Index Astartes: Inferno Knights (Version II)

Updates (06/04/11):
- Expanded upon the Belief section.
- Expanded upon the Gene-seed section.
- Expanded upon the Recruitment section.
- Some minor edits and name changes.

As always, comments and constructive criticisms were appreciated.


PRIMARCH: Jaghatai Khan
PARENT CHAPTER: White Scars
FOUNDING: 821.M37, Part of the 22nd Founding

BATTLECRIES

“May every strike of our blades uphold our vows to the Chapter!”
“Through the wrath of the inferno shall the tainted be cleansed!”
“We shall be the guiding light that burns in the darkest days of war!”
“Justice, our vow; death, our method.”
“Release the inferno, Brothers!”
“By our deeds we shall ignite the flames of purity!”

ORIGINS

In the wake of the 7th Black Crusade, otherwise known as the Ghost War, a consensus was made by the High Lords of Terra to establish a handful of new Space Marine Chapters. These Chapters will be mainly posted in systems near the Eye of Terror, in defence against another similar attempt by the forces of Chaos, and would later be included as a part of the 22nd Founding.

As the sixth Chapter out of the group to be found, the Inferno Knights, then merely designated as Chapter 822, was amongst the first to be trained up and declared battle-ready. Their worth yet to be proven, they were assigned to quell an emerging rebellion in the strategically important Arturia system together with their parent Chapter the White Scars. Governor Morus of Emerath, though having turned himself and the planet under his control away from the Emperor’s light, posed more of an annoyance than a threat to the greater Imperium. Still, the heretic had the potential to become something far more dangerous should his heresy spread through the system, and as such this uprising was perfectly suited to test a newborn Chapter against the foul corruption of the Warp.

Created from the gene-seed stock of the White Scars, and watched over by a full company of their parent Chapter during their development, the Inferno Knights marines held their progenitor in high regard and followed in their affinity for fast strikes. It was through these tactics, and that of multiple successful precision assaults in key strategic locations, including the capturing of the governor’s fortified estate and the governor himself, that had swiftly brought the Arturia system back into the fold of the Imperium.

Their capabilities proven, Chapter 822 was deemed fit for independent deployment, and the Arturia system was left in their hands as their White Scars mentors returned to their own duties. The Chapter, having received control of the system, immediately began reformation of its six planets, which after millennia of development would become some of the most efficient and productive powerhouses in the sector with a degree of personal freedom somewhat better than most Imperial worlds. In particular was Arturia, designated Homeworld of the Chapter now known as the Inferno Knights, and the location of its Fortress Monastery Conflagration, whose powerful industries would go onto becoming a major supplier of plasteel and adamantium in the whole sector.

To this day they guarded the system and the greater Arite sector with unwavering loyalty to the Imperium of Man and the Emperor, diligently cleansing the taint of xenos and heretics from their area of responsibility. Their actions had so far renowned them for their honour and piety, if unnerved some Imperial citizens for their absolute ruthlessness in their elimination of their enemies.

BELIEFS

Similar to many of the Chapters found in the vast Imperium, the Inferno Knights have their own views and beliefs that were different from the Imperial Creed upheld by the Ecclesiarchy, courtesy of their First Founding mentors. They venerate Jaghatai Khan as the Primarch of the White Scars Legion and as a master of war, and the Emperor as the War Father that lead the men of the Imperium into an age of glory.

Though the Chapter as a whole was taught and trained to be humble of their status as Astartes and to fight as a single brotherhood, the cultures of their homeworld had gradually seeped in, and personal honour had become an important aspect of the Inferno Knights. Ritual duels were conducted between the marines whenever a perceived slight had been identified, where combatants were to compete in both intellect and martial prowess through a set of two contests, and all disputes were to be dissolved after duel. To continue a dispute was seen as a sign of weakness, and was looked down upon unless it was of a clearly exceptional matter.

Befitting their Chapter’s name, fire rites had become a part of the Inferno Knights’ most important rituals, especially those to the honoured dead. Ritualistic funeral pyres, resulted from Arturian practices due to hard grounds, were conducted even during the direst of campaigns. Though their duty to the Emperor and the greater Imperium came first, brothers of the Chapter will nonetheless defend their fallen to the bitter end, even if their holy gene-seeds have already been retrieved, so that the dead may pass on towards His side through the funeral rites conducted by the revered Chaplains. The ashes of the fallen would then be spread upon the ground they had died on, and their names forever etched onto both the Chapter’s Roster of the Dead, and the Obelisk of Memorial situated within the mighty warship they last served upon.

As a Chapter of Astartes, the Inferno Knights held themselves to a higher standard of practice than to the wider Imperium. While most marines had their own thoughts and views, a general belief was that the unaugmented human populace were inexperienced cubs. They saw them as capable of praise worthy deeds of a level comparable to an Astartes, yet were hampered by insufficient tutelage and a short lifespan. As such, while the Inferno Knights were exceedingly ruthless against their enemies -especially heretics, for the Chapter marines believed had betrayed their potential in their weakness- they were generally ambivalent towards the faithful.

