Corsair Squad

**Corsair Squads** are an unofficial, elite formation of assault specialists utilised exclusively by the Void Eagles Legion. These warriors were chosen from the legion's most ruthless and lethal killers, excelling in boarding actions and fighting in 'Zone Mortalis' environments - the most lethal of warzones imaginable. As masters of close-quarters fighting and 'Forlorn Hope' objective assaults, Corsair Squads were charged with tearing the throat out of an enemy's command and sowing confusion and chaos amongst the ranks of their foes. But despite their usefulness and overall effectiveness, they were never officially recognised as an official part of the IVth Legion.

## Background

While Yucahu reorganized his legion to follow the *Principia Belicosa* more closely, his sons were wont to deviate from "standard" legion structure. The most infamous example of this are the Void Eagles' Corsair squads. Unlike the walking battle tanks of the Saturators, the Corsairs were designed for shock rather than firepower. At the core of their being, the Corsairs were the elite of the IVth Legion assault cadre, drawn from the most aggressive brawlers in the IVth. However, rather than simply being close combat specialists, the Corsairs were given the most dangerous objective of a boarding action: to tear the enemy vessel's throat out. Such a task could only be accomplished by a charge directly towards the bridge of the enemy vessel, typically the best defended part of an enemy vessel leading to enormous casualties, upwards of 70% in some actions. As such, for a Corsair to survive more than a few years service was rare(the average service length at the end of the Great Crusade was two years) but replacements were never in short supply.

Because of the highly dangerous nature of their role on the battlefield, the Corsairs were an incredibly close knit brotherhood, more so than even other units of astartes, and they rapidly took on a separate identity within the Void Eagles as an elite unit. Because of this, they differed in their appearance from other Void Eagles, many choosing to bedeck their armour with symbols of death and danger. Apart from their appearance, they had their own battle cry and, although no official record is made of it, most sources claim it to be either '*Semper Fidelis*' ("Always loyal!") or '*Semper Primus*' ("Always the first!").

However, strangely, despite their place within the Void Eagles legion as an elite unit, the Corsairs were never officially recognized as such by IVth Legion command. On official records, even after he became part of the Corsairs, a legionary remained part of his old unit. The resulting logistical confusion was typical of the IVth with some legionaries dying as sergeants in the Corsairs but being officially listed as rank-and-file legionaries and supplies requested by officially non-existent Corsair units needing to be acquired through less conventional means more often than not.

## Unit Composition

* **9-19 Corsairs**
* **1 Corsair Sergeant**

## Wargear

* **Void-Hardened Power Armour**
* **Boltgun**
* **Bolt Pistol**
* **Boarding Shield**
* **Frag & Krak Grenades**

### Optional Wargear

Any Corsair may replaced their Boltgun with the following:

* **Power Axe**

For every five Corsairs, one warrior may replace their boltgun with one of the following:

* **Combi-Weapon**
* **Flamer**
* **One Breaching Charge**
* **Melta Gun**
* '*Plasma Gun*
* **Thunder Hammer**

One Corsair may carry the following:

* **Nuncio-Vox**
* **Legion Vexilla**

The Corsair Sergeant may exchange their bolt pistol or their boltgun for one of the following:

* **Power Weapon (Any Type)**
* **Power Fist**
* **Plasma Pistol**
* **Thunder Hammer**

The Corsair Sergeant my take one of the following options:

* **Upgrade to Artificer Armour**
* **Melta-Bombs**