Cauldron-Born

The Cauldron-Born are a 4th founding chapter of Space Marines descended from the Raven Guard. They are a mysterious yet deeply respected chapter of marines who do not act in the same fashion as most other companies; they are deployed in small groups or even pairs to act in independent support of other war efforts. They were initially exclusively founded using an ancient and advanced vitae womb process to vat-grow their marines to hopefully repair the damaged gene-seed of the Raven Guard but this was not successful.
Of all the space marine chapters they are perhaps most at home among the general population of the Imperium. They act as the ultimate enforcers or bodyguards for Imperial elites (generals, governors, etc) and are constantly sought by Inquisitors to join their retinue. Cauldron-Born are assigned to these tasks by their superiors who sift through various Imperial requests and give them out to their disciples, though their assignment is never permanent.
They are not adverse to working on the battlefield though (what marine could be?) and it is here that they perhaps shine most. The Cauldron-Born are deployed in a similar fashion to Mentor Legion elite cadre- they are seconded to other chapters or even individual commanders for their use. They act as an X-factor, working in favor of those that employ them, and bring new tactics and skills that an individual chapter or company might lack. Because of their skill in rapid deployment, stealth, and urban warfare they most often augment marine forces that are not specialists in that area (they tend not to be deployed with White Scars and Raven Guard successors, for example).
==Gene-Seed==
The Cauldron-Born are clearly of Raven Guard genetic stock. The normal casualty rate among new marines is drastically lessened by the chapter’s master-apprentice training style but the other qualities of the faulty gene-seed are on full display in the chapter. Like their parent chapter their Mucranoid organ and Betcher’s Gland are missing, they have an ashen skin tone due to a malfunctioning Melanochromic organ.
The Cauldron-Born are keen to recognize their primarch’s curse, which is weaker in them than in their kindred. They are not as broody or melancholic but they are even more independent than other children of Corvus Corax. They combat their curse by employing their master-apprentice training style, giving their marines the ability to act independently within reason and command a squad of their own, and by making meetings infrequently but joyous affairs. They intentionally and religiously celebrate the presence of their brethren whenever they meet as this is part of their manner of combating the curse that could consume them. That having been said, disobedience is met with swift punishment or death.
==Name==
The chapter is known as the “Cauldron-Born” because their initial members were not born but were vat-grown in a process that is similar to those of the Death Korps of Krieg. The Vitae Wombs used for this process were far superior to those used to produce inferior humans for the Imperial Guard. These ancient relics were used to try to offset the damaged gene-seed of the Raven Guard but the efforts were unsuccessful. The sacred vats still produce many of the serfs that hope to one day become apprentices, though they are slowly becoming less productive. Because of this many of the marines of the chapter lack biological parents and consider themselves to be literal “children of Vezor”, the planet they were birthed on. Those who are not vat born are considered less prestigious in the chapter and there is something of a rift between the “Children of Vezor” and “Children of Flesh” in the chapter. Some masters will only accept vat-born children, others only accept non-vat-born serfs of exceptional talent, and some (often non-vat-born themselves) flaunt tradition and only accept non-vat-born serfs.
==Training==
The Cauldron-Born raise its members in a master/apprentice fashion. These apprentices (scouts) are drawn from a squad of neophyte-serfs that attend and fight beside the marine and those they choose to train. When an apprentice has been fully trained and has earned the right to become a full battle brother their master will take on a new apprentice in their place. A given battle brother will have between 1-3 apprentices at any given time.
==Organization==
A Cauldron-Born marine moves with a great deal of independence, though they follow the commands of both their superiors in the chapter (often their former masters) and the Imperium at large. Commands are passed down from more senior members of the chapter, often those that trained them. The Cauldron-Born are theoretically organized into squad level units called “houses” which are led by a “patron” and company level units called “hundreds”. Patrons command ~10 battle brothers, each of who have an apprentice and a squad of serfs. This retinue is the battle brother’s unit in battle, though it is not unheard of for several of these squad to work in concert together if their battle brothers are seconded to the same task. A patron will often be the direct former master of (or at least be related to) the marines in their house and is responsible for the deployment of marines under their command. Each hundred is overseen by a “moot lord” (similar to a captain) who assigns tasks to the patrons under them.
