Armageddon Steel Legion - Regimental History: Regiments of the Astra Militarum vary widely from one world to the next. Civilisation, training, and technology levels are wildly varied from one culture to another within the Imperium of Man, resulting in forces mounted on horseback and carrying spears next to elite troops bearing advanced Grav-Chutes deploying from Valkyrie Assault Carriers.Within these parameters, large formations of mechanised infantry are very uncommon within the formations of the Imperial Guard. The reason for this rarity is that the resources required to equip and maintain vast numbers of armoured vehicles are difficult to acquire, even for such august personages as Imperial Commanders and planetary governors. Typically, gathering so many war machines also requires a pact or agreement with the Adeptus Mechanicus, for it is the Tech-priests and Enginseers of Mars who ensure that these vehicles can operate (and be repaired should they suffer damage) in the heat of battle.The most well-known and renowned of the rare few mechanised infantry regiments in the Imperium are those founded upon the Hive World of Armageddon. Whilst some Astra Militarum formations rely upon horses or other such conventional steeds, the Steel Legions of Armageddon ride into battle as mounted infantry within the hulls of their trusted Chimera armoured transports.The high numbers of Chimeras amongst the Steel Legion regiments is due to the highly industrialised nature of their homeworld. Armageddon is one of the foremost manufacturing planets for Chimeras and produces vast numbers of this vehicle for use across the Imperium of Man. So great is Armageddon's output of Chimeras that an extremely high proportion of regiments raised from that world are mechanised infantry. These highly mobile forces are skilled at rapidly redeploying convoys of vehicles to engage the enemy. Often, the Steel Legion's vehicles simply overrun the enemy's front lines, allowing their infantry to dismount and sweep the area clear of aggressors.The ash wastes of Armageddon are filled with corrosive toxins and industrial pollution. Were a man or woman to breathe the air outside of Armageddon's hive cities for any extended period their lungs would quickly rot. Despite this, Armageddon has a massive population and is capable of raising a large number of Astra Militarum regiments. Indeed, at the height of the Second War for Armageddon more regiments were being raised each standard year from the population of Armageddon than from any two other worlds in the entire Segmentum Solar combined. The people of Armageddon are therefore no strangers to warfare. They give no quarter and expect none in return.Perhaps the most renowned of Armageddon's soldiery are the Steel Legion mechanised infantry regiments. While it is difficult for most Imperial Commanders and planetary governors to obtain and maintain enough of the vehicles needed for such formations, Armageddon has produced hundreds of these swift-moving regiments. The extremely industrialised nature of Armageddon means that a far higher proportion of its regiments are mechanised infantry. It is for this reason that these mobile regiments were given their moniker "Steel Legion."All guardsmen within the Steel Legions wear protective clothing such as trench coats, gloves and visors so as to minimise the exposure to their world's polluted atmosphere. Most notably, every trooper carries a rebreather unit capable of filtering out the worst of the airborne poisons. The rebreathers of senior officers are often fashioned in the visage of a grinning skull in an attempt to unnerve the superstitious Orks that have ravaged their war-torn homeworld in recent years. The warriors of Armageddon reserve a particular hatred for the Greenskins, who in their lust for war have smashed whole hive cities asunder, and whose presence continues to plague the planet.Many of the Steel Legion troopers are drafted from amongst the crammed populations of Armageddon's massive hive cities, where only the ruthless survive the ceaseless and brutal gang wars. Many of the Armageddon underhive's most notorious gangs are conscripted directly into the Astra Militarum, without the need for any additional training -- their ruthless skills proving more than adequate.All regiments drawn from Armageddon reap the spoils of the planet's enormous manufactoria, which work ceaselessly to produce the vast quantities of armaments needed to equip so many guardsmen. The constant demand for more materiel has transformed Armageddon into an unequalled industrial behemoth. Not only are lasguns, vehicles and war machines produced at an incredible rate, but they are of exemplary quality, honed to perfection after millions of iterations.In the ongoing Third War for Armageddon, native regiments have been deployed in almost every major battle against the returning Greenskin hordes. None have been more gruelling than the siege at Hive Acheron, where Imperial forces, Orks and now Daemons are locked in a maelstrom of bloodshed and destruction as they fight for control of Armageddon's primary hive city. Millions from each side crowd the ash wastes around the planet's capital, supported by armoured columns as well as towering Gargants and Titans.An unending rain of explosive shells falls from on high, with the artillery targets shifting as control of the gun emplacements changes hands. Deep within Acheron itself, covert Kill-teams traverse the vast lattice of promethium pipes that riddles the hive, hoping to circumvent the enemy's defences.Hundreds of Armageddon infantry, armoured and artillery regiments have taken part in this perpetual siege, and their tenacity and expertise at fighting in the ash wastes has seen them fare better than many other Imperial forces. In fact, the mechanised regiments of the Steel Legion have had more Guardsmen survive their first solar hour of combat at Hive Acheron than any other of Armageddon's regiments.