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Tempestus Scions - Storm Troopers: Storm Troopers are the closest equivalent the Astra Militarum possess to elite special forces; they act as shock troopers and commandos, conducting raids behind enemy lines and acting as the spearhead for later offensive assaults. Storm Troopers are recruited from the orphaned sons of Imperial officials and military officers from all over the galaxy -- such as planetary governors or high-ranking members of the Astra Militarum or Navis Imperialis.Raised within a Schola Progenium under the care of the Ecclesiarchy, they live a demanding life of prayer, study and physical exercise. This unremitting and punishing training regime hones their minds, bodies and skills to the very peak of unaugmented Human perfection.These potential Storm Trooper candidates are notable for their outstanding skills in the arts of war, but lack the iron personalities and charisma that would earmark them to become an Imperial commissar or Astra Militarum officer or the affinity for space warfare that would make them a Navis Imperialis officer. They are usually not from the same regiment or homeworld as those they serve with.Due to this origin, their superior wargear and training, they are often called "Glory Boys" or "Big Toy Soldiers" by the average guardsman, who are jealous of their skill and access to specialised gear. Wearing highly protective Carapace Armour and armed with armour-piercing Hellguns, a single squad of Storm Troopers can be more dangerous than an entire company of regular guardsmen.
Tempestus Scions - Tempestus Aquilons: Tempestus Aquilons are an elite formation of Tempestus Scions dedicated solely to airborne and drop assaults who are intended to operate behind enemy lines as they seek to claim or destroy strategic assets. Tempestus Aquilons exclusively go into battle wearing Grav-Chutes and are armed primarily with variant, short-barelled Hot-Shot Las Carbines. They were selected for the honour of this highly dangerous tactical role due to their demonstrated self-sufficiency, intuition, and raw aggression, which makes the Aquilons ideal candidates for dangerous missions like drop assaults, where they will face an enemy's own elite forces.While all Tempestus Scions can perform aerial grav-drops, the hand-picked teams of Tempestus Aquilons deploy exclusively using this method. They are drawn from those Ordo Tempestus recruits who show above-average levels of self-sufficiency, free thought, and improvisation -- all qualities usually frowned upon by the Imperium -- and deployed on high-risk, high-reward missions that often leave them deep in enemy territory without support.Aquilons exhibit an unusually high level of aggression, and due to their mission to drop from orbit or the upper atmosphere of a target world directly into the midst of an overwhelming enemy force, they are especially good at fighting in close quarters for which they are intensely trained. Their specialist gunners are equipped with various short ranged weapons, such as melta carbines and plasma carbines, while their Hot-Shot Las Carbines accept standard lasgun capacitor magazines instead of using a backpack-mounted power generator so they can fire while they drop without getting tangled up in the standard version of that weapon's cables. Once they're on the ground, Aquilons are free to then swap to their back-mounted powerpacks and the greater stopping power this provides their weapons.These unique skills and personal qualities make the Tempestus Aquilons the go-to choice for the Imperium when distant and dangerous missions must succeed at all costs, as is often the case for the kinds of tasks given to kill-teams. Their uncommon adaptability and ability to improvise under fire has snatched victory from the jaws of defeat countless times, and should their mission demand the ultimate price, the Aqulions pay it without question.Teams of Tempestus Aquilons are commanded by their Tempestors and also include the specialist ranks of "Gunfighter," "Gunner," "Marksman," "Precursor" and "Grenadier". Tempestus Aquilon squadrons can be also be equipped with automated Servo-sentries to provide additional beachhead fire support that are deployed into the field alongside them by Grav-Chute.
Tempestus Scions - Inquisitorial Storm Troopers: The Inquisition maintains a number of fortresses throughout the galaxy, both secret and known to the inhabitants of the Imperium.Inquisitorial Storm Troopers are used by the Inquisition to guard their fortresses and the Black Ships as they make their purity runs across the Imperium's sectors, as well as to augment an individual Inquisitor's personal forces with reliable and effective soldiers.Many Storm Troopers of particular skill are chosen to become an Inquisitor's Throne Agents. Inquisitorial Storm Troopers are selected from families with a record of unwavering faith in the Emperor and prior duty to the Inquisition.They are trained and equipped in a manner similar to standard Militarum Tempestus Storm Troopers, albeit lacking the rapid insertion and infiltration skills, as they are not expected to undertake such types of missions. Such activities are more often carried out for the Inquisition by the Officio Assassinorum.
Tempestus Scions - Catachan Devils: Catachan Jungle Fighters regiments of the Astra Militarum include squads of warriors exceptional even by the exacting standards of their birth world. These seasoned jungle fighters are deadly in close combat, and also carry a versatile array of ranged weapons.In Catachan regiments these troops are called "Catachan Devils," in reference to their famous kill-knives and the voracious predators of their world whose fierceness they emulate in combat.These special forces squads consist of one Veteran sergeant and between four and nine "Catachan Devil" guardsmen. Some squads may even include a Veteran Catachan officer. The most famous (or perhaps infamous) of these deadly warriors is Sly Marbo, a man renowned as the "One Man Army."
