vizn3r/warhammer40k-lore huggingface dataset:
Ska Mordentodt - History: It fell to Mordentodt's Watch Company stationed at Zarabek to decide what action to take when it was discovered by the Ordo Xenos that Human pirates operating in the Teramus System somehow had access to functional Aeldari lance weapons mounted on their voidships. In a debate between the Space Marines present over the issue, Watch Sergeant Courlanth persuaded Watch Captain Mordentodt to allow him to assemble a kill-team and lead a mission into the Teramus System. Their objective was to uncover the source of the xenos weapons and eliminate them.Courlanth led the kill-team in infiltrating the pirates' asteroid base and discovered that the pirate leader, Arlon Buke, had entered into a pact with the Drukhari of the Kabal of the Crimson Blossom to obtain Aeldari technology. When Courlanth saw that the pirates were trading captured Human slaves to the sadistic xenos in exchange for these alien weapons and Drukhari combat drugs, Courlanth abandoned stealth and ordered an all-out assault on the kabal and the pirates alike.In the ensuing combat, two Astartes of the kill-team were killed or severely wounded and Courlanth was almost killed by Gharax, the archon of the kabal. The watch sergeant's life was saved, however, by the sudden arrival of Ska Mordentodt, who teleported into the pirates' base with his retinue of Deathwatch Terminators using the Teleport Homers that had been carried by Kill-team Courlanth and proceeded to turn the tide of the battle, killing the pirates and much of the leadership of the kabal.
Skane - Skane: Skane was a Destroyer Sergeant of the World Eaters during the Great Crusade and Horus Heresy eras.Skane took part in several notable campaigns during the Horus Heresy, but was slain just before the Siege of Terra when he attempted to flee the Chaos-corrupted World Eaters' flagship, Conqueror.
Skane - History: Skane was a sergeant of the World Eaters, commanding the Legion Destroyer Squad in the elite 8th Company under the command of Captain Khârn. Skane's pale skin showed an unhealthy lightning-storm of veins and blood-bruises staining his flesh, from proximity to his own toxically lethal weaponry.He often spent many solar hours watching medical diagnostic hololiths picturing the exact radiation degeneration of his body from his long years of service. Offered the chance to leave the Destroyers, he flatly refused.His neck was collared in dark metal, forming armour around his augmetic throat. An aggressive cancer had stolen his vocal chords, but the Apothecary Kargos had given him new ones.As the Horus Heresy drew to a close, and the World Eaters were en route towards the Throneworld to take part in the Siege of Terra, the XII Legion's flagship Conqueror had become corrupted by the insidious influence of the Blood God Khorne, which resulted in rapidly declining supplies and unnecessary deaths, as the World Eaters were prone to losing themselves to berserker rages and slaughtering anyone unfortunate to be in close proximity.Skane was among a group of World Eaters who suffered terribly under the Conqueror's insidious Chaos influence, as it greatly affected and pained his radiation-ravaged body. This eventually led Skane to violently corner the flagship's mortal captain Lotara Sarrin and inform her that they needed to leave the Chaos-corrupted vessel for their own safety before the unnatural corruption claimed them all.Led by Captain Sarrin, soon a small group of conspirators began to meet in secret, intent on escaping the Conqueror. They had to meet clandestinely, as the majority of the World Eaters would feel this act of abandonment was tantamount to mutiny.When they were ready to enact their plan, Sarrin secured five shuttles for her fellow conspirators in order for them to escape to the nearby frigate Bestiarius. After most of the shuttles departed, Skane, Captain Marruk and Sarrin remained behind, as Captain of the Conqueror, Sarrin would be the last to depart her ship. However, when they reached the shuttle bay they were confronted by Khârn, who declared them all traitors.Skane valiantly rushed his former commander in order to buy Marruk and Sarrin time to escape. However, Skane proved to be no match for the ferocious Khârn and was viciously beaten down.As the last shuttle fled the launch bay, Khârn prepared to execute the treacherous Skane. He raised his chainaxe Gorechild to finish his fellow World Eater off, but Sarrin stopped him before he could deliver the killing blow.The flagship captain informed Khârn that Skane's death was her responsibility, and with that, she leveled her pistol at Skane's face and shot him through the eye.Shortly afterwards, Sarrin gave the final order to destroy the fleeing shuttles, thus bringing the short-lived World Eaters mutiny to an end.
Skapula - Skapula: Skapula is a Dead World and a former Forge World of the Jericho Reach upon which the Deathwatch maintains a watch station. It is a world under T'au occupation and is also a Necron Tomb World.Once a centre of medical science and advanced biomedical technology, the world is now of little value, known only to possess pockets of rare minerals used in a variety of crucial manufacturing processes throughout the Imperium.Due to this strategic value, the planet has been marked for reclamation by the forces of the Achilus Crusade in due time.The T'au have made a number of attempts to breach Watch Station Skapula, but so far the structurehas held. Its sensors are keeping the Deathwatch apprised of the situation on Skapula, which provides the Imperial forces with vital data for their future planned assault.There are pockets of Human nomads on the world who used to work the mines when the world was under Imperial jurisdiction.These people have been largely left alone by the T'au thus far, as they likely present little threat to the T'au Empire's interests on Skapula.Once, the medicae facilities of Skapula represented one of the most advanced technical resources within the ancient Jericho Sector. Creating such a crucial pool of highly skilled healers required the assistance of many of the region's most profitable planets.To maintain such a level of advanced treatment required a steady stream of additional patients as well as a supply of test subjects.As the sector collapsed into anarchy and obscurity during the Age of Shadow, the resources necessary to maintain those facilities were no longer available. Those who dwelt upon Skapula soon discovered that their society was not at all self-sustaining.When this world collapsed, desperate pilgrims found no solution to their health crises. Instead, they discovered that the world that might represent their salvation was just another bed of depravity.
