnage. However, in doing so they clash with Trazyn the Infinite. One by one the Tech-priests are collected in stasis fields and displayed as part of a monument to Magogue's fall.The Omnitask Blashemy (988.M41)Scouring of Johan's Eden (992.M41) - An ancient data-cache is unearthed upon the Jungle World of Johan's Eden. The Cult Mechanicus descends, only to find the planet's modest populace slain by Necron Canoptek constructs. Several Mechanicus war congregations launch a simultaneous attack. Eight standard years of war follow before the Cult Mechanicus recovers the data-cache. Three intact STC database files are recovered as a result -- one for self-heating cookpots, one for parchment autoquills, and one for stable flux-core bolt rounds that can melt ceramite as if it were wax.Tyrannic Wars (992.M41 and 997-999.M41) - The Tyranid invasion wreaks havoc across scores of Forge Worlds, with several, including the powerhouse of Gryphonne IV, utterly destroyed by the ravenous xenos.Return to Abheilüng (674.999.M41)Ultimate Power (ca. 900s.M41) - Clues to the location of the Omnicopaeia are uncovered upon Hell's Teeth, a Daemon World on the edge of the Maelstrom. The Omnicopaeia, an arcane device that contains every STC with a psychic component, is of immeasurable value. Many billions of Skitarii are dispatched to Hell's Teeth with all haste. The entire Adeptus Mechanicus across every Forge World takes notice -- should the legendary Omnicopaeia be found, they will finally have a way to control, precipitate and even weaponise Humanity's psychic dawn.Desperate Measures (986.999.M41) - The Tech-priest custodians at work in the Imperial Palace uncover irrevocable failures in the mechanisms of the Golden Throne. A dozen contingency expeditions are immediately launched, including a Xanthite war procession of the Inquisition sent through the Exhubris Portal into the Webway. The Xanthites fight through Harlequin troupes and daemon hordes alike before reaching their intended destination. In the grave-cold oubliettes of the Haemonculi beneath the Dark Eldar city of Commorragh, a sinister bargain is struck...Fall of Cadia (995.999.M41) - The 13th Black Crusade devastates much of the Cadian Sector and spreads disaster across the whole of Segmentum Obscurus. Despite heroic fighting, Cadia falls. Many refugees from the numerous campaigns find temporary safety on the Forge Worlds of Agripinaa and Stygies VIII, where their numbers help repel the Chaos attacks that soon follow. The loss of dozens of Titans, fleets, robots, and entire armies is a devastating and irreplaceable blow. In the wake of the disaster, the High Lords of Terra themselves decree that all Forge Worlds are to increase production by any means necessary.A Primarch Awakens (ca. 999.M41) - In news that ripples across a galaxy riven by war and splintering with Warp disasters, the Ultramarines Primarch Roboute Guilliman is awakened. Although xenos are rumoured to be involved, the Adeptus Mechanicus claim sole responsibility for the deed that brings back the Avenging Son.Great Rift Opens (ca. 999.M41) - Warp Storms of a magnitude not seen since the Age of Strife wrack the galaxy. Every Forge World is cut off from its Explorator fleets and, for a time, from each other. All suffer invasions and raids as emboldened xenos and Chaos forces test them, probing for weaknesses, eager to destroy the bastions of Mankind's empire. No fewer than seven Forge Worlds are destroyed altogether and several more remain missing, buried beneath fierce and impenetrable storms.The Secrets of Cawl (ca. 999.M41) - Upon the orders of Primarch Roboute Guilliman, now the lord commander of the Imperium and the Imperial Regent, Archmagos Dominus Belisarius Cawl begins to unlock the secret vaults and awaken from stasis the many armies of the Primaris Project. An entire new Founding of Space Marines is born.Storm of Metal (ca. 999.M41) - All across the Imperium after the birth of the Great Rift, primary Mechanicus holdings -- from mining colonies to Knight Worlds to Forge Worlds -- found themselves under attack from Necrons. The massive influx of Chaos energies had triggered anti-Warp protocols in every Necron Tomb World, and things that had lain dormant for aeons stir once more. The infamous Technomandrites of Magistrakh, struck down by the ruling Necrontyr Silent King eons before, returned. Panic rose amongst the Tech-priests, for they were already besieged from without, and the Necron threat was coming from within.The Indomitus Crusade (ca. 999.M41-111.M42) - The initial blackness that blanketed the galaxy after the Great Rift was torn open finally lifts. In the aftermath of the Noctis Aeterna, many Imperial Crusades are launched. Although there were several successful campaigns, none could claim more triumphs than the Indomitus Crusade. From Terra, Roboute Guilliman mustered a coalition. In addition to Archmagos Belisarius Cawl, Mars sent many Skitarii Legions, maniples of the Legio Cybernetica and several lances of Knights from House Taranis. Over a dozen other Forge Worlds send supporting fleets as the expedition crosses the galaxy, and many Knight Worlds prove eager to join -- none more so than the vengeful House Krast. The Crusade's many victories bring a glimmer of hope to the darkened Imperium. However, once Guilliman leaves, returning to aid Ultramar during the Plague Wars, the remaining forces splinter, the campaign losing impetus as factions return to protect their own homeworlds.Duels Without Honour (Unknown Date.M42) - The fallen Knights of House Black, not seen since they escaped into the Eye of Terror during the Great Crusade, return. The fell Knights are seen across hundreds of battlefields, appearing as if from nowhere to ambush the forces of the Imperial Knights.War of Slime and Metal (Unknown Date.M42) - Metalica is besieged by the Plaguehosts of Nurgle, the 3rd and 7th Plague Companies of the Death Guard, Renegade Chaos Space Marines, the corrupted Titans of Legio Morbus, and no fewer than seven fallen Knight houses. Only the arrival of the entire House Raven staves off defeat, and only with the aid of a war fleet from Deimos is the attack finally broken and the daemons banished.The Adeptus Mechanicus Unleashed (Unknown Date.M42) - With the Imperium reeling from the disastrous effects of the Great Rift, Mars commands all Forge Worlds to ramp up production to unprecedented levels. They churn through raw materials and servitors as never before, and vast armadas are launched to strip entire star systems of resources. The forges must be fed at impossible rates in order to supply the endless war materiel required.Rust Fields War Begins (Unknown Date.M42) - To fuel their factories, a coalition of Forge Worlds led by Mars and Graia sends mining fleets to exploit the vast belt of asteroids known as the Rust Fields.Although its interior has never been explored, its exterior is incredibly rich in all manner of metals, minerals and promethium seas -- a tumbling horizon of asteroids that stretches across three sectors. Soon after operations are begun, however, it is discovered that Greenskin tribes rule the interior of the Rust Fields. So begins a great war that draws in untold numbers of additional Imperial forces as the Adeptus Mechanicus fights to retain its foothold.Bane of the Forge Worlds (Unknown Date.M42) - Although there are many theories, none understands the reason for the Necron attacks upon Forge World territories as well as Archmagos Belisarius Cawl. Both sides are seeking deposits of the strange material -- blackstone -- from which the Cadian Pylons were fashioned, and many Adeptus Mechanicus strongholds have been erected upon sites containing this precious resource. Cawl sends his own agents -- armies of Mars and House Taranis -- across the stars in an effort to combat the growing danger, and hundreds of battles are fought as more and more Forge Worlds are drawn into the conflict to aid their beleaguered brethren. Even those Tech-priests that begin to understand the reality of the dire situation are loath to call upon their Imperial allies for fear of being branded Hereteks.Plague Wars (ca. 111.M42) - At the urgent call of Roboute Guilliman, over a dozen Forge Worlds, including Mars, Ryza, Metalica, and Triplex Phall, send reinforcements to Ultramar. There they aid the Avenging Son's armies in defence and counterattack against Chaos Renegades and the Death Guard. |
Adeptus Mechanicus - Pre-Heresy Mechanicum Forge World Hierarchy: The following is an exemplary illustration of the military-feudal organisational structure depicted in the abstract of a trans-Martian Forge World, as rendered by the Office of the Principia Militaris of the Great Crusade early in the first decade of the 31st Millennium.Archmagos Intendant (Planetary Governor) - An Archmagos Intendant was given equal rank to an Imperial Commander and Planetary Governor, with full executive, temporal and spiritual power over their domains, with notional fealty only to Mars and the Emperor. Note that various alternative nomenclatures for this title are used on different Forge Worlds (e.g., Hierophant Technis (Ryza), Gnostarch (Antioch Majoris), Fabricator Potentate (Tigrus), Vox-Omnis (Incaladion), Revered-Comptroller (Phaeton Prime).The Holy Synod of the Lord Magos (Ruling Feudal-Clerical Oligarchy of the Forge World) - Each member of the synod is a magnate and sub-ruler of their own domain or forge-fane, as well as a high-ranking priest of the Cult Mechanicus, tied to the larger web of the Forge World through a complex network of alliances, preference, arcane technological specialty and religious rank.Notional Synod seniority by title in order of power:The Archmandriture (Chamber Cardinal)The ArchmagosThe Magos MajorisThe Magos OrdinaryNotable Divisions of Techno-Arcana among the Synod commonly included:HespherstariProvenderExploratorGenetorLogisVulpaxisMetallurgicusLictanexDominusCordantorMhalagraAlchemysMyrmidexLachrimallusThe Taghmata Omnissiah - The Taghmata Omnissiah was a military command protocol enacted in times of war or to create a detached military formation varying in size from sub-division to macro battle group, constructed by predetermined configurations of retainer troops, Tech-priests, war engines and support systems, placed under the command of a number of Magi of the Synod and commanded by Magi/Archmagi designated "Prime".The Legio Cybernetica - Sacred orders of Tech-priests devolved into cohorts charged with the construction and use of Battle-automata, existing both as fully independent structures and sub-factions owing either pacts of mutual support or alliance with the Synods of major Forge Worlds.The Magos Militant/Secutarius - Lower ranked Magi as well as assigned Tech-priests and prelates of militant sub-cults of the Mechanicum utilised by the Taghmata as a field command and control cadre. Each will commonly possess their own acolytes, retainer forces and sub-units owing them direct fealty.Principal Tactical Divisions of the TaghmataAssociated Orders & Sub-Cults Militant - Composition will vary greatly depending on the Taghmata disposition, role and the tendencies and alliances of the governing Forge World Myrmidon Cult, etc:LacyraemaraIndentured Labour UnitsAdseculatis Modified TroopsBio-Alchem CadresTech-priest Lacyraemarta CovenantsCyber-Hybrid CarnivoraMunitoria Logis - Provender of Munitions and Wargear, Servitor and Drone Cohorts. Assigned to Taghmata service.Signatus AvoxLexmachanicus AuditoriiMacrotechniaEnginseer CovenantsTech-thrall Combat UnitsMacro-MachinaOrdinatus LocumTechnographica DeterminusBonded CyberneticaBattle-AutomataSiege-AutomataBonded Tech-priest CovenantsThe AutokratorGround ArmourPioneer ForcesMobile Artillery UnitsTech-Guard RegimentsThe Knight Houses of the Questoris Familia - The ruling noble houses of the Knight Worlds form their own unique culture and traditions from their own unique culture and traditions which have become closely linked with the Mechanicum over time. Households often deploy alongside the Legio Titanicus in support.The Basilikon Astra - The division of the Machine God's servants tasked with the construction, use and operation of void craft and interstellar vessels. This order's divisions by their nature control the outer reaches of a Forge World's systems and so stand apart from the planetary synods, but are still tied to them by dependence and ancient tradition.The Skitarius (Tech-Guard) - Ancient standing armies of elite cybernetically and genetically engineered troops, originating on Mars and principally loyal to the office of the Fabricator-General. The Skitarii, also known as the Mechanicum Protectors, are not members of the priesthood, but follow their own unique martial traditions and sub-cult of the Omnissiah. Skitarii regiments maintain entirely separate structures of organisation and tactical deployment outside of the Taghmata and are assigned at the behest of the Lords of Mars.The Prefecture Magisterium - Doctrinal covenant of the Machine Cult charged with preserving dogma and the persecution of techno-heresy. Magisterium Cohorts and hunter-killer claves are maintained on all Forge Worlds under the authority of the Archmagos Intendant.The Legio Titanicus - The division of the Titan Legions, the Princeps and Moderatii of the Legio Titanicus are charged with the baleful right and onerous duty of mastering and maintaining the God-Machines that are the avatars of the Omnissiah's destructive wrath. The manifold Titan Legions are spread through the Omnissiah's domains as their shield and their strength, as well as operating as the hammer of the Great Crusade. The Legio Titanicus form an ancient military society existing in parallel with the Mechanicum priesthood, including their own support structure, domains and military retainers (Scutarii).The Ordo Reductor - Mendicant order of Tech-priests devoted to the art of siege craft, demolition and mass destruction. The Ordo Reductor is essentially nomadic, gravitating to areas of intense warfare, but maintains links to major Forge Worlds for resupply and support. |
Adeptus Mechanicus - Post-Heresy Adeptus Mechanicus Forge World Hierarchy: Fabricator GeneralFabricator LocumPriests of the Cult MechanicusLegiones Skitarii - The naming convention presented below is that used by Mars and most of its brother forge worlds; some style their armies the "Divsion Skitarii" and group their cohorts into regiments instead.Macroclade 1 - (Known variously as Prima Macroclade, Macroclade Primus, ect.) A forge world's first macroclade traditionally garrisons its Titan Legions and/or Ordinatus Engines.Macroclade 2Macroclade 3Macroclade 4War Cohort 1 - Each War Cohort is identified by a cohort numeral displayed on the hull of their Onager Dunecrawler vehicles.War Cohort 2War Cohort 3War Cohort 4Battle Maniple Delta - The typical Skitarii maniple is the combined arms Battle Maniple, but specialist cohorts, maniples and clades can be arranged as needed: Infiltration Clades, Armoured Cohorts, Assault Maniples, Anti-aircraft Cohorts, Anti-tank Cohorts, and son on. Units in a Battle Maniple are identified by a common maniple sigil, usually displayed next to squad and vehicles identification numbers. Other formations are identified by combinations of glyphs and sigils on the bodywork of their war machines.Skitarii RangersSkitarii VanguardSicarian InfiltratorsSicarian RuststalkersIronstrider CavalryOnager DunecrawlersBattle Maniple EpsilonBattle Maniple Omega |
Adeptus Mechanicus - The Cult Mechanicus: The Cult Mechanicus believes knowledge to be the manifestation of divinity, and holds that anything embodying or containing knowledge is holy because of it. The supreme object of devotion is therefore the omniscient Machine God (also known as the Deus Mechanicus or, in its embodied form as the God-Emperor, the Omnissiah), an eminent and omnipotent spirit governing all machinery and knowledge in the universe. Generally, this deity is held to be an aspect of the God-Emperor (or, most commonly within the Cult itself, both are held to be aspects or faces of the same divine being). The Omnissiah is believed to be friendly to humanity, and to be the originator of all human technological and scientific knowledge. Subservient to the Omnissiah are the pantheistic Machine Spirits, who are believed to inhabit all machinery and which must be appeased before a piece of technology is used or repaired, lest the machinery fail.It should be noted that the Void Dragon, one of the C'tan Star Gods who are the true masters of the Necrons, is supposedly hidden somewhere beneath the surface of Mars. This could be what the Adeptus Mechanicus actually worship as the Machine God. The existence of the C'tan beneath Mars is a highly classified secret of the Imperium. |
