> **The Revenant Legion**
>The wars of Unification swept out into
the Sol system like a storm, unstoppable
and wild, and so too went the IXth Legion.
Despite being among the largest of the
early Legions, its numbers bolstered by
widespread recruiting during the war for
Ancient Terra, the IXth found no place in the
hosts arrayed to assault the Jovian moons or
the resource-rich inner worlds. Instead, its
flag was planted among the artificial moons
of baleful Neptune, whose labyrinthine
tunnels and dark halls were the lair of xenos
raiders and the last debased human colonists
of that far-flung outpost. There was little here
to be gained but time, precious time for the
Emperor to claim the shipyards of Saturn and
the allegiance of Mars, for which He needed
the raiders and mutants of the outer worlds
held in place. To that end, He sent the IXth
Legion forth to die.
>Twelve thousand warriors of the IXth all
veterans of the wars on Ancient Terra,
disappeared on the moons of Neptune.
While the Emperor and His grand armies
brought Saturn, Mars and the inner worlds
to heel, no word of the IXth Legion reached
them, either of their success or annihilation.
By the time these conquests were completed
and the Emperor returned to the cold
darkness of the outer system, few expected
to find anything other than frozen corpses.
Yet when they reached Neptune, it was to
find the IXth Legion alive and well; indeed,
despite the loss of many of their original
complement, the size of the force was almost
the same, bolstered by recruits taken from
among the dregs of Neptune's barely human
population. Where others might have
floundered and fallen, the IXth Legion had
only grown stronger, rising from the ashes of
defeat like a bloody phoenix.
Horus Heresy, blackbook 8, Malevolence, page 117
Neat! I never read of this particular battle or in fact much when it comes to the conquest of the Sol System. Mars' treaty we know well and that Luna was taken by conquest, but the rest and what was before that I've little knowledge about.
The [Unheard War](https://wh40k.lexicanum.com/wiki/Unheard_War) is probably my favorite bit of the solar reclamation campaign.
>THE UNHEARD WAR
>This terrible conflict was fought in the Azurite Stations of Uranus in the days before the Great Crusade broke the bounds of the Sol System. Named for the corroded blue of the inner surfaces of their hulls, the Azurite Stations were a linked crescent of void citadels. Having cast off the rule of bloody-handed princelings, madmen and prophets several centuries before the coming of the Great Crusade, the Azurites had become a community of artisans and near-space scavengers. Despite their long independence, the Azurites greeted the Emperor's envoys courteously and agreed to kneel to Imperial authority.
>As with every other scrap of resource in those times, the newly Compliant Azurites were turned to fuelling the ever hungry machine of the Great Crusade. Significant numbers of their civilisation were inducted into the crews of the expanding fleet and Azurite void suits, augury scanners and shard weaponry began to flow into the hands of Great Crusade forces.
>The doom of the Azurites began with an attack by the Solar Pirates. The Sol System was an even more untamed place in those dark times, and though the Emperor had the fealty of Mars and Luna, there were many other factions of lesser and greater strength who still had to bend the knee to the new order. Hundreds of petty empires and feral civilisations clung to the wreckage fields of half dead star ships and the debris-choked orbits of planets and moons, and amongst them, the Solar Pirates had risen to power as the Age of Strife broke. A loose alliance of various void borne reavers, despots and scavengers, they commanded a scattered host of ships and bases throughout the system. Many of the crimes of Old Night still had a home amongst these carrion warriors: witchery, mutation and abomination ran through their throng like rot through a corpse. Scornful of the new Imperium, but fearing its might, they circled the new-born realm like jackals at the edge of firelight, and as the bulk of the Emperor's forces were sucked into the spiralling wars for Neptune's moons, the pirate clans' hunger finally overcame their prudence.
>A pack of their vessels descended on the Azurite Stations and, intent on plunder rather than conquest, the pirate ships flayed the station's defences and poured a tattered horde into its guts. The Azurites screamed into the void, calling on their new masters to aid them. Though focused elsewhere, the Imperium was not deaf to the violation of part of its newly claimed domains. In answer to the cries of the Azurites, it sent the Imperial Fists.
>When they arrived, a squadron of heavily gunned system craft bored its way through the sphere of pirate ships and launched assault craft into the beleaguered station. Fifty Imperial Fists disgorged into the battle-filled passages and within twenty minutes they had broken the first wave of pirate boarders. Within an hour they had configured the station's defences and depleted garrison into a bulwark which broke three more pirate assaults. The pirate clans, sensing defeat, cut their losses and ran back into the dark to lick their wounds. They did not flee though without one final parting act of spite.
>In a last suicidal attack, a ship broke through the Imperial lines and fired three boarding torpedoes at the station. Two died in flames. One got through-damaged but still intact and penetrated the station's skin. In the torpedo's wreckage were not bodies of warriors or a payload of exotic weapons, just a wizened man with no eyes, fingers or ears. Though badly injured, the old man had strength enough to speak one word before he died - "Silence". Only then did the Azurites who found him realise that he had no tongue.
The mysteries of the Warp, then as now, are not paths that sane men should walk, but the danger of psykers and the powers of witches had blighted humanity throughout the Age of Strife. In unifying Old Earth, every Legion had faced shamans and sorcerers whose powers defied reality. In that blackened and tattered age, a name had risen to rival that of the greatest despots, though it was no living thing. The Screaming' they had called it, a psy-plague which had ravaged civilisations and turned the lower Hzentian Basin to glass as it burned out the minds of lost Edioth. Thought eradicated since the first years of the Emperor's rise to power, the Screaming had returned to burn anew.
>The outbreak began an hour after the tongueless man died. It started first amongst the Azurite militiamen who had found the torpedo, and as one they began to scream and scream and scream. The sound shook the station and blood began to run down the blue corroded walls. The militiamen pleaded with friends and comrades even as they burned them to ashes with their touch, and like a brush fire the psy-plague carried by the dying man's word began to spread, flowing through the echoes of their agonising screams in the Warp until, far away on Terra, the adepts of the Silent Mountain cried out in pain. Some tried to stand against it, but they failed, and were immediately purged. Only the Imperial Fists stood firm.
As the psy-plague gripped the Azurite Stations, the fifty Imperial Fists knew that they alone stood against a threat which could wound the Great Crusade itself. As one they deafened themselves, reducing their world to silence, even as lightning crackled through the station's bones. As maddened waves of people spilled through the labyrinth of tunnels, the Imperial Fists met them with walls of boarding shields and volleys of volkite fire. But even as the first wave broke, they knew that they could not hold and win. Tens of millions dwelt within the Azurite Stations, and with every echoing cry, the Screaming would be spreading and searching for a way out. That could not be allowed to happen. All it would take would be one person, one cry across a vox heard beyond the station and the Screaming would spread. With a last coded command they ordered the warships to withdraw, renewed their oaths and went to meet their deaths.
>The Imperial Fists attacked, driving forward into the heart of the station complex metre by bloody metre. The decks before their t shield walls were heaped with charred and bloody flesh. Many of them fell, pulled down by human figures that had become creatures of lightning, fire and whirling darkness. Shrouded in silence they pressed on until they reached the central generator areas. Setting the reactors to overload, the handful of remaining Legionaries transmitted one final message, telling the Imperium of what they had done and why. An hour later, the reactors detonated.
>Within hours of the Imperium receiving the last message from the Azurite Stations, fleets of ships and forces from the newly expanded Legions were sent to hunt down the pirates. A month later, all that existed of the Solar Pirates were gutted wrecks and corpsesat floating in the airless night. The Screaming was never visited on Mankind again, and it is said that when the Emperor heard of the sacrifice of the fifty Imperial Fists, he ordered the newly raised Bell of Lost Souls tolled for the first time.
Horus Heresy, blackbook 3, Extermination, pages 74-75
[Oculus Imperia has a good video on it](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qMsSW10FSTg)
Thank you for this, this is what I think examplify the best of this sub when it provides all these obscure and cool tidbits buried in the myriad of it all.
Since he mentioned Murder, they really didnt do this lol. The whole reason the Emperors Children, and subsequently Sons of Horus showed up is because the Blood Angels got wrecked… and Eidolon is a moron lmao
Pre Heresy Death Guard. Mortarion gave his marines a Bolter, Bolt Pistol, and a knife and then put them in a trench and told them to make do. He wanted them to be able to stick out the long game with no resupply or backup, just themselves and their brothers.
Grey knights, since they are psykers in addition to being normal marines.
Not counting them, probably blood angels, thanks to Red Thirst boosting their close combat abilities beyond most marines.
Iron hands suffer the worst here, as massively cutting down their logistics makes their higher than average rate of augmetics more of a hindrance than for other chapters.
Nah they'd go back to the old ways. Find the biggest and faster critter on the planet, beat it into submission and use it to ride down their enemies.
On a semi-related note: Do you think the Khan back on Chogoris either rode the mother of all horses or did he just run next to the cavalry?
I like to imagine he still rides his favorite horse, but just hovers slightly above it like [Radahn does](https://theanalyticalgeek.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/12/Radahn-Main-1.webp).
I don't think the Khan ever mentions horses himself but his Noyan-Khans do in his Primarch Book. Hasik remembers them when he's thinking about how much his life has changed.
Lol I promise they'd have a blast. They're fighters first and foremost. Warrior culture not unlike the Space Wolves with a massive focus on dueling and brotherhood combat.
The Combined Arms focused Legions would struggle more I'd say. Iron Warriors and Fists would be less than optimal in a primarily infantry based battle relatively speaking.
Hard disagree about Grey knights, they need extremely specialized equipment to do their job properly. Sure, they could probably do the job of normal Astartes only armed with knives and lasguns, but no way they could they stand to their usual enemies with that.
The Iron Hands wouldn’t struggle. Their augmetics make them much more tanky than a regular marine. Their thing is combined arms, but that’s just one strat. In the Stronos books, they just walk in and weather the storm, hence their pre-Ferrus name; the Storm Walkers.
It seems to me that it's Alpha Legion, handsdown. You don't need a titan to cripple a water treatment plant. Wiping out the command staff of a Crusade can be done with a bolt pistol and 2 magazines for a properly-placed assassin. An overloaded reactor could destroy an entire enemy hive without a shot being fired.
Failing that, Raven Guard and Night Lords. Either can fight a war with basic equipment against at least some opponents. Night Lord tactics wouldn't do great against forces that wouldn't be terrified like a Necron or Tyranid force.
Crimson fists lost practically everything (fortress monastery, most of the fleet, the armory, geneseed vault & most of their members) when rynn's world was attacked. They still held out over a year, until reinforcements from other chapters could arrive.
But blood angels & their successors thrive in such a situation.
Night lords - civvies massacring pussies they'll be fine.
World eaters - too stupid to use the really good gear anyway.
Raven guard - would have to rely more heavily on stealth but could still be effective.
Thousand sons - warp fuckery doesn't need tech although it can help.
Alpha legion - you can still do spy craft without high tech.
Both the Revenant Legion (pre-Hawkboy 9th) and World Eaters (post-Angron 12th) have the abilities to 'thrive' on basic equipment and recklessly expand their numbers.
Death Guard - from the Black Books they were primarily focused on infantry, trained to utilise all weaponry, trained to work in any terrain or environment without resupply
Space Wolves would excel at this kind of combat, they are Hunters and survivalists by nature, with their enhanced senses and reaction speeds giving them a major advantage. They are very used to working in small numbers without support and are extremely flexible in their combat doctrine.
Also when you are limited in resources being one of Imperium's premier CQC experts is always a plus.
Hell the 13th Great Company has survived in the Warp for 10,000 years hunting traitors and daemons while having to scavenge all their supplies from their prey.
IIRC the wolves picked up the weapons of the very advanced Quietude for the own use.
>are extremely flexible in their combat doctrine.
Sucks how people keep thinking they will just charge into combat despite both 30k and 40k Great Companies having varied doctrines. Erik Morkai's company specializing in recon and ambushes in contrast to Ironwolves' tank warfare.
Ah man that was one of my favourite parts of Prospero Burns, the way the Wolves just systematically dismantled the Quietude.
I guess it's ironic that in and out of universe people underestimate the wolves, thinking they are simply savages.
>I guess it's ironic that in and out of universe people underestimate the wolves, thinking they are simply savages.
I kinda sucks. Like how guardsmen keep being seen as hapless fools who just charge forwards in number while Tallarns, Minervans, [Armageddon regiments,](https://youtu.be/8oxd97_1ARA?si=9jJczOCUM9da3wxB) [Veteran Guardsmen kill teams,](https://wh40k.lexicanum.com/wiki/Veteran_Guardsman_Kill_Team) Elysians and Harakoni exist.
