Alpha Legion

The Alpha Legion is an army that features in Warhammer 40,000.

History

The Alpha Legion were a legion of the Adeptus Astartes that was established by the Imperium of Man during the time of the Great Crusade.

Alpharius was first encountered by the Imperium in the twilight years of the Great Crusade. An advance patrol from the Luna Wolves was surveying a new system when their scoutship came under attack from a swarm of starfighters. Despite their primitive design, the attack was well-coordinated and when the starfighters were forced to flee, the Luna Wolves gave pursuit - straight into a minefield. Reinforcements from the Luna Wolves' fleet arrived, and Horus himself shuttled over to the stricken vessel. He arrived to find the crew on high alert: a small boarding party had managed to fight its way aboard, and were converging on the bridge. Horus remained, leading the defence of the scoutship's bridge. When five men burst onto the bridge, Horus managed to shoot four in the head, but the fifth was able to dodge the bolter shell. Advancing, the man came under a dense hail of fire, which slowed but did not stop him. He was an instant away from grabbing Horus by the throat, when the two suddenly ceased fighting, recognising each other as brothers. The Alpha Legion's Astartes would appear to operate under a general alter ego, whereby individual marines would state their name - upon being asked - as Alpharius.

On finding Alpharius, instead of sending him back to the Emperor as soon as possible, Horus began to train Alpharius, often allowing the newly-found Primarch to take tactical command of the Luna Wolves. Horus was impressed with Alpharius' skill and ingenuity, while at the same time Alpharius was in awe of the martial power wielded by Horus, and his knowledge of when and where to use it. Eventually, Alpharius was sent to meet the Emperor, but they spent little time together due to the pressing needs of running the Imperium. Alpharius was quickly sent to take command of the Twentieth Space Marine Legion, which came to be known as the Alpha Legion. The Alpha Legion was the final Space Marine Legion created for the Great Crusade, and Alpharius threw himself and his Legion into the reconquest of the galaxy, eager to emulate the actions and successes of the more established Legions, and to prove his own Legion's worth. Their first campaigns were highly successful, and Alpharius' preferred tactics were quickly adopted by the Legion as a whole. Alpharius advocated that the best attacks came from multiple directions, and that keeping a commander's options open was the way to success. No Alpha Legion force ever engaged an enemy without a backup plan, with flanking forces and infiltrators always ready to capitalise on any weak points exposed by the enemy. Alpharius was said to have tirelessly worked towards the training of his officers, encouraging independent thought and listening to their advice. He constantly set challenges for them, sometimes in the middle of a battle, to force his officers and troops to adapt and improvise. On rare occasions, he would disappear entirely, to assess how the Alpha Legion performed without its leader.

After an argument with the Ultramarines Primarch Roboute Guilliman, Alpharius pushed the Alpha Legion even harder, seeking out the most difficult challenges, so as to prove incorrect Guilliman's belief that the Alpha Legion couldn't hope to compare to the Ultramarines. He knew that he could not beat them in quantity of victories, so the Legion set itself for quality. Tesstra Prime was the chosen target of the first of these victories, a world violently opposing the idea of Imperial rule. Alpharius delayed the assault by a week, during which the planet's defence forces were able to dig in and prepare for an assault on the world's vast capital city. It was estimated that over a million soldiers were armed and ready to resist the Space Marine invasion. The Alpha Legion deployed, focusing their efforts on a few key points of the defence, while leaving large reaches of the enemy line unopposed. As the assault was launched, bombs that had been placed by infiltrators were detonated, isolating the points under assault from reinforcement. Various counter-plans were put in action by the Tesstran military, but these were all foiled by the Alpha Legion. Within a week, ninety percent casualties had been suffered by the defenders under a constant rain of bolter shells, with the loss of only a handful of Space Marines. Expecting praise for such a decisive victory against the odds, Alpharius was shocked when the other Primarchs berated him; the doctrinaire Guilliman, who had grown to despise Alpharius and his underhanded methods, specifically declared his campaign a waste of "time, effort, and the Emperor's bolt shells". Only Horus supported the Alpha Legion's victory against the quantity of opposition. When challenged by Guilliman over the campaign as to why the Alpha Legion had not quickly deployed and beaten the Tesstran military before they were ready, Alpharius replied "Because it would have been too easy."