Adeptus Mechanicus - The Quest for Knowledge: The ultimate goal of the Cult Mechanicus is to understand and fully comprehend the glory of the Omnissiah. The communal and personal attempt at this form of enlightenment is known as the Quest for Knowledge. The Cult believes that all knowledge already exists in the universe, and it is primarily a matter of time before it can be gathered together to complete the Quest.The Cult is therefore disinclined to perform most basic scientific research and development. Despite this, some original scientific research does continue on Mars and the other Forge Worlds of the Imperium, enough to keep Imperial technology advancing steadily, if extremely slowly. The faith of the Cult is defined by a series of sixteen precepts, known as the Sixteen Universal Laws, which have been divided into two sets of eight precepts known collectively as the Mysteries and the Warnings, which are listed below. |
Adeptus Mechanicus - The Mysteries of the Cult Mechanicus: Life is directed motion.The spirit is the spark of life.Sentience is the ability to learn the value of knowledge.Intellect is the understanding of knowledge.Sentience is the basest form of Intellect.Understanding is the True Path to Comprehension.Comprehension is the key to all things.The Omnissiah knows all, comprehends all. |
Adeptus Mechanicus - The Warnings of the Cult Mechanicus: The alien mechanism is a perversion of the True Path.The soul is the conscience of sentience.A soul can be bestowed only by the Omnissiah.The Soulless sentience (i.e. Necrons) is the enemy of all.The knowledge of the ancients stands beyond question.The Machine Spirit guards the knowledge of the Ancients.Flesh is fallible, but ritual honours the Machine Spirit.To break with ritual is to break with faith. |
Adeptus Mechanicus - The Adeptus Mechanicus At Present: Despite the never-ending thirst for knowledge of all branches of the order, most Tech-priests of the Adeptus Mechanicus have lost the ability to innovate. No longer the master of its creations, the Cult Mechanicus is enslaved to the past.It maintains the glories of yesteryear with rite, dogma and edict instead of true discernment and comprehension. Even the theoretically simple process of activating an engine is preceded by the application of ritual oils, the burning of sacred resins and the chanting of long and complex hymns.Should mechanisms break down, as they often do in service to the Adeptus Mechanicus' war effort, a replacement must be found, or knowledge of how to repair the existing one must be learned. Across the galaxy, thousands upon thousands of Mechanicus armies and fleets are already searching, guided by a database begun before the birth of the Imperium. Once found, such items and knowledge are confiscated at all costs in the name of the Adeptus Mechanicus. |
Adeptus Mechanicus - Factions: There are numerous religious factions within the Adeptus Mechanicus, including the Khamrians, who pursue the forbidden science of artificial, or "abominable" intelligence which has been forbidden since the catastrophe caused by the Iron Men who attacked humanity during the Dark Age of Technology; the Omnissiads, who seek to summon the Machine God into a physical avatar other than the Emperor; and the Organicists, who see biological enhancement using genetic engineering as equal to the more common cybernetic enhancements for which the Tech-priests of the Mechanicus are best known. Some of these sects are accepted as legitimate interpretations of the Omnissiah's will, others are persecuted by the broader Cult Mechanicus and the Inquisition as Heretics.The portion of the ancient Mechanicum that split off to serve Chaos and the Heretic Astartes Traitor Legions during the Horus Heresy is called the Dark Mechanicum. These Chaos-worshiping Magi seek to combine the power of the Warp with that of the Machine God in the name of the Ruinous Powers, who they view to be the true expression of the Machine God since they offer knowledge that the Emperor forbids and place no restriction on the pursuit of any line of inquiry.The Dark Mechanicum is also responsible for constructing the majority of the war-machines for the Chaos Space Marines. Such creations include the Stalk Tanks of the Blood Pact, the Hell Talon fighter-bombers and the gargantuan Harbinger bomber recently deployed by the Forces of Chaos. It is also believed that some Dark Mechanicum Adepts have split into the Chaos faction known as the Obliterators. |
Adeptus Mechanicus - Tech-priests: Any member of the Cult Mechanicus over the rank of Menial will often be referred to generally as a "Tech-priest," though Magi and higher ranks are usually referred to by their rank. Tech-priests can usually be recognised by their clothing, which unless their work requires otherwise will be robes of rust-red or black colouration, and by their cybernetic nature.Some Tech-priests also carry a large wrench-like tool, that doubles as an ax-headed close-combat weapon, adorned with Adeptus Mechanicus imagery upon the head. The amount of cybernetic augmentation found in a Tech-priest is highly dependent on his or her rank within the Cult Mechanicus.A novice may have only one or two augmetic systems, if any, while very senior members may have only a few biological organs left in their bodies. Common cybernetic augmentations for Tech-priests include:Bionic limbs and organs, which may replace the originals because of an accident or simply because they provide enhanced capabilities or cater to the special needs the Tech-priest may face in their chosen work or scientific research.Bionic eyes, which allow a Tech-priest to see beyond the normal spectrum of human vision, augment or alter electromagnetic input to allow night vision or heat vision, and zoom in to magnify an image.Mechadendrites, bionic tentacles that attach to the spine to afford the Tech-priest greater mobility, greater lifting and manipulation capabilities, an easy neural interface with most other forms of technology and, in many cases, a handy weapon in a fight. These powerful devices are usually customised to suit the work needs of their wearer and can therefore include special features like medical equipment, maintenance tools or weapons. Larger Mechadendrites can often extrude a monomolecular blade or fire projectiles in combat or simply be used as a blunt instrument. A Cortical Implant is also usually required for the Tech-priest to be able to effectively control the additional limbs.Autosanguination, a process by which all the natural blood in a human body is removed and replaced with a more efficient oxygen and waste-carrying synthetic chemical substitute, allowing for the easier healing of wounds and more effective immunological defence against disease and toxins.Cortex Implants, which vary in function from simple memory circuit implants in the neurocortex intended to improve memory function to slim micro-cogitators that provide full computing abilities. Many senior Tech-priests use smaller implants of this type to preserve their mind and memories from the ravishes of time, and to lessen their dependence on fragile flesh. Cortex Implants of good quality are very rare and hard to produce, but provide the wearer eidetic memory and heighten their intelligence and ability to consume and correlate large amounts of data. Among the oldest Tech-priests only a few portions of the original brain tissue remain. The use of Cortex Implants is probably the primary reason why senior Tech-priests live far longer than the rest of the Imperial elite.Electoos, metal circuits embedded in the epidermic skin of Tech-priests to allow them to consciously channel the bioelectricity generated by their own bodies. These can be used in combat, or to revive a recalcitrant Machine Spirit. Those who specialise in the use of these and become essentially a living electricity generator are known as Electro-priests or "Luminen".Electro-grafts, which are similar to Electoos in that they are electric circuits embedded in the epidermic layer of the skin, but are distinct in their purpose. Electro-grafts serve as an interface for the Tech-priest with electronic machinery, particularly sources of digital data like Cogitators (computers). Given the right data-sources, a Tech-priest with electro-grafts can acquire many skills and much specialist knowledge instantly. One example of this are the pilots from the planet Glavia who have electro-grafts in the skin of their hands to enable them to interface with their starships with much greater efficiency.Vox-casters and voice-synthesizers, which often replace the normal speech organs of more senior Tech-priests. The quality of the synthesized voice is highly variable, from stilted and unnatural mechanical voices only as good as or worse than twenty-first century voice synthesizer standards to voices that sound almost entirely natural. The Tech-priests themselves generally do not seem to care what they sound like as long as they are understood. The main benefit of a Vox-caster appears to be that it allows the priest to communicate in what is termed "Binary". Essentially, Binary consists of bursts of coded noise with a twittering quality that can be used as an extremely effective cant known only to other members of the Adeptus Mechanicus (even the Inquisition cannot translate it) or it can be used as a means of datafile transfer.More uncommon but still occasionally seen Mechanicus cybernetic augmentations include the:Mind Impulse Unit (MIU) - The MIU is a direct neural link between a human brain and a larger piece of external machinery allowing control by thought alone as if the machinery was a part of the human's body. These are most commonly found in massive pieces of technology such as Titans, Knights and starships, and very rarely in a normal Tech-priest. Some rare Tech-priests may use an MIU to control a shoulder-mounted weapon or similar device.Binary Cortex - The Binary Cortex is created during an operation in which the brains of two Tech-priests are joined in one body. Usually used only when two Tech-priests study the same subject and otherwise align very well in their thinking.Rite of Pure Thought - The Rite of Pure Thought is an operation which replaces the human brain's creative, emotional right half with a digital Cogitator (computer). This frees the Tech-priest of any remaining human emotion, basically turning him into a work-obsessed sociopath. However, this procedure is considered somewhat extreme even among the usually unsentimental Tech-priests. |
Adeptus Mechanicus - Electoos: Every one of the Omnissiah's worshippers is fitted with a personal electoo. Taking the form of subcutaneous circuitry, some of these devices are little more than small identifier-plates and information wafers that can only be accessed when illuminated by senior Tech-priests. Others are far more advanced. The electoo networks the brotherhoods of the Electro-priests implant beneath their skin are so extensive they cover the entire nervous system, their bio-electric pulses potent enough to send out bursts of scorching power known as a "voltagheist" field that intercept incoming projectiles. Through devices such as these, the manna of the Machine God can visit Fabricator-General and lowly Skitarii warrior alike. Even Servitors and robots are blessed with their own form of electoo, as much to brand them as the property of their masters as for the religious rapture they can bring.Through these electoos, the disciples of the Adeptus Mechanicus can channel the electric majesty of the Omnissiah. So are the faithful bounteously rewarded, as they are filled with a glorious ambrosia of data, their floodstreams thrilling with each new pulse of the sweet nectar of pure information. In times of battle, an entire procession can have their electoos remotely set to respond to the same canticles and invocations. In doing so, the leaders of the Cult Mechanicus ensure that every member of their cybernetic congregation is simultaneously filled with the divine ability to destroy its foes in spectacular fashion -- be it with blasts of living lightning, piston-driven fists, or the blinding light of the Omnissiah's truth. |
Adeptus Mechanicus - Hierarchy of the Adeptus Mechanicus: The following is an example illustration of the organisational structure of the Adeptus Mechanicus in the modern 41st Millennium:OmnissiahHigh Lords of TerraAdeptus TerraAdeptus MechanicusAdeptus MinistorumCult Mechanicus - Disciples of the Machine GodCenturio Ordinatus - Engines of the OmnissiahCollegia Titanica - God-Machines of the Titan LegionsAuxilia Myrmidon - Savants of WarLegiones Skitarii - Warriors of the Machine GodLegio Cybernetica - The Host RoboticOrdo Reductor - Bringers of Blessed Ruin |
Adeptus Mechanicus - Holy Orders of the Cult Mechanicus: The term "Tech-priest" covers thousands of different roles within the ranks of the Adeptus Mechanicus which are divided into several distinct holy orders. These include the following: |
Adeptus Mechanicus - Magi: Magi (sing. Magos) of all stripes are senior Tech-priests with advanced specialisations in various disciplines of science and technology who pursue esoteric agendas as likely to end in triumph as they are disaster.Prime HermeticonLord DogmaMechae MoribundusInvictus AcquisitorGerontocraftData-Predator |
Adeptus Mechanicus - Genetors: Genetors probe the mysteries of the biological, creating ever stranger cyborgs or slaughtering xenos beyond number in order to excise yet more secrets of their alien metabolisms.Magos BiologisArch-chymistGrand ParasiteMetasurgeonCorpus IlluminatorGenetor Extremis |
Adeptus Mechanicus - Logi: A Logis (plu. Logi) is an analyst, statistician, and logistician whose purpose is to predict future trends and make forecasts about Mechanicus expenditures and needs. Because of their duties Logi are often regarded as prophetic figures within the Adeptus Mechanicus.Lexico ArcanusBibliophiliacHyper-rationalistMonitor MalevolusInfo-executionerBiocogitatus |
Adeptus Mechanicus - Artisans: Artisans create and restore truly wondrous weapons of war, from ornate Gamma Pistols to the mind-boggling immensity of the Ark Mechanicus. Also known as constructors, they design machines, buildings, spacecraft, weapons, and military hardware. They often oversee activity on Forge Worlds and control vast labor forces of Servitors.[1]Forge LordMechasapientPraetor ElectroidCybersmithTechnoarcheologistNecromechanic |
Adeptus Mechanicus - Rank Structure: The Cult Mechanicus is ordered by a strong hierarchy, but details on this hierarchy's actual make-up are not always clear. Generally, more highly positioned Tech-priests are expected to have more seniority and knowledge than lower ones, and are consequently more theologically important as greater repositories of knowledge.Across the galaxy Transmechanics, Lexmechanics, Enginseers, Secutors, Cognitors, Trifactors, Myrmidons, Technoshamans, and more labour alongside the wider Imperium to bolster humanity's war machine.Within the Adeptus Mechanicus the ranks become even more esoteric. A tentative mapping of this hierarchy, in order from highest to lowest, will follow below. It should be noted that specialists such as Genetors and Logis may not have any specific rank within the Cult as a group, but rather will be ranked as individuals.Each Forge World is led by a Fabricator-General or other Archmagos with a similar rank but different title, and beneath them their Fabricator Locum. Each Fabricator Locum can call upon Magi Technicus, Metallurgicus, Alchemys, Cogitatrices, Pedanticum, Tech-assassins, hive monitors and Holy Requisitioners, who in turn can command a body of fabricators minoris, Fulgurites, Corpuscarii, overseers, underseers, stasis clerks, and techno-dervishes. Each sub-division within every facet of the order is split into dozens of ranks.The Adeptus Mechanicus hierarchy (from highest-ranked to lowest-ranked) is as follows:Fabricator-GeneralMagosLogisGenetorArtisanElectro-priestEnginseerTransmechanicLexmechanicRunepriestMenialsServitorsThe Adeptus Mechanicus also recognises the following specialist ranks, which stand outside the standard hierarchy of the Cult Mechanicus and usually serve a related military role for the Mechanicus or its allies amongst the other Imperial Adepta.Amongst the most learned of Magi are those rare individuals who are considered tech-savants, a genius at the forefront of whatever field to which they turn their minds. Even amongst the ranks of the Adeptus Mechanicus -- where artificial devices increase brain capacity and extend life beyond measure -- such an accumulation of knowledge in multiple disciplines is exceedingly rare.The Priesthood of Mars titles such beings as "Prime Conduits of the Omnissiah," or as Dominatus Dominus -- Master of Masters. On a Forge World, to avoid confusion during war, the most senior of the Tech-priests adopts the title of "Tech-priest Dominus" to lead the planet's military effort.Titan crews and Space Marine Techmarines are listed last not because of their actual position within the hierarchy, but because of their relative separation from the rest of the Cult Mechanicus:Dominatus DominusTech-priest DominusCollegia Titanicus PrincepsModeratusTactical OfficerTechmarineSkitarii |
