7th Company

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Also known as the Sons of the Imperium, the 7th Company of the Knights Vigilant is among the Chapter’s most infamous Companies. It is also, unquestionably,  its most reviled.

Led by 7th Marshal Rat, the Company is primarily selected for actions against those in the Imperium who would rebel against the rightful rule of the High Lords.

They specialize in a brutal type of psychological warfare: demoralization of the enemy through complete domination. Every defense crippled, every champion crushed and humiliated, every glimmer of hope extinguished. Defeats so thorough, with consequences so harrowing, that the descendants of the rebellious will remember the punishment of their ancestors for centuries. The Seventh sets these terrible examples so that peace might be kept in the greater Empire, as exemplified by the words on their banner: “*Formido et Obedio”* or in Low Gothic: *“Fear and Obey”.*

They are notorious for targeting civilians for strategic advantage and for massacring innocents based on the *chance* of a traitor being among the population. They find joy in doing their duty to the Emperor, and their duty is cruelty.

## History

Until the purge that followed the fall of Marshal Krasus (M42.122) the Company was comprised almost entirely of former members of the Emperor's Children and Death Guard traitor Legions. After the former Marshal’s fall to Chaos the ranks were purged and the geneseed of the traitors was ordered destroyed.

Upon receiving command of 7th company, Marshal Skywalker drastically changed it; any references to the former Marshal were erased and any relics related to him were destroyed.

A new 7th company rose in the old one’s place. Marshall Skywalker’s succeeded in restoring the company's reputation as an effective and loyal, if distasteful, weapon within the arsenal of the Knights Vigilant.

The War-Seer Rat’s recent promotion to Marshal following Skywalker’s promotion to First Captain have brought few changes to the structure or culture of the Company as of yet.

The ranks are made up primarily of aspirants raised through the Chapter’s Acolytum who were hand selected for their cunning, self-discipline, and remorselessness. Aspirants destined for the Seventh are normally selected from the forgeworld of Aunia VIII or from youths born aboard the prison ship *the Heart of Penitence,* which houses the Company’s Penal Auxilia*.* Most of those selected are unwitting inheritors of recovered stores of Night Lords genestock, or from the progenoids of fallen transfers. Recruits are kept on a tight leash, and careful attention is paid to their training and education to prevent a repeat of the tragedy of both the old 7th Company and of the original VIII Legion.

The Company’s notoriously brutal nature also attracts transfers from other famously remorseless Chapters, such as the Flesh Tearers, the Marines Malevolent, the Minotaurs, and the Black Templars. Converts generally see the Company as a place where they can pursue administering the Emperor’s just vengeance free of the constraints of more squeamish leadership.

Their first notable appearance of the Reformed 7th Company in Imperial history was the Strorix 2477 Massacre (roughly M42.123), where the planet's entire population was purged due to Slaaneshii corruption. Those who knew the old company anticipated noble, merciful conduct. That expectation was thoroughly crushed, along with any notions of the Lord of Pleasure’s continued grip on the Company.

Also notable was the Siege of Cannise (M42.130). What began as an investigation of a suspected uprising on the fortress-planet turned out to be the advanced forces of the Archenemy.  The contingent was preparing the way for a splinter force of a Black Legion excursion into the heart of the Ultima Segmentum.

The defenders faced saboteurs, cultists, renegade guard and naval elements, and ancient Legionaries. In command was the Right Hand of Ghordar, the Black Legion Master of Execution’s personal terminator guard.

The Seventh’s incredible brutality cowed the Legion’s mortal forces of traitorous naval and guard elements, who abandoned their Astartes masters after over 100 days of bloody siege.

Captain Rehzael was lost when the Right Hand of Ghordar personally led a subterranean spearhead assault into the heart of the loyalist fortifications using an ancient Hades-class breaching drill once belonging to the Sons of Horus. Though he personally slew all five of the Cataphractii-clad warriors, he died in the process, to be interred forever in a revered Ironclad Dreadnought. Veteran Sgt. Vandir arrived too late to save him, but in time to shatter what remained of the enemy advance.

The Seventh was also selected to pursue the maddened First Company Dreadnaught Aquilius to the besieged forgeworld of Aunia VIII (roughly M42.133). Already fighting a losing battle against worshipers of the Bloodgod, the united forces of the Adeptus Sororitas and the Mechanicum were glad for the aid of a full Astartes Company. There were many losses throughout the course of the war against the Khornate cultists and the slaying of Aquilius by the 7th Marshal, but finally it and the loyalty of the forgeworld  were won. Acting Fabricator and Dominus, Techpriestess Sofia, was especially grateful for the aid.