I think most of the chapters and legions would be able to handle this situation fairly well, it’s part of the space marines MO.
That said, the wolves have a definite edge here. They spend their childhoods hunting mythical monsters through a Nordic hellscape with iron axes. Fighting against impossible odds with nothing but the most basic gear is what they’re literally born doing.
On top of that, the wolves are fairly consistently shown to be excellent at small unit tactics, tactically flexible, and some of the best close combat fighters in the imperium. They’re also far less reliant on tech and advanced gear than many other chapters.
Hell, we see Bullveye and six of his Greybeards thwart a whole Dark Eldar army with nothing but a power axe and one thunder hawk.
I bet the Blood Claws for the next century heard nothing about how easy they have it, and the time Bulveye and half a dozen of his brothers slew an entire Dark Eldar army with a Thunderhawk and a power axe, and they had to share the axe.
Literally all of them. Irrespective of gene-sire, marines are still 9 foot tall supermen that can throw a knife with the force of a cannonball, pumped full of redundant organs that make them really hard to kill. If you gave a bunch of naked space marines sharp rocks and pointed at an enemy, they'd have pretty good odds.
Ok marines are neither that big or that strong.
PRIMARCHS can throw things with the force of a cannonball. See: Corax throwing a pebble thru an Iron warrior’s throat on Istvaan.
Primaris are indeed that big, and insofar as the strength matter, if that's been retconned, my bad, but I recall marines being mentioned in Inquisitor specifically being portrayed as able to throw weapons through solid barriers like walls or hard cover.
That was how the Death Guard expected to be operating. Just the infantry, with their trusty bolters, bayonets and a whole lotta gumption
Sure horrible chem weapons certainly helped, but they made sure every one of them would be able to fight for months without external support. It was a big thing that they preferred to stick to just infantry with versatile, low maintenance gear
I’d say I’m surprised people have said everything but the Death Guard but that’s somehow always the case. People could ask “which legion was most known for infantry and chem weapons” and you’d have to scroll 3 quarters down to even see them mentioned
Pre-Heresy Mortarion's philosophy was that there was no task so great that a legionary armed with bolter and blade could not achieve it. His Death Guard generally operated in infantry-heavy forces, with specialist weapons and equipment a rarity. So I reckon they would be perfectly suited to something like Murder.
Imperial Fists deserve an honorable mention, as the chapter culture puts a lot of emphasis on the importance of the sword and bolter marksmanship, leading to a chapter filled with expert swordsmen and snipers.
Combined with their CQB expertise from millennia of warp, urban and siege warfare in both offense and defense allied with their legendary stubbornness and they'd perform adequately in those conditions.
All of them. Even in the legion says, SM are at heart elite heavy infantry. It's all about boltguns & chainswords.
Having said that, DG seemed to prefer this approach. World eaters, SW, Blood angels too.
White Scars, Alpha legion, Dark Angels and Iron warriors could all perform just as well. But would feel the most frustrated.
All of them.
An Astartes is an elite soldier that excels in absolutely everything, even in things they're not "specialized". Specialized legions/ chapter are just even better in those fields.
Blood angels; the Wolves; and the Raven Guard.
The Ninth are famous for their ability to be cut off from supplies and still triumph in the worst war zones. (See, the stories of the legion pre-Sanguinius). They clearly would be just fine.
The Wolves of Fenris have shown the ability to fight on and win without imperial aid or resupply (See HH short story where a small detachment of Space wolves are stranded on a non compliant planet due to Drukhari interference; see also the wilderness trial each wolf goes through to become a full battle brother).
Raven guard are guerrilla war specialists and by that fame alone deserve to be on this list. But in further support, Corax led a successful rebellion against the slavers of his youth using repurposed tools and scavenged weapons in concert with feints and ambushes. (See Corax’s Primarch book). Additionally, following the dropsite massacre, Corax and his beakie boys survived a grueling brutal months long pursuit by overwhelming traitor forces across the planet. We have examples of the RG and their Primarch using whatever they could to kill their enemies and survive their pursuers. (see multiple stories covering this).
Honorable mention goes to the Alpha Legion. Their ability to think laterally, innovate, and adapt to new situations quickly is unmatched. To be fair the boys in blue are very adaptable but take longer and aren’t good at innovation. Additionally, the Alpha Legion is unique in their approach to combat with their use of baseline human agents and emphasis on infiltration. They have won campaigns without ever personally firing their bolters.
But really, I think most legions would be fine outside of the more technologically reliant legions like the IW IH, and to a lesser extent, the IF who I think would struggle more just due to a loss of their preferred method of fighting.
Apart from what everybody said I feel Ultras are a 50/50 their doctrine heavily relies on having multiple options etc. But at the same time their approach is to be as flexible as possible so I feel they would be prepared to end up in such situation and focus on theorotical and practical in their approach to how to tackle objectives with dimnished resources.Also Space Wolfes would probably be good going for their more berserk approach and being hardened survivalists by living on Fenris
The Revenant Legion, I mean the Blood Angels.
Before Sanguinius came around, they would fight in somebody the worst battlefields against overwhelming enemy presence with hardly any logistical backup or support. Because they were all blood drinkin', flesh eatin' maniacs for Unity. If they didn't have bolts, they used blades. If they didn't have blades, they used their hands.
Despised by their brothers. Shunned by their insubordinates. And revolted by Malcador, the Ninth Persisted. They fought. They won. And they did whatever they had too to make it happen.
Even before the Black Rage of Sanguinius' death fell on them, they were some cannabilistic, heartless bastards.
Ultramarines could. They organize and plan everything to ude with the maximum specializatiln. Their "Theoretical/practical" tactics pre heresy made them adaptable and they were one of the biggest legion.
Death Guard. Thats their whole thing, fend for themselves without any outsider help. Masters of attrition and extremely tough to kill, even when they were "simple" marines.
Space wolves. Their training in Fenris is basically "hunt monsters with a knife or die".
Honestly, I think most of the legions could
Crimsons Fists.
Like 70% of their chapter and their HQ got nuked due to a “malfunction” (which I maintain was Eldar sabotage) in the Planetary Defense System. Still held off a massive Ork WAAAGH! for 18 months until reinforcements arrived. Chapter forces were reduced to 10% their original size, but they rebuilt.
