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This article, Nomads of the Halo, was written by Nuk181. Please do not edit or 'acquire' this fiction without the writer's permission. |
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This article, Nomads of the Halo, is currently under active construction. The author, Nuk181, apologizes for the inconvenience. |
The Nomads of the Halo are a 13th 'Dark' Founding Chapter suspected of being of Imperial Fists origin. The chapter holds unusual spiritual beliefs, seeing the rings around the world of Cincta Aurela as part of the Emperor's will manifested. Chapter Librarians and Chaplains spend their time studying the rings for warnings and messages from the Emperor. Due to their spiritual nature the master of sanctity is second in command of the chapter.
Chapter History
Being formed during the 13th Founding, little is known about the chapter's origin, though their first recorded action in 012.M36 was destroying a small and cornered Ork WAAAGH! after the Astra Militarum forces had begun a siege, their tactics distracting the orks who sought to kill a space marine with their traps causing casualties and disrupting ork lines. The Imperial Guard were then able to break through and destroy most of the WAAAGH!. The chapter deployed in their entirety which was around 550 marines though by the end the chapter declared over 200 astartes to have been killed. Desperate for the new recruits, the chapter started selecting nomads of the dust wastes and bringing them to their (at the time ship-based) fortress-monastery.
Soon outnumbered by those who worshipped the Emperor and the planets rings, chaplains and librarians begun to gain influence in the chapter while those who didn't worship the Emperor begun to face exile from the main ranks of the chapter, being confined to the 3rd Company. It has since become chapter tradition for those dishonoured by the rings and those who failed Him to be assigned to the 3rd Company to earn a glorious death and repent for their failure. As the chapter's fanaticism grew, those who wished to ascend beyond the rank of lieutenant or become an apothecary/chaplain they must serve as a 'Follower of the Halo' first as it proves their faith and reliability. All sergeants/lieutenants of the 1st-10th Companies must have this experience as their roles are highly valued.
The chapter has served with distinction in battle against traitors especially yet despite this the chapter rarely has over 600 standard marines at any given due to casualties from their reckless tactics. Despite their relative success, the chapter is not widely known, eschewing contact with most Imperial forces and frequently fighting in more minor conflicts near their homeworld. During their history they have inducted new marines in large numbers on several occasions to replace their frequently high casualty rates, a total of 11 times in their history (including three times in the past 1000 years in 379.M41, 976.M41, and 003.M42).
The Nomads rarely serve alongside other chapters due to their failed organs making them less effective while also being overly religious, focusing too much on signs from their rings instead of strategy and tactics.
When the chapter received their primaris reinforcements every marine at the time (almost 900 standard marines) other than the members of the 3rd Company were waiting for the arriving ship (the 3rd Company were providing security to the meeting place, remaining roughly 2km distance from the main group). Upon arrival, Primaris Captain Shelnn Ruhn lead the Primaris reinforcements, immediately antagonising himself by declaring the worship of the Emperor foolish, and that the Primaris would replace these dying breed of Firstborn Nomads. Within an hour of meeting the chapter master had declared an honour dual with Shelnn and promptly beheaded the primaris marine, shooting the body with his grav-pistol to throw it into the massed ranks of observing primaris.
The meeting swiftly devolved after the 3rd Company Captain led the company into battle against the Primaris for refusing to worship the Emperor with every member of the company at the time dying after slaying almost 200 Primaris (including another 2 captains). After the deaths of 3 captains, the Primaris rebelled, refusing to follow what they saw as an undeveloped and unreliable chapter deserving censure. At the time 5th Company Captain Xendus Shan saw the actions of the Primaris as being cruel and against what the Imperium stood for, therefore approaching the chapter master and the 3 remaining Primaris captains as they tensely negotiated; before they could do anything, his bolter took the head off of one captain while harming both others with spraying bolt fragments. Shan drew his power axe and killed another captain before being brought to the floor by Chapter Master Chole'Ric Dos who stabbed him in the back with a power sword, restraining him.
