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The Adjudicators


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Hey guys! It's been a long time since I've been active, but I'm back, and I've brought with me several years worth of accumulated lore-knowledge to improve my Chapter creation. These are my latest creations, the Adjudicators. I hope you enjoy!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

The Adjudicators

 

Name: Adjudicators

Founding: 14th

Founding Chapter: Angels of Absolution

Primarch: Lion El’Jonson

Battle Cry: Officer: "His Will is Manifest!" Battle-brothers: "We will see it done."

Heraldry: balanced scales

Colors: charcoal gray, silver-grey arms, lower legs, backpack

Specialty: precision raids, surgical strikes, combating other Astartes, ruthless pragmatism, combined arms

Chapter Master: Akraziel

Homeworld: fleet-based

Fortress-monastery: Chapter Barque Judgment’s Shadow

Known Descendants: Headsmen

 

 

 

Adjudicator Color Scheme

 

 

 

 

 

Origins:

 

         The Fourteenth Founding of the 36th Millennium, on the heels of the mysterious Thirteenth Founding, saw the Adeptus Terra more concerned than ever with the legitimacy and heritage of the Space Marine Chapters it oversaw. The Chapters founded at this time underwent the most intense scrutiny and the most stringent tests of gene-seed purity. The Adjudicators were no exception. Founded from Angels of Absolution stock, the Adjudicators have a long and glorious history of service to the Imperium. They take particular pride in their record-keeping; the Chapter Librarium aboard the mobile fortress-monastery, the Chapter Barque Judgement’s Shadow, houses some of the Imperium's most comprehensive records of the last five millennia.

         Descended as they are from the Angels of Absolution, it is no surprise the Adjudicators consider themselves spiritually absolved of the sins of the Fallen. This belief has shaped the Chapter’s development at every turn. Though it has not stopped them from participating in the hunt for the Fallen, they, like the Angels of Absolution, hunt with zeal unburdened by guilt and fueled not by a sense of shame, but by righteous fury. But their wrath extends beyond just the Fallen. Throughout their history, the Adjudicators have taken any report of treachery extremely seriously. An infraction against the Emperor is inexcusable; the Adjudicators' sense of justice extends beyond what some would identify as the intended mandate of the Astartes. This is the legacy of their first Grand Master, Zahel.

          A former Company Master seconded from the Angels of Absolution, Zahel was known to his former brethren as “the Arbiter” for his conviction that the Emperor’s absolution carried with it the responsibility to act as a warrior-judge of sorts. He was always troubled by what he saw as the tendency of the Angels of Absolution to take the Emperor's forgiveness for granted. Though he was eventually promoted to Master of the Fourth Company, Zahel was always somewhat isolated from his brothers for his puritanical views. When the time came, he jumped at the chance to take command of his own Chapter of the Adeptus Astartes. Zahel saw it has his opportunity to forge the blade that would cut the heart of darkness out of the Imperium, one traitor at a time. Though, like the Angels of Absolution, the newly-christened Adjudicators did not hold themselves responsible for the betrayal at Caliban, they were adamant that, in return for His forgiveness, they owed the Emperor their services as judges, jury, and executioners of His will. Zahel’s burning hatred for the traitor, heretic and criminal was adopted by the Marines under his command, and his abiding sense of obligation to the Emperor worked its way into the foundational texts and holy books of the new Chapter. Even in the early days, the Adjudicators were known for the fury they brought to bear against wrongdoers. Once word of a potential treason reached the Chapter’s ears, it would fall to the Grand Master to determine the fate of the accused. The Adjudicators would gather as many witnesses and as much intelligence as they could in order to deliver a just verdict, and there are several occasions when the Chapter found the evidence insufficient to act. When it was otherwise, however, the Adjudicators would leap into the fray using any and all tactics at their disposal to annihilate the guilty.

          An example of this tendency can be seen in the Battle of Artexa in 822 M37. For reasons unknown, the Swords of Garados, an old and lauded Space Marine Chapter, renounced the Emperor’s Light and turned to the worship of Chaos Undivided. The Adjudicators, still barely two centuries old and led by Grand Master Zahel, were called in by the Ordo Hereticus to put an end to this apostasy. In a campaign that became known as the "Harrowing of Artexa," the fledgling Adjudicators acquitted themselves nobly; by the war's end, there were none remaining who could doubt their efficacy.


The Harrowing of Artexa:

         

          When word spread that the Swords of Garados had turned traitor, the Ordo Hereticus was at a loss. There were only a few thousand Sisters of Battle in the area, and the Chapter homeworld of the Swords of Garados, Artexa, was well defended, manned by the full strength of the Swords and their heretical PDF allies. Fortunately for the Ordo, the Chapter fleet of the Adjudicators was nearby, fresh from their victory over a budding Waaagh! The Inquisitor in command of Ordo Hereticus operations contacted Grand Master Zahel, begging him to come to the aid of the outnumbered and outmatched Sisters. Zahel consented, bringing with him the entire Chapter fleet.

          En route to Artexa, the Adjudicators were joined by a small contingent of Grey Knights. Rumors abounded that the Swords of Garados had pledged themselves to Chaos; initial reports claimed that daemons had successfully been summoned to Artexa. The Grey Knights, under Brother-Captain Barbarossa, had been sent to ensure that the nascent Chaos incursion be put down by any means necessary. To that end, they contacted the Adjudicators. Barbarossa offered Grand Master Zahel his services in crushing the traitors and their allies, which Zahel accepted. Together, the Space Marines strike forces moved against Artexa, joined by several thousand Sisters of Battle and elements of the Imperial Navy after entering the system.

         The Harrowing began with a pitched battle in orbit. The full fleet of the Adjudicators, alongside Imperial Navy assets and a Grey Knights strike cruiser, faced off against the Chapter fleet and system defenses of the Swords. Initially, it appeared that the invaders had the advantage. A ritual performed by the Swords of Garados' sorcerers, however, was able to break down the warp defenses of the Imperial Navy. Seizing control of key parts of the Imperial ships, the sorcerers forced many of the Navy vessels into close range, rendering their superior firepower useless. Daemons appeared on the bridges of battleships, while the Traitor Marines launched their own boarding parties to take advantage of the confusion. Battlecruisers found themselves cut off and boarded by well-organized Astartes strike forces, and the Imperial Navy was rapidly whittled down until only a small fraction remained. But in their haste, the Swords had neglected to monitor the ships of the Adjudicators, which had circled behind them and taken position to the rear of their fleet. At a signal, the Chapter fleet fired. Compromised Imperial ships and the defenders of Artexa alike were cut down in the merciless volley. The remaining traitor vessels tried to turn around, but found themselves counter-boarded by loyalist Astartes or caught by the guns of the surviving Navy ships. The surviving traitors retreated to their fortress-monastery as the leaders of the task force met to decide Artexa's fate. 

          The Imperials were somewhat divided. The Radical Inquisitor in command of the Ordo Hereticus forces wanted to capture and interrogate the upper echelons of the Traitor leadership. The Grey Knights, meanwhile, were adamant that all those living on Artexa be purged. Throughout the debate, Grand Master Zahel remained silent on his throne, deep in thought. Then, without warning, he stood, unsheathed the Arbiter's Word and slammed it down on the table. He had seen enough of the Swords' debauchery. Artexa would burn.

         The rest of the war was shockingly brief. Grand Master Zahel ordered the entire Sororitas contingent, alongside eight companies of Astartes, to make planetfall east of the monastery. There, they were to raise an altar to the Emperor and begin bombarding the fortress' walls. Zahel hoped to draw the Traitors out of their stronghold by presenting them with an obvious target. Prior to the ground invasion, Zahel had conducted extensive research into the character of the Swords' commanders. His findings were confirmed by the Librarians and the Grey Knight Prognosticators, who had been scrying on the heretics below. The commander of the eastern section of the monastery's defenses, Captain Shavath, had been hot-blooded and reckless even before his fall. Having pledged himself to the Blood God, his sense of restraint and tactical maneuvering was long gone. The Grand Master reasoned that Shavath's tenuous grip on sanity would cause him to rush out to meet the perceived challenge. He was not disappointed. The eastern contingent, under their blood-mad leader, rushed out into the field to meet what they believed to be the bulk of the loyalist forces. It was then that the real attack began.

          The Adjudicators and their Grey Knight allies concentrated an elite contingent of their forces at a single point in the eastern defenses of the fortress-monastery. They caught the Swords of Garados off-guard; before they could mobilize a defense, the strike force was in their stronghold, cutting down Traitor Astartes and heretic PDF alike as they made their way to the shield generator. There, they encountered the first real resistance. The Chapter Master of the Swords, Karabdis, had been granted powerful boons by all four gods of Chaos, and was flanked by a number of daemonic bodyguards and Chaos Terminators. These elite units gave even the Grey Knights pause; several fell, and Brother-Captain Barbarossa, cut off by a swarm of Bloodletters, was isolated from the rest of the Imperial strike force. Though he fought bravely, his wounds began to take their toll. Soon, he was barely able to keep the daemons and the Swords off him.

         Before they could strike down the son of Titan, however, there came a blast of lightning that sent howling daemons back to the warp and laid low a number of Traitors. Grand Master Zahel, along with his honor guard and epistolary escort, arrived on the scene, carving a path towards the stricken Brother-Captain. Several of his elite Companion guardsmen were slain, but through strength of will and skill at arms they formed a perimeter around the Grey Knight. Zahel himself engaged the heretical Chapter Master to single combat. There, before the eyes of the Companions and those Grey Knights who had survived, the Lord of the Adjudicators dueled the Traitor to a standstill before shooting him through the knee with his plasma pistol and taking his head with a stroke from the Arbiter's Word. That done, the Adjudicators and the Grey Knights destroyed the powerful void shield generators, rendering the fortress defenseless against orbital attacks. They then withdrew to orbit, leaving a small contingent of Astartes to draw the attention of the Swords away from their ruined defenses. 