Skapula - History: In the early days of the Jericho Sector, Skapula was a world held by the Adeptus Mechanicus and used primarily for the manufacture of medical supplies, advanced medical experimentation and development, and specialised medical treatments. Over the course of the millennia, its reputation grew substantially.Components for virtually every health monitoring device in the sector came from the world. Those who worked in the medical field knew its name through the simple act of using the equipment manufactured there. Over time, the world's legends grew simply by the nature of its familiarity.However, the myths surrounding Skapula were not entirely unfounded. The members of the Magos Biologis who worked and studied on this world were certainly the most talented in the sector and among the most talented in the Segmentum Ultima at the time.Their primary area of expertise dealt with cybernetic implantation technology, but one particular focus included the revivification of necrotic tissue -- returning dead tissue to a lifelike state.While this research was primarily used to extend the functional lifespan of servitors, some of the ancient legends suggest that it may have also seen limited use on Human patients.According to these tales, when they approached their deathbeds, nobles on other worlds within the Jericho Reach would often attempt to arrange transport to Skapula. Their hope was that their lives might be even further extended beyond what was possible for standard rejuvenat treatments.A few legends even suggest that one or more individuals arrived upon Skapula within stasis chambers, mere moments from death. If these stories are accurate, the researchers were so talented that many such patients could be completely restored to a healthy life.Notably, there are no records to corroborate such reports. It is entirely possible that these stories arose from simple speculation based upon the world's well-deserved reputation as a highly capable medicae treatment facility.
Skapula - Collapse: At its height, Skapula was far more than a treatment and biomedical manufacturing centre. The talented members of the Machine Cult who worked upon the world were devoted to identifying the most effective ways to employ life-saving technology under a variety of conditions.Effective study of these techniques required a consistent supply of unusual patients, in addition to the raw materials needed for the world's manufactoria. When patients were not available, the Tech-priests had to either study ancient records or create appropriate patients using prisoners or servitors.As the Jericho Sector's resources became more limited, several of the most skilled magi left Skapula to travel to Forge Worlds beyond the sector where their expertise could be better used.Without their most talented researchers, many of the remaining Tech-priests fell to infighting and political manoeuvring. There was little effort to attempt to quickly exploit the remaining resources and rebuild their expertise.Instead, individuals took charge of separate factions, with each attempting to seize control of resources for their own purposes as they neglected to share their information and equipment with one another.Secrecy and deception became paramount. Ultimately, none of these groups were able to effectively unify the Forge World with anything resembling effective leadership.Skapula's collapse occurred just as the Jericho Sector's other worlds most needed a resource for charity and mercy. Many more members of the Adeptus Mechanicus left the world, seeking to establish new exclaves on the sector's other habitable worlds.A few stayed, but these groups became even more isolated from one another. In time, most of these groups -- both on and off the planet -- turned away from the Machine Cult's core teachings.They began to delve into forbidden areas of research, ultimately ignoring all of the warnings and studying fields that could only be considered heresy.Those few Humans who dwelt upon Skapula and were not affiliated with the Adeptus Mechanicus had no other functioning society. When the Tech-priests left, they were unable to fend for themselves.These individuals soon formed primitive, isolated feral tribes who warred over the few remaining resources. In short order, the Skapulan society was unrecognisable, and barbarians held sway.
Skapula - 41st Millennium: In the final years of the 41st Millennium, there have been two significant events that could substantially alter Skapula's future. The first was when Watch Station Skapula detected the arrival of an expedition from the T'au Empire's Velk'Han Sept.It is believed that these xenos discovered the ruins of the ancient Adeptus Mechanicus enclaves on Skapula and have begun to explore them. Agents of the T'au have not yet shown any signs that they seek to establish a colony on the world.However, they have had numerous -- often violent -- interactions with the few remaining Heretek enclaves, as well as the barbaric Human tribes. These appear to have been associated with their efforts to study the ruins of Skapula's ancient manufactoria and medicae centres.Imperial records offer no clue regarding what information might have been left behind when these enclaves were abandoned. None know what data might have survived after several millennia of isolation and scavenging.However, if the T'au were able to gain access to these data, they might gain significant understanding into the complexities of Human biology. If the T'au were to learn something that could be exploited on the battlefield, it would be disastrous for the efforts of the Achilus Crusade to retake the region.On 724.815.M41, Watch Station Skapula also witnessed another event which has raised concerns among the forces of the Ordo Xenos. A geological event was recorded near the world's equator. After more than three solar days of exceedingly rhythmic quakes, a sinkhole more than four kilometres in diameter opened.Within hours, an ancient cityscape emerged upon the world's surface. All of the structures were made of an unblemished metallic substance, and their surface writhed with complex glowing green symbols and gold circuitry.Deep beneath Skapula's surface, an ancient Necron crypt had begun to awaken. A few of the mechanical creatures from this lost city came into conflict with several of the Human groups, as well as the T'au, in short order.However, the conflict has not yet escalated beyond chance encounters and skirmishes. By all appearances, these newly revealed alien forces are only in the earliest stages of emerging from their long sleep.
