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Legio Vulcanum I - Origins: Stygies VIII was once home to two Titan Legions, both bearing the High Gothic name Legio Vulcanum -- the Legio Vulcanum I and Legio Vulcanum II -- but more commonly known by their respective Low Gothic names: the "Dark Fire" and the "Lords of Ruin."Located close to the ruinous hole in reality known as the Eye of Terror, the Legios stood watch against invaders from the galactic north. While unusual for a single star system to support two full Titan Legions, it is far from unknown, as Mars itself supports three.Stygies VIII was granted two Legios due to its close proximity to the Eye of Terror and the attendant risks of Chaos attack on this important Forge World.Most of the twin Legios' war engines were on crusade with the Warmaster Horus when the Horus Heresy began. In a series of bloody surprise attacks, a core of Chaos Cultists back on Stygies VIII seized control of the Forge World's manufactorum facilities.Reduced to a small group of Loyalist Tech-priests, these valiant defenders protected the planet's Temple of Knowledge against the robed cultists and the hastily-improvised berserker machines that they had produced.Trapped and on their own, the Loyalists expected that death would eventually follow, but unanticipated liberation came on the thirty-first day of the siege in the form of the graceful Aeldari Titans and hundreds of Jetbike-mounted warriors of the Saim-Hann Craftworld who smashed the servants of Chaos.They had not come to help the Mon-keigh, but to deny to the forces of Chaos such a strategically potent manufacturing world so close to the Eye of Terror.When the Horus Heresy finally ended, both of the Traitor Titan Legions of Stygies VIII fled into exile within the Eye of Terror. The planet is now home to a third Titan Legion, the Legio Honorum, which was brought to restore the Forge World's honour in the eyes of the Emperor.
Legio Vulcanum I - Two-Faced God: The Dark Fire and the Lords of Ruin Legios had a long history of competition with each other. This was fuelled by the shared genetic ancestry of their princeps, who were created using ancient cloning techniques, and saw in their brothers and sisters dark reflections of themselves.Following their fall to Chaos, corrupted clone crews linked a Legio Vulcanum maniple together in a disturbing way mere technology could not, and each Titan that fell in battle was keenly felt by its brothers and sisters.So interlinked were the two Legios that their command structure blended together, and in battle, princeps seniores could share tactical information and guide each other's battlegroup without fear of becoming subsumed by another Titan Legion.
Legio Vulcanum I - Legion Specific Wargear: Janus Pattern Missiles - Janus Pattern Missiles were not exclusive to Stygies VIII, though the Forge World had amassed great stores of these weapons before the Horus Heresy, and its Legions were always well-supplied with this specialised form of ordnance.
Legio Vulcanum I - Notable Personnel: None listed in current Imperial records.
Legio Vulcanum I - Legion Colours: Before their fall to Chaos, the Legio Vulcanum I primarily coloured their Titans in black and teal, trimmed in yellowish brass trim.After their corruption, and time spent in the Warp over several millennia, the Titans of the Legio Vulcanum I seem to no longer follow any single colour scheme.Some Titans of the Legio bear olive green colours with details in yellow and black, while others have graphite hulls with golden lining.Some war engines of the Legio, particularly those bearing the Mark of Khorne, have a red colour scheme.
Legio Vulcanum I - Legion Badge: The Legio Vulcanum's badge reflects the dual nature of the Legio itself.It consists of a black lozenge (diamond), outlined in white. On the left side, the symbol represents the Legio Vulcanum I (Dark Fire), which consists of a black brazier with dark fire burning from it. This symbol is centered within a white circlet.On the right side, the symbol represents the Legio Vulcanum II (Lords of Ruin), consisting of a pair of black skulls, facing away from one another, centered upon a white circlet. The overall symbol is centered upon a field of teal.To differentiate themselves from the counterparts in the Lords of Ruin, Titans of the Dark Fire will often utilise a simplified form of their main symbol upon a livery shield affixed to their god-engine's hull.This symbol consists of a black burning brazier, centred within a white circlet. This central symbol is centred upon a black triangle, representing a mountain, which is surrounded by gold coloured laurels.The overall symbol is centered upon a field of teal.
Legio Vulcanum I - Sources: Adeptus Titanicus - The Horus Heresy: Doom of Molech (Specialty Game), pp. 9-10, 23-25Titan Legions (2nd Edition), pg. 18Codex: Eye of Terror (3rd Edition), pg. 16Imperial Armour Volume One, pg. 8Imperial Armour Volume Six - The Siege of Vraks - Part Two, pp. 11-12, 23, 26-27, 34-35, 42-43, 48, 78-79, 83-84, 182Imperial Armour Volume Seven - The Siege of Vraks - Part Three, pp. 51, 88, 161Imperial Armour Apocalypse II, pp. 71, 88-89
Legio Vulcanum II - Legio Vulcanum II: Legio Vulcanum IITraitor Titan LegionDark MechanicumEmperor of MankindWarmasterHorusRuinous PowersHorus HeresyThere is very little information in Imperial records about this Titan Legion's founding, though it is believed that it was founded before the Age of the Imperium during the Age of Strife.The Legio Vulcanum II, alongside the Legio Vulcanum I, hailed from within the Vulcanis System upon the Forge World of Stygies VIII in the Ultima Segmentum, a large moon orbiting a massive ringed gas giant on the outer fringes of the star system.These two Legios once stood sentinel near the tear in reality known as the Eye of Terror, guarding against invaders from the galactic north.But when the Warmaster turned upon the Emperor, the majority of both of the Forge World's Legios were fighting at Horus' side in the Great Crusade, and they quickly swore their allegiance to him, following the Arch-traitor into damnation.