         Barely had the Thunderhawks taken flight before the Chapter fleet began raining hellfire down upon the fortress-monastery of the Swords. The earlier assault on the fortress-monastery had drawn most of the Traitor Marines back to their base. Now, with their void shields down, nothing could save them from the repeated lance strikes and torpedo impacts that slammed into their once-proud walls and towers. It was over in hours. In the aftermath, the Adjudicators returned once again to the surface. With total air superiority, they ruthlessly eliminated any Swords who had survived. Even the Grey Knights were impressed with their zeal and persistence; Barbarossa, in gratitude for his timely intervention, even bestowed upon Grand Master Zahel the right to bear the tome and sword of Chapter 666 on his right vambrace.

 

Grand Master Zahel: 

                  

          Zahel had been Company Master of the Fourth Company of the Angels of Absolution prior to his being granted command of the newly-formed Adjudicators. A quiet, thoughtful, man, Zahel was recruited from a prison world, where he had been imprisoned after murdering the Arbites who had killed several of his close childhood friends on the hive world where he was born. Despite his withdrawn nature, Zahel quickly distinguished himself from the other aspiring Angels of Absolution in both his martial skill and leadership abilities. Within two centuries he had reached the rank of Company Master, winning a string of victories that brought him to the attention of the Angels’ Inner Circle. There were even those who whispered that Zahel might one day ascend to the rank of Grand Master himself.

              Despite his successes, however, Zahel was a deeply troubled individual. He did not dispute the notion that he and his brothers could not be held to blame for the sins of the Fallen; to him, it was ludicrous of the Dark Angels and the rest of the Unforgiven to hold onto their guilt. But he was troubled by what seemed to him to be the cavalier attitude the other Angels of Absolution held towards their absolution. A reformed criminal himself, Zahel could not escape the feeling that he had been absolved for a higher purpose than mere warfare. In his soul, he felt the weight of the debt he owed the Emperor for His clemency. This feeling left him constantly ill at ease; he spent countless hours in the Chapter’s Reclusiam, and painted his armor with the dark ash of a supplicant before each and every one of his battles.

           This behavior did not go unnoticed by his brothers. They dubbed him “the Arbiter,” watching his actions half in awe and half in trepidation. He stood apart from the other Angels, and as such eagerly accepted the Grand Master’s offer to become the lord of the newly-founded Adjudicators Chapter. It was with his new brethren that Zahel truly came into his own as a commander. At the head of his own Chapter of the Adeptus Astartes, he could at last pursue the task the Emperor had set forth for him. His own personal tradition of painting his armor with the penitent’s ash became a hallowed rite of ascension to his new Chapter. More importantly still, his own feelings of obligation to the Emperor would become an integral part of the Adjudicators’ belief system. The Chapter would draw its recruits only from those who had sinned and been brought back into the Emperor’s Light, as he had been. In this way, Zahel hoped, his legacy and his sense of purpose would live on in his descendants.

         Grand Master Zahel led the Adjudicators for the first three centuries of their existence, establishing many of their most hallowed traditions and winning a staggering number of momentous triumphs in the process. When he finally fell in battle against the dark eldar in the early years of the 37th Millennium, his battle-brothers were driven to such fury that not one of the xenos escaped the field that day. In his wake, the first Grand Master left behind a Chapter shaped in his image which would uphold the traditions and the values he had established for millennia to come.

 

Recent History:

         

          The fall of Cadia and the subsequent creation of the Cicatrix Maledictum hit the Adjudicators hard. They had been engaged in a protracted campaign against the Ork empire of Warlord Gitgutta when the sky turned red and traitors, heretics and worse had poured forth. In the grinding three-way conflict that followed, the Adjudicators saw their numbers whittled down to a mere two hundred and fifty Marines, and their Grand Master, Kriav, killed in action. Third Master Akraziel took command of what Imperial forces remained and, after defeating the Orks and crippling the Chaos fleets in a shocking naval victory in orbit, issued the order for Exterminatus.

          Following that hollow victory, the Adjudicators found themselves in dire straits. The galaxy was in turmoil, and they were too few to openly engage the hordes of Chaos and the xenos who sought to take advantage of the Imperium's situation. Instead, the newly-elected Grand Master Akraziel organized a series of hit-and-run engagements intent on disrupting the enemy's supply lines. His tactics were wildly successful, minimizing his own casualties while sowing confusion and panic amongst the foes of the Imperium. Total victory, however, eluded him; the massive losses his Chapter had sustained made it an impossible task. The Chapter fleet was still strong, and under Akraziel's leadership, won a series of stunning victories. Still, the Adjudicators were largely unable to commit to ground conflicts for a decade after the fall of Cadia.

          That all changed when the Chapter encountered the forces of the Indomitus Crusade. Upon the discovery of Roboutte Guilliman's resurrection and the advent of the Primaris Marines, Grand Master Akraziel was quick to incorporate as many of these new warriors as he could into the ranks of the Adjudicators. Moreover, he ordered those few brothers of the original Chapter yet living to undergo conversion to Primaris status, with he himself being the first to do so. There was some dissent over this, but ultimately the Adjudicators acceded to Akraziel's will and became a Chapter composed entirely of Primaris Marines. With their numbers thus reinforced, the Adjudicators have been able to commit to the fight against Chaos, winning several notable victories against the forces of the Death Guard, Word Bearers and others. As of 100 M41, the Adjudicators have returned to full strength, and Akraziel has declared the long-postponed Nineteenth Executioner's Crusade in honor of his ascension to the rank of Grand Master. 

 

 

Scales

 

Chapter Cult:

 

         By and large, the beliefs of the Adjudicators are not dramatically different from those of other Space Marine Chapters. They venerate the Emperor as the father of the Imperium and their primarch, Lion El’Jonson, as his most worthy son. The Adjudicators hold that the Lion yet lives, and that he will return to lead them and their brethren when the Emperor has need.

         There are, however, a number of subtle differences in the Adjudicators' beliefs that set them apart from other Astartes. The sermons given by their Chaplains place great emphasis on their duty as enforcers of Imperial justice. Particular importance is given to unwavering servitude as thanks for the Emperor's forgiveness. It is for good reason that the Adjudicators recruit from those who have skirted the line of treachery; the reminder of their past misdeeds makes the Adjudicators zealous to the extreme. Their training regimen is largely intended to crush their own feelings of self-doubt. Sometimes the unshakable self-belief this instills has caught a budding heresy in its infancy. At other times, however, the Adjudicators have been accused of acting too hastily against fellow servants of the Imperium. For its part, the Chapter maintains that the presence of even one traitor puts a Space Marine Chapter or an Imperial Guard regiment at risk. The Adjudicators are firmly convinced that to die by their hands is preferable to falling to treachery.

          The Adjudicators are also notable among Dark Angels successors for their beliefs regarding the Fallen. Like the Angels of Absolution, the Adjudicators hold themselves blameless for Luther's rebellion. However, they insist that their status as sons of the Lion, descendants of those who served alongside Luther and his Fallen brethren, places upon them a unique burden to maintain exacting standards of loyalty. The brothers of the Chapter believe that the Emperor's absolution was granted them specifically in order to enable them to hunt down and eradicate the unrepentant. While even one xeno, traitor or heretic remains at large, their work is not finished, and the debt they owe their Emperor remains unpaid. To fail in their obligations as the Emperor's Executioners would be to spit upon the mercy He so generously granted them.

          In order to carry out their Emperor-given duty, the Adjudicators must maintain absolute purity and loyalty. They take great care to ensure that members of the Chapter remain committed to their responsibilities as agents of the Emperor. The Marines regularly undergo screening by Chaplains, Librarians and Apothecaries to ensure their spiritual, mental and physical purity. If a wavering soul is identified, he is taken by the Chaplains to the cells of the Judgement's Shadow. There, battle-brothers undergo stringent questioning and psycho-indoctrination. They are forced to recite the most sacred mantras of the Chapter, and are bathed in holy water and touched with precious relics in order to ensure their continued loyalty. In almost all cases, the warrior is deemed pure and returned to the ranks of his brethren. There are a rare few, however, who have failed the test. Whether these are executed, imprisoned, or worse, none can say. All that is known is that these failures are never seen by their brothers again.

         As to the Fallen themselves, though the Adjudicators despise them for their betrayal of the First Legion, they are not seen as particularly special in comparison to any other traitors. When they are encountered, the Adjudicators, like the Angels of Absolution, engage their traitor brothers with a righteous fury unburdened by the repressed guilt of the Dark Angels and most of their other successors. The capture of the Fallen is a grim task, but it is one the Adjudicators are proud to undertake; the capture of a Fallen Angel is seen as a badge of honor rather than a symbol of their failure. 

 

Recruitment:

         

          The Adjudicators draw exclusively from the criminal elements of their recruitment worlds. The Chapter serfs and Chaplains who maintain their Chapter Keeps there keep a close eye on the various criminal societies of the feudal and hive worlds from which they derive most of their recruits. If an individual distinguishes himself from his colleagues by savagery, ingenuity and skill, he will be taken to the Chapter Keep by one of the Chaplains. There, potential Adjudicators undergo a hellish regimen of psychological torment in addition to the standard physical trials, with the goal of destroying the aspirant's sense of identity and rebuilding him in as an Angel of Justice. Those aspirants who survive the ordeal retain little of the personality that defined them before being taken by the Chapter. Even then, however, few are prepared for the final trials of the Adjudicators: the Purgation and the Blooding.

          The Adjudicators firmly believe that a sinner must confront his guilt before he can truly be considered free from blame. They take this belief to its literal extreme in the rite of passage known as the Purgation. The aspirant is taken to a secure facility and tied down. He is then fed a complex mix of chemicals designed to heighten his emotions. All the while, a Librarian hidden behind a one-way mirror amplifies the aspirant's feelings of guilt and shame for past misdeeds, forcing these repressed feelings to mentally manifest as a horrifying daemon that, to the aspirant, seems all too real. This daemon of past misdeeds is fed by the psychic power of the Librarian, and strengthened by the heightened emotions of the aspirant. Its attacks, therefore, while not leaving any physical marks, are more than capable of leaving an aspirant brain-dead, useless even as a servitor. Only the truly repentant, those with the strength of will to accept the price of the Emperor's forgivness, survive this horrifying ordeal.   

