History of the Red Scorpions.

Red Scorpions In Combat

Red Scorpions Special Vehicles

Personalities of the Red Scorpions

Inquisition Notes on the Red Scorpions

High Adeptus Report on the Red Scorpions

After the Ultramarines chapter was broken up in the period after the Horus Heresy, the Red Scorpions chapter was formed from the ranks of the Ultramarines. Ultramarine Brother-Captain Sergas Surtek received permission from the Emperor in M32.951 to form the Red Scorpions.

In the first year of the 33rd millenia the gene seed for the Red Scorpions chapter was fully developed, and the first generation of warriors were established. The Emperor gave them thier codex that year and assigned them the homeworld of Telron Beta.

Telron Beta was a huge feral world. Consisting soley of nomadic warrior tribes known for their ferocity and unreasