Grey Knights
The Grey Knights are an army that feature in Warhammer 40,000.
Contents |
History
The Grey Knights were a Chapter of the Adeptus Astartes that were created to serve the Imperium of Man by protecting it from the threat of Daemons of the Warp. They were regarded as the most mysterious of the many organizations of the Imperium with knowledge of their founding being only known to the upper echelons of the Inquisition. According to legend, they first appeared during the tumultuous Second Founding when nine Space Marine Legions were divided with the Grey Knights being designated as Chapter 666. Though other accounts showed that their origins lay during the Horus Heresy when the Emperor of Mankind saw the threat of the Chaos Gods would have over humanity with even Space Marines being affected by the threat of heresy. To combat this danger, Malcador the Sigilite who was the Emperor's greatest servant scourged the Imperium for men that would be capable of handling this responsibility. He ultimately returned to Terra with 12 candidates of diverse backgrounds with the Emperor bidding Malcador to continue this initiative. Among the twelve, four helped found the basis of the Inquisition whilst the remaining eight were Space Marines who were taken to the moon of Titan that was long ago shielded from anyone's sights. On the surface was a Fortress Monastery and the resources that would be used to create a Chapter of Space Marines whose membership consisted of newly recruited members along with those that remained loyal during the Horus Heresy regardless of their founding legion. Though founding the Chapter, Malcador could not oversee its development and instead selected Janus of the eight Space Marines to serve as the first Supreme Grand Master. Titan was then sent into a refuge within the tidings of the warp thus allowing to escape the attention of Horus Lupercal and it remained there until the time of the Second Founding when the moon returned to real space. In that time, the eight Space Marines and their hundreds of untrained recruits came to emerge as a one thousand strong Chapter. By the time of their return, the Space Marine Legions were in the process of being divided into Chapters as per the edicts set by the Codex Astartes. At the time, the Second Founding was being overseen by the newly formed Inquisition with the Grey Knights placed among their ranks and given the designation of Chapter 666. Few details were kept on them and most of these were erased from the archives within a century.
Kyril Sindermann, later known as Inquisitor Lastan Neemagiun Veritus, survived for 1,500 years until the end of the War of the Beast. After being poisoned by High Lord Drakan Vangorich, head of the Assassinorum, he confided in fellow Inquisitor Wienand that he was the last of the four Inquisitors to know of the founding of the Grey Knights. He revealed that he ordered the Grey Knights to battle the forces of Chaos during the centuries following the Horus Heresy, but knowledge of them were kept to only himself, the Grey Knights, and those who were currently deceased. They were too important of a force to be wasted during the War of the Beast, and the current structure of the Inquisition would prevent them from being used properly to defeat the threat of Chaos. Before dying, he imparted to her a code chip that allowed her access to Titan and to meet with Supreme Grand Master Janus. Once having navigated through the various environmental protections offered by the moon, she discussed the splitting of the Inquisition into the Ordo Xenos and Ordo Malleus, with the Grey Knights serving as Ordo Malleus's chamber militant. She later died on Terra a century later after helping to ensure that Vangorich was overthrown, leaving it unclear as to the restructuring of the Inquisition was yet implemented or not.
Overview
In appearance, the Grey Knights were a chapter of Adeptus Astartes officially designated as Chapter 666. Space Marine Chapters were meant to be autonomous but the Grey Knights were fully embedded within the organization of the Inquisition and served as its chamber militant. They were given a designation of Chapter 666 during the time of the Second Founding. Other Space Marine Chapters were built on existing stock but the Grey Knights were born of a new gene-seed without flaw compared to those before them with them carrying the Emperor's own flesh and soul. Leadership of the Chapter was held by the Supreme Grand Master.
No Grey Knight bore the name of their birth as this was to distance themselves from their previous life and also served as a sign of being reborn in service to the Inquisition. After their identity was broken down and rebuilt they began their training with them not remembering their past. They were assigned a number until the completion of their training where they were granted a new name that was a fragment of magical lore divined by the Chapter's scribes to act in perfect opposition to the true name of a particular Daemon. As such, even the name of a Grey Knight came to serve as a weapon against their enemy.
The hierarchy of the Grey Knights included:
- Supreme Grand Master : the highest rank attainable by a Grey Knight. Also referred to as the Chapter Lord, the Supreme Grand Master had complete authority over the chapter. However, a Grey Knight could only be appointed as the Supreme Grand Master with the unanimous consent of every other Grand Master, thus ensuring that an unsuitable candidate did not attain dominion over the chapter.