Legio Vulcanum II - Legion History: Stygies VIII was once home to two Titan Legions, both bearing the High Gothic name Legio Vulcanum -- the Legio Vulcanum I and Legio Vulcanum II -- but more commonly known by their respective Low Gothic names: the "Dark Fire" and the "Lords of Ruin."Located close to the ruinous hole in reality known as the Eye of Terror, the Legios stood watch against invaders from the galactic north. While unusual for a single star system to support two full Titan Legions, it is far from unknown, as Mars itself supports three.Stygies VIII was granted two Legios due to its close proximity to the Eye of Terror and the attendant risks of Chaos attack on this important Forge World.Most of the twin Legios' war engines were on crusade with the Warmaster Horus when the Horus Heresy began. In a series of bloody surprise attacks, a core of Chaos Cultists back on Stygies VIII seized control of the Forge World's manufactorum facilities.Reduced to a small group of Loyalist Tech-priests, these valiant defenders protected the planet's Temple of Knowledge against the robed cultists and the hastily-improvised berserker machines that they had produced.Trapped and on their own, the Loyalists expected that death would eventually follow, but unanticipated liberation came on the thirty-first day of the siege in the form of the graceful Aeldari Titans and hundreds of Jetbike-mounted warriors of the Saim-Hann Craftworld who smashed the servants of Chaos.They had not come to help the Mon-keigh, but to deny to the forces of Chaos such a strategically potent manufacturing world so close to the Eye of Terror.When the Horus Heresy finally ended, both of the Traitor Titan Legions of Stygies VIII fled into exile within the Eye of Terror. The planet is now home to a third Titan Legion, the Legio Honorum, which was brought to restore the Forge World's honour in the eyes of the Emperor.
Legio Vulcanum II - Notable Campaigns: Shi'Hu'Gal Purge (Unknown Date.M31) - The Legios Vulcanum I and II supported the Night Lords Legion during the infamous xenocidal purge of the Shi'Hu'Gal Dominion during the Great Crusade.Battle of Molech (009.M31) - Molech was a Knight World ruled over by House Devine ever since the Emperor Himself led an expedition to bring it into the fledgling Imperium and left a significant garrison there. The planet thrived under the rule of Devine, the populace of its capital city of Lupercalia never knowing the true reason why the Emperor had taken it upon Himself to lead the force that claimed it. Unfortunately for the citizens of Molech, the Traitor Horus knew exactly what lay beneath the city that had been named in his honour -- a Warp Gate which, it was said, had allowed the Emperor to convene with the Ruinous Powers themselves. When Loyalist forces became aware of the Traitor fleet's approach, they mustered at Molech. As well as a trio of Titan Legions -- the Legio Gryphonicus, Legio Crucius, and Legio Fortidus -- there were elements of each of the Imperium's fighting forces, including nearly a dozen Knight Houses which owed fealty to Devine. The Traitor force was equally impressive, featuring no fewer than four Titan Legions: the Legio Vulpa, Legio Interfector, Legio Vulcanum I, and the infamous Legio Mortis. Maniples of god-engines began their march against Avadon, their orders to lay the city to waste. Refugees streamed from it, desperate to get ahead of the Traitors' advance.13th Black Crusade (999.M41) - When Abaddon the Despoiler led the largest Chaos incursion into Imperial space in 999.M41 since the Horus Heresy as part of the 13th Black Crusade, the Legio Vulcanum II was one of the Traitor Titan Legions that had a suspected presence in the campaign near the Imperial world of Subiaco Diablo.
Legio Vulcanum II - Two-Faced God: The Dark Fire and the Lords of Ruin Legions had a long history of competition with each other. This was fuelled by the shared genetic ancestry of their Princeps, who were created using ancient cloning techniques, and saw in their brothers and sisters dark reflections of themselves.Following their fall to Chaos, corrupted clone crews linked a Legio Vulcanum maniple together in a disturbing way mere technology could not, and each Titan that fell in battle was keenly felt by its brothers and sisters.So interlinked were the two Legions that their command structure blended together, and in battle, Princeps Seniores could share tactical information and guide each other's battlegroup without fear of becoming subsumed by another Titan Legion.
Legio Vulcanum II - Legion Specific Wargear: Janus Pattern Missiles - Janus Pattern Missiles were not exclusive to Stygies VIII, though the Forge World had amassed great stores of these weapons before the Horus Heresy, and its Legions were always well-supplied with this specialised form of ordnance.
Legio Vulcanum II - Notable Titans: None listed in current Imperial records.
Legio Vulcanum II - Notable Personnel: None listed in current Imperial records.
Legio Vulcanum II - Legion Colours: Before their fall to Chaos, the Legios Vulcanum I and II primarily coloured their Titans in black and teal, trimmed in yellowish brass trim.After their corruption, and time spent in the Warp over several millennia, the Titans of the Legio Vulcanum II seem to no longer follow any single colour scheme.
Legio Vulcanum II - Legion Badge: The Legio Vulcanum's badge reflects the dual nature of the Legio itself. It consists of a black lozenge (diamond), outlined in white.On the left side, the symbol represents the Legio Vulcanum I (Dark Fire), which consists of a black brazier with dark fire burning from it.This symbol is centred within a white circlet.On the right side, the symbol represents the Legio Vulcanum II (Lords of Ruin), consisting of a pair of black skulls, facing away from one another, centered upon a white circlet.The overall symbol is centered upon a field of teal.