Tempestus Scions - Kasrkin: Kasrkin are the elite of the Cadian Shock Troops regiments and part of the standard Astra Militarum structure, formerly dedicated to the security of the Fortress World of Cadia.Their name comes from the title of the heavily defended fortress-cities of Cadia, which were called "Kasrs" in the Cadian dialect of Low Gothic. Thus, the name of these units means the "City Kin."These are the elite of the already superior Cadian Planetary Defence Forces and are recruited while still serving as Whiteshields or recruits in the Cadian armed forces into the Astra Militarum.Their training is comparable, if not better than, that of standard Militarum Tempestus Storm Troopers, of which they are the Cadian equivalent, and they are utterly dedicated to the preservation of Cadia, whereas Storm Troopers are indoctrinated to dedicate themselves to the defence of the entire Imperium.Kasrkin are highly trained in the use of numerous weapons and wear the more advanced Carapace Armour like standard Storm Troopers. They maintain a strict ethos of duty and honour and a devotion to the Emperor that is impressive for members of the Astra Militarum.Whereas the standard Storm Trooper is looked down upon in envy by most guardsmen of the rank-and-file, the standard Kasrkin is looked up to with favour and respect by the other members of the Cadian Shock Trooper regiments.The Kasrkin were the ultimate defenders of Cadia from the enemies of the Imperium, such as the ever-present forces of Chaos, and they led the charge in defence of Cadia, particularly during the early days of Abaddon the Despoiler's 13th Black Crusade in 999.M41 when Cadia was invaded outright by the forces of Chaos. To be a Kasrkin was to hold a position of honour in Cadian society, and all Cadians recognise this truth -- even after the destruction of their beloved homeworld.
Tempestus Scions - Kill Squad Trooper: Used to enforce execution warrants or when extreme prejudice is required, Kill Squads are comprised of the special operations units of Planetary Defence Forces and represent some of the most dangerous formations that can exist within the organisation of planetary Enforcers.Though not true Tempestus Scions as they serve a planetary government and not the Imperium directly, the troops that comprise Kill Squads are often trained to the same elite level as most standard Storm Troopers, particularly on wealthy and technologically-advanced Imperial planets.On some worlds, where the rule of the planetary governor is dictatorial and harsh, Kill Squad Troopers are the hated embodiments of their tyranny.
Tempestus Scions - Unlimited Mobility: The regiments of the Militarum Tempestus Scions depends upon their all-purpose Taurox Primes to deliver the target fury of the Imperium across all manner of hazardous warzones, and through almost impossible conditions.Given the vehicle's long-standing service with the Tempestus Scions, many Taurox Primes have become notable for supporting the elite special operations warriors during notable victories. They are often painted in each regiment's colours and given colourful names.The Valkyrie Assault Carrier and the forces of the Militarum Tempestus are an almost perfect match -- the training and mission indoctrination of the Scions working hand in fist with the speed, versatility and firepower of the Valkyrie gunship. During combat operations a Tempestus Scions force will be granted dispensation to repaint these aircraft in the colours of their regiment.
Tempestus Scions - Tempestus Scions Squad: 4-9 Tempestus Scions1 Tempestor
Tempestus Scions - Militarum Tempestus Command Squad: 4 Tempestus Scions1 Tempestor Prime
Tempestus Scions - Tempestor: Carapace ArmourOmnishield HelmSlate Monitron (Dextera Configuration)Hot-shot LaspistolChainswordFrag GrenadesKrak GrenadesBolt Pistol or Plasma Pistol (As replacement for Hot-shot Laspistol)Power Sword or Power Fist (As replacement for Chainsword)
Tempestus Scions - Militarum Tempestus Command Squad: Carapace ArmourOmnishield HelmSlate Monitron (Dextera Configuration)Ryza or Lucius Pattern Hot-shot LasgunFrag GrenadesKrak GrenadesHot-shot Laspistol (One Tempestus Scion can replace their Hot-shot Lasgun with a Hot-shot Laspistol and a Clarion Vox Array or a Martyr's Gift Field Service Medi-Kit)Tempestus Scions Platoon Standard (Taken by one Tempestus Scion in the squad)Flamer, Meltagun, Plasma Gun, Grenade Launcher, or Hot-shot Volley Gun (Each member of the squad may replace their Hot-shot Lasgun with one of these weapons)
Tempestus Scions - Tempestor Prime: Hot-shot LaspistolFrag GrenadesKrak GrenadesChainsword, Power Sword or Power FistTempestus Command Rod - The Tempestus Command Rod serves as a Tempestor Prime's badge of office over their platoon.Bolt Pistol or Plasma Pistol (As replacement for Hot-shot Laspistol)
Tempestus Scions - Notable Storm Trooper Companies: 709th Storm Troopers Company - The 709th Company participated in Operation COMET during the Taros Campaign of 998.M41. The intent of this operation was for the Imperials to seize Taros' means of producing water and turn it to their own use. They spearheaded this operation by arriving over their targets, the hydro processing plants that produced clean water, and deployed by fast rope. Part of their mission was to place the homing beacons for the following wave of the 23rd Elysian Drop Troops Regiment. This task was of great importance to the successful continuation of the war for control of Taros with the Tau and was successfully completed despite ferocious Tau resistance.2378th Storm Troopers Company - The 2378th Company participated in Operation Deathblow during the Taros Campaign of 998.M41. Receiving intelligence about the location of the Tau supreme headquarters, the Imperial Guard organised, planned and executed an operation known as Operation Deathblow. During this operation, 3 volunteer squads from a hand-picked platoon of Storm Troopers from the 2378th Company, led by Colonel Scheja, attacked the headquarters of the Tau army near the capital of Tarokeen on the Mining World of Taros during the Taros Campaign, in order to kill the alien leader, the Ethereal Aun'Vre. Aided by the suicide bombing attack of a highly-skilled operative of the Officio Assassinorum's Eversor Temple, the mission was almost successful. Though they were successful in the assassination of Aun'Vre, the Imperials failed to kill Shas'o R'myr (Commander Longknife), the Supreme Commander of Tau forces on Taros. Though initially stunned into inactivity by the loss of the Ethereal, anger swelled inside each Tau warrior into a vengeful wrath that they soon unleashed upon the humans. The Tau eventually won control of Taros and expanded their nascent empire during the Third Sphere Expansion. The Imperial forces were forced to withdraw from Taros, which was absorbed into the Tau Empire and renamed T'ros.
