I found this very interesting and thought I would share it with the
group. This gives me alot of food for thought concerning the Adeptus
Mechanicus codex I've been working on. Maybe I'll have an alpha
draft ready for posting by this weekend. Also for any players of
BFG, here's a site that has provisional rules and ships for a
Adeptus Mechanicus fleet list.
http://www.games-exchange.com.au/angelus/index.html
Anyway, here's the article:
Liber Mechanicus Part I
Liber Mechanicus
A History of the Servants of the Machine God
Gleaned from years of study of the STC
(WD,RT,2ndEd,3rdEd by Rick Priestley and others, mostly not original
work)
High Inquisitor Sigismondo
Today, there are no towers as high as the spires of Mars, no cities
greater than the hives of Mars, and no men more devoted to the
pursuit of knowledge than the Tech-Priests of Mars.
Mars is the greatest and most populous world in the entirety of the
galaxy-spanning Imperium. Sprawling hives climb miles into the
Martian sky and their foundations delve hundreds of miles into the
core of the planet itself. In many ways Mars is less of a planet and
more of the greatest space vessel ever. Orbital factories circle its
globe, their ceaseless industry forming a glowing halo around the
red planet.
Above the equator vast space docks float in geo-stationary orbit,
for this is the home of the mightiest fleet in the Imperium, the
Battlefleet Solar. Untold tens of billions of human souls live on
the ancient world. They are the people of the Cult Mechanicus and
the devoted servants of its technarcane Machine God.
Mars is the homeworld of the Tech-Priests, the ruling class of the
Cult Mechanicus. Throughout the galaxy there are many other worlds
that belong to the Tech-Priests, planets whose people also form part
of the huge and powerful organization. These other planets are
called Forge Worlds and Knight Worlds, and though none are as
ancient or powerful as Mars, each has its hives and factories, its
industries and its cavernous temples to the Machine God.
Each of these worlds is a colony of the Tech-Priests, controlled by
its own Techno-Magi and responsible for its own affairs. However,
the ultimate loyalty of all the cult members is to the Cult
Mechanicus itself, and to its masters on the planet Mars.
But this was not always so.
In the distant past, before the Age of Strife, before the Dark Age
of Technology even, Earth was the heart of a great civilization.
There are no authentic records from this time, and what information
that does exist is not available for public examination. However, it
is known that Mars was the primary Forge World for this galactic
power, just as it is now.
The events that triggered the Age of Strife must forever remain a
mystery, but very likely the increasing turmoil in warp space was
the most influential factor. Only by means of the ethereal realm of
warp space can interstellar space travel take place. Erratic
disturbances of warp space, called warp storms, made it almost
impossible for spacecraft to travel between star systems. During the
Age of Strife, the warp storms became more frequent and intense,
spreading throughout the galaxy until all space travel became next
to impossible. Individual solar systems became isolated and many
human colonies hitherto dependent on interstellar contact were lost.
Societies collapsed, anarchy prevailed, and the old civilization of
mankind passed away forever. Such was the Age of Strife.
During this time Earth, heart and head of the old civilization,
could no longer acquire sufficient food or resources to accommodate
its people. Without access to the wider galaxy the homeworld could
not survive. Untold billions died as a result of war and famine. The
planet soon became a battleground where rival warlords fought over
the ruins of a once great civilization. All of Earth's ancient
knowledge was lost and its cities destroyed. The planet became
little more than a desert where its people were reduced to the level
of brute savages fighting over the scarce land and water that
remained.
On Mars, events took a somewhat different course.
Knowledge is Life, use it well
Liber Mechanicus Part II
A History of the Servants of the Machine God
Gleaned from years of study of the STC
(WD,RT,2ndEd,3rdEd by Rick Priestley and others, mostly not original
work)
High Inquisitor Sigismondo
The planet Mars has been changed enormously since man first set foot
upon it two hundred centuries ago. Using a technology long lost,
Mars was converted from a red desert into a fertile pale image of
Earth using arcane terraforming procedures. Vast amounts of water
and air were brought from who-knows-where to accomplish this
transformation and the network of graviton satellites with their
associated force shields were set up to protect the planet from
solar radiation.
Once terraformed, Mars was settled by industrial cartels and their
work forces, and soon this activity grew into the first human hive
world. Unlike Earth, the planetary core of Mars has long since
cooled and congealed so that its abundant riches can be mined
directly, so the true wealth of Mars has always been its abundant
gems, minerals, ores, and native metals. Mars thus became the center
for industrial production and research, and its very name became
synonymous with technical expertise and scientific advancement.
With the coming of the Age of Strife to Mars the process of
disintegration began as it did on Earth, but because of the unique
conditions on Mars events were to develop entirely differently.
Because of lack of maintenance the planet's atmospheric radiation
shields soon broke down. Solar radiation poured onto the surface,
destroying the fragile ecosystem and wiping out sparse vegetation
which had taken millennia to cultivate. Plagues caused by high
radiation levels slew most of the population. Of those that survived
most became deranged by sickness, many turned into mutant zombies or
gibbering cannibals. The destruction of the entire planet seemed
likely, however this was not to be, for a new idea began to spread
among the survivors, a religion of survival - the Cult Mechanicus
dedicated to the Machine God.
Knowledge is Life, use it well
Liber Mechanicus Part III
Liber Mechanicus
A History of the Servants of the Machine God
Gleaned from years of study of the STC
(WD,RT,2ndEd,3rdEd by Rick Priestley and others, mostly not original
work)
High Inquisitor Sigismondo
The devotees of the Machine God saw technology as their path to
salvation. They sought out the now scattered technology needed to
build temporary radiation shelters. The cult demanded absolute
devotion from its followers, for only by selfless dedication and
often personal sacrifice could machines be recovered or the planet
be saved. Under the direction of their Tech-Priest leaders, the
cultists set about restoring order to the world. They built shelters
to protect themselves from the radiation storms, and oxygen
generators and food processing machines to enable them to live
behind the enclosed shielding.
There were few shelters for even the Tech-Priests and none at all
for unbelievers. Marauders and mutant raiders tried to force their
way inside the hurriedly constructed buildings. Many of the cultists
died defending their shelters and some early shelters were
destroyed, but the survivors emerged all the stronger and more
determined. At some sites, the Tech-Priests used the equipment at
their command to build terrible and efficient weapons of war and
cultists were formed into units of Cult Warriors to use these
weapons. This development represented the birth of the College Cults
which have lasted to this day.
The people of Mars interpreted their survival in the face of
tremendous odds as vindication of the Cult Mechanicus. Their resolve
and devotion to the cult became unshakable. Whilst rival warlords
battled over the remains of Earth, the Tech-Priests rebuilt Mars in
the image of their inhuman god. On red sands there rose the first
temples of the Machine God and the people came to worship at the
High Altar of Technology. It is believed by the Adepts of the
Machine Cult that the first words of the Prayer of Preparation
STOP!! Read this before proceeding further.
date from this time.