Legio Vulpa - Legio Vulpa: The Legio Vulpa ("Death Stalkers") is a Traitor Titan Legion of the Dark Mechanicum that repudiated its oaths to the Emperor of Mankind and followed the Warmaster Horus into the service of the Ruinous Powers during the Horus Heresy.The Legio Vulpa was originally based on the Forge World of Anvillus. Its current location is unknown.The Legio Vulpa's personnel valued the honour of close quarters battle, where they could see the eyes of their foes -- or in the case of Titan warfare their armoured heads -- and feel the concussive force as their weapons smashed into them.The Legio Vulpa always had a reputation for excessive cruelty, and their fall to Chaos has only made them more deadly.A killing fury is common to many Titan princeps, the thrill of a felled foe echoed by a raging Machine Spirit (artificial intelligence) and feeding back through the neural link of the Titan's MIU. Death Stalkers princeps often give into this battle madness, riding the wave of exhilaration and letting their attacks become almost instinctive.
Legio Vulpa - Great Crusade: In the centuries following the great victory of the Legio Vulpa, the Titan Legion proved instrumental in the expansion of Anvillus' domain, increasing the Forge World's holdings to include dozens of worlds including the Knight Worlds of Niagmarr and Slestra and the ore-rich world of the Anvil Reach. The wide dominion controlled by the magi of Anvillus proved a valuable asset to the Great Crusade upon contact between the Imperium and the far-flung Mechanicum fragment. Thoughnegotiations began tersely, an agreement was achieved with little discord, treaties ensuring Anvillus retained the worlds it laid claim to.In concordance with the agreed upon pacts, the principal strength of the Legio Vulpa was deployed to the forefront of the Great Crusade while Anvillus became a crucial part of the crusade's supply chain, with tithe records showingthat the Forge World and its holdings produced nearly one-fifth of all materiel supplied to expeditionary fleets deployed within the Ultima Segmentum.Rated as a Primus-grade Titan Legion, the strength of the Legio Vulpa was readily welcomed amongst the hard-pressed expeditionary fleets expanding the boundaries of the Imperium in the galactic east. Such sentiments soon gave way to concerns about the practices of the Titan Legion and the aggressive mien of its princeps, who were vocal in their desire to crush any deemed too weak to survive. Numerous acts of callous cruelty are attributed to the Legio Vulpa during their time serving in the Great Crusade with perhaps the most infamous example occurring during the Imperial Compliance action on the world of Dendritica -- in service alongside the Legio Solaria, the Death Stalkers refused offers of negotiation while besieging the city of Biphex.Instead, the Legio Vulpa fell upon the city despite the objections of their fellow Titan Legion, burning it to the ground and slaughtering its inhabitants as they fled. In doing so, the Death Stalkers earnt the undying enmity of the Legio Solaria. Clashes with other Titan Legions proved a common recurrence for the Legio Vulpa; on Mars, the Death Stalkers seeking to expand the honorary holdings they had been gifted by the fabricator-general by encroaching on the forge-fane of the Legio Honorum.
Legio Vulpa - Horus Heresy: Shadowed by a grim reputation for cruelty the bellicose and savage Legio Vulpa were easily subverted by the Dark Mechanicum, willingly turning against the Emperor. Indeed, the Death Stalkers proved eager to hunt their fellow Titan Legions, its princeps frequently sporting trophies claimed from fallen Titans upon the carapace of their own god-engines.While the Legio Vulpa wholly committed itself to the cause of the Warmaster Horus, the Forge World of Anvillus fell into civil war, cutting off the Death Stalkers from their ancestral home. Few sightings of the Legio Vulpa Titans were recorded within the boundaries of the Anvillus Forge Empire during the Horus Heresy, suggesting a distinct lack of interest in the domestic affairs within the Titan Legion's ranks. Indeed, the savagery of the Legio Vulpa grew more debased during the conflict, its princeps becoming consumed by bloodlust and a thirst for battle.Innumerable war zones suffered the predations of the Death Stalkers, its number becoming increasingly scattered as it carved a bloody path across the galaxy.When the Schism of Mars erupted, the Traitors of the Dark Mechanicum sent the Legio Vulpa to eliminate their rivals the Legio Honorum, who had remained loyal to the man they believed to be the Omnissiah.The Traitor Legio launched a devastating surprise assault upon the Death Bolts' Legio fortress in which the Loyalists lost 19 of their Titans, though the Legio Honorum managed to ultimately escape destruction and survive to fight on in the Emperor's name.As the Horus Heresy progressed, the personnel of the Legio Vulpa hearkened to the teachings of the Word Bearers Dark Apostle Vorrjuk Kraal, and ultimately dedicated themselves to the worship of the Blood God Khorne, whose savage theology most closely matched their own aggressive tendencies and desires for close-ranged melee combat between god-engines. Blood sacrifices and dark rituals soon became commonplace among the Death Stalkers.
Legio Vulpa - Legion Wargear: Plasma Gargoyles - Few aspects of a Titan cannot be weaponised, and the Death Stalkers often fitted their plasma vents with dispersion nozzles shaped in the visage of leering gargoyles to spray the discharged scalding plasma over as wide an area as possible.Disruption Emitters - The Death Stalkers quickly developed a taste for close-in combats during the Horus Heresy. Not the natural environment for many Titans, the Legion made modifications to their war machines, fixing disruption fields to armour plates and limbs to enhance the destructive potential of close encounters.