          After the Purgation, the final trainees are returned home for one final test. In his first act as a warrior-judge of the Adjudicators, the aspirant returns to the stronghold of his former criminal brethren. There, in a ritual known as the Blooding, he is to exterminate his former comrades. Any hesitation is treated as an automatic failure; at this, full-fledged Astartes drop from orbit to deal with the aspirant and his former friends. Those who succeed in  are inducted into the Chapter as scouts, the first step on the road to becoming a fully-fledged Adjudicator. It is telling of the high standards of the Chapter that, while only one in a hundred aspirants survives the Purgation, only one in ten of these initial survivors succeeds in his Blooding. The Adjudicators must collect thousands of recruits from dozens of worlds in order to fill gaps in their ranks, but the consistently high performance and fanatical loyalty of those who survive proves the utility of the training process.

          The goal of this brutal training is nothing less than the complete restructuring of the aspirant's psyche to prepare him for his new life as a warrior-judge. To the Adjudicators, confronting and overcoming their own secret failures is a necessary step on this path. As long as guilt remains within, no potential recruit can be worthy to take on the mantle of the executioner. Once one's sins have been exposed, confronted, and absolved, he is born anew, ready to stand in the Emperor's cleansing light without fear of exposure and confident in his own righteousness.

 

          

Battle Doctrine:

 

         In combat, the Adjudicators fight with all the grim determination expected of successors to the First Legion. They are known for the dark and somber High Gothic litanies they chant in the midst of battle, chilling to enemies and allies alike. The Adjudicators are also famed for their emphasis on forward planning; the Chapter’s commanders often take days before a battle to gather intelligence, search for weak points in the enemy’s position and mark the locations of officers, headquarters, and supply depots. When they strike, it is usually at these key points, and in force, with infantry and light vehicles preceded by devastating bombardments and supported by gunships, tanks and dreadnoughts. In the event that the initial strike is repelled, the Adjudicators will often feign a retreat, before turning around to catch their overstretched pursuers off-guard. However, the Chapter is renowned for its pragmatism and adaptability in combat. If one method is found wanting, the Adjudicators will fluidly implement one of the contingencies developed by Chapter command on the eve of battle and memorized by each member of the strike force. The Adjudicators have shown no reluctance to use “dishonorable” tactics, such as tactical withdrawals and strategic bombardments, in order to win an advantage against the foe. They are particularly fond of orbital strikes against an enemy whose defenses have been devastated in a ground assault, a tactic first utilized on Artexa. This is not to say that the Adjudicators engage in dishonorable conduct as a rule. Quite the contrary; with fellow Imperials, the Chapter is typically a model of respect, if not of friendliness. Their more questionable tactics are reserved for the foe. In their eyes, the enemies of the Emperor are beneath contempt, and therefore, beneath honor.

         Following the return of Guilliman and the creation of the Primaris Marines, the Adjudicators, with their usual pragmatism, quickly and completely integrated these new brothers into the Chapter. Each of the existing Adjudicators underwent the process of conversion from baseline Astartes to Primaris. Now composed entirely of Primaris Space Marines, the Adjudicators eagerly seek out ever more dangerous foes of humanity to test their new capabilities in battle.

 

Organization:

 

          The Adjudicators maintain a similar organizational structure to other sons of the Lion, with one noticeable difference. Rather than splitting their Deathwing and Ravenwing equivalents into two distinct companies, the Adjudicators instead group both forces together into a unique over-strength Company dubbed the "Ashen Order." Members of the Order, bikers and terminators alike, paint their armor the same silver-grey as the is usually reserved for the arms and legs of other Adjudicators. Additionally, there is a second circle within the Ashen Order, comprised of the Adjudicators' equivalents of the Deathwing and Ravenwing Black Knights--dubbed "Knights-Executioner" and "Black Judges," respectively. The Ashen Order is directly under the command of the Grand Master of the Chapter. However, given the rarity of a full-scale deployment of the entire Order on one battlefield, command is often delegated to one of four Castellans, two drawn from the ranks of the Knights-Executioner and two from the Black Judges. The whole of the Ashen Order is privy to the secret of the Fallen, and as a result the dealings of its members are cloesly policed by the interrogator-chaplains. 

          In addition, the Adjudicators maintain a larger-than-average secondary core of veterans, who are rotated frequently between the Battle Companies so that their expertise can be put to use where it is most needed. It is speculated by some that the Chapter has enough of these veterans to fill a normal Chapter's First Company, but these reports have proven difficult to confirm.

         The Chapter itself is led by a single Grand Master, himself a member of the wider Inner Circle comprising all the lords of the Unforgiven. Interestingly, however, the Lord of the Adjudicators is not appointed by his predecessor, but elected from among the Company Masters and the Castellans of the Ashen Order by the battle-brothers as a whole. The candidate is subjected to a rigorous examination by a council made up of the other Masters and Castellans, the Reclusiarch, the Chief Librarian, the Master of the Forge, the Chief Apothecary, the Chaplain and the Veteran Sergeants of the company he led. This process takes days, during which the Chapter is commanded by the Venerable Chaplain Nikephoros, a four-thousand-year-old dreadnought who fell in the Battle of Ulthmar in M37 against the dark eldar. Once the candidate has been approved by the Council, he is presented with the relic blade Arbiter's Word by the Reclusiarch and led to the bridge of the Judgement's Shadow, where he is acclaimed by his brethren as Master of the Adjudicators.

         The Adjudicators maintain a number of Chapter keeps scattered throughout the Imperium, particularly in what was once the Maelstrom region. Some of these are small outposts housing a few Chapter serfs, servitors, and apothecaries. Others are massive redoubts containing everything from gene-seed banks to armories to forges. The largest of these is the Fortress of Mathias, located on a desolate moon in the far reaches of the Verdian system. The Chapter's large fleet, when not actively on campaign, travels between each of these strongholds, making stops for refuel, rearmament, and to pick up newly-created Astartes to replace old losses. Only the Grand Master, the Reclusiarch, and the Chief Librarian know the exact order in which these keeps will be visited; even the Masters are kept ignorant. It is thus that the enemies of the Adjudicators, both within the Imperium and without, are unable to predict their movements.

 

Gene-seed:

        

         The gene-seed of the Adjudicators is drawn from the Angels of Absolution, a Second Founding successor to the Dark Angels. The gene-seed of the First Legion is well-known for its purity, and the Adjudicators are no exception to this rule; they take enormous pride in their illustrious heritage. Despite their own high standards, however, the Chapter tolerates minor mutations among their fellow Astartes without incident. Extreme cases, however, are quick to arouse suspicion in the Adjudicators; on a few occasions, they have come to blows with their fellow Astartes, particularly those of the 21st Founding, for fear of genetic impurity. Unsanctioned tampering with the Emperor’s work is seen by the Chapter as a quick path to heresy, but the work of Belisarius Cawl, conducted as it was by one who had worked alongside the Emperor, and sanctioned by Roboute Guilliman, constitutes a legitimate endeavor in their eyes.

 

 

Fleet Assets:

 

Chapter Barque Judgement's Shadow, fortress-monastery of the Chapter

Battle-barge Retribution, sister ship to the Executioner's Stroke

Battle-barge Executioner's Stroke 

Strike cruiser Orion's Lament of the Ashen Order

Strike cruiser Headsman, also of the Ashen Order

Strike cruiser Victor's Justice of the Third Company

Strike cruiser Terror to the Guilty of the Fourth Company

Strike cruiser Black Sun of the Fifth Company

Strike cruiser Lance of the Lion of the Sixth Company

Strike cruiser Penitent Blade of the Seventh Company

Strike cruiser Pirithous' Judgment of the Eighth Company

Strike cruiser Absolution of the Ninth Company

Strike cruiser Dark Tribune of the Tenth Company

15 rapid strike vessels

30 escorts

 

Judgement's Shadow

Chapter Barque Judgement's Shadow

 

Important Personages:

 

Grand Master Akraziel: A legendary warrior and a peerless tactician, Grand Master Akraziel has served the Adjudicators with distinction for some four hundred years. He was recruited from the feudal world of Daxos in 595 M41. Previously, Akraziel had been a member of one of the warrior societies on the planet who had attacked and robbed representatives of the Imperial governor. After years of training and indoctrination by the Chaplains, the future Grand Master returned to his erstwhile brethren to face his final test. He proceeded to massacre the entire warrior-society, burning their chapel and crushing their false idols beneath his heel. Following this and his subsequent induction into the Chapter, Akraziel rose quickly through the ranks. By the time he was sent to the Deathwatch, he had reached the rank of Veteran Sergeant. After three decades of service with the Ordo Xenos, Akraziel returned to the Adjudicators a Watch Captain before assuming the rank of Master of the Third Company upon the death of the title's previous holder. When Grand Master Kriav was killed in battle against the Ork warlord Gitgutta at the close of the 41st Millennium, Akraziel  led the retaliatory strike that claimed the warlord's head, then ordered a withdrawal into orbit to destroy the lost planet below. Following this, he was elected Grand Master by his brothers. After a short trial of only a week, his ascension was approved by the unanimous ruling of the Council. Presented with the Arbiter's Word by his brothers, his masterful organization of a guerilla campaign following the opening of the Great Rift propelled him to legendary status among Imperial forces in the former Maelstrom region. Akraziel has led his Chapter for well near a century now. His open-minded nature, understanding of long-term strategy, and faith in Guilliman's return--along with the desperate straits his Chapter had found itself in following the opening of the Cicatrix Maledictum--led him to wholeheartedly accept the gift of Primaris Marines during the Indomitus Crusade. He himself was the first of the Adjudicators to undergo conversion.