The Tech-Priests scoured the ruins of Mars for surviving machinery
which they enshrined within the Temple of All Knowledge. Within the
temple's plasteel shell shining pistons held the vaulted roof almost
a mile above. The shafts of each piston were so constructed that
they moved to raise and lower the roof, altering its acoustic
properties to accentuate the hymns of praise sung to the Machine
God.
The High Altar within took the form of a vast database containing
the whole knowledge of the Tech-Priests. Even today every new
discovery is dedicated to this altar. Every temple on Mars and
throughout the Knight and Forge Worlds is connected to the High
Altar by means of a living Transmat link, a psychic Servitor whose
mind co-joins all altars of the Cult Mechanicus into one holy
machine entity. At this time too arose the belief that when the High
Altar was complete and contained all the knowledge of the ancients
which had been lost, mankind would transcend its mundane existence
and achieve a state of eternal paradise and omniscience. The leader
of this transformation would be the Omnissiah, an all-knowing, all-
conquering Lord from off the planet.
Knowledge is Life, use it well
Liber Mechanicus Part IV
Liber Mechanicus
A History of the Servants of the Machine God
Gleaned from years of study of the STC
(WD,RT,2ndEd,3rdEd by Rick Priestley and others, mostly not original
work)
High Inquisitor Sigismondo
When the Cult Mechanicus had restored order to Mars, its leaders
looked to Earth and beyond, hoping to find remnants of human
knowledge on other worlds. The Tech-Priests were appalled at the
destruction on Earth and judged that there was nothing worth saving.
Instead they turned their attention to the wider galaxy. However,
their spacecraft were unable to break through the warp storms that
raged throughout the galaxy, isolating our solar system and many
others besides.
The Tech-Priests studied the warp barrier for many centuries,
observing the nature of the warp storms and the energy patterns
within, treating the whole problem as a test of their worthiness by
the Machine God. After many lifetimes they were able to predict when
the storms were at their weakest and made preparations for an
expedition beyond the solar system. At last an opportune moment
came, the warp storms abated as predicted, and a massive fleet set
out from Mars. The leaders of the Cult Mechanicus knew that this
might be a one-way journey and so filled their spacecraft with
everything they needed to seed a new colony, including thousands of
Servitors and Tech-Priests and an entire Titan Legion for conquest
or protection.
After a few short days the warp storms regained strength once again
and all contact was lost with the fleet. The Tech-Priests waited for
a sign from their Machine God, and faithfully started to prepare
another expedition.
Over the next thousand years many similar expeditions were
constructed and launched into the void. Some were lost or destroyed,
but others were successful in their mission. Slowly at first,
throughout the galaxy new colonies of the Cult Mechanicus were
founded, each a replica of Mars with its temples and hives, its
factories and its hierarchy of Tech-Priests. Each new world was
protected by its Titan Legion and then by its Tech Guard as well.
These new worlds were called Forge Worlds.
Whilst the storms persisted the Tech-Priests of Mars could only
guess how many of their space fleets had survived passage through
the tumultuous warp. During moments of relative calm broken messages
were downloaded into the High Altar in the Temple of Knowledge,
fleeting reports from the Forge Worlds, data from recovered
machines, confirmations of new discoveries or desperate pleas for
help. But there was little the Tech-Priests of Mars could do to aid
individual worlds, and it was not until the time of the Great
Crusade in the Age of the Imperium that the Forge Worlds were to be
permanently and finally united with Mars.
Knowledge is Life, use it well
Liber Mechanicus Part V
Liber Mechanicus
A History of the Servants of the Machine God
Gleaned from years of study of the STC
(WD,RT,2ndEd,3rdEd by Rick Priestley and others, mostly not original
work)
High Inquisitor Sigismondo
The Tech-Priests' spacefleets found an anarchic galaxy where the
ancient confederacy of interdependent human planets no longer
existed. They discovered that the Eldar too were facing social
degeneration. Many of the Eldar had taken to the worship of the Dark
Gods of Chaos, and everywhere the Eldar worlds were falling into
ruin. Some Eldar had already chosen to abandon their homeworlds and
set up new colonies of Exodites untainted by the evil of Chaos. The
Tech-Priests also found that wild Ork warbands rampaged throughout
the galaxy, looting and destroying, causing unrest everywhere.
The human worlds discovered by the Tech-Priests retained little of
their old technology. The had devolved into feudal states ruled by
aristocratic nobles who welcomed the Tech-Priests as long awaited
saviors. Those that did not welcome the Tech-Priests did not survive
long. The Tech-Priests settled amongst these feudal empires, or
Knight Worlds, choosing planets that were mineral rich where they
could rebuild their industries. The established contacts between the
Knights, trading with their worlds and investigating the ancient
ruins where surviving technology could still sometimes be found. The
Knights provided manpower and security against enemies such as
marauding Orks and land-hungry Eldar Exodites. In return the Tech-
Priests provided technical expertise and help rebuilding their
planets.
Over the millennia the Forge Worlds became powerful and the Knight
Worlds flourished under their wing. The Tech-Priests and Knights
became mutually dependent and each Forge World became the hub of an
empire consisting of the forge World and its surrounding Knight
Worlds. The Knights learned much from the Tech-Priests and their
societies were gradually transformed into technically sophisticated
cultures. Many of the Forge Worlds were successful in maintaining
sporadic contact with each other, and the Tech-Priests' obsession
with knowledge ensured that discoveries on one world were down-
loaded to altars throughout the galaxy.
The most important innovations that the Tech-Priests brought to the
Knight Worlds were the fighting machines called Knights. These
machines were one-man versions of a Titan, much smaller and less
powerful than a real Titan, but far more suited to the mobile style
of warfare prevalent amongst the nobility of the Knight Worlds.
Today these Knights fight alongside the Titans and form a reserve of
troops which can be called up into the Titan Legions when required.
Each machine is piloted by a noble of the Knight Worlds, a Knight
warrior within a Knight machine, for these worlds have maintained
their feudal societies over the millennia. Indeed, the acquisition
of technology and the active support of the Tech-Priests enabled the
warrior nobility to strengthen its position of power on their worlds.
Knowledge is Life, use it well
Liber Mechanicus Part VI
Liber Mechanicus
A History of the Servants of the Machine God
Gleaned from years of study of the STC
(WD,RT,2ndEd,3rdEd by Rick Priestley and others, mostly not original
work)
High Inquisitor Sigismondo
It is now ten thousand years since the Age of the Imperium began, It
was at the start of this glorious age that the warp storms finally
ended with a single massive storm of unbelievable destructive power.
The warp is formed from psychic energies which affect and can be
molded by the minds of psychically sensitive mortals. As a result of
the final collapse of the storms many humans were killed as a
psychic shock wave spread throughout the galaxy.
The Eldar worlds were at the center of this shock wave, spelling the
end of planet-bound Eldar civilization. Some Eldar escaped by means
of massive space arks called Craftworlds. The Eldar Exodites who
already distanced themselves from the hub of their civilization also
survived. Other Exodites arrived among the Knight Worlds looking for
places to settle, seeking planets seeded by their ancestors
thousands of years previously, the Eldar Maiden Worlds. Many of
these worlds were now already settled by the Knights and wars broke
out throughout the Knight Worlds as Eldar tried to oust the Knights.
