Storm Wraiths

"The Storm is not born of hatred, boy, but that does not mean that hatred is not a part of it. The hatred we feel is ignited by the injustices done by our enemies; the treacherous raids of the Drukhari, the blind, bumbling destruction of the Orks, the treachery and ruination of our former Brothers, a myriad more. But it is the compassion we feel for our fellow man that births our Storm. The sight of a mother and her child, happy and content in a life that we ourselves may never know; the farmer at ease with his flock, afraid of not but the predators what cower in the forest; these are what fuel our Storm, Neophyte. This is what it means to be a Storm Wraith. We are the storm what clears the skies so that The Sun may shine again; we are the wraith, seen but never touched, furious and unresting, forever haunting our foes so that those who follow us may never need to sleep in fear."

- Chapter Master Arcturion Heimlenn, to a Neophyte of the 10th Company, 904.M35

A Chapter with a history now nearly as old as the Imperium itself, the Storm Spectres are a Loyalist Chapter that until just recently was of both an unknown Founding and an unknown lineage amongst the Loyalist Chapters. Hailing from the Amerikon Sector of the Segmentum Tempestus -- a galactic hop, skip and jump to the west of the Cardinal World of Ophelia VII --The Storm Spectres have been known by many as an influential buffer for the many systems of the inner Imperium against the forces that invade from the Galactic South, ranging from Ork WAAAGHs! and Chaos incursions to small Tyranid Splinter Fleets.

Known for strong forward assaults from both land and sky, protected by powerful squads of rare Tartaros Tactical Dreadnought Armor and supported by tank destroyers, their famed usage of Legion-era armor and armaments has led to a legacy of being a "ghost chapter" of sorts, armored in legend and regularly wielding weapons that to other Chapters would be priceless relics fit for the First Company only; Storm Spectres see futility in such a mindset.

The Second Founding and The Missing Millennia
"Considering everything I have seen, everything I have heard, every enemy I have encountered that my Legionnaires would have never dreamed of fighting, every aggravating act of bureaucratic nonsense that has incited a headache, every tactical blunder or failure to adapt on our part, it is a small relief to see that one thing has not changed." "What is that, Sir?" "That the Storm Wraiths are still as stubborn, brash, trigger-happy and unwaveringly compassionate to our mortal kin as they were when I first formed their Chapter."

- Roboute Guilliman and Uriel Ventris after their meeting with the Storm Spectres, 063.M42 In the wake of the Horus Heresy, the Imperium was left in a broken, vengeful state. With The Emperor of Mankind entombed on the Golden Throne, the Primarchs Sanguinius and Ferrus Manus dead at the hands of their brothers and half of the Legions now having betrayed the Imperium for the decadent promises of the Gods of Chaos, an angry and frayed Imperium of Man began to retaliate, the surviving Loyalist Legions thundering across the galaxy in an attempt to either destroy the Traitors or drive them into the permanent Warpstorm known as the Eye of Terror.

During that same time, the Primarch of the Ultramarines Legion -- Roboute Guilliman -- had seen fit to restructure the Legions for a new era; one where the threat of rebellion was less likely to cause such devastation as was seen in the dark days of the Heresy. With a mindset towards defending the rebuilding Imperium, Guilliman -- with some controversy -- penned the Codex Astartes, the core guide for Astartes to learn from and add upon as the threat of new and greater foes arose. In this document, Guilliman proposed to divide the Legions into individual Chapters of 1,000 Astartes each, spread out across the galaxy to guard the Imperium: a mighty shield wall of sorts rather than a massive singular lance of conquest. Among those created during what would one day become known as the Second Founding were the 23 Primogenitors of the Ultramarines Legion, the direct descendant Chapters of the original XIII Legion. Included in this roster were the likes of the Genesis Chapter, the Patriarchs of Ulixis, the Praetors of Orpheus, the Silver Skulls, the Doom Eagles and several others. However, there has been a debate into the matter of a group of eight Chapters recorded in the original copy of the Codex Astartes, the Apocrypha of Skaros; out of the 23 Primogenitors, 8 of them have been lost to time as the ancient book has slowly decayed at the hands of time.

Unbeknownst to many in the 41st Millennium, the Storm Spectres are among the ranks of the Primogenitors; a conglomeration of some of Gulliman's more wanderlusting sons, those who were too emotionally tethered to their mortal kin and were headstrong--sometimes to their own detriment--were the Legionnaires brought together to form the original Storm Spectres Chapter. To some, this would be seen as a foolhardy tactic to employ; but the mind of the XIII Primarch is a maze to even the most well-studied strategist, and few have seen fit to enquire him on the matter, save for the members of the Storm Spectres who have met him in person and the likes of Cato Sicarius and Uriel Ventris.

Unfortunately, it was not just their original Founding that remained a mystery to most; Early records of the chapter from the mid-31st to the early 33rd Millennium have been few and far between due to both a combination of Adeptus Administratum mishaps and unknown outside forces--whether this was the work of Chaos remains to be seen.

The Age of Apostasy and the Reign of Blood
"These are trying times that we now see before us. The Ecclesiarchy and the Administratum must come to terms and act in balance, lest the whims of our enemies come to fruition upon the backs of our malcontent and quarrels. And yet here we stand, unable to do anything but strike at Vandire's heels, unable to tip the scales and unable to stand idly by, either. Ghosts never meddle in the greater scope of mortal affairs, Talos, but they whisper their wisdom and nudge the world around their mortal kin. If we cannot intercede directly, perhaps we may yet nudge things in the right direction."

