++The Legiones Astartes of Renown++
Despite the best attempts of the Inquisition and other Imperial organisations, there are many Chapters who are not entirely Codex. Some are not even entirely human anymore, and some owe their creation
to entirely non-human whims. Here are listed such Chapters, those that preform actions and duties that are often far different to the normal Chapter.
Parade Chapters
Whilst any Chapter, regardless of the reasons behind their creation, are indeed a most formidable military force, some Chapters see as part of their duties far less combat than would be expected. The High Lords
are not above the creation of a Chapter so give give the illusion of power rather than actual power. Such Chapters are few, as with the increasing levels of conflict across the Imperium nearly every capable military force
has been mobilised, but in areas of relative isolation and peace a few still exist. Such Chapters are known collectively as 'Parade Chapters' and are generally looked down upon by other Chapters.
Every Chapter is steeped in tradition, legend and ceremony. Most Chapters hold regular feasts to celebrate major events in their history, such as their founding or the winning of a major battle over their eternal enemies.
As such, each Chapter have their fair share of ceremony and pomp about them, and for the large part they do not concern themselves as how the common Imperial citizen views them. For Parade Chapters, however, this level of tradition
and ceremony has far exceeded their combat responsibilites. They are open and arrogant Chapters, their frequent marches through the streets of their homeworlds and are not above pointless shows of their supposed might. These Chapters
often wear armour that is heavily stylised and engraved with intricate symbols and linaties, and their weaponary is often highly polished and maintained, the lack of many combat duties meaning that neither arms or armour are called upon
to be tested on the field of battle. They often carry about them many banners, loudspeakers screaming the voices of choirs singing the praises of their Chapter and the Emperor. In the rare few cases where they are called upon to do battle,
they often are delegated to peacekeeping duties, their lack of experience but mighty bodies leaving them to still be required but not at all prepared for the carnage of the frontlines.
- Upsilon Dragoons : ++CLASSIFIED++
- Marble Kings : The Marble Kings are believed to be from Ultramarine genestock, and so they benefit from the relatively pure and stable gene-seed of their Primogenitor. They have been placed on permernant garrison duty since their actions in the Alamathu Schism, where they fought with considerable skill and bravery.
However, the years of peace and teium have taken their toll on the Kings and so they find themselves more open to shows of skill rather than actual warfare. Their well-coordinated firing rites and elegant swordplays are renown throughout the Sub-Sector.
- Nova Gulls : The Nova Gulls are amongst the most flamboyant Parade Chapters in existence. They have become arrogant and bombastic during their military isolation-their homeworld was cut-off from the Imperium for many years by rampant warpstorms, with most of the Chapter strength still present on the world at the time. They have taken to great acts of daring
and skill using their renown jump packs and grav-chutes, the years of constant practice and no warfare leading them to boredom and experimentation with their normally Codex behaviour. The Chapter is currently facing something of an internal affairs crisis-with the Warpstorms abating at last, those elements of the Chapter that were off-world during the isolation
returning to find Marines that are more prepared for the high-wire than the frontline.
- Brazen Heads : Unusual for a Parade Chapter, these Marines claim their geneseed came from the Iron Hands and the Primarch Ferrus Manus. The normally serious nature that emerges within this geneseed is, for the most part, preserved-although in a matter that causes the other sons of Manus no short amount of grief. The Chapter uses their formidible bionic alteration and
mechanical capability to produce works of great beauty and wonder-it is even claimed that in the rare few instances when the Salamanders Chapter are not at war, the two Chapters gather to compare their works and skills. The Marines of the Brazen Heads often put on great shows of technical amazement for the local populations, and there are no shortage of citizens willing to see
the wonderous materials made by the Chapter.