The Forge Worlds and Knights managed to prevent the Exodites
settling nearby. Over the following centuries the Exodites and
Knights would fight many long and arduous wars.
On Earth the lifting of the warp storms signaled the beginning of an
age of rebuilding and resurgence. From the battling warlords of
Earth emerged one far-sighted visionary, a man of mysterious origins
whose knowledge of past technologies astounded all who spoke to him.
History does not recall his name only the title he came to assume in
later years - the Emperor. This great leader united the warring
people of Earth and prepared the way for the reconquest of the
galaxy by his Space Marine Legions.
On Mars the Emperor was recognized as the long awaited Omnissiah of
cult legend. A frenzy of popular uprising swept through the entire
Cult Mechanicus as word spread of his coming. When the Emperor
arrived on Mars in person he was hailed as the Machine God Incarnate
and the Tech-Priests and Techno-Magi alike came to acknowledge his
leadership and marvel at the technical secrets at his command. Some
of his essence was united with the High Altar of Technology and he
survived the experience, proving that he was indeed the Omnissiah.
Not all amongst the Cult Mechanicus were happy with this turn of
events. Many of the senior Magi resented the disturbance of the
status duo threatening, as it did, their own power base. A few of
these malcontents led a rebellion and seized the Temple of All
Knowledge from where they called the faithful to a holy war against
the Emperor, the false Omnissiah. The conflict that followed was
short and bloody, and ended in the defeat of the reactionaries and
triumph of the Emperor's followers. Mars and Earth were reunited
after millennia of separate development.
Knowledge is Life, use it well
Liber Mechanicus Part VII
Liber Mechanicus
A History of the Servants of the Machine God
Gleaned from years of study of the STC
(WD,RT,2ndEd,3rdEd by Rick Priestley and others, mostly not original
work)
High Inquisitor Sigismondo
With the massive human resources of Earth and the colossal technical
power of Mars the Emperor began the re-conquest of the galaxy. This
might enterprise is known as the Great Crusade and it lasted for two
hundred years. The emperor's forces spread out from Earth and Mars,
searching for surviving human worlds and driving out alien usurpers.
Many long forgotten planets were liberated during the Great Crusade
and many worlds were settled anew. Gradually the Imperium expanded
throughout the galaxy.
Forge Worlds throughout the galaxy were able to establish secure
communications with Mars following the end of the warp storms. Many
Forge Worlds were able to contact the High Altar or Knowledge, and
many technical advances and discoveries were spread as a result. The
position of Mars and the Cult Mechanicus as the leader of the Forge
Worlds was reaffirmed and spacecraft began to travel between the
worlds regularly.
Many Forge Worlds found themselves at war with alien invaders,
especially Orks, now that space travel was viable once again.
Although the Forge Worlds were able to help each other to some
degree, they were everywhere forced onto the defensive. Some Forge
Worlds were destroyed, and many Knight Worlds were devastated. As
the Great Crusade advanced it was able to free the Forge Worlds from
these attacks. Many an enemy, anticipating slow but eventual victory
was totally destroyed when caught between the forces of the Forge
Worlds and the forces of the Great Crusade. The liberation of the
Forge Worlds was a great military advantage to the Imperium, because
their considerable military might could be added to that of the
Great Crusade itself.
As the Emperor's forces pushed further and further into the galaxy,
the Forge Worlds were able to supply arms and equipment, weapons,
spacecraft and other essential munitions to the advancing
spearheads. Titan Legions form the Forge Worlds joined the cohorts
of the Space Marines to extend the borders of the Imperium still
further.
As the Great Crusade reached the edges of the galaxy the Cult
Mechanicus founded new Forge Worlds to act as forward supply bases.
These new planets soon grew and established their own Tech Guard
forces and even Titan Legions. Surrounding planets were colonized
from the Knight Worlds, replicating the long-established pattern of
the other Forge Worlds.
Final victory was close, all knowledge might be recovered, the
Omnissiah was here to lead mankind onward, but it was not to be.
Knowledge is Life, use it well
Liber Mechanicus Part VIII
Liber Mechanicus
A History of the Servants of the Machine God
Gleaned from years of study of the STC
(WD,RT,2ndEd,3rdEd by Rick Priestley and others, mostly not original
work)
High Inquisitor Sigismondo
As the Great Crusade reached ever outwards, encompassing almost the
whole galaxy, a new and unthinkable threat emerged to challenge the
resurgence of humanity. This was the rebellion known to later ages
as the Horus Heresy.
This is not the place to describe at length the fierce battles of
the Horus Heresy. The galaxy was torn asunder as Space Marines
fought Space Marines and Titans battled Titans. Horus' strategy was
to move against the Emperor directly, attacking Earth with as much
speed and as many troops as he could muster. Earth's defenses were
weak and reinforcements were weeks behind Horus's fleet. On Mars,
the Tech-Priests did little to intervene directly, knowing that the
Omnissiah would prevail. There was considerable division within the
Adeptus Mechanicus, and many of the Forge and Knight worlds were
wracked by civil war within the Cult Mechanicus. On Mars, the
Fabricator General sided with Horus. Civil war there raged between
factions of Tech-Priests. Ancient forbidden weapons were deployed.
Viral plagues killed millions. Many installations were scoured from
the face of the planet. It was because of this in-fighting that the
bulk of the Adeptus Mechanicus was unable to aid the Emperor, but
the loyalist forces kept the majority of the rebel Titan Legions in
check.
The Emperor appointed Kane as acting Fabricator General on Earth,
and there Kane was responsible for the rapid design and construction
of war machines used to defend the Imperial Palace itself. These
forces failed to throw back or even halt the attacks, but their
failure bought valuable time for the Emperor.
In the final event the war was to be won by the Emperor, but only at
the cost of his own life as he battled Horus in personal combat
aboard the Warmaster's own battleship. From that day forth the
Emperor has lived only as a spirit sustained by psychic energies,
his life force inhabiting a corpse held together by stasis field,
the bulk of his spirit integrated by the essence of him contained in
the High Altar of Knowledge on Mars.
Following the defeat of Warmaster Horus the Imperium of Mankind was
re-established afresh. The organizational basis for the Imperium of
the 41st Millennium was laid down in the years following the
Emperor's incarceration in the Golden Throne. At the time Imperial
organizations were instated in forms which have endured broadly
unchanged for ten thousand years. Institutions created by the
Emperor to serve his Great Crusade became the ruling bodies of the
sprawling empire. Their chiefs became the most powerful men the
galaxy has ever known. These individuals are the High Lords of
Terra, a conclave which includes the chief military and
administrative officials of the Imperium.
