Emperor's Wardens

"In war we win, in peace we guard, in death we serve."

- Motto of the Emperor's Wardens The Emperor's Wardens are a loyalist not Codex-compliant Space Marines chapter of unknown Founding and progenitor who are known for their compassion towards the average humans of the Imperium and their desire to protect the defenceless.

The chapter comes from the world of Archonia, a feudal world governed for millenia by nobles and protected by valourous knights, the Chevaliers of Archonia, who defend its people against the dangers of the galaxy and beyond. This order is very important within the chapter and the Emperor's Wardens are known for following the same traditions.

The chapter homeworld is located within the Segmentum Ultima. This is a cold world with few flora and dangerous beasts on its surface.

Chapter History
"You are the Wardens ! Your duty is to protect the Emperor's people ! To protect his domain against the vile creatures that infest the galaxy !"

- Lieutenant Julius Han'tol of the 1st Great House "The Justiciars" The chapter protective nature comes from the teachings of the Chevaliers of Archonia, an ancient and very important order of knights that existed on Archonia for more than a millenium. The order is composed of selfless warriors who only fight to protect the ones who can't defend themselves.

These teachings have forged the chapter as we know it today, being one of the most protective chapter towards the average people of the Imperium of Man.

Also, because of a history of bloody and murderous crusades on their homeworld, the Emperor's Wardens, like most of the population of Archonia, scorn religious fanaticism. This belief have already led them to clash with the Ecclesiarchy and the Adeptus Mechanicus on occasions.

Chapter Organisation
"Hierarchy and structure are the backbones of our Chapter. Never forget your place within it my Brothers, or it will be our doom."

- Warden-Commander Alistair Stroud of the 1st Great House "The Justiciars" The chapter doesn't follow the Codex Astartes and have major change in its organisation and structure. Like the titles it used : Also, the chapter is not divided into 10 Companies but into 5 Great Houses, led by a Warden-Commander, and into 14 Minor Houses, led by a Warden-Captain. They also do not maintain neither a Veteran Company nor a Scout Company, each one being separated into different Houses.
 * Chapter Master => First Warden
 * Captain => Warden-Commander or Warden-Captain
 * Veteran => Senior Warden
 * Scout => Warden-Recruit
 * Chaplain => Warden-Vigilant (Master of Sanctity => Grand Vigilant)
 * Libarian => Warden-Lexicanium ; Warden-Codicier ; Warden-Epistolary ; Warden-Enchanter

Each Houses is divided into squads composed of 3, 5 or 10 Astartes. The Tactical, Assault, Devastator and Scout Squads are composed of 10 Marines, the Intercessor, Reiver and Hellblaster Squads are composed of 5 Marines and the Inceptor, Aggresor and Biker Squads are composed of 3 Marines. The Veteran Squads are always composed of 5 Marines.

Furthermore, because of their mistrust of religious supertition and zeal, their Warden-Vigilants are drawn from the Chevaliers of Archonia, to be sure that the tradions of the order are carried by the chapter and that the Ecclesiarchy will not change their beliefs.

Finally, Primaris Space Marines and Lieutenants have been incorporated within the existing Houses since the Ultima Founding and the end of the Indomitus Crusade.

The 5 Great Houses
1st Great House "The Justiciars" 2nd Great House "The Guardians" 3rd Great House "The Besiegers" 4th Great House "The Knight's Rage" 5th Great House "The Commandos"
 * Led by Warden-Commander Alistair Stroud, the First House is renown for its zeal in its duty. They always seek to avenge the weak and to punish the guilty, in the most gruesome ways possible. Furthermore, the Great House is also followed by an Imperial Knight Freeblade, only known as "Crimson Shield", who has forsaken his own Knight House to serve with the Wardens to redeem himself from the mistakes he made in the past.
 * Led by Warden-Commander Riordan Cousland, the Second House is charged with the protection of the Chapter's fortress-monastery. They are the best in defence and siege holding of all the chapter.
 * Led by Warden-Commander Clarel, the Third House is composed with the specialists of siege warfare. They can take any fortress giving enough time and ressources.
 * Led by Warden-Commander Dryden Hawke, the Fourth House hosts the most brutal and vicious Battle-Brothers of the Chapter.
 * Led by Warden-Commander Thom Mhairi, the Fifth House contains the specialists of guerilla warfare. They make use of stealth and subltelty rather than brute force.

Great Houses Structure
Each Great Houses have around 100 Astartes and they all follow a similar structure :

The Minor Houses
The structure and organisation of the Minor Houses are very different, they have to be mainly composed of Warden-Recruits and only hosts around 30 full Astartes with almost no Primaris Astartes. Usually, they are used as reinforcement for one of the Great Houses but they also can wage war on their own.

The chapter technically maintain 15 Minor Houses, but since the betrayal of the 13th, they only have 14 Minor Houses, the First Warden having sworn that there would be no other 13th until the utter destruction of the Traitors.

Known Minor Houses
7th Minor House "The Paladins" : 13thMinor House "The Martyrs" (Excommunicate Traitoris) :
 * Led by Warden-Captain Garahel Tius, this House has been sent in 546.M40 to eradicate the rebels and heretics from a world of the Segmentum Tempestus. A Chaos Cult have been able to take control over the planet and the Traitors started a ritual to turn it into a Daemon World. Garahel Tius, who was only a House's Champion, has been promoted to the rank of Warden-Captain and has been sent to the rebelious planet to bring back order. After months of bloodshed, he managed to kill the cult leaders and to prevent the Exterminatus, saving billions of citizens.
 * Led by Warden-Captain Jozief Bosch, this House has been sent to protect the world of Dir Nol Prime against an incoming Ork Waaagh! in 056.M42. Unfortunately, even if they managed to evacuate the civilians of the planet, they weren't able to eradicate the xenos filth. They all have been considered dead after the Inquisition ordered the Exterminatus. It is only decades later, when the Renegade Space Marines warband named the "Emperor's Martyrs" appeared, that the Imperium find out they survived the Exterminatus. But now, they have chosen to fight on their own, serving the Emperor's Imperial Truth and not the Imperium.