 

Venerable Chaplain Nikephoros: Once the Reclusiarch of the Chapter, Nikephoros fell in battle against the dark eldar on the shrine world of Ulthmar in late M37, and was interred within a dreadnought shortly after the battle's conclusion. To the surprise of all, he has maintained the full use of his faculties in the millennia since, and his insight into the spiritual wellbeing of the Adjudicators, as well as his knowledge of all the various foes opposed to the Imperium, have led to his being awakened many times over the centuries, both for council and for his expertise in battle. Tradition also holds that, while a new Grand Master is in the process of being elected, leadership of the Adjudicators falls to Nikephoros. In this capacity, the Venerable Chaplain has seen several notable campaigns to a successful conclusion, with the terrible Fraxian Crusade against the orks, the dark eldar, and the forces of Chaos foremost amongst them. In many ways, Nikephoros is the spiritual heart of the Adjudicators Chapter, a fact which gives his word an inordinate amount of influence amongst his brothers.

 

Reclusiarch Kephalos: The new Reclusiarch of the Adjudicators, Kephalos has served in his capacity as head of the Reclusiam for a scant two decades. Nevertheless, he has proven himself time and again a worthy successor to the vaunted Reclusiarch Okous. In battle, Kephalos is zealous, furious and inspiring, exhorting his men to great deeds by his own terrifying example. Off the battlefield, however, Kephalos is contemplative, serene, and thoughtful; many battle-brothers come to him for personal spiritual guidance on a one-on-one basis. They find the doors to his chambers wide open; the Reclusiarch sees it as his duty to be an accessible source of spiritual guidance to his brothers. Often, a word from Kephalos is all that is needed to banish a brother's uncertainty and to fill his heart with renewed faith. Even Grand Master Akraziel has tremendous respect for his Reclusiarch's spiritual resolve.

 

Chief Librarian Marcian: The Chief Librarian is a mysterious, enigmatic figure rarely glimpsed without his blue battle-helm. Few Adjudicators can remember a time when Marcian did not hold sway in the Chapter's voluminous Librarium. Despite his unsettling nature, however, the Chief Librarian is fanatically loyal to his Chapter, taking great pleasure in his role as master of the Librarium. Indeed, one of his few enjoyments in life is recording another foe crushed by the fury of the Emperor's Justice in the Liber Damnatum. He has a tremendous respect for Grand Master Akraziel, though he has clashed with the younger, more approachable Reclusiarch Kephalos in the past.

 

Theophranes, Master of the Forge: Heavily augmented with bionic limbs, eyes, sensors and organs, Lukan Theophranes is scarcely recognizable as the human he was in his youth. Nevertheless, though his reverence for the Omnissiah runs deep, his fealty is reserved for the Chapter alone. To the techmarines of the Forge, Theophranes is a harsh master, enforcing as he does the tenets of the Chapter and serving as an ever-present reminder that their loyalty is to the Adjudicators and the Emperor, not to the Mechanicum on Mars. Outside the Forge, Theophranes is quiet, collected, and analytical. Surprisingly enough, however, he has a remarkably strong friendship with Reclusiarch Kephalos. In addition, Theophranes has taken a remarkably active hand in battlefield affairs for a techmarine, having led his brothers to victory in a number of battles. 

 

Chief Apothecary Kodas: Quiet and patient, Kodas Xilleus is rarely seen outside the Apothecarion, where he spends much of his time educating new apothecaries in their duties and filing away gene-seed for later use. He rarely speaks in meetings of the Chapter Council, but not for lack of understanding. Oftentimes, he simply prefers to allow the Company Masters their opportunity to make bombastic proclamations before chiming in when a topic in his area of expertise is to be discussed. Few in the Chapter know much about him, and he prefers it that way. Nevertheless, his many centuries of distinguished service are an apt testament to his loyalty, skill and devotion to his craft.

 

Castellan Morian: Recruited in 778 M41, Morian is relatively young for a Castellan of the Ashen Order. His accomplishments on the field, however, leave no doubt as to his capabilities. Morian was responsible for the successful conclusion of the two-decade-long Juron Campaign against Ork, dark eldar, and rebel PDF forces during his time as a Veteran Sergeant of the Third Company. After the death of the Company's Master, Morian assumed direct command of planetside operations. With no forces besides his own Company, a few Mordian regiments, and two squads of Ashen Order Terminators, he broke the back of a nascent Waaagh!, sent the Kabal of the Single Tear back to the Webway broken and empty-handed, and utterly annihilated the traitor defenders of Hives Mordrax and Lankelos before the rest of the planet surrendered unconditionally. In the aftermath, he ordered the execution of every official left alive on the planet. They had failed in their duty, and the Emperor's Judgment spared none. A scant few years later, Morian was promoted to Castellan of the Ashen Order in the wake of his predecessor's death, a position he has held in honor ever since.

 

Castellan Raphael: Hot-headed and brash, Raphael's first decades of service were marked by multiple campaigns alongside the White Scars and the Sons of Jaghatai Chapters. Their hit-and-run style of warfare would heavily influence Raphael's own tactics; in his capacity as one of the Castellans drawn from the bikers of the Order, Raphael never fails to make use of the power and versatility imparted upon his warriors by their great mechanical steeds. He is also a superlative bladesman; in all the Chapter, only Grand Master Akraziel and Chapter Champion Zakarias exceed him in skill. Raphael takes great pride in collecting trophies from his fallen foes. He particularly enjoys taking the weapons of worthy adversaries, and it is said that Raphael can recall the names and faces of each of the former bearers of the many blades that line the walls of his trophy hall aboard the Headsman.

 

Third Master Nathanahel: Nathanahel is the epitome of the cautious, conservative planner. He is a moderate in all things, ever striving to strike a perfect balance between one extreme and the other. As such, he and Master Raphael are often at odds with each other. They respect one another as brothers, but the seemingly-reckless tactics employed by his brother grate Nathanahel's teeth to no end. Despite that, he is well-loved by his men; under his watch, casualties are always minimal, and the damage inflicted to the enemy is no less devastating for it. As of now, the succession to Grand Master is contested between Nathanahel and Morian of the First. Despite this, the two Masters are on good terms with one another, often conducting campaigns side-by-side or advising each other on tactical innovations.

 

Fourth Master Justinian: Justinian is something of a recluse among the Adjudicators. Introverted and shy off the battlefield, the Fourth Master comes into his own on it. A powerful orator and a strategic genius, Justinian goes to great lengths to inspire his men with acts of insane heroism and fiery diatribes. When not in battle, however, he ordinarily withdraws to the practice cages or to his private chambers, where he immerses himself in the study and mastery of the very tactics used by Lion El'Jonson in his most famous battles. His only true friends amongst his brothers are Reclusiarch Kephalos and Grand Master Akraziel, who recognize in him the intelligence and the drive to one day serve the Chapter in an even higher capacity.

 

Fifth Master Constantine: Constantine is a dour, stalwart man with a propensity for long, grim silences and dogged determination in the field. He is famous for his mastery of defensive warfare, a skill he refined during the Siege of Daxos alongside the Iron Knights. During that long and bitter battle against the Iron Warriors Traitor Legion, Constantine developed an intense loathing for the Sons of Perturabo and for Obliterators in particular. Too many brothers fell to those monstrosities for him to forget them. He also maintains a healthy respect for the Dorn's sons, and has fought beside a number of Imperial Fists' successors in his crusades against the Iron Warriors.

 

Sixth Master Valentinian: Valentinian takes his role as Master of the Sixth Reserve Company seriously. He knows that by his efforts is the Chapter's strength maintained. On the rare occasions when his Company has been deployed in force, Valentinian has showed immense pragmatism and kept a cool head, relying on gathering intelligence before striking a blow. He also has a great appreciation for the efforts and sacrifices of the Imperial Guard. Whenever possible, Valentinian seeks to keep their casualties to a minimum. Indeed, he once had the general of a badly-mauled regiment executed after his suicidal and unnecessary charge left three-quarters of his men dead. To Valentinian, even the lowest Guardsman is an asset to the Imperium, and must be treated accordingly.

 

Seventh Master Ikarios: Seventh Master Ikarios served on the same Deathwatch kill-team as Grand Master Akraziel when he was still a member of the rank-and-file. The two share an unspoken bond forged by the secret horrors they confronted together; on one occasion, they were among the six survivors of an original Deathwatch task force of twenty. Ikarios is calm, calculated and strategic. His expressions and his words never betray his true intent; only Akraziel can divine what the Seventh Master is truly thinking behind his emotionless facade.

 

Eighth Master Julian: Like Second Master Raphael, Julian is a skillful, aggressive commander with a propensity for lightning attacks. Unlike Raphael, Julian prefers the hammer to the blade, preferring to crush his foes out in the open by the proper and rapid application of force. He prefers to lead by example, using his jump pack to drop from Thunderhawks to land directly on top of the enemy's position. 

 

Ninth Master Alaric: A firm believer in the doctrine of victory by superior firepower, Master Alaric is the preeminent expert in artillery and ranged combat among the Adjudicators. He is well-known for his hatred of the Tau; their mastery of long-range combat has challenged his abilities on more than one occasion, though he has thus far emerged victorious against them. 

 

Tenth Master Valens: Valens understands better than anyone that the future of the Adjudicators rests squarely on his shoulders. He does not participate in the internecine politics of the Chapter. Instead, he focuses his efforts on ensuring the Adjudicators never lack for aspirants; his agents maintain thousands of potential recruits in the various Chapter Keeps, though few of these survive the rigorous training process. It is an endeavor he takes considerable pride in; Valens hopes his legacy will live on in the young Scouts he has come to know by name.

 

Lieutenant Niketas: A member of the Third Company, Niketas was recently promoted to the rank of Lieutenant following the Saxin Campaign. During that terrible conflict against the forces of Chaos, Niketas took command of his demi-company when Lieutenant Renault was killed in action. Taking up the Lieutenant's relic sword, this mere battle-brother rallied his brothers to make a fighting retreat to a pre-prepared defensive position, where they proceeded to stand against the hordes of Chaos for sixteen hours before reinforcements arrived. He even fought the Chaos Lord leading the assault in single combat for fourteen minutes (which, given his lack of experience and the Chaos power coursing through his enemy, was an astounding accomplishment) before drawing him into an ambush by a combat squad of Hellblasters. Since then, Niketas has served as an able second-in-command to Master Nathanahel; only time will tell if he one day succeeds him.