Adeptus Mechanicus - Fabricator General: The Fabricator-General of Mars is the highest-ranking individual within the Cult Mechanicus (in his capacity as the Magos Mechanicus), and administers not only the Adeptus Mechanicus but also governs the planet of Mars itself as the recognised Imperial Planetary Governor.The Fabricator-General of Mars is the de facto leader of the Cult Mechanicus, and as befits his position, is awarded a permanent seat on the council that runs the Imperium, known as the Senatorum Imperialis or the High Lords of Terra.Rulers of individual Forge Worlds are referred to as "Fabricator-Generals" as well, but only the Fabricator-General of Mars holds a seat amongst the High Lords of Terra, representing himself or herself as the leader of the Mechanicus as a whole. |
Adeptus Mechanicus - Fabricator Locum: The Fabricator Locum is the second highest-ranking individual on the planet of Mars. The Fabricator Locum assists the Fabricator General with the governance of Mars, including the meeting of production quotas and ensuring the correct devotions to the Machine God are observed at all times.The most notable Fabricator Locum was Kane who sided with the Emperor of Mankind during the Horus Heresy and thus maintained at least some crucial Mechanicus support for the Loyalists.The position of Fabricator Locum, like that of Fabricator General, also refers generally to the second-highest-ranking Mechanicus official on any Forge World. |
Adeptus Mechanicus - Magos: A Magos is a master of a technological or scientific discipline, having devoted many Terran years of service to the Omnissiah in that area of study. There are many specialist divisions within the Adeptus Mechanicus known as Divisiones.Magi from these are given a rank containing the specialisation of their Divisio, such as Magos Alchemys, Magos Biologis, Magos Technicus, Magos Logis, Magos Xenologis, Magos Lexmechanicus, Magos Orbologis, Magos Cybernetica, Magos Xenobiologis, Magos Astrologicus, Magos Digitalis, Magos Fabricator, Magos Genetus, Magos Physic, and possibly many more.There are two higher ranks within the Divisiones that are variations of the Magos, including Archmagos and Archmagos Veneratus. It is not known what the specific connotations of these titles are, though presumably they are indicative of greater seniority and experience.Magos Dominus: A Magos Dominus (fem: Magos Domina), known also as a Tech-priest Dominus, is a senior Tech-priest of the Adeptus Mechanicus who commands the Mechanicus' military forces and seek to advance military technology. The Magi of the Priesthood of Mars are the masters of much of what remains of the vast and potent military secrets of the Dark Age of Technology, particularly the ancient technology of combat robots, the Battle-Automata. To them the pursuit and preservation of the arcane mysteries of science and circuit are of far greater worth than petty wealth, worldly power or the lives of their fellow men. A Tech-priest Dominus may live for many standard centuries or even millennia, prolonging their life through arcane science and progressive cybernetic conversion, willingly becoming something other than human as they seek to fulfil the Omnissiah's will. The offices and titles of the Tech-priests are shifting and complex. Such is their authority that many senior Tech-priests adjust their ranks at will, in times of war adopting that of Tech-priest Dominus.Magos Explorator: Obsessed with the quest for knowledge, the senior Tech-priests who take on the mantle of a Magos Explorator search high and low across the galaxy for lost STC databases and ancient human scientific and technical knowledge lost during the Age of Strife. A breed apart from regular Tech-priests, any Explorator or member of his team will willingly walk into forgotten catacombs, even at the risk of death, for mere snippets of long-forgotten knowledge from the Dark Age of Technology. Many Magos Explorator command the Explorator fleets that continue to push outward the frontiers of the Imperium or even serve alongside Rogue Traders.Magos Errant: Something of a jack of all trades, a Magos Errant studies several scientific and engineering disciplines, including chemistry, genetics, metallurgy and more. They are then attached to Rogue Trader fleets and other similar Imperial expeditions by treaty between the Adeptus Mechanicus and the individual Rogue Trader houses or the Imperium itself if the expedition is sponsored by the Adeptus Administratum. In return for the Adeptus Mechanicus' expertise in technical maintenance and science, the Magos Errant is allowed to study interesting sites the expedition comes near, transport sensitive materials and generally make use of the expedition's resources for the greater good of the Machine God.Magos Juris: Magos Juris are those rare Tech-priests who choose to devote their minds to the study of the Machine God's will rather than the knowledge it embodies, removing themselves from the Quest for Knowledge in order to preserve it from the abuses of the heathen masses of Mankind. Amongst their colleagues on the Calixis Sector's Forge Worlds, these individuals are sometimes known as Magos Juris. They relentlessly pursue those who would commit tech-heresy or steal the secrets of the Adeptus Mechanicus. These Magos hunt down those who would employ unsanctioned technology or, even worse, operate technology without the blessing and oversight of the Adeptus Mechanicus. Magos Juris will go so far as to even take Mechanicus voidships into the depths of the Koronus Expanse to hunt down their foes. Worse still are those who smuggle technology, attempting to keep it from its rightful guardians. The fate of such men, when they are caught, is a grim one, for they are condemned to spend a far-expanded lifetime toiling without mind or will as a Servitor aboard the ship of the Magos that judged them, their minds obliterated and their bodies repurposed to serve the Machine God that they blasphemed against. There are many Explorator Tech-priests who speculate that the Magos Juris are, in fact, the agents of a secret order within the Adeptus Mechanicus known as the Lords Dragon. This ancient and powerful cabal is composed of specially-altered Archmagos said to exist deep within the secret inner circles of Mechanicus politics on the Calixian Forge Worlds known as the Lathes. Their task: to police the Mechanicus from within. However, little evidence can be found that proves the Lords Dragon exist at all, and that these Magos Juris do not simply operate on their own. |
Adeptus Mechanicus - Logis: The accountants and mathematicians of the Mechanicus, the Logis are statisticians, analysts, actuaries and logisticians. They indirectly control a Forge World's resources.They can accurately predict almost anything with very small margins of error, making them extremely useful to anyone with an artillery piece or seeking to determine interstellar trade flows.Considered prophetic by some, the Logis are also very good at predicting future trends and forecasts and so they are often tasked by the Mechanicus with aiding the bureaucrats of the Administratum. Their dispassionate analysis is given great weight in decision making. |
Adeptus Mechanicus - Genetor: Essentially geneticists, a Genetor is a Mechanicus scholar who studies all matters genetic and biological. Sometimes referred to as a "Magos Biologis," Genetors number alongside the Logis, Artisan and Magos ranks of the Adeptus Mechanicus as members of its ruling Priesthood, possessing access to knowledge and resources far beyond that of the lesser Enginseers and Lexmechanics.A Genetor's field of study makes them distinct from the majority of Tech-priests, their professional obsession with organic life often making them seem strange to their more mechanically-inclined brethren. Their interest in the organic not only pertains to the human form, but to the study of xenos life as well.The study of alien genetics, intended to better understand them and thus how to better slay them, falls to a sub-sect of Genetors collectively known as the "Xenobiologists."Genetors are typically found accompanying Imperial or Rogue Trader expeditions to new or rediscovered worlds so that they can sample previously unknown species' DNA for its potential utility. Genetors also introduce common Imperial animals to a new colonial ecosystem, such as the Grox, a large reptilian animal that serves as a common food source on many Imperial worlds. |
Adeptus Mechanicus - Artisan: Artisans are exactly what the name implies; they build and design pieces of technology for various purposes, from agriculture to war -- they are essentially the Adeptus Mechanicus' Corps of Engineers.Usually found with an entourage of Servitors, these Adepts command labour forces that could rival small armies in size. They are responsible for controlling the vast labour force of Servitors employed by the Adeptus Mechanicus for all of their labour needs on any given Forge World. |
Adeptus Mechanicus - Electro-priest: Electro-priests are techno-zealots devoted to the Cult Mechanicus, particularly the mysteries of energy, its flow through conductive bodies and the motivating spark, the sacred "Motive Force," it provides to Machine Spirits. They are known to be outfitted with a huge number of electoos.Electro-priests support other Tech-priests in battle. The most fanatical Electro-priests are heavily cybernetically modified to permit them to generate electrical energy within their own bodies, transforming them into living fonts of crackling power, destroying everything they touch before collapsing from the strain. |
Adeptus Mechanicus - Enginseers: Enginseers are the technicians of the Cult Mechanicus, specially trained in maintaining and repairing machines. They are often seconded to the Astra Militarum in order to maintain and repair the armoured vehicles used by the Imperial Guard's regiments.Although most Guardsmen revere their vehicles enough not to risk annoying an Enginseer through "tinkering," some unique vehicles have been created from spare parts in time of need -- much to the chagrin of the Enginseers present.Among their fellow Tech-priests, Enginseers are afforded little respect, as their labours do not normally contribute to the Quest for Knowledge because they only maintain existing machines instead of building or discovering new technologies.Rather, they are viewed as lowly but essential cogs in the great machine that is the Cult Mechanicus. Most Enginseers have Mechadendrites attached to their back in order to facilitate their repair work. |
Adeptus Mechanicus - Transmechanic: Transmechanics are technicians or service engineers who specialise in dealing with communications technology.By the nature of their speciality, Transmechanics are often called upon to serve in other Imperial organisations for extended periods of time, and often spend their entire existence aboard Imperial Navy vessels or on Imperial Guard bastion-worlds. |
Adeptus Mechanicus - Lexmechanic: Also known as "Calculus Logi," Lexmechanics are the librarians and scribes of the Mechanicus. Their purpose is to compile and rationalise data so it can be entered into a central Cogitator repository.They can work with a computer's speed and accuracy, assembling battlefield reports, economic statistics, planetary reports, and so forth. Like Transmechanics, Lexmechanics are commonly assigned duties outside the Adeptus Mechanicus assisting the other organs of the Adeptus Terra. |
Adeptus Mechanicus - Rune Priest: The Rune Priest's role is to inscribe runes and chant liturgies over machines as part of the Cult Mechanicus ritual of initiation.They are trained in the most arcane branches of scientific lore such as intuitive mechanics, speculation, and improvisation. Rune Priests are famous for their lateral thinking, which may be called upon when strict logic and standard procedures fail. |
Adeptus Mechanicus - Menials: As their name suggests, Menials are the menial and unaugmented human labourers of the Mechanicus, used primarily for unskilled labour too complex for Servitors to economically perform.The billions of Menials are not considered true Tech-priests, but are usually indoctrinated with the beliefs of the Cult Mechanicus in a simplified form. Skitarii and, to some extent, new Tech-priests are often recruited from the ranks of the Menials on Mars and the other Forge Worlds. |
Adeptus Mechanicus - Servitors: Servitors are mindless slave cyborgs, designed and programmed to perform menial, rudimentary or dangerous tasks for the Mechanicus and other elements of the Imperium like the Astra Militarum or even the Space Marine Chapters. There exists an endless variety of Servitors, from heavy mining Servitors to battlefield Gun-Servitors and elite Praetorian Servitors.A Servitor's biological components are obtained either by growing genetically-engineered human bodies artificially in culture vats, or by using the lobotomised bodies of condemned Imperial criminals or failed prospective Space Marines -- all are subsequently augmented with mechanical limbs, computer uplink jacks and whatever electronic accessories are deemed necessary to facilitate their ordained tasks.As they cannot think for themselves since their higher brain functions have all been disabled, they are essentially nothing more than partially-organic robots which use a portion of a human brain as their central processing unit. Some Servitors can be installed with combat programs which enable them to function as unswervingly loyal bodyguards.On battlefields, they often form part of the retinues of Tech-priests, Techmarines and Inquisitors. These are seen as Gun-Servitors, bearing heavy weaponry; Combat-Servitors, armed with close-quarters combat equipment; and Technical Servitors, which are intended to perform repairs and construction duties instead of fighting.Particularly large and heavily armed and armoured Servitors are referred to as Praetorian Servitors. Towering over even a Space Marine, Praetorian Servitors are created either from cybernetically-enhanced vat-grown genetically engineered giants or lobotomised Ogryns. |
Adeptus Mechanicus - Battle Congregation: The war-processions of the Cult Mechanicus are thronged with living weapons, each eager to give vent to their lethal wrath. Such a gathering is a daunting sight, for it boasts a riot of cybernetic anatomies, and the monotonous cant that emanates from it plays upon the nerves like talons drawn down glass.To witness an army of Tech-priests marching to war is to share the vision of an insane prophet. And yet beneath the curling incense and the grotesquerie of nightmarish anatomies, there is a structure that spans from one Forge World to the next.The Tech-priest Dominus that commands each Cult Mechanicus congregation will typically call upon a body of Kataphron Battle Servitors to protect him. Though these living artillery pieces are potent indeed, they are easily replaced and can be mustered in the thousands if necessary.All Forge Worlds create these half-machine war constructs on a daily basis, their biohangars stacked with rank upon rank of dormant Kataphron Servitors awaiting the binharic command to awaken. Their survival is of little import, and the Tech-priests will expend them with no more thought than a Space Marine would expend a clip of Bolter shells.The same cannot be said of the Legio Cybernetica, for its automaton warriors are ancient and blessed in the Omnissiah's sight. When the use of these machines is sanctioned, they will usually be deployed en masse, organised into cohorts each consisting of four full-strength maniples.Wherever these relics of Humanity's past march to war, they attract great numbers of the faithful, amongst them the fabled Electro-priests. These lightning-shrouded holy men trail after sacred machines in the manner of pilgrims and mendicants following the reliquaries of an Ecclesiarchal saint.Theirs is the Motive Force, the third part of the Machine God's trinity, who gives the faithful the power they need to smite the unbeliever. In times of war these priests will raise a great chorus of praise to the Omnissiah, their weapons buzzing with murderous energy.Such is the genius of the Cult Mechanicus' forefathers that their traditional war-psalms contain binharic strings of program and protocol. Each is sonically coded to enhance the Cult Mechanicus' warriors. Every Servitor, robot and priest has within him a subcutaneous electoo circuit that thrills with the glory of the Machine God, bolstering their strength when battle rages all around.The Tech-priests put the resultant boost in efficacy down to the inspiring effects of faith, forgetting that each syllable contains enough binharic cant to rouse even the basest Servitor to a murderous wrath. Truly it is said that praise to the Machine God lends the faithful might enough to prevail; those that witness the electric rapture of a Cult Mechanicus procession in full flow are lucky to survive. |