As Horus was assuming the role of Warmaster, he urged Alpharius to assist the 670th expedition in bringing the world of Nurth to compliance, which proved difficult; despite the inferior technological base of the enemy, they were heavily tainted by Chaos and could call upon 'magicks' to aid them in their resistance. Thus the Alpha Legion put its trademark skills in covert operations to use in assisting (and spying on) the Imperial Army. The Cabal, a collective of Xenos races, began its efforts to overtly manipulate the Alpha Legion during the Nurth campaign (they had been influencing their actions indirectly for some time), resulting in a meeting between Alpharius/Omegon and the Cabal's representatives. The Cabal showed Alpharius/Omegon a vision of two possible futures, and presented them with a choice. The Alpha Legion could side with Horus and betray the Emperor, setting into motion a chain of events that would destroy Chaos for all time with the sacrifice of humanity (Horus would nurse severe guilt over his actions and with that rage eventually turn upon his empire and destroy both all of mankind and Chaos with it). Or they could side with the Emperor, where eventually Chaos would be successfully routed but then creep back into the bosom of mankind, eventually destroying the entire galaxy. Whether they were duped or enlightened by the Cabal, Alpharius and Omegon stated that "The Alpha Legion has always, always, been for the Emperor", and made their choice to side with Horus.

As prophesised, Horus was soon to betray the Emperor, and the Battle of Istvaan V dramatically demarcated the dividing line between loyalist and rebel legions. The Alpha Legion was among the seven legions sent to eliminate Horus and his traitorous allies. Assigned to the second wave, the Alpha Legion revealed that they too had turned to Chaos, landing on the planet to help destroy the three Loyalist Legions in what came to be known as the Drop Site Massacre. Some scholars believed that the trap was planned using Alpharius's assistance, as it bore the hallmarks of many Alpha Legion assaults. While other Traitor Legions advanced on Terra, Horus commanded Alpharius to engage the Space Wolves and White Scars in the Chondax system, to stop the two loyalist Legions uniting and/or reinforcing Terra. [2] The Alpha Legion failed in this task, however, with the White Scars escaping to Terra, leaving the outnumbered Space Wolf fleet to face the Alpha Legion. Eventually the Wolves received help from an 'unexpected quarter' and turned the tables on the Alpha Legion, before they too set course for Terra. After the Heresy ended with the defeat of Horus, the Alpha Legion chose not to follow its fellow Traitor Legions into the Eye of Terror, and continued to fight the Imperium. After a grueling campaign, the Ultramarines brought the Alpha Legion to battle on the world of Eskrador. Roboute Guilliman's campaign was designed to rip out the heart of the Alpha Legion before wrapping up the uncoordinated remainder. Guilliman led a strike force directly into the enemy camp, and forced Alpharius into single combat. Guilliman triumphed, killing his brother Primarch in a duel. However, the Alpha Legion failed to break as Guilliman had hoped; Alpharius's efforts in grooming his legion to fight without him meant his death did not retard his legion's coordination, and the Ultramarines suffered heavy casualties as the Alpha Legion out-fought them at every turn. The campaign continued for two weeks before Guilliman gave up and ordered his Legion to be redeployed elsewhere. The account of Guilliman's attack, however, was taken from the personal log of an Ultramarine sergeant, and its validity has been questioned by both Inquisitors and the Ultramarines themselves. As only one primarch body was supposedly slain, it is almost certain that either Alpharius, Omegon or both remain at large.

The Legion disappeared during the reorganisation of the Imperium following the Emperor's wounding. The Alpha Legion did not follow their brothers into the Eye of Terror, instead continuing to operate out of their countless bases hidden within the Imperium. The destruction of the Alpha Legion is a high priority for both the Space Marines and the Inquisition, and although the Legion has been declared destroyed on three occasions, they always seem to survive, resurfacing with a fresh wave of assaults.

Overview

During the Great Crusade, Alpha Legion power armour was dark purple-blue, with silver trim and green iconography. The symbol for the chapter was a chevron crossed by a series of chain links, forming a stylized letter "A". After the Heresy, the dark blue-purple was replaced with mottled blue and hydra markings all over their armor. Physically, all space marines (regardless of legion or chapter) have a vague physical resemblance to each other due to the common nature of the geneseed. The Alpha Legion took this one step further by going to great lengths to make all of their troops look the same as each other (or at least to Alpharius / Omegon). It is unknown whether this practice was continued post Heresy. The primary colours of the Alpha Legion are blue and green. In the previous Chaos Codex, the example Alpha Legionnaire was depicted as very dark, almost black blue with silver trim and in the version before that, they were shown in metallic blue with the same silver trim. In the current incarnation of the Codex, the Alpha Legion's troops appear dark blue-green, with silver trim, although the colours suggested for the effect are blue with green highlights around the edges of the armour, mimicking the appearance of scales. They have also been portrayed with gold trim around the edges of the armour. It is possible, as is evidenced from the account of the battle of Eskrador, that the Alpha Legion is not above disguising themselves as Marines from other, Loyalist chapters in order to fool their prey. This is unthinkable to most Marines, as they take great pride in their colours. The Legion's (post heresy) symbol is of a three-headed hydra, a multi-headed mythical beast which - when one or more of its heads were severed - would then grow two more to replace the lost cranium. The use of this symbol is telling, in regard to the secret identity of the legion's Primarch and the combat philosophy of the legion; one cell or squad could be destroyed, but then two more would be able to set about completing the task of the first.