Tempestus Scions - Sources: Codex: Astra Militarum (8th Edition), pp. 62, 91, 94, 98Codex: Militarum Tempestus (6th Edition), pp. 3-35Codex: Catachans (3rd Edition), pp. 3, 6, 22-23Codex: Daemonhunters (3rd Edition), pg. 29Codex: Imperial Guard (5th Edition), pg. 46Codex: Imperial Guard (3rd Edition, 2nd Codex), pg. 43Codex: Imperial Guard (2nd Edition), pg. 21Codex: Witch Hunters (3rd Edition), pg. 34Dark Heresy: Core Rulebook (RPG), pg. 341Dark Heresy: Ascension (RPG), pp. 43, 86-89Imperial Armour: Volume Three - Taros Campaign, pp. 45, 106, 109, 142Only War: Core Rulebook (RPG), pp. 96-97, 373-374Third War for Armageddon Worldwide Campaign - Forces Disposition, Imperial Forces: Storm TroopersWarhammer 40,000: Core Rulebook (8th Edition), pg. 71Dawn of War III (PC Game) ("Catachan Devil" special forces)Warhammer Community - The Warhammer Preview Show: Operation Hivestorm – Descend From the Skies Into the Next Great Leap for Kill TeamWarhammer Community - Kill Team: Hivestorm Lore – Dive into the Story Behind the Tempestus Aquilons
Templar (Audio Drama) - Templar (Audio Drama): Templar is the twenty-second audio drama for the The Horus Heresy series that was not originally released as part of an anthology or other release. Templar was published in May 2014 by the Black Library. The title was also published as part of The Silent War main series anthology novel.
Templar (Audio Drama) - Official Synopsis: On the doorstep of Holy Terra, the shadow of treachery still lurks. Upon a comet-shrine dedicated to the glory of Unity, a group of Heretic Word Bearers prepare to return to the Sol System after being abandoned by their brethren -- only the forces commanded by Sigismund, First Captain of the Imperial Fists, stand between the Traitors and their goal. But will the legendary Templar's skill at arms be enough to prevail over this new enemy, or will the doubt in his heart prove ultimately to be his undoing?
Templar Brethren - Templar Brethren: The Templar Brethren, also called the Templars, were the elite 1st Company of the VIIth Legion, the Imperial Fists, during the Great Crusade and Horus Heresy. They were the Guardians of the Temple of Oaths aboard the great fortress-ship Phalanx, and the Legion's most highly accomplished warriors. Warriors of unequalled zeal, the Templar Brethren's relentless determination and matchless skill were the hallmarks of this deadly company, whose punishing recruitment protocol ensured that only the finest Imperial Fists bore their proud heraldry.Though their duty bound them to the Temple of Oaths, these dauntless warriors were found wherever the Imperial Fists carried the Emperor's Great Crusade to unify Mankind. They bore the best wargear that the armouries of the VIIth Legion could provide: ancient archeotech, the newest creations of the Mechanicum and more common marks of weapons forged with exacting precision. With their superior skill in battle and the finest weapons at their disposal, they were at the spearhead of the Emperor's Great Crusade to unify Mankind.Excelling in close combat, the Templar Brethren wielded Power Swords in battle, whilst their Combat Shields provided much-needed protection as they fought on the frontline in addition to their ornate Artificer Armour. Few enemies of Humanity seldom survived the first shattering charge of the Templar Brethren and had little chance of overcoming their defences. At the leading edge of battle, these warriors inspired their brothers with their unyielding courage and the blood-red path they carved through their foes.