Adeptus Mechanicus - Skitarii: The Skitarii are the cybernetic infantry forces of the Adeptus Mechanicus. Skitarii regiments that go to war alongside the Mechanicus' Titans are equipped with various esoteric weapons of war. Part man and part machine, most Skitarii are cybernetically-linked to their personal weapon for increased performance.Skitarii are born into service either as natural-born human Menials of the Mechanicus who are cybernetically enhanced or in some cases as clones or vat-born humans who are cybernetically enhanced from the moment of their accelerated "birth."Skitarii train with their weapon until they are of the age to be sent to a war zone. To guarantee their undying loyalty to the Mechanicus they usually undergo various forms of psychosurgery to wipe their minds of both emotion and personality.The Skitarii do not simply crush their foes, but instead pitilessly blast them into bloody chunks of flesh. Even as they do so they record every tiny screed of battle data for later analysis. Just as the Skitarii exload the martial capabilities of the foe to their masters, the Tech-priests inload their own programs into the Skitarii.It is usual practice for a legion's overseer Tech-priests to monitor each battle from a scryer-ship high above. Floating in a sea of data, each Adept sends battlefield commands down via data-tethers to the Skitarii on the planet below.In this way their soldiers can be remotely augmented, used as eyepieces, forced into suicidal engagements, or even possessed entirely. The ever-devout Skitarii see these incidents as the divine spirit of the Omnissiah entering them and acting through them to the betterment of the Imperium. To the Tech-priests, their minions are little more than electric puppets jerking upon strings of pre-programmed impulse.The Skitarii Legions do not fight alone, for they escort the vast goliaths of the Centurio Ordinatus to war, and even march in the shadow of the god-machines of the Titan Legions. It is the Skitarii that bolster the battle robots of the Legio Cybernetica and they who act as bodyguards for Tech-priests brave enough to take the field.Skitarii are often also referred to as the Mechanicus' "Tech-Guard." Some Mechanicus factions recycle the organic portions of the bodies of dead Servitors and Skitarii as raw material for the formation of new vat-grown Servitors or Skitarii. The Crimson Guard rival any of the armed forces within the Calixis Sector. |
Adeptus Mechanicus - Secutarii: The Secutarii Titan Guard were created as the honour guard and protectors of the Titan Legions, developed in the lost and ancient days long before the Imperium. For while a Battle Titan might shatter a mighty fortress or blast a tank company to ruin, it is the role of the Secutarii to eradicate such threats its survivors might still pose as the Titans press on to more important targets, and to hunt down and slay those who seek to flee from the Machine God's wrath.Secutarii Hoplites go into battle armed with Arc Lances and Mag-inverter shields, weapons that enable them to hunt war machines and vehicles that would threaten their charges. Akin to the arc mauls of the Skitarii Clade officers, and the far larger of the mighty Cerastus Knight-Lancers, the arc lance inflicts damage through short range blasts of coruscating energy that can burn through xeno technology and render mute the machine spirit of even the most heavily armoured vehicle.Mag-inverter shields provide the copious power needed by arc lances, and resists blows which would otherwise slay its bearer instantly through utilising a powerful and sophisticated inversion generator at the shield's core.Their counterparts, the Secutarii Peltasts, seek targets of flesh and bone that would attempt harm on the great god-machines of the Collegia Titanicus. Armed with a Galvanic-caster, the Secutarii Peltasts are equipped for all manner of targets.This electro-galvanically driven, multi-function projectile launcher has multiple firing modes that may fire rapid bursts of low velocity, razor-edged metallic flechettes; attack concealed targets with retina-burning ignis charges; fire an armour-piercing inert slug-shot at supersonic velocities; or even fire a barrage of blind canister shot to confuse and disorientate the enemy. |
Adeptus Mechanicus - Classiarii: The Skitarii forces of the Adeptus Mechanicus take a variety of forms. On warships and Explorator vessels operating within the Koronus Expanse and the Calixis Sector, specially-programmed Skitarii are a necessity, for they serve as the members of boarding parties, security personnel and bodyguards where other forms of Skitarii would be impractical.Within the Mechanicus territories of the Calixis Sector, these warriors are known as Classiarii, a term of obscure meaning within the ancient traditions of the Calixian Mechanicus, believed to mean "mariners."Nigh-impervious to vacuum, fitted with thick, implanted armour, and equipped with an array of implanted weaponry designed for void combat and combat in the cramped enclosures of a starship, a Classiarius trooper is literally built for ship-to-ship combat. |
Adeptus Mechanicus - Venatorii: The Venatorii were created in the wake of the War of Brass that devastated the Skitarii Legions of the Lathe Worlds, leaving entire Forge Worlds of the Calixis Sector with virtually no troops left.The reigning High Fabricator started a discreet rearmament drive throughout the Calixian Forge Worlds. The more military minded Tech-priests were moved into position to help replenish the fighting ranks.It took many Terran years to bring this grand plan together, but once everything was in place, the High Fabricator found himself with a new force consisting of some of the best-trained and best-equipped troops in the Calixis Sector.Dubbed the Venatorii, the new hunters were a force that was to remain separate to the recovering Skitarii forces of the sector and act as the true elite of the Lathes. With their unique organisation and frightening red armour, the few outside of Mechanicus circles who were aware of their existence soon began to call them the Crimson Guard. |
Adeptus Mechanicus - Techmarines: Techmarines (or Fraters Astrotechnicus as they are known to the Mechanicus) are chosen from the ranks of the Space Marine Chapters for their technological aptitude. After being inducted into their Chapter they are sent to Mars for many standard years of training, and when they come back, they serve the same role with their Chapter as an Enginseer does with the Astra Militarum, maintaining and repairing their Chapter's weapons, equipment, vehicles and space vessels.Although they are not officially part of the Adeptus Mechanicus, they are considered "honorary members" of the Mechanicus by both their Chapter and the Adeptus Mechanicus itself. Their Power Armour is modified to accommodate their cybernetic enhancements and their armour's back packs are upgraded with several servo arms or Mechadendrites.Their armour is painted the rust red of the Adeptus Mechanicus, but their Chapter badge is retained and displayed on one of their shoulder plates, so as not to anger the Power Armour's Machine Spirit. Techmarines are able to wear full servo harnesses, which are huge harnesses armed with servo arms, Plasma Cutters, and Flamers.They are commonly accompanied by a full retinue of Servitors, including Gun Servitors, Combat Servitors, and Tech Servitors. They bear a Power Axe with the Adeptus Mechanicus Cog Mechanicum sigil on the head, as both a symbol of their office and as a weapon.Iron Fathers - The Iron Hands Space Marine Chapter has closer ties to the Adeptus Mechanicus than is normal for the Adeptus Astartes, and like the Mechanicus their Astartes consider flesh to be weak, while cybernetic implants are more spiritually pure. The Iron Father fulfills the role of a Techmarine, a Chaplain and an officer in an Iron Hands company.Iron Priests - The Iron Priest is the Space Wolves' equivalent of the Techmarine. Iron Priests look after the many technical systems in the Space Wolves' fortress-monastery on the world of Fenris, The Fang. They supervise engineering projects and all the other complex technical tasks undertaken every day. The skills of these grim and taciturn artisans are both respected and feared by their fellow Space Wolves, most of whom view the mechanical and scientific arts as a dark and frighteningly arcane sorcery. |
Adeptus Mechanicus - Adeptus Mechanicus Minoris Ranks: Amongst the standard ranks of the Tech-priests there can be found several minor orders of Tech-adepts who are dedicated to more specialised functions. These Tech-priests are considered to belong to what are known as Minoris ranks within the larger, overall hierarchy of the Cult of the Machine. Some Minoris ranks include: |
Adeptus Mechanicus - Acuitor Mech-Assassin: An Acuitor Mech-Assassin is part of an order of Adeptus Mechanicus, located within the Lathes in the Calixis Sector, that are dedicated to the art of death. They are only answerable to the Magisters Samadhi of their own order, and usually move according to their masters' will without scrutiny. The Acuity Set of the Lathes, less formally called the Mech-Assassins, are trained in the art of stealth, able to move within plain sight amongst the lay folk throughout the sector, hidden from scrutiny beneath heavy red robes.These executioners are pulled from across the Lathes and beyond, and instructed in secret fortresses scattered throughout the Calixis Secotr. Most candidates who are chosen have proven both faithful and capable of using the skills of the Adeptus Mechanicus to deadly effect. Through the mentally recorded data-tracts left by their founder, Magos Samadhi, the Mech-Assassins believe these cogitations guide them to the targets of their wrath and aid them in making short work of those who oppose the Lathes. |
Adeptus Mechanicus - Reclaimator: The most-skilled and certainly least trusted of the Adeptus Mechanicus functionaries are the Reclaimators. It is their task to redeem raw materials from old and damaged systems, to scavenge parts and be tasked with the endless cycle of minor repairs needed to keep a starship flying or a hive's infrastructure from collapsing under its own weight. By necessity, a Reclaimator's skills begin to stray into a higher understanding of machinery and technology than most and many learn to worship the Machine God in a fragmentary and superstitious manner, marking them apart from others of the Mechanicus.Reclaimators themselves are often sent into dangerous or unsafe areas with little direct supervision, and they scavenge and salvage a good deal more than their masters know. As a result, most Reclaimators have a well-deserved reputation as suspicious, shifty characters who sell their skills and the items they retrieve or repair for a good profit on the black market. Many have links to criminal gangs and more than a few are willing to resort to robbery and even murder to build up their spoils if they think they can get away with it. |
Adeptus Mechanicus - Secutor: Some Tech-priests are drawn to the path of the Secutor through a fascination with the unique and intellectual challenges warfare provides, while others feel themselves drawn to the intricacies and beauties of creation and destruction, or the sacred art of weaponsmithing. Others simply see this path as a means to an end, either for the protection of the Machine Cult, the furtherance of their own independent researches, or some other, hidden agenda.Regardless of the reason for their vocation, a Tech-priest skilled in such destructive arts as the Secutor is an invaluable ally for an Inquisitor, and makes for a singularly lethal Acolyte. The only downside to such an association is that the Inquisition can never be fully sure where the Tech-priest Secutor’s loyalties lie -- even more so than others of their kind -- or what ancient and dark secrets they may themselves possess. |
Adeptus Mechanicus - Techsorcist: Created by Magos Eremor in the latter half of the 36th Millennium in response to the reappearance from the Warp of the Space Hulk Fatum Posterus, within the Calixis Sector the Techsorcists have long been on the frontlines whenever heretical technology has been found. Some Forge World Tech-priests develop an interest in analyzing corrupted Machine Spirits. Unusually for Tech-priests, Techsorcists are capable of intuitive thinking, speculation, and improvisation, and are famous for their lateral and often unorthodox process when strict logic and standard procedures fail.This is an invaluable tool for an Inquisitor trying to understand his foe's weaknesses. In the service of the Inquisition, a Techsorcist performs all the typical tasks of a Tech-priest, but has a deeper understanding of how Chaos mutates and adapts technology. Within the Calixis Sector the ranks of Techsorcists have swelled as the demand for trained daemon-hunting Tech-priests has grown. A trained Techsoricist, if not several, are in the employ of nearly every Ordo Malleus Inquisitor in the sector. |
Adeptus Mechanicus - Collegia Titanica: The Collegia Titanica is the division of the Adeptus Mechanicus that commands the Titans -- colossal robotic combat walkers which are the most potent ground weapons capable of being deployed by the Imperium. The Collegia was one of the groups of the Adeptus Mechanicus that went over to the Warmaster Horus Lupercal almost en masse alongside the Legio Cybernetica during the Horus Heresy. The name "Adeptus Titanicus" is also used for the corps of Titans fielded by the Mechanicus.The Collegia is subdivided into organisations called "divisiones," such as the Divisio Militaris, Divisio Mandati, Divisio Telepathica and the Divisio Investigatus. The most important of these divisions is the Divisio Militaris since it actually includes the Battle Titans, and is itself further divided into the Titan Legions or Titan Orders: groupings of Titans such as the Traitor Death's Head Legion, the Fire Wasps Legion or War Griffons Legion. Each Titan Legion is commanded by an officer known as the "grandmaster" who may also be the princeps of the most powerful Titan in the Legion.Each Titan is manned by a crew consisting of a single princeps in command of the Titan, assisted by varying numbers of Moderati, Sensori, Steersmen, Tech-priests, Enginseers, and Servitors. The number of each is dependent on the type of Titan.Princeps - The training of a princeps begins at an early age and ends with eight years at the Collegiate Titanica on Mars. The cadets receive their uniforms and cybernetic MIU implants in the final year, before field-training starts with an attachment to a currently-operating Titan for observational tours. A princeps commands their Titan through an MIU's (Mind Impulse Unit, see above) cybernetic link to the Titan's artificial intelligence or "Machine Spirit", controlling both their crew's actions and the Titan's movements through their thoughts. The Titan becomes an extension of its princeps; when it is damaged, they feel pain, when victorious, they feel elation. This link grows so strong that the princeps' mental health will slowly deteriorate when unlinked from the machine. They can assume direct control of any system, though it is usually aiming and fire control that is taken. In a Warlord or Imperator-class Titan the princeps is sometimes placed in an amniotic casket to provide full sensory immersion in order to control the truly massive Titan without difficulty. Regardless, Titans must have both a princeps and a command crew to function. The princeps' relation to the Titan is similar to that of a Space Marine within a Dreadnought cybernetic shell. However, Titans are capable of eventually developing their own sentient minds from centuries of experience. The cybernetic link in some cases gets so strong that the princeps becomes neurologically integrated with the Titan, and cannot be removed until they die of natural causes. A princeps who commands a Legion of Titans is ranked as a "princeps maximus" or "grandmaster", though an entire Legion of Titans has very rarely been fielded since the Horus Heresy.Moderati (sing. Moderatus) - The moderati are the officers who comprise the command crew of a Titan that take the princeps' orders and act on them, monitoring the Titan's auspices and scanners, firing the weapons and making sure all systems are functioning normally. Although they also have MIU links to the Titan like the princeps, they cannot assume command nor can they interface directly with the princeps' own dominant neural link, instead using their links solely to provide information about the Titan's state in battle.Sensori (sing. Sensorus) - The third-ranking member of the bridge command crew, the sensori is the Titan's Tactical Officer and controls and monitors all the sensory inputs of a Titan, from the aural sensors to the simple visual inputs. It is also their job to spot and acquire targets for the moderati (or princeps) to engage. They also deal with all Titan communications, decrypting or relaying vox messages to the princeps' display screen on their command throne as necessary.Steersman - The fourth member of a Titan's bridge crew, the steersman controls the Titan's stability and is essentially the driver of the Titan. |
