Iron Snakes

Iron Snakes armorial with Legion iconography.

Iron Snakes Legionary of the 15th Phratry, 6th Tactical Squad.

### Noteworthy Domains

Ithaka, Karybdis (Fortress Moon), Baal Solock (Recruitment World), Rosetta (Mining World); Reef Stars (Segmentum Obscurus)

### Observed Strategic Tendencies

Shock Assault, Close-Quarters Actions (Space Hulk Purgation, Boarding Operations, Line-Breaker Attacks, 'Forlorn Hope' Objective Assaults), Punitive and Excoriation Campaigns.

### Allegiance

Imperium of Man
(*Fedelitas Sine Recursu*)

### Warcry

"For Ithaka!"
alternatively"Strength and Honour!"

The **Iron Snakes** are the IV Legion of the Legiones Astartes. At the head of their legion stands their imposing Ulysses, a Primarch of warrior's prowess and incandescent rage. Their Primarch is a brilliant tactician and military strategist that revels in the utter destruction of the Emperor's foes. A stubborn and proud warrior, Ulysses also prides himself on never taking a backwards step when facing a foe, no matter if the enemy possesses numerical superiority or not - a trait passed down to his sons. Raised upon the ocean world of Ithaka, the IV Legion was renamed the Iron Snakes by their Primarch, which was taken from the giant sea serpents called Water Wyrms that inhabit their frozen home world's vast oceans.

## Legion Homeworld

The Iron Snakes recruit their Neophytes from Ithaka, an Imperial Ocean World (commonly referred to by its people as the "Cradle of Snakes") which is largely covered in very deep oceans and home to a variety of sea life, including the great serpentine Water Wyrms. Ithaka does possess significant landmass, including tropical islands and viciously cold polar regions.

The Iron Snakes are therefore able to train in a number of environments, although the sea is most precious to them. Ithaka's oceans are home to a variety of sea-life, including the indigenous giant Water Wyrms. A *kraretyer*, or mature male bull Water Wyrm, is known to grow up to 300 metres in length.

The Legion uses these Wyrms in hunting exercises for its Initiates, and in the ritual punishment of *Oethanar*. The Water Wyrms are known to cause *retyarion* ("Wyrm-Storm"), ferocious squalls that seem to follow the movement of the marine serpents. A *retyarion* eventually causes *seunenae* ("the folding walls of iron"), giant tsunamis that rise out of the deep waters and come crashing into the settled islands while standing kilometres-high.

The Iron Snakes' actual fortress-monastery, which they refer to as the Legion House, is located on Ithaka's fortress moon, Karybdis, and features a great bell as large as a Space Marine Drop Pod. The Legion House is a mighty bastion with sloped turrets lined with Earthshaker Cannons, massive curtain walls, and hardpoint blisters of Hydra batteries.

The Legion House contains armouries, forges, training halls, a chapel and an Apothecarion. It also contains a main bath pool known as the Hall of the Balneary. The Balneary is fifty metres square and filled with sacred sea-water imported from Ithaka.

The Tholos lies beneath the Legion House, anchored deep in the rocky crust of Karybdis. This is a stockade for Astartes of the Iron Snakes that is seldom used due to the meticulous discipline of the Legion. Its most common residents are prisoners of war, held pending interrogation under the watchful eyes of the Veteran Astartes who serve as the wardens known as "Archons."

## Legion Beliefs

The Iron Snakes are a meticulously disciplined Legion, though they deviate significantly from the Principia Belicosa. The water from Ithaka's oceans is considered sacred by its people, and when Iron Snakes Battle-Brothers are called to go to a distant war they perform one last act before leave-taking, a ceremony known as the Rite of the Claiming of Water.

This lifewater is carried in a copper flask by every member of the Legion, to anoint every planet that they step foot on in a ritual ceremony called the Rite of the Giving of Water. When these Battle-Brothers return to their homeworld, the remaining water in these vials is given back to the oceans of Ithaka in a rite known as the Rite of Returning.