The new ruling body of the Imperium as a whole was known as the
Adeptus Terra, the Adepts of Earth, a term which included not only
the High Lords but all the organizations under their control. Over a
period of time the term Adeptus was formally adopted as the title
for all officials of the Imperium. During the Great Crusade and the
Horus Heresy the Cult Mechanicus had taken a leading part in all the
triumphs and failures of the Imperium. Now the Techno-Magi prepared
to play their role in the rebuilding process too.
To establish their place amongst the new rulers of the Imperium, the
Cult Mechanicus became the Adeptus Mechanicus, and its cult leaders
became High Lords of Terra, taking the title Fabricator General of
Mars. Over the following millennia the people of Earth and Mars
would march forward together, welded into one mighty Imperium, yet
distinctly different societies with their own governments and
institutions.
Since that time, the Adeptus Mechanicus has kept aloof from the
politics and the administration of the Imperium, except where dire
necessity has made this essential.
During the early 36th millennium, and increase in frequency and
severity of warp storms made interstellar travel much more
difficult. Because of their studies during the Age of Strife, the
Adeptus Mechanicus was much less affected by these storms than other
institutions of the Imperium.
This became a time known as the Age of Apostasy. Goge Vindire, 361th
High Lord of the Administratum, first controlled the appointment of
the Ecclesiarch Paulis III and then ultimately overthrew him to take
direct control of both the Administratum and Ecclesiarchy. At the
same time, the Council of the High Lords of Terra was reformed and
the Adeptus Mechanicus and Adeptus Astartes excluded. Using the then
considerable wealth and military forces of the Ecclesiarchy, Vindire
managed a Reign of Blood for over fifty years. Whole worlds were
declared heretic and destroyed and the Imperium itself was almost
brought to its knees. It is also from this time that the first of
the Brides of the Emperor or the Adepta Sororitas were raised as his
personal bodyguard.
Eventually the weakness of the Imperium became so great that, to
their eternal credit, the Senatus Mechanicus through the Fabricator
General of the Adeptus Mechanicus issued a summons for the High
Lords to account for themselves and indict and execute Vindire as a
traitor. The Tech-Priests were supported by most of the Adeptus
Astartes. In response to this Vindire disbanded the Council of High
Lords and ordered his forces to attack the Adeptus Mechanicus and
Adeptus Astartes now declared as heretics. Those who refused to
attack were condemned and burned as heretics themselves, and this
was also the fate of those who lost, or did not attack with
sufficient vigor.
Enraged by what he saw, Gastaph Hedriatix, The Fabricator General
ordered the regiments of the Martian Skitarii, or Tech-Guard, to
transport to Earth. These forces were soon joined by the Space
Marines of the Imperial Fists, Fire Hawks, Soul Drinkers and Black
Templars Chapters. After much hard fighting, and with his bodyguard
of fanatical women warriors down to a few thousand, Vindire was
killed by the leader of the bodyguard after she has been given an
audience with the Emperor himself by the leader of the Adeptus
Custodes, guardians of the Golden Throne.
After Vindire's death, the Council of the High Lords of Terra was
reformed, the guilty punished, and the Ecclesiarchy itself
reorganized to prevent anything similar happening.
Knowledge is Life, use it well
Liber Mechanicus Part IX
Liber Mechanicus
A History of the Servants of the Machine God
Gleaned from years of study of the STC
(WD,RT,2ndEd,3rdEd by Rick Priestley and others, mostly not original
work)
High Inquisitor Sigismondo
Today in the forty-first millennium, the Emperor has endured for ten
thousand years, his living spirit continues to guide the fate of
mankind even though his body is inert. On the world of Mars the
Techno-Magi celebrate the rites of the Machine God and his divine
manifestation, the undying Emperor. Throughout the Imperium there
are countless forge Worlds devoted to the pursuit of knowledge. The
Titan Legions and Tech Guard armies of the Adeptus Mechanicus
protect and expand the territories of the Machine god. In
conjunction with the Space Marines and Imperial guard, they form the
fighting armies of the Imperium. The most potent force in the galaxy.
The Forge Worlds and Knight Worlds remain fiercely loyal to their
Martian masters. Their industry and their tithes are to the Adeptus
Mechanicus and the Techno-Magi of the Cult Mechanicus. Where other
human worlds in the Imperium are part of the feudal empire
controlled by the Administratum of the Adeptus Terra on Earth, the
Adeptus Mechanicus retains direct ownership and control of all its
own territories. Thus the Forge Worlds and the Knight Worlds owe no
obligations to the Adepts of Earth directly. They raise no regiments
for the Imperial Guard and they pay no tithes to the treasury. Only
the Inquisition has jurisdiction in their territories, and there are
no worlds in the Imperium where the Inquisition's Warriors of
Righteousness may not walk freely.
The Cult Mechanicus acknowledges the Emperor as the Master of
Mankind but does not recognize the authority of the official
Imperial Cult or the Ecclesiarchy. Instead, the Adeptus Mechanicus
follows its own dark and mysterious rites and strictures.
There has been constant conflict between the Adeptus Mechanicus and
the Adeptus Ministorum since before the formation of the official
Imperial Cult, when Fatidicus first began preaching on Earth. Both
organizations are rivals in power like any Imperial organizations,
but more importantly their beliefs differ at a very fundamental
level.
According to the Adeptus Mechanicus, knowledge is the supreme
manifestation of divinity, and all creatures and artifacts that
embody knowledge are holy because of it. The Emperor is the supreme
object of worship because he comprehends so much. Machines which
preserve knowledge from ancient times are also holy, and machine
intelligences, shunned by most of the rest of humanity, are no less
divine than those of flesh and blood. A man's worth is only the sum
of his knowledge - his body is simply an organic machine capable of
preserving intellect. Thus their veneration is based on knowledge,
intellect and reason.
The Ecclesiarchy bases it's worship on Faith. True knowledge and
reason weaken faith, so technically the entire Cult Mechanicus is
Heretic. The desire for communion with the Machine God through
knowledge and comprehension is also seen as a sign of lack of Faith
in the Divinity of the Emperor.
An uneasy compromise has been reached over the millennia which can
be summed up as an agreement to differ. The Ecclesiarchy does not
send its Confessors and Missionaries to the Adeptus Mechanicus
worlds and the Adeptus Mechanics does not interfere with the Adeptus
Ministorum. When Missionaries or other explorers find new lost
worlds, any technology found there is turned over to the Adeptus
Mechanicus, who in turn promise to make that technology available to
the Adeptus Ministorum, thus it was that the Adepta Sororitas was
the first to be equipped with the Inferno Cannon when the STC for it
was discovered. Also, the Adeptus Mechanicus manufactures the
technological component of the Rosarius, and performs the necessary
repairs an maintenance on the holiest of Adeptus Ministorum relics
when required.
Knowledge is Life, use it well
Liber Mechanicus Part X
Liber Mechanicus
A History of the Servants of the Machine God
Gleaned from years of study of the STC
(WD,RT,2ndEd,3rdEd by Rick Priestley and others, mostly not original
work)
High Inquisitor Sigismondo
Today the Adeptus Mechanicus is driven by the quest for knowledge,
to complete the High Altar of Knowledge, and usher in a new great
Golden Age of Mankind lead by the living Emperor, reincarnated as
the Machine God. This quest for knowledge takes many forms, but its
ultimate embodiment is the search for ancient STC systems.