Adeptus Mechanicus - Knight Houses: Thousands of standard years before the rise of the Imperium, Mankind reached out to the stars and settled many far away worlds. Among the apparatus of colonisation were formidable war machines known as Imperial Knights, which existed to protect the settlers from any threat. These small combat walkers are one-man versions of a Titan. However, a Knight is smaller and less capable in combat than even the smallest class of true Titan utilised by the Titan Legions, the Warhound-class Scout Titan. Knights normally deploy in squadrons comprised of several of these war machines. These ancient battlesuits stand thirty to forty feet tall, are protected by nearly impenetrable Ion Shields and armed with a devastating array of heavy weapons. Imperial Knights are colossal war machines that tower over the battlefield.The strongholds constructed from the remains of ancient Terran colony starships are ruled by the descendants of the first human settlers of those far-flung worlds, mighty warriors who enter combat in their towering armoured battlesuits and who are sworn to protect and guard the Imperial citizens who inhabit their worlds. The descendants of the early pioneers who settled their respective worlds were found in the knightly houses of the Imperial Knights.Known formally as the Questoris Familia, these dynasties of Imperial nobility evolved from the need to protect the early human settlers of the Knight Worlds from indigenous species discovered on their alien planets. These proud and haughty warriors can trace their bloodlines back to Terra itself and are known as nobles. Over the millennia, the pilots of these massive war suits have established a rich culture, with noble houses each sworn to the defence of their homeworld, and bound by oaths of fealty to the Golden Throne of Terra and the Adeptus Mechanicus of Mars. |
Adeptus Mechanicus - Centurio Ordinatus: The Centurio Ordinatus, a section of the Mechanicus' Divisio Militaris, is the Adeptus Mechanicus organisation responsible for the development, maintenance and operation of the mighty Ordinatus war machines. Every individual Ordinatus is a unique construction and named for the Imperial world on which it was first employed or built.Each Ordinatus is a unique weapon that is designed for a specific purpose or for a particular battle. This explains why the Ordninatii Tech-priests that operate these massive war machines of the Machine God are configured using special augmetics to aid their intended purpose. |
Adeptus Mechanicus - Legio Cybernetica: The Legio Cybernetica is one of the oldest sub-branches of the Adeptus Mechanicus and is responsible for deploying fully autonomous robots for both combat duties and support tasks intended to aid Imperial armed forces in the field. The Legio Cybernetica can trace its lineage the time before the birth of the Imperium of Man when Mars was the capital of an independent interstellar empire ruled by the Tech-priests of the Cult Mechanicus. Its members regard themselves as an elite within the ranks of the Mechanicus, as they have a long history of serving the will of the Emperor of Mankind.However, many of those within the Legio broke faith with the Emperor during the Schism of Mars, siding with the traitorous forces of the Warmaster Horus and fighting alongside his Traitor Legions throughout the Horus Heresy. When this conflict ended, the Traitor cohorts of the Legio Cybernetica fled into the Eye of Terror, where they remain to this day, warped and twisted by their exposure to the power of Chaos.The remaining Loyalist elements of the Legio Cybernetica pledged themselves anew to the Imperium and its members took binding oaths of loyalty more terrible than any taken even by the Astartes. Over the millennia since the Heresy, the Legio Cybernetica has regained the respect and admiration of the rest of the Adeptus Mechanicus as well as the other myriad Adepta of the Imperium. |
Adeptus Mechanicus - Collegiate Extremis: The Collegiate Extremis is the judicial branch of the Adeptus Mechanicus. It is similar to the Adeptus Arbites in function: traitors to the Omnissiah are prosecuted and their crimes analysed. At its head is the Lords Dragon, an ancient cabal orchestrating the Collegiate, perhaps of Archmagi Veneratus of whatever divisiones of the Mechanicus serve in the Collegiate.The main leaders of the Collegiate Extremis would, in theory, be on Mars, and each Forge World would have a Lord Dragon of its own to command the local members of the collegiate, but this is based on circumstantial evidence. The Collegiate's will is enforced on Forge Worlds by attached Skitarii Provosts, as they are known, and the Magos Juris carry out their will across the galaxy. In many ways the Collegiate Extremis serves as the Mechanicus' own internal variant of the Imperial Inquisition. |
Adeptus Mechanicus - Auxilia Myrmidon: Within the Calixis Sector, the undisputed centre of power within the Lathe System is the Auxilia Myrmidon, a seeming sub-organisation of the Skitarii Legions, composed of elite Tech-priests known commonly as the Siege Engineers or the War Savants. This Mechanicus sect exists to study the art of destruction with the ardent fervour that their fellows mighty apply to the creation of machinery or the recovering of lost archeotech.Legend has it they came to the sector during the earliest days of the Angevin Crusade (322-384.M39) for reasons of their own, and have since remained to defend the Cult Mechanicus’ possessions there. Myrmidons are expert killers, weapon masters and destroyers. At the behest of the ruling Archmagos of the Forge Worlds, they are sent to accompany Explorators in investigating finds in the most dangerous sectors of space and retrieve the most hazardous xenos-specimens, whilst others are tasked to hunt down Mechanicus Renegades accused of the foulest techno-heresies and terminate them with extreme prejudice.A Secutor is the first rank in the Auxilia Myrmidon presumably as the standard trooper, and is also the first Adepts Minoris rank in the Divisio Mandati. other members of the sect operate their vehicles as drivers, known as Myrmidons, who also serve in the Ordo Reductor. A platoon leader of a unit of Secutors or Myrmidons is known as a Centurius. A Tribune (commonly known as a lieutenant in the stand Imperial armed forces) commands a century; a Magnus (also known as a captain, and perhaps an Adept Majoris) commands a cohort, with a Colonel-priest having control of a battalion and a Magos Commander in charge of an entire Legion of the Auxilia Myrmidon. |
Adeptus Mechanicus - Divine Light of Sollex: The Auxilia Myrmidon is not the only militant Mechanicus faction in the Calixis Sector, and since the 8th century of the 41st Millennium a highly mystical tech-sect based at the forge facilities on the Death World of Haddrak in the northern rim of the Adrantis Nebula has grown to prominence and increasing power.The Divine Light of Sollex, as they call themselves, are zealots in the Machine God’s cause, as coldly fanatic and savage in their way as any Redemptionist of the Imperial Creed. To them, the preservation of the arcane mysteries of the Machine Cult from those who would misuse them are of far greater worth than petty wealth, worldly power or the lives of their fellow men, or even other members of the Cult Mechanicus. |
Adeptus Mechanicus - Disciples of Thule: The Disciples of Thule are another sect of the Cult of the Machine that operates out of the Calixis Sector. Their overall spiritual leader and guide is the Archmagos Paracelsus Thule. Many centuries old, Thule's fleet, which disappears out beyond the edge of Mankind's domain for solar decades at a time, is vast and many Explorator Adepts and Magos have served under his tutelage over the years, passing on his teachings to their juniors in turn.Thule's instruction centres on identifying pre-Imperial human technologies and sets the goal of finding the relics of Mankind’s glorious past above all other concerns and risks. This lack of caution makes Thule and those following him something of a radical faction within the Cult Mechanicus, but a powerful and influential one in the Calixis Sector.Thule's disciples centre their studies entirely on analysis and investigation, valuing the acquisition of knowledge above all other concerns. They disdain physical confrontation and are often so wrapped up in cogitation they fail to notice what is in front of them. Some Inquisitors appreciate this curiosity in their Tech-priests, finding it preferable to the narrow thinking and conservatism many others of their kind demonstrate, even though curiosity almost always carries its own dangers. |
Adeptus Mechanicus - Ordo Reductor: The Ordo Reductor is a sub-organisation of the Adeptus Mechanicus that developes, manufactures and operates siege weaponry. There is a sizable portion of the Ordo Reductor staffed primarily by Myrmidons of the Auxilia Myrmidon. It is claimed that these Myrmidons are located on the Mechanicus fiefdom in the Calixis Sector known as The Lathes; the Myrmidons are masters of the mysterious Ordo Reductor, and are said to be towering and fearful figures decked out in blood-red and black robes, bearing the forbidden weapons of a bygone age.Even wilder legends speak of this place as the home of mech-assassin covenants and the dread Magister Samadhi -- beings whom most Magos consider no more than a dark myth. Some even speculate that the Panopticon's rulers are members of a secret order known as the Lords Dragon, an ancient and powerful cabal of Archmagos tasked with policing the Mechanicus itself. |
Adeptus Mechanicus - Duties Within the Imperium: Besides scientific research and maintaining the Imperium's machines, there are many important duties that the Adeptus Mechanicus performs in order to keep the Imperium of Man functioning on a day-to-day basis. These include:Caretakers of the Generatorium: The advanced technology of the Imperium requires power and this power is supplied by Generatoriums, large, nuclear fusion-based power plants. The creation and operation of the Generatoriums (power plants) containing the Generatorium are the function of the Adeptus Mechanicus and the information behind their operations and construction are closely guarded from outsiders.Caretakers of the Genetorium: Like the Generatorium, the Genetorium is vital to a planet's survivability. The Genetoriums provide a list of all plants and animals that are either on a planet or will be introduced to the planet to make it habitable by Mankind. A Genetorium is normally run by a Magos Biologis and plays a vital role in the Inquisition's activities. Their duties also extend to searching for genetic impurities in baseline human populations and in the hunting down of dangerous human mutants like rogue psykers.Caretakers of the Librarium: All of the knowledge in the Imperium is stored in the vast Librariums of Terra and Mars. Along with the Administratum, the Tech-priests store, guard, and reproduce what knowledge they can attain. In the Age of the Imperium where stagnation is the rule, knowledge has truly become power.Caretakers of the Manufactorium: As with the Librariums, the Tech-priests administer and protect the manufactoriums of the Forge Worlds that ensure that the Imperium is provided with the goods and machines that ensure its survival.Caretakers of the Astartes: All Space Marine Chapters are expected to pay a tithe of 5% of their gene-seed every year to the Adeptus Mechanicus so that the Mechanicus' Tech-priests can monitor the health of each Chapter and facilitate the Founding of new Chapters from existing gene-seed lines whenever the High Lords of Terra decree that the Imperium has a need for new Chapters of the Adeptus Astartes. |
Adeptus Mechanicus - The Inquisition and the Adeptus Mechanicus: The servants of the Machine God exist as a nigh-autonomous class within the multitude of the Emperor's servants. They consider themselves outside many of the laws that govern most of Humanity, and they openly deny many of the teachings of the Ecclesiarchy.Despite the fact that this vast, ancient and highly secretive organisation appears to openly reject the mores of the Imperium, it is still ubiquitous across the galaxy. The reason for this is that the Imperium simply could not function without the Priesthood of Mars -- all of Mankind's accomplishments would crumble and fall within a generation were the Tech-priests not to maintain them. Without the Mechanicus, no starship would ply the void, no army march to war, no raw material be refined and nothing more than a stone hovel be constructed.The Adeptus Mechanicus can at times prove a divisive organisation, for its members care little for the sensitivities of others. They engage in a faith entirely alien to the followers of the Imperial Creed, speak in a language that bears little resemblance to High Gothic or of any planetary dialect, and appear outlandish, even by the diverse standards of a culture as heterogeneous as the Imperium. Furthermore, the tenets of the Tech-priests' faith revolve around communion with and adoration of the machine, a concept many God-Emperor-fearing people find deeply unsettling, or outright abhorrent.The mission of the Adepts of the Omnissiah is the Quest for Knowledge, the gathering of all of the wisdom lost during the distant Age of Strife. The Tech-priests know that Mankind has forgotten far more of technology than remains intact, and so fight a constant battle to maintain the machines on which so much of Humanity relies.Yet, this is a losing battle, for with each generation understanding gives way to superstition, and it is this inexorable descent to barbarity the servants of the Machine God strive to avert. In their quest to prevent this descent, the Tech-priests delve into long-sealed repositories of lost technology, unearth god-machines long buried beneath the ashes of forgotten battlefields, and decode the ciphers of reality itself.There are plenty within the Inquisition, as well as other Imperial institutions, that believe the Adeptus Mechanicus walks a fine line between duty and damnation, and take it upon themselves to combat a threat they perceive to be as terrible as any posed by alien or daemon.There are uncounted records of confrontation between Inquisitors and members of the Adeptus Mechanicus. To date, such battles have largely been confined to small skirmishes fought between bitter rivals, and have rarely flared up into open conflict between larger numbers of either organisation.Indeed, the Inquisition relies upon the services of the Adeptus Mechanicus as much as any other Imperial organisation, and so great pains are often taken to ensure personal conflict between individual Inquisitors and Tech-priests does not escalate into something more damaging. Despite this, many within the Inquisition resent the autonomous attitudes of the Adeptus Mechanicus, while many Tech-priests begrudge interference from the Inquisition.There are times when an Inquisitor is forced to request the aid of the Adeptus Mechanicus, perhaps in the investigation of a matter so specialised only a Tech-priest has the requisite knowledge and skills. At other times, the Inquisitor may have need of the considerable military forces of the Adeptus Mechanicus, perhaps in the form of the mighty Titan Legions.An individual Inquisitor approaching the Adeptus Mechanicus might have little chance of gaining such aid, but with the help of an individual Tech-priest, may find that doors are opened. For this, and other reasons, many Inquisitors foster mutually beneficial alliances with Tech-priests with whom they have worked in the past, often employing them on their staff of Acolytes.Few within the Adeptus Mechanicus consider themselves oath-bound to such an Inquisitor, for their loyalty ultimately lies with the Omnissiah. Nonetheless, such an alliance can prove highly agreeable to both parties when the mission of the Inquisition and the Adeptus Mechanicus converge. |
