Legio Astorum - Legion History: It is said that forever has a measure of foolhardy arrogance sat within the heart of the Legio Astorum, manifesting in a burning desire to ascend above all others that might stand as its equal. Indeed, one only has to look to the Forge World of Lucius,homeworld of the Legio Astorum, to understand from whence such arrogance comes.Known as the "Hollow Forge," a name earned by the artificial sun that sits within the hollowed-out centre of the planet, all born upon the Forge World take pride in achieving that which others deem impossible. The burning star held within the centre of Lucius is perhaps the greatest testament to its people's success beyond expectations, for the artificial sun provides near-boundless power to the Forge World while also sealing its fate, for all, including the Tech-priests of Lucius itself, know that a day must come when the artificial sun's containment will fail and the Forge World will be consumed by its fury. Where some might view such a construction as careless, those that hail from Lucius hold firm in their belief that death in pursuit of innovation is the greatest sacrifice one can offer the Omnissiah.Amongst the many ancient Mechanicum sects that called Lucius their home, all held the unchangeable belief that the eventual consumption of Lucius by solar event will ascend its people to walk alongside the Omnissiah and, with such a path laid out before them, failure before such a prescribed time is impossible. Until that moment, the servants of Lucius are bound to stride forth across the galaxy, bringing His glory to the ignorant and malcontent.This self-assured belief in victory no matter the circumstance holds great influence within the ranks of the Legio Astorum. Where many Titan Legions are content to commit to a ponderous advance, safe in the knowledge no foe can stand the indefatigable march of a god-engine, the Legio Astorum sets its own tempo upon the battlefield. Through careful locomotor modification combined with extensive training amongst the ranks of its princeps, the Titans of the Legio Astorum are pushed beyond all advised limits, the innate stubbornness of its princeps seeing the protesting Machine Spirit as another challenge to overcome, albeit a challenge to be treated with all due reverence.It is upon the cusp of self-destruction that the Legio Astorum thrives, its Titans granted a swiftness that few other Legios can match. In this manner has the Legio Astorum earned itself a fearsome, and often, mythological status amongst both the ranksof the Great Crusade and the worlds the Titan Legion has aided in conquest. All such tales speak of the preternatural speed with which its Titans make war, entire maniples descending upon enemy fortifications with a grace and swiftness at odds with its immense size.It was with these tactics that the Legio Astorum earned itself the title of "Warp Runners" and it speaks to both the skill and determination of its princeps that no observable difference exists between the Legio Astorum and other Titan Legions in records pertaining to the loss of god-engines to reactor overload upon the battlefield, all while having secured a record of victory matched by few other Titan Legions.When Mars and Lucius were reconnected, the Titans of the Legio Astorum were moved to the forefront of the Great Crusade, where the Titan Legion's preference for swift spearhead assaults saw it become a valued part of many expeditionary fleets. Supplied as it was by a vast network of engine forges constructed across the surface of Lucius, the Titan Legion was readily split across the galaxy, offering aid to many who requested it. Unlike those Titan Legions that proved loath to separate its forces too greatly, the Warp Runners held no qualms towards forming dozens of smaller battlegroups, retaining only a singular demi-legio numbering 50 god-engines in close vicinity to Lucius at all times.Where the Legio Astorum thrived was alongside those commanders that favoured free-thinking, for many criticisms were levelled at those Warp Runners princeps who deemed it necessary to override agreed upon battleplans in favour of tactics devised by their own logicians.In such matters, the Legio Astorum quickly found itself a firm ally in the Primarch Jaghatai Khan, for his White Scars Legion also favoured swift methods of war and none, even the Warmaster Horus upon his appointment, were offered the level of respect the Warp Runners favoured the Khan with. Given the widespread nature of Warp Runners battlegroups, the White Scars were not the sole beneficiary of the Titan Legion's impressive tactical prowess. During the conquest of the Kamenka Troika, a region overrun with Greenskins, the Legio Astorum earned considerable praise serving alongside the Thousand Sons. Such a conflict proved costly for all parties involved and led to the near-complete loss of a detachment of Warp Runners god-engines despite its eventual success.In recognition of the Legio Astorum's sacrifice the Canis Vertex, an ancient Warlord Titan laid low by the conflict, was transported to Prospero where it was restored to glory and raised to stand guard over the pyramid of the Pyrae Cult of sorcerers. Such praise was well-received upon its proclamation, though the events of the Horus Heresy saw the honour later stricken from the record of the Canis Vertex when Magnus the Red was declared Traitor, and rumours spoke of the Warlord marching in opposition of the Censure Host brought to bring the primarch to justice on Terra for his violation of the Decress of Nikaea.The princeps of the Legio Astorum were lauded veterans, renowned as much for their arrogance and aloofness as they were for their tactical acumen and history of conquests. It was the sins of the princeps that led many to fear that the Warp Runners would follow the Warmaster in his quest for supremacy over all Mankind, with the most disparaging of rumours claiming the Legio Astorum desired nothing less than to ascend above all other Titan Legions. Such fears proved unfounded, for both Lucius and the Legio Astorum readily threw their forces against the Traitors, notable for participating in some of the greatest engagements of the conflict from the blasted wastelands of Tallarn to the deadly maelstrom of the Beta-Garmon star cluster.When Beta-Garmon fell to the Warmaster, those of the Legio Astorum that survived its grasp relocated to Terra, defending the Imperial Palace until the final days of the Horus Heresy.