STC systems were created during the scientific high-point of the
Dark Age of Technology when the technological development of man was
at its greatest, but the Spiritual development of man was at its
least. During the Dark Age of Technology thousands of human colonies
were founded on distant worlds. Many of these colonies failed to
survive, some were lost, and of those that survived most achieved
only a subsistence level economy, such was the weakness of their
spirits. Yet almost all of these colonies managed to retain a high
level of technology thanks to the huge data base of computerized
information carried from Earth. This massive computer data base was
known as the Standard Template Construct (STC) system.
The STC are often said to embody the sum total of human knowledge.
This is probably true as far as technical accomplishment goes.
Although most colonists required little more than designs for
agricultural machinery, information was included for all sorts of
advanced constructions such as planetary core taps, fission
reactors, and high-powered phased graviton planetary defense webs.
However, the early colonists' needs were simple and were met by
conventional energy forms and relatively low technology.
Today there are no known surviving STC systems, and only a few
examples of first generation print-out. On some worlds information
about the ancient STC systems is regarded as holy and design copies
are guarded as secret and sacred texts, housed inviolate in the
inner sanctums of temples.
For over ten thousand years first the Cult Mechanicus and now the
Adeptus Mechanicus has pursued all information about the STC. It is
their lost Bible, Holy Grail and Cup of Knowledge. Any scrap of
information is eagerly sought out and jealously hoarded. Any rumor
of a functional system is followed up and investigated. By the
efforts of the Adeptus Mechanicus much information has been
retrieved or can be reconstructed by the vigorous analysis and
comparison of copies. Yet the most technically advanced knowledge
eludes the Adeptus Mechanicus, for the early colonists were mostly
simple folk whose needs were practical. Only rarely did anyone
bother to take copies of the theoretical and advanced work which the
STC contained.
Knowledge is Life, use it well
Liber Mechanicus Part XI
Liber Mechanicus
A History of the Servants of the Machine God
Gleaned from years of study of the STC
(WD,RT,2ndEd,3rdEd by Rick Priestley and others, mostly not original
work)
High Inquisitor Sigismondo
The Imperium of Mankind today includes over 10,500 tithable worlds.
According to Cartographer-Xenologist Seth Bartomelos, adviser to the
High Lords of Terra and Magos Xenologis of the Adeptus Mechanicus,
5,500 of these worlds classified Alpha, Delta, Delta Tau, Mu, Phi
Lambda and Rho, have a total population not exceeding 800 billion.
The remaining three classes of worlds, Gamma, Nu, and Phi, numbering
about 5,000, account for the vast bulk of the population of the
Imperium, estimated to be about 500,000 billion of which 90% live on
the 1,400 hive worlds. These numbers have been collected by the
Administratum for the purposes of determining Imperial Tithes. The
1,000 acknowledged Forge Worlds of the Adeptus Mechanicus have a
total tithable population base of 1,000 billion. These represent
Imperial citizens, advisors, Imperial Guard regiments, Imperial
bureaucrats, and other non-Adeptus Mechanics living on those worlds.
Not included in these figures are the approximately 1285 worlds
controlled by the Adeptus Astartes. With a few exceptions, each
Adeptus Astartes chapter has a homeworld given to it by Imperial
Charter, and free of tithes. The Adeptus Astartes are not required
to provide population and resource information to the Administratum.
It is possible that individual chapters may have extended their
control and facilities to additional worlds. The exact accounting of
the number of worlds under Adeptus Astartes control and their
resources is a suitable subject for further investigation.
The Adeptus Mechanicus and their territories are exempt from
Imperial tithes. Mars, believed to be the most populous Hive-forge
World in the galaxy, has only 5 billion tithable citizens. It is
known for a fact that Mars has about 500 billion Servitors working
in the factories and mines there. The Knight Worlds are not included
in the number of Forge Worlds and may number as many as 7,000, with
a total population exceeding 100,000 billion. From this data it can
be seen that the Adeptus Mechanicus is both much stronger and more
populous than generally known. It is because of this hidden strength
that the Adeptus Mechanicus has managed prodigies of military might
in the defense of the Imperium of Mankind. It is known for a fact
that one Tyranid Hivefleet was destroyed by the Adeptus Mechanicus,
largely in secret, without the need of outside assistance and
without disrupting their normal operations.
Knowledge is Life, use it well
Liber Mechanicus Part XII
A History of the Servants of the Machine God
Gleaned from years of study of the STC
(WD,RT,2ndEd,3rdEd by Rick Priestley and others, mostly not original
work)
High Inquisitor Sigismondo
The armed forces of the Adeptus Mechanicus consists of three
branches, the Skitarii or Tech Guard, Titan Legion and Explorators.
The Skitarii Tech Guard are the oldest force of the Adeptus
Mechanicus, formed in the early days of struggle as the Cult
Mechanicus fought for it's very existence against the deranged and
mutant marauders of the Martian wastelands. Small groups of
desperate defenders of the shielded shrines fought to preserve the
last remnants of technology. As the followers of the Machine God
grew in number the first permanent forces were raised, the Tech
Guard. There were ordinary cult followers whose duty it was to
protect with their lives the shrine's Altar of Knowledge and
whatever technology and machines had been recovered. From among the
Tech-Priests came the leaders of the Tech-Guard, usually inspiring
figures with some advanced weaponry at their command. Gradually, the
Tech-Priest warriors grew into squads of Cult Warriors, squads of
Tech-Priests fighting in a style of high-tech death based on their
own Altar of Knowledge. It is believed that the Cult Technicus
Mechanicus was the first of these Cults within a Cult.
With the completion of the High Altar of Knowledge the Tech Guard
was organized on a more formal basis and the Cult Warriors were
organized into Colleges based on the technologies used in their
weapons and style of fighting. As new discoveries have been made and
in the desperation of defense of distant Forge and Knight Worlds
over the centuries some new College Cults have been formed and
recognized.
The Tech Guard is primarily a defensive force deployed to protect
the Forge Worlds, Knight Worlds and Adeptus Mechanicus facilities
throughout the galaxy. In times of emergency, the Tech Guard may be
strengthened by units of Knights, the one-man smaller Titan-like
fighting machines of the Knight Worlds, College Cult warriors,
elements from the Titan Legions, and altered fabrication Servitors
and other factory workers and machines. In the defense of the
factories on Armageddon during the first campaign against Ghazghkull
uruk mag Thraka, over 100,000 Servitors were equipped with crude
combat implants and deployed within two days. Their sacrifice, to a
large and unrecognized extent, stopped the initial Ork assault.