Adeptus Ministorum - Adeptus Ministorum: The Adeptus Ministorum, more commonly known as the Ecclesiarchy, is the official state church of the Imperium of Man, which maintains and promotes the worship of the Emperor of Mankind as the one, true god of Humanity.It is a massive organisation that guides the worship of trillions of people on numberless worlds and across great divides of distance, language, and culture. The core of the Ecclesiarchy's spiritual and temporal power is the Cult Imperialis, also known variously as the Imperial Creed or Imperial Cult.The foundation of the Cult Imperialis is the belief in and worship of the Emperor as a divine being, the power of the Emperor to intercede in matters spiritual and temporal, the power of prayer to bring about a change in mortal circumstances through the intercession of the Emperor, and the divine right of Mankind to rule the stars. The Adeptus Ministorum also administers and spreads the Imperial Cult throughout the territory of the Imperium.Though any Imperial religious cult or sect must ultimately adhere to the core theology of the Imperial Creed, the possibility for conflicting interpretation means that in practice the Cult Imperialis is an agglomeration of many differing schools of theological thought. Whilst agreeing in essence, cults and sects across the galaxy often differ on particular tenets of belief or modes of worship. To many the Emperor is a god of war, to others a saviour and bringer of light, and to some a stern judge of the dead.Inevitably, simple differences of emphasis of faith can become points of hostility and even the cause of bloodshed. Many merciless and savage wars have resulted time and again over such fine points of theological doctrine. Although the interpretation of particular dogmas of the Imperial Creed varies across the many worlds of the Imperium, any extreme deviance from its strictures and theology is considered heresy and dealt with great severity by the Ecclesiarchy or, in extreme cases, the Ordo Hereticus of the Imperial Inquisition.The Cult Mechanicus, whilst actually a very different religion from the Imperial Cult, is tolerated by the Ecclesiarchy under the terms of the ancient Treaty of Mars which allowed the Tech-priests of the Red Planet to maintain their faith in the face of the atheistic Imperial Truth. After the Imperium was transformed into essentially a theocracy in the early 32nd Millennium, the Adeptus Mechanicus agreed to a theological compromise with the Ecclesiarchy which saw the Emperor officially as the Omnissiah or physical embodiment of their Machine God. However, rampant distrust between the adherents of both Imperial faiths continues to simmer just beneath the surface and the Ecclesiarchy and the Mechanicus often view each other as political rivals.The Adeptus Ministorum is based on Holy Terra, its urban Ecclesiarchal Palace covering nearly all of the southernmost continent of Antarctica. |
Adeptus Ministorum - Origins: During the Great Crusade, many different religious cults, drawing on the book written by Primarch Lorgar known as the Lectitio Divinitatus that first proclaimed that the Emperor of Mankind was actually the incarnate god of Humanity, first appeared throughout the Imperium of Man, though each had its own subtle variations and differences in basic theology.These forms of worship appeared first on those primitive planets of the Imperium that had regressed technologically during the long, terror-filled years of the Age of Strife. The number of these cults multiplied exponentially following the Emperor's ultimate sacrifice to save Mankind from the rule of the Warmaster Horus and the Dark Gods at the end of the Horus Heresy and His subsequent internment within the Golden Throne.This event was hailed by believers as the Emperor's "ascension" back to full divinity within the Immaterium. Most of these cults would gradually fade away, while others prospered, eventually absorbing the weaker ones. The more successful cults of Emperor-worship spread their forms of worship to other planets.The strongest of all the early Imperial cults of the Lectitio Divinitatus was called the Temple of the Saviour Emperor. This cult had the advantage over the others in that it was based on Terra and that its leader had been a successful and respected officer of the Imperial Army who had fought at the Siege of Terra, defending the heart of the Imperium in its darkest hour.This holy man had re-named himself Fatidicus and had begun to preach his teachings concerning the divinity of the Emperor to anyone who would listen. This faith spread among the members of the reformed Astra Militarum and the Navis Imperialis during the Time of Rebirth who had seen at first hand the horrors of Chaos, but also to lowly scribes and minor adepts of the Adeptus Terra.The faith was then spread by these individuals to other planets. When Fatidicus died at the age of 120 standard Terran years, the Temple had more than a billion followers on Terra and untold faithful throughout the Imperium's Segmentum Solar.In the wake of the chaos and anarchy of the Horus Heresy, the Temple of the Saviour Emperor provided a message of hope and reunification through a common faith. Cults who rejected being absorbed, or who couldn't be absorbed because a wildly different theology, saw themselves being persecuted by fanatical mobs who preferred the Saviour Emperor's increasingly "orthodox" belief system. Officially, the Temple rejected this violence performed in its name, though in fact it unofficially welcomed the elimination of those rival sects it saw as heretical and threats to its own growing political power.This development culminated in the 32nd Millennium by which time almost two-thirds of the Imperium's population followed the teachings of the Temple of the Saviour Emperor, the exceptions being the Adeptus Astartes, as the Space Marines have never formally acknowledged the divinity of the Emperor in a nod to His wishes and the lost Imperial Truth and the Adeptus Mechanicus of Mars, who had their own form of worship in the Cult Mechanicus.The Temple's importance, influence, and power rapidly outmatched that of any other Lectitio Divinitatus cult dedicated to Emperor-worship, including its closest rival, the Confederation of Light. |
Adeptus Ministorum - The Adeptus Ministorum: In the early 32nd Millennium, in recognition of its unprecedented political power over the minds of Humanity, the Temple of the Saviour Emperor was officially recognised by the High Lords of Terra as the state religion of the Imperium of Man. It also became an official adepta of the Imperium's government as the Adeptus Ministorum, wholly separate from the Adeptus Terra.A few centuries later, the Ecclesiarch Veneris II received a seat on the Senatorum Imperialis and joined the ranks of the High Lords of Terra, and after 300 Terran years, this seat was made permanent. The power of the Ecclesiarchy continued to grow, increasing its hold over the minds and beliefs of the Imperial citizenry. Those who wouldn't follow its teachings were declared unbelievers, ostracized, and on occasion even executed.The vast territories of the Imperium were organised into different dioceses led by the Ecclesiarchy's cardinals. These powerful religious and political figures were responsible for the hordes of Imperial missionaries and preachers that were released to tend to the spiritual needs of the faithful on hundreds of worlds.Lavish shrines, impressive temples, and majestic cathedrals dedicated to the God-Emperor were built throughout the Imperium. Millions of religious pilgrims soon began making their way across the galaxy to visit particularly important religious locations, such as the world where a particular Imperial Saint had performed their most famous miracle.In time, the sheer number of pilgrims who arrived on certain worlds became an economic activity in and of itself for the Ecclesiarchy and entire planets were dedicated to worship and directly ruled by the Adeptus Ministorum as so-called "Shrine Worlds." Particularly important Shrine Worlds might become the religious seat of an entire diocese stretching across a sub-sector or sector and so a cardinal would take up residence there. These planets became known as "Cardinal Worlds." |
Adeptus Ministorum - The Confederation of Light: The only threat to the Ecclesiarchy's spiritual and political dominance in the Imperium was the Confederation of Light. Based upon the planet Dimmamar, this penitent faith's ideals of poverty and humble living clearly contradicted the teachings of the Ecclesiarchy.The orthodox view of the Temple of the Saviour Emperor was that sacrifices of wealth and money to the Adeptus Ministorum in taxes, tithes and other gifts were necessary to enhance the citizens of the Imperium's access to salvation and ensure that the Emperor's light reached every corner of the galaxy through His Missions.Politically, the Confederation of Light also held that the state church should stand apart from the politics of the Imperium, providing spiritual succor to the peoples of the galaxy, but not serving as the dominant force in the governance of the Emperor's realm. Such a position was a direct threat to the political power of the Ecclesiarchy, which had become the most powerful component of Imperial government, transforming it largely into a theocracy by the end of the 35th Millennium.The Confederation proved too difficult for Ministorum agents to infiltrate, and the Ecclesiarchy turned to violence, supported in this effort by the unanimous vote of the High Lords of Terra, who declared the onset of the first War of Faith, largely to ensure that Imperial political stability was not damaged by the emergence of religious plurality and possible religious violence between different sects.The entire Confederation was declared heretical and the forces of the Astra Militarum, the Navis Imperialis, and thousands of fanatical zealots from the church's Frateris Militia were unleashed upon it, bent on its destruction. Only a few cells and hidden shrines of the Confederation managed to survive and the power of the orthodox Ecclesiarchy over the minds of Humanity, for better or worse, was made unassailable.By the end of the 33rd Millennium every civilised Imperial world was furnished with its own cathedral and the coffers of the Ecclesiarchy were filled with the offerings and tithes from the teeming billions of the God-Emperor's faithful.This wealth was squandered in building increasing numbers of larger and more lavish cathedrals and to fund more Wars of Faith intended not to save the souls of Humanity but to secure the Ecclesiarchy's position of political power within the Imperium and the wealth of its prelates. |
Adeptus Ministorum - Reign of Blood: The Age of Apostasy in the 36th Millennium was one of the most destabilising periods in Imperial history after the Horus Heresy, beginning during the long struggle between the Ecclesiarchy and the Administratum for ultimate political power over the Imperium.The High Lord Goge Vandire, the 361st Master of the Administratum, was a power-hungry tyrant who eventually gained direct control over the Ecclesiarchy as well as the Administratum by usurping the office of the ecclesiarch.This made him the single most powerful individual in the Imperium since the Great Crusade, and allowed him to place his own rule above that of the Emperor. His time in power became known as the "Reign of Blood," consisting of massive purges of the Ecclesiarchy, and the killings and assassinations of countless perceived Traitors, Heretics and conspirators.This period was eventually ended by the future Ecclesiarch Sebastian Thor's reborn Confederation of Light, an ancient sect of the Imperial Cult based on the previous Confederation of Light's banned teachings that sought to end Goge Vandire's corruption of Imperial theology.The end of the Reign of Blood resulted in a major reformation of the Ecclesiarchy, the creation of the Imperial Inquisition's Ordo Hereticus to police those enemies of the Imperium who lay within its own structures and the creation of the Adepta Sororitas to serve as both the Ecclesiarchy's new military forces and the Chamber Militant of the Ordo Hereticus. |
Adeptus Ministorum - The Plague of Unbelief: The "Plague of Unbelief" is considered to be a part of the Age of Apostasy by Imperial historitors, although it occurred several solar decades after Sebastian Thor's ascension to the position of ecclesiarch and subsequent reform of the Adeptus Ministorum along the theological lines of the Confederation of Light.The main perpetrator of the Plague of Unbelief was the traitorous Apostate Cardinal Bucharis, who for a time controlled vast swathes of the Imperium under his heretical rule until he was finally brought to the Emperor's justice by the Space Wolves Space Marines and a betrayal by his own enraged people. |
Adeptus Ministorum - Conflicts of Faith: The Imperium of Man is pervaded and dominated by religious faith. It is unsurprising that the Ecclesiarchy often bristles at the presumption of other Imperial organisations, taking easy offence to slights to its position and pride.As many in the Adeptus Ministorum see themselves as the keepers of the faith that unites Humanity, they often stray into the presumption of a divine right of authority that extends further than that of other Imperial organisations.Chief amongst those who come into open and occasionally bloody conflict with the Ministorum's more fanatical members are the tech-priests of Mars, and more rarely the Space Marines of the Adeptus Astartes, most of whom deny the divinity of the Emperor, preferring to uphold the original, more secular traditions of the Imperium.The openly deviant faith of both these organisations has nagged at the suspicions of the pious for millennia. Some in their pride and zeal feel that it is their right and duty to see the faith of these bodies brought into line and bound to the authority of the Ministorum. Often the result is disastrous, as both the Astartes and the Mechanicus are fiercely independent and wield great powers of their own. More subtly, the Ministorum constantly flexes its secular influence over the Adeptus Terra to varying degrees.Certainly in the past, certain cardinals and prelates have gone so far as to use blackmail, assassination, and even full-blown civil conflict to enact what they consider the Emperor's holy design. However, any who would see the return to domination of an all-powerful state cult like the Temple of the Saviour Emperor must also fear the Ordo Hereticus and its answer to such hubris and presumption.Heresy from the faith is not simply a matter of mutation, witchery, and trafficking with Warp powers. More subtly, it can be a matter of the specifics of faith and worship. The Cult Imperialis is broad in its accommodation of differing tones of faith.However, on the fringe lurk numerous sects and groups who flirt with heresy and deviate from the Imperial Creed to such a degree that their faith is no longer sanctified. The worst cases are declared as abomination by the Ministorum's authorities.The boundary between sanctified faith and heresy is thin, and many sects cross it simply because the ruling centre of the Ecclesiarchy shifts and leaves them suddenly no longer accommodated within the official orthodox theology of the Cult Imperialis. Countless times over the past ten millennia the Ministorum has gone to war with a part of itself over a point of dogma. |
Adeptus Ministorum - The Imperial Creed: The Imperial Creed is the body of doctrines and articles of faith in the God-Emperor which is preached across the Imperium. It is the word of the Emperor as related by His saints, and it forms the core of belief shared by every worshipper across the length and breadth of the Imperium regardless of the form of worship practised on the world of their birth.In practice, the Imperial Creed operates on several levels. In the rarefied atmospheres of the Holy Synod and the Synod Ministra, the cardinals debate endlessly the minutiae of the words of the saints. Arguments about the exact meaning of a particular phrase might rage for solar decades, even standard centuries, causing bitter schisms amongst the various factions as the prelates decry one another as benighted fools, dangerous reformers, or even Heretics.Indeed, there have been many occasions when outright violence has erupted between factions holding opposing views on such interpretations, and in the most extreme of cases the cardinals of neighbouring dioceses have mustered vast armies from the ranks of their congregations and made war upon their erstwhile brothers in faith.Every solar day, the synods disseminate reams of pronouncements and clarifications, of learned texts and annotations of existing ones. The cardinals are expected to preach such tracts to those below them, thus propagating the true word across the Imperium. In practise, no one person can be conversant in such a vast body of doctrine, and huge armies of scholars are employed to identify the relevant passages for their masters and to file the remainder away in the vast archive-shrines of the Ministorum.The second level on which the Imperial Creed operates is at the opposite end of the scale, in the soul of every Human being in the Imperium. The vast majority of the faithful exist amidst unending toil and oppression, where the only alternative to a life of abject servitude is to be shipped out to a far-away war to be slain at the hands of some bloodthirsty alien monstrosity.For many, the act of worship is the only brief respite they have from the brutal reality of day-to-day life in the Imperium, an opportunity to escape the cruelty of their overseers before returning once more to their bitter labours. Of course, those who tarry overlong before the altar are wont to be punished harshly, and many have been condemned to service in the convict armies of the Penal Legions for returning from the shrine a mere solar minute past their allotted time. Nevertheless, reverence of the Emperor as the divine saviour of Mankind is the one thing shared by people across the Imperium.Only those ensnared by the Dark Gods themselves or in thrall to some manner of alien domination reject the Emperor. A person might be the very worst kind of scum, a rebel, a pirate or a slaver of flesh, rejecting all the laws of the Imperium, yet still they will hold true to their belief in the God-Emperor of Mankind. |