Legio Vulpa - Notable Titans: Benediction of Blood (Warlord-class Titan)Iconoclast (Warlord-class Titan) - Close combat weapons are rare on Titans as large as the Warlord-class, such as the one utilised by the Iconoclast depicted above, with most princeps adhering to the accepted wisdom of the Collegia Titanica that the proper role of the Warlord Titan is that of heavy ranged fire support. The Death Stalkers are among those who do not adhere to this school of thought, favouring close combat and weapons such as the Titan-grade Arioch Power Claw, that gives the wielder the strength to tear the plasma generator heart from another Titan in melee.Nuntio Dolores (Warlord-class Titan) - Titan of Princeps Majoris Terrent Harrtek of the 7th Maniple. By the end of the Battle of Beta-Garmon Nuntio Dolores ("The Herald of Sorrow") was possessed by a daemon of Khorne and became the first Banelord Titan.Omnia Sangui (Warlord-class Titan) - Destroyed by Legio Solaria Titans during a battle for Theta-Garmon V.Tenebris Vindictae (Warlord-class Titan) - Titan of Princeps Bennif Durant of the 7th Maniple.Ultimate Sanction (Warlord-class Titan) - Titan of the 7th Maniple.Ars Bellus (Reaver-class Titan) - Titan of the 7th Maniple.Dust of Ages (Reaver-class Titan) - Titan of Princeps Maklaren of the 7th Maniple.Immitis Venor (Reaver-class Titan) - This Reaver-class Battle Titan depicted above was typical of those deployed to Beta-Garmon by the Death Stalkers. Armed with a rapid-firing Gatling Blaster and Power Fist, it would fight alongside other Reavers, often as part of a Corsair maniple, conducting punishing hit-and-run attacks against more conventional Titan formations. It also illustrated that few Death Stalkers Titans or Titan maniples marched to war without at least one Titan close-quarters weapon.Ithonian Lorga (Warhound-class Titan) - Warhound Scout Titans, such as the Ithonian Lorga, were truly the hunting hounds of the Legio Vulpa at Beta-Garmon III. Working in squadrons they excelled at luring larger Titans into killing zones and the close confines of ruined cities or broken landscapes, closing off a chance of escape once their prey was in position. On Beta-Garmon III, amid the roiling toxic storms, Loyalist Titans simply disappeared, neatly carved away from their maniples by these wolf pack tactics.Kitsune (Warhound-class Titan) - Fought with the Sons of Horus Traitor Legion during the Horus Heresy at the Battle of Molech.Kumiho (Warhound-class Titan) - Fought with the Sons of Horus Traitor Legion during the Horus Heresy at the Battle of Molech.Death's Monument - Destroyed by Legio Atarus Titans during the battle for Theta-Garmon V.
Legio Vulpa - Notable Personnel: Princeps Senioris Ulriche - Ulriche was the master of the Legio Vulpa during the time of the Great Crusade and the Schism of Mars.Princeps Majoris Terent Harrtek - Harrtek commanded the Warlord Titan Nuntio Dolores during the Battle of Beta-Garmon.Princeps Bennif Durant - Durant commanded the Warlord Titan Tenebris Vindictae during the Battle of Beta-Garmon.Princeps Maklaren - Princeps Maklaren commanded the Reaver Titan Dust of Ages during the Battle of Beta-Garmon.Princeps Averna - Averna refused to renounce her vows to the Emperor and was killed by her former friend Terent Harrtek.Duluz Casson — Carson was the personal servant to Princeps Majoris Terent Haartek and also a Chaos Cultist.
Legio Vulpa - Knight Houses: House DevineHouse HyborasHouse IoedenHouse Niagma
Legio Vulpa - Space Marines: Death GuardEmperor's ChildrenSons of HorusWorld Eaters
Legio Vulpa - Legion Strength: Imperial Divisio Militaris records, detailing the strength of the Legio Vulpa following the incorporation of Anvillus into the Imperium, rate the Death Stalkers as maintaining a strength of 154 god-engines, making it a Primus (Minoris)-grade Legio.The principal strength of the Legio Vulpa was invested in Reaver and Warlord-class Battle Titans, supported by numerous examples of esoteric Titans, including several Nemesis-class Titans and at least two examples of Imperator-class designs.Despite the notable hunting ethos of the Legio Vulpa, the Titan Legion made use of only minimal numbers of Warhound Titans, preferring hard-hitting direct methods of war to hit-and-run tactics. Commonly, Death Stalker god-engineswould wield close-ranged Titan-grade weaponry such as turbo-lasers, chainfists and Arioch power claws, its preference for such Titan-grade melee armaments increasing during the course of the Horus Heresy as the hold of the Blood God increased upon the Legio's princeps.
Legio Vulpa - Legion Colours: The god-engines of the Legio Vulpa march in rust red and purple with bone trim.As the Horus Heresy drew the Death Stalkers deeper into the blood madness of Khorne, their Titans were often coated in the rust red remains of their murderous exploits.
Legio Vulpa - Legion Badge: The heraldry of the Legio Vulpa is dominated by the Vorpus Sabrefang, its skeletal frame clad in armour. The Libraxus Tacticae Vulpa, the battle bible of the Death Stalkers, often references this ancient extinct beast as the epitome of the hunter's virtues --cunning in its pursuit and savage when it strikes. Its prominence within the iconography of the Legio Vulpa lies in the important role it played in cementing the Death Stalker' demeanour following victory over the Jindarii.The Sabrefang itself was not in fact native to Anvillus but rather the nearby moon of Yythe, recorded as once possessing a humid climate and numerous jungles in which Sabrefangs made their lairs.Recognised as the final battleground of the war between the Forge Empire of Anvillus and the alien Jindarii cadres, Yythe was later established as a protected hunting ground for the Legio Vulpa. An early practice of the Legio Vulpa involved prospective princeps hunting down a Sabrefang to one of two ends; slaying the beast and returning with its pelt or capturing it alive. In all instances, the princeps would complete their task on foot, denied all but the most rudimentary of tools and required to scavenge from tech-cachesdeposited on the moon.Less than half of those that took up the task would return victorious and of those only a rare few would return with a living beast -- those who did so quickly rose in prominence amongst the Titan Legion.By the time of the Great Crusade, the Vorpus Sabrefang had long been extinct, no doubt as a consequence of overhunting. Nevertheless, the elite of the Legio's princeps seniores  were known to keep facsimile versions of the Sabrefang as pets, creations of bio-manipulation and cybernetic-crafting that prowled around the princeps' feet or coiled around the base of their command throne.So pervasive is the iconography of the Sabrefang among the Death Stalkers that its skulls are incorporated into the signum mobilis or banner of its maniples and used as decorations on the edges of its heraldry and even armour plating.