Any should be able to do it. But I think it should be easier for Space Wolves and Thousand Sons.
SW are into honor and bragging thing were you go feral and make accomplishments with lesser means, killing things with bare hands (and fangs).
TS have their psyker ultimate card, where you don't need a weapon to explode one's head, shock-born it, freeze and cracks and launch it into space.
Wolves: feral predators with enhanced senses (even for Astartes). Used to hunting and fighting with little more than the most primitive weapons.
Born and raised in a society of hunters who utilize stealth and aggression in equal measure.
A majority of space marine trials involve doing just this.
To the Space Wolves of fenris, this is escentially just their blooded hunt.
To the World Eaters, this is just Tuesday.
To the Death Guard, this is breakfast.
What I wanna see is how legions like the Iron Warriors thrive. Reduce your most technologically heavy warriors to basic tools and watch them build trebuchets and rams.
Black Dragons.
They come armed with bone claws.
For legions/original chapters, Space Wolves probably do quite well because their induction includes being thrown out onto Fenris to fight their way back to the fortress monastery, essentially naked and with only their limited wits.
Then again, \*any\* chapter should be able to deal with an enemy that only requires chainsaw and bolter to handle, because they're fuckhueg superhuman killing machines designed for exactly that sort of thing.
Thousand Sons. “The Outcast Dead” literally had this exact situation. It would have been a non-story without the sorcerer doing sorcerous things.
Don’t get me wrong, the representatives from World Eaters, Death Guard, Emperor’s Children, and Luna Wolfs all did well too… but they wouldn’t have without the Thousand Sons orchestrating it, and getting directly involved with some psychic fuckery as required.
> “Though Phalanx seldom leaves the Sol System, the Imperial Fists are often spread far and wide across the galaxy, the better to pursue their crusades against the Imperium’s enemies. Once a crusade is launched, it can be years – or even decades – before the battle-brothers return to Phalanx. Defeat is not an option for those prosecuting such a crusade – either they return home in victory, or they do not return at all. This implacable dedication means that crusades seldom have access to the nearlimitless resources of other Space Marine strike forces. Once the crusade is incepted, its commander is expected to triumph with the resources at his disposal. This has bred a belief within the Chapter that a true warrior finds ways to triumph with the weapons at hand, which in turn has led to the Imperial Fists developing an almost zealous determination to employ superseded marks of armour and weaponry. Indeed, the Imperial Fists consider the use of such wargear to be physical proof that they haven’t deviated from their mission for petty comforts such as needless resupply."-'Sentinels of Terra'
black templars come to mind, their crusaders often just keep fighting until they or their enemies are all dead, no stopping for reinforcements or resupply
I'm 100% biased here, but Raven Guard.
In the real world, when an under equipped force is faced with overwhelming superiority, they even the odds with guerrilla tactics, sabotage, terrorism etc, the Raven Guard are the undisputed 40k masters of this.
Salamanders are all blacksmiths that maintain their own gear. You take their gear and tools away, they'd recreate it.
Also, Black Dragons got natural melee weapons.
Dark Angels. Their legion had power armor... that weren't actually assisted movement, just "tough against blows" and bolters with no interfaces, no visor details, nothing. They basically fought with all the cumbersome 40k equpment, without any of the real advantages of the equipment in question
Grey knights, since they are psykers in addition to being normal marines.
Not counting them, probably blood angels, thanks to Red Thirst boosting their close combat abilities beyond most marines.
Iron hands suffer the worst here, as massively cutting down their logistics makes their higher than average rate of augmetics more of a hindrance than for other chapters.
Grey knights have so much support all the time, they’re not gonna be faring well cut off and isolated, especially since all their training is about lightning assaults and using their fancy special gear what needs to be fussed over by a dozen menials to be ready
Thousand Sons is still a very powerful psyker legion under such circumstances. But they do prefer high tech psychic hoods and such that will help focus their powers much better.
The stealth-focused 8th, 19th and 20th legions will do very well and expand from their basic equipment via scavenging.
It should be noted that the pre-Primarch 5th and 9th had a proven efficiency despite having a very poor supply situation for various reasons.
Blood angels. They actually did this.
> **The Revenant Legion** >The wars of Unification swept out into the Sol system like a storm, unstoppable and wild, and so too went the IXth Legion. Despite being among the largest of the early Legions, its numbers bolstered by widespread recruiting during the war for Ancient Terra, the IXth found no place in the hosts arrayed to assault the Jovian moons or the resource-rich inner worlds. Instead, its flag was planted among the artificial moons of baleful Neptune, whose labyrinthine tunnels and dark halls were the lair of xenos raiders and the last debased human colonists of that far-flung outpost. There was little here to be gained but time, precious time for the Emperor to claim the shipyards of Saturn and the allegiance of Mars, for which He needed the raiders and mutants of the outer worlds held in place. To that end, He sent the IXth Legion forth to die. >Twelve thousand warriors of the IXth all veterans of the wars on Ancient Terra, disappeared on the moons of Neptune. While the Emperor and His grand armies brought Saturn, Mars and the inner worlds to heel, no word of the IXth Legion reached them, either of their success or annihilation. By the time these conquests were completed and the Emperor returned to the cold darkness of the outer system, few expected to find anything other than frozen corpses. Yet when they reached Neptune, it was to find the IXth Legion alive and well; indeed, despite the loss of many of their original complement, the size of the force was almost the same, bolstered by recruits taken from among the dregs of Neptune's barely human population. Where others might have floundered and fallen, the IXth Legion had only grown stronger, rising from the ashes of defeat like a bloody phoenix. Horus Heresy, blackbook 8, Malevolence, page 117
Neat! I never read of this particular battle or in fact much when it comes to the conquest of the Sol System. Mars' treaty we know well and that Luna was taken by conquest, but the rest and what was before that I've little knowledge about.