Hive-Chapters
With the encroaching threat of the Tyranids about to swallow the galaxy, the High Lords have responded by deploying one of the most powerful military forces available directly into the maw of the Great Devourer-the Legiones Astartes. The first
waves seemed to be successful-the Adeptus Astartes managed to push back the new threat and hold off the aliens with the support of their Brothers. Confident in their abilities and unaware the the sheer scale of the Tyranid offensive, the High Lords
ordered the Chapters to pursue the Tyranids and eliminate their Queen, destroying the horde from within. That order was the last that was ever sent to those Chapters-since they boarded their vessels and took flight after the scattered massess of the
dying Tyranids, no response or conformation has ever been heard again. Other Chapters are also lost in this method when fighting the horde-arrogant in their pursuit of the seemingly defeated foe. Some are doubtless destroyed by the true mass of the Tyranid horde,
but some are instead assimilated by the Tyranid Hive in order to serve a far greater purpose.
Such Chapters are known as Hive-Chapters. While it is a closely guarded secret that Marine DNA was used to create the Tyrant Guard found guarding the Hive Tyrants of the Tyranid hordes, these Chapters are a greater secret skill. To acknowledge that such a force that
combines the force of an entire Chapter with the infinite power of the biological hordes exists, it could spell an era of fear and paranoia that the High Lords would be well to avoid again. Marines from a Hive-Chapter bear an uncanny resemblence to their human counterparts-in many
cases the Hive Mind simply clones the Marines and instills them with an unswavering faith in the Hive Mind, arming them with the weapons and armour that the Hives salvage from battle, but a select few are enirely grown to give an appearence of Marines in Power Armour, the throbbing flesh and
hardened chitin linking them directly to their Masters, but most are a mix of the two. The natural genetic modifications of the Space Marines are combined with the near-infinite genetic libraries of the Hive Mind, allowing them to be far more deadly than their Imperial counterparts. Thankfully these
Chapters are rare, due in part to the fact that they are still a relatively new breed within the horde, and so the Hive Mind does not wish to expend valuable bio-mass on an untested genus.
- Hive-Chapter Cockatrice : This Chapter has been actively identified as the former 'Serpent Praefects' Chapter of Adeptus Astartes. The Chapter was under investiagation for the suspected contamination of a Genestealer Cult by the Ordos Xenos when they were requisitioned to fight the Tyranid threat on the Eastern Border. Without hesitation, the entire Chapter mobilised and made for
the front line. It is now beyond a doubt that they would have left regardless of orders-the Hive Mind had corrupted the senior members of the Chapter long ago, and it was only inevitable that they would one day return to their masters. There do exist scattered reports of squads that did not turn alongside their brothers, but such details are sketchy and have not yet been confirmed.
- Hive-Chapter Siren : The Cult Mechanicus regards this Hive-Chapter as a most foul abomination-not only in the regard that the Hive Mind has assimilated an entire Chapter, but the Chapter in question were comprised entirely of females to begin with. The Magos Biologis Xenos has postulated that this is one of the 'mutant' Hive-Chapters that the Hive Mind is perpetuating in order to
fully test the effeciency and capability of the Space Marine genome. So far, the Marines that fight in this Hive-Chapter have all proven to be clones, each an exact copy of their sister, the original presumably a great hero within the former Chapter before they fell to the jaws of the Hive.
- Hive-Chapter Gorgon : The only confirmation of this Hive-Chapters existence was an experiment that investigated the seperation of Tyranid creatres from their Hive Mind. An unregistered creature was examined was recorded as being "Mostly human, of the proportion and appearence of a member of the Adeptus Astartes, although without doubt a member of the Tyranid genus" The subject was observed to revert to
a somewhat basic level of human intelligence and sanity, although he became increasingly disturbed throughout the experiment, until such point that his study was deemed complete and was destroyed by means of psychic termination, his intact remains placed in statis pending futher examination. Before his termination, he made frequent references of his need to return to his Hive-Chapter, expressing great distress at the thought
of remaining seperated from his Hive-Brothers.
- Hive-Chapter Equine : Unique amongst their tainted brethren, the Hive Brethren seem to be investigating the unique gene-seed that each Chapter possess and manipulating it to their dark means. This Chapter displays all the ability and mentality of the White Scars Chapter, their rapid assualts often over-running enemy fortifications before they have a chance to respond.