Templar Brethren - History: Within the Imperial Fists Legion of old, there were many formations from squad to household whose names and deeds shone bright in the days of the Great Crusade. When mentioning such elite formations one cannot pass over the Templar Brethren. Raised by their primarch Rogal Dorn during the first solar decade of his command of the VIIth Legion, the Templars were the warriors charged with guarding the Temple of Oaths aboard their mighty flagship, the Phalanx. No fane of superstition or misguided religion, this secular temple was dedicated to the humanist ideals of the Great Crusade and the Imperial Truth and the sacrifices these demanded.There, beneath the tattered and burned banners of defeated enemies and the statues of dead heroes of the Legion, the Imperial Fists returned to renew their perpetual oaths of loyalty to their Emperor and primarch. Each oath made by a son of Dorn was carved on the walls, floor and ceiling, etched for all eternity in black granite. Besides Dorn and the Emperor, only the Templars were permitted to enter the Temple of Oaths unbidden.Nominally comprising the elite 1st Company of the Imperial Fists Legion, the Templars' strength rarely actually fell below 1,000 warriors, and their members were drawn from Veterans across the Legion. Skill at arms was not enough to earn such a responsibility, for each Templar was a warrior in whom the Crusader light had come to burn with undimmed brightness. Zealous, remorseless and tempered by many solar decades of war, they were exemplars of what it was to be Imperial Fists of the Great Crusade.Besides the primarch, only one other position commanded unconditional authority over the Legion as a whole. The first captain of the Imperial Fists was also always the commander of the Templars, and by tradition the finest proven warrior within the VIIth Legion. As guardian of the oaths of every Imperial Fists warrior, the first captain held not only great authority, but commanded respect from all of his brothers. During the finaly says of the Great Crusade and throughout the Horus Heresy, that warrior was First Capatin Sigismund, the future founding High Marshal of the Black Templars.
Templar Brethren - Unit Composition: 4-9 Templar Brethren1 Chapter Champion
Templar Brethren - Wargear: Artificer ArmourPower SwordBolt PistolFrag GrenadesKrak Grenades
Templar Brethren - Optional Wargear: Combat ShieldPlasma PistolNuncio VoxLegion VexillaMelta Bombs
Templar Brethren - Optional Wargear (Chapter Champion Only): Power AxePower MaulPower FistSolarite Power Gauntlet - These augmented Power Fists were greatly favoured by the officers of the Imperial Fists Legion. Crafted in imitation of the ancient relics of Terra, their nigh-indestructible casings were fashioned in weapon forges fed from the fires of the Phalanx's vast plasma core, and so served as a spiritual link to their primarch as well as embodying their Legion's heraldic icon in the shape of a powerful weapon.Thunder HammerPlasma PistolArchaeotech Pistol
Templars of Blood - Templars of Blood: Templars of BloodSpace MarinesBlood AngelsFoundingLike their progenitor Chapter, these sons of the Primarch Sanguinius take pride in their ability to meet the foe head-on, although this is where the similarities between the Chapters end.The Astartes of the Templars of Blood are known to suffer from the genetic flaw of Sanguinius known as the Black Rage at a much reduced rate compared to the Blood Angels or their other Successor Chapters.The reason for this is unknown, though some suspect the Chapter has bought this boon through dark and secretive means.
Templars of Blood - Chapter Organisation: This Successor Chapter utilises a more balanced organisation of its fighting forces than the Blood Angels, and incorporate a higher number of Tactical Squads than its Assault Marine-oriented progenitors. The Templars also do not organise those that succumb to the Black Rage into a formal Death Company. Those Astartes of this Chapter that lose the struggle with their common flaw are left to die alone in combat.Once a Chaplain starts to notice the tell-tale look in a Battle-Brother's eyes that bespeaks the soon-to-arrive loss of control, he performs a benediction in the name of Sanguinius and the Emperor of Mankind before taking away all of the Astartes' wargear save for his Combat Knife and his Power Armour.Should the Space Marine suffering from the flaw survive the following combat, his company's Captain is required by Chapter tradition to honour the Battle-Brother for his exemplary service to the Emperor before executing him outright.However, the number of Astartes within the Templars of Blood who actually fall to the Black Rage is unusually low for a Blood Angels Successor Chapter, a fact that has not escaped the notice of the Inquisition or the Blood Angels themselves.No one knows exactly how the Templars of Blood have managed to keep the Flaw at bay. Those who think well of the Chapter, a number which includes the Blood Angels, believe that it is because of their devotion to the Emperor and Sanguinius as well as a display of iron will that is remarkable even amongst Astartes.However, the Templars of Blood's growing number of detractors prefer to believe that the Chapter's seeming immunity has its origin in a far darker secret.
Templars of Blood - Notable Templars of Blood: Captain Kristoff - Captain Kristoff is the commander of the Templars of Blood's 3rd Company. Brother-Captain Kristoff has honourably served his Chapter for many standard centuries, owing to his superlative skills in combat and an unnaturally long lifespan that is a genetic characteristic of his gene-seed. It is also noted that Kristoff has been seconded to the Ordo Xenos' elite Kill-teams of the Deathwatch. After having already served two full secondments with the Deathwatch, he is fully expected to be pressed into a third term serving with the Inquisition's elite xenos hunters. Despite the fact that his company's Chaplain had tried to dissuade him of certain unorthodox beliefs, Kristoff is a man prone to strongly believing in omens and portents, especially his personal belief that the number three holds special significance in the eyes of his beloved God-Emperor. The Brother-Captain pressed his Chapter Master to authorise him to take his entire Battle Company into the Jericho Reach after he heard that Lord Militant Tetrachus' plan for the Achilus Crusade in the Reach included a three-pronged assault. He considered this to be a fortuitous omen, and that the Reach was under the competent stewardship of the Deathwatch was not lost on the captain. Until such time that he is pressed into service with the Deathwatch once again, Kristoff is content to lead the 3rd Company in glorious combat against the most vicious aliens that the universe can send against him.
Templars of Blood - Chapter Fleet: Blood Sword (Battle Barge) - The Blood Sword is in service to Captain Kristoff of the Templars of Blood's 3rd Company.