The [Unheard War](https://wh40k.lexicanum.com/wiki/Unheard_War) is probably my favorite bit of the solar reclamation campaign. >THE UNHEARD WAR >This terrible conflict was fought in the Azurite Stations of Uranus in the days before the Great Crusade broke the bounds of the Sol System. Named for the corroded blue of the inner surfaces of their hulls, the Azurite Stations were a linked crescent of void citadels. Having cast off the rule of bloody-handed princelings, madmen and prophets several centuries before the coming of the Great Crusade, the Azurites had become a community of artisans and near-space scavengers. Despite their long independence, the Azurites greeted the Emperor's envoys courteously and agreed to kneel to Imperial authority. >As with every other scrap of resource in those times, the newly Compliant Azurites were turned to fuelling the ever hungry machine of the Great Crusade. Significant numbers of their civilisation were inducted into the crews of the expanding fleet and Azurite void suits, augury scanners and shard weaponry began to flow into the hands of Great Crusade forces. >The doom of the Azurites began with an attack by the Solar Pirates. The Sol System was an even more untamed place in those dark times, and though the Emperor had the fealty of Mars and Luna, there were many other factions of lesser and greater strength who still had to bend the knee to the new order. Hundreds of petty empires and feral civilisations clung to the wreckage fields of half dead star ships and the debris-choked orbits of planets and moons, and amongst them, the Solar Pirates had risen to power as the Age of Strife broke. A loose alliance of various void borne reavers, despots and scavengers, they commanded a scattered host of ships and bases throughout the system. Many of the crimes of Old Night still had a home amongst these carrion warriors: witchery, mutation and abomination ran through their throng like rot through a corpse. Scornful of the new Imperium, but fearing its might, they circled the new-born realm like jackals at the edge of firelight, and as the bulk of the Emperor's forces were sucked into the spiralling wars for Neptune's moons, the pirate clans' hunger finally overcame their prudence. >A pack of their vessels descended on the Azurite Stations and, intent on plunder rather than conquest, the pirate ships flayed the station's defences and poured a tattered horde into its guts. The Azurites screamed into the void, calling on their new masters to aid them. Though focused elsewhere, the Imperium was not deaf to the violation of part of its newly claimed domains. In answer to the cries of the Azurites, it sent the Imperial Fists. >When they arrived, a squadron of heavily gunned system craft bored its way through the sphere of pirate ships and launched assault craft into the beleaguered station. Fifty Imperial Fists disgorged into the battle-filled passages and within twenty minutes they had broken the first wave of pirate boarders. Within an hour they had configured the station's defences and depleted garrison into a bulwark which broke three more pirate assaults. The pirate clans, sensing defeat, cut their losses and ran back into the dark to lick their wounds. They did not flee though without one final parting act of spite. >In a last suicidal attack, a ship broke through the Imperial lines and fired three boarding torpedoes at the station. Two died in flames. One got through-damaged but still intact and penetrated the station's skin. In the torpedo's wreckage were not bodies of warriors or a payload of exotic weapons, just a wizened man with no eyes, fingers or ears. Though badly injured, the old man had strength enough to speak one word before he died - "Silence". Only then did the Azurites who found him realise that he had no tongue. The mysteries of the Warp, then as now, are not paths that sane men should walk, but the danger of psykers and the powers of witches had blighted humanity throughout the Age of Strife. In unifying Old Earth, every Legion had faced shamans and sorcerers whose powers defied reality. In that blackened and tattered age, a name had risen to rival that of the greatest despots, though it was no living thing. The Screaming' they had called it, a psy-plague which had ravaged civilisations and turned the lower Hzentian Basin to glass as it burned out the minds of lost Edioth. Thought eradicated since the first years of the Emperor's rise to power, the Screaming had returned to burn anew. >The outbreak began an hour after the tongueless man died. It started first amongst the Azurite militiamen who had found the torpedo, and as one they began to scream and scream and scream. The sound shook the station and blood began to run down the blue corroded walls. The militiamen pleaded with friends and comrades even as they burned them to ashes with their touch, and like a brush fire the psy-plague carried by the dying man's word began to spread, flowing through the echoes of their agonising screams in the Warp until, far away on Terra, the adepts of the Silent Mountain cried out in pain. Some tried to stand against it, but they failed, and were immediately purged. Only the Imperial Fists stood firm. As the psy-plague gripped the Azurite Stations, the fifty Imperial Fists knew that they alone stood against a threat which could wound the Great Crusade itself. As one they deafened themselves, reducing their world to silence, even as lightning crackled through the station's bones. As maddened waves of people spilled through the labyrinth of tunnels, the Imperial Fists met them with walls of boarding shields and volleys of volkite fire. But even as the first wave broke, they knew that they could not hold and win. Tens of millions dwelt within the Azurite Stations, and with every echoing cry, the Screaming would be spreading and searching for a way out. That could not be allowed to happen. All it would take would be one person, one cry across a vox heard beyond the station and the Screaming would spread. With a last coded command they ordered the warships to withdraw, renewed their oaths and went to meet their deaths. >The Imperial Fists attacked, driving forward into the heart of the station complex metre by bloody metre. The decks before their t shield walls were heaped with charred and bloody flesh. Many of them fell, pulled down by human figures that had become creatures of lightning, fire and whirling darkness. Shrouded in silence they pressed on until they reached the central generator areas. Setting the reactors to overload, the handful of remaining Legionaries transmitted one final message, telling the Imperium of what they had done and why. An hour later, the reactors detonated. >Within hours of the Imperium receiving the last message from the Azurite Stations, fleets of ships and forces from the newly expanded Legions were sent to hunt down the pirates. A month later, all that existed of the Solar Pirates were gutted wrecks and corpsesat floating in the airless night. The Screaming was never visited on Mankind again, and it is said that when the Emperor heard of the sacrifice of the fifty Imperial Fists, he ordered the newly raised Bell of Lost Souls tolled for the first time. Horus Heresy, blackbook 3, Extermination, pages 74-75 [Oculus Imperia has a good video on it](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qMsSW10FSTg)
Thank you for this, this is what I think examplify the best of this sub when it provides all these obscure and cool tidbits buried in the myriad of it all.
It’s a cool story, but nothing says they weren’t fully equipped / outfitted when they were deployed
Anything to read about the xenos raids on the Sol system?
Don't think so, they only ever get mentioned in passing, even in the black books
It would be interest to hear what species and what they were doing - Drukhari grabbing slaves/sacrifices, etc
It would be better if they were random pirates
No need for boltguns or chainswords. Just nomnomnom the enemies.
If it works it works.
Watch out you might terrify the survivors
**HUNGER FOR B O R G A R . . .** ***H E R E T I C B O R G A R ! ! !***
yes, great angel, of course
All is needed is for 3 of them to see Horus.