Meanwhile, the 5th Company Dreadnought Valoc Du'Rhan turned to the remaining Primaris captain and fired his lascannon, liquefying the captain before rallying several of the men into battle against the primaris resulting in another bloodbath that killed over 400 Firstborn marines and 500 of the remaining Primaris, Chapter Master Chole'Ric going missing in the fighting while his honour guard were all found dead from the Spear of the Dishonoured. The surviving primaris and the instigators from the 5th Company were all placed in the 3rd Company while 1st Captain Kaljyk became Chapter Master while junior lieutenant Vir'Tol Shan became 5th Captain. Xendus Shan was placed in charge of the new 3rd Company who have been ordered on a crusade to kill at least one member each from every species in the Halo Stars before they may be atoned.
Though the chapter is known to work alongside Aurela Guard forces from their homeworld they are merely used for convenience as the chapter generally operates near their homeworld. The chapter is known to have a distaste for the Aurela Guard, seeing them as superior fools that they mainly use for convenient fodder. Most Imperial Guard forces are reluctant to serve the chapter, viewing it as something that will get them killed without any remorse from the perpetrators.
Notable Campaigns
- The Siege of WAAAGH! GrotStompa (012.M36): First recorded action of the chapter, costing the lives of over 200 marines (despite only lasting 3 weeks), it was the cause of the chapter turning to Cincta Aurela nomads who still worshipped the Emperor.
- The Siege of Fort Contagion (252.M36): First major action for the now religious chapter, the newly reorganized 3rd Company (lead by first Chapter Master Vilkor Krag) headed the charge against the Death Guard fortress with all members of the company dying though they were able to remove the gates of the fortress while also destroying all of the daemon engines they had obtained from Iron Warriors and killing the Iron Warrior liaison for the Death Guard. After this damage was done, 400 members of the chapter entered under command of the Master of Sanctity Aal'Ok Trebbor. Although almost 200 more loyalist marines died, the Death Guard were left with a ruined fortress and had seen several of their leaders placed upon Imperial Aquila's brought in by the Nomads to adorn the fortress. When the Nomads left, the fortress was burning with holy fire and littered with dead death guard champions doused in holy water and dead Nomads shrouded in the fortresses taint. Master Aal'Ok Trebbor would be appointed Second Lord of the Halo (Chapter Master). The final marine from the chapter's founding (3rd Captain Veyla Thenn) was killed after detonating the various napalm and melta bombs the company had left in their trail, consuming the fortress in fire and destroying over one quarter of it within the first few minutes before the rest of the chapter's forces could arrive. Veyla Thenns body is preserved in the fortress-monastery as tribute to what one can become, even if they fail to worship the Emperor.
- 7th Black Crusade (811.M37): The Nomads fought across the sub-sector against various Night Lords, Alpha Legion, and Word Bearers warbands which resulted in three worlds being destroyed by the chapter from orbit, and 8 worlds rendered uninhabitable by Word Bearers rituals that engulfed a system in warp storms. The chapter lost over 300 marines over the course of the conflict though were able to kill around as many traitors. The conflict cost over a dozen Imperial Guard regiments sent to aid the astartes as they used them as cover, allowing the marines to make it to the traitor's defensive lines and break through while covering their flanks. While the chapter declared a pyrrhic victory, the traitors had not only cost the Imperium several worlds, but they also completed their ritual, sacrificing hundreds of billions of souls to their gods including the entire 8th Company of the Nomads (~70 marines at the time) and 40 regiments of the imperial guard besieging the Word Bearers ramshackle space fort where the ritual was being prepared. The warp storms that formed was only barely closed after support from the Grey Knights, Exorcists, Imperial Fists, and Black Templar's and cost the lives of over 500 marines.
- 8th Black Crusade (999.M37): The Nomads attempt to fight back against the ritual slaughter of the worlds they protected, turning to desperate measures which including triggering a supernova in their newly reclaimed system that had been ruined by warp storms only 188 years prior, destroying its newly forming colonies and several ships seized from the imperial navy (consisting of 3 destroyers for security and 9 transports filled with enough nuclear material to suddenly reignite nuclear fusion in the star, triggering the event in the dying and vulnerable star). Each ship seized was crewed by prisoners and servitors, commanded by loyal chapter serfs who were becoming a drain on resources due to age and injury.
- The Siege of the Crimson Sepulchre (527.M38): The Nomads fought alongside the Ultramarines and Black Templars against an insurrection on the shrine world of Narona, eventually breaking the traitor lines at the cost of over 50 brothers in the fierce street-to-street fighting, which included the death of 6th company senior lieutenant Khorolus Vash, his body being saved at the cost of another two brothers when the enemy advanced into melee to seize the heroes body.