Templars of Blood - Chapter Colours: The Templars of Blood's Chapter colours are currently unknown in Imperial records.
Templars of Blood - Chapter Badge: The Templars of Blood's Chapter badge is not currently listed in Imperial records.
Templars of the Covenant - Templars of the Covenant: The Templars of the Covenant are a Loyalist Space Marine Chapter of an unknown Founding and genetic origin.
Templars of the Covenant - Notable Campaigns: Psychic Awakening - Assault on the Kebban Sub-sector (Unknown Date.M42) - The Templars of the Covenant despatched 4 companies to deal with the greenskins of the Kebban Sub-sector during the Psychic Awakening. The Kebban Sub-sector is a region of Imperial space that was infested with Orks and a horde of these xenos began to emerge from the sub-sector to assault the surrounding Imperial worlds. The Inquisition discovered that this WAAAGH! was set to collide with a different Ork horde led by the Warboss Bakrash, enhancing the potential destructive power of both. To prevent this from happening, the Ordo Xenos tasked the Deathwatch with killing Bakrash, but the operation ended in failure. This caused Bakrash to lead his WAAAGH! into the Kebban Sub-sector and make war upon the Orks already rampaging within it. Fearing that a Warlord would soon emerge to unite the Orks, the Ordo Xenos immediately requested the aid of several companies from the Rift Cobras, Templars of the Covenant and the Iron Hounds Chapters. The Ordo now believes that the forces of these Chapters will successfully destroy the Orks of this region while the xenos are still focussed on combating each other.
Templars of the Covenant - Chapter Colours: The Templars of the Covenant's Chapter colours are not currently listed in Imperial records.
Templars of the Covenant - Chapter Badge: The Templars of the Covenant's Chapter badge is not currently listed in Imperial records.
Templars Psykologis - Templars Psykologis: The Templars Psykologis is presumably one of the Adepta Minoris that exists within the organisational structure of the Adeptus Terra. Little is known of this obscure Imperial organisation or its designated function, but it can be assumed that the Templars serve as the Imperium of Man's primary military intelligence and psychological warfare branch.The organisation consists of two known unit types; Auger Teams and Disruption Squads. It is known that in 999.M41, during the massive incursion of the forces of Chaos into Imperial space during Abaddon the Despoiler's 13th Black Crusade, the Templars Psykologis deployed thirty-seven Disruption Squads and six Auger Teams as part of the Imperial forces defending the Fortress World of Cadia and its surrounding star systems in the Cadian Sector.
Temple of the Saviour Emperor - Temple of the Saviour Emperor: The Temple of the Saviour Emperor was one of the many Human religious cults which grew up around the worship of the Emperor of Mankind as a god after the Horus Heresy in the 31st and 32nd Millennia. It went on to become the dominant state church of the Imperium, the Adeptus Ministorum or Ecclesiarchy.However, the theological doctrines of the Temple of the Saviour Emperor, which called for the Ecclesiarchy to dominate every aspect of Imperial politics, fell out of favour during the Age of Apostasy and were reformed by the Ecclesiarch Sebastian Thor and the reborn rival sect of the Temple known as the Confederation of Light in the 36th Millennium.After this reformation, those who continued to adhere to the "old ways" of the Temple of the Saviour Emperor would be persecuted as Heretics of the so-called "Temple Tendency."
Temple of the Saviour Emperor - Temple Tendency: However, even in the 41st Millennium, there are those within the Ecclesiarchy who exhibit a desire to use the institutions of the Imperial state church to gain wealth and political power for their own sake. This has been referred to within the church as having a "tendency towards the Temple" as a warning against returning to the old ways. Those who are actually found to adhere to the beliefs and practices of the pre-reformation Temple of the Saviour Emperor are regarded as Heretics who have turned their backs upon the current incarnation of the Imperial Creed.However, there do exist secret cults that actively work against the current Ecclesiarchy in the Emperor's name, in an attempt to return to the old ways as they regard the current religious theology of the Adeptus Ministorum as the true heresy.These self-declared "Temple Tendency" cults slowly and secretly work to gather military and political might to use against the Ministorum and are enough of a threat to be hunted by the Inquisition.