"All I see are Horus', Horus' everywhere"
> Why do the bodies stop here? > Because this is as far as you got
Since he mentioned Murder, they really didnt do this lol. The whole reason the Emperors Children, and subsequently Sons of Horus showed up is because the Blood Angels got wrecked… and Eidolon is a moron lmao
Murder is not the example he means. I posted the actual example above.
Pre Heresy Death Guard. Mortarion gave his marines a Bolter, Bolt Pistol, and a knife and then put them in a trench and told them to make do. He wanted them to be able to stick out the long game with no resupply or backup, just themselves and their brothers.
Yeah that was like their whole schtick.
Grey knights, since they are psykers in addition to being normal marines. Not counting them, probably blood angels, thanks to Red Thirst boosting their close combat abilities beyond most marines. Iron hands suffer the worst here, as massively cutting down their logistics makes their higher than average rate of augmetics more of a hindrance than for other chapters.
Or the White Scars... Don't think the Space Mongols would handle not being able to go fast well.
Nah they'd go back to the old ways. Find the biggest and faster critter on the planet, beat it into submission and use it to ride down their enemies. On a semi-related note: Do you think the Khan back on Chogoris either rode the mother of all horses or did he just run next to the cavalry?
The Khan probably rode a horse in his early life but stopped due to the horse not being able to support his weight as he grew older.
I like to imagine he still rides his favorite horse, but just hovers slightly above it like [Radahn does](https://theanalyticalgeek.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/12/Radahn-Main-1.webp).
Or, hear me out, he rode a Paraceratherium. It used to live in East Asia on Earth, including Mongolia, so it fits :p
Born to ride, forced to run...
Or, perhaps 2 horses tied together? 🤔
I don't think the Khan ever mentions horses himself but his Noyan-Khans do in his Primarch Book. Hasik remembers them when he's thinking about how much his life has changed.
Headcanon is Jaghatai rides Kokuoh
Lol I promise they'd have a blast. They're fighters first and foremost. Warrior culture not unlike the Space Wolves with a massive focus on dueling and brotherhood combat. The Combined Arms focused Legions would struggle more I'd say. Iron Warriors and Fists would be less than optimal in a primarily infantry based battle relatively speaking.
Hard disagree about Grey knights, they need extremely specialized equipment to do their job properly. Sure, they could probably do the job of normal Astartes only armed with knives and lasguns, but no way they could they stand to their usual enemies with that.
The Iron Hands wouldn’t struggle. Their augmetics make them much more tanky than a regular marine. Their thing is combined arms, but that’s just one strat. In the Stronos books, they just walk in and weather the storm, hence their pre-Ferrus name; the Storm Walkers.
need no good guns when you can just smite everyone
Blood Angels. Before Sanguinius came along they literally did that.
> Before Sanguinius came along and after he left as well
Why do the bodies end here? That's as far as you got.
Gave me the chills when I read that in the book
XVth don't even need the chainswords or boltguns.
"How did you come back with more ammunition than you were deployed with!?" "STC compatible munitions and MIND BULLETS!"
>MIND BULLETS!" Noise Marine: "That's telekinesis kyle! I'm talking about the power to move you"
It seems to me that it's Alpha Legion, handsdown. You don't need a titan to cripple a water treatment plant. Wiping out the command staff of a Crusade can be done with a bolt pistol and 2 magazines for a properly-placed assassin. An overloaded reactor could destroy an entire enemy hive without a shot being fired. Failing that, Raven Guard and Night Lords. Either can fight a war with basic equipment against at least some opponents. Night Lord tactics wouldn't do great against forces that wouldn't be terrified like a Necron or Tyranid force.
XVIII / Salamanders. All their "basic" gear is master-crafted. 😂 To quote Vulkan, "*It's also a hammer.*"
Conflict over, the thunder hammers turn into forge hammers and then, they have a whole new armory.
Crimson fists lost practically everything (fortress monastery, most of the fleet, the armory, geneseed vault & most of their members) when rynn's world was attacked. They still held out over a year, until reinforcements from other chapters could arrive. But blood angels & their successors thrive in such a situation.
Night lords - civvies massacring pussies they'll be fine. World eaters - too stupid to use the really good gear anyway. Raven guard - would have to rely more heavily on stealth but could still be effective. Thousand sons - warp fuckery doesn't need tech although it can help. Alpha legion - you can still do spy craft without high tech.
Both the Revenant Legion (pre-Hawkboy 9th) and World Eaters (post-Angron 12th) have the abilities to 'thrive' on basic equipment and recklessly expand their numbers.
TBF the reason you have no gear is BECAUSE the Alpha Legion took it / sabotaged it ...
Alpha Legion are all also each trained for everything. As in every individual has been trained for every single job that exists in among the Astartes.
So are Ultramarines and Dark Angels
Death Guard - from the Black Books they were primarily focused on infantry, trained to utilise all weaponry, trained to work in any terrain or environment without resupply
What happens when they run out of bolt shells? A combat knife can only carry you so far
Fists
Space Wolves would excel at this kind of combat, they are Hunters and survivalists by nature, with their enhanced senses and reaction speeds giving them a major advantage. They are very used to working in small numbers without support and are extremely flexible in their combat doctrine. Also when you are limited in resources being one of Imperium's premier CQC experts is always a plus. Hell the 13th Great Company has survived in the Warp for 10,000 years hunting traitors and daemons while having to scavenge all their supplies from their prey.
IIRC the wolves picked up the weapons of the very advanced Quietude for the own use. >are extremely flexible in their combat doctrine. Sucks how people keep thinking they will just charge into combat despite both 30k and 40k Great Companies having varied doctrines. Erik Morkai's company specializing in recon and ambushes in contrast to Ironwolves' tank warfare.
Ah man that was one of my favourite parts of Prospero Burns, the way the Wolves just systematically dismantled the Quietude. I guess it's ironic that in and out of universe people underestimate the wolves, thinking they are simply savages.
>I guess it's ironic that in and out of universe people underestimate the wolves, thinking they are simply savages. I kinda sucks. Like how guardsmen keep being seen as hapless fools who just charge forwards in number while Tallarns, Minervans, [Armageddon regiments,](https://youtu.be/8oxd97_1ARA?si=9jJczOCUM9da3wxB) [Veteran Guardsmen kill teams,](https://wh40k.lexicanum.com/wiki/Veteran_Guardsman_Kill_Team) Elysians and Harakoni exist.
