
They pride themselves on their unyielding devotion to the Imperium and that of the Emperor of Mankind. They believe they are the inheritors of the Emperor's Great Crusade. Being isolated for so long and still clinging to their faith in the Emperor has given them a belief in their righteousness and superiority. Having their own unique form of Low Gothic that no offworlders understand further deepens their belief in what they perceive to be their “destiny of purity.” Man is the pinnacle of creation, and humankind must be defended and preserved. The chapter believes the people of Gaul are the standard for which the rest of humankind must follow.
The chapter spends equal time in training for combat as well as spiritual devotion and monasticism.
-Magos Biologist Rharn Upedus-
The Steel Wyverns gene-seed originates from the Iron Snakes. Although their primarch is unknown as the marines of Ithaka are lost to this knowledge as well.
-Magos Biologist Rharn Upedus-
-First Hospitaller Grand Master Njahl, entry in The Book of Lords, M35
This faith in the Great Wyrm carries each battle brother in their daily lives. The wyrms and their homeworld are so sacred and holy that each marine carries a vial of soil fom Gaulthia Prime.
Upon landing on any planet they will empty some of the soil from their vial as they believe the land is impure and made up of filth. By sprinkling the soil of Gaulthia Prime, the marines believe the land has been purified and worthy of having the battle brothers set foot upon it. In matters of rapid strike, marines will shatter their vials on the ground upon disembarking out of a rhino or drop pod. Extreme measures will call for a thunderhawk or an oribital strike to reign down several shells of soil from their homeworld to impact upon the planet's surface, thereby the world is consecrated and deemed worthy for the astartes to set foot upon it.
They believe mankind is the pinnacle of the universe. Of the human race, the chapter believes the people of Gaulthia Prime are the epitome of perfection. Their culture and dialect of Gaul Gothic is glorified through everything the chapter acts upon. As the defenders of the Emperor's faithful, they sternly believe in defending the Imperium and its people. They consider themselves the elite of the adeptus astartes, providing help to the helpless and hope to the hopeless. Faith in the Emperor drives them. They live and die by the words of the Great Emperor of mankind. Because of this sense of duty and faith, Chaplains play an extremely important role within the chapter, often leading campaigns in place of Captains.
For the brothers of the Steel Wyverns, all xenos and mutants are a stain to be cleansed from the stars. Their hatred for all aliens stems in part from their enslavement under the Dark Eldar. It is the Dark Ones that the Steel Wyverns despise most of all. Any reports of Dark Eldar threat to Imperial space are immediately answered by the Steel Wyverns if possible.
Early in the thirty-fifth millenium of man, seven kingdoms of Gaulthia Prime formed an alliance against the Dark Eldar. This alliance became known as the Council of Wyrms, led by the the High Wyrm Lord Auleric. They waged a resistance against the Dark Ones who ravaged the settlements built into the Great Cliffs and enslaved the people of the planet.
Shortly after the forming of the Council, the Imperium rediscovered the Astra Gallica. The High Lords of Terra ordered the closest adeptus astartes to reclaim the worlds in the name of the Emperor. The Iron Snakes answered the call. Chapter Master Seydon sent ten fratery squads under Captain Mikos to liberate the sector. It took over a year for the Iron Snakes to reach the distant Astra Gallica system. It took an additional six months to liberate the outlying planets before the battle brothers of Ithaka could take Gaulthia Prime. The Snakes made landfall and High King Auleric welcomed the prescence of the Emperor's finest. The warriors of Gaulthia Prime aiding the Iron Snakes were victorious, though they sustained incredible losses. Lord Auleric was fatally injured in the victory over the alien menace. Upon his deathbed, it was pronounced that his young son Ulthor, would be crowned High King.
After the liberation of the Astra Gallica, The High Lords of Terra ordered for creation of a new chapter to watch over the distant Astra Gallica. The Iron Snakes who helped liberate the system were charged with the recruiting process amongst the young and fiery humans seeking revenge against Xenos for three thousand years of oppression. Given equipment and supplies to arm a battle company, they would spend the next several decades recruiting and training the new marines. The first recruits would be given the gene seed of the fallen Iron Snakes that defended their world. Thus, the brothers would live on and continue the fight for the Emperor.
The Iron Snakes felt a bond with people of Gaulthia Prime. The Wyrms of the world were akin to the sea serpents of Ithaka. They saw kinship with these young warriors of Gaulthia Prime. They saw the faith young Lord Ulthor had in his people and the respect given to him though a mere boy. His wisdom stretched far beyond his youth, and Captain Mikos of the Iron Snakes decided that Ulthor would become the master of the new chapter. The people clung to tradition, and for Gaulthia Prime, it was submission to their High King.
In the early 35th Millenium, It was to be Ulthor, the young High King of the Gauls that would become the first Chapter Master of the new space marine chapter. The coming years would see the sons of the planet recruited to fill the ranks of the new chapter under their High King and newly elevated Chapter Master.
Ulthor saw his frail boyish body grow into superhuman proportions. He believed the Great Wyrm shined his blessed light upon he and his new battle brothers, both old and new. Upon the Cliffs of Nefilhymn, where the Great Fortress Monestary was to be built he gazed upon the horizon of his homeworld. Drifting through the ageless skies was a Wyrm of immense proportions, one that embodied the vision of the Great Wyrm of his people. He shouted forth the Prayers of Calling, and the Wyrm turned its head to see Ulthor upon the cliff. It stretched its wings forth in a glorious display of strength and size, and dove down, disappearing between the great cliffs of its world. It was then Ulthor envisioned the Great Crusade of the Emperor of Mankind thousands of years ago. It was there, upon the jagged cliffs of Nefilhymn, ancestral home of his kingship where he pronounced the name of the chapter. Thus, the Steel Wyverns were born....

Nefilhymn, Fortress Monestary of the Steel Wyverns.

Young men, from ages 8-12 would fight their peers in a savage display of brutality in hopes of one day being inducted into the ranks of their kingdoms great warrior elite known as the Wyrm Guard. Those who proved their worth were taken from their families and trained to become the savage warriors of Gaulthia Prime they dreamed to become.
Now a homeworld of a chapter of adeptus astartes; the greatest warriors of the Imperium, the younglings strive to become wyrmlings, the recruits of the Steel Wyverns. It is at the sign of every fourth calling of the Fell Moon that the Steel Wyverns will call for new recruits for the chapter.
Like their predecessors, the younglings who have proven their valor and strength will be taken by the giant men and brought to the Keep of Nefilhymn, the Fortress monestary of the Steel Wyverns. Here they will undergo their transformation from young savages of the tundras to wyrmlings in hopes of one day becoming Blooded, a full armoured battle brother.

Tomb of Lord Ulthor, First Great Wyrm Lord of the Chapter. High King of the Gauls, First Hand of the Wyrm.
Edited by XKhalilX, 21 January 2011 - 02:46 AM.