Temple Tendency - Temple Tendency: The Temple Tendency is the vengeful remains of a cult of the Emperor of Mankind's divinity that once held sway over the entire Imperium. The Temple Tendency does not have truck with aliens or worship infernal powers; it is composed of the faithful devoted of the Emperor, who claim to follow the heritage of those who first declared the Emperor as a god.Once their faith was the faith of all the Imperium. Their armies and starships were as numerous as the stars, their power all but unrivalled, and below the Golden Throne none was mightier. This might was long ago lost in the cataclysm known to Imperial history as the Age of Apostasy in the 36th Millennium, and they have been reduced to perpetuating their faith in the shadows, nursing their hate and contemplating their vengeance.Millennia of subterfuge have made the Temple Tendency a deadly and thirsting shadow of the holy organisation it once was. Its poisonous presence slipped into the foundling Calixis Sector during the days of its birth, where the Tendency has festered and grown slowly down the centuries. The Calixian Temple Tendency is stronger now than it has ever been, and a threat to which even the Inquisition is blind, lurking unseen like a serpent poised to sink its fangs into the sector's heart.The Temple Tendency is named for the lingering elements of the Temple of the Saviour Emperor, the early precursor of the present-day Imperial state religion, that exist in parts of the Imperium and within the Ecclesiarchy. The tone of rituals, dress, even the layout of chapels can bear a style or flourish that marks them as being linked to the ways of the pre-Reformation era of the Ecclesiarchy, before the changes made by the great Ecclesiarch Sebastian Thor in the 36th Millennium following the Reign of Blood and the Reformation of the Adeptus Ministorum.These distinctive features can be marked enough to elicit a feeling of "tending towards the Temple" or having a "Temple tendency." Over time, this phrase has become a euphemism within the Adeptus Ministorum for marked greed or the desire for worldly power within its own ranks.In the millennia since the Reformation, Heretics following the old ways have been unearthed. They have been similarly labelled as being of a "Temple tendency" rather than admitting what they truly were and so the label has been perpetuated. To these sects, they are of course not the "Temple Tendency" at all, but the members of the Temple of the Saviour Emperor, champions of the old and "true faith." To them it is the Ministorum's current version of the Imperial Creed that is false and corrupt -- a morally bankrupt upstart that has doomed Humanity to a slow death.
Temple Tendency - History: The story of the Temple Tendency is the story of faith in the God-Emperor and its forging by the most bloody times of an age when war was rife across the stars. Its root are in the birth of the Imperium itself, and its downfall is the consequence of its own domination of Humanity. To understand the Temple Tendency is to walk through a story of apotheosis and apostasy and see Mankind in both its glory and in its ruin.
Temple Tendency - Foundation of the Emperor as God: The Imperium of Man is an empire of faith -- faith guides its actions, gives solace to the masses and is its shield against the dark. It was not always so. Once, the Emperor was not seen as a god but as the perpetuator of an enlightening truth that would heal and unite Humanity, and free it from the tyranny of demagogues and the worship of false idols.Then came the mythic times of the Horus Heresy. The Emperor's favoured son ripped apart his father's dream of Human unity and the price of the Emperor's victory was an eternity of imprisonment in the Golden Throne. In the wake of this disaster, the Imperium was shaken to its core, and a belief that had been growing in secret became reality as people searched for comfort and purpose -- that the Emperor was not a man, but a god.Cults emerged on thousands of worlds, each declaring and embracing the Emperor as divine -- a God-Emperor. Over time, sects merged, warred, and prospered until, amongst the powerful, one emerged to tower over all others. This sect was the Temple of the Saviour Emperor, and over time it became the One Faith -- the Adeptus Ministorum, state church of the Imperium of Man.Over the following standard millennia, the power of the Ministorum grew, and its leader, the ecclesiarch, earned a seat with the High Lords of Terra in the 32nd Millennium. In short order, its influence extended to every facet of the Imperium. Only the Adeptus Astartes and Adeptus Mechanicus were immune to the demands of the Ministorum, and then only because none dared to enforce their submission.Soon the Ministorum was the most powerful organ of the Imperium, commanding fleets of warships and legions of crack troops -- all used to wage Wars of Faith and bloody Imperial Crusades at the command of the priests. At the height of its power, the word of the ecclesiarch could make or unmake laws, decree wars, and refashion the Imperium at a whim.
Temple Tendency - Sebastian Thor's Reformation: Six thousand standard years of orthodox religious rule by the Temple of the Saviour Emperor came to an end with the fall of Goge Vandire and the Reformation that took place in the wake of Sebastian Thor's ascension to ecclesiarch. Many things changed within the Imperium as a whole after the Age of Apostasy, but most importantly to the Adeptus Ministorum, Thor brought with him the penitent teachings of the Confederation of Light. In an ironic reversal of positions, the followers of the teachings of the Temple of the Saviour Emperor found themselves now named the Heretics.Though the old ways of the Temple of the Saviour Emperor were not completely supplanted, the excesses of power and wealth, untempered by sacrifice and humility, were the subject of the most brutal change. So it was that the Reformation brought the end of the military might of the Ministorum fleets and the Frateris Templar. The political and spiritual power of the Ecclesiarchy was split between Ophelia VII and Terra, and the secular power of the individual cardinals was diminished. The message was clear -- the old ways were gone and the power of the Ecclesiarchy was now just one part of the Imperium rather than its sole regent.The Ecclesiarchy had been born anew, and it was not a bloodless birth. The tales the Calixian Temple Tendency tell to themselves claim that key pillars of the old order slipped away to be lost in the vastness of the Imperium, or had their lives ended in its darker corners. The reformers were ruthless and subtle; however, they could not excise all those who had been part of the Temple of the Saviour Emperor.So it was that an enemy was cowed and humiliated but ultimately allowed to survive and nurse its malice. A few of the followers of the Temple of the Saviour Emperor who survived the Reformation kept their "faith" alive as an outlawed sect. They endured mostly in places where the Temple of the Saviour Emperor had previously held great sway. Today, this sect is known as the "Temple Tendency."