Legio Vulpa - Sources: Adeptus Titanicus - The Horus Heresy: Titandeath (Specialty Game), pp. 55-59, 91-95Adeptus Titanicus - The Horus Heresy: Doom of Molech (Specialty Game), pp. 7-11, 72-73Adeptus Titanicus - The Horus Heresy: Rulebook (Specialty Game), pp. 14-17, 72-73Codex: Eye of Terror (3rd Edition), pg. 16The Horus Heresy - Book One: Betrayal (Forge World Series) by Alan Bligh, pg. 40Vengeful Spirit (Novel) by Graham McNeill, Ch. 13Mechanicum (Novel) by Graham McNeill, Ch. 1.03, 3.01Titandeath (Novel) by Guy Haley, Chs. 7, 20, 21, 22Saturnine (Novel) by Dan AbnettMortis (Novel), Ch. 4, by John FrenchGames Workshop Online Store - Adeptus Titanicus: Legio Vulpa Transfer Sheet.Warhammer Community - Titandeath: The Legions of the War for Beta-Garmon (18 Jan 2019)
Legio Vulturum - Legio Vulturum: Legio Vulturum"Gore Crows"Titan LegionCollegia TitanicaForge WorldXana IILegio VulturumRangdan XenocidesThe Gore Crows were often a vessel for technological experimentation, lavished with esoteric weapons created within the forge-fanes of Xana II and tested upon the fiercest of battlefields.But the Legio Vulturum became a Traitor Titan Legion of the Dark Mechanicum that repudiated its oaths to the Emperor of Mankind and followed the Warmaster Horus into the service of the Ruinous Powers during the Horus Heresy.At the end of the Heresy, during the Great Scouring, the Legio Vulturum was driven towards the Eye of Terror along with the rest of the forces of Chaos.It remains trapped in servitude to the Chaos Gods, fighting the Long War against the Corpse Emperor that began ten millennia before.
Legio Vulturum - Horus Heresy: So it was that when the Warmaster Horus rose to power after the Ullanor Crusade, Xana II remained a distant and almost legendary force in an Imperium grown much to encompass a galaxy on whose silent and unpopulated edge it dwelled alone, a Forge World whose magi kept no counsel but their own, its paradox unsolved.After his corruption by Chaos upon Davin's moon, the Warmaster sent ambassadors to Xana II, to entreat them to join his cause.Much as with Sarum and Cyclothrathe, other "renegade" Forge Worlds distrustful of Mars that the Warmaster had enticed into his cause with the lure of petty empire-building and freedom of experimentation, he offered a new treaty of alliance whose accords Xana's ruling Vodian Consistory would find more to their liking than the old.By this new pact Xana II would serve Horus' "new Imperium" just as it had the old, but where they had been used and bled dry callously in the past by a master who cared nothing for their power or prosperity, under Horus they would flourish and be rewarded.Thus, the Legio Vulturum, along with their Xanite Mechanicum overlords, joined the Warmaster's cause against the wider Imperium.When the Warmaster's Heresy eventually failed during the final epic conclusion of the Siege of Terra, the Legio Vulturum, along with the entirety of the damned Hell-Forge of Xana II, fled to the relative safety of the hellish realms of the Eye of Terror, where the Legio Vulturum presumably still protects the hellish industries of their Chaos-corrupted Dark Mechanicum masters.
Legio Vulturum - Legion Combat Doctrine: The brutal wars that became known as the Rangdan Xenocides did much to forge Legio Vulturum into a Titan Legion of merciless killers that revelled in the act of unleashing their might upon those they deemed weak.This ethos saw the Gore Crows throw themselves into the Horus Heresy with eager abandon, treating it as a crucible in which they could test their mettle against opposing Titan Legions.As the galaxy-wide conflict raged, kill markings upon their god-engines' honour banners quickly built the Gore Crows' reputation for being ruthless Titan hunters, racking up an impressive amount of engine kills across dozens of battlefields.The Gore Crows often employed merciless tactics, forcing their foes to retreat into crossfires that ensured none survived. Legio Vulturum also possessed an intense culture of competition, leading their princeps to push themselves beyond reason in an effort to claim kills that would bring them the greatest glory.The involvement of Xana II, the parent Forge World of the Legio Vulturum, in the Rangdan Xenocides saw the tech-priests of the now-damned world develop numerous new modifications to the weapons of their Titan Legions.The Gore Crows were often a vessel for experimentation, lavished upon with esoteric weapons created within the forge-fanes of Xana II and tested upon the fiercest of battlefields.Though many of these experimental weapons exhibited drawbacks that proved too detrimental for sustained use, more successful tests saw the engineering of such achievements as storm frag shells for use within Vulcan Mega Bolters.Many of the Gore Crows' princeps believed the tech-priests of Xana II to be conduits of the Omnissiah, eagerly submitting to their experiments and the boons they brought.This Legio's princeps despised weakness in all its forms, unleashing their wrath upon any who dared flinch in their duty, even their own allies.
Legio Vulturum - Legion Specific Wargear: Storm Frag Shells - The Legio Vulturum often bore experimental weapons in battle, used as test-beds by the tech-priests of Xana II. The meticulously-crafted ammunition vastly increased the power of their weapons at the cost of generating a considerable amount of heat during sustained firing. However, if the rate of fire was sustained for an extensive period a time, the intense heat built up could possibly cause a Titan's Plasma Reactor to overload, resulting in a catastrophic failure and inevitable meltdown.
