Emperor’s Secret Service

The Emperor’s Secret Service, also known more formally as the “Rex Occultatum Servitium”, is the chamber militant of the Inquisitorial “Ordo Noblis” who monitor the actions of nobility within the Imperium.
==Ordo Noblis==
The order in charge of the ESS is the “Ordo Noblis”, an Ordo Minos of the Inquisition. It is responsible for monitoring the threats that nobles, highborn, and those in position of great deals of money pose to the Imperium at large. They have wide-ranging authority over positions of nobles in the wider Imperium but focus primarily on the Sector Solar. They are an extremely old order, though not particularly large; they have between 5-20 Inquisitors at any given time.
Because of their duty to oversee the noble houses of the Imperium they were also tasked with overseeing the collegios of the Imperial Duelists. The Ordo Noblis hunt down “collegio ribelle” (“rebel colleges”) and ensure that the legitimate colegios fulfill their contracts.
==Forces==
There are two primary sorts of soldiers employed by the ESS: agents and commandos. “Agents” take on the role of spy, diplomats, seductresses, and assassins while commandos are trained members of the Tempestus Scions who learn to blend into society.
===Agents===
Agents of the ESS are members of the aristocracy themselves and are indistinguishable from the many dukes, ladies, and Sheikhs that carrouse at parties and ceremonies. Sometimes the balance of powers need to shift or a subtle nudge is required so their agents are also adept spies, infiltrators, saboteurs, and assassins. These carefully calculated destabilization operations are guided not only by their superb intelligence networks but also the guidance of visions.
A skilled agent may soon find themselves joining the retinue of a Ordo Noblis as an acolyte or even a throne agent before becoming Ordo Noblis inquisitors themselves. The role of agent trains one well to become an Inquisitor and they have been poached at times by other inquisitors or even the Officio Assassinorum.
===Commandos===
Inquisitorial stormtroopers assigned to the Ordo Noblis are assigned for life. They receive special training beyond their normal skills in matters of espionage and irregular warfare. As they are often asked to operate in plain sight they regularly do not employ the more expotic and powerful weapons of a tradational stormtrooper. They are perfectly capable of forming ranks and acting as normal Tempestus Scions but often pretend to be bodyguards, security, local law enforcement, etc.
==The Dapper Inquisition==
One oddity of the Ordo Noblis and ESS is their archaic fashion choices. They are famous for their straight, pressed, dark, suits and clean-cut looks. It is unclear where their tradition originated but has become a mainstay. They generally do not adopt this style of clothing in public, as they are undercover, but do so when acting as official representatives of the Ordo or ESS.
==Relationships==
===Officio Assassinorum===
The Ordo Noblis and the Officio Assassinorum often find themselves in the same line of work. There is a begrudging respect between the two and joint missions occur on occasion. The Ordo Noblis regularly requests the use of assassins when even their touch might be too clumsy and the Callidus Temple often taps ESS assets to aid in information gathering. The Vanus Temple also taps ESS resources regularly and there is an informal information exchange between the two.
Heretical rumors say that the ESS is nothing but an Assassinorum front and that they are really just using them as a way to further their own ends and train fledgling assassins.
===Rogue Traders===
In short, Rogue Traders despise the ESS. While the ESS has little ability to do anything to a Rogue Trader they like to gather intel on them and store that information. This makes the Rogue Traders nervous and some have become paranoid of ESS agents in their midst. The ESS likes it like this and continues their subtle harassment of the more untamed Rogue Traders in order to keep them in line in whatever little ways they can.
===Imperial Duelists===
The role of the Ordo Noblis is to oversee the Imperial Duelists. On the one hand the various colleges buck against their authority while simultaneously benefiting from their assistance in matters of policy, tracking down renegade collegio, and securing patronage within the Imperium. Occasionally a duelist or their squad will assist an Ordo Noblis Inquisitor on mission and a number of famous agents (and later Inquisitors) or the ESS/Ordo Noblis were at one point on track to become duelists.
File:ESS1-Director.png|Director M. Barkley
File:ESS2-Frogman.png|An ESS Commando in Frogman Attire for Aquatic Operations.
File:ESS3.jpeg|An ESS Throne Agent
Category:Inquisition
Category:Imperium of Man