Legio Venator

“Courage like Steel, Completion in Death!”
– Legio Venator Battle Cry
Of all the wonders of the Machine Cult, none can compare to
the awesome might of a Titan. A relic of humanity’s forgotten
glory, the term can refer to any of the massive bipedal combat
walkers the Titan Legions wield to serve the Cult Mechanicus.
They are magnificent engines of destruction, each brandishing
weapons capable of levelling entire hab-blocks, and employing
dense armored carapaces and powerful void shields. Within
every Titan’s core resides a uniquely aggressive and powerful
machine-spirit patterned after the terrible predatory beasts of
ancient Terra, each requiring immense willpower to wield and
control. The servants of the Adeptus Mechanicus reverently
maintain and worship these colossal engines of war; for in
their eyes, every Titan is no less than the walking embodiment
of the Machine God’s power.
The process of constructing a Titan is a close secret
within the Adeptus Mechanicus, and each is an immense
undertaking, requiring centuries of experience and countless
blessings and rituals throughout the process. These colossal
machines are held in such high standing that every Titan is
granted a High Gothic name upon completion. In the same
vein, the death of a Titan is a true tragedy for those who
aided in its construction, with entire Foundries mourning
the loss of one of their sacred creations.
When not serving on some distant warzone or guarding
one of the Legio’s many fortresses, the Titans of Legio Venator
rest in the Titan Pens on Opus Macharius. Here they undergo
any necessary critical repairs, upgrades, or refittings. The
planet’s massive manufactorums contain these pens within
their sprawling bulk, and continuously produce parts and
armaments for their sacred charges. A single pen often houses
multiple Titans at a time, while some of the more illustrious
or massive machines warrant an entire forge to themselves.
All who maintain the Legio’s machines view their labor as
a great honor, and duels and conflicts frequently occur over
the right to house Titans of particular reverence.
The Titan Pens also contain facilities to see to the medical
and physical needs of the legion’s members, including
hospitiller complexes, hab quarters, and training bays. Many
veteran members of Legio Venator live and train here beside
the Legio’s aspirants, and serve as an example to those who
have yet to face the enemy in righteous battle. Unfortunately,
these facilities sometimes serve as the final abode to any
Princeps that succumbs to the extreme physical and mental
toll of controlling the destructive spirit within a Titan. These
tortured individuals are sights inspiring both reverence and
pity. Some are carefully managed in their declining days as
inspirational heroes of the Mechanicum, but most live out
their remaining days as pitiful, broken shells of the walking
gods they once embodied.
==A Glorius Legacy==
Legio Venator was a relatively young legion when it
accompanied Imperial forces at the commencement of
the Angevin Crusade. The Legio was glorious to behold,
its immaculate red and polished brass carapaces flashing
with each burst of fire, as they relentlessly delivered utter
annihilation to all who refused Imperial rule. Winning much
glory and honour during the opening phases of the campaign,
the legion gained a fearsome reputation for completely
decimating their opponents.
During the Bleak Years, the legion fought with particular
distinction against a massive Ork Waaagh! that fell upon the
crusaders with barbaric fury. A critical victory in the struggle
came with the destruction of a massive Mega-Gargant,
identified in the Ork’s bestial tongue as Spine Smasha. Following
a coordinated orbital lance strike, Princeps Senioris Angevelo
Vsevolod of the Warlord Titan Valorus Ira, with support from
a Warhound Pack Centurion, engaged the damaged greenskin
engine. The battle was close and ferocious, and it was only after
Warhound Celerus Moria sacrificed itself through drawing the
Mega-Gargant’s fire that the Valorus Ira was able to target the
enemy’s internal core with its volcano cannon. The resulting
meltdown decimated the Ork hordes, and the sight of their
idol’s destruction robbed them of their will to fight.
After pushing into areas thought secure, the foul Yu’vath
brought their insane Warp-science and techno-sorcery to bear
on the beleaguered crusaders. The Legio Venator encountered
a particularly massive and atrocious Yu’vath Warp construct
leading the opening attack of one such offensive. Dripping
with ethereal energy, the monstrous creation propelled itself
forward on five twisted legs, and wielded inexplicable weapons
that drew on the power of the Warp itself in three misshapen
arms. Four Titans fell to the abomination before the Desidius
Rae, heavily damaged and venting plasma from its ruptured
core, challenged the beast in close combat. The embattled
Princeps diverted all available power to his Titan’s power fist,
which caused his first strike to overload the already weakened
core containment field. The Titan’s ensuing fiery death ensured
the complete and utter destruction of its Warp-spawned foe.
Following the arrival of Arch-Magos Mat Aleph Xenon
and the conclusion of the Angevin Crusade, Legio Venator
attained the right to requisition one of the newly created
Lathe Worlds as its own. However, before the process of
selecting a world could begin, Legio Venator joined other
Titan Legions in the glorious and historic Macharian Crusade.
The remaining Legio forces within the newly formed Calixis
Sector instead set to work establishing fortresses within the
Lathes themselves, including one on Lycosidae.