Legio Vulturum - Notable Titans: Caedis Bestia (Warlord-class Titan) - The Caedis Bestia fought during the Great Crusade and Horus Heresy.Messorum Noctern (Warlord-class Titan) - The Messorum Noctern fought during the Great Crusade and Horus Heresy.Mors Avem (Warlord-class Titan) - The Mors Avem fought during the Great Crusade and Horus Heresy.Sanguinem Innocentiae (Warlord-class Titan) - The Sanguinem Innocentiae fought during the Great Crusade and Horus Heresy. It finally fell at Conveyance Terminus Omega-Nine during the last battles for Ryza, though not before slaying three Loyalist Titans that sought its death.Silens Semper (Warlord-class Titan) - The Silens Semper fought during the Great Crusade and Horus Heresy.Umbra Dolor (Warbringer Nemesis-class Titan) - The Umbra Dolor fought during the Great Crusade and Horus Heresy. At the Defence of Ryza, the Umbra Dolor proved invaluable in breaking open the Loyalists' defensive lines. Its most notable contribution was the blunting of the Legio Osedax counterattack when a squadron of Warhound Titans exploited a weak point in the Gore Crows' line. Targeting the advancing Loyalists with bombardments from its Quake Cannon, the Umbra Dolor delayed the Warhounds long enough for a Gore Crows relief force to surround the Loyalists and obliterate them with sustained barrages.Uocem Noctis (Warbringers Nemesis-class Titan) - The Uocem Noctis was a Titan that fought during the Great Crusade and Horus Heresy.Avarice of Night (Warhound-class Titan) - The Avarice of Night fought during the Great Crusade and Horus Heresy. During the assault on Ryza, the mismanagement of the use of Storm Frag Shells within the Warhound Titan's Vulcan Mega Bolters overtaxed its reactors due to the considerable amount of heat during sustained firing, a fact Avarice of Night fatally learned during the Traitors' assault upon the city of Endeavour.Mors Desperandum (Warhound-class Titan) - The Mors Desperandum fought during the Great Crusade and Horus Heresy. Its most notable engagement was during the siege of the Loyalist Forge World of Ryza, where it was destroyed during its assault on the city of Endeavour.Shadow of Death (Warhound-class Titan) -  The Shadow of Death fought during the Great Crusade and Horus Heresy. Its most notable engagement was during the siege of the Loyalist Forge World of Ryza, where it was destroyed during its assault on the city of Endeavour.
Legio Vulturum - Notable Personnel: None listed in current Imperial records.
Legio Vulturum - Vassal Knight Houses: House Vyridion
Legio Vulturum - Legion Colours: The colours of the Legio Vulturum primarily beige and black, trimmed in silver.
Legio Vulturum - Legion Badge: The Legio badge of the Legio Vulturum takes the form of a black, skeletal crow, its wings elevated and spread to the sides, while its talons grasp a severed skull, the spinal column still attached.This central symbol is centred upon a beige field.
Legio Vulturum - Sources: Adeptus Titanicus - The Horus Heresy: Rulebook (Specialty Game), pg. 15Adeptus Titanicus - The Horus Heresy: Titandeath (Specialty Game), pg. 95Adeptus Titanicus - The Horus Heresy: Shadow and Iron (Specialty Game), pp. 58-59Adeptus Titanicus - The Horus Heresy: The Defence of Ryza (Specialty Game), pp. 6-7, 12-14, 16-20, 42-45, 68, 74-76, 78Epic 40,000 Magazine 5The Horus Heresy - Book Six: Retribution (Forge World Series) by Alan Bligh, pp. 55-81Warhammer Community - What is the Ursus Claw? (28 July 2020)Warhammer Community - The Defence of Ryza: The Story (23 July 2020)Warhammer Community - The Titan Legions of Ryza (20 Jul 2020)Warhammer Community - The Defence of Ryza: Your First Look (31 Mar 2020)
Legio Vulturus - Legio Vulturus: The Legio Vulturus is a Traitor Titan Legion that fell to Chaos and has long served as an ally of the Word Bearers Traitor Legion, during both the Horus Heresy and into the 41st Millennium.
Legio Vulturus - Legion History: During the Great Crusade, the Legio Vulturus was a loyal member of the ancient Mechanicum's Collegia Titanica but sided with the cause of the Warmaster Horus once the Horus Heresy began due to the influence of Erebus, then the first chaplain of the Word Bearers Legion and later a Dark Apostle.In the course of that great civil war, the Legio Vulturus won a spectacular victory against the Loyalist Legio Gryphonicus and Legio Victorum, destroying 40 of those Legios' god-engines in a single engagement that had occurred unexpectedly.Millennia later in the 41st Millennium, a large contingent of the Legio Vulturus of demi-legio size served as part of the Word Bearers armada that took part in the Battle of the Boros Gate. While the Chaos Titans initially caught the Imperial defenders by surprise and overwhelmed them, the Legio's forces were destroyed in turn by the arrival of the Necrons under the command of the Necron Overlord known as the Undying One, who sought to reclaim their ancient artefact known as the Nexus Arrangement.
Legio Vulturus - Legion Colours: The Legio Vulturus' colours are not listed in current Imperial records.
Legio Vulturus - Legion Badge: The Legio Vulturus' badge is not listed in current Imperial records.
Legio Xerxes - Legio Xerxes: The Legio Xerxes was a Loyalist Titan Legion of the Collegia Titanica, one of the military arms of the Adeptus Mechanicus. There is very little information in Imperial records about this obscure Titan Legion, including when it was founded or from what world it hails.Ancient historical sources indicate that this Legion may have been based on Mars itself. During the Great Crusade the Legio Xerxes was attached to the service of the 670th Expeditionary Fleet.The Primarch Alpharius and a force from his XX Legion of Astartes, the Alpha Legion, fought with the 670th Expedition during the tragic campaign to bring the world of Nurth to Imperial Compliance, but never became an official part of the 670th's order of battle.Lord Commander Namitjira remained in formal command during the operation, though of course he deferred to the Primarch's orders.Following the opening days of civil warfare during the Schism of Mars, it is not known what side this Legion chose to support or if they were one of the many Loyalist Titan Legions caught off-guard by the treacherous attacks of the forces of the Dark Mechanicum and destroyed outright.