Because of the Alpha Legion's disposition towards intense secrecy, very little is known about the Legion's organisation. It is known that the Legion organises cultist cells on hundreds of worlds, many of which are well trained and organised. These cults would be used as part of the disruption of a world's war efforts against the Alpha Legion, or in the event of an impending attack. These cults are often in direct competition with cults instigated by the Word Bearers and as such the two legions harbour a great deal of bitterness and enmity towards one another. As in the supposed death of Alpharius, the assassination of leaders does not appear to affect the operations of the Legion in any major way. The Legion's symbol of the hydra is appropriate, for when one head is cut off, the other heads take command of the body.

Prior to the Horus Heresy, the Alpha Legion was unique among the Space Marines for indoctrinating squad-sized groups as opposed to individuals. A squad had to master the adaptation from man to Space Marine as a group; if one failed, all were considered to have failed. Foolhardy heroics were frowned upon, and the overall plan was considered more important than any one Marine. The Chaos Space Marine Legions have been able to continue fighting for ten thousand years because of the time-warping effects of their home, the Eye of Terror. The Alpha Legion does not reside in the Eye, or in any similar warp/realspace overlays, so the question must be raised as to how the Legion has managed to survive (in the Horus Heresy books it is suggested that the Space Marines could be immortal, as even the oldest Marines on record have perished solely from combat-related causes). It is possible that they maintain the recruitment practices similar to loyalist Marines, probably recruiting from Chaos cultists, or they may use Chaotic sorcery to prolong their lifespans. It is stated in the Codex: Chaos Space Marines book that the Chaos Gods may reward their champions with "followers". This may come in the form of transforming cultists into Space Marines via the power of the warp. In the latest Chaos Space Marine Codex, a story reveals the Alpha Legion have been turning neophytes from Loyalist Marine chapters into Alpha Legion sleeper agents, via hypnotic suggestion and brainwashing techniques. When these recruits become full Space Marines, existing Alpha Legion marines activate a mental trigger that causes the recruits to turn on their brethren. Some of these recruits then either go mad or join the Alpha Legion.

The tactics utilised by Alpharius revolved around attacking the enemy in as many ways as possible simultaneously, ranging from underground assaults to sabotage of water supplies and activation of tectonic activity. Extensive preparations are made before striking out at a target, including the use of spies and corruption to weaken an enemy's resolve. Alpharius was also a pragmatic leader; with little or no scruples as to using other military resources to his own advantage. Often, cults and traitors will be employed as a support network to Alpha Legion actions. Many actions are planned to utilise and support local cultist activity. These cults go to considerable effort to spread propaganda, perform sabotage, and carry out acts of unrest and rebellion, providing a distraction and weakening the enemy before the Alpha Legion strikes. Before the outbreak of the Heresy, the Alpha Legion were known to employ agents with many different special talents. These 'Specialists' were used in such roles as infiltration, intelligence gathering and even as psykers when the occasion demanded. As one agent of the Alpha Legion puts it, "The Alpha Legion will use any and all means to achieve its goals".

The Alpha Legion, even after their betrayal of the Imperium, use Imperialistic battle cries such as "For the Emperor". These may be used in order to mock and infuriate the forces loyal to the Imperium, however, following the events of the novel Legion, it is much more likely that they in fact believe that their actions are, in the broad scale of things, 'for the Emperor' and his ideals; other battlecries used by the Alpha Legion are related to their Legion symbol, the hydra, for example, "Hydra Dominatus!".

Members

• Alpharius : Primarch of the Alpha Legion, twin brother to Omegon.
• Omegon : Primarch of the Alpha Legion, twin brother to Alpharius.
• Ingo Pech : Captain, First Company.
• Mathias Herzog : Captain, Second Company.
• Arkos the Faithless : Scion of Alpharius, commander of splinter group Alpha, who infiltrated the Siege Of Vraks masquerading as loyal Space Marines, before turning on the Death Korps of Kreig and assisting the Vraks Militia in the defense of the Vraks Spaceport against the Dark Angels. His personal battle cry is "Victory and Grace".
• Sheed Ranko : captain of lernean terminator squad and occasional public stand-in for the Primarch/s.

Notes

• The Alpha Legion were created by Games Workshop and featured in the setting of the Warhammer 40,000 universe.

Appearances

• Warhammer 40,000:

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