The Seventh’s Fortress Monastery was then founded on the planet and Sofia departed her position on Aunia VIII (citing, bizarrely, personal reasons) to travel with the fleet, leading a separate contingent of Mechanicum Auxiliary from Arcum’s until the Magos’s departure from the fleet in M42.177.

The Seventh also engaged in a protracted engagement (M42.148-155) against the Rogue Inquisitor Samia Trent, the renowned Trading House of Hausvvald, and the forces she was able to put together using the authority of her office. The Marshal engaged everyone from daemons, to Trading House cyborg armies, to the Howling Griffons and even the Chaos Space Marines of the Iron Warriors before finally calling upon the strength of the entire Chapter. Together they halted a plot by Perturabo meant to cripple the Astra Militarum, Imperial Navy and the Officio Assassinorum in one fell swoop.

The Seventh participated in the scouring of the traitorous elements of the 3rd Company (M42.188), taking particular enjoyment in running down rogue elements of the Inquisition that frustrated their efforts during the Trent debacle.

## **Company Culture**

Members of the Seventh generally have a strained relationship with their Chapter brothers outside of the Company. Relations are strained between the Seventh and the First, especially after the departure of their Marshal, who the Seventh see as poachers stealing their strongest and brightest warriors. Often viewed by outsiders as sadistic and cruel reprobates, the brothers of the Seventh are a tight-knit group that prefers their own company.

Internally, the Seventh prides themselves in their dutifulness and thoroughness. Every member is proud of the extreme extent to which they will go to purge the mutant, the alien, and the witch from the Emperor’s blessed domain. If our sword is hatred then every Brother of the Seventh is as well armed as the Emperor himself.

While the other Companies are often disgusted by the Seventh’s methods, Brothers of the Seventh generally dismiss such concerns as spinelessness and a lack of resolve. They do precisely what needs to be done and expect no gratitude for it.

That same humility extends to rank and recognition through formal honors. Hardly any formal designation of rank beyond Captain and Sergeant is made. The Marshal’s personal guard is referred to as the “veteran squad” only informally, and though they are often given detachment command by the Marshal there is no presumption of seniority.

Under Marshal Skywalker’s rule, rewards for exemplary service to the Company were generally in the form of Heresy-era arms and armor. Following his departure, these relics became more precious and greater efforts were employed to recover them and ensure that they were handed down within the Company when lost.

## **Combat Doctrine**

To an outsider, the Seventh often appears erratic, indulgent, sadistic, capricious, and wantonly cruel. This is mostly inaccurate, and the deception is purposeful.

The combat doctrine of the Seventh operates on a single, simple principle: Do what it takes to crush your enemy’s spirit, no matter how distasteful. An enemy must be put in a position where they willingly submit to complete, unconditional surrender. To achieve that end absolutely nothing is off of the table. This extends to tolerating the Company’s infamous reputation: opponents generally assume that cruel and unpredictable means that the Seventh is uncautious or undisciplined. This has proved to be a uniformly fatal assumption.

In practice, the guiding principle means that the Seventh is among the most thorough and systematic Companies in the Adeptus Astartes. They have to be: after all, they are generally called to clean up another Chapter’s botched planetary conquest from centuries or millennia prior. Conquering a people properly requires gaining a thorough understanding of what they value, then exploiting their weaknesses ruthlessly. The rebellious people are broken, their monuments ground to dust, and their champions brought to defeat and public disgrace. They are shown, in every possible way, that their civilization is inferior to that which was created by the Emperor.

For planetary invasion, covert teams are sent in advance to observe and cripple key parts of the enemy’s defensive infrastructure: especially compromising coms, void shields and air/void defense batteries. Skrubb's Skulkers are generally employed to gain access and insert stealth-outfitted tactical squads, 9th Company Scouts. and Auxillia recon teams. The covert teams pave the way for deployment of the Condemned, who’s pillaging will further divide enemy defenses. Finally, a brutal combined assault of drop pods and heavy vehicles is directed at key targets. Emphasis is placed on capturing valued and admired military, cultural and political figures as well as their families to be used as public examples.