Servitor Chapters
It is an unfortunate fact that Space Marine Chapters are lost. The most common method of this occuring through inrepairable battle losses-the Chapter, having taken part in some glorious Crusade, has been reduced to a mere squad or less with no remaining Apothecaries to preserve the gene-seed of the fallen. Many
Chapters maintain a permernant Apothecarion within their Fortress-Monestary so that if such an event occurs, the Marines can be recovered and the time-consuming process of rebuilding can occur, but with some Chapters this is impossible, having not the resources or that the ruins of the Fortress-Monestary was the place
of their greatest Crusade! As such, members of such Chapters are normally requisitioned by the Cult Mechanicus before they travel the path of the righteous mercenary, or take their own lives. The Cult Mechanicus are forbidden to have Space Marine Chapters under their direct power, the Adeptus Astartes created to be
an automonous and independent military organisation, but there is nothing in Imperial mandate about them having a dead Chapter under their command.
The bodies of the dead Chapter are gathered by the Cult Mechanicus and preserved until they are needed. The bodies are then modified to the extent that a Servitor is-beings that are not quite alive or organic, but are certainly mechanical in most extents. So the Chapter is saved, although at a terrible cost-a full thousand strong
force of slient, undead automatons, led in battle by those few that survived the death of their Chapter. The Cult Mechanicus allows for the Chapter to replace their living members through the normal processes (or often through the dark art of cloning) but the strength and warriors of the Chapter are theirs.
- Zephyr Brothers : The Zephyr Brothers were declared to have 'Irrecoverable Battle Loses' by the Inquisition in 890.M35 after the latest Crusade to expand the Emperor's domain into the Halo region of space. All that remained of the Chapter's strength was a lone battle-brother, a basic Marine in the 6th Company. The Cult Mechanicus, having a sizeable contingent of Skittari attached to the Crusade, gathered the Marine and
placed the dead that were recoverable into statis for the long trip to the nearest Forge World. The Fabricator-General gave permission to begin the process of creating the Servitor-Chapter late in 912.M35, and so the Zephyr Brothers were reborn. The lone surviving Marine was granted the rank of Chapter Master, and his DNA was placed into storage so as to clone him whenever he fell in battle. They are a gothic and disturbed Chapter-each
new genration of Chapter Master knowing full well of their predeccesors fate, and he leads his undead Chapter into battle time and time again with silent determination, neither him or his silent brothers caring whether they live or die.
- Legiones Eternita : The prime reason why the Adeptus Astartes are in a constant state of recuiting is because they are almost always in a state of warfare. Casualties are common events in Chapters-when possible, the Marines recover the bodies of their Brothers and entomb them within the vast, silent graveyards that exist under their Fortress-Monestaries. However, in some cases, the Chapters are unable or unwilling to recover the bodies
of their dead, marking each instance within their Tomes of Eternal Hatred, vast repositories that record each wrongdoing that has been committed the Chapter. If the world where there Brothers fell is ever recovered, they will often attempt to seek out their bodies and return them to the Chapter, but often they find nothing and yet another reason is added to their Tomes. However, the actual reason is often far darker.
The Cult Mechanicus oten retrieve the bodies of the fallen Space Marines, often under the guise of reseaching their remains to discover the effects of enemy weaponary (or sometimes their own) on the Adeptus Astartes. Initially this is in fact the reason, but once the investigations are over they often pass the bodies onto the Collegica Servitoria, which then adds the Marines to the Legiones Eternita. This Legion is comprised of Marines from nearly every
Chapter that has existed-some, through the use of dark chemicals and flesh-enhancing elixirs, were recovered from the fields of Terra in the aftermath of the Horus Heresy. They are rarely seen, as if any surviving Chapter that found their fallen Brothers amongst the Legion's ranks, then it could perhaps envoke the fury of an entire Chapter at war, and perhaps many others as the truth is revealed.