 

Brother-Sergeant Manuel: Manuel is an aged Veteran of the Ashen Order whose deeds are the stuff of legend for the neophytes of the Tenth. With almost five hundred years of service behind him, the "Rock of the Order," as he is commonly known, is an inspiration to the battle-brothers around him. His victories include spearheading the charge against the witch Zinaria, facing down the Ork warlord Blooddrinka in single combat, and surviving on his own for two weeks in a Genestealer-infested space hulk after a teleportation accident left him stranded. He has twice refused promotion to the Grand Master's Honor Guard, believing he can best serve the Chapter as the most illustrious Sergeant of the Ashen Order. He has yet to be proven wrong.

 

Brother-Sergeant Isaac: A young Sergeant of the Fourth Company, Isaac gained the notice of his superiors by rallying the population of the hive city of Ulthran in their stand against a Tyranid splinter fleet. By his heroism, the hive endured for a month before the rest of the Chapter arrived in force to send the Tyranids to oblivion. He is also one of the few outside the upper echelons of the Chapter to have been inducted into the Inner Circle, thanks to his encounter with one of the Fallen during his service with the Deathwatch. 

 

Chapter Relics: 

 

Arbiter's Word: The broadsword known as the Arbiter's Word has served as the personal blade of the Grand Master of the Adjudicators since the days of Grand Master Zahel. The blade was recovered aboard the space hulk Mordred's Redoubt, where it was found in the possession of a Fallen Angel whom the Adjudicators had tracked for centuries. Zahel himself led the Terminator squad chosen to board the space hulk. Fighting their way through a number of traitors, cultists and xenos, the Terminators and their lord came face to face with the Fallen Angel in the heart of Mordred's Redoubt. During the ensuing struggle, Zahel broke the traitor's blade in two. Afterwards, however, he found himself so taken by its craftsmanship that he ordered it repaired by the Chapter serfs. The reforged blade became his personal weapon, and he used it for all the years until his death to great effect against the enemies of man. In his eyes and in the eyes of the Chapter he ruled, the breaking and reforging of the sword mirrored their own recruitment rituals. The Arbiter's Word quickly became a legendary symbol of redemption and duty to the Adjudicators. Passed down for millennia from Grand Master to Grand Master, the sword has brought justice down upon untold numbers of heretics and traitors, and it is rightly revered as the greatest of the Adjudicators' relics.

 

The Liber Damnatum: The Liber Damnatum is at once among the most revered and the most feared of all the relics of the Chapter. With its origins in the days of the Mastery of Zahel and the aftermath of the Harrowing of Artexa, the great tome comprises a complete record of the heresies and treacheries punished by the Adjudicators, as well as a complete list of all the Fallen known to the Chapter, with those who have been captured and redeemed marked by a cross in the blood of the Fallen Angel in question. In addition, the names of those of the few Adjudicators who have failed the regular tests of purity conducted by the Chapter are recorded therein, though it cannot be said if their fates are similarly marked down. The full truth is known only to the Grand Master, who keeps the mighty volume locked in a compartment in his chambers accessible only to the bearer of the Arbiter's Word. Grand Master Akraziel takes great care to ensure that the secrets of the Liber Damnatum remain his and his alone; on a few occasions, he has personally taken the book into battle with him to ensure that it is ever kept under his watchful gaze. The Grand Master has himself contributed hundreds of pages worth of traitors punished to the Liber, a tally matched only by that of Grand Master Zahel himself.

 

Chapter Rituals:

 

The Darkening: To the Adjudicators, the ashen color of their armor is symbolic of the redemption of their bloodline and their total dedication to the Emperor. This absolution must be earned, not given, and for this reason, the Chapter's scouts are not permitted to wear the full regalia of a true battle-brother. Instead, the scouts wear unpainted grey ceramite as a reminder of the ages when their Chapter was without true purpose, with only the symbol on their left shoulders serving to mark them as Adjudicators. Upon ascension to full battle-brother, the Adjudicators engage in a ritual known as "the Darkening," in which they mark their armor with dark ash from the sacred hearth in the Reclusiam of the Judgement's Shado. Afterwards, they painstakingly repaint their power armor to reflect their newfound status. In this way, the Astartes are constantly reminded of the great debt they owe the Emperor.

 

The Executioner's Crusades: In the aftermath of a new Grand Master's confirmation, the Chapter Council convenes to declare the target of an Executioner's Crusade, a campaign in which the full strength of the Adjudicators, barring those companies actively engaged in other warzones, is committed to right a grievous wrong committed by the enemies of the Imperium. The Executioner's Crusades are always against those foes who have eluded Imperial justice on more than one occasion; only these are deemed worthy of being targeted by this most holy of the Adjudicators' wars. Executioner's Crusades are incredibly sacred events; sermons are held daily in preparation for the war to come, and the Chaplains regularly go out amongst their warriors to bless their armor and anoint their wargear with the sacred oils of the Chapter. Despite the overwhelming strength of those enemies targeted by the Executioner's Crusades, not a single one of these holy wars has ever ended in anything less than total victory. Even the Ninth Executioner's Crusade into the Maelstrom itself, which was directed against the forces of the treacherous Knights of Idraxis, culminated in the total annihilation of the Knights at the cost of a full third of the Adjudicators Chapter. The most recent Executioner's Crusade, the Eighteenth, marking the ascension of Kriav as Grand Master, was waged against the necron forces of the Whispering Prince, who had terrorized the surrounding Imperial systems with his arcane whispers for over a century prior to the Crusade. The Adjudicators made planetfall on the capital world of the Whispering Prince and, in a brutal campaign, destroyed all primary, secondary and tertiary tombs in the system despite suffering heavy losses. The Crusade culminated in a duel between the Whispering Prince and Grand Master Kriav aboard the former's tomb ship as he attempted to flee the system. Despite being wounded heavily, the Grand Master was able to overpower his unliving foe, sacrificing his left arm to deal the necron a killing blow before retreating and destroying his prized tomb ship. Other Executioner's Crusades have had similar success; few foes can stand against the full might of the Adjudicators brought to bear against them. With the restoration of the Adjudicators' full numbers at the end of the first century of M42, Grand Master Akraziel has declared the long-awaited Nineteenth Executioner's Crusade, though as of now its target remains unclear.

Edited by Brother-Sergeant Valorum
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Love the colour scheme: simple and effective :tu: thanks as well for putting it right at the start, I always like that in an IA article ^^

 

However, I'd love it if you left the base colour from the forum, as the colours on the mobile view make it impossible to read ^^' Also, skipping two lines makes it more legible in the forum software.

 

Now, to the meat of the matter

  • Not being entirely up to date on Dark Angels lore, I'm not quite sure how plausible it would be for a successor of the Angels of Absolution to be included into the Inner Circle - I'd recommend looking into this a bit further to make sure :)
  • Having half a chapter expunge a full traitor chapter on their home turf seems to be pushing it a bit - I'd recommend them being only a part of the force sent to take down the traitors on Kythira
  • Don't claim "many" of the "most notorious" Fallen - the Dark Angels themselves seem not to have taken down that many of the big names (or at least made them repent) - claiming a big name and several smaller ones would be quite sufficient to make them appear competent at their job (iirc)
  • I wouldn't claim the Imperial Navy were simply foolish for attacking at close quarters - instead, give them a reason to do so, even if it is as stupid as a captain ignoring orders and breaking the line, for some reason... perhaps it could even be some kind of psychic/daemonic shenanigans (giving the Grey Knights a reason to be there)
  • Remember that in 40k (as opposed to 30k) a chapter's fleet is mostly intended for ferrying the Astartes to their target - yes they have some offensive capacity, but it is derisory compared to the Imperial Navy. If the traitors can take down the navy, then they should also be able to weather some of the Adjudicators' fleet's attack.
  • What made that point in the defenses fall? there's a reason sieges existed and it was because launching an assault on the walls was generally too costly - because proper defenses shouldn't leave a line of attack vulnerable : this is just as true in 40k. However, perhaps your chapter has had some kind of inside knowledge, or manage to take the point down fairly easily for some reason. However, don't just gloss over it and don't make your guys look more competent then the Imperial Fists or Iron Warriors at siege warfare: it just ain't happening
  • I wouldn't have the Grey Knights socialising with the Adjudicators - the Adjudicators should possibly not even know of the Grey Knights' presence?! The Grey Knights also shouldn't care about their skill at taking down a fortress - however, perhaps your guy saved a Grey Knight's life, something so precious for the entire Imperium that it would definitely earn him a sign of recognition from chapter 666
  • A chapter only has a single Fortress-Monastery - secondary fortresses are called "Keeps"
  • Don't claim knowledge of the Black Rage or even the Red Thirst - this is a deep secret of the blood angels, one that they keep at the expense of their life
  • I'd add a few "vanilla" characters to the chapter, battle brothers or sergeants, alongside the highest echelons you've explored here. Also don't hesitate to explore some other characters from its past

On the whole, great work :tu: you've steered clear of any of the common "offenses" committed when creating your chapter's lore, and basically only a couple of polishes are needed :)

 

However, I would quite like to see you develop the general culture and personality of the Chapter - ie, apart from seeing themselves as the Emperor's executioners, what sets them apart from the Angels of Absolution? What do the peoples of their recruitment worlds act like, and what are there recruitment rituals? Apart from their duty, what makes them them ?

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Thanks for the responses! I appreciate it. I take after Fulgrim in that I want to make this as close to perfect as possible (I'm an idealist in a grimdark universe).

 

Regarding those points you raised, here are my initial thoughts:

 

1) I was under the impression that all Dark Angels successors are in the Inner Circle. Is that not the case?

 

2) That makes total sense-I actually intended for it to come across that way, but I'll make that more clear. I realize that might only have come across in my mind.

 

3) I actually totally made those Fallen up to sound cool, but I see what you mean. I'll tone it down.

 

4) That's interesting...maybe I'll go with possession or psychic mind control by some of the Traitor librarians?

 

5) That makes sense. My justification was that the Navy had softened them up, and that the only reason the Traitors were winning was because they had been able to board the Navy ships because of their foolish decision to get in close. Does that make a difference?

 

6) I see what you mean. Would it make sense to have the Traitors attack a diversionary group of Sisters of Battle and a small number of Adjudicators while under the influence of Khorne, thereby weakening their defenses?