The cremated remains of those Iron Snakes Astartes slain in battle are also returned, in ceremonial copper urns known as eusippus. Usually the senior-most Battle-Brother in the squad of the deceased performs this last sacred duty. As the Lament of Dysse is intoned, the lid of each eusippus is unscrewed in turn and the grey ash is shaken out. The fallen remains are sieved away into the wind and returned like the water to the sea.

The fallen Astartes' squad leader carries prepared statements written on a scroll of paper about the valiant dead's life, actions and death, sealed and ready to be placed within the archives of the Legion House. Often these scrolls also contain full orders of merit laying out the full details and particulars of an Iron Snakes Space Marine's service with the Legion as well as all of the commendations and decorations he has earned.

Another common practice of the Iron Snakes is a ritual punishment, used against those Astartes who have committed a terrible crime, known as Oethanar -- or "Trial by Wyrm" in the dialect of High Gothic used in the sector.

This is the worst fate a man of Ithaka can undergo. The accused is left alone and unarmed on a stilt rock, forced to face the Wyrms as they are summoned. If the accused man is still alive at the end of 6 solar hours, he is considered guilty of the charges against him.

The people of Ithaka believe that the Water Wyrms will not defile themselves by touching a guilty man. If they take the accused, he is one of Ithaka's chosen children and his innocence will be celebrated in funeral songs and grief-rites forever after.

## Legion Combat Doctrine

When a mission, referred to within the Legion as an "undertaking", is decided upon, the Iron Snakes' Legion Master announces how many squads he believes are required to ensure its success. All squad-leaders who wish to volunteer their units for the mission then place their tokens into a *kylix* (a form of drinking cup whose origins lie in ancient Greece on Terra). The Legion Master then decides which squads to assign to the undertaking based upon which tokens he finds in the *kylix*.

While the squad is the principal tactical unit of the Legion, sometimes even less manpower is deployed. In cases of responding to general aid requests from the worlds of the Reef Stars, it is customary to dispatch only one Battle-Brother from the closest squad to investigate.

The Astartes chosen is often either the newest member of the squad, or a member being considered for the role of successor by the squad-leader; a one-person undertaking is seen as a fitting challenge for such Space Marines. Historically, only one warrior usually suffices in cases of general aid requests, though it is no shame for the individual to request the presence of his Phratry-Brothers once apprised of the specific situation.

The Iron Snakes' Tactical Squads are unique in the fact that all such squads have an attached Apothecary unlike other *Principia Belicosa*-compliant Legions who assign only one Apothecary per company.

### Legion Wargear

Though the Iron Snakes are able to deploy an acceptable number of vehicles, and also include Dreadnoughts and Librarians amongst their forces, the primacy of the combat squad means that they concentrate on basic infantry tactics in battle.

The Legion's Armoury is able to issue Combat Shields, Warblades (short Power Swords) and Sea Lances (javelin-type fighting spears commonly referred to as Astartes Power Spears) to all Battle-Brothers, enabling them to close up and use phalanx (shield-wall) tactics.

They are particularly skillful with the Sea Lances, as part of a Petitioner's training on their homeworld of Ithaka involves the hunting and slaying of the large, predacious Water Wyrms native to that feral planet.

Each Iron Snake is issued with 2 Sea Lances before battle, to be used and disposed of, and phratry Battle-Brothers are issued fresh lances before the next engagement.

## Legion Appearance

### Legion Colours

The Iron Snakes Legion primarily wear silver metallic power armour with the exception of their armorial insets and left poleyn (knee guard), which are painted white. The shoulder pauldron trim is painted red. A golden Aquila or Imperialis is worn on the plastron (chest guard). A blue squad specialty symbol is stenciled on the right armorial, which indicates a legionary's assigned squad specialty (Devastator, Destroyer, Assault, Tactical, Veteran or Command). A white coloured high gothic numeral stenciled upon the squad specialty symbol indicates a legionary's assigned phratry squad. A larger blue colour high gothic numeral stenciled upon left poleyn (knee guard) indicates a legionary's assigned Legion.

### Legion Badge

The Iron Snakes Legion badge takes the form of a stylised blue coloured coiled snake centered upon a filed of white.