Tallarn Redeemers

“Tis time, my cursed foe, ‘tis time... For death the heart is aching;Days follow days in flight, and every day is takingFragments of being, while together you and IMake plans to live. Look, all is dust, and you shall die.”
-Scout Sergeant Atra-Hasis Tis Time, My Cursed Foe
The Tallarn Redeemers are a small, loyalist chapter with mysterious origins who doggedly hunt down the Thousand Sons. They are closely watched by the Ordo Astartes and new marines of the chapter can only be made with their approval. In their vaults is said to be a powerful artifact that no outsider can see.
== Founding ==
The chapter was founded out of the remains of an older chapter (possibly several) and because of this there is a deep divide between the veteran marines and the large number of scouts they maintain. For unknown reasons, scouts of the chapter can only undergo full conversion with the consent of an Ordo Astartes Inquisitor overseeing them- a rare privilege and curse. They rarely are given the opportunity to draw new recruits but, when they do, they draw their stock from desert worlds. The vast majority come from Tallarn (home of the Tallarn Raiders Imperial Guard units) but a few come from other desert worlds like Lavantia, Santos 9, and Zibal.
== Gene Seed ==
The gene seed of the Tallarn Redeemers is unknown and highly suspicious. They produce a high number of psykers and Inquisitorial approval is required for both recruiting new members and promoting a scout to a full battle brother. The reasons are unknown but apparently very dire. It has been noted as being distinctly different from all other chapters on record, though that may be misinformation. Apparently their gene seed binds particularly well to those from Tallarn and other desert worlds (to a lesser extent) for some reason. All member of the chapter have green eyes and psykers of their chapter have eyes that glow an eerie neon-green.
== Armor ==
The appearance of the Tallarn Redeemers is strange, bordering on the heretical. Their colors are tan and dark green with touches of crimson. Their veterans wear regalia similar to that of ancient Egypt and more than a little reminiscent of Thousand Sons armor. The newer members have adopted this style of dress as well.
== Tactical Disposition ==
The chapter’s specialty is desert combat, ambush tactics, and sniping. They have a deep hatred of psykers and the Thousand Sons. Their colors are desert tan and green with a touch of crimson for accents. They are typically deployed alongside Inquisitor allies (or in support of them) who keep an extra close eye on them for any inclination of heresy. The dwindling number of veterans means they field very few actual marines, mostly fielding scouts as they are hesitant to taint others with their gene seed.
=== Digging ===
The chapter is famous for digging themselves into deep, concealed, undetectable burrows days or even weeks before a planned encounter and seeming to rise up out of the sand or dirt before their foes to great effect. They make extensive use of mining and other subterranean technology in their offensives. There is just something inherently unnerving about marines arising from the sand, it spilling off their armor, in the middle of a battle.
== A Chapter Divided ==
The veteran members, referred to as “old guard” or “true brothers” form a tightly knit inner circle and do not often mingle with the “young blood” or “new marines”. They seem to have a shared “sin” between them and claim to have fought at a major battle together. These veterans number only number 5 and two are entombed in dreadnoughts. They fear that the new recruits will forget their mission once the veterans have all died.
The newer members take great pride in their heritage from Tallarn (or other desert worlds) and are less concerned with the matter of their chapter’s past, wanting to move past it whatever it was that the veterans did and do good works in the name of the Emperor.
== The Veterans ==
When the chapter was formed there were about fifty veterans but time has worn their numbers down to less than twenty. The five more prominent form a “Veteran Council” that guides the chapter from within. They are:Chapter Master Darwish, Captain Shamash, Scout Captain Amir, and the two venerable dreadnoughts: Librarian Urshanabi and High Apothecary Utnapishtim.
== The Indomitus Crusade ==
When the chapter was initially forbidden from partaking in Roboute Guilliman’s crusade due to their suspect status. They were kept “for defense” in the Sol System and saw minor action fighting local insurgents and dispatching cults that had been ferreted out by the Inquisition. Furthermore, they were refused any primaris marine reinforcements for the same reason.
When Magnus the Red and his traitorous Thousand Sons assaulted Luna though, the Redeemers ignored all Inquisitorial mandates and set course at a reckless pace to intervene with their hated foes. The Redeemers fought with such terrible efficiency that they broke the line of the Thousand Sons whenever they deployed. Though they suffered many casualties, they persevered in the face of insurmountable odds and perhaps earned back some of their respect in the eyes of the Imperium because they were not even chastised for their abandoning of their Inquisitorial duties.
== Psychic Awakening ==
During the great event known as the “Psychic Awakening” the Tallarn Redeemers were flooded with psychic energy. The chapter, already known for its many psykers, became entirely comprised of them. Even those who were not powerful enough to become Librarians were still rated at least an epsilon or gamma grade psyker. Their new recruits hardly had their first organs installed when their latent psychic abilities manifested and those of the chapter who were already possessive of a high level of psychic energy were driven to unparalleled heights. The Ordo Hereticus attempted to disband the Redeemers on the grounds that they had been corrupted beyond salvation but their deeds on Luna shielded them from their wrath. Now the Tallarn Redeemers are deployed on the front line of the worst psychic outbreak in the Imperial records wielding spell against spell and exchanging fire with forces who seek their total obliteration.
