- "You were dead the moment you set foot on this battlefield. We are just here to carry you across"
- —Bernalius
The Koimeterion Knives are a steadfast chapter of Space Marines, comprising solely Primaris Astartes derived from the genetic lineage of the resolute and unwavering Iron Hands. Forged during the turbulent era of the Ultima Founding in the Eastern Fringe, these Space Marines undertake counterinsurgency operations and diplomacy, favoring precision over overwhelming force against their adversaries.
Despite their recent establishment, the Koimeterion Knives have garnered numerous accolades for quelling insurrections and eliminating xenos threats. Their arrival on worlds often coincides with impending disaster, whether natural or the looming threat of Exterminatus. Consequently, their allies perceive them as harbingers of ill omen, for the Koimeterion Knives seldom arrive to save a world but rather to judge those worthy of recruitment into their ranks.
This deviation from the Iron Hands' doctrine of replacing flesh with steel has earned them the derogatory moniker "The Iron Mercy," among other successor chapters. The Koimeterion Knives now traverse the stars, seeking those deemed worthy of salvation and those destined for damnation.
Chapter History
Origins
As the first phase of the Indomitus Crusade came to an end following the battle of the War of Beasts, after the birth of the Great Rift. Unlike many of these new Chapters who were placed in control of worlds recently freed by the Imperium during the Indomitus Crusade, the Koimeterion Knives opted to strike out on their own as a fleet-based Chapter following a vision by their Warpwitch Virosa Sire, who saw a vision of a "blade in the dark poised to strike the Imperium from its exposed flank"—now thought to mean an attack from the Tau Empire.
The warriors who would go on to become Koimeterion Knives had a grim reputation of fighting on doomed worlds, bringing ill-omen to reconquered worlds, and a penchant for achieving combat objectives thought to be impossible by Imperial commanders.Their initial success in combat saw the chapter being deployed within the Primagenesis System, though this led them to face heavy casualties on account of their lack of experience in handling counter-ambushes launched by Alpha Legionaries. Soon, however, Lord Guilliman made the difficult decision to draw back their forces, as they couldn't afford to bogged down in a long war of attrition. Nevertheless, their failures caused them to be relegated to the sidelines.Their grim tally of shattered worlds followed them like a shadow. When the Plague Wars erupted, they were deliberately excluded from the defense of Ultramar, lest their ill fortune taint Guilliman’s embattled domain.Instead, the chapter was re-settled on the planet of Stygion within the Thramas Sector bordering along the Eastern Fringe, but only after their first homeworld was destroyed as a result of a nearby star going into a supernova.
Mark of Doom
No mission seemed impossible—whether it was the assassination of a cabal of Chaos Lords, including the Keepers of Secrets Ves'riathe, the Glorious Descent on the fallen world XXB-12, or neutralizing the encroachment of Tau influence on Othina V. On Othina V, they carried out a false flag operation so convincingly that the Tau’s advance was halted without a single shot fired. Even more remarkable was their success in preventing a secession of a group of worlds from the Imperium. The mere rumors of the Koimeterion Knives’ fleet approaching sent the would-be rebels into surrender, as they feared the inevitable retribution that would follow
Yet despite their effectiveness, the Koimeterion Knives remained a chapter without honor in the eyes of many. Where other Space Marine forces were celebrated, they were feared like executioners. When a world called for aid, they did not plead for the knives to come—they prayed they would not.Such was their reputation that when they entered a campaign, the Imperial guardsmen fought harder—but not out of hope. They fought because the chapter's arrival meant the end was near.
Blood-Slicked victory on Rhulox V
A routine Xenos extremination campaign on the feral word of Rhulox V saw the entire 4th Company suffer 80% casualties. What was thought to be a minor xenos infestation spiraled into an attrition war between Barghesi and the Koimeterion Knives. Despite the use of hit-and-run tactics and massive ordinances of cluster bombs being deployed to slow down the advance of the Xenos race, it proved to be of no avail, as the 4th Company was forced to retreat back into orbit. A second way of invasion was carried out in coordination with 2nd and 7th Company, along with a secret combatStimm called Ragevin that saw them kill several millions of the Barghesi. Later on, plans for Extreminatus were overruled on account of Apothecary Peterias formulated a unique combat stimulant that mimicked the hyper-aggression of Barghesi as well as the planet serving as a training ground for neophytes.
Battle of Ophelia System [Early.M42]
As part of a series of fierce battles fought within the Ophelia system, the Koimeterion Knives were focused on combating Daemons, the Alpha Legion, and the cultists that haunted the system. On the world of Ophelia III, Chapter Master Harokin Stark engaged in a deadly duel with a Harrowmaster. For three days and three nights, the two Astartes exchanged shots, each carefully plotting the other's downfall. At last, Harokin was able to pinpoint the Harrowmaster's location and call down a devastating artillery bombardment. With the death of the Alpha Legion warband leader, the remaining enemy forces were swiftly mopped up by the Chapter. However, Chapter Command was dissatisfied with the performance of the local PDF's defenses, viewing their efforts as inadequate. In response, they executed the PDF's officers and began to train the surviving soldiers up to the standards of the Iron Hands, preparing them for the brutal demands of warfare.
Awakening of the Enemy
On the feudal world of Velbris, a detachment of Adeptus Mechanicus, accompanied by the 4th Company of the Koimeterion Knives, embarked on a forbidden excavation to unearth a Necron tomb, inadvertently awakening the dormant Necron legions that had slumbered beneath the surface. As the tomb's secrets stirred, the world plunged into chaos, with entire human settlements obliterated in the crossfire between the Necrons and the advancing forces of the Mechanicus. As Velbris descended into destruction, the Koimeterion Knives conscripted the remaining survivors into ad hoc militias, tasking them with holding a critical Necron tomb complex while the Tech-priests worked to extract a valuable and coveted relic. The Necrons surged forth, emerging both from within the tomb and from the shattered planet's surface, forcing the Chapter into a brutal war of attrition. With artillery barrages to slow the Necron advance, the Astartes made desperate stands alongside terrified conscripts, who fought to the last as the chapter slowly lost ground. The survivors, however, held onto a shred of hope—that they might be saved by the Koimeterion Knives, who would evacuate them from the doomed world. Amidst the bloodshed, the Mechanicus succeeded in obtaining the relic, but as the planet collapsed, Captain Ulyses of the 4th Company saw an opportunity to test the survivors. He decreed that those who could fight through waves of Necron legions and reach the evacuation point would be granted the right to serve as thralls or aspiring warriors of the Chapter. With no choice but to accept, the survivors fought valiantly, many falling before they even reached the river that separated them from the evacuation zone. In the end, only the strongest were chosen to join the Chapter, while the rest were left to perish at the hands of the Necrons. As the final bell tolled for Velbris, the Koimeterion Knives departed, leaving the world in ruins, having subjected it to Exterminatus in a futile attempt to halt the Necron resurgence. However, the Chapter's dark bargain with the Adeptus Mechanicus bore fruit, as they departed with a Golgotha-class factory ship, which they named Death's Due
Notable Campaigns
Chapter Homeworld
Fortress Monastery
Chapter Organization
Combat Doctrine
Chapter Beliefs
Chapter Gene-Seed
Primarch's Curse:
Deathwatch Service
Notable Koimeterion Knives
Chapter Appearance
Chapter Fleet
Chapter Relics
Chapter Appearance
Chapter Colours
Chapter Badge
Chapter Relations
Allies
Enemies
Notable Quotes
By the Koimeterion Knives
About the Koimeterion Knives