While the Tech Guard is a defense force the Adeptus Mechanicus
believes in preemptive defense so to keep a Forge World safe all
nearby planets must be secure. To keep all Knight Worlds safe every
nearby threat must be neutralized. This is the job of the Tech Guard
The actual size of the Tech Guard is unknown and very difficult to
estimate because, unlike the Imperial Guard, when not actually in
service or training the Guard polices the Forge World and factories
and acts as additional workers and supervisors. It must be noted
that in the First Campaign for Armageddon, the Adeptus Mechanicus
was able to mobilize 4 million troops in the first week, seventy-
five percent of which were modified Servitors. Their total
casualties during the campaign may have exceeded 20 million Tech
Guard and Adepts excluding Servitors. It must also be noted that
their factories continued to produce munitions at an increasing rate
until the very moment that they were over-run by the Orks, when the
factories self-destructed. It is blasphemy to allow knowledge of the
Machine God to fall into the hands of heretic and aliens.
The Tech Guard is organized in a manner similar to the Imperial
Guard, the better for the two to operate together in mutual defense.
Because of the high number of Tech-Priests in the Tech Guard they
have access to advanced and sophisticated weapons which could not be
operated by ordinary troops or the secret nature of which cannot be
allowed outside the control of the Adeptus Mechanicus.
Knowledge is Life, use it well
Liber Mechanicus Part XIII
A History of the Servants of the Machine God
Gleaned from years of study of the STC
(WD,RT,2ndEd,3rdEd by Rick Priestley and others, mostly not original
work)
High Inquisitor Sigismondo
The Adeptus Mechanicus calls the Tech Guard the Regiments of
Skitarii. The term Skitarii refers to the regiments as a whole, but
the individual types of troops that make up a regiment have their
own ancient and distinctive names which refer to their battlefield
role and their position within the Cult Mechanicus. The Hypaspists
form the standard infantry squads and are armed with lasguns or hell
guns. Heavy weapons specialists have the title Sagitarii, while tank
crews are called Cataphractarii. Finally there are the Ballisterarii
who often field large, experimental weapons, designed to smash or
cut through heavy armor or enemy strongholds.
The Hypaspists are ordinary humans, and not Adepts of the Cult
Mechanicus. The Sagitarii must be initiates of the Cult in order to
get the cyber-implants necessary to control their weapons properly.
The Cataphractarii are respected not only for their battle skill,
but the close cyber-link relationship with the machines in which
they fight and can never leave.
Then there are the Praetorns, biologically and mechanically enhanced
warriors, with brain stem implants, neuro-linked processors and
alloy reinforced skeletons. Unlike the Adeptus Astartes Space
Marines who are genetically altered from an Early age, the Preatorns
are fully frown humans who act as walking test beds for the
rediscovered technologies of the Imperium. They are fearsome, if
erratic, fighters whose complete devotion to the Machine God makes
them zealous combatants. They are the terror troops of the Skitarii,
enforcing the will of the Adeptus Mechanicus wherever they are
deployed.
As well as its partially human warriors, the Adeptus Mechanicus
maintains cohorts of mighty Robots. These are built using a
technology similar to that of Space Marine Dreadnoughts, except that
they usually have either two or more heavy weapons or two close
combat weapons and one heavy weapon. Robots are a terrifying sight
on the attack, However, it is as defenders that they excel,
protected by their thick adamantium shells and force fields, the can
pour shot after shot into their attackers with no real pause while
simultaneously absorbing fire which would destroy three ordinary
dreadnoughts.
As well as standard Chimera transports, Leman Russ battle tanks and
other fighting vehicles, The Adeptus Mechanicus also fields the
might Knights and Castellians. The huge walking machines, between
the size of a Robot and a Scout Titan, provide a mobile, well
armored gun platform to lend heavy firepower to the mobile elements
of ht Skitarii. The walkers are protected by a directional power
field. Since this power filed is focused on a small area they do not
burn out like conventional Void Shields, but they provide no
protection of not deployed in the proper fashion. Castellians are
fitted with larger guns and no close combat weapons for raining even
more heavy fire onto the enemy.
Knowledge is Life, use it well
Liber Mechanicus Part XIV
Gleaned from years of study of the STC
(WD,RT,2ndEd,3rdEd by Rick Priestley and others, mostly not original
work)
High Inquisitor Sigismondo
Once the Tech-Priests had built their first temples on Mars and
established the Tech-Guard to protect them, they also laid the basis
for an offensive military arm for the Cult Mechanicus, the Titan
Legions. They created weapons capable of functioning in the hostile
environment now found on their planet. The vast fighting machines
they built were Titans. These gigantic constructions are unlike
anything ever seen on Earth, towering humanoid shaped weapons of
destruction powered by plasma, or fusion, reactors and carrying
mighty engines of destruction. On a world as barren as Mars now was
the Titans could stride effortlessly over the hostile landscape
where mere troopers of the Skitarii would be engulfed in the
poisonous wastes and choking dust of the Martian deserts. Since that
time the Titan Legions have formed the backbone of the armies of the
Cult Mechanicus. Now, as a part of the Imperium of Mankind, they
serve the Emperor.
Of all the galaxy's fighting machines none can match the sheer size
and power of a Titan. The largest Titans bristle with weaponed
turrets and carry potent guns capable of destroying entire cities.
Inside the Titan's armored shell countless crew busy themselves with
their duties. Some operate the throbbing engines that propel the
machine enabling it to walk over the battlefield. Others direct its
potent weapons of destruction, guiding its turrets and aiming its
lethal missiles. A Titan is a ponderous battleship of the land. A
machine of such size and complexity that it is accompanied by
infantry and tanks so that it can deliver its substantial firepower
in the most effective way. Some Titans carry troops into battle,
their towering leg sections form mighty bastions from which squads
of troops attack the enemy.
The construction of a Titan takes many years. Centuries of endeavor
lie behind a single machine. The largest and oldest Titans of all
are held to contain a spark of the Machine God's divinity. They have
a holiness invested in them by virtue of their antiquity and
technical complexity, and the knowledge contained in their many
machine spirits. The Tech-Priests bedeck the Titans with banners
proclaiming their divine nature. On the eve of battle they anoint
the machines with blessed holly oil and perform the Mass of the Cult
Mechanicus before the entire legion. The sacred names of the Titans
are chanted amidst readings from the Manual Technicanum Titanicus.
To the Tech-Priests a Titan is more than a fighting machine it is an
aspect of the Machine God, a holy and worshipful creation of
Technology. To serve aboard a Titan is to serve the Machine God in
person. To die there is to be joined unerringly with the spirit of
the Machine God forever. Service aboard a Titan is the greatest that
a mere mortal can perform.
When the Cult Mechanicus first started re-exploring the galaxy and
establishing new Forge Worlds a complete Titan Legion of sixteen
machines was sent to protect the new colony and crush its enemies.
When the Emperor led mankind on the Great Crusade the Titan Legions
of the Adeptus Mechanicus marched alongside the Space Marines. As
the Imperium expanded the Adeptus Mechanicus took many worlds for
themselves, planets which they settled and turned into the
Mechanicus Forge Worlds. The became bases for the Titan Legions
throughout the Galaxy, so today the Titan Legions are spread across
the Imperium where they defend the scattered Forge Worlds of the
Adeptus Mechanicus.