In void battle, the Chapter generally strikes first with a rapid boarding action, pursuing soft targets with maximum morale impact: civilian and crew quarters, medicae bays, and for traitor Space Marines: genestores, dormant Dreadnaught sarcophagi, trophies, and artifact vaults are targeted. The distractions divide defenses so that a second force can neutralize gun/hangar decks, navigators, warp drives, and command.

## Known Vehicles of the Company

*Voidships:*

Space Marines

Strike Cruiser

the *Emperor’s Glory*

Hunter Destroyers

the *Bellator Nocte*

the *Black Knife*

Penal Auxillia

Cetacea class transport

the *Heart of Penitence*

Iconoclast class Destroyer

the *Doloire*

Sisterhood of the Sainted Judge

Falchion class Frigate

the *Last Executioner II*

## **Auxiliaries**

The Seventh maintains two auxiliaries: the Penal Auxillia led by Warden-Colonel Jeor, and a Commandery of the Adepta Sororitus led by Canoness Commander Felwyn.

A detachment of Scouts from the 9th Company are also normally found alongside the fleet, with Old Master Arturias training those who will eventually join the ranks of the Seventh.

The Penal Auxilia is the largest auxiliary by far, with a regiment-sized fighting force ranging anywhere from 2,000 to 10,000 due to the extremely high attrition rate.

The main body of the auxilia is the *Condemnatio* or Condemned. It is comprised of criminals drawn from Imperial prisons and from populations condemned to death by the Seventh company.

The Condemned are fitted with bomb collars and confined to the inner decks of the *Heart of Penitence*, an ancient cetacea-class transport heavily modified for the purpose of jailing and transporting the auxilia. The cetacea’s dropships have been swapped for heavy mass haulers used to rapidly deploy the Condemned, and most of the hab decks have been altered to limit access to power and ship functions. Security for the bridge, warp drives, active hangers, and gun decks have also been heavily reinforced.

Most of the ship’s hab decks are extremely restrictive areas known as the Black Decks. Reserved for the worst offenders, these are areas of the ship where no power, water, or food are provided and the prisoners are left to fend completely for themselves.

The *Condemnatio* are armed with whatever they can scavenge in the aftermath of a deployment: everything from clubs and primitive powder firearms to lasguns and advanced heavy weapons can be found in their possession. They are deployed en masse with no organization structure whatsoever to do one thing: close with the enemy and kill or die trying.

Losses among the Condemned are deliberately enormous; every soul among the *Condemnatio* carries a death sentence, and the Seventh intends for them to die serving the Emperor. The relentless tide of slaughter serves the dual role of distracting and demoralizing the enemy.

The rest of the Penal Auxiliary are the *Perdonare*, or the Pardoned. These are free transfers from other Guard units or former prisoners who have earned a pardon from the ranks of the Condemned through service to the Seventh.

Numbering stably at about a thousand, these soldiers serve a dual role of support troop and prison guard. The *Perdonare* have very limited frontline combat use: they are mainly used for the enormous task of deploying and recovering the Condemned. They also serve a role in reconnaissance (alongside the 9th’s Scout detachment), supply and troop movement, and providing both artillery and air support.

The Penal Auxiliary also has at its disposal a smaller, battalion-sized unit commanded by one Major Skrubb. The force has no official designation given its irregular nature, but the moniker "Skrubb's Skulkers" has become increasingly popular among both the unit itself and the rest of the Auxiliary. Manpower is compromised of select volunteers from the Perdonare and free transfers, as well as Condemnatio that have proven themselves trustworthy and are close to earning their pardon. Numbers fluctuate regularly but never exceed 450. The Skulkers' primary purposes are long-distance raiding and false flag attacks, often disguising themselves as mercenaries or pirates. Operating from the Doloire, a repurposed Iconoclast-class destroyer, the Skulkers give the 7th Company a more subtle option for situations that don't require the deployment of the full Penal Auxiliary.

Finally, a Commandery of about 80 Adepta Sororitas of the Sisterhood of the Sainted Judge have returned after the martyrdom of Sister Marie on K4. One of their Devourer dropships is parked aboard the *Heart of Penitence*, where they bring the Emperor’s word to the wretched prisoners of the Black Decks. The remainder are stationed aboard the Falchion-class frigate the *Last Execution II*. When the holy signs are right they are known to deploy alongside the *Perdonare* and *Condemnatio* to reinforce them precisely in their time of need.