Skapula - Culture: Skapula is occupied by two distinct groups of xenos as well as two distinct populations of Humans. These different groups each have their own objectives, which are clearly in conflict with one another.In spite of this, the populations are small enough and the world large enough that they have not yet had to enter a state of constant warfare. Depending upon how various issues come to a head in the coming solar weeks and months, that could change suddenly.None of these groups have significant resources in place for a conflict, but for the xenos populations, that situation could likewise change abruptly. If either faction commits its resources to an all-out conflict, the shape and direction of Skapula could shift.The surviving Humans can largely be broken into two distinct groups. There are several small enclaves of Hereteks yet active on this world.These groups are largely isolationist and reasonably well defended. In the face of superior opposition, they might unite together, though some would attempt to flee the planet instead.The Hereteks have no known ties to the local Chaos Stigmartus forces, but if provided an opportunity, they might quickly turn to ally with them.Currently, they lack significant manufacturing capacity, but if provided with adequate raw materials, they might be able to reactivate some of the ancient abandoned Mechanicus facilities.Several primitive Human tribal groups are also active on the world's barren surface. These savages constantly war with one another over the most secure locations for communities and the world's limited resources.From a cultural perspective, these people are scarcely recognisable as Human. Most of their gear consists of equipment scavenged and repurposed from the ancient Mechanicus ruins. Some of these groups have dedicated their lives to the Ruinous Powers, but others remain completely ignorant of any world or powers beyond their pitiful existence.The T'au expedition to Skapula was initially little more than a minimally equipped exploratory mission. Their initial purpose in the journey to this world was simply to engage in a research and salvage expedition to the ruined Adeptus Mechanicus structures.During the course of their investigation, the massive earthquake heralded the return of the Necrons. In response, the T'au sent a plea for reinforcements to their leadership among the Sept. While reinforcements have not yet arrived, it is likely that some support elements could reach Skapula in fairly short order.The Necrons have only begun their process of reactivation from the Great Sleep. Watch Station Skapula has detected very high levels of thermal and electrical energy being used within those structures. The full nature of their actions remains unclear, but only a few small sorties have been confirmed as leaving the one known Necron tomb complex.The full nature of their resources has not yet been determined. The single tomb could represent the entirety of the Necron forces on-world. Alternatively, it might be a herald of things to come, as additional structures and forces might emerge from the bowels of the planet.
Skarbrand the Exiled One - Skarbrand the Exiled One: Skarbrand the Exiled One, often simply called Skarbrand, is a Bloodthirster, a Greater Daemon of the Blood God Khorne. Skarbrand is wrath incarnate, a creature of murderous violence unleashed from the Realm of Chaos to reap skulls and souls for his lord in a storm of rage.Once Skarbrand was the greatest of Khorne's generals, the mightiest of all Bloodthirsters, until, due to the machinations of Tzeentch, the Lord of Change, his rage was stoked to uncontrollable levels and he had the temerity to actually strike at the Blood God himself. For such a betrayal, Khorne exiled his Bloodthirster from the Blood God's Domain for all time.Frustrated by his exile, Skarbrand has now embarked upon a campaign of bloodshed and slaughter that dwarfs any that he engaged in before. Yet though he now serves Khorne more loyally than ever, the Lord of Skulls has no mercy in his heart and Skarbrand is no closer to returning to his home.Even the anointed Daemon Hunters of the Imperium fear Skarbrand. The Grey Knights might have the arcane wargear and psychic mastery required to vanquish the Daemons of Chaos, but against a being as powerful as Skarbrand only terminal violence is enough to halt his unending rampage when he manifests in the Materium.
Skarbrand the Exiled One - Physical Appearance: Skarbrand is a towering figure, an immensely muscled killing machine who embodies the insensate wrath of the Blood God. Since he was hurled from the Brass Realm by his raging god, Skarbrand has been earthbound, his wings wrecked by the brutal impact that saw him carve a furrow through the Realm of Chaos.Once mighty pinioned things, they are now tattered remnants -- with ragged leather stretched and torn between broken spurs. Lengths of spiked chain span the sorrowful ruin, piercing the spines to keep them from unfolding further. Within the breaks in the torn flesh, cracked shards of bones are visible.The Blood God knows no mercy and will grant Skarbrand no succour, regardless of the unfathomable carnage the outcast Bloodthirster causes in his name. Despite an age of battle Skarbrand still bears the wounds inflicted upon him when Khorne cast him out of his domain. It seems likely they will never heal. Skarbrand's torn face, bared skull, broken teeth and cracked horns all speak of the Blood God's ire.