- Destruction of Kha-19-B (788.M39): The forge world Kha-19-B, supplier of much of the equipment used by the chapter, came under attack from a large force of chaos space marines and cultists gathered together by the Dark Apostle Vlarian The Dark Flame. After over 200 members of the chapter died fighting and all but 3 of the techmarines killed, master of sanctity Valrash Kho'Ta declared the attacks had been a ritual, that was why the Dark Mechanicum weren't present, it was a purely spiritual attack; after Vlarian finally landed upon the planet Valrah mounted a counter attack led by the entire 3rd company (who had previously been banned from fighting on such an important world) which cost another 200 marines including the entire 3rd company, Valrash escaping with the Spear of the Dishonoured and the captured Vlarian. With only 150 standard marines left at the time and only 2 techmarines, they ordered everyone important to leave the world before bombardment started. Given only an hour to escape and protected by very few marines, most were trapped on the world when planetary bombardment began, killing everyone on the planet and fracturing it. The 2 surviving techmarines left, becoming blackshields for the Deathwatch. The entire chapter totaled 190 marines including specialists such as librarians and chaplains. This birthed the forge-priests while also requiring the chapter to perform massed induction with over 300000 dust waste nomads genetically viable for becoming a marine being taken though many weren't good enough leaving only 600 viable for becoming marines and a further 19000 chapter serfs, all others dying or being seriously wounded and becoming servitors.
- Gothic War (139.M41-160.M41): The chapter took part in the Gothic War, deploying 500 marines (at the time the chapter was at its largest since their first records at ~900 standard marines). After contact was made between the Gothic sector and the Imperium, the chapter sought revenge for the many lost in battle with chaos forces. The chapter took part in several ship boarding actions and planetary assaults over the course of the war, resulting in Word Bearers wiping out the 1st and 3rd Companies (who totaled a combined force of almost 160 marines) alongside killing the chapter master in 155.M41. Though the Word Bearers who caused this would later be counter attacked by all remaining marines (~150) who lead an entire army group of Imperial Guard into a reckless attack that killed every 1 in 3 guardsmen before they made planetfall, and half of the survivors were killed within the first minute of landing after transports were left exposed and separated from each other. After the guardsmen covered the landing and distracted the Word Bearers, the marines deployed using guardsmen as cover for their assaults, with only 1 in every 50 guardsmen surviving the battle (which lasted less than 2 hours). This conflict has helped support the chapters divide from the rest of the Imperium (and the example used by many guard regiments who refused to fight with the chapter)
- The Rak'Gol Incident (899.M41): The chapter's first contact with the species after following what the chapter believed to be information about Drukhari incursions near the Ghoul Stars. Being nearby and having confirmed attacks by the Dark Eldar in their sub-sector, they responded hoping they could gain more information deploying 50 marines each from the 8th and 9th companies under command of veteran chaplain Astellan Quolt. When the chapter ambushed and boarded what they thought to be the Dark Eldar's ship, they encountered the Rak'gol (a species they had no information on beyond the name and their reported existence). The Astartes were trapped for over 6 days with no rest until they eventually used explosives to break the ship into two parts, hiding in one section until their ship arrived. Tragically, 30 marines died and 20 were declared missing, presumed dead while none escaped unscathed. Chaplain Astellan would survive though had suffered burns from the explosions that cost him most of the right side of his body, only surviving due to his armour being able to maintain atmosphere in the helm (though the rest of his body was left unprotected). Once recovered by the chapter's vessel, he would become the chapters second chaplain dreadnought. Though they learnt nothing of the dark eldar, the chapter would gain knowledge about the Rak'Gol that they would use in subsequent attacks for revenge.
- 13th Black Crusade (999.M41): Almost the entire chapter (600 marines of a chapter of ~700, though ~500 had been only recently mass inducted into the chapter) deployed in protection of Cadia. Over the course of the conflict, 450 of the marines deployed (mostly the inexperienced members) died leaving only 150 to escape the planet while rescuing only 1/4 of the guardsmen they were supposed to leave with, having used many to break through enemy lines as swiftly as possible while also purging many of the guardsman for refusing to cooperate with the commands of the chapter master and suggesting strategies that, while safer and more efficient, would take longer. Despite these issues, many of the surviving guardsman and newer surviving marines bonded well enough to avoid outright rebellion when the chapter ordered guardsmen to abandon most of their gear and forcing 1 in 10 to remain behind due to limited space in their transports (most had been destroyed by sabotage from traitors in the imperial navy).