== Notable Campaigns ==
The Sawtooth Crisis: A warband of former Thousand Sons marines, known as the Blood of Ahriman, at a planet deep in Imperial space. Their target was a large city known as Dextras North and a navigator by the name of Herodicus “Sawtooth” Minks. Sawtooth secretly fell to chaos and disrupted much of the planetary defense force by getting them lost in warp space during a training exercise and allowing the Blood of Ahriman to invade. The Tallarn Redeemers arrived in short order and with their first company they purged them all. However, the Black Orthodoxy chapter arrived unbidden and mistook the Tallarn Redeemers as the heretics. The two chapters fought, even after the matter had been cleared up, and two of the Redeemers’ honored veterans were impaled and put on display. The Inquisition hushed up the matter but the two chapters have an intense hate for each other to this day.
The Wine of War: A chaos cult operating on a fringe world had begun to harvest blood from the locals, subtly taint it, and sent it out on military medical transports. Once enough were infected a powerful sorcerer of Tzeentch named Katack the Blue activated a curse that made all the guardsmen murder their comrades and go on the warpath. The Tallarn Redeemers were summoned and their third company (primarily composed of the newer marines) and several allies, including Psyker-Priest Thurge did battle with the disorganized mass of tainted guardsmen, eventually winning the day. Katack the Blue was defeated in a psychic duel by Psyker-Priest Thurge, captured, and brought back to their flagship where Librarian Urshanabi severed his connection to sorcery for all time. He now rots, brain dead, in a Star Marshal cell in their special prison called "The Box".
10th Black Crusade: The Tallarn Redeemers from the second company were noted to have been active in small numbers during the 10th Black Crusade. None of those who went to war came back as they were waylaid during the fighting in the Medusa System.
The 4th Impailer’s Crusade: When a powerful psyker and hero of the Imperium, Psyker-Priest Thurge was appointed to the position of cardinal over the Serovia system a civil war broke out in protest. Order was enforced by Imperial Guard forced primarily composed of a few dozen of the Somnium regiments. The civil war reached a whole new level when the Black Orthodoxy chapter showed up and demanded Psyker-Priest Thurge’s head and Thurge’s old allies took exception to this. The so-called “4th Impaler's Crusade” saw the Black Orthodoxy do battle against the Tallarn Redeemers and the Order of the Black Moot who sought to defend Thurge from their impaling power-spears. The Imperium was divided on who they should back so mixed messages were sent and backing was given to no side in particular. The bloody civil war ended when Psyker-Priest Thurge took his own life by drinking poison after leading mass one last time. He did so in front of hundreds of thousands of his followers and many say he ascended to join with the Emperor.
== Notable Tallarn Redeemers ==
* Chapter Master Darwish: The eldest and wisest of the marines. He is ancient beyond measure and mute. He is patient, silent, and brooding. He is one of the last veterans left and is one of the eldest living space marines (though not as old or prestigious as Bjorn).
* Scout Sergeant Atra-Hasis: Once a great tribal prince from Tallarn, Atra-Hasis is a soft spoken but very effective leader. He is a veteran scout who was in the first batch of new recruits. He is something of a poet as well and has written many litanies of hate and devotional poems.
* Scout Sergeant Sinbad: Once a roguish bandit king on Tallarn, he has forsaken his outlaw lifestyle in favor of a life of service to the Emperor.
* Scout Captain Amir: One of the few veterans from the times of the heresy. He is the last surviving scout and trains the others in the true ways of combat. (Played using the rules of Scout Sergeant Telion).
* Captain Shamash: The second oldest marine in the chapter after Darwish. Shamash is something of an X-factor, accomplishing assigned orders in whatever way he deems fit. Darwish trusts him completely, Shamash serving as the “yin” to his “yang”. He leads the veteran assault marines of the chapter and fights with many chainswords. At one point he was a techmarine and he converted his servo harness to sport two additional chainswords; allowing him to control four at once. This has earned him the nickname of “The Red Wind” as he dances through the battlefield rending limb from body with the ease of a hot wind blowing through a tent.
* Librarian Urshanabi: The former head librarian who is now entombed in a venerable dreadnought. His ability to sever a sorcerer's connection to their powers is legendary and is a power he retains to this day. He served as the guardian of the chapter’s mysterious artifact, protecting it from the influences of chaos.
* High Apothecary Utnapishtim: A former apothecary who is now entombed in a venerable dreadnought, though apparently his injuries are slowly healing for unknown reasons. He is the keeper of the long-chant of names of the chapter and it is said that only he recounts all the members of the chapter. He still oversees the chapter’s apothecaries and trains them from his walking tomb.
Scout Tallarn.png|A Youngblood Scout
TallarnVeteranAssault.png|A Veteran Assault Marine
TacMarineSgt.png|A Tactical Marine Sergeant
Tallarn Chap 1.png|A Chaplain from the Tallarn Redeemers
Tallarn Tech 1.png|A Techmarine from the Tallarn Redeemers
Tallarn Sgt 1.png|A Tactical Sergeant from the Tallarn Redeemers
Tallarn Tac 5.png|A Tactical Marine from the Tallarn Redeemers
Tallarn Tac 4.png|A Tactical Marine from the Tallarn Redeemers
Tallarn Tac 3.png|A Tactical Marine from the Tallarn Redeemers
Tallarn Tac 2.png|A Tactical Marine from the Tallarn Redeemers
Tallarn Tac 1.png|A Tactical Marine from the Tallarn Redeemers
Category:Chapters of Unknown Lineage
Category:5th Founding