Skarbrand the Exiled One - Wargear: In battle, Skarbrand wields a pair of daemonic axes in his gnarled fists. Trapped within each blade is a Greater Daemon of Khorne, its power and rage added to Skarbrand's as he uses them to hack and chop his way through the foe.That he could bind such powerful rivals to his will is a testament to Skarbrand's once transcendent power. The strange metal of Skarbrand's brazen axes has been warped and twisted by the daemons within them. Eyes leer out from the blades with malicious intent, the axes possessing a thirst that can only be slaked by blood.The origins of these fell weapons hearkens back to days of yore, when Skarbrand carved a gore-ridden trail of victories and rose to lead the Blood Legions of Khorne. He continued to forever seek out the next challenge worthy of his martial attentions. At last, after slaughter untold, only the greatest of his fellow Bloodthirsters remained as worthy rivals.Thus Skarbrand sought them out and, at the Battle of Infernus Plains, overpowered even the mightiest of his rivals. As a conqueror he stood atop the piled dead, capturing the soul stuff of the two most powerful of the defeated and binding them into weapon form. Thus were born Slaughter and Carnage, Skarbrand's matchless axes, blades that crave blood as insatiably as their wielder.Looking down from his Brass Throne, Khorne saw the defeat of his greatest Bloodthirsters. The act pleased him, for the god of rage and battle cares not from whence the blood flows, only that it does so. And in that way did Skarbrand ascend to the head of the Blood God's legions, becoming the right hand of almighty Khorne himself.
Skarbrand the Exiled One - Trivia: Skarbrand also exists in the Warhammer universe, like most of the named Daemons of Warhammer 40,000.
Skarbrand the Exiled One - Sources: Battle Missions, pg. 17Codex: Chaos Daemons (8th Edition), pp. 35, 86Codex: Chaos Daemons (6th Edition), pg. 35Codex: Chaos Daemons (4th Edition), pg. 47Gathering Storm - Part II - Fracture of Biel-Tan (7th Edition), pp. 22-35Gathering Storm - Part III - Rise of the Primarch (7th Edition), pp. 66-70Warhammer 40,000: Rulebook (8th Edition), pg. 167Warhammer 40,000: Rulebook (6th Edition), pg. 175White Dwarf Weekly 87 (26 Sept 2015), "Daemons of Khorne - Skarbrand the Bloodthirster," & "Codex Apocrypha: The Exiled One"Games Workshop Online Store - Skarbrand the Exiled One MiniGheistos CampaignThe Reign of Blood (Picture)
Skether'qan (Messenger)-class Starship - Skether'qan (Messenger)-class Starship: The Skether'qan (Messenger)-class Starship is an escort grade starship used in the T'au Empire's Kor'vattra. The Skether'qan is the smallest self-sufficient T'au vessel in the Kor'vattra, as it mostly comprises a gravitic drive and a hold.The Skether'qan (Messenger)-class Starship is occasionally used as a fleet scout as it is quite manoeuvrable, and has unmatched data handling and communications facilities within the T'au Navy.Soon after the Skether'qan's initial introduction, these systems were adapted for combat applications.The Skether'qan's weaponry is purely intended to deter pursuit, so in fleet actions it tends to stay close to a capital ship, helping against Attack Craft in return for protection against true warships.
Skether'qan (Messenger)-class Starship - Armament: Every Skether'qan-class Starship is armed, as standard, with a prow Railgun battery, two defensive turrets around its hull, and standard T'au starship gravitic shielding.It is also equipped with advanced ship tracking and communication systems. These systems consist of highly advanced data storage and processing facilities to cope with the vast amounts of information they carry.When linked to the ship's sensors, this processing power can be used to provide a direct feed any nearby ships' turrets to improve their accuracy and effectiveness.
Skitarii - Skitarii: The Skitarii (sing. Skitarius), also known as the Tech-Guard and the Legiones Skitarii, are the cybernetic military forces of the Adeptus Mechanicus of the Imperium of Man.To a man, the Skitarii are warriors born. They take pride in their holy work, glorying in the power of the Omnissiah as He drives them to ever greater feats. Reticules and calibrators pick out targets with uncanny accuracy, Galvanic Rifles bark and servitor-bullets find the skulls of the foe. Rad Weapons borne with martyr's strength turn the battlefield ever more toxic until it is as befouled as the Red Planet's own wastes. On titanium limbs the Skitarii stalk the war zones of the galaxy, looking from above like the columns of rust-ants that hunt the dunes of Mars.Their boundless faith in the Machine God and His physical incarnation, the Omnissiah, drives them on without sleep. Their meditations on divinity are rest enough. Once contact is made with the enemy their pace does not slacken, yet neither does it increase. With the barest of shivers the Skitarii receive doctrina imperatives from their Tech-priest masters in orbit. Rifles and carbines are raised to shoulders in perfect unison, and bloody war begins.Skitarii are used to defend Mechanicus Forge Worlds, manufacturing installations elsewhere in the Imperium and often accompany high-ranking Tech-priests and magi as their bodyguards. Skitarii also serve as the armed forces that defend the Mechanicus' Explorator vessels that explore the galactic frontier.Skitarii safeguard the massive war engines of the Centurio Ordinatus as well as Titans on campaign from boarding actions and prevent hostile forces from reaching the war engines' dead zone, where its main weapon batteries are useless. A number of Titan Legions maintain their own Skitarii detachments for this purpose, known as Secutarii, and if they do not, their Mechanicus masters will provide ample forces to protect the sacred god-machines.