 

7) That's a good call. Maybe he could save a brother-captain or a Purifier? Also, I was under the impression that Chapter Masters know about the Knights (didn't Dante call them in at some point?) Also, in the Pandorax Campaign, I don't think Azrael and the Dark Angels were mindwiped by the Knights. Does that carry over to other sons of the Lion?

 

8) Got it. I'll take care of that.

 

9) Fair enough. I forgot that was a secret of theirs. I'll get rid of that.

 

10) Makes sense! I didn't want to bore people too much, but I'm kind of itching to get some of that in.

 

I'll get on those edits tonight. And I'll think more about their recruitment rituals, too-I want to give them some real personality.

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  • 3 weeks later...

A few updates since I was last active here!

 

1) Chapter Rituals, such as the Executioner's Crusades and the Darkening, have been added. More will follow, but these should add a bit of flavor to the Chapter that may have been missing from the original draft.

 

2) More characters! I'd like to one day be able to write full stories for all these guys, but this should suffice for now.

 

3) Relics! Specifically, the Arbiter's Word, blade of the Grand Masters, and the Liber Damnatum, the book of the damned.

 

4) Expanded Origins, Recruitment, Organization and Chapter Cult sections.

 

More will follow! I really want to get this Chapter right. Any feedback is welcome.

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My apologies: By "wordy," I mean it's time-consuming to read, though skilled writing can motivate one to read even the longest works until the end; I'm sure many of Stephen King's fans are willing to prove this by reciting entire pages from memory, to prove how thoroughly they read their favorite author's books.

 

Better organization will help. Write two versions of the "Battle of Artexa." The one listed under your IA's "Origin" section will be a single paragraph, stating, "When the Swords of Garados Chapter turned traitor, the Adjudicators aided the Grey Knights and the Ordo Hereticus forces in purging the traitors from their Chapter planet of Artexa." Your beautifully written, multi-paragraph synopsis of the "Harrowing of Artexa," should be put in its own section, allowing readers to better appreciate its details, instead of letting these same details get confused with that of the Adjudicators' blooding on the moon of Kythira.

 

Other details I missed last night:

The Chapter stationed there, a product of the Thirteenth Founding whose name and heraldry have been expunged from all records

As the Imperium has few records of the 13th Founding, it's probably better to say, "The Chapter stationed there, RUMORED TO BE a product of the Thirteenth Founding" (emphasis mine), or identify the enemy forces there as a Chaos warband.

However, the Adjudicators maintain a larger-than-average secondary core of veterans, who are rotated frequently between the Battle Companies so that their expertise can be put to use where it is most needed.

This is a good idea.
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My apologies: By "wordy," I mean it's time-consuming to read, though skilled writing can motivate one to read even the longest works until the end; I'm sure many of Stephen King's fans are willing to prove this by reciting entire pages from memory, to prove how thoroughly they read their favorite author's books.

 

Better organization will help. Write two versions of the "Battle of Artexa." The one listed under your IA's "Origin" section will be a single paragraph, stating, "When the Swords of Garados Chapter turned traitor, the Adjudicators aided the Grey Knights and the Ordo Hereticus forces in purging the traitors from their Chapter planet of Artexa." Your beautifully written, multi-paragraph synopsis of the "Harrowing of Artexa," should be put in its own section, allowing readers to better appreciate its details, instead of letting these same details get confused with that of the Adjudicators' blooding on the moon of Kythira.

 

Other details I missed last night:

The Chapter stationed there, a product of the Thirteenth Founding whose name and heraldry have been expunged from all records

As the Imperium has few records of the 13th Founding, it's probably better to say, "The Chapter stationed there, RUMORED TO BE a product of the Thirteenth Founding" (emphasis mine), or identify the enemy forces there as a Chaos warband.

However, the Adjudicators maintain a larger-than-average secondary core of veterans, who are rotated frequently between the Battle Companies so that their expertise can be put to use where it is most needed.

This is a good idea.

 

Ok, I've incorporated those suggestions. Organization isn't my strong suit in writing-I get a little carried away. Is there anything else you'd suggest in that regard?

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Organization is also something I struggle with. For an IA, I generally try to write mine as if it's something Games Workshop would publish, meaning I intentionally imitate the Codices' format.

Got it! I'll try to keep that in mind. My eventual goal is to get this as close to Codex-approved as possible. Progress is slow, but I really appreciate the feedback.

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Hail, brother!

I'm unaware if you know of this, but have you seen the Chapter known as the Judicators, created by Darrell? The archiving of the board has meant some of the old topics are inaccessible. I can't link you to his IA thread, but you might find the old Astartes Vocates links useful reading. They were also a fourteenth founding Chapter created in the wake of the Dark Founding.

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In no way am I saying that Darrell's effort should prevent yours. The 40k universe allows for these sorts of quirks and oddities, and it's entirely possible that you might have the Judicators and Ajudicators created in the same founding! I look forward to seeing your continued development of your Ajudicators!



 

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Hail, brother!

I'm unaware if you know of this, but have you seen the Chapter known as the Judicators, created by Darrell? The archiving of the board has meant some of the old topics are inaccessible. I can't link you to his IA thread, but you might find the old Astartes Vocates links useful reading. They were also a fourteenth founding Chapter created in the wake of the Dark Founding.zsn8CN6.gif

In no way am I saying that Darrell's effort should prevent yours. The 40k universe allows for these sorts of quirks and oddities, and it's entirely possible that you might have the Judicators and Ajudicators created in the same founding! I look forward to seeing your continued development of your Ajudicators!

 

Funny you should mention that! I actually hadn’t seen the Judicators before, but part of the reason I was inspired to use the Fourteenth Founding was because I really enjoyed reading about the Castigators, and wanted my Chapter to have been formed in the same Founding as the Astartes Vocates mentioned in your IA. I’ll try to find info on the Judicators to avoid confusion, but what an interesting coincidence this is!

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Also, Commissar, do you happen to recall what might have been the hallmarks of the Judicators? I don’t want to step on their toes, armored though they may be.

 

With a bit of googling I was able to find this on the old Warseer: 

 

 

I've posted this article on a couple of other sites as well (Bolter&Chainsword, Libarium Online), but I am looking to get as much feedback as possible. This Chapter is part of a group others involved in what we call the "Astartes Vocates", an idea my friend, Commissar Molotov had some time ago, and I wanted to take part in. The basic idea was one of a "Blessed Founding" to counter the "Dark Founding" of the 13th, and we decided each Chapter in the Vocates would focus on one aspect of purity. The Judicators represent the "Purity of Purpose", and from the moment Mol threw the name at me I was in love with it. I immediately began work on the concept, and it has seen many revisions over the past several months. I have refined it with others involved with the project, and I believe that the article is finally in its final stages of revision. All of the Vocates have seen it though, and there isn't much they can say anymore, so I'm proud to present the Judicators and their article to the 40K community.
 
"It is your duty to judge, not only the guilty but the innocent. You must be the balancers of scales, to see the guilty punished and the loyal proven. Only through your faith in the Emperor can your duty be done. Only in His name can that judgement be pure and righteous."--Chapter Master-Balancer Eusebius to his Captains, prior to the Battle of Faymon's Gate.
 
Index Astartes:
The Judicators
 
Data Reference: Adeptus Astartes/Chapters/Judicators
 
Origins
 
The glorious history of the Judicators began in the Fourteenth Founding, dominated by the shadow of suspicion and whispers that the Dark Founding had birthed. Paranoid, the High Lords and techpriests took great pains to ensure the young Chapter had the finest geneseed and equipment the Imperium could offer. Hopes were stacked high upon the Chapter’s young shoulders, for Mankind was in need of grand heroes to lead them into a shining future; to the credit of the Judicators they did not buckle beneath the weight of expectations, even in their earliest stages. Indeed, they have only strived to exceed those expectations in all ways.
 
The Judicators were formed from the geneseed of Roboute Guillman, one of the Emperor’s finest Primarchs, and it fell to one of his successors to lead the young Judicators in their tentative first steps. It was the Libators, Second Founding successor to the Ultramarines, who sent the man who would become their new Chapter Master—Captain Eusebius of the Libators’ 10th Company. 
 
Eusebius had spent many years as a recruiting Veteran Sergeant, culling the Libators’ home world for those potential recruits that would best serve his Chapter. After being elevated to Captain, he had been instrumental in bringing the Libators to full-strength for the first time in centuries. With his Chapter in such a position, it was hoped the skilled Captain could now do the same for the Judicators.
 
While unquestioningly loyal to his Primarch and Emperor, Eusebius worried at the prospect of leaving his Chapter; since youth, all he had known were the Libators. However, Eusebius found comfort knowing that a small group of Libators would accompany him to the fledgling Judicators and finding strength in their presence he faithfully obeyed his Chapter’s request to train their successor. Proud and determined, he took the the Libators’ donated battle barge, Tyrannus, and took flight to his new home.
 
After his arrival, Eusebius walked amongst his new Chapter, examining their qualities as warriors in ways that were his tradition. He spoke to them, prayed with them and greeted them all as his new battle brothers. Satisfied that they were worthy, Eusebius named them Judicators aboard their battle barge. In honor of his new Chapter, his armor and weapons were repainted in new livery, before ceremoniously taking his place as their first Chapter Master. It was a time of great anticipation for all as the Tyrannus and a handful of other donated vessels lifted off with the new Chapter aboard, roaring into the stars on fiery wings of purpose that still carry the Judicators to this day.
 
Not long after their departure, Master Eusebius was approached by Baraquiel the Castigator, recently-appointed Chapter Master of the Castigators, another 14th Founding Chapter. Along with several other approached Chapter Masters, Eusebius joined Baraquiel on the Castigators’ battle barge, Imperius Excelsis, and swore an oath of loyalty to the Imperium and each other. This oath brotherhood would later become known as the Astartes Vocates, and together they have forged an impressive list of triumphs in the name of the Emperor.
 