Legio Xerxes - Notable Campaigns: Compliance of Nurth (ca. 205.M31) - The Legio Xerxes had a battle group of war engines supporting the 670th Expeditionary Fleet during the Great Crusade. They aided Imperial ground forces in the course of the disastrous Imperial Compliance campaign fought on Nurth, a lost Human colony from the Dark Age of Technology. During the evacuation of Nurth, 6 Titans had to be left behind due to Lord Commander Namatjira's incompetence, after which Princeps Jeveth detached his force of Titans from the 670th Expeditionary Fleet and returned to Mars. The Legio Xerxes disappeared from all Imperial records after their return to the Red Planet.
Legio Xerxes - Notable Titans: None listed in current Imperial records.
Legio Xerxes - Notable Personnel: Princeps Amon Jeveth - Jeveth was a princeps senioris of the Legio Xerxes in the Nurth Campaign during the course of the Great Crusade.
Legio Xerxes - Legion Colours: The Legio Xerxes Legion colours are not listed in current Imperial records.
Legio Xerxes - Legion Badge: The Legio Xerxes Legion badge is not listed in current Imperial records.
Legio Xestobiax - Legio Xestobiax: By all accounts, the Legio Xestobiax ("The Iron Vigil") -- is one of the lesser known Titan Legions of the Collegia Titanica. Rated as a Tertius-grade Titan Legion at the end of the Great Crusade, the defensively-minded Iron Vigil never fought in the great battles of that era, relegated to secondary battlefields and infrequent Imperial Compliance actions.In fact, this Titan Legion, which hails from the distant Forge World of Zhao-Arkhad, deep in the galactic south, has more of a checkered past than many would readily believe. The Legion has only recently been declared Officio Fidelitas -- loyal to the Emperor -- and if circumstances had been different, this Titan Legion might well now be counted amongst the enemies of the Imperium of Man and not its defenders.Therefore, it is almost ironic that the Legio's greatest achievement, its participation in the Burning of Prospero, has been all but forgotten and most historical tomes do not even mention their participation in that victory which began the era of the Horus Heresy.Long shunned for their role in this battle and the ties they indirectly once held with the Thousand Sons Traitor Legion, the Legio Xestobiax was deemed guilty by association and marked for execution before the Adeptus Mechanicus revised their sentence after the end of the Heresy.Instead, the Mechanicus steadily purged both the Iron Vigil and their parent Forge World from the hereteknical beliefs that had festered in their hearts, thus returning them to the purity of the Machine God.
Legio Xestobiax - Arkhadian Titan Cache: In the 41st Millennium, more than 33 ancient Titans in Legio Xestobiax livery were discovered entombed within a series of caverns on Zhao-Arkhad's southern continent. Effectively undamaged and still in possession of their proscribed Black Iron Cores, it is probable that these Titans had been concealed from the Metallican Assayers ten millennia earlier to protect their heretek technology.This discovery prompted members of the Arkhadian Mechanicus to attempt to reawaken these sleeping giants in total secrecy to claim their forbidden technology.
Legio Xestobiax - Notable Campaigns: Burning of Prospero (ca. 004.M31) - The involvement of the Legio Xestobiax in the events of the Fall of Prospero has almost been entirely forgotten, perhaps aided by the fact that the military hierarchy of the Mechanicum was loathe to acknowledge that one of its very best units, the Titans of the Legio Mortis (then still believed to be loyal to the Throne of Terra) could be defeated by what was regarded as an almost unknown Titan Legion from a backwater Forge World. Reinforcing the initial Censure Host under overall command of the Primarch Leman Russ, the Titans of the Legio Mortis were deployed outside of the planetary capital of Tizca with orders to clear the Arkhadian Mechanicum sub-fane present on the world. Believed nearly destroyed in the preliminary bombardment of the world by the Imperial Censure Fleet, the forge-fane had in fact weathered the assault almost unscathed, protected as it was by many hundreds of metres of soil and rock and its powerful array of Void Shields. Roused for war, the Titans of the Prosperine Vigil of the Legio Xestobiax emerged from their subterranean storage-bunkers before the great bulk-landers of the Legio Mortis touched Prospero's soil. While inside Tizca, the Thousand Sons valiantly fought back against the Space Wolves, the desert plains became the battleground of the Titans of the Mechanicum. Led by one of the Legio Mortis ' most highly-decorated veterans, Princeps Senioris Maldris Drane, the Legio Mortis was met by the full force of the Iron Vigil on Prospero, including their Secutarii ground-troops and the Taghmata Mechanicum of the Arkhadian forge-fane. The Legio Mortis had the advantage of both fielding more of the heavier Warlord-class Titans and of greater experience, being all veterans of the 63rd Expeditionary Fleet. However, it quickly became apparent that the Legio Mortis and their Imperial Knight allies of House Malinax had vastly underestimated the Legio Xestobiax. Perhaps due to the advantage provided by their Black Iron Cores, the Titans of the Prosperine Vigil virtually annihilated the forces of the Death's Heads, and Princeps Senioris Drane was among the casualties. The Legio Mortis detachment was nearly wiped out, which required the Censure Fleet to deploy the elite forces of the Ordo Sinister against which the weakened Prosperine Vigil would utlimately prove powerless. Alhough ultimately defeated, the Prosperine Vigil of the Legio Xestobiax had shattered the myth of invincibility that surrounded the Legio Mortis.