Skitarii - Warriors of the Machine-God: The Skitarii are the bionic heart of the Adeptus Mechanicus' infantry legions. Their tireless ranks defend the Forge Worlds of the Imperium, annihilate the enemies of the Tech-priests, and fight at the vanguard of the Quest for Knowledge. As the technocracy of the Cult Mechanicus extends its reach into the stars, the cybernetic Skitarii are always at the fore.Underneath their augmetic battleware, the warriors of the Skitarii Legions are still technically human, yet each has been mutilated, dismembered and extensively rebuilt to better serve the Omnissiah's will. Their manifold augmentation ensure not only their lethality, but also their utmost obedience. Neurosync implants allow the strictly-ordered Skitarii cohorts to fight in perfect concert, each maniple permanently uplinked to their masters via invisible streams of information.To compare a maniple of Skitarii to a platoon of Imperial Guardsmen is to compare a well-oiled gatling gun to a simple iron hammer. The Skitarii do not simply crush their foes, but instead pitilessly blast them into bloody chunks of flesh. Even as they do so they record every tiny screed of data for later analysis.Just as the Skitarii upload the martial capabilities of the foe to their masters, the Tech-priests download their own programs into the Skitarii. It is usual practice for a legion's overseer Tech-priests to monitor each battle from a scryer-ship high above. Floating in a sea of data, each Adept sends battlefield commands down via data-tethers to the Skitarii on the planet below.In this way their soldiers can be remotely augmented, used as eyepieces, forced into suicidal engagements, or even possessed entirely. The ever-devout Skitarii see these incidents as the divine spirit of the Omnissiah entering them and acting through them to the betterment of the Imperium. To the Tech-priests, their minions are little more than electric puppets jerking upon strings of pre-programmed impulse.The Skitarii Legions do not fight alone, for they escort the vast goliaths of the Centurio Ordinatus to war, and even march in the shadow of the god-machines of the Titan Legions. It is the Skitarii that bolster the battle robots of the Legio Cybernetica and they who act as bodyguards for Tech-priests brave enough to take the field.Collectively, they have fought alongside the Astra Militarum, the Adepta Sororitas, the Adeptus Astartes, and even the Primarchs of legend. Throughout the millennia the Skitarii Legions have fought with impeccable skill and discipline even when the colossi and ravaging daemons slaughter them in droves. In doing so they have assimilated a functionally infinite amount of information for their masters.The Adeptus Mechanicus never deletes anything, and its appetite for knowledge knows no bounds. A Skitarii Legion's sacred duty to protect its Forge World is second only to its quest for hard data -- information for their masters to digest, or to archive away unheeded to gather the dust of aeons.
Skitarii - Composition of a Skitarius: Eternal Vigilance - The Skitarii have their eyelids removed upon inception, for they must harvest data for their masters at all times. To prevent them from losing their sight to the hot grit of their Forge Worlds, goggle-like augmetics filled with blessed salves are sealed into place. The targeter arrays inside them are miracles of the Omnissiah, their sophistication the bane of the Skitarii's foes.The Breath of Mars - The Skitarii filter air into their lungs via cognis rebreather tubes that plunge deep into the chest. When necessary they can draw upon a reservoir of polluted gases harvested from their homeworld.Blessed Raiments - The heavy robes that the Skitarii wear to battle are lined with tiny leaden leech-spheres that absorb harmful energies. Branded above the hem is the Skitarii's squad number and the symbol of the Forge World to which he belongs.Tools of Conquest - The weapons of the Skitarii are ancient and revered in form. They are all modified either to fire advanced ammunition types, or to harness the most baleful power sources yet discovered.Rad-Censer - This pitted bronze sphere is linked to a mechanalysis pack which connects the Skitarius to the digital imperatives of his masters. Its chimes inform the bearer when ambient radiation is at critical levels.The Red Planet's Due - In imitation of the ancestor cohorts that first ground their limbs to stumps upon the dunes of Mars, the Skitarii cut off their lower legs and replace them with bionic prostheses of inviolate alloy.
Skitarii - Skitarii War Cohorts: Each Skitarius is but a single cog in a war machine that spans the entire Imperium. Controlled by the neurosync imperatives of their masters, the Skitarii are organised into War Cohorts capable of overcoming any foe. They work in glorious concert, every footstep or twitch of the trigger finger optimised to further the cause of the Cult Mechanicus.The mission of the Skitarii is to steal enlightenment from the galaxy and impose order in its place. Yet for all the vaunted objectivity and logic of the Cult Mechanicus, for all the cybernetic replacements they embrace, the Tech-priests are still driven by human emotions and desires. Their War Cohorts are just as often sent to battle as part of a private agenda as they are to further the Omnissiah's cause.The Skitarii themselves care not. They fear neither the monster nor the fiend -- for them, it is enough to serve the Omnissiah's will, as espoused by His holy prophets. Even in death they offer sacred data to their invisible masters high above.In return they receive doctrinal sacrament with every new day of war, and they are grateful for it. Every battle is a chance to feel the holy Motive Force enter into them, possessing every synapse and engram and slaving them to a higher consciousness.Those who feel the bliss of the Omnissiah's touch will fight like lions, every shot or blow calibrated for maximum lethality. Though such individuals usually go to the Great Maker soon afterward, those that survive are treated as saints amongst their War Cohorts. Even those fugue states that see such god-touched individuals adopt elimination protocols outside of active war zones are soon forgiven, and the death toll ignored.The original maniples to cross the desert reaches of Mars on foot were armed only with Galvanic Rifles. They escorted their masters from north to south across an equatorial belt infested with cannibal servitors and rogue machine intelligences.As the centuries marched past, these escorts were refined over and over again until they evolved into the Battle Maniples of the late 41st Millennium. Many variants have been codified, from the Maniples Automata of the Legio Cybernetica to the teeming Auxilia Ordinatus, but the core fighting formation remains the War Cohort.A Forge World's Skitarii Legion is divided into a number of macroclades, which are in turn broken down into cohorts and maniples. The vast majority of Skitarii War Cohorts are not borne into battle by armoured machines or aircraft, but simply stride to the front line without stopping, even should they have to start the journey solar months in advance of their allies.They will wade through poisonous swamps and bubbling lakes of tar to arrive at the front line on schedule, wave after wave of Skitarii marching around chains of Onager Dunecrawlers in imitation of Mars' nomadic caravanserais. Their tireless pace echoes the constancy of their dutiful souls -- it is said that a Skitarius would rather walk himself to death than disobey a direct imperative.