Adeptus Ministorum - Tenets of Faith: The Imperial Creed is a conglomeration of native religious practises, the modifications to those practises imposed by the missionaries, and the myriad pronouncements passed down from the Adeptus Ministorum's upper echelons. As such, practices adhered to on one world as sacred may be held as abhorrent on another, depending on its own combination of native, modified and imported belief.The Ministorum tolerates a vast range of practice and belief, but there are certain tenets of faith which remain unchanged from one end of the Imperium to the other. At the core of the Imperial Creed are the facts that the Emperor once walked among Humanity in the flesh and that He is a god. Furthermore, regardless of whatever powers may have been worshipped by Humanity prior to the coming of the Emperor, He is the one, true god, and no others may be worshipped alongside Him.So long as these essential tenets are adhered to, the prevalent faith on any given world can exhibit staggering diversity. Almost every world has its legends regarding the birth of the Emperor and His early life. Amongst the oldest of sources claim the Emperor was some manner of shaman born on Old Earth long before the rise of Human civilisation, who watched and guided Mankind's development throughout countless aeons until taking a direct hand at the dawn of the Age of the Imperium.Other myths claim the Emperor was any one of a thousand different legendary figures, or in fact all of them, moving amongst Mankind in disguise and preparing for the time when He would be called upon to save His people. Even the officially sanctioned texts disseminated by the Ministorum vary greatly on such matters, and each tends to present the views of a particular saint, invariably couched in layer upon layer of allegory.On most matters, no single objective truth is actually presented, but rather a vast body of parables on which those who preach the creed can draw in order to impart almost any message they choose. One constant element is the notion that every Human being has a place within the Emperor's divine order, as expressed through the hierarchy of the Ministorum. For the vast majority, that place is at the bottom, following unquestioningly the orders and duties passed down by those higher up.Even those of status and rank must comport themselves as if power and wealth were burdens rather than privileges. There can be no questioning of official orders, for to do so marks one out as a Heretic as surely as if one had blasphemed against the Emperor or summoned a Daemon in the midst of a cardinal's sermon.Aside from these central tenets, there exists a massive body of Imperial religious dogma, both sanctioned and unsanctioned. Much of it is the subject of debate at the very highest of levels, while some may be prevalent for long periods before receding in relevance once more, or may be preached fervently in particular regions but barely mentioned in others.A recurring theme of Imperial Cult doctrine is the notion of the End Times. Most writings on the subject take the form of prophesies, but they rarely have much in common other than dire prophesies of a galaxy-spanning war consuming Mankind.Throughout the ten thousand years of the Age of the Imperium, such notions have gained prominence towards the end of each millennium, often becoming self-fulfilling as the masses whip themselves into a pre-apocalyptic frenzy. It is often preached that the End Times will form the ultimate battle, in which Mankind will either be found wanting and destroyed, or will prove itself worthy of existence and enter a new age, where it will inherit the galaxy and expel or defeat all other intelligent forms of life.Needless to say, as the 41st Millennium is defined by the catastrophe of the Great Rift's birth in the Era Indomitus, the Imperium has seen a rise in such teachings and in adherence to apocalyptic cults. With the Imperium nearing its ten thousandth year, the turbulence might well be expected to be far more destructive than ever before.Often tied into the notion of the End Times is a belief that the Emperor will rise from His Golden Throne and complete the work He began ten thousand years ago by delivering the faithful from the evils of the galaxy. While many versions of this doctrine celebrate it as a time of deliverance, most also warn that the Emperor will sit in judgement over all Humanity, casting those lacking in faith into infernal fire or otherwise excluding them from the glorious age that will be ushered in by His final victory over evil. Cults dedicated to flagellation and penance seek to prepare Mankind for the return of the Emperor, driving themselves to ever-greater extremes to prove themselves free of the taint of sin.Many Ecclesiarchy teachings mention some form of afterlife in which the faithful will take their place at the side of the Emperor for all eternity. As with so many elements of the Imperial Creed, the synods have debated the specifics of this afterlife for millennia, while the common person has remained generally influenced less by the cardinals' pronouncements and more by the specifics of their own culture's beliefs concerning death and the afterlife.For those worlds on the very extremes of the Imperium, cut off from the centres of power by vast gulfs of interstellar space or by raging Warp storms, Terra itself might be imagined as the eternal court of the God-Emperor, to which the faithful are called when they die.Others imagine this afterlife in more abstract terms, teaching that the soul after death will be taken to a golden realm, there to mingle with those who have gone before in the light of the Emperor. Given that many worlds experienced a long period of isolation, during which all manner of barbarous religious expression developed, there are perhaps as many ideas of paradise and the afterlife as there are planets in the Imperium.Of course, those who believe in divine reward must also believe in punishment. If only those who have been judged worthy will be allowed to bathe in the Emperor's glory, then those who have not must surely be damned. It is often the case that the Ecclesiarchy's preachers spend far more time warning their congregations what will befall their eternal soul if they stray from His path than they do describing what awaits it if they are virtuous.Such warnings are laden with almost wanton descriptions of an eternity of damnation, of gibbering fiends tormenting the sinner's soul while it writhes in infernal flames. Those few like psykers who know something of the reality of the Warp have all the more reason to be fearful, for within the Empyrean the souls of Humanity drift as motes upon an ocean, ever at the mercy of the vast, unknowable things that lurk in the depths and feed upon forlorn souls. |
Adeptus Ministorum - Saints: Imperial Saints are those mortals who, by pronouncement of the Ecclesiarchy, have been elevated by the Emperor's grace far above the bulk of Humanity. They are exceptionally holy individuals, and their words and deeds are held to be the direct work of the Emperor Himself.Throughout the ten thousand Terran years of the Age of the Imperium, millions of men and women have been recognised as saints, in many cases long after their death and only after solar decades of consideration by the church. Most are known and venerated only within a specific region, but some, such as Sebastian Thor himself, are known across the length and breadth of the Imperium. Men and women might be declared saints for all manner of deeds, but in most cases they will have performed some great service to the Imperium and the Imperial Creed.In a galaxy riven by war, it should be little surprise that many were great warriors, often the leaders of massive Imperial Crusades that conquered vast swathes of space or liberated Human worlds enslaved by aliens or recidivists. Many were generals or admirals, while others were simple foot soldiers who by doing their duty turned the tide of battle and changed history. Other saints were great teachers or orators, men or women who with a single word or missive could achieve what a million Imperial Guardsmen could not. The writers of the most learned of religious tracts are often made saints, lending even greater weight to teachings preached across countless planets. Furthermore, it is common practice for ecclesiarchs to be declared saints after their deaths, although the "beatification" of less well-respected or beloved individuals may take solar decades or even centuries to come about.Many saints are regarded as intercessors, to whom prayers are addressed and offerings made that they might aid the faithful in some manner. It is held that the saint, being Human but also close to the God-Emperor, might be able to petition the Emperor and bring about some tangible effect.Many saints come to be regarded as able to intercede on specific issues, such as to provide deliverance from aliens, safe passage across the Warp, a successful crop or a warrior's true aim. Given that such a vast pantheon of saints exists, the matters on which they are said to be able to intercede are often extremely specialised.Some regiments of the Astra Militarum, for example, hold that there is a specific saint for every single one of the thousands of marks of standard issue Lasgun. |
Adeptus Ministorum - The Sin of the Psyker: A common and often problematic issue for the Imperial Creed is the question of psykers. There exists at the heart of Imperial doctrine a contradiction with regards to those blessed with the psyker's gift or cursed by its touch, depending on one's standpoint.Every Terran year, more and more psykers are born or come into their powers, and the danger they pose to Humanity cannot be understated. Psykers draw the denizens of the Warp to them like blood spilled in the ocean draws sharks, and those who are weak or unprotected by the rite of Soul Binding to the Emperor, can unleash fearsome devastation upon their communities.Some might be consumed by evil impulses and simultaneously find themselves gifted with the power to kill with merely a glance. Others might find their minds turned into gateways to the infernal regions of the Empyrean, through which entire legions of Daemons may vomit forth. Psykers therefore are often said to represent the single most dangerous peril to the very soul of Mankind.At the same time, the Imperium could not exist without psykers. Without astropaths, the scattered worlds of the galaxy-spanning empire could only communicate at the slowest of speeds. Without Navigators, interstellar travel across great distances would be impossible, and without the sacrifice of millions of psykers every year, the blessed light of the Emperor's Astronomican would not be able to guide them through the benighted depths of the Warp.In addition, the many arms of the Imperium's military use psykers as potent battlefield weapons, including the Librarians of the Adeptus Astartes and the Psykers Primaris of the Astra Militarum. Furthermore, although most would not think of Him as such, the Emperor Himself was the most powerful psyker to have ever lived. Many of the teachings of the Imperial Creed preach against psykers, who are often referred to and condemned as "witches."In truth, although most amongst the faithful feel a deep unease in the presence of astropaths and other "sanctioned" psykers, reality dictates that psykers are part of the grand plan the Emperor has laid out for Humanity.It is the psyker who is not sanctioned, who hides amongst the faithful and uses their powers for ill who is the true target of the Ministorum's ire, and few sermons pass without the congregation being called upon to be ever vigilant for such a threat within their own ranks. |
Adeptus Ministorum - Orthodoxy and Heresy: Because of the diversity of opinions within the Imperial Creed, the line between orthodoxy and heresy is often blurred. Obviously, worshipping any other god than the God-Emperor is forbidden and those who overtly turn from the Imperial Creed are punished by death, as are those who deny the authority of the Adeptus Ministorum.While those who turn to the worship of forbidden gods such as the Ruinous Powers or alien overlords are the most obvious of Heretics, many other beliefs have been declared heretical throughout the ages.What does and does not count as heresy is generally determined by the high officers of the Ecclesiarchy. Massive divisions of the Adeptus Ministorum exist to monitor and study the myriad sects that exist across the Imperium. Highly ranked, free-roaming priests with equal status to a cardinal seek out and destroy the taint of heresy.These "witchfinders" often become the scourges of entire sectors. Of course, many of the Imperium's worlds are scattered and isolated, so a sect may gain prominence on a given world and flourish for many standard years before a cardinal or witchfinder arrives from off-world and decries it as heretical. What happens next will depend upon the character of the officer.Some may convene courts of assize, sitting in judgement over those accused of heresy. Others are more wont to summarily execute sect leaders and instigate a worldwide program of religious re-education to purge the taint of errant doctrine. The most extreme, such as the notorious Witchfinder Tannenburg, put entire worlds to the pyre on the merest suspicion of heresy.The accusation of heresy in the Imperium is often used as a political weapon by those wishing to gain power over others. This can occur at multiple levels. A reasoned debate between brother cardinals can be brought to an immediate end should one of the two hint at accusing the other of heresy. A diocese that has proven tardy in the raising of tithes can be brought into line by the merest hint of the word.An accusation of heresy is a blunt tool, and one that can turn upon its wielder, for those accused might have previously unknown allies or patrons, and outright war between rival factions sometimes results. There are several variant faiths within the Imperium which the Ecclesiarchy has no choice but to tolerate, even though it disagrees fundamentally with their tenets. The cults of the Adeptus Astartes are such faiths.Every Space Marine Chapter is faithful to the Emperor and its own primarch, but they do not usually revere the Emperor as a god. Rather, to them He is a man, albeit the greatest who ever lived. This breaks with the single most important tenet of the Imperial Creed, and has on many occasions proved a source of great tension and even overt hostility between the two organisations.On the whole however, the Adeptus Ministorum and the Adeptus Astartes try to maintain cordial relations, for the Space Marines are the literal genetic descendants of the Emperor through the blood of the primarchs, which flows in their own veins ten thousand Terran years after the entombment of the Master of Mankind.The Cult Mechanicus is another deviant faith with which the Ecclesiarchy is often at odds. The tech-priests of the Adeptus Mechanicus worship their own deity, who they call the Machine God. As with the Imperial Creed, many sects exist within the Cult Mechanicus, and it is commonly held by the Priesthood of Mars that the Emperor is in fact a physical manifestation of the Machine God as the long-prophesied Omnissiah, although many in the Ecclesiarchy have great difficulty accepting this.Other sects appear to outsiders to be saturated in idolatry, worshipping the very machines they are tasked with maintaining and committing a thousand other transgressions punishable by death by the laws of the Adeptus Ministorum. Despite such differences, the Ecclesiarchy has no choice but to tolerate the Cult Mechanicus, for without the tech-priests the Imperium would literally grind to a halt.No institution can do without the Adeptus Mechanicus, just as none forgo the services of the Adeptus Astra Telepathica or the Navigator Houses, regardless of how distasteful they might find their servants. |
