Black Templars - Specialist Ranks: The Black Templars' order of battle contains several specialist formations and ranks not present in other Space Marine Chapters who follow the precepts of the Codex Astartes, including:High Marshal - The High Marshal is the senior ranking Astartes of the Black Templars Chapter, and is equivalent to the Chapter Master of Codex Astartes-compliant Chapters. The fighting skills of a High Marshal are unsurpassed with Bolters, blades or bare hands, as his rank speaks of a bloody past littered with the devastated enemies of the most terrifying and inhuman sort. However, it is not enough for the High Marshal to be the Chapter's foremost warrior, for he must also be a superb tactician and strategist, grounded in the teachings of those who have gone before him and honed through countless decisions made in the heat of battle. He is also steeped in the lore of the Black Templars, privy to all of the Chapter's secrets. A High Marshal is the supreme commander of the Chapter's ongoing crusades, keeping track of their overall progress and making tactical decisions in regards to the deployment of the Chapter's forces and occasionally blessing individual crusades with his inspirational presence. The High Marshal is one of the most autonomous military commanders in the Imperium, decreeing by his own designs where his warriors will fight and without recourse to the dictates of the High Lords of Terra.Marshal - Marshals are the great warriors who lead the individual crusades of the Black Templars and are equivalent to captains in Codex Astartes-compliant Chapters. These ferocious Space Marines possess superb tactical abilities, second in experience to only the High Marshal himself. The purity and ultimate success of a crusade is entrusted unto the Marshal and such a duty is a sacred and glorious responsibility. A Marshal is not only a warrior so deadly that he will rarely meet his match on the field of battle, but one whose expertise includes concerns beyond the battlefield, for the leading of a crusade is a mighty task indeed. As a result, only the most inspirational and determined warriors may rise to become a Marshal, having long proved their courage and determination within the ranks of the Sword Brethren or as a Castellan leading a fighting company. The Marshals are able to coordinate the Space Marines under their command and lead them and their crusades to ultimate victory, whatever the opposition.Castellan - A Castellan is a specialist officer rank that is unique to the Black Templars Chapter, and is the equivalent of a Space Marine lieutenant of a Codex Astartes-compliant Chapter. A Castellan is responsible for leading an entire fighting company of the Chapter on the field of battle during the numerous ongoing crusades conducted by the Black Templars. Larger Black Templars crusades often comprise a number of the Chapter's fighting companies, each led by a Sword Brethren (Veteran) raised to the rank of Castellan. Only those Sword Brethren who have proven themselves as devotional warriors and inspirational leaders may rise to this esteemed rank. These hardened Veterans have earned their ascension to command rank through their bloody and zealous dedication to the Chapter's cause. As masters of the battlefield, Castellans are able to read its ebb and flow, and adjust their tactical formations accordingly. Leading from the front by example, a Castellan's Astartes know what it is to be a Black Templar and a dedicated warrior of Sigismund and the Emperor, and from his leadership they learn the trade of battle and the craft of death.Sword Brethren - Equivalent to the elite members of a standard Codex-compliant Chapter's Veteran 1st Company, the greatest warriors of a Black Templars crusade are inducted into the Marshal's household. Known as the Sword Brethren, they are no longer required to train Neophytes and they will receive additional training, particularly in the use of Tactical Dreadnought Armour. After completion of this training, Sword Brethren will use Terminator Armour whenever available, usually selecting melee weapons to use with it, an area of combat where all Black Templars excel. Like most Black Templars, Sword Brethren will fight with others out of familiarity rather than in organised squads, and they will always be found in the thickest of the fighting. If the Marshal of a crusade is either killed or promoted to the position of High Marshal of the Chapter, one of the Sword Brethren will be elevated to take his place. The Sword Brethren of a crusade who receives this honour is decided by ritual combat. The winner of the melee earns the right to become a Marshal upon the approval of the High Marshal; there has only been one case in Black Templars history of the High Marshal withholding his approval or reversing it (the Gervahrt Repeal of the 36th Millennium). Sword Brethren of the Black Templars often wear a cream-coloured cloak and have red trim on their black pauldrons to signify their elite status.Emperor's Champion - At the very height of the Siege of Terra during the Horus Heresy, Captain Sigismund, First Captain of the Imperial Fists Legion, was tasked by his Primarch Rogal Dorn with leading the ground battle whilst the Emperor, Dorn, and Sanguinius led the assault on the Traitor Warmaster's Battle-Barge. Sigismund was named Emperor's Champion, a title sometimes applied to Dorn, and in that act a new tradition was formed, which