Temple Tendency - Temple Tendency in the Calixis Sector: The Temple Tendency came with the Angevin Crusade that carved the Calixis Sector from the godless and infested margins of the Halo Stars. In all likelihood they were refugees from some other purge. Today, who these "pilgrims" were remains largely unknown even to the Tendency's masters. Perhaps they were senior officers in Angevin's forces or part of the Ecclesiarchy's army of missionaries that moved in the wake of the conquering Imperial soldiers. No matter who they were, they came to newborn Calixis and brought their heretical faith with them, infecting their successors with paranoid secrecy and fear of discovery.Since that time, the Tendency has made great efforts to solidify its position with near-infinite patience. Its two main goals have been supporting and protecting Highborn families of the faithful and building its shadow priesthood to hold them together with the far distant dream of using Calixis to further its true goals of a restoration of the faith.Over the centuries, the Tendency has weathered the storms of history, surviving plagues, wars, reversals of fortune, and unforeseen disasters and gaining ground and influence with measured precision and intent, until today its position in the shadowed hierarchies of the Calixis Sector is stronger than it has ever been.The old ways of the Temple of the Saviour Emperor and the priesthood which exists to keep them alive live in the shadow of the Ecclesiarchy. The priests minister to an exclusive number of highly-placed families and hide almost in plain sight among the masses of the faithful.Although the Temple Tendency is strong and highly placed, it is geared more to survival and secrecy than open rebellion. It might be argued that it is troubled both by complacency in its current state and the fear of showing itself openly. It has also lost contact with any branch of the sect outside of the Calixis Sector -- a fact that the hidden pontifices who command the sect have long concealed from their followers.
Temple Tendency - A Fallen Family: House Verence: House Verence is one of the preeminent noble houses of Scintilla with extensive holdings in Hive Tarsus and Gunmetal City. Lord Verence is a member of the inner circle of Lord Sector Marius Hax's court and has grown in Hax's favour for his insights into dealing with the politics of Scintilla's other hives. Lord Verence appears a rejuvenat–softened, gaudy degenerate with a taste for epicurean pleasure that is well-known amongst the upper echelons of Scintillan society.The truth is somewhat at odds with the mask. House Verence is one of the oldest noble houses of the sector, able to trace its blood back to an aide of Lord Militant Angevin during the early stages of his crusade. They are and always have been faithful to the pure and true faith of the Temple of the Saviour Emperor, and Lord Verence is not a slowly decaying libertine, but a skilled and dangerous manipulator who has used his position to further the ends of his faith and shield those who share the faith of his house.
Temple Tendency - Lineages of the True and Pure: The Tendency has chiefly survived through the efforts of its hidden priesthood and the powerful noble families that secretly cling to its creed. The majority of the Tendency's scattered congregation is made up of Highborn families who have passed their hidden faith down by word of mouth and who have a strict code of silence.Most families are well-established and thought of as being either part of the local elite or, in a few cases, powerful and influential clans within the sector with wide influence. In secret, these families maintain their worship and have formed a symbiotic relationship with the sect's priesthood, providing the Temple Tendency with resources and influence, while benefiting from its secret network and alliance.These families seldom know each other, being tied together instead only through the Shade Priests who come and go to minister to them in secret.
Temple Tendency - Shade Priests: The Inquisition's archives call them the "Vandiran Apostates" or "Shade Priests," but to the faithful they are always the "True." These individuals move through the Calixis Sector like ghosts from family to family bearing messages, coordinating the actions of the sect, and performing religious ceremonies. They are the key to the workings of the Tendency -- the means by which the organisation is administered and bound together.Outwardly, Shade Priests may appear to be merchants, traders, pilgrims, or practitioners of other roaming professions, allowing them to move throughout the sector unheeded. Beneath their appearance and mastered methods of deception, these priests are fanatics, often educated from infancy in the ways of the Temple of the Saviour Emperor and meticulously trained in the field craft that allows them to move and disappear like ghosts within the teeming masses of the sector.Most Shade Priests are drawn from the illegitimate children of noble families who are part of the Tendency, but perhaps the most dangerous are those whom the Tendency has taken from within the Imperium and converted to its faith. There are perhaps hundreds of such priests at large within the sector, and not even their masters know their full spread or extent.
Temple Tendency - Chantries: Hidden beneath the manses of powerful Tendency members or concealed in the bowels of trading vessels are the chantries of the Temple of the Saviour Emperor. These are the sacred places where members worship the Emperor as was once done throughout the Imperium before the Age of Apostasy and the Reign of Blood in the 36th Millennium. Surfaces covered in gilt glimmer in the light of candles and crystal lamps, while from all around the Emperor looks down, His gaze frozen in precious metal.A chantry represents not only a place of true and pure worship to the believers of the Tendency but also a reminder of what once was, and which the cult prays will be again. Huge wealth is poured into the construction of these hidden places, and to keep them hidden and safe. Each chantry is guarded by cloisters of mute Chantry Guards, a long distant echo of the lost elite of the Frateris Templar. These devoted warriors have the finest muscle grafting, weapons, and training lavished on them, and they will guard their chantry with their dying breath.
Temple Tendency - Hidden Pontifices: The Pontifices are the ruling elite of the Tendency. In them the ancient authority of the first men and women to proclaim the Emperor as the god of Mankind is preserved. While the noble families are the bedrock of the Tendency and the Shade Priests the web that holds it together, the Pontifices are its guiding hand.There are no more than a handful in the Calixis Sector, each watching over a sub-sector and answering only to the High Priest of the True. Each Pontifex also leads a double life, usually having a position of some importance within the organisations of the Imperium from where they can exert influence or be privy to useful information. Some may be members of the Administratum or a planetary government, while others are members of the Ecclesiarchy itself, working to undo the very organisation that they are part of.