Chapter Home World
The homeworld of the Nomads is the poisoned hive world of Cincta Aurela. Beyond the vast hive clusters the planet is a sphere of radioactive dust wastes and fluorescent sludge seas of chemical waste filled with roving bands of religious nomads, following the planets rings in circles for generations while raiding merchant convoys for supplies or charging them for protection. The planets rings are filled with sanctuaries to the Emperor, their moons holding a Schola Progenium and various security stations and mining operations.
The planets ruling classes have governed the world for over 3000 years now, the population inside the hives pledging their lives to the various families, many working themselves to death to prove the family they serve is superior to the others while those offered to the Imperial Guard and Navy requesting the most dangerous roles and operations available, each company attempting to fight better than their peers for a noble family who only know the regiment as another number. This general fanaticism for the families has resulted in the Nomads of the Halo generally looking down on them as foolish for what they see as misplaced loyalty. The planet is renowned for its production of enough machine parts and weapons to support half of the sub-sectors industry and military needs.
Fortress-Monastery
'The Sanctuary' as it is known by the Astartes, is the series of asteroids the chapter has linked together in the rings to serves as command centre and religious site for the chapter. The fortress-monastery is where all marines are first inducted into the chapter, alongside all new chaplains, and anyone of a rank of captain or higher. The Sanctuary consists of a total of 14 asteroids from the ring connected together into a long chain of rock supplemented with various metal support beams. Within, the fortress-monastery has been filled with temples, libraries, statues, and training facilities designed to facilitate the marines spiritual, cultural, and physical development while stationed at the Sanctuary.
Chapter Organisation
The chapter is mostly Codex-compliant though has more chaplains than average (alongside the Followers of the Halo), lacks any official techmarines, and has re-designated the 3rd company the company for dishonoured marines.
Officer Ranks
- Guide of the Nomads (Chapter Master)
- Captain
- Lieutenant
Specialist Ranks
- Reclusiarch
- Chaplain
- Chief Apothecary
- Apothecary
- Chief Librarian
- Librarian
- High Forge-Priest
- Forge-Priest
- Ancient
- Chapter Champion
- Company Champion
- Honoured Ancient
Line Ranks
- Veteran
- Veteran Sergeant
- Sergeant
- Battle-Brother
- Scout Marine
- Neophyte
- Aspirant
Specialist Units & Formations
- Followers of the Halo (also known as Followers): Followers of the Halo are assistant chaplains who replace the purple in their armour with black while also painting their helmets white and wearing a wreath crown made of brass (the zinc and copper mined from the rings around Cincta Aurela). Alongside helping chaplains in their rituals, they are allowed to perform minor rites for themselves and provide security in battle for their chaplains, librarians, and captains.
- Forge-Priest: After the chapters destruction of a forgeworld (accidentally) and with most of their techmarines dead, the rest having fled to the deathwatch as blackshields to avoid the Mechanicus' wrath. After the loss of all techmarines and being unable to replace them, 8 Chaplains and 7 Followers came together to establish the Forge-Priests, a group of chaplains to the Omnissiah. These replacements have proven far less reliable than official techmarines but have been adequate for the chapter. Due to the still limited number of the forge-priests the chapter is unable to operate many vehicles at a time, though the chapter never did specialise in armoured warfare. The Forge-Priests have always been dependent on servitors and serfs and that hasn't changed, they lack the efficiency and numbers needed to maintain enough equipment for the chapter (though the chapters consistent under-strength has helped them as they have less to deal with compared to most chapters.