is honoured amongst the Black Templars, the direct descendants of Sigismund, to this day. When the Master of Mankind and His gene-sons teleported away to face Horus, Sigismund led the remaining warriors, not as a general, but as an example, taking the battle to the enemy in person and emboldening the hearts of the defenders with his deeds. Sigismund sought out the greatest warriors amongst the teeming hordes of the enemy, facing mighty Chaos Space Marine leaders as well as towering fiends from the great beyond, and defeating every single one of them. Sigismund was chosen as Emperor's Champion because he was filled with such devotion to the Father of Mankind, and to the Imperium and the Great Crusade that had created it, that he was a shining exemplar of all that the Legiones Astartes were and could be. The oath he took when he accepted the mantle of Emperor's Champion resounded through the ages, and was so weighty that it could never be broken. While Sigismund's beloved Emperor fell on that day, the Emperor's Champion prevailed and, with Horus defeated, the vile hosts on the surface were routed. Later, the Imperial Fists split into Chapters and Sigismund's fiery zeal was recognised. He became the first High Marshal of the Black Templars, and his belief that the Great Crusade would never end became a reality embodied by the new Chapter and its never-ending Crusades. Ever since the Siege of Terra, it has become a cherished tradition amongst the Black Templars to field one who the chaplains have proclaimed the Emperor's Champion. On the eve of battle, the Black Templars pray, fast, and meditate upon their duty, and it is not uncommon for one amongst their number to be blessed with some form of vision that speaks to him of his duty and shows him portents of things yet to come. The battle-brother then presents himself to the Chaplains and confesses his vision and if he is found true, is declared to be the Emperor's Champion. The battle-brother is ritually prepared for the coming battle, the attendants of the Reclusiam cladding him in the Armour of Faith and presenting him with the Black Sword. In theory, each Black Templars Crusade force has its own Emperor's Champion who serves as such for the duration of a protracted battle or a campaign, but in practise each Fighting Company is likely to have one, each battle producing its own Champion if one has not come forward already. It is common for Black Templars battle-brothers serving with the Deathwatch to pray and fast on the eve of a mission, just as they would before a battle within the ranks of their own Chapter. On some extremely rare occasions, such a Battle Brother may feel the blessings of righteous certainty upon him, and know that he must take up the mantle of the Emperor's Champion. Within his Chapter, the battle-brother would seek out the Chaplains and be declared the Emperor's Champion by them, but this may not be possible whilst he is serving the Long Watch. Unless a Chaplain of the Black Templars is present and able to take the brother's confession, he must assume the mantle alone, donning the most sacred relics of his Chapter and declaring his mission to his fellows. He will seek permission from the Master of the Armoury to bear into battle the most potent of weapons and the most revered of armour. Few would dare refuse, for the battle-brother's eyes burn with the zeal of his duty and the weight of his oaths is an almost palpable thing. Regardless of the nature of the coming mission, the Emperor's Champion will seek out the greatest champions and leaders amongst the ranks of the enemy and strike them down in the fury of single combat. In so doing, he acts as a shining beacon of faith by which the enemy is cast back and the warriors of the Emperor are driven to ever-greater acts of valour. Having taken up the trappings of the Emperor's Champion, the battle-brother remains as such only until his vision is fulfilled and he returns to the Watch Fortress. Only by the word of the Chaplains is his duty discharged, and he resumes his place in the ranks once more.Initiate - Unlike in other Chapters, an initiate is not an Astartes who is new to the Chapter, but is the rank held by the majority of Black Templars battle-brothers until they have served long enough to be promoted to the Veteran status of a member of the Sword Brethren. Initiates serve in most of the standard tactical roles seen within Space Marine Chapters and are also each responsible for adopting and training a neophyte until he has earned initiate status.Neophyte - A neophyte of the Black Templars differs from the neophytes of other Chapters in that they have already successfully completed the physical process of transformation into an Astartes by the time they achieve this rank. This would normally grant them initiate status in Codex-compliant Chapters, but in the Black Templars this only means that they are ready to truly begin their training. Every neophyte, after he has been deemed worthy by the Chapter's Chaplains and Apothecaries, is assigned to an apprenticeship with a full initiate of the Chapter, essentially serving in some regards as his squire. When the neophyte's initiate feels that his student has gained the experience and wisdom necessary to make him an asset to the Chapter, he is raised to become an initiate himself. The new initiate is then required to begin the personal training of his own neophyte, and so the process repeats itself.