Xenos Chapters
Certain aliens can have an unhealthy effect on humans. They can manipulate them mentally and corrupt them physically, bending them to their alien whims. Such is the fate of those few Xenos Chapters-Chapters that have fallen under the sway of alien influence. Surprisingly, the aliens that appear to have the greatest sway over the minds
of the Adeptus Astartes are the barbaric and violent Orks, the green-skinned warriors of infamy. It is believed that the sheer psychological assault that the Orks play on their victims with their endless warcries and battlelust, combined with the unfathomable unconcious psychic power that is Orks fighting, results in the Marines that
are so often called to fight them simply break down mentally and take upon the characteristics of their attackers. This obviously would result in the death of the Chapter, with no way to futher their numbers, so they often fall into employ with Orkish warbands or they group together with other Marines that have fallen under the same
influence.
It is also not unknown for the Dark Eldar to have a similar effect on their opponents, normally brought about by the incredible pain and delusions that captured Marines undergo. And, recently, there are hushed whispers in the halls of the Inquisition about several pacifist Chapters allying themselves to the emergent Tau empire, far on the
eastern border of the Imperium.....
- Beekee Boyz : Rather than simply being a catch-all name that Orks use for Space Marines (named so because of their formerly distinctive beak-like pointed helmets) there also exists a wandering element of Orkish Marines that have adopted this name. They are just as feral and bruthish as their Orkish 'brothers', although compared to an average Ork horde they are often less advanced, as they lack the innate Orkish ability to make their weaponary work though the normal Orkish
insistence that 'it should'. They are comprised of many different Chapters, although there does exist a larger proportion of Chapters descened from the Sanguinius and Leman Russ gene-seed. Normal Orkish leaders see nothing wrong with such behaviour from their normally mortal enemies-they simply reason that they have seen that the Orkish way of life is far superior to their Imperium, and so have switched sides and begun fighting in the 'propar, Orkish wayz!'
- Chapter of the Formidible Rose : A force normally mistaken for Chaos Space Marines, these Marines have been brainwashed and driven into madness by the constant torture by their Dark Eldar overseers. They festoon their armour with vicious spikes and gory trophy racks, adding to their Imperium technology the malicous and peverted Dark Eldar technology. They appear to have limited political influence within the city of Commorragh, being mostly used by the Haemonculi as bodyguards and
guards. They do take to the field of battle on occasion, normally surving some dark purpose for their even darker masters.
- The Emperor's Cadre : A recent addition to the list of Xenos Chapters, these Marines are part of the Tau Empire and owe alligence to their Ethereals and T'au. They still claim to serve the Emperor, but by consorting with the Xeno they have proved their contamination to the Imperium and full efforts are being made to exterminate this rouge element.
Penal Chapters
A lie is perpetuated by every Imperial organisation. That lie is that every Space Marine is a righteous and pious defender of the Imperium and the Emperor's Law. The truth is far from that. A Space Marine is as much an individual as anyone else, and they all have a unique personality (even the dark Cloned Chapters shape their cloned minds through
their individual experiences) Most genuinely are honest citizens-either through choice or indocrination, and for the most part they defend the Imperium in the Emperor's interests. However, just like normal human society, there are the outsiders, the Marines that exist on the fringe of their own Chapters. Such individuals are best likened to criminals-they
do indeed violate Chapter law through their own actions, and some normally honest Marines may commit a crime through no malice on their part. While most Chapters would exile or execute such an individual, those with the resources and the ability will often send such individuals to the infamous Penal Chapters.
Every Chapter who has knowledge of such Chapters is required to supply some of their Chaplains for a set term to act as Wardens to the embittered Marines. The Marine's armour is ritualistically painted grey, with a single shoulder pad left unpainted to represent the shame to their Chapter, and they are shackled with adamantium chains long enough to not impede
them in combat, but short enough to hinder any escape attempts. Marines that are inducted into the Penal Chapters live short lives, and few ever live out their sentences and return to their Chapters. They are often used as shock troopers in the most suicidal assualts, their grim-faced Wardens leading them into the teeth of enemy bunkers and artillery, all the while
claiming that they are paying for their sins against their Chapters and the Emperor. To enter a Penal Chapter is to forfiet your existence and identity-you belong to the Wardens, and you will pay for your crimes, even if it results in your death.
- Penal Chapter VII : ++CLASSIFIED++