Knowledge is Life, use it well
Liber Mechanicus Part XV
A History of the Servants of the Machine God
Gleaned from years of study of the STC
(WD,RT,2ndEd,3rdEd by Rick Priestley and others, mostly not original
work)
High Inquisitor Sigismondo
The exact number of Titans or Titan Legions is unknown, but as a
minimum it must be conjectured that each of the over 1,000 Forge
Worlds has a complete Titan Legion of sixteen machines. Demi-Legions
are often dispatched to aid Imperial forces against great threats
and, in times of emergency, whole legions may be sent to fight. In
the recent Third Campaign for Armageddon the Adeptus Mechanicus
dispatched four full Titan Legions, Ignatum, Invigilata, Tempestor,
and Victorum. The Demi-Legion Crucius and the Quarto-Legion Magna
were already on planet from the Second Armageddon Campaign, and the
Demi-Legion Metalica represented the survivors, repairs, and new
construction of the original Legio Metalica which was present on
Armageddon at the time of the First Campaign.
A simple calculation of strength is not enough however. The Legio
Ordo Sinister is the most elite and senior of the Titan Legions and
consists of only twelve Imperator class Titans. Under the command of
its renowned Grand Master Ferromort, the Legio Ordo Sinister has
been used exclusively for inspiring terror and obedience in those
who are in danger of disobeying the Pax Imperium. In this respect
the Legion often works in conjuction with the Adeptus Arbites, the
Inquisition and the Ecclesiarchy. The carefully planned assaults of
Grand Master Ferromort are famous for their precision, ferocity and
flawless execution. Great pains are taken to use the Legion as an
example of implacable and faceless Imperial efficiency. The Legion
remains an instrument of precision for the Imperium - a well-honed
sabre rather than the sledgehammer of planetary bombardment or the
broadsword of Space Marine intercession.
On the other hand, the Legio Destructor is probably the largest
Titan Legion, comprising over a hundred machines of all classes.
This is not surprising since the Forge World it defends lies only a
hundred light years from the Eye of Terror and on the edge of the
Ork empire known as Charadon. Led by their eccentric Grand Master
Thaedius Wilson the Legio Destructor have fought off numerous Ork
Waaaghs! and eruptions of Chaos from the Eye of Terror. It is
rumored in some areas of the Adeptus Mechanicus that the constant
exposure to Ork attacks has made the Legio Destructor increasingly
unorthodox in its outlook and behavior, particularly in its attitude
to battle and combat. The Princeps and crews of the Legio Destructor
hunger for battle with an unusual exuberance. So far this thirst for
battle has been viewed as a useful attribute, especially against
foes other than Orks who find the Legion a highly unsettling
opponents. But even the Fabricator General himself is believed to
have expressed surprise on hearing that the Titans of the Legio
Destructor are now fitted with sonic amplifiers so that the Legion
can reply to the Orks' howls with their own battle chant: " big
death, Big Death, BIG DEATH!"
The sixteen machines of Legio Metalica were on Armageddon at the
start of the first campaign against Ork Warlord Ghazghkull uruk Mag
Thraka. After the assassination of the Legion's Grand Master,
Princeps Senioris Kurt Mannheim was ordered by the foolish and
erratic, and now Traitor, Overlord of Armageddon, Herman von Strab
to go out unsupported and destroy the Ork invaders. By Imperial law
Princeps Senioris Mannheim was compelled to obey and the almost
complete destruction of Legio Metalica forms an exemplar of duty and
honor in the face of adversity for the entire Imperium of Man.
Although outnumbered three to one the Legion destroyed many more
than its own numbers of Ork Gargants and many of their supporting
troops. Titan Steel Hammer commanded by Princeps Senioris Mannheim
destroyed three Gargants before becoming seriously damaged but even
then he pressed on into the heart of the Ork army before his plasma
reactor exploded. The attack and explosion, and a flank attack by
Servitor forces from Armageddon's factories enabled some wrecked
machines to be recovered and the damaged survivors to withdraw. At
the end of the campaign Mannheim was posthumously awarded the
Emperor's Star for his bravery and loyalty to the Imperium. The
Legion has been rebuilt and has won acclaim in the subsequent
campaigns for Armageddon.
During the Horus Heresy a number of Titan Legions were corrupted or
co-opted by the Warmaster's forces. The most notorious of these was
the Legio Mortis. The Legio Mortis was in direct support of
Warmaster Horus before his daemon-possessed treachery against the
Emperor. The Legio Mortis followed him willingly. When the Horus
Heresy began by the virus-bombing of Istvaan III, it was the Legio
Mortis which made the landings to scour the corpse-packed hives for
the pitifully few survivors. Some say that it was mutated strains of
this virus which brought about their final corruption. When the
Legio Mortis landed on Earth to besiege the Emperor's palace they
were warped and mutated almost beyond recognition. The adamatium
skins of their Titans were pocked and bubbled with foul effluvia,
great tentacles of flesh and metal lashed and their titan heads had
been transformed into drooling daemonic visages.
The remnants of the Legion fled to the Eye of Terror following the
collapse of the rebellion and, from time to time, Chaos Titans
bearing the tattered banners of the Legio Mortis have attacked human
planets to wreak terrible vengeance on all living things for the
defeat of their beloved Warmaster.
From the above examples it can be seen that the fighting power of
the one thousand known Adeptus Mechanicus Titan Legions must easily
exceed that of all the Chapters of the Adeptus Astartes combined,
and that with only the forces we know about. The numbers of the
cohorts Knights and Castellians cannot be less than the number of
Titan Legions and the number of their machines cannot be less than
ten times more than the number of Titans. These forces spend most of
their time protecting the planets of the Adeptus Mechanicus and so
their true strength and numbers are not revealed.
Knowledge is Life, use it well
Liber Mechanicus Part XVI
A History of the Servants of the Machine God
Gleaned from years of study of the STC
(WD,RT,2ndEd,3rdEd by Rick Priestley and others, mostly not original
work)
High Inquisitor Sigismondo
The Explorators are the most mysterious and secretive of the regular
forces of the Adeptus Mechanicus. The Titan Legions stride their way
mightily into battle raining death on their enemies from all
weapons. The great regiments of the Skitarii are often seen fighting
alongside the Imperial Guars or even Space Marines in the defense of
their factories and shrines. As a coherent force, the Explorators
are almost never used in pitched battle.
The Explorator are the elite of the Adeptus Mechanicus, sent on only
the most important mission, the quest for knowledge. It is the
Explorators who are tasked with the recovery of STC information and
other lost or alien technolgies. It is often easier to take such
technology from the other alien races than it is to spend the
necessary centuries deciphering the incomplete STC texts. The
Explorators also perform the important function of tracking down and
eliminating all those who perform heretic research, not dedicated to
the Machine God and under the auspices of the Techno-Magi and Tech-
Priests.