Order of Battle
Headquarters
Companies
| Veteran Company | Battle Company | Dishonoured Company | Battle Companies | |
| 1st Company | 2nd Company | 3rd Company | 4th Company | 5th Company |
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| Reserve Companies | Scout Company | |||
| 6th Company | 7th Company | 8th Company |
9th Company |
10th Company |
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Combat Doctrine
Typical methods used by the chapter are terror tactics in an attempt to disrupt the enemy, launching forays into enemy lines and leaving traps such behind. They typically use such methods to act as siege-breakers with the 6th company specifically specializing in leading assaults against the disrupted enemy lines after others have broken them. Such tactics are known to cost the chapter highly, so they frequently supplement their ranks with local guard and militia forces on such operations. The chapter frequently call in nearby guard formations to be used as sacrifices and diversions, allowing them to get in close when breaking through enemy line, any regiment who survive this use are summarily discarded by the chapter, returning to standard service after.
Chapter Culture & Beliefs
With all current Space Marines of the chapter and most of its serfs having been raised in the dust dunes of Cincta Aurela, the rest of the serfs born within the chapter itself, they all worship the rings as being a manifestation of the Emperor (who they worship as a deity). Alongside their worship of the Emperor the chapter has since maintained the insular and protective nature of the Nomads which has resulted in less contact with the rest of the Imperium, frequently entering conflicts just because those outside of the region have entered, fearing their influence and wealth may be lost if others begin to encroach.
Due to their inability to eat certain foods, the marines generally are required to feed upon larger quantities of food eaten at post-battle feasts. Serfs specialising in food production are highly valued and respected in the chapter, able to perform ceremonial rituals personally at the side of important chaplains. The chapters serfs are valued and are therefore provided fulfilling and respectable lives, invited to pray by the side of the chapters astartes while being kept in safe and comfortable quarters aboard ships and within the fortress-monastery. Despite the respect for serfs, they are expected to operate in the background for the most part, only speaking when they must or a space marine's questions them normally. Members of the 3rd Company are considered lesser than serfs for their dishonour which means members of the 3rd may not order a serf, or even speak if a serf requests that they do not.
The 3rd Company is home to all astartes in the chapter found to have failed the Emperor drastically, have their faith found wanting, or being unrepentant in their error. Members of the 3rd may only speak to a space marine outside of the company if they are spoken to first, and serfs are allowed to request a member of the 3rd not speak to them; the librarians, apothecaries, forge-priests, and chaplains/followers attached to the company are all loyal so are therefore above the rest of the company, unable to be ordered even by the companies captain (who's power only extends to the dishonoured brothers of his company) and instead assisting as they see fit.
Members of the 3rd may not be interred within dreadnoughts and are trapped within the company until death or abandoning the chapter for the Deathwatch, though dreadnoughts who have failed may be transferred to the company (they receive minimal maintenance and are only awoken for combat). The chapter views knowledge to be just as valuable as combat skill with all potential aspirants being taught basic psychology and sociology for their terror tactics while Imperial history is taught to make them aware of what has caused the Imperium to be as it currently is in the hopes, they will use it to their advantage in the future. Even after training has been completed marines are required to attend lectures by 10th company sergeants, chapter ancients, and various specialists and officers. The chapters use of terror tactics originates from their origin as nomads who were poorly equipped compared to Imperial convoys resulting in them learning alternative tactics, being outnumbered in their current battle they have adopted these tactics to deter their new foes.
Members of the chapter are cast into a degrading orbit around Cincta Aurela if they were honoured in life, buried in the dunes if they failed and were transferred to the 3rd company. Particularly honourable and valuable members of the chapter may be entombed within the asteroids that orbit their homeworld so that they may orbit it eternally, the asteroid being their own personal place of rest.
Chapter Recruitment
With their homeworld being a hive world and capital of the Aurela Sub-sector, the chapter had many options when deciding to recruit from the world. The nomads who roamed the dust wastes outsides may not have been where most would recruit from, but they lacked mutations frequent among such people on other worlds and were not only as tough as an underhiver, but they could be trusted far more due to their fanatic loyalty to the Emperor and his rings around Aurela.
After being targeted and then captured by the chapter, all potential recruits are transported to the Sanctuary and are placed in contemplation chambers, the air tainted with strong hallucinogenic chemicals causing their worst memories to appear before them; the subjects all having their faith tested. After those still loyal are removed from the cells. All of the aspirants are placed in a communal area where they will get to know each other while they are taken out individually for further examination by the apothecaries, librarians, and chaplains with those compatible for geneseed implants while also being up to standard spiritually and checked over illness or concealed mutation. The next stage has them all presented to the 10th Company Captain for a final judgement (usually a formality, though a number of potential aspirants have been found unsatisfactory and made to disappear).