Legio Xestobiax - Legion Strength: Though the Legio is noted for a relatively small number of god-engines, it was the Legio Xestobiax's limited transportation capacities that saw it classified as only a Tertius-grade Titan Legion. Like its parent Forge World of Zhao-Arkhad, the Iron Vigil has always suffered from a lack of space-worthy materials and its Titan conveyor fleet has been one of the smallest on record. By the time of the fateful attack on Prospero, the Legio Xestobiax is estimated to have been able to field less than one hundred Titans, none of which were of the most powerful  Imperator-class.Lacking the capacities to produce its own Titan-engines on any significant scale, most of the god-engines of the Iron Vigil were tremendously old and dating back to the original settlement of the Zhao System. While the restoration of contact with the Imperium and the wider Mechanicum did improve the Legio's access to new god-engines and components, their numbers were slow to grow. In addition, most of the newer god-engines were devoted to the Prosperine Vigil and were subsequently all lost at the start of the Horus Heresy.It is also of particular interest that the Titans of the Prosperine Vigil were the first to be equipped with the ominous Black Iron Cores developed by the Eminarii forge-fane of Zhao-Arkhad, although in the case of the Prosperine Vigil tenacious rumours continue to persist that Forge-Domini Proctor delved into even darker techno-arcana.As the onset of Warp storms grew increasingly more common during the Horus Heresy, the Legio Xestobiax lost contact with some of its Vigils, leaving perhaps 50 Titans on Zhao-Arkhad and at Istiam Station. During the years of isolation, these remaining Titans seem all to have been modified by the Eminarii forge-fane.The majority of the Legio Xestobiax's  effectives were Warlord and Reaver-class Titans. The Legio's Reavers benefited from unparalleled efficiency earned against the xenos raiders that plagued the Zhao colonies throughout their early years.The Warhound-class and its cousins were very rare amongst the Legio Xestobiax's  ranks, mainly due to the Legio's lack of need for a Scout Titan, as it essentially fought on the same battlegrounds it had watched over for millennia, whose terrain was well-known. Within the Iron Vigil the construction of Warhound-class Titans was regarded with scorn and as a waste of precious resources better used elsewhere.
Legio Xestobiax - Notable Titans: Ilotar Rex (Warlord-class Titan) - Pict-captures during the battle place the Ilotar Rex as one of the few Warlord-class Titans deployed by the Prosperine Vigil of the Legio Xestobiax during the Burning of Prospero.Munus Aeternum (Warlord-class Titan) - A crippled Warlord-class Titan that now rests in the vaults below the fane of the Supreme-Domini of Zhao-Arkhad and can be reliably traced to the Legion's founding.Septum Caelestis Ues (Reaver-class Titan) - While most of the Titans of the Prosperine Vigil had been newly commissioned, the Septum Caelestis Ues was a veteran of the Great Crusade which had attained considerable glory in several engagements. In particular, pict-captures have confirmed that the Septum Caelestis Ues’ kill-banners bore the unique glyph for a significant victory attributed specifically to this machine. Unfortunately, all other records regarding this victory have been lost. The Septum Caelestis Ues survived the brutal clash with the Legio Mortis on Prospero but would later be defeated by the Psy-Titans of the Ordo Sinister. The Septum Caelestis Ues was equipped with a carapace-mounted Apocalypse Missile Launcher, a Melta Cannon and a Titan-grade Powerfist.Sleepless Watcher (Reaver-class Titan) - The Sleepless Watcher is responsible for both the destruction of the Legio Mortis Warlord-class Titan Cadavaris Perdita and the death of its commander, Princeps Senioris Maldris Drane, who led the forces of the Legio Mortis to Prospero. The Sleepless Watcher decapitated the larger Warlord, thus killing both engine and crew.Artefact ZA01 (Unknown Titan Class) - The first of the ancient Legio Xestobiax Titans to be rediscovered on Zhao-Arkhad in the late 41st Millennium, Artefact ZA01 was identified as a Battle Titan, albeit one with variations that matched no known configuration or class. Likewise, its true name also remains lost to the past.
Legio Xestobiax - Notable Personnel: Calvar Ibranum - Calvar Ibranum was a Princeps-Warden of the Legio Xestobiax Prospero Vigil on the Thousand Sons Legion's homeworld of Prospero at the outbreak of the Horus Heresy.Zavius - A Titan Princeps without open affiliation to any Legion, Zavius was involved in the attempts to resurrect the ancient Legio Xestobiax Titans discovered hidden on Zhao-Arkhad's southern continent in the late 41st Millennium. He was killed attempting to interface with the ancient variant Titan known as Artefact ZA01.Atropos - Atropos was the given designation of the Mechanicus Magi overseeing attempts to secretly reawaken the ancient Legio Xestobiax Titans discovered on Zhao-Arkhad's southern continent in the late 41st Millennium.
Legio Xestobiax - Legion Colours: The Legio Xestobiax utilised a purple, white and gold panoply which was archetypical for the god-engines of the Iron Vigil. In recognition of the protection of its patron Forge World, the Legio Xestobiax utilised a unique ideograph representing the species or nature of threat against which they triumphed upon their heraldry, which was prominently denoted on their princeps honour banners, with kill banners only denoting a particularly significant victory attributed to an individual god-engine alone.
Legio Xestobiax - Legion Badge: The Legio Xestobiax Titan Legion's badge is a triple-skull, a unique emblem, as is the chain motif frequented in the Legio's heraldry, representing their inviolable oath of the protection of Zhao-Arkhad. During the time of the Great Crusade, a more singular honour was the incorporation of the solar symbol of the Thousand Sons Legion rendered in gold, which marked a god-engine as one of the assigned warders of the Prosperine sub-forge of Zhao-Arkhad.