Skitarii - Overseers of the Skitarii: The cyborg warriors that command the Skitarii cohorts passed the Crux Mechanicus long ago. Some are little more than a fleshy head sutured to a mechanical body, but from the most basic Alpha to the most vaunted Sicarian Princeps they are all worthy of respect.The war-forms of the Skitarii's leaders are typically compact, though each is possessed of inhuman strength and endurance. Those that have come through the Vanguard are so heavily irradiated that the ground becomes barren in their footsteps -- only with regular visits to rad-cleanser chambers can they be kept from slowly devolving into gruesome black mush.Those that hail from the ranks of the Rangers have a taste of their masters' omniscience, and the paranoia to go with it. Those hailing from the Knight Worlds, typically young Nobles who have failed the Ritual of Becoming, are physically indomitable but have their brains implanted with motive-selectors and memory-catheters to keep their rages in check.Whatever their faults, Skitarii commanders are able to process a daunting amount of battlefield data. Each knows the military capabilities of his cohort -- and those of the foe -- to an obsessive degree. This savant-like wisdom makes these leaders fearsome foes indeed, for they have often won the battle before the first shot is fired.
Skitarii - Skitarii Vanguard: The Skitarii Vanguard, known informally as "rad-troopers," bring the baleful touch of the Tech-priests to the far corners of the galaxy. They fight in the most inhospitable conditions possible, for over the many civil wars waged by the Cult Mechanicus, the Vanguard have learned not only to endure baleful energies, but to weaponise them.Such a high volume of radiation bleeds outward from a Skitarii Vanguard's wargear that even to stand nearby is to become weakened and fatigued; for non-Skitarii to be stationed in the same barracks is a death sentence. The Vanguard themselves are theoretically safe inside their war plate, but on the rare occasions these warriors unscrew their helmets, the sight of their missing teeth and hairless, sore-pocked skin tells the awful truth.Though Vanguard troopers' signature rad-carbines slowly kill their wielders, their effect upon those struck by their bullets is a hundred times worse. Should enough hyper-irradiated shot penetrate its target, the secondary effects of the rad-volley become amplified to the point where not even a Tyranid could possibly survive.Because of this the Skitarii Vanguard are assigned to the most hazardous war zones the galaxy can offer. They bear this duty stoically and in solemn silence, fighting to the last in the name of their inhuman god.
Skitarii - Skitarii Rangers: To fight the foot soldiers of the Cult Mechanicus is to kill or be killed, for the Skitarii Rangers never give up when hunting down their foes, and their stamina is legendary.In the lean and hungry days of Mankind's hominid ancestry, a hunter would kill far larger prey by tracking it to the point of exhaustion. It is this principle by which the Skitarii Rangers hunt the reaches of the galaxy -- once the Rangers have been despatched, they will home in on their quarry at a slow but relentless pace.At first their victims, ranging from pirate warbands to xenos warhosts, slip the net of Skitarii gunfire easily enough. If they flee far enough solar months will pass, even standard years -- long enough that the terror of the initial engagement is all but forgotten.All the while the Skitarii Rangers march in silent, unstoppable lockstep through trenches and ruins, their noose closing a little tighter with every night. Just when their quarry assumes itself safe, a constellation of blue will-o-the-wisps appears on the horizon.Almost imperceptibly, it grows closer and closer -- and then darkness lights up with blazing gunfire. The Skitarii, for whom the engagement never ended, close in again and again until the deed is done.
