Great fluff!!!
I'm working on an Adeptus Mechanicus codex too... it's in the files
section here (it's the Titan Legions codex)
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/netepic/files/Net%20Epic%205/AntiChrist%
27s%20Ideas/
--- In netepic_at_yahoogroups.com, "talos402000" <tamah0me_at_b...> wrote:
> 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
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Received on Wed Mar 12 2003 - 17:41:56 UTC