Vessels of Judgement
 
Master Eusebius had originally entertained doubts of leaving his home world and Chapter to lead the Judicators, however the presence of several Libator companions helped to calm his unease. Often he would speak with them of their former home world and Chapter, their words soothing the pain of loss that plagued him in the lulls of battle. As his history with the Judicators lengthened, passing centuries saw each of Eusebius’ closest friends fall in service to the Emperor, and each death weighed heavily on him.
 
Every fallen brother represented a link broken with his former Chapter and home world, feeding the gnawing loneliness inside him. In his struggles with such feelings, Eusebius focused his troubles outwards, hunting down and avenging each of his fallen brothers in turn, stopping at nothing to see these wounds repaid a thousand fold upon his enemies. When he wasn’t avenging his brothers, he quietly planned how he would do so, composing long works of punishment in his quarters during his short periods of free time allowed when not on campaign.
 
After the deaths of his brothers were avenged, he welcomed the company of Judicators in his staff and bodyguard, but their presence was not as effective on him as the former Libators had been. Unwilling to discuss his troubling feelings openly, Eusebius continued to pen works, expanding from avenging individual deaths to ideas of judgement which would punish those who had wronged the Imperium of Mankind, not just his fallen brothers. These ideas of judgement and punishment became more and more elaborate; called “Trials of Ordeal” they were ways he could identify all manners of transgressors and see them punished for their crimes.
 
Towards the end of his illustrious career, Eusebius’ loneliness continued to follow him; discussing his former Chapter and home world with those closest to him eased the pain for short amounts of time, but nothing could free him from his thoughts. Slowly, he became more obsessed with judgement in an attempt to ignore his painful memories, forming and conducting elaborate rituals on the battlefield to carry out his sentences. The Judicators, unaware of their Master’s internal struggles, watch unsure and awed as Eusebius transforms from warrior to a living vessel of judgement.
 
At the Battle of Faymon’s Gate, the inspiring Eusebius was laid low after carrying out his judgement on the foul Khorne champion, Khamon the Blood-Letter. Dying in the hands of an Apothecary, Eusebius named his successor and passed on his final wishes before the Emperor’s Peace claimed him. The named successor, Master-Balancer Jonas, meditated for several days in Eusebius’ former quarters while deciding how best to proceed without their beloved Master. During his meditations, he stumbled across a large tome in Eusebius’ quarters titled Liber Vindex and in an attempt to gain further insight into his wishes, Jonas read the work.
 
Astonished at what he read, he called the Chapter together in the Reclusiam and shared Eusebius’ work. The Liber Vindex seemed to reveal that Eusebius had gained a powerful view into the Emperor’s Will, and as a reward he was possessed as a vessel of judgement to not only destroy, but punish the enemies of Mankind. In an attempt to record his revelations, Eusebius composed the tome for study and reference. He had also used the tome to slowly reveal his realizations to his Captains, whom he had taken to calling “Balancers of Scales”, a title he likewise used to refer to himself.
 
Finally aware of the meaning of Eusebius’ transformation, the Judicators were left silent and amazed at what their fallen Master had become. At that moment in the Reclusiam, Master-Balancer Jonas vowed that they would all follow the example of Eusebius, to prove themselves worthy of the Emperor’s Judgement and carry his Will to the very depths of their enemy’s heart on the tip of their blades. Centuries later, the Balancers of Scales still maintain copies of the Liber Vindex, while the original rests in a glass case in the heart of the Reclusiam for all brothers to view and take inspiration from as they pursue their chosen duty.
 
Home World
 
The Judicators have never settled on a home world, instead choosing to remain in their space-borne monastery aboard the Tyrannus, although today the ship has grown substantially from the barge donated by the Libators. They consider it their eternal duty to carry the Emperor’s Judgement wherever it is needed most, or expected least. Most recently, their fleets have been sighted in the Eastern Fringe lending their support against the most recent Tyranid and Tau threat there.
 
Despite not having a single world to call their own, the Judicators have Recruiting Barracks stationed on several planets along a common route their fleet travels. Some of them are worlds which the Judicators purged for settlement, such as the tundra world of Nanuk. Others, like the massive city-world of Meceno, allow the Judicators to recruit from their populace. The populations and recruiting practices vary from world to world, but commonly the Judicators prefer not to recruit from savage, feral populations. The intense dedication of their belief to being vessels of the Emperor’s Judgement requires them to have a clear focus of mind, a trait which is not common to such backward populations.
 
It is a testament to their strong belief in this ideal, and the leadership of the Chapter, that so many recruits hailing from various planets are able to work flawlessly as a unit. The Chapter prides itself on severing all ties to a neophyte’s previous life so that they are better prepared to know the Emperor’s Judgement and carry it out without doubt or hesitation.
 
Absence of a dedicated home world also frees the Judicators from feelings of attachment that would otherwise compromise their duty. Such was the case when one of their recruiting worlds in the Baltec system, the feudal world of Hiberon, became infected with a xeno cult. The Third Company, under command of Captain-Balancer Peleth, had arrived to inspect potential neophytes and instead found rebellion building in the planet’s capital city. Without hesitation he dispatched his forces and less than a week passed before the area was deemed cleansed with more than 100,000 civilians dead and much of the city in ruin. Satisfied their honor was secure, Captain-Balancer Peleth left with a handful of recruits from the Chapter Barracks; the inspirational inscription over the entry arch, “This land is judged”, taking ominous new meaning from the smoking city below.
 
Battlefield Doctrine
 
As befits a successor of Roboute Guillman, the Judicators follow the tenets of the Codex closely, maintaining a tactical flexibility to engage and judge the enemies of Mankind in whatever means suits the situation. All weapons, vehicles and tactics are favored equally, allowing them to exploit the weakness of any opponent while simultaneously protecting their own. A focus is placed on training in all conceivable battlefield environments and conditions, ensuring the Judicators are able to quickly adapt to situations that would leave them wanting. This focus has allowed them to carve victories across the galaxy in all manners of campaigns
 
The Codex Astartes serves as a rough guide to the Judicators, rather than a work to be taken literally. It is used most often as a training guide, to introduce a brother to many different battlefield scenarios, how they are best handled and why. As the Marine gains experience, he becomes less and less reliant on the Codex, providing the Judicators with creative, unpredictable warriors of the Emperor capable of spontaneous decision to deal with rapidly changing battlefield conditions. The Codex continues to serve as a guide throughout a Brother’s career, but with time he becomes less and less dependent, eventually consulting its pages for quotations, spiritual guidance and theory of battle doctrine that only more complex-minded soldiers can put to use.
 
The most exotic of their battlefield practices is fed by their desire to deliver the Emperor’s Judgement through their bodies and weapons, often leading to rituals where enemy officers are forced to submit before the Judicators and face their ends. These rituals are historically performed by the Captains and Chapter Master, each carrying the title of “Balancer of Scales”. It is their duty to recite the crimes committed and carry out whatever judgement the Emperor has deemed fit. If the Balancer of Scales is not present on the battlefield, generally the guilt of the party and necessary punishment has been decided on beforehand, but are still stated for the benefit of the accused. The Judicators pride themselves on the practice, bringing themselves closer to the Emperor and His Will.
 
Chapter Organization
 
The Judicators follow the Codex in their organization as well as tactics, following the tenets of Guillman to ensure the entire Chapter functions as quickly and effortlessly as possible. The first Company is made up strictly of Chapter Veterans, each of whom is trained in the use of the holy Tactical Dreadnought Armor, though the number of suits makes them available to approximately half the Company at any one time. The Second through Fifth Companies are Battle Companies which form the backbone fighting force, made up of a combination of Tactical, Assault and Devastator squads. Sixth, Seventh, Eighth and Ninth Companies are Reserves, responsible for training newly initiated brothers under the careful guidance of Chapter Dreadnoughts.
 
The Tenth Company is formed completely of Scouts, representing the future of the Chapter and each neophyte is treated as such. A legacy of Balancer-Master Eusebius, training requirements have always been high, and were it not for the Judicators’ wide recruiting base there is no doubt the size of their Scout Company would be dangerously low. Upon recruitment, each neophyte swears a vow to sever all ties to their previous lives, including all responsibilities or relationships. To assist this process, each neophyte has his name stricken from record and memory, replaced with a new name the Chapter gives him to represent his new life as a vessel of the Emperor’s Judgement. The exact process of choosing a name varies from circumstance to circumstance, but all are equally ritualistic and effective in strengthening the bond between the neophyte and the Chapter.
 
The most divergent characteristic of the Judicators is the Balancer of Scales, a role fulfilled by the Chapter Master and each Company Captain. It is a term originating from several speeches and quotations from Chapter Master Eusebius, who was the first Balancer of Scales, in addition to the nine other Brother-Captains at the time. It is the duty of the Balancer of Scales to channel the Judgement of the Emperor and to administer His justice to the enemies of Mankind, whose very existence is a crime only punishable by eradication. They are responsible for judging not only guilt, but loyalty, distinguishing their allies from their enemies. It is often their former role that is considered the most scandalous, and is the sole reason the Judicators are isolated even amongst other Astartes.
 
Balancers of Scales oversee the Trials of Ordeal, rituals and practices the Chapter uses to prove the loyalty or guilt of an accused person; at one time this practice was used strictly within the Chapter, but certain events have led the Judicators to see that loyalty is not something to be assumed. After the Forge Knights Chapter turned to heresy and their traitorous commander was executed by Captain-Balancer Tiber, the Judicators have broadened the Trials of Ordeal to include their allies. On a battlefield, the decision of a Balancer of Scales is considered final, his judgement being that of the Emperor Himself, his ability unquestioned due to the strenuous tasks required to even take the position. In the case of multiple Balancers of Scales being present, one is chosen as being chief among them, and all others defect their Judgements to him. If the Master-Balancer is present, the duty currently held by Chapter Master Zaccheus the Just, all other Balancers will concede their judgements to his.
 
Chapter Beliefs
 
The core belief of the Chapter’s cult is that each marine is a vessel for the Emperor’s Judgement, and through them the Emperor punishes his foes. This is most exemplified by their Balancers of Scales, who go through many Trials of Ordeal to prove their abilities, in addition to the strenuous requirements necessary to be a Captain of a Space Marine Company. Judicators acknowledge that their judgement does not truly come from them, or from their Balancers, but rather from the Emperor Himself and thus infallible.
 