Adeptus Ministorum - Mutants and Abhumans: Many of the Imperial Creed's teachings warn of the danger of mutation. It is often said that the Emperor created Mankind in His own perfect form, and that any deviation from the physical norms of the Human body is an indication of inner impurities and sins. Some would say this doctrine is quite correct, for it has long been known that where instances of mutation increase within a population there will soon follow a rise in psyker birth rates.Some blame mutation on spiritual corruption, alien intervention or chemical pollution. Mutation tends to take one of two forms. The first is spontaneous and can occur anywhere, at birth or later in life. There is often no discernible cause, and the afflicted may go to great lengths to hide their mutation. If the mutation can be hidden, the individual might be able to lead a relatively normal life, but if it is so obvious that it cannot be hidden, the mutant may be forced to flee from their community, and seek others similarly afflicted to start a new life.Many worlds are subject to strict laws regarding mutations, and these may be policed by "purity patrols," which conduct arbitrary raids on workplaces and homes and stop-search operations in the streets in order to identify mutants. Only those with the power or wealth to avoid or pay off such scrutiny have any chance of avoiding it, and many of the Imperium's most influential noble houses are the subjects of vicious rumours regarding the genetic horrors they are believed to regularly spawn.The second form of mutation is that which throughout the ages has become stabilised and, to a degree at least, recognised and tolerated. Such mutants are commonly referred to as "Abhumans." Some populations are tall and muscular, some squat and stout. Over the millennia these characteristics have become so exaggerated that new strains of the Human genome have become established, often encouraged by genetic tinkering of one sort or another.It is not uncommon for explorers operating at the fringes of the Imperium to discover Human populations lost since time immemorial who have developed some unusual physical trait. Through deliberate selection on the part of the society in question, such characteristics might become ubiquitous in the population. These might include garish skin colouring and patterning, exaggerated or even additional limbs or the ability to see in the dark, breathe underwater, or any one of thousands of unusual features that might be considered mutation.The fate of many such strains is to be annihilated at the hands of vengeful Puritans, but often a small number of survivors are spirited away by curious Inquisitors, tech-priests or others for further study.Attitudes to mutation vary widely across the Imperium. On some worlds no divergence whatsoever is tolerated, and even stable Abhuman strains such as Ogryns might be shot on sight. Others harbour vast mutant under-classes, often condemned to a life of servile drudgery doing the jobs that no others will undertake.It should not be assumed that civilisation denotes enlightenment in this matter, or that ignorant feral worlders are more or less likely to be more accepting of mutation than educated nobility. Superstition rules at every level of the Imperium, from the High Lords of Terra right down to the lowest indentured menial. The attitudes of mutants themselves towards the Imperial Creed can be just as varied, depending upon the degree to which they are allowed access to it.Preachers often flock to worlds where a large mutant population is tolerated sometimes as punishment from their superiors but other times because they genuinely wish to make a difference in the Abumans' lives. Such sermons often take the form of lengthy diatribes telling the mutants that they are filthy and debased, that they are fortunate to be allowed to exist at all, and that their continued existence can only be justified by their toil.In the case of Abhuman populations who are useful to the Imperium, such as Ogryns or Ratlings serving with the Astra Militarum, they may be exposed to a highly simplified version of the Imperial Creed, extolling the virtues of service and reward but leaving out more complex or problematic doctrines.In fact, it has been noted that the childlike mind of an Ogryn can be easily inspired to great acts of bravery by the admonitions of a skilled preacher, and the commissars of the Officio Prefectus are especially adept in rousing their charges to such ends. |
Adeptus Ministorum - Aliens: If the Imperial Creed preaches that Human mutants are filthy and debased, then the alien is entirely beyond the pale. The vast majority of Mankind is kept in deliberate ignorance of the literal existence of aliens, although they are often used as allegorical bogeymen with whom the faithful must have no contact.On more isolated or frontier worlds, the realities of life make some contact with alien races inevitable, for example when the aliens are the only source of certain necessary resources. Some distant colonies actually share their worlds with native aliens, and species such as the Kroot occasionally serve as Imperial mercenaries. On the whole, however, such contact is frowned upon, and openly decried by roaming confessors and preachers.There are some alien species with which any form of contact whatsoever is utterly forbidden, except at the point of a gun. While most of these species would just as soon eat or enslave Mankind in turn, others are noted for their propensity to manipulate and exploit weak-minded fools who seek some advantage in dealing with them. These include amongst many others such vile creatures as the Slaugth, the Krave and the Reek, contact with whom has spelled the doom of many an errant Human merchant and adventurer. |
Adeptus Ministorum - Iconoclasm: When the enemies of the Emperor descend upon His worlds, the symbols of Mankind's faith are often the target of the invaders' rage. Even before a world has fallen, terrible blasphemies are enacted upon the majestic cathedrals and officers of the Imperial faith are often subjected to horrific tortures as a warning against further resistance.When an Imperial world falls to the followers of the Dark Gods, its bastions of faith are bedecked with the defiled corpses of its priests, their once graceful façades daubed in unspeakable blasphemy, and the statues of its saints are toppled. Quite apart from such overt iconoclasm, changes in the fabric of a cathedral or shrine have often proved to be an indicator of subversive doctrine.Imperial Witchfinders are adept at discerning subtle changes in iconography that might indicate that a local sect of the Imperial Creed has been infiltrated by outside agents or fallen prey to the rot of heresy. Sometimes, symbols from pre-Imperial religions are placed over those of the Imperial Creed, or the features of statues changed to represent not the saints of the Imperium, but darker prophets.For instance, on the world of Sabulorb, a statue of the Emperor was given additional limbs by the alien-dominated priesthood, while on Fenksworld the authorities of House Vaahkon are ever vigilant for the early signs of yet another apostate cult festering within the dismal hives. |
Adeptus Ministorum - Organisation: The Ecclesiarchy is not officially part of the Adeptus Terra, but is organised as a wholly separate Imperial adepta. At its head is the leader of the Imperial Cult, the high priest known as the ecclesiarch, who, by tradition since the 32nd Millennium, is always one of the Imperium's ruling High Lords of Terra.Below him are the cardinals, of which there are several thousand, each of whom oversees the Ecclesiarchy's operations and properties in a diocese comprising a sector, sub-sector or even a single world of Imperial space.Below the cardinals are the priests known as pontifices, confessors, missionaries and preachers, in that order. The clerical orders of the Ecclesiarchy are open to men and women alike, though men seem to have an advantage in achieving high position because many believe that as men, they are closer to the perfection of the God-Emperor, whose perfect embodied form was that of a Human male.The Adeptus Ministorum's own governing body is the Holy Synod, a conclave composed of the Ecclesiarchy's most powerful arch-cardinals and cardinals. The Ministorum divides the Imperium's territory across the galaxy into thousands of dioceses, each generally encompassing an entire Imperial world -- the exception being Terra, the heart of the Imperium, which possesses several dioceses because of its sheer population size and political importance.Some dioceses can encompass several worlds or even an entire sector in the case of the officials granted the extremely powerful rank of Cardinal-Astra. A diocese is further divided into parishes centred around a shrine or church. Each diocese is headed by a cardinal, while each parish is headed by an Imperial priest with the title of preacher.Ranking between these individuals are priests known as pontifices whose authority extends over several parishes to serve as administrative go-betweens in large dioceses between preachers and their ruling cardinal. Priests known as missionaries have no administrative duties within a single diocese but can be deployed to spread the faith of the Imperial Cult to newly rediscovered Human-settled worlds. They are always part of the Ecclesiarchy's missionary wing that is called the Missionarius Galaxia.Confessors are evangelical zealots who possess a rank within the Ecclesiarchy somewhere between preacher and cardinal. Their oratory skill can stir the emotions of entire worlds, leading them to confess personal heresies and mutations, and to betray their neighbours as psykers, Heretics, mutants or other deviants.They are free to wander within an entire diocese and preach amongst the population. They often work on Imperial colonies and are especially useful on worlds where faith is lacking and the people are rebellious against the Imperium. With special dispensation from the Ecclesiarchy, they may even gather armies of Frateris Militia or the Sisters of Battle and lead Wars of Faith against the enemies of the Imperium. Confessors often wear the Rosarius as both protection and a symbol of their rank.The Adeptus Ministorum also includes an administrative bureaucracy, headed by priests called arch-deacons, who control all secular business within the Ecclesiarchy. Arch-deacons are the administrative counterparts to cardinals, responsible for the temporal affairs of an entire diocese.The arch-deacon's subordinates, known as deacons, deal with the money entering and leaving a specific diocese or parish, regulate the construction of new shrines and temples and deal with the other secular requirements of running a galaxy-spanning religion. |
Adeptus Ministorum - Adeptus Ministorum Hierarchy: The priests of the Adeptus Ministorum are members of a rigid ecclesiastical hierarchy which includes the following offices, from highest-ranking to lowest:EcclesiarchArch-CardinalCardinalPontifex (pl. Pontifices)Arch-DeaconDeacon (Dean)FirebrandsDrill AbbottConfessorPreacher |
Adeptus Ministorum - Ecclesiarch: The ecclesiarch is the high priest of the Imperial Cult and is based in a fortress within the Ecclesiarchical Palace on Terra.Elected by the Adeptus Ministorum's ruling Holy Synod of arch-cardinals, the Ecclesiarch's main concerns include the pursuit of the Ministorum's interests in the Senatorum Imperialis, the preparation and launch of new Imperial Crusades and Wars of Faith, and ensuring the continued religious devotion of the Imperial citizenry.The ecclesiarch has held a position as a ruling High Lord of Terra since the mid-32nd Millennium, and is always one of the most influential voices on the Senatorum Imperialis. |
Adeptus Ministorum - Arch-Cardinal: The arch-cardinal is the official who stands at the top of the Ministorum's hierarchy leading a Sector Synod, which is more often than not more of an idea or principle than a rigid structure or chain of command.Though an arch-cardinal is the head of the Sector Synod and commands (or at least has substantial influence over) each of the dioceses in the sector, the true power of the Ministorum rests in the hands of the individual Diocesan Synods, often known by the world (or location on that world) where that diocese's cardinal resides. |
Adeptus Ministorum - Cardinal: Central to the Ministorum's power within a sector of Imperial space are the dioceses, the demesnes of the faith, each of which is under the command of the cardinals of the Sector Synod. Some dioceses can encompass more than one world or even an entire sector in the case of the church officials granted the extremely powerful rank of Cardinal-Astra.This division allows the Ministorum detailed control over the sub-regions within a sector as well as giving individual worlds or specific problems direct attention. Each cardinal of the Sector Synod is a powerful individual in his or her own right, having risen to their lofty position through standard years of sacrifice, devotion to the God-Emperor, and most importantly, cunning and relentless politicking.Each cardinal maintains their own diocese on the world on which they reside, more commonly referred to as their seat of power -- the centre of the cardinal's authority and base of operations within their archdiocese, from which they rarely if ever leave. |
Adeptus Ministorum - Pontifex: A pontifex (pl. pontifices) is a priest who ranks between the ruling cardinal and the parish preachers of a diocese and whose authority extends over several parishes to serve as administrative go-betweens in large dioceses between the needs of the local preachers and the administrative apparatus of their ruling cardinal. |
Adeptus Ministorum - Arch-Deacon: An arch-deacon is a senior Ministorum priest who is subordinate to a cardinal and helps to oversee the daily functions and duties of the Creed Temporal. This branch of the Ecclesiarchy oversees the astronomical wealth flowing into its treasuries, wealth which is rendered by the faithful as their right and proper offering to the Imperial Cult in the service of their souls' salvation.It is the arch-deacon's duty to administer to the logistics of the diocese, coordinating the construction and maintenance of its cathedrals as well as countless other institutions such as Shrine Worlds, pilgrimage sites, reliquaries and retreats.Each arch-deacon is responsible for the distribution of as much wealth as an Imperial sector governor or the patriarch of a wealthy interstellar merchant concern, and they are often the subjects of bitter jealousy from such secular lords of the Imperium. |
Adeptus Ministorum - Deacon (Dean): A deacon, also called a dean, is an intermediate rank of Ministorum priest tasked with secular duties for their sector. Below the arch-deacons are those Ministorum priests known as deacons and deans, who are responsible for the distribution of the resources passed down to them from the Sector Synod, as well as the actual collection of dues from the faithful. |
Adeptus Ministorum - Firebrands: Firebrands are groups of fanatical, zealot priests of the Ministorum. Groups of zealots and militant preachers often serve an important purpose in rooting out heresy. Cells of these fiery individuals pray and recite litanies together, often during combat.These Firebrands must be handled with care by whatever controlling entity (be it Ecclesiarchy or Inquisition) puts them in the field, as Firebrands are just as likely to report the existence of a heretical enclave as they are to incinerate the city block where the enclave is meeting. |
Adeptus Ministorum - Drill Abbot: A Drill Abbot is a member of the Ministorum and a decorated veteran of the Imperium's wars who works tirelessly at converting the orphans of martyred Imperial servants into driven and dedicated fanatics prepared for the trials of Imperial life.Drill abbots run the Scholas Progenium, brutally effective institutions which every Terran year produce untold numbers of future planetary governors, commissars, Adeptus Arbites Arbitrators, Navis Imperialis officers, Storm Troopers and Inquisitors. |
Adeptus Ministorum - Confessor: Confessors are free-roaming zealots of the Imperial Cult who use their evangelical platform to agitate the crowds of Imperial citizenry that turn up to hear them. Under the spell of an arch-confessor, swathes of citizens will rush forwards to confess their personal heresies, reveal their hideous mutations and betray their comrades as psykers or other untrustworthy deviants.A confessor might have administrative responsibility for a hive city or, if it is less populated, an entire world, or in frontier regions an entire star system or even a sub-sector. Just as not every Imperial cardinal heads a diocese, not all confessors are responsible for a specific geographic area. Many act autonomously, their duties taking them far and wide across a given region of the Imperium.Some find themselves attached to other Imperial institutions and adepta. Often, an Astra Militarum general or Navis Imperialis admiral might have as their most trusted confidante a senior confessor, who advises them on spiritual matters and bolsters their resolve to enact the Emperor's will. |
Adeptus Ministorum - Preacher: A Preacher is the lowest-ranking ordained member of the Imperial clergy within the Ecclesiarchy. They are known as the "Defenders of the Faith." Often individual regiments of the Astra Militarum and vessels of the Navis Imperialis are accompanied by dozens of preachers, many of whom regard it as their duty to personally take the field of battle and provide religious inspiration to those in their care.A preacher is also the rank of Ministorum priest who is given a parish of their own to run which is centred on an Imperial shrine or church. A preacher is the priest of the Imperial Cult who will have the most day-to-day contact with ordinary lay worshippers of the Emperor. Especially vigorous and charismatic preachers may be lucky enough to be promoted to become confessors. |
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