Stigmartus - The Stigmartus at War: Cult-General Elak Sarda has accomplished a feat that awes and outrages the crusade's leadership. Without the backing of the Imperium, he has established an army that spreads across dozens of systems of the Reach.Through his force of will, he has managed to keep that army well-supplied and mobile enough to engage the crusade upon multiple fronts. Further, his cult is well-equipped, in spite of the limited technology base of the systems in the sector.Clearly, the dark powers of the Warp have aided his cause and contributed to the fanatic loyalty of his forces. Yet those entities are seldom known for their ability to effectively manage the supply and requisition required to maintain such a large army and campaign.Those responsible for such organisation have been traitors to the Imperium, but Sarda is believed to have come from an isolated, relatively primitive world. Similarly, though much of their equipment is likely provided by the Hereteks of Samech, no other leader is known to have successfully procured their support.Throughout the history of the Imperium, there are few instances of a Traitor army that has spread as far or been as well equipped as the Stigmartus. The unusual coordination and aggressive expansion represents an unanticipated challenge for the forces of the Acheros Salient.The majority of the Stigmartus forces are maniacal deviants who have won their victories more through sheer numbers than through any tactical success. These troopers have extensive ritual scars and proudly display the iconography of the Dark Gods.In battle, they attack with zeal, as they seem almost as driven to martyrdom as they are towards victory. These infantry units favour a strategy of endless waves of Humanity. When unaccompanied by other forces, they will seldom even make effective use of terrain. Their fanatical devotion to the heathen gods is apparently their only armour.Though these units far outnumber the crusade's available forces, they are not limitless, and their tactics quickly deplete their vast supply of soldiers.If these zealots were Sarda's only forces, the crusade might have already met with success. In addition to warbands and daemonic allies, the Stigmartus also possess elite units. Some of these are soldiers equipped with gear provided directly from Samech, including effective armour, unusual weaponry, and devices that are entirely foreign to those used by the Astra Militarum. Others are well-disciplined forces that have dedicated themselves to the service of specific Warp entities.Though hardly as effective as Chaos Space Marines, these units bear dark blessings that they can strategically employ in the service of their dark gods. These specialists include units that are adept at infiltration, subversion, and even the dark arts. In two confirmed cases, Stigmartus infiltrators have even successfully assassinated planetary commanders.The greatest concentration of Stigmartus forces are in the worlds of the Cellebos Warzone. There, the Chaos forces dramatically outnumber the elements of the Achilus Crusade. It is only through their faith in the God-Emperor that the crusade has persevered.The Stigmartus are not native to the planets of the Cellebos Warzone. Rather, Sarda is believed to have come from Malehi, one of the Ghoul Stars. The Fortress Worlds of the Dark Gods located at the edges of the Hadex Anomaly are densely populated with potential recruits for the Stigmartus forces. In these environs, Humans and mutants are tainted by Chaos from birth. The hopeless scum are selectively bred to create the fanatical and capable warriors to feed Sarda's armies.It is also believed that some of these systems are subject to the time dilation that has been observed in this region. By taking advantage of this shift, Stigmartus forces may have Terran years to breed and train additional forces while only solar days or weeks pass in the worlds outside of the Hadex Anomaly's influence. This enables the Stigmartus to effectively replace even the most dramatic of losses in an extremely short time frame.