Now that the aspirants are trusted and may have their geneseed implanted, the true trials begin. All aspirants begin training with a typical day (standard 24 hours) consisting of: 5 hours rest, 6 hours weapons drills, 6 hours study of Imperial history, religion, sociology, and psychology, 6 hours of group prayer, and 1 hour of personal contemplation in a sensory deprivation chamber. To further the education of aspirants they have captured orks alongside various other minor xenos species and captured traitors released into barracks for the aspirants to fight off with only their ritual blades of Aurelia during their rest periods. Several other days are taken up by aspirants surviving events (such as the release of chemical weapons or loss of atmosphere) and hunts across the training areas, surviving (and escaping) the underhives, and performing rituals to the rings. Guest lectures by captains, librarians, chaplains, apothecaries, high ranking serfs, and dreadnoughts supplement their education.
The final test of loyalty and faith consists of jumping from an open hanger bay on the Fortress-Monastery unprotected into the surrounding vacuum (which is filled with a wall of psychic flame) before landing on a support beam and being attended to by apothecaries and serfs to avoid deaths where possible.
Chapter Gene-Seed
The chapter's gene-seed is notably defective with members of the chapter not developing a number of organs fully: The sus-an membrane is atrophied and useless, and second heart is weakened, typically the chapter prefers traditional food as their organs do not digest normal astartes sustenance effectively. Despite these flaws, the chapter's gene-seed has remained stable with this taint believed to have originated during or shortly after the founding of the chapter. The chapter believes the cause of their flawed gene-seed is the Emperor, testing their dedication and their ability.
Deathwatch Service
Deathwatch service is viewed as a dishonour by the chapter, serving alongside other chapters who generally view the Nomads of the Halo as being lesser due to their zealous nature and geneflaws that have made them less able than those with less flawed geneseed. The marines sent to the Deathwatch are those who failed and would have been seconded to the 3rd company. None sent to the Deathwatch are to return, they are instructed to die for the Emperor and for the chapter; after death the Emperor will judge if they have been redeemed.
Notable Members
- Kaljyk Vho'Shann: Current chapter master, he served as 1st captain for almost 500 years before becoming chapter master in early M42. Over 780 years of age, Kaljyk has fought most threats the chapter faces and was present on Cadia during the 13th Black Crusade, slaying the dark apostle Chlorax who had threatened the chapter from early in its history (by dropping from a large building in terminator armour and crushing the dark apostle before detonating a melta bomb on their torso). Vho'Shann also slew several primaris marines during their first meeting regrettably though has only revealed the details of his actions to the Master of Sanctity and his chief serf assistant Kho'Vah Shan. Currently he is attempting to reform the chapter, making it less unpopular and getting support from those nearby, allowing them to survive the current struggle in the Imperium (though this change has caused some disagreement with other members of the chapter who believed that it was surviving and would thrive with the new primaris, not needing to change their current methods).
- Xavus Shol'Jur: New Master of Sanctity (the previous one dying on Cadia), he rejected the suggestion he could become chapter master despite being over 1000 and being the chapter's longest serving marine outside of a dreadnought. Xavus is known to be the most connected member of the chapter to the Halo though cannot face active service due to mounting injuries that have resulted in him spending his days in the Sanctuary, meditating and attempting to read the Emperors messages through the Halo. Xavus instructs new aspirants in their spiritual studies where he can, providing lectures on not only religion, but also psychology and sociology and Imperial history, having become more a scholar than a soldier due to his injury. Xavus has outlived any other marine in the chapters recorded histories without becoming a dreadnought and it shows, walking with a limp and having become dependent on augmentation from his injuries sustained from fighting. Most believe he should be interred within a dreadnought but understand that he wishes to be available more of the time without having to be roused by tech-priests.