Skitarii - Sicarian Ruststalkers: The Ruststalkers of the Skitarii Legions fall upon their foes in a slashing, stabbing frenzy. Their transonic blades blur as they dart and cut like the weapons of gladiatorial knife-fighters, the deadly resonances they transmit bypassing armour as if it offered no more resistance than a hologram.The Ruststalkers were originally devised as cybernetic assassins, sent into the Red Planet's wastes to hunt down feral servitors and other undesirables excommunicated from the Cult Mechanicus. They proved so effective at their task they were repurposed and militarised into groups known as "killclades."Since that day they have fought on the front line of the Cult Mechanicus' many wars. The weapons of the Ruststalkers are sinister examples of the Adeptus Mechanicus' mastery over the laws of physics; they emanate a strong, sick hum that plays on the soul.When these horrible devices are put to use, their sonic field swoops across a variety of wavelengths until it finds the right molecular frequency to simply pass through whatever armour their foes are wearing. The gory results, though they take a second or two to manifest, are considered by the Tech-priests to be well worth the wait.So lethal is this offshoot of sonic technology that the Tech-priests have refined it into many different forms. These range from stiletto-swift razors to the much-feared Chordclaw, a needle-fingered gauntlet capable of turning a man's flesh to quivering mulch.
Skitarii - Sicarian Infiltrators: Sicarian Infiltrators are perhaps the most sinister of the Skitarii's warrior clades, for their neurostatic bombardment robs their victims of their senses. When hunting, they emit a white noise that fills the visual, auditory and even olfactory spectrums with static, leaving their foe all but helpless before the killing begins.Tall and slender, Sicarian Infiltrators pick their way across the battlefield with the stilted grace of spearfisher birds. They were not always this way, however, for each Sicarian is far from whole -- not in spirit, nor in body. As with their Ruststalker brethren, every Sicarian was once a warrior of the Skitarii who, in the pursuance of the Cult Mechanicus' agenda, was blasted limb from limb, extensively burned, or otherwise dismembered.During the data-harvest at battle's end, if these fallen are judged still fit to serve the Omnissiah, they are not incinerated but instead taken back to the augmetic slabs. There they are given a new lease on life by the addition of slender but powerful metal limbs. Technically speaking, all the Magi Biologis require to create a Sicarian is a head, a torso and some limb-stumps, though a detachment from emotion and a knack for inspiring fear is vital for best results.An Infiltrator can bypass enemy defences with ease, though this ability owes nothing to stealth, nor skill. Instead it hinges upon the potency and variety of the disruptive wavelengths they broadcast from their domed helms and jutting antennae. When the Infiltrators approach, their prey's every sensory apparatus is bombarded by overwhelming stimuli. Vox-casters howl with anguished feedback whilst vid-screens craze with fizzing static.Yet this crippling assault is even more effective upon natural senses than artificial ones. Ears ring with cruel tinnitus, eyes water and turn red, and the taste of burnt metal fills the mouth. It is all the Infiltrators' victims can do to remember how to breathe. As their prey clasps hands over bleeding ears and screws shut bloodshot eyes, the Sicarian Infiltrators simply walk into point-blank range and open fire.This sensory assault, though broad in spectrum, is calibrated precisely by the Tech-priest sanctioning the despatch of these macabre assassins. Those Skitarii sent to fight alongside the Infiltrators are given null-codes that transmute these frequencies used into harmless song; to them, the constant barrage of neurostatic coming from each domed helmet is nothing more than a soft psalm to the Omnissiah's glory.For this reason the Infiltrators are seen as wise and holy heroes by their Skitarii brethren, talismans against data corruption that fight a selfless war on the front line. Only to the enemy is the truth revealed. There is little virtue left inside these merciless prowlers, and what personality remains is interested only in death.
Skitarii - Ballistarii Ironstriders: The distinctive shape of the Ironstrider Ballistarii strikes fear into the heart of xenos, Renegade and Imperial Commander alike. Marksmen beyond compare, the Ballistarii have at their command the anatomical data, defensive capabilities and weaknesses of every race the Adeptus Mechanicus has encountered.Tirelessly searching the galaxy for high-value targets alongside their Skitarii Ranger escorts, the Ballistarii stalk from the ochre mists with their oculist lenses flaring. To fall under the azure beam of their omnispex is to have but a heartbeat left to live. For a Ballistarius sniper, making a killshot is as easy and as natural as drawing breath.Ironstrider Ballistarii are mounted upon the same long-legged combat walkers as their Sydonian Dragoon counterparts, able to walk the most hostile of terrain for years on end without rest. The monotask servitor charged with the duty of steering the Ironstrider is often the first component to fail, its long-suffering body finally wheezing its last.Upon such occasions the Ironstrider will keep pacing out into the hinterlands on its last heading. It can only be repaired by the ministrations of a Tech-priest upon a grav-bier who will excise the dead flesh and install a replacement even as the engine walks on. The strider will later be returned to duty as if nothing had happened, the remains of the former incumbent cast into the dust without comment.When a squadron of Ironstrider Ballistarii near a war zone, the sum total of the Adeptus Mechanicus' knowledge about that enemy's leader-figures is downlinked into their data-banks. Target reticules flicker and datagheists glow, each searching for a thousand different iterations of the enemy commander-form's silhouette.When a positive ident is achieved, that Ballistarius will be rewarded with the chime of a brass bell and an intravenous dump of hyperfocus stimulants. The information is quickly shared with the hunter's squadron, and their Ironstrider engines, formerly pounding across the battlefield at a fearsome pace, will slow to an exaggerated stalk.For a Sydonian Dragoon to attempt this would risk his steed toppling, but the gyroscopic stabilisers attached to each Ballistarius' Ironstrider engine compensate. This gives the appearance that time has slowed down around the squadron as it lopes on the spot or creeps forwards with macabre grace.It is from this mobile but steady platform that the gunner takes his shot. With the power of cognis heavy weaponry at his fingertips and the enemy's weak spots under his crosshairs, a Ballistarius could shoot through the hull of an enemy tank and still hit the vehicle's commander in the eye socket.Though it would never even occur to the Ballistarii to boast of such kills, their Tech-priest masters ensure their deadly accuracy is well known across the Imperium.