The work of the Explorators is as much a holy quest as it is a
military mission, and so the Explorator forces combine the functions
of the Inquisition, the Adepta Sororitas and the Adeptus Astartes
within the Cult Mechanicus. They travel the galaxy in their unusual
black ships, mounting prodigious experimental weapons of
destruction, awaiting word of STC rumors or discovery of ancient
technology. Then they swoop in to claim what there is for the
Adeptus Mechanicus and the Machine God.
The origin of the Explorators dates from the time of reconstruction
on Mars when parties of Tech-Guard and Tech-Priests, supported by
Cult Warriors, would venture out to retrieve lost technology. Many
times it was necessary to take this technology by force. In some
cases the technology was worshipped by those who held it, in other
cases it was responsible for their very survival, so they would
fight to the death to protect it.
A typical Explorator force consists of three components. First there
are the Cult Warriors of the College Cults, all Tech-Priests of one
of the research Colleges and an expert in the forms of high-tech
death practiced by that College. The College Cult warriors are
usually lead by a Rune-Priest Warrior whose whole life is dedicated
to the use of his technologies in the art of war. The most common
Colleges which produce Cult Warriors are Thermodynamicus, Alchemys,
Physic, Technicus, Aeronauticus, Graviticus, Mechanicus Technologus,
and of course the famed and feared fanatic Cult Warriors of the
College Elctromagneticus, the Electro-Priests. There are many other
Colleges who produce small numbers of warriors and still more
Colleges whose technologies are not so easily turned to the sharp
end of warfare. However, without the Lexmechanics of College
Lexicanus, the Transmechanics, Genetors, Artisans, Logi and
Engineers nothing the Cult Mechanicus does would be possible.
Secondly there are the Scholars themselves. These are organized much
like the Hypaspists of the Skitarii, but because of the holy nature
of their works, they must all be Adepts, dedicated fully to the
Machine God. Scholars form the bulks of most Explorator forces and
many of them are preparing for admission to the mysteries of one of
the College Cults. Only the most worthy are elevated to the ranks of
the Scholar Retrievers or Cleansers found in Explorator forces. Like
Hypaspists, the Scholars are supported by a variety of anti-grav
heavy weapons platforms and heavy weapon bearing walkers including
Robots.
Thirdly there are the vehicles of the Explorator force. These are
maintained by the College Cult Graviticus, and because of the rapid
strike nature of the Explorator forces, they are all skimmers of one
sort or another. The College Cult Graviticus warriors fight on the
last remaining Imperial Jetbikes in common service. Jetbikes were
once common, but unknown changes in the universe have made it much
harder for the Litanies of Leviataion to produce grav plates
suitable for jetbike service. The resulting jetbikes require much
maintenance and so they are restricted to the Cult Graviticus, and
Explorator forces. This is also true of the Thunderbolt tank and
Rapier Laser Destroyer Tank, and the Jaguar attack transport. Land
Speeders are quite commonly used by Explorator forces, and it is
also not unusual for them to use new and experimental weaponry,
recently rediscovered, or undergoing trials before being made more
widely available.
The exact number of Explorator ship and the forces they contain is
unknown, but each vessel or small fleet can deploy up to about 1,000
troops of all sorts, making its strength similar to that of a
Chapter of the Adeptus Astartes, although with considerably less
endurance and resilience as a fighting force, but possessing a punch
not much less powerful. It would be foolish to assume that there is
fewer than one Explorator ship or small fleet for each Forge World.
Accordingly, it can be estimated that the strength of the Explorator
forces approximate that of the Adeptus Astartes.
Knowledge is Life, use it well
Liber Mechanicus Part XVII
A History of the Servants of the Machine God
Gleaned from years of study of the STC
(WD,RT,2ndEd,3rdEd by Rick Priestley and others, mostly not original
work)
High Inquisitor Sigismondo
In addition to the regular forces of the Titan Legions, the Tech
Guard and the Explorators, there is another irregular force of the
Adeptus Mechanicus, in some ways more terrible than all the rest.
These are the giant and unusual war machines of the Ordinatus.
These huge engines of destruction are not attached to any specific
force. Instead, all of the Ordinatus war machines are under the
direct control of the Centurio Ordinatus. It is the Centurio
Ordinatus who decide if these highly specialized machines are to be
made available, since many of them are ancient indeed and require a
large amount of devotion, preparation and maintenance to ready them
for war.
The Ordinatus themselves are amongst the strangest machines ever to
be constructed by the Adeptus Mechanicus. Almost all of them were
originally ddesigned and built for a particular battle, campaign or
purpose, and some have never been powered up for conflict since. One
example of this is Ordinatus Priam. This huge tunneling machine was
assembled during the siege of Priam, a city overrun by the traitor
forces in the Horus Heresy. The immense creation was designed to
tunnel through the planet's crust and then navigate through the
white-hot mantle underneath. This rendered it undetectable to
Priam's defenses and allowed four companies of elite Imperial Guard
troops to storm the city's Generatum Vulcanis, breaking the siege.
However, the Ordinatus Priam was irrevocably damaged in the attack
as parts of its shielding have way to the heat of the molten rock.
Other Ordinatus have weapons and capabilities which see more general
use, and demand for them is high. Only in the most important battles
or campaigns are the Ordinatus sent to war, and even than only for
specific operartions. Amongst the enemies of the Imperium, the names
of the Ordinatus are spoken with reverent fear, their devastating
capabilities displayed on thousands of battlefields since the
Emperor's ascension to the Golden Throne.
The Cult Mechanicus revere the Ordinatus as avatars of the Machine
God, creations of such cunning and power that they could never be
improved or outdated. Thus they have been carefully maintained, and
when sent to war they are inscribed with sacred runes, anointed with
the most precious oils and unguents, and blessed by the Lord of the
Centurio Ordinatus. Their crews are the most highly trained of the
Skitarii, warriors who fight with the zealous fanaticism of those
who serve a living god.
The Ordinatus are renowned for their relentless advance towards the
enemy, trailing havoc and destruction in their wake, shrugging off
blows mighty enough to incapacitate a Titan. Ordinatus are powered
by immense plasma generators which drive their propulsion systems,
energize their weapons systems, and activate their shields and
defense systems. Such grat power is packed into a relatively small
space, and if the Ordinatus is destroyed, it destruction in a vast
ball of roiling plasma may yet accomplish its objective.
Ordinatus of the Adeptus Mechanicus are protected by a massive force
wall known as a dispersion field. Projectiles and energy bolts
deflect harmlessly away from the crackling shell of power leaving
the Ordinatus unscathed. Unfortunately the immense power needed for
the dispersion filed will eventually overload the generators. This
means that what starts out as a near impenetrable force field
gradually weakens as the battle progresses, letting more and more
enemy fire through. The force wall also extends into warp space and
provides the Ordinatus with some psychic protection in much the same
was as a void shield.
Some examples of Ordinat
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Received on Wed Mar 12 2003 - 16:28:55 UTC