Temple Tendency - Current Conspiracies and Plots: At any one time in the Calixis Sector, members of the Temple Tendency may be pursuing a number of schemes for the furtherment of their outlawed faith: the corruption of an individual mission to spread the Ministorum's version of the Imperial Creed, the assassination of a perceived threat, or the obtaining of illegal arms and equipment.Its most abiding concerns, however, are maintaining the faith and the shield of secrecy that hides it. The Temple Tendency is also hampered somewhat in that it must always operate under a paradox that further complicates matters -- while it hates and despises the Imperium as it is currently established, it cannot afford to see it fall to outside forces, for that too would be a betrayal of the Emperor. The Tendency is as firm in its hatred of the witch, the alien, and the tainted as the most hardline Puritan Inquisitor and its faithful act accordingly.Currently, the Holy Ordos of the Inquisition are ignorant of the Temple Tendency's entrenched presence in the Calixis Sector. This is a state that has been maintained by the sect at the cost of the lives of several Inquisitorial Acolytes and numerous cell members. This ignorance on the part of the Calixian Conclave of the Inquisition is in part due to the fact that the Tendency is often found tied to places where the Temple of the Saviour Emperor was once powerful -- an age long passed by the time the Calixis Sector was born.This fact has hidden the Temple Tendency, and while the Inquisition is aware of certain incidents, it does not suspect a single heresy or group to be behind them, much less that the heresy is the Temple Tendency.
Temple Tendency - Assassination Cells: The Temple Tendency has a long history of venting its hate of the Ecclesiarchy in episodes of spiteful bloodletting. In the last half-century (ca.800-850.M41), however, High Priest of the True Priam, the sect's Calixian leader, has charged his flock with supporting and enacting the murder of members of the Ecclesiarchy with greater vigour than his predecessors. The assassination cells formed by this edict are made up of members of the secret faith and are often of diverse profession and appearance.Trained to move amongst the Imperium without notice, the members of a cell may appear to be aides to a merchant, pilgrims, or other innocuous travellers. The members of a Tendency assassination cell usually work together for several standard years, selecting and executing their own targets. Many kill opportunistically, slaying a lone preacher or missionary and thus making the most of any given advantage.Others are more selective and aim to strike at key members of the Ministorum presence in the sector. Indeed, the poisoning of the previous Adepta Sororitas adviser to Lord Sector Hax was one such assassination that was the result of careful planning by a Tendency assassination cell.The assassination cells are allowed and encouraged to roam free, killing and working against members of the Ecclesiarchy at will so long as they maintain their veil of secrecy. These activities, however, are only to hone them for their real tasks. Their true duty is revealed to them when they receive a name or a series of objectives by the word of a Shade Priest at the behest of one of the sect's Pontifices.
Temple Tendency - Infiltration of the Red Redemption: The Temple Tendency has recently set its sights on the Red Redemption. Redemptionists are an ultra militant sect of the Imperial Creed that sees Humanity as saturated with sin and who can only be redeemed by fire and blood. Followers of the Redemptionist creed are militant to a frenzied degree, and groups of different sizes are found across the Calixis Sector, varying from small underhive gangs to the huge army of Seth the Voice on Iocanthos.Redemptionists see Heretics all around them, yet are often blind to those that stand amongst them. The Temple Tendency began its infiltration of the Redemption a few standard years ago, starting by funding the Redemption and then infiltrating members into the Redemption's local leadership.So far it has not managed to penetrate the Redemption enough to exert any real influence over the sect, but should its plans progress unimpeded, it will eventually have gained control over a fanatical army of followers to use as unwitting cannon fodder in a war yet to come.
Temple Tendency - Manipulation of the Lucid Court: The Temple Tendency's chief achievement in the Calixis Sector is the extent to which it can influence the sector's governance. The Temple Tendency has caused the dismissal of officials so that it could substitute its own pawns and thereby influence the balance of the power in the sector.To this end, it has taken advantage of aspects of Lord Sector Marius Hax's character to bring about a political situation that favours its schemes, not least of all his innate paranoia and dislike of outside interference to his rule. This goal has been achieved by the placement of trusted followers of the Temple of the Saviour Emperor within the inner circle of Lord Hax's court, a thing that has taken centuries of positioning and bribery to achieve.Chief amongst these secret Heretics is Lord Verence, who coordinates the manipulation of Hax and his court fellows with the delicate and invisible hand of a master. Others work in ignorance for the sect, believing instead that their petty corruptions fuel noble vendettas or simple greed, not realising their paymasters' true natures.Ultimately the sect wishes to push Hax into ever more tyrannical actions, turning his suspicion and wrath against rival noble families, competing powers, and troublesome members of the Adeptus Terra, all in the furtherance of its own long-term power, and perhaps even provoke a carefully-managed sector civil war.
Temple Tendency - Servants of the Old Faith: The Tendency can call upon almost all Imperial organisations at a low level thanks to the diverse roles its adherents play in the Imperium. The Tendency has a number of Ministorum priests and allied family members who are reasonably senior members of the Administratum, Ecclesiarchy, and the Imperial nobility. It also has extensive contacts with merchants, smugglers, and the criminal underworld, often through false identities and intermediaries.