It is this belief in their infallibility, combined with their zealous need to judge the loyalty of themselves and those around them that has led to the irritation and anger of many Imperial forces. Inquisitors forced to submit to these Trials call them inane, proof only of the aloof nature of the Judicators themselves that they think themselves worthy to claim judgement in the Emperor’s name. More than one Planetary Governor has filed complaint after the Judicators forced them to submit to Trials of Ordeal before they would deploy their forces, the refusal of such Trials often resulting in the refusal of aid and the Judicators broadcasting their leader’s cowardice to the planetary populace. Several inquiries have been made into such events, but conclusions have either placed the Judicators in the right or investigations were inconclusive. Regardless, many Imperial forces care little for the Judicators and their practices, regardless of how many rebellions and heresies the Judicators claim to have defeated prematurely thanks to their close link to the Emperor.
 
In addition to their very poor relation to many standard Imperial organizations, the Judicators share similar positions in the eyes of many Adeptus Astartes. Considered independent and autonomous organizations, answering only to the Emperor, many a Captain has been driven to anger to have his loyalty called into question by a Balancer of Scales. Most commonly referenced is the so-called “Trial of Warlords”, when the Judicators arrived at the head of an Imperial fleet while calling the Warlords Chapter demanding an answer for their purging of a rebellion that resulted in the complete decimation of the planet. As a result of that Trial, the commanding Balancer of Scales sentenced the Warlords to a penitence crusade where they would be forced to redeem themselves in blood for their actions. Following this, several Chapters such as the Thousand Swords took great offense to the Judicators’ decision to even become involved in the matter, but to judge and punish their own Astartes brethren was unforgivable for many. Such resentment seemed to go unnoticed by the Judicators, however, and they have continued to do their perceived duty throughout the stars. The Warlords were not the last Chapter to receive the unwanted attention of a Balancer.
 
As consequence of their unrelenting pursuit of carrying the Emperor’s Judgement, the Judicators hold very few allies amongst the Imperium. Most forces are suspicious and wary of their presence, knowing that at any time a Balancer of Scales may arrive to challenge the loyalty of those around him. Others do little to hide their contempt for past Trials, particularly those who personally felt the sting of the Judicators’ judgement. It is their curse to live a lonely existence amongst the stars, forever isolated by their duty and having little hope of finding refuge with those outside the Chapter itself; a willing sacrifice for unquestioningly following their duty to Primarch and Emperor. Many brothers exist in a state similar to that of Master-Balancer Eusebius, hiding gnawing pains of loneliness beneath an exterior of unquestioning duty and loyalty. As a result, bonds within the Chapter itself are strong, as brothers constantly prove themselves worthy of the trust required to be a vessel of judgement for the Emperor Himself. Those few allies the Judicators have, such as the Castigators and Libators, are also cherished though even they are not immune from submitting to the Trials of Ordeal.
 
Campaigns
 
Since their inception, the Judicators have claimed victories for the Imperium in nearly all imaginable theatres of war against seven major alien races. They have been instrumental in actions ranging from pre-colonization purges to crushing pirates along shipping lanes to ensure the life-blood of supplies flows freely. Their battles are often in enemy systems as well as Imperial worlds, striking into the heart of enemy territory to bring the Emperor’s Judgement where it is least expected by their foes. Most recently, the Judicators have earned honors fighting the Tyranid threat and Tau expeditions, culminating in the judgement of a member of the Ethereal caste and a number of traitorous Guard commanders that defected to the Greater Good.
 
Among the stranger foes in their glorious triumphs are the Necrons, whose presence has only been recently felt in galactic history. The Judicators’ sole encounter with the Necron threat came while investigating several distress calls that originated from the central portion of Segmenta Ultimum, near the Dominion of Storms. Several colonies had vanished in rapid succession, and the Judicators had responded while en route to the Eastern Fringe. While traveling through the area, the Judicators stumbled upon a strange fleet that did not respond to initial contact, and upon further inspection was revealed to be xeno in nature. A quick examination revealed the xeno fleet was on a course to the city-world of Meceno.
 
The commanding Balancer of the fleet, Captain-Balancer Bedan of the 3rd Company, contacted the Planetary Mayor-Governor of Meceno and informed them of the inbound xeno fleet. The governor immediately requested assistance, fearing for more than 600 billion Imperial lives on his world. Though initially upset with Bedan’s condition of submission to a Trial of Ordeal, Mayor-Governor Phillip Wyler complied and passed. Captain-Balancer Bedan informed the Governor the xeno fleet would be stopped, and ordered interception of the enemy fleet.
 
The enemy fleet was relatively small, but seemed to be carrying strange xeno-tech weaponry that took a heavy toll on the Judicator fleet. Eventually the enemy defenses were breached, and boarding parties were torpedoed into the enemy hull; feedback from the first boarding squads was strange indeed. The interiors of the ships seemed to be made of a strange, shimmering metal, and no sounds could be heard on the ship as they would have expected. It was unclear as to who their enemy was until metal warriors stepped out from the liquid-metallic walls of the ships. Fighting was close and bloody, made more so as nearly half the xenos they killed simply reformed and resumed fighting. The Judicators would not be denied, however, and slowly they gained the upper hand on each xeno ship.
 
Aboard the lead xeno vessel, Captain-Balancer Bedan led the charge onto the Command Deck, and a short fight led to the capture of the robotic alien lord in addition to his humanoid bodyguards, eerily draped in scraps of human flesh. Forced to his metal knees, the robotic lord was forced to submit before Bedan as his crimes against Humanity were announced. However, as judgement was to be carried out, Bedan’s plasma round shifted harmlessly through the xeno lord’s head, followed by the chilling sound of scraping metal. Then, without explanation, every metallic entity vanished from the ship, including the dead that had fallen during the boarding. The same incident occurred on each of the other vessels, the Judicators left alone in the silent ships.
 
As the Judicator fleet prepared to destroy the enemy vessels, they were hailed by a small Adeptus Mechanicus ship, carrying representatives of Mars claiming they had been sent to reclaim the alien ships, which they identified as belonging to a race called the Necrons. Suspicious, Captain-Balancer Bedan agreed to turn the ships over to the techpriests, if they submitted to his Trial of Ordeal. Annoyed at the inconvenience, the techpriests eventually agreed, but were far more annoyed when they were later told they failed their Trial and were denied access to the Necron ships. Angry and defeated, the techpriests were forced to watch the Judicators scuttle each of the strange ships, destroying whatever useful technology may have lurked inside.
 
The xeno menace destroyed, Captain-Balancer Bedan informed the Planetary Mayor-Governor that Meceno was no longer threatened. The gratitude of the Governor was such that his planet was later made into a recruiting world for the Judicators as thanks, and a Recruiting Barracks was constructed soon after. Already a handful of promising neophytes have been taken from the city-world, and are training under Veteran Sergeant Patrobas of the 10th Company.
 
Though the Judicators were responsible for saving the lives of more than 600 billion Imperial citizens in addition to destroying dangerous xeno tech and Captain-Balancer Bedan being awared the Iron Halo for his actions, Bedan and the Judicators consider the action a failure. The Necrons and their Lord were able to escape Bedan’s righteous judgement, avoiding the punishment they had so rightfully deserved. Bedan has swore this will never happen again, and all Judicators keep their eyes on the stars for the strange, metallic ships that will give them a second chance at judgement.
 
Geneseed
 
The Judicators, like most Chapters, are drawn from the geneseed of Roboute Guillman himself. Descended from the ranks of the Libators, a Primogenitor of the Ultramarines, they have inherited many of the traits of Roboute and they are a credit to his purity and skill as a commander. There are no mutations within the geneseed of the Judicators; all organs function properly and they are always prompt with their tithes to Mars to prove that purity.
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Master-Balancer Eusebius, formerly of the Libators, was deeply troubled with grief from leaving his home world and brothers behind. Despite unquestioningly and loyally fulfilling all duties presented to him as a new Chapter Master, and creating a Chapter whose many battle honors continue to due honor to his name, he wished for nothing more than to one day return to his beloved Chapter. Only rarely did he ever speak of his sadness, and only those closest to him ever knew that their beloved Chapter Master suffered so heavily. During his minutes of daily free time, he often spoke of the heavy heart he wore when he watched the artificers slowly cover his armor in the colors of his new Chapter, forever obscuring the Libator livery it had once wore.
 
For many centuries, Chapter Master Eusebius trained his Chapter in the ways of war and led them through the harshest battlefields the galaxy could offer. He taught them what it meant to be vessels of the Emperor’s Judgement, composed the Liber Vindex that held the first Trials of Ordeal, and proposed the title of “Balancer of Scales”. On the day of his death, as he lay dying in the arms of an Apothecary, he named his successor as Veteran Sergeant Jonas of his bodyguard. Eusebius’ last words were relayed to Master-Balancer Jonas when he was found; “Send me home.”
 
For two days and nights, Master-Balancer Jonas secluded himself from his brothers and meditated. The Chapter was stricken with grief, and now that the Chapter would take its first steps without their beloved Master, Jonas knew he had to be sure. Debating for hours without rest, he eventually emerged from his quarters with confidence and gave his orders. The Chapter artificers were to restore Eusebius’ armor and weaponry to the colors of the Libators, recorded in the Chapter Librarium, and his body would be taken back to the Chapter that so willingly sent him. While initially a shock to all, compliance followed almost immediately, and Master Eusebius was accompanied back to the Libators with a small squad chosen specifically by Master-Balancer Jonas.
 

The arriving Judicators, while unexpected company, were welcomed by the Libators at their home world. Sergeant Rufus, in charge of the squad, informed the Libators Master of Master-Balancer Jonas’ decision. There was no delay in the warm welcome and praise for returning such a great hero to his home, and the Libators permitted Sergeant Rufus and his squad to attend the services of Eusebius as he was laid to rest. After a joined prayer between parents and successors, the Judicators departed for their home, and since that time the two Chapters have enjoyed extremely close relations.

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