Upon the completion of the Macharian Conquests, the
Titan battle groups returned with fresh tales of heroism as
well as regret at the loss of Macharius himself. In recognition
of his glory and the legion’s participation in the great crusade,
the Lathe Covenant designated a forge world within the
Drusus Marches “Opus Macharius,” and ceded it to the Titan
Legion as its new home world.
Over a thousand years later, the Legio Venator was one of
the forces to heed the call to arms against the self-proclaimed
Emperor of Brass. The Titan Engines were invaluable in breaking
the rebellions bordering the Gelmiro Cluster, ruthlessly cleansing
any worlds that rebelled against their Imperial masters. During
the final assault on the remaining hive clusters within the system,
the Legio Venator came face to face with a new and terrible
enemy: Chaos Engines. What followed was a four day conflict
in which Engines on both sides relentlessly stalked their foes
through ruined spires and destroyed hab blocks. Several of
Legio Venator’s damaged Titans even volunteered to act as bait
to lure the Chaos Titans into ambushes, occasionally sacrificing
themselves to destroy their targets.
The eventual arrival of two Imperator Titans signaled the end
of the fighting, as the remaining Chaos forces were unable to
stand up to the might of these awe-inspiring machines. Entire
swathes of ruined cityscape vanished beneath the power of their
mighty armaments, as the Chaos Engines that did not escape off-world
fell to the overwhelming onslaught. The battle groups then
turned their efforts towards supporting the remaining loyalist
forces, and the entire cluster was eventually left a smoking ruin,
though the cost in lives had been high. However, the escaped
Chaos forces would return to face the Legio again, under the
banner of the Forsaken Reavers Chaos Warband.
When the Meritech Wars erupted across Imperial space
almost five hundred years later, the Legio Venator dispatched
forces to help quell the massive uprising. These included the Ignis
Inferorum, an ancient Imperator Titan dating back to the Dark
Age of Technology, which strode the battlefield like an avatar of
wrath, its twin Plasma Annihilators belching fiery retribution.
The defenders found themselves hopelessly outmatched and, in
the end, not a single living creature survived.
Following the conclusion of the Meritech Wars, the Legio
Venator focused on rebuilding and strengthening its holdings,
occasionally dispatching battle groups to honor treaties and
obligations from the distant past. The Legion currently has
forces operating in both the costly Margin Crusade and the
on-going Achillus Crusade. Here they have encountered the
deadly bio-titans of the Tyranid Hive Fleets, and many valuable
Engines have fallen to these ferocious monstrosities. As a result,
Princips Majoris Maxilohv has decreed that no additional
battle groups are to leave the Sector, except to fulfil the Legio’s
current treaties, until the destroyed Titans are replaced. Such an
undertaking is expected to require centuries.
==As One Being==
One of the most critical roles of the facilities on Opus
Macharius is the training of aspirants and crews to function
as a single, cohesive unit. The Princeps, as the leader of the
crew, and his Moderatii, who implement his directives, must
learn their Engine’s unique quirks, tolerances, and individual
temperament so that each can instinctively anticipate and
interpret the Titan’s intentions during combat. Without this
mutual link, the Titan is slow to react and unruly, the rebellious
machine spirit struggling against its crew instead of directing
its boundless rage against the enemy. In contrast, a Titan and
crew who have bonded are a true wonder to behold: man and
machine communicating and reacting without a moment’s
hesitation to deliver the wrath of the Omnissiah down upon
their foes. To truly walk as one with their Titan’s machine-spirit
is akin to a holy experience for all within, the Princeps
in perfect communion with his Engine, and his Moderatii in
seamless anticipation of his commands.
To better achieve this end, the Legio Venator conducts
endless training drills, and has authorized the creation of an
area known as Perdition. This large section of the planet’s
surface is now a vast expanse of artificial warzone. Within
this purposeful desolation, the Legio train to deal with almost
any threat and combat situation. Here countless captured
enemies and prisoners from across the Sector are penned in
place, surrounded with enormous ferro-crete walls that house
automated sentry guns and targeting servitors, and used in live
weapons training. The lowly wretches within live out their
dangerous, and often very short, lives perpetually rebuilding
the remnants of buildings and battlefields, only to have them
destroyed anew each session.
Food and other essential supplies arrive at designated zones
within the complex, with little care given to rationing or the
maintenance of order among the confined. This process has
resulted in the rise of ruthless individuals, who are able to
organize and intimidate prisoners into massive work gangs
to curry favor from their mechanical overseers. The Tech-Priests responsible for this labor force frequently encourage
such behavior, often dropping additional supplies, such as
slightly higher quality protein-pastes and starch packs, as
motivation for exceptional productivity. Fighting amongst
these groups is quite common, and is believed to add to the
authenticity of the Legio’s training.
==Glorious Remnants==
One of the more obscure types of war machines the
Legio Venator employs on the battlefield are the
ancient Knight Engines. Individual Princeps pilot
these small, one-man Titans, each hailing from the
nobility of the distant Knight Worlds. The history of
the Knight Engines is extensive, and stretches back
into the depths of the Imperium’s murky past, during
the turbulent era known as the Age of Strife.