- Chapter Master Arcturion Heimlenn and 5th Captain Talos Hanchriss, addressing the Reign of Blood

As suggested by records from the era, very little of note occured with the Storm Wraiths leading up to the 36th Millennium. While part of this is due to a dearth of records to begin with, what has survived has been mostly been conventional for a force operating out of the Segmentum Tempestus; Ork Waaagh counter-operations, the occasional elimination of Chaos forces on a planet, even an Exterminatus of a Nurgle-afflicted Agri-World in the Firenze Cluster was reported in 723.M35. It is more-recently presumed that in the intervening and uncatalogued centuries that the Chapter was established on their Homeworld of Abnoba Secundus and the cultural milestones of the Chapter were established. During this time the Galaxy saw few quarrels of significant note, outside of the odd Crusade of both Imperial and Chaos varieties and a few political scuffles.

However, this would change not long afterwards with the arrival of the Imperium's most tumultuous time since the dark and bleak days of the Horus Heresy. With the beginnings of the Age of Apostasy, the Storm Wraiths could see the rift between the Ecclesiarchy and the Administratum growing by the day with ease; rightly so, they feared for what it might bring to the Imperium's doorstep while the High Lords and Ecclesiarchs bickered and fueded like children while the wolves were on the prowl.

During much of the Age of Apostasy, the Storm Wraiths actively declared that, despite their disagreement with the Imperial Cult, they would protect the Cardinal World Ophelia VII from any threats that dare to attack the sacred world of the Imperial people, a feat that was very feasible due to the near proximity of Abnoba Secundus to Ophelia VII. Despite this, they were openly-vocal opponents of Goge Vandire's tyrannical rule, undermining his claims quite often. As a result, the Storm Wraiths gained the ire of the rogue Ecclesiarch, who eventually threatened to blockade the Abnoba System in retaliation. Begrudgingly, the chapter was forced to back down.

The stalemate between the megalomaniacal Goge Vandire and the Storm Wraiths remained in effect for four decades before it finally fell by the wayside with the rise of Sebastian Thor's rebellion. Oddly enough, despite their philosophical differences, the Storm Wraiths were quick to contact the religiously-fueled rebellion and pledge their support to Thor's campaign should he call upon them; despite their secular views on the matter of The Emperor of Mankind, to the Storm Wraiths it was better that the religious fervor of the people drop Vandire to his knees rather than the Astartes themselves, lest another Heresy break out amongst their ranks. However, through unknown (read: Inquisitorial, no doubt) means, Vandire caught wind of Thor and the Storm Wraith's alliance, threatening to declare the chapter as Excommunicate Traitoris should they act upon said alliance. This however, came at the crucial point in which Thor's Covenant of the Light began to reach its fever pitch, amassing control of several systems within the cult's immediate reach; the actions of the chapter's high command could very well mean the difference in the Chapter's power remaining or the Chapter being doomed to destruction.

Vandire's Rebuttal and the Siege of Abnoba Secundus
"By your own damnable hand have you let the Imperium rot and fester, Vandire, and by the hand of Man and Astartes alike shall your filth be burned from The Emperor's kingdom as it so rightfully should have been a long time ago. Whether or not our cousin-Chapters receive this message does not matter. Whether or not the people of Ophelia and of Necromunda, of Armageddon, of Luna, of Mars, or of Terra pay heed to our words and throw down the bloodied shackles that have held them beneath your accursed grip does not matter. What matters is what you will hear from us, Goge Vandire, and to you, on behalf of the Storm Wraiths of Abnoba Secundus, Protectors of Tempestus and Guardians of Ophelia VII, I say to you this: Go to Hell."

- The final paragraph of Chapter Master Arcturion Heimlenn's, Address to Goge Vandire on the Damages Done to the Greater Imperium of Man

in a calculated risk, then-Chapter Master Arcturion Heimlenn challenged Vandire's threats in a three-hour-long vox-recorded dissertation and deconstruction of Goge Vandire's damages, betrayals and deceptions against the people of the Imperium, the organizations put in power to protect the Imperium and even The Emperor Himself.

Chapter Recruitment
For the Storm Wraiths, the task or recruitment is not particularly difficult, at least for the Astartes themselves. Prior to their first contact with Primarch Roboute Guilliman in 066.M42, almost all Neophytes were recruited from the homogenous populace of Abnoba Secundus, with very rare exemptions.

Combat Doctrine
The Storm Spectres are known for being a very brazen and bold chapter when in combat across the Galaxy, fighting in a way that some would compare to the likes of the Legiones Astartes of yesteryears. While tactical flexibility has always been a trademark of them--an understandable feature considering their ties to Roboute Guilliman and the Ultramarines -- they have also relied on very bold and brash frontal assaults, bringing to bear many fast-moving units to reach the frontline and provide a distraction and or a crippling of their enemies while the mainline Tactical Marines and their vehicle escorts bring up the rear. It is common to also see mass deployments of First Company members into the thick of battle, Tartaros Terminator forces and Vanguard Veteran squadrons leaping into the fray to slice their way into the enemy lines like a razor-sharp spearhead.

Notable Quotes
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By the Storm Spectres
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