==Specialists==
Unlike other chapters their specialists exist outside this normal structure and operate exclusively on a company level.  Specialists are fewer than in other chapters as the company they are seconded too already has those resources and the only role of a specialist within the Cauldron-Born are their use in administrative and logistical purposes. They are dispatched when need is greatest and their skills are required but it is exceedingly rare for them to appear if they are not expressly needed (an apothecary might be dispatched to help with a plague, a librarian dispatched to help with a warp instability, etc).
Librarians only take psykers as apprentices who will later take their role and are limited to a single apprentice at a time who has been approved by the chapter’s head chaplain. Likewise apothecaries and techpriests are trained by an existing apothecary or techpriest before being given further training by the normal organization. These all operate out of the chapter’s Fortress Monastery on Vezor Prime where they are visited when the need is greatest. Marines make “pilgrimages” to Vezor when they need something from the chapter at large and doing so is a holy rite that only the victorious may claim. Those that fail but seek a chance for redemption may only visit the nearby moon, the forsaken place known only as “Sheol Beta”.
An example of how this works might look like this:
“Brother Kazan and his apprentice Trovia were deployed to aid the Brotherhood of the Mammoth during a recent orc campaign. Their duty a success and Trovia having proven himself in a battle with an ork meganob, they go on pilgrimage to Vezor Prime (sending a record of their triumph ahead) so that Trovia might become a full battle brother. They receive clearance for their pilgrimage when they enter the system and, after visiting several holy sites and paying respects to the tombs of their honored dead, Trovia meets with the head chaplain who deems him worthy after a lengthy interview. After a ritual of brotherhood between Brother Kazan and Trovia that is witnessed by Brother Kazan’s master (who happened to be there) the apothecaries of the chapter take him away for the final steps of conversion into a full battle brother. They have been making pilgrimages back to Vezor Prime after each mission so that Trovia might get more of his implants and this visit is the final one. A great feast is had and the marines on hand celebrate with a number of gladiatorial games as Brother Trovia joins them at the table of lords in the moot hall for the first time to watch the games.”
==Moots==
Cauldron-Born meet up for "moots", at a house/squad or hundred/company level, and only high ranking members of the chapter attend the occasional "grand moots" of the chapter (though they are often attended by several of their most loyal battle brothers). These are only called when there is something that needs to be done in person and are often grave or glorious affairs.
==Seconding==
Because Cauldron-Born marines are seconded to other chapters all the time, they are frequently seconded to the Deathwatch or The Emperor’s Peace. Veteran marines will have served several cycles of service attached to these organizations and many will also have served on the retinues of Inquisitors and even Rogue Traders. This causes Cauldron-Born to gain a wide array of skills and experiences that makes them exceptionally adaptable and unconventional. It also means that they tend to collect equipment from many chapters, organizations, Imperial Ordos, and the like over their years- both as trophies and honors and as wargear. It’s not unusual to see a Cauldron-Born veteran who has chained their hand to their chain sword like a Black Templar, who has a wolf’s pelt around their shoulders that they earned during a campaign fighting besides the Space Wolves, a Deathwatch pauldron, and wielding a mastercrafted plasma pistol with the heraldry of a famous Rogue Trader dynasty.
==The Witchfire Cauldron==
One of the birthing vats on the Vezor has shown odd properties that the chapter has kept hidden. If legend is to be believed the cauldron can heal any marine placed within it and even resurrect the faithful. The darkest rumors say it is a vessel of chaos that corrupts those who step within it. Supposedly the chapter master must ritually die and be placed in the cauldron when the ascend to their position and will only be returned to life if they are truly faithful. The inquisition is suspicious of this ritual but has yet to witness it. It is possible it is just part of the chapter’s cult and is entirely religious/metaphorical in nature. Still, many marines are placed into the Witchfire Cauldron if they have suffered grievous wounds before or after being treated by apothecaries (though there may be some beneficial aspects of being immersed in nutrient rich birthing solution). Marines from the chapter carry “cauldron crew” (liquid from the witchfire cauldron) that they drink for reasons that are unclear. It may be that they believe it wards off bad luck, fills them with strength, restores their faith, or heals their wounds. Regardless of the truth, the chapter’s veneration of this artifact borders on the heretical but their exemplary record of service affords them the courtesy of a lack of investigation.
Category:4th Founding
Category:Raven Guard Successors