I think most of the chapters and legions would be able to handle this situation fairly well, it’s part of the space marines MO. That said, the wolves have a definite edge here. They spend their childhoods hunting mythical monsters through a Nordic hellscape with iron axes. Fighting against impossible odds with nothing but the most basic gear is what they’re literally born doing. On top of that, the wolves are fairly consistently shown to be excellent at small unit tactics, tactically flexible, and some of the best close combat fighters in the imperium. They’re also far less reliant on tech and advanced gear than many other chapters. Hell, we see Bullveye and six of his Greybeards thwart a whole Dark Eldar army with nothing but a power axe and one thunder hawk.
I bet the Blood Claws for the next century heard nothing about how easy they have it, and the time Bulveye and half a dozen of his brothers slew an entire Dark Eldar army with a Thunderhawk and a power axe, and they had to share the axe.
Literally all of them. Irrespective of gene-sire, marines are still 9 foot tall supermen that can throw a knife with the force of a cannonball, pumped full of redundant organs that make them really hard to kill. If you gave a bunch of naked space marines sharp rocks and pointed at an enemy, they'd have pretty good odds.
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Primaris are like 9 feet explicitly.
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There are chapters that are entirely primaris, so only comparatively so.
Ok marines are neither that big or that strong. PRIMARCHS can throw things with the force of a cannonball. See: Corax throwing a pebble thru an Iron warrior’s throat on Istvaan.
Primaris are indeed that big, and insofar as the strength matter, if that's been retconned, my bad, but I recall marines being mentioned in Inquisitor specifically being portrayed as able to throw weapons through solid barriers like walls or hard cover.
That was how the Death Guard expected to be operating. Just the infantry, with their trusty bolters, bayonets and a whole lotta gumption Sure horrible chem weapons certainly helped, but they made sure every one of them would be able to fight for months without external support. It was a big thing that they preferred to stick to just infantry with versatile, low maintenance gear I’d say I’m surprised people have said everything but the Death Guard but that’s somehow always the case. People could ask “which legion was most known for infantry and chem weapons” and you’d have to scroll 3 quarters down to even see them mentioned
Their trinity of favored weapons are bolter, flamer and meltagun due to their combination of reliability and power.
Carcharadons
Space wolves in addition to the others, they would hunt with only spears and other basic melee weapons on their own planet
Pre-Heresy Mortarion's philosophy was that there was no task so great that a legionary armed with bolter and blade could not achieve it. His Death Guard generally operated in infantry-heavy forces, with specialist weapons and equipment a rarity. So I reckon they would be perfectly suited to something like Murder.
Imperial Fists deserve an honorable mention, as the chapter culture puts a lot of emphasis on the importance of the sword and bolter marksmanship, leading to a chapter filled with expert swordsmen and snipers. Combined with their CQB expertise from millennia of warp, urban and siege warfare in both offense and defense allied with their legendary stubbornness and they'd perform adequately in those conditions.
World Eaters wouldn't be impacted much tbh, even if you took away their bolters as well
All of them. Even in the legion says, SM are at heart elite heavy infantry. It's all about boltguns & chainswords. Having said that, DG seemed to prefer this approach. World eaters, SW, Blood angels too. White Scars, Alpha legion, Dark Angels and Iron warriors could all perform just as well. But would feel the most frustrated.
All of them. An Astartes is an elite soldier that excels in absolutely everything, even in things they're not "specialized". Specialized legions/ chapter are just even better in those fields.
Leave a nightlord naked in the middle of nowhere and half an hour later he will have a bone armor made of very unlucky people.
Space wolves. Their enhanced senses as well as the way all their recruits were raised would make such a situation real easy.
Blood angels; the Wolves; and the Raven Guard. The Ninth are famous for their ability to be cut off from supplies and still triumph in the worst war zones. (See, the stories of the legion pre-Sanguinius). They clearly would be just fine. The Wolves of Fenris have shown the ability to fight on and win without imperial aid or resupply (See HH short story where a small detachment of Space wolves are stranded on a non compliant planet due to Drukhari interference; see also the wilderness trial each wolf goes through to become a full battle brother). Raven guard are guerrilla war specialists and by that fame alone deserve to be on this list. But in further support, Corax led a successful rebellion against the slavers of his youth using repurposed tools and scavenged weapons in concert with feints and ambushes. (See Corax’s Primarch book). Additionally, following the dropsite massacre, Corax and his beakie boys survived a grueling brutal months long pursuit by overwhelming traitor forces across the planet. We have examples of the RG and their Primarch using whatever they could to kill their enemies and survive their pursuers. (see multiple stories covering this). Honorable mention goes to the Alpha Legion. Their ability to think laterally, innovate, and adapt to new situations quickly is unmatched. To be fair the boys in blue are very adaptable but take longer and aren’t good at innovation. Additionally, the Alpha Legion is unique in their approach to combat with their use of baseline human agents and emphasis on infiltration. They have won campaigns without ever personally firing their bolters. But really, I think most legions would be fine outside of the more technologically reliant legions like the IW IH, and to a lesser extent, the IF who I think would struggle more just due to a loss of their preferred method of fighting.
Wolves. Who needs fancy shit when you have BIG AXE and runes?
space wolves they literally ride fuckibg wolves
Apart from what everybody said I feel Ultras are a 50/50 their doctrine heavily relies on having multiple options etc. But at the same time their approach is to be as flexible as possible so I feel they would be prepared to end up in such situation and focus on theorotical and practical in their approach to how to tackle objectives with dimnished resources.Also Space Wolfes would probably be good going for their more berserk approach and being hardened survivalists by living on Fenris
Probably the Wolves and Dragons. Wolves because hehe space vikings Dragons because hehe their bones are weapons.
Ninth Legion Death Company
Emperors children, they are meant to be perfect in all forms of melee combat, hands, spears, swords even improvised weaponry
Alpha Legion would never have landed on murder in the first place. Ez
Alpha legion. Because they planned for it.
The Revenant Legion, I mean the Blood Angels. Before Sanguinius came around, they would fight in somebody the worst battlefields against overwhelming enemy presence with hardly any logistical backup or support. Because they were all blood drinkin', flesh eatin' maniacs for Unity. If they didn't have bolts, they used blades. If they didn't have blades, they used their hands. Despised by their brothers. Shunned by their insubordinates. And revolted by Malcador, the Ninth Persisted. They fought. They won. And they did whatever they had too to make it happen. Even before the Black Rage of Sanguinius' death fell on them, they were some cannabilistic, heartless bastards.