Chapter Fleet
The Chapter maintains the following vessels in its Chapter fleet:
- Herald of the Emperor (Battle Barge)
- The Rings Dagger (Strike Cruiser)
- The Rings Spear (Strike Cruiser)
- The Rings Light (Strike Cruiser)
- Its Will Be Done (Escort)
- Wrath of the Emperor (Escort)
- Guardian of Aurela (Escort)
- Arrow of Truth (Escort)
The 4th Company Captain officially controls the Herald of the Emperor as the chapter's flagship though uses The Rings Spear as his flagship most of the time due to the expense of using the battle barge and the risk of it being damaged. The Master of Sanctity typically controls The Rings Light as their personal ship, the High Forge-Priest controlling The Rings Dagger. The senior 4th Company lieutenant controls Its Will Be Done, the 4th company junior lieutenant controlling Wrath of the Emperor. Guardian of Aurela is typically controlled by the 4th company alongside reserve companies and protects Cincta Aurela, frequently patrolling the system, while the Arrow of Truth is held in reserve for planetary assaults, void warfare, and rapidly deploying the chapter across several fronts.
Chapter Relics
- Hammer of the Halo's: The only surviving relic from the chapter's loss of contact with the Mechanicus, it holds the skulls of the last true techmarines of the chapter. Having served the chapter for over 4000 years, its machine spirit has become supportive of the forge-priests, helping them as they attempt to maintain it in the hopes that this will bring it to battle again sooner.
- The Spear of the Dishonoured: The power spear wielded by First chapter master of the Nomads has become the customary weapon of each 3rd Company Captain, showing that they have accepted their failure and seek to finally atone. In battle, the only guide for the 3rd is this spear as none of the marines show ranks, when the 3rd Company fight, they follow the Spear.
- The Halos Crust: A suit of terminator armour produced from the last adamantium in the rings, it has become chapter custom for the master of sanctity to wear the armour as representation of their closeness with the Halo and in turn with the Emperor. Though the current Master of Sanctity can no longer fight this armour has made him still a threat against anyone who would oppose the chapter.
Chapter Appearance
Chapter Colours
Standard marines wear grey armour with a purple right arm and knee. The armour has brass edging forged with copper and zinc mined from the ring itself. All former and active Followers replace the purple with black while their helmet is painted white with a brass wreath crown added to show the role they fill. The grey of their armour represents the grey dust wastes they roam upon their homeworld, the purple representing them as the elite of their world due to purples symbolic value on their homeworld (it being an expensive colour to obtain on Cincta Aurela), and the brass showing their closeness to the rings.
This changes to black for Followers which shows that they have offered themselves to the Reclusiam, a white helm showing them as elite compared to the rest and pure of soul (clean white is near impossible to maintain in the dust wastes due to the constant grey dust altering the colour to a dirty grey colour), the brass wreath crown being another show of how close they are to the rings around Cincta Aurela.
Sergeants are allowed to place an Aquila on the front of their armour and on their back while veterans are allowed to have brass over their right knee, lieutenants having both knees brass, and captains having a simple brass left pauldron with just the number of their company on it.
Members of the 3rd Company (being dishonoured) remove the brass and purple from their armour, replacing it with full grey to show they are no longer above others on their homeworld and they have failed the ring (this overrides all previous chapter colours, all members of the 3rd have identical, plain, insignia-less armour that shows no rank for they fight as one).
Chapter Badge
The Chapter emblem is a brass circle with a golden dot at the centre on a purple background (black background for all current or former Followers of the Halo). The circle represents the rings around Cincta Aurela which are rich in zinc and copper alongside being a holy site to them, the dot represents the Emperor, at the centre of all, the purple represents the chapter as the planets elite as purple is a colour that represents wealth of Cincta Aurela. The change from purple to black for the Followers distinguishes them as having offered themselves to the chapters reclusiam.
Relations
Allies
- Cincta Aurela Imperial Guard
Enemies
- Forces of Chaos
- Word Bearers
- Xenos - Various xenos races from the Halo Stars
Notable Quotes
By the Nomads of the Halo
- "You may be inferior to our kind, but fear not brothers, the Word Bearers are less space marine than us! Your faith is more powerful, your weapons true, they will not see us until we are through their gates and our blades in their throats!"
- — Virn Brall leading a charge against a Word Bearers enclave.
About the Nomads of the Halo
- "While I am in no doubt about your success, you are truly inferior to a standard one of us so just give up, we are a new generation of marines who have our organs intact, why don't I just take over actually I'll make improvements."
- —Shelnn Ruhn before being challenged to an honour duel with the Chapter Master.
Gallery
