Darwinius Krawl

Magos Biologis Darwinius Krawl

### **Role(s)**

Xenobiology Researcher, Fabricator of Zoomorphic Battle-Constructs, Leader of "Krawl's Menagerie"

## Physical Description

### **Weight**

>2000kg [4400lbs] (in full battle-carapace)

"*We must broaden our horizons, my fellow adepts, and be bold! For is the cell nought but the most complex machine in the galaxy? Omnissiah be willing, I will forge the organic and the machine into one, infinitely greater than the sum of its parts! Whom amongst you is visionary enough to assist me?*"
— Magos Biologis Darwinius Krawl, shortly before being declared *Tech-Hereticus Minoris*.
**Darwinius Krawl** is a radical sectarian Magos Biologis of the Adeptus Mechanicus who believes in the fusion of the organic and the machine.

He acts upon his own agenda after being ostracized from the adept-conclave of Forge World Zhao-Arkhad over accusations of tech-heresy.

Operating from a secret laboratory deep in the jungle of Zhao-Arkhad, Krawl has recently launched raids upon a variety of targets (both Imperial and Xenos), aiming to acquire rare biological specimens, genetic samples, materials, and knowledge.

## History

### Early Life

Born in a vat-womb on the Kiarii forge-fane of Zhao-Arkhad, Krawl was bred specifically to serve in the Cult Mechanicus, where he quickly showed promise as a young tech-adept. His early scholam reports indicate he had a habit of asking difficult and worrying questions of his teachers, sometimes landing him in hot water. He showed a particular aptitude for Xenobiology, and was assigned to the Genetor order early.

### Studies

Krawl won a coveted scholarium-contract to study amongst the prestigious sub-cam underspires of the Niare nutri-fane, so named for their location deep underneath the giant cam linkages which connect the fane's primary driveshafts to the corpse-starch emulsifiers.

He generally did not see eye-to-eye with the puritan scholarly hegemony, but found a kindred spirit in a guest lectureship by Heydrich Vogel, who greatly influenced Krawl's philosophy towards becoming a neo-Vogelist.
Vogel also took the young Krawl to clandestine ideo-exchanges of the Vogelists, where it is suspected that Krawl made useful connections amongst the ranks of Zhao-Arkhads' tech-priest Magi.

### Colony-Outpost Epsilon-Theta

During his early career Krawl had an opportunity to escape the subterranean forge-fanes of Zhao-Arkhad and spend a full solar epicycle working on the surface, conducting field experiments. Krawl studied Voracian toxic brain-leeches, and penned several papers on the brain-leeches' biology, the most widely-recognized titled "A novel method for interrogation".

He later referred to this period of his life as "emotionally optimal". After returning he longed to leave to study the flora and macro-fauna living on the surface above
- Was promoted to Magos Biologis on the back of his research

- Formed an academic rivalry,
- However he had his self-described Magnum Opus rejected, a slight which he never forgot

### Penal Expedition

- Krawl went too far by poisoning his academic rival
- No proof could be obtained

Without proof, Krawl could not be tried, so as penance the Schola-Conclave decreed that Krawl be sent on a dangerous expedition into Zhao-Arkhad's Jungle, with so few resources as to be borderline suicidal. Krawls' well-documented enthusiasm for the surface of the planet was the perfect justification to send him to almost certain death.

The expedition's primary objective was to find the lost outpost Zeta-9, deep in the Eastern Equatorial Jungles. This data-collecting outpost had been established several decades earlier, but only operated for a Terran year before all contact was lost, likely due to the extremely hostile wildlife in the region.

What the Conclave did not count on was that Krawl had been preparing materiel for a surface expedition for years. In addition to having amassed useful tools, charts and anti-venoms, he had been constructing his first Skitarii automaton, the unauthorized Explorator unit *UR-C 4-CET*. Krawl also stole shipping crates of heavy construction equipment as he left the Forge-Fane by re-assigning the lifter servitors to his command protocols.

Planetary records state that Krawl's expedition was lost with all bionics, but classified Archaeopter images show hovercraft moving along the river X, nearly a thousand Imperial miles away from the forge-fane.