Though now generally serving as support and
reserve forces, the Knight Engines of Legio Venator
continue to fight with distinction, utilizing their
increased mobility to the best possible advantage. No
less than eighteen Knights from four separate worlds
serve across the Calixis Sector, and they continue to
wreak particular havoc against the marauding Orks on
Kulth. Here, elite formations of Burst-pattern Lancer
Engines dart across the battlefields, expertly striking
the flanks of their opponents with torrential fire.
Meanwhile, the Paladin Engines of the Adamantine
Order stand defiant against the barbaric xenos in superb
displays of martial combat, time and again striking
down their crude warmachines with righteous fury.
These honorable warriors are all dedicated servants
of the Omnissiah, and each expects nothing less than a
glorious death in the service of their Martian lords.
==Defiant to the Last==
Princeps Senioris Lenodius von Maxilohv is the Princips
Majoris of Legio Venator and is over 250 standard years
old. His body is permanently confined to his command
throne, an ornate brass device that contains the necessary
life-support systems and tox-scrubbers to keep him alive
and allow him to interface with his Titan’s machine
spirit. He retains only his head, right arm, and half of his
torso, following a stand-off with Titans of the Forsaken
Reavers Chaos Warband.
During a clash against these foul raiders, Maxilohv
intercepted orbital surveillance that five of the Fallen
Engines were attempting to flank the Imperial assault
through a canyon south of the battle. As the rest of his
command could not abandon this critical phase of the
attack, Maxilohv disengaged his Engine Imperialis Potestus
from the battle and challenged the enemy Titans alone.
The canyon’s rock walls reportedly echoed with
the twisted scrapcode of the lead Chaos Warlord Titan
when the lone Imperial Engine encountered them, while
the meaning of Maxilohv’s brief reply burst is lost to
history. While the servants of Chaos could not all bring
their weapons to bear on him at once, neither could
they miss. Maxilohv’s Titan sustained massive damage
from the withering enemy fire, including a direct hit
to his command bridge. Maintaining control of his
Titan through sheer force of will, Maxilohv continued
to engage the enemy despite his terrible injuries. Upon
seeing the final Chaos Titan fall, Maxilohv finally lost
consciousness, and his Titan ground to a halt. Following
the battle, he was placed within the command throne he
currently occupies. After repairing his Titan, tech-rites
added the new honor to its glorious annals.
==Diviso Perditus Princeps==
A Diviso Perditus Princeps embodies the Legio Venator’s
penchant for ensuring that every trace of the enemy has been
annihilated by fire and death, regardless of the cost. Veterans
of many conflicts, these individuals elect to remove the parts
of their brain that house their slowly crumbling mental state,
and replace them with implants that maintain and enhance
their cognitive processes. This procedure obliterates the
Princeps’s own fracturing personality, instead allowing him
to direct his Engine’s spirit with cold and calculating logic.
However, with time, the continued melding with their
Engine’s predatory temperament gradually alters this emotional
void, creating individuals who believe that methodical and
overwhelming application of force is the only logical way
to fight an enemy. Occasionally, the machine-spirit’s nature
also intrudes upon the Princeps’s mental consciousness, and
influence the Princeps to continue fighting even when logic
would dictate withdrawing from a conflict. They are supremely
confident opponents, undaunted in the face of danger after
decades of wielding the power of a walking god.
==Legio Venator Redactus Moderatus==
Moderatus is the term for the various crew members within
the command bridge, who maintain and monitor a Titan’s
vital and secondary systems during deployment. Their
labours supplement and facilitate the Princeps’ control of
the Titan, and allow him to focus on the battle itself. Within
the Legio Venator, the task of interacting with the Princeps
falls primarily to the Redactus Moderatus, who sits below
the command throne within every Titan command bridge.
These experienced individuals filter all the data and reports
of the other Moderatii, and relay any vital information into
the command throne’s cogitators via synaptic link. They are
essential members of every crew and often serve as advisor and
second-in-command to the Princeps. Redactus Moderatii also
ensure the survival of their commanding officer, and each is
willing to sacrifice himself for his Legion and his Princeps.
==Shield Warden==
Shield Wardens are the elite guardians of Legio Venator,
whose sole responsibility is the defense of their assigned Titan
Engine from those who would do it harm from within. During
combat, each warden neurally links himself to the Titan’s hull
sensoria and integrity actuators. Here he remains, actively
monitoring the hull’s integrity and ready to quickly converge
upon any enemy incursion like the auto-immune cells of some
great beast. All wield deadly equipment specifically suited to
the confined spaces of a Titan’s interior, and are physically
augmented using vat grown and synthetic muscle fibers. Their
great shield’s rigid design makes use of the same material
as a Titan’s outer hull, and each is equipped with magnetic
punch-seals and pistons to create makeshift barricades and
temporary hull repairs. However, their most notable feature
is the Internal Injector Mass, a specialized implant within the
Shield Warden that uses stimulants and other chemicals to
turn this skilled soldier into an enraged bomb when close to
death, yet leave the Titan’s precious interior undamaged.