Chapter Beliefs
"Never forget your duty to Mankind, for you are among its best defenders !"

- First Warden Duncan Thaddeum

The Code of Archonia
The Emperor's Wardens follow the Code of Archonia, which consist of hundreds of rules that governs their way of life. These rules came from the order of the Chevaliers of Archonia, with whom the chapter is bound by a century old tradition.

The Five Tenets
The Wardens also follow the Five Tenets, which have been created by the first First Warden of their chapter and which are the most sacred laws they have : These Tenets unite the chapter to the Imperium and its people, and they must never be broken in any circumstances.
 * Protect the defenceless, because it is our only purpose.
 * Honour the Emperor, because He is our Guardian.
 * Watch the psykers, because alone they would fall to the Archenemy.
 * Destroy the heretics, because they betrayed the Emperor's trust.
 * Hate the aliens, because they threaten our people.

The Emperor's Divinity
Because of ancient crusades and an history of bloody religious fanaticism, the Emperor's Wardens are relectant to worship the Emperor as a god. They rather view Him as the most powerful human being that exist and the Guardian of Mankind against the foul xenos and the twisted daemons.

Chapter Gene-Seed
The chapter gene-seed seems to be pure at first sight, but the Emperor's Wardens suffer from a genetic flaw called the Whisper that cause a sudden and quick aging. When it occurs, the Astartes hears voices in his head, telling him he's weak and frail, and so the Battle-Brother knows that he will die soon.

Thus, he leaves his brethren and go on a crusade of his own, hoping to die in battle against the ennemies of Mankind before the Whisper take him completely.

Because of this flaw, the Emperor's Wardens aren't technically immortal like the other Astartes, they usually lives between 3 and 5 centuries before hearing the Whisper and the failling of their body. Nevertheless, some Astartes of the chapter have lived for many more years and still haven't experieced the Whisper, which mean that its appearance differs according to the Astartes.

Relations within the Imperium
"The Emperor is our Father and Guardian, not our god"

- Grand Vigilant Yorus Corb

Relations with the Adeptus Ministorum
Because of their disdain towards religious fanaticism and zeal, the Emperor's Wardens have a very bad relation with the Adeptus Ministorum and have clashed with its priests on numerous occasions.

Relations with the Adeptus Mechanicus
Because of the chapter's mistrust of religious beliefs, they view the adepts of the Cult Mechanicus with the same contempt as the priests of tha Ministorum, even if they acknowledge that the Imperium needs them to survive -- unlike the others.

Chapter Recruitment
When the chapter needs recruits, the Warden-Vigilants are sent to the capital of Archonia, Helmwall, to take some of the boys aged between 10 and 14 standard years to their fortress-monastery. Then these children will face challenges to see if they could survive the transformation into Space Marines. The ones who failed (and who are still alive) are inducted into the chapter as Serfs while the others become Neophytes and start their transformation into Astartes.

The Enlightenment
The Enlightenment is the final test to select the Neophytes of the chapter. During this test, the remaining Aspirants need to find and kill a grypas, a huge and dangerous beast of Archonia, a mix between a majestic eagle and a fierce lion. The ones who succeed will have to bring back the grypas' head to the chapter's fortress-monastery and to drink its blood during a ritual led by the Grand Vigilant, and then they can begin the harsh life of a Angel of Death -- if they survived.

Chapter Fortress-Monastery
The Emperor's Wardens' fortress-monastery is the Citadel of Archonia, a huge bastion build within a mountain, far in the North of the planet. The Citadel is so high that only a few mortals could get there, like the Aspirants chosen by the Warden-Vigilants as potential Neophytes, and the rare pilgrims courageous enough.

Notables Emperor's Wardens
First Warden Duncan Thaddeum : Warden-Commander Alistair Stroud : Warden-Enchanter Avernus :
 * Before rising to the position of First Warden, Duncan Thaddeum served as a Warden-Recruit within the 1st Minor House, "The Blades of Gold", for many decades. One day, after he managed to kill a powerful Chaos Astartes, he has been promoted to the position of House's Champion. He then stayed whithin this House for centuries, even becoming Warden-Captain. After many centuries of service and war, he become the Warden-Commander of the 4th Great House, until 9.150.975.M40, when he has been chosen to become the new First Warden of the chapter.
 * Now Warden-Commander of the 1st Great House, "The Justiciars", Alistair Stroud has been one of the best element of his chapter and the most likely heir of the First Warden Duncan Thadeum when he will die. Alistair is a very talented warrior and a leader born, he led many campaings successful, especially against the foul Orks, and is very respected among his Battle-Brothers
 * When he was still in the 7th Minor House, Avernus managed to kill an Ork Warboss by himself, while using his psychic powers to protect his wounded brethren. Thanks to this achievement, he has been granted the rank of Epistolary and chosen to serve in a Deathwatch Kill-team. He now puts his powers to eradicate the foul xenos that threaten Mankind.

Trivia
The chapter's name, ranks, colours and mentality have been inspired by the Grey Wardens from the franchise Dragon Age developed by BioWare.