Skitarii - Sydonian Dragoons: Sydonian Dragoons stride the battlefield like graven idols given life, charging from clouds of sacred incense to slam crackling taser lances into the scattering foe. In their wake they leave a ragged trail of corpses that stretches to the horizon and beyond. Mounted on the marvel of science that is the Ironstrider engine, the Sydonian Dragoons know not the concepts of doubt nor rest. Theirs is the power of endless motion put to the purpose of death.The first Sydonians settled a vast cratered area of Mars swathed in dense acidic mist. In the schisms that haunted Mars' past, those with stilt-augmetics could stalk these mists and yet live, their elevation allowing them to escape the worst effects of the acidic fog whilst remaining hidden from the enemy.The Sydonian Dragoons echo the tactics of these ancient Martian warrior-explorers. Using incense exhausts, they march through an ochre cloud redolent of ancient Sydonia. Many a foe has been confounded by this mist long enough for the Dragoons to mount a deadly charge.Though the monotask servitor that steers each Ironstrider engine towards the foe is all but mindless, its rider is a tried and tested Skitarii warrior. Once the Dragoon has spotted his quarry, he will mark it with a bullet from his phosphor serpenta or radium jezzail.The glow from the impact guides his unit's next charge even in the fog of war. Within moments, one so marked is assailed by a stampede of titanium-hard feet and high-yield taser weaponry.
Skitarii - Protectors: During the Great Crusade and Horus Heresy era, Protectors were a type of Skitarii comprised of genetically-enhanced humans drawn from the ancient Mechanicum's menial underclass who served as the personal bodyguards, law enforcement officers and fighting force for the high-ranking adepts of the Mechanicum.They were often tied to the service of a specific forge city on Mars or one of the other Forge Worlds. They differed from the standard Skitarii in several small ways, most notably because their faces were covered by a bronze skull mask with glowing green eyes and they were dressed in red robes the colour of old rust. They were noted to smell of spoiled meat and machine oils.It is not known if this type of Skitarii is still utilised by the present-day Adeptus Mechanicus.
Skitarii - Notable Protectors: Rho-Mu 31 - Rho-Mu 31 was a Protector of the Forge of Magma City on Mars who served Mechanicus Adept Koriel Zeth, the Mistress of Magma City. Despite appearing distanced and cold towards strangers he retained some decidedly human traits, including humour.
Skitarii - Doctrina Imperatives: The Skitarii are fearsome foes, relentless in the pursuit of the Omnissiah's agenda and equipped with the most advanced weaponry in the Imperium. Ultimately, though, each is but a cybernetic vessel for the will of the Tech-priests. In the heat of battle, the Skitarii will be remotely controlled by data imperatives that boost their minds and bodies to inhuman levels.
Skitarii - Protector Imperatives: Doctrina imperatives are codified to yield the maximum spectra of hard data. At range, the Skitarii benefit from protector imperatives that vastly increase their accuracy, suppressing close quarter combat drill programs in order to bolster targeting subroutines.Hazard Optimisation (Gamma) - Commanded to bring their ranged weapons to bear by gamma-level imperatives, the Skitarii stalk forward into firing positions. Their Tech-priest masters, unwilling to risk full possession at this critical moment, gently increase each cohort's accuracy to a higher lethality.Gundrill Symbiosis (Beta) - The Skitarii blend their souls with the Machine Spirits of their weaponry until gun and wielder become one. A split second of silence follows as the Skitarii meditate upon sacred firing doctrine -- then the night lights up as deadly accurate firepower criss-crosses the battlefield, scything down the foe wherever they may hide.Binharic Omniscience (Alpha) - The Skitarii find their minds possessed by blessed binary, the entire battlefield reduced to a series of zeros and ones through which the causal path to the enemy's demise is clear as day. Rapt in this display of the Omnissiah's might, the Skitarii bullseye the foe with merciless, inhuman efficiency.
Skitarii - Conqueror Imperatives: When the enemy close in, the Tech-priests controlling each maniple download conqueror imperatives that boost the martial subroutines of their Skitarii minions and galvanise them into physical action at the expense of their more elaborate targetting programs.Mindstate Secutor (Gamma) - The warrior wisdom of ancient and experienced Secutors is force-loaded into the Skitarii's minds. Each thrilling pulse of data gifts them knowledge of the most efficient way to despatch the foe at close quarters whilst retaining a reserve of strength for later use.Technomartyr Concords (Beta) - Devotional commands spool through the minds of the Skitarii at dizzying speed, each new imperative driving the warriors of the Omnissiah further into the ranks of the foe. One so compelled will fight with the skill of a true weapons expert, his mind and muscles filling with the boundless energy of the Motive Force.Hyperaction Protocols (Alpha) - The Skitarii feel the press of an invisible hand upon their minds as the Machine God drives them to assault the foe. They wield blades, goads and lances with the pinpoint skill of master Secutors, making their foes seem clumsy and blunt by comparison.