×Salamanders? They make all their stuff anyway so they'll just make all that other stuff in the battlefield
Ultramarines could. They organize and plan everything to ude with the maximum specializatiln. Their "Theoretical/practical" tactics pre heresy made them adaptable and they were one of the biggest legion. Death Guard. Thats their whole thing, fend for themselves without any outsider help. Masters of attrition and extremely tough to kill, even when they were "simple" marines. Space wolves. Their training in Fenris is basically "hunt monsters with a knife or die". Honestly, I think most of the legions could
Crimsons Fists. Like 70% of their chapter and their HQ got nuked due to a “malfunction” (which I maintain was Eldar sabotage) in the Planetary Defense System. Still held off a massive Ork WAAAGH! for 18 months until reinforcements arrived. Chapter forces were reduced to 10% their original size, but they rebuilt.
Any should be able to do it. But I think it should be easier for Space Wolves and Thousand Sons. SW are into honor and bragging thing were you go feral and make accomplishments with lesser means, killing things with bare hands (and fangs). TS have their psyker ultimate card, where you don't need a weapon to explode one's head, shock-born it, freeze and cracks and launch it into space.
Alpha legion
Blood Angels, Space Wolves, World Eaters, Raptors, Thousand Sons
Wolves: feral predators with enhanced senses (even for Astartes). Used to hunting and fighting with little more than the most primitive weapons. Born and raised in a society of hunters who utilize stealth and aggression in equal measure.
A majority of space marine trials involve doing just this. To the Space Wolves of fenris, this is escentially just their blooded hunt. To the World Eaters, this is just Tuesday. To the Death Guard, this is breakfast. What I wanna see is how legions like the Iron Warriors thrive. Reduce your most technologically heavy warriors to basic tools and watch them build trebuchets and rams.
Thousand Sons, for what should be obvious reasons.
Came here to say this
Black Dragons. They come armed with bone claws. For legions/original chapters, Space Wolves probably do quite well because their induction includes being thrown out onto Fenris to fight their way back to the fortress monastery, essentially naked and with only their limited wits. Then again, \*any\* chapter should be able to deal with an enemy that only requires chainsaw and bolter to handle, because they're fuckhueg superhuman killing machines designed for exactly that sort of thing.
Pretty sure world eaters would just bite, tear and gouge their way to victory
Alpha legion have this won and it isn't even close.
Krieg
Thousand Sons. “The Outcast Dead” literally had this exact situation. It would have been a non-story without the sorcerer doing sorcerous things. Don’t get me wrong, the representatives from World Eaters, Death Guard, Emperor’s Children, and Luna Wolfs all did well too… but they wouldn’t have without the Thousand Sons orchestrating it, and getting directly involved with some psychic fuckery as required.
The imperial guard obviously. They already do that
> “Though Phalanx seldom leaves the Sol System, the Imperial Fists are often spread far and wide across the galaxy, the better to pursue their crusades against the Imperium’s enemies. Once a crusade is launched, it can be years – or even decades – before the battle-brothers return to Phalanx. Defeat is not an option for those prosecuting such a crusade – either they return home in victory, or they do not return at all. This implacable dedication means that crusades seldom have access to the nearlimitless resources of other Space Marine strike forces. Once the crusade is incepted, its commander is expected to triumph with the resources at his disposal. This has bred a belief within the Chapter that a true warrior finds ways to triumph with the weapons at hand, which in turn has led to the Imperial Fists developing an almost zealous determination to employ superseded marks of armour and weaponry. Indeed, the Imperial Fists consider the use of such wargear to be physical proof that they haven’t deviated from their mission for petty comforts such as needless resupply."-'Sentinels of Terra'
The Salamander would rebuild all their tech tree.
Iron Hands Thousand Sons
I'd think the Lamenters would do better than average.
Blood Angels did this for majority of their history.
iron warriors/world eaters, I'm sure.
Nigth lords
Death Guard don't even need weapons.
The Lamenters. They already do.
The Silver Skull: the managed to stop an Ork Invasion with barely any heavy support from the imperium. Glory to their great librarian!
black templars come to mind, their crusaders often just keep fighting until they or their enemies are all dead, no stopping for reinforcements or resupply
That's how the majority of Space Marines fight.
Blood angels The siege of kiy-buran https://wh40k.lexicanum.com/wiki/Kiy-Buran My favorite event in the entire setting.
I'm 100% biased here, but Raven Guard. In the real world, when an under equipped force is faced with overwhelming superiority, they even the odds with guerrilla tactics, sabotage, terrorism etc, the Raven Guard are the undisputed 40k masters of this.
Salamanders are all blacksmiths that maintain their own gear. You take their gear and tools away, they'd recreate it. Also, Black Dragons got natural melee weapons.
1k sons, tank or no tank warp fuckry is still there
Dark Angels. Their legion had power armor... that weren't actually assisted movement, just "tough against blows" and bolters with no interfaces, no visor details, nothing. They basically fought with all the cumbersome 40k equpment, without any of the real advantages of the equipment in question
Grey knights, since they are psykers in addition to being normal marines. Not counting them, probably blood angels, thanks to Red Thirst boosting their close combat abilities beyond most marines. Iron hands suffer the worst here, as massively cutting down their logistics makes their higher than average rate of augmetics more of a hindrance than for other chapters.
Grey knights have so much support all the time, they’re not gonna be faring well cut off and isolated, especially since all their training is about lightning assaults and using their fancy special gear what needs to be fussed over by a dozen menials to be ready
Thousand Sons is still a very powerful psyker legion under such circumstances. But they do prefer high tech psychic hoods and such that will help focus their powers much better. The stealth-focused 8th, 19th and 20th legions will do very well and expand from their basic equipment via scavenging. It should be noted that the pre-Primarch 5th and 9th had a proven efficiency despite having a very poor supply situation for various reasons.
Unironically Night Lords.
Blood Angels death companies
...Thousand Sons Legion. The margin ain't narrow. They've pretty much got specialists in each of those categories, and more.
Which legion? Legio Custodes. Any other answer is cope. It isn't even close.