ORGANISATION AND COMBAT DOCTRINES

As a Chapter that follows fairly closely to the Codex Astartes written by Roboute Guilliman, Primarch of the Ultramarines, the Inferno Knights acknowledge the organisation of the Chapter and the lifestyle emphasised on the great tome. Separated into ten whole companies, the only significant deviation from the Codex was the establishment of two assault reserves instead of one, and the greater emphasis on fast strikes in standard company formations. This was due to their affinity and appreciation of the tactics taught by their parent Chapter, which had led them to successes after successes. In a similar vein, the Chapter contains few Librarians, as the Chapter system’s proximity to the Eye of Terror demanded a much harsher selection regime for psychically gifted recruits. This harsh selection, however, resulted in Librarians that were highly devoted and pure, and as such the Chapter boast no incidents of corruption from its most Warp-lenient brethren.

The Inferno Knights were commanded chiefly by the Chapter Master, the Master of Sanctity and, by proving himself pure through the rigorous scrutinies and tests within the Reclusiam, the Chief Librarian. General tactics of the Chapter included the use of land speeders and bike, and each Battle Company has two dedicated Techmarines looking after company vehicles. Drop pod assaults were also a frequently used tactic of the Inferno Knights, while heavy armours were mostly reserved for large scale engagements though still utilised when the situation calls for it. This affinity to the use of war machines, together with their bond with the forge world of the Adeptus Mechanicus, resulted in them boasting a larger armoury than most Chapters.

Another practice that separates the Inferno Knights from many Chapters was the tradition of holding a Day of Reflection at the end of each year. On that day, Space Marines of the Chapter gather together to share their tales and the legends of old, gaining new insights of war from their brothers and learning through past mistakes of their predecessors. It was through this tradition of critical introspection that makes the Astartes an even more formidable force than they already were, for while many Chapters refused such a practice due perhaps to pride or their own traditions, the Inferno Knights gained valuable experience to which they would use to better serve the Emperor and the Imperium.

GENE-SEED

The Inferno Knights were direct descendants of the White Scars, their Chapter having received the honour of being picked to be created using their First Founding brethren’s gene-seed stock, and as such the Chapter suffers from no known mutations, maintaining all nineteen organ implants in pure format. Storage of their gene-seeds were safely guarded under the Fortress Monastery, kept secured on the lowest underground level with highly sophisticated surveillance and defence platforms, courtesy of their neighbouring Forge World, guarding every corners and entry points to the vault. In addition, gene-seeds extracted from the Chapter’s Librarians were held separate from those of regular marines, ensuring that possible corruptions from the Warp were kept at a minimum.

RECRUITMENT

With a handful of worlds under the Chapter’s jurisdiction, the large population of the system ensured that the Inferno Knights recruited its new members mostly from within the six planets. Most recruits came from either Arturia or Shavll, and a handful from the more violent underhives of Emerath. Marines coming from outside the Arturia system was not unheard of, as the Inferno Knights would occasionally came across promising children during their struggle against the Imperium’s enemies, although it was indeed a rare occasion, and to date only one marine ever made it past the rank of Sergeant before joining at the Emperor’s side.

Basic training for the neophytes and newly inducted Scouts were conducted on the Isitius camps, and incorporates a dynamic program that teaches them both tactics and skills against any perceivable threats, with an emphasis on the Chapter’s speciality in fast strikes. During field assignments, new Scouts were first assigned towards the bike squads and Landspeeder squads, where they would acquire the reflexes needed to steer their war-machine in any meaningful manner as a weapon. Following thus, they would join the grounded forces, where they would continue to hone their skills until their graduation into full Space Marines.

HOMEWORLD

Arturia
Segmentum: Obscurus
Sector: Arite
Sub-Sector: Arturia
System: Arturia System
Population: 12,000,000,000
Affiliation: Imperium
Class: Knight World
Tithe Grade: Adeptus Non
The Capitol of Sub-Sector Arturia, Arturia was a knight world with a rugged landscape; mineral-rich mountains provide an abundance amount of material for its power industries, with plasteel and adamantium production being the planet’s primary export. Separated into three main continents, most of Arturia’ surface was composed of rocky, mountainous terrains, with shallow seas dividing the landmasses. It was the second planet from its binary red dwarf stars, and was in itself self-sufficient.

The planet retains a feudal structure in its government, with a distinct hierarchy composed of seven caste levels. Each level was assigned a specific parameter of available occupations, allowed possessions, allowed child numbers and personal rights. With governing reformations by the Inferno Knights, a series of competitive contests called The Gauntlet were held every decade for the new generations of Arturia citizens, where they would be assigned to a specific level dependent on their contest outcomes. This system was directly overseen by the Space Marine Chapter, and was effective in maintaining a strong power structure where potential was not wasted and nobility-born kept humble knowing inheritance was not an option. In the event that exceptionally accomplishing contestants emerges, or that contestants fulfil the specific set of achievements in the voluntarily-invoked contest The Gladiate, where one engage in single combat against a full-fledge Space Marine, the contestants will also be given the option to be inducted into Astartes training.

With strong ties to the forge world of the Adeptus Mechanicus, Aeolia, Arturia boast a highly sophisticated level of technology and defensive fortification, including a Ramilies class starfort in its orbit. The planet was also the location to the Fortress Monastery of the Inferno Knights, situated to the southern fringes of the planet surrounded by some of the most dangerous mountain ranges known in the star system, the Hellsblade Peaks.

Arturia had a single glacial moon named Isitius. It had been fortified as the planet’s main space port and as the second line of defence of the planet, and was also the location of the primary training camps for new Astartes recruits and local planetary defence forces. Massive underground chambers were also established within the moon in coalition with surface camps, which together provide recruits a large range of combat training conditions and thus gives them a higher chance for survival during active scout duty.

SYSTEM WORLDS