- Grand Masters : Grey Knight chapters usually had 8 Grand Masters, each having command of a Grey Knights brotherhood. An unmatched daemonslayer, the Grand Master wore Terminator Armour and wielded a powerful Nemesis force weapon in battle whilst also being powerful psykers. Few Daemons had been able to stand against a Grand Master and survive. The death of such a powerful defender of the Emperor's will was always mourned by the Grey Knights and the Ordo Malleus — though would never a common citizen know of him.
- Brother-Captains :
- Librarians :
- Brotherhood Champions :
- Terminators :
- Strike Squads :
- Interceptor Squads :
- Purgation Squads :
- Paladins :
- Purifiers :
- Techmarines :
- Prognosticars :
- Ferrymen : former Grey Knights who serve as seneschals to the Sepulcars who tend the Dead Fields. They are trained and purified for their duty in a tradition dating back to the founding of the Grey Knights, resulting in them becoming Pariahs. They perform their duties unarmed and unarmoured, wearing only a grey robe. When a Grey Knight dies, their squad present the Sigil of Malcador to a Ferryman and speak the words to be engraved on the tomb of the fallen knight. The Ferryman then cleanses and buries the body in the Dead Fields.
- Gatherers : these were Grey Knights of great age or who had severe injuries that meant that they could not undertake the primary work of the Chapter. Despite that, their keen senses and minds allowed them to seek out recruits across the galaxy. They were able to find an aspirant hero amongst the common rabble with their being no limit to their remit.
The armoury of the Grey Knights included:
- Grimoire of True Names :
- Liber Daemonicum :
- Iron Halo :
- Nemesis Banner :
- Personal Teleporter :
- Psychic Hood :
- Aegis Armour :
- Psybolt Ammunition :
Vehicles maintained by the Chapter included:
- Rhinos :
- Razorbacks :
- Nemesis Dreadknights :
- Dreadnoughts :
- Land Raiders :
- Land Raider Redeemers :
- Land Raider Crusaders :
- Stormraven Gunships :
- Thunderhawks :
- Strike Cruisers :
Grey Knights had a special preference for the use of deep strike tactics, particularly the utilisation of teleportation and Stormraven and Thunderhawk Gunships.
The headquarters of the Chapter was based on Saturn's moon of Titan where their Fortress Monastery was located in the shadow of Mount Anarch. Within the fortress hang pennants, banners and flags commemorating the victories and sacrifices made by the chapter in their war against the daemonic, but none other than the Grey Knights would recognise the names of these campaigns. The chapter operates in oppressive secrecy, beyond the knowledge of the Adeptus Terra and even the High Lords of Terra — as a part of the Ordo Malleus, the Grey Knights are answerable only to the Ordo and the Emperor. Even the location of the fortress-monastery is known only to the Ordo Malleus. Titan itself is surrounded by the rings of Saturn and multiple confidential Malleus-controlled moons: Mimas, the prison and execution centre of the Ordo Malleus, Enceladus, home of the leaders of the Ordo Malleus and other influential Malleus Inquisitors, and several other worlds.
Members
- Janus : a male Space Marine who was named the first Supreme Grand Master of the Grey Knights at the time of their founding by Malcador the Sigilite.
- Kaldor Draigo :
- Vorth Mordrak :
- Master Voldus :
- Arvann Stern :
- Garran Crowe :
- Hyperion :
- Alaric :
Notes
- The Grey Knights were created by Games Workshop and featured in the setting of the Warhammer 40,000 universe.
In other media
Video games
- In Warhammer 40,000: Dawn of War – Dark Crusade, the Grey Knights appeared as elite units for the Space Marine faction in the setting of the real-time strategy video game expansion.
- In Warhammer 40,000: Chaos Gate - Daemonhunters, the Grey Knights appeared in the setting of the 2022 turn-based tactics video game. Grey Knight Strike Force Xiphos under Captain Agravain pursued the Khornate Daemon Ere'khul to the fallen world of Gaheris and battled his warhost cult. The Captain and most of his squad were killed but succeeded in banishing the Bloodthirster back to the Warp. The Purifer Ectar oversaw a new captain being chosen from the ranks as they intended to take their ship the Baleful Edict back to Titan for repairs but came upon Inquisitor Kartha Vakir of the Ordo Malleus. She enlisted the vessel and its crew to help deal with a Nurgle born plague known as the Bloom that was spreading across the sector.
Appearances
- Warhammer 40,000:
- Codex: Grey Knights (5th Edition): (2011)
External Links
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