### Laboratory Construction

Slowly developed his infrastructure
Clandestine raids on the forge-fanes for materials and equipment
Zhao-Arkhad's tech-priests searched but were unable to find him
They did think they got him when they destroyed a lab with knight titans, but examination shows that lab was empty, as if the occupants had been forewarned

### Discovery of the Genestealer Cult on Arkhad II

Whilst illegally recruiting hive workers as new Skitarii on the mining colony of Arkhad II (Zhao-Arkhad's second moon), Krawl discovered a Genestealer Cult Neophyte Hybrid. He realised that the Cult of the Bladed Cog had been smuggling hybrids aboard arms supply ships headed to nearby Forge Worlds, and there was now a cult of significant size festering among the workers of Arkhad II.

Sensing an opportunity, Krawl and Aykres used their Genetorium to model the evolution of the inhuman strain, back-propagating its source to the hive slums underneath the primary oxygen generator of Arkhad II. Acting quickly, he launched an immediate purge of the hive sector in question, while simultaneously sending his Explorator Unit UR-C 4-SET to inform the Supreme Domini of Zhao-Arkhad as to what he had found.

The cult were caught unawares, well before their planned day of ascension, and Krawls' skitarii were able to advance quickly towards the primary oxygenator.
Krawl himself led the assault on the main control room, backed up by his most advanced Kastelan-class organo-metallic shock troops.
In response the Cult Nexos deactivated the primary Oxygenation Catalyser, condemning thousands of Imperial Citizens to agonising asphyxiation.
The cult hybrids' alien constitution meant they were able to continue fighting, but so were Krawl's skitarii, who had air recycling systems to deal with the over-oxygenated environment on Zhao-Arkhad's surface below.

Pressing onwards, inside he found the Genestealer Cults' Patriarch, which tore through an entire skitarii maniple before Krawl subdued it with the help of thirty veteran Electro-Wranglers. Placing the Patriarch inside an alpha-grade stasis tank, Krawl smuggled it away before the Battle-Automata of Zhao-Arkhad's Mechanicus rulers arrived, who brought the Oxygenator back online.
Cogitating rapidly, Krawl allayed suspicions by presenting the body of a Purestrain Genestealer as if it were that of the Patriarch.

### Provisional Sanction

In the wake of the attack on the Genestealer Cult, Krawl used accusations of infection to remove certain Magi who were particularly unfavourable towards him.
The Supreme Domini is aware of Krawl's exploitation of the aftermath, but also knows that he is indebted to Krawl for discovering and eliminating the GSC.
If the Cult had remain undiscovered much longer, they could have permanently crippled the primary oxygenator, slashing Arkhad II's production and likely bringing the Supreme Domini under Administratum investigation.
Worse, Krawl alone knows that it was the Supreme Domini's oversights that led to the original Genestealer infestation in the first place.

For the last century, an uneasy understanding has been present between the two Magi.
Krawl was awarded an official sanction, and has enjoyed requesting various favours of the Supreme Domini.
In particular regularly screening the planet's populace helps root out any remaining genestealer hybrids, but also gives Krawl an opportunity to examine any hive workers who possess particularly interesting mutations.

Pushing his luck to the brink, Krawl has even blackmailed his way into possession of a void-capable ship, upon which he has disappeared on expeditions all over the sector.
However these unsanctioned excursions have the Supreme Domini jittery, on top of reports of increasingly bizarre sightings in the Jungles. It is only a matter of time before Zhao-Arkhad's ruling caste decides it is time to put Krawl back in his place.

## Personality

- Avid collector
- Collects genetic samples, bones, and living specimens wherever he goes
- Stores them all in heavily-protected vaults aboard his flagship, before transfer back to his lab on Zhao-Arkhad
- Researcher
- Xenobiology
- Still has the Genestealer Patriarch in stasis
- Bioarchaeology
- Regularly attempts to resurrect extinct species from DNA samples

- Heretical
- Suggestion that enhancement can come through emulation or even fusion with Xenos species is an affront to the Imperial Creed and the Primis Humanum
- Makes him a Vogelist
- Previously a student of Heinrich Vogel
- However he normally manages to hide these heretical views as merely an overeager interest in Xenobiology

- Hard taskmaster
- Spends vast majority of his time in the lab
- Altered his body to work at an inhuman pace
- Segmented cortex to sleep in cycles
- Creates doctoro-thralls to maintain his lab
- Said to be a fate worse than becoming a servitor, because far more of their awareness and intelligence is retained, only to be mind-shackled to constant drudgery

- Petty academic

- Expeditions
- Spends most of his time in his lab, conducting experiments
- Normally only sends out lackeys, choosing to personally attend the battlefield only to secure some especially valuable find
- Or to assess the performance of one of his latest creations
- When he does take to the battlefield he is a terrifying sight for his opponents
- Undulating, alien body, with hundreds of limbs twitching
- Scuttles with an unnatural speed
- Grabs an soldier, rapidly dissects them, and places the still-screaming components into a bubbling tank on his back

## Known Associates

### Explorator Unit UR-C 4-SET

" *+++ Specimen's height estimated at 99.8+-4 Terran feet. Displays ability to project combustible gases originating in its digestive tract. Recommend immediate dispatch of wrangler-team to capture for further study. +++*"
— Explorator Unit UR-C 4-SET, Report A-9-Z-alpha, collected on Expedition Delta-Prime to planet Xaggeron-B
Skitarii unit **UR-C 4-SET** serves as Krawl's exploration and reconnaissance lead, usually sent out with a small scouting party to explore new biomes or search for particular specimens.
4-SET has been rebuilt many times whilst in Krawl's service - if the Magos believes an expedition will be particularly dangerous, he prefers to reassemble 4-SET yet again over risking himself.

A tireless skitarii automaton, the explorator unit joyfully hacks his way through dense Death World jungle for weeks or even months continuously.
Servo-machete whirring, he can be heard whistling in binharic whilst he moves.

To the perpetual annoyance of Krawl, 4-SET is somewhat of an unreliable reporter.
Endemic faults in his databanks date back to his fabrication, as one of the first first skitarii units Krawl created.
His data-reports tend to exaggerate the size and exoticism of creatures he encounters, often leading Krawl on wild goose chases searching for fantastical species hitherto unknown to science.
Krawl is puzzled by this: it's not due to his optics - at least not since his original bio-optics were replaced with a set of hyperpowered trinoculars.

#### Selected Publications

During idling cognitae cycles, 4-SET composes memoirs detailing his expeditions and submits them anonymously to Zhao-Arkhad's noospheric narrative archive. Despite being written largely by a stochastic self-attentive language subroutine, several of these texts see a relatively high number of noospheric downloads - much to Krawl's irritation.

* **UR-C 4-SET**. (969.M41). "Jungle of Nightmares: A Riveting Tale of Survival and Discovery in the Heart of Zhao-Arkhad's Lethal Wilderness." *Journal of Xenoplanetary Exploration*, **14(3)**, 111-146.
* **UR-C 4-SET**. (992.M41). "The Enthralling Chorus of the Howlweavers on Vespox II: A Bold Expedition to the Alien Canopy to Unveil the Source of a Mesmerizing Siren Call." *Xenos Hunter Quarterly*, 12(1), 1-34.
* **UR-C 4-SET**. (977.M41). "The Chronicles of UR-C 4-SET: A Compelling Collection of First-Hand Accounts of Daring Expeditions and Unforgettable Encounters in the Jungles of Zhao-Arkhad." [Book] *Forge World Publishing*.

### Bio-Computatus Raab Aykres

" *Krawl said it wasn't realistic to model a living organism as a uniform slab, but wait until he sees my latest experiment...* "
— Bio-Computatus Raab Aykres
**Raab Aykres** is a Magos Biologis of the Logi Order who collaborates closely with Krawl. Criticised by his fellow Logis for performing increasingly bizarre and irrelevant theoreticals, Aykres searched for other Magi who he felt might appreciate his work.
Ferreting through the sub-cam data-stacks, Aykres discovered Krawl's early writings, and decided he had found a kindred spirit.

Establishing contact by means of a flattering pseudonymous comment on one of Krawl's lesser-known theo-treatises, a clandestine academic collaboration was established.
After several months of preparation Aykres made the journey to Krawl's jungle laboratory, in order to work exclusively with the secretive Magos.
As a respected colleague, Aykres enjoys much autonomy within Krawls' lab, as well as having access to unique experiments to validate his esoteric calculations against.

Physically Aykres appears grotesquely hunched, and pallid to the point of translucency from endless hours in darkness debugging biocode on banks of glowing hypercluster terminals.
On the rare occasions that he leaves the lab, he brings his calc-resources with him - his body bonded to his access nodes, with mechanical limbs bearing weighty racks of Genotype Processing Units.

#### Selected Publications

* **Aykres, R.**, Monroe, W. "Experimental realisation of a Neural Network through interfaced Servitor Brainstems" *Journal of Cybernetic Augmentation and Artificial Intelligence*, **6(2)**, 89-124.
* **Aykres, R.** "A First-Principles Model of Genestealer Cult Infestation Using Applied Differential Equations." *Introduction to Genestealer Cult Epidemiology*, Chapter 3.
* **Aykres, R**. (907.M41). "Stochastic Modelling of Rok Deployments During Waaagh Rokktoof." *Orkoid Sociology*, **44(1)**, 11-45.
* **Aykres, R**. "A Novel Machine Learning Approach to Identifying Heretical Beliefs" *Inquisitorial Review*, **15(4)**, 221-256.

### Magos Veterinaire Weiss Monreau

" *Anyway, that's how I lost my medicae license...* "
— Magos Veterinaire Weiss Monreau, to restrained subject before skitarii enhancement surgery.
#### Selected Publications

* **Monreau, W.** (975.M41). "The Induction of Advanced Combat Abilities in Xenofauna: A Surgical Approach to Enhancing Lethality and Resilience." *Adeptus Mechanicus Journal of Xenomedical Research*, **30(3)**, 209-244.
* **Monreau, W.**, & UR-C 4-SET (979.M41). "Cryogenic Preservation and Reanimation of Xenospecies: A Comprehensive Investigation of Viability and Biological Function." *Collectors Digest*, **33(1)**, 3-38.
* **Monreau, W.**, & Aykres, R (983.M41). "The Development of Rapid Xenotransformation Techniques: A Surgical Approach to Accelerated Phenotypic Alteration in Xenofauna." *Journal of Surgical Innovation*, **36(3)**, 191-226.

## Selected Publications

* **Krawl, D.** (867.M41). "On the Origin of Species in the 41st Millennium: A Comparative Analysis of Xenobiological Evolution." *Adeptus Mechanicus Journal of Xenobiology*, **23(1)**, 1-38.
* **Krawl, D.** (869.M41). "The Descent of the Genestealer: A Study on Xenomorph Phylogeny and Morphology." *Journal of Imperium Xenoscience*, **15(4)**, 221-256.
* **Krawl, D.** (867.M41). "Revisiting the Voracian Brain-Leech as an Interrogation Method - A Constraints-Based Approach." *Highlighted Arbites Advancements*, **75(3)**, 117-145.
* **Krawl, D**., & Vogel, H. (870.M41). "Natural Selection in the Death World Ecosystems: A Case Study from Zhao-Arkhad." *Journal of Imperial Ecology*, **29(3)**, 311-340.
* **Krawl, D.**, & Aykres, R. "A Purely Hypothetical Proposal for Human-Xenospecies Hybridization Through Genetic Manipulation." *Impractical Surgery*, **3(2)**, 75-114.
* **Krawl, D.**, & Monreau, W. (001.M42). "Recent Advances in Human-Xenos Hybridisation: A Case Study Using Samples of the [REDACTED] Species" *Adeptus Mechanicus Journal of Xenomedical Research*, **30(3)**, 209-244.
* **Krawl, D.** (033.M42). "The Ascension Protocol: A Revolutionary Blueprint for the Advancement of Humanity Through Xenospecies Augmentation." *Journal of Radical Bioaugmentation (submitted)*.
* **Krawl, D.**, & Monreau, W. (003.M42). "Successful [REDACTED]: Using Lessons from [REDACTED] to Induce Complete Cranial [REDACTED]" *(unpublished)*

## Quotes

"*Any man who dares to waste one hour of my laboratory time has not discovered the value of his life.*"
— Magos Biologis Darwinius Krawl, to a recalcitrant studeo-thrall.
## Trivia

Darwinus Krawl has no knowledge of the ancient Terran scientist Charles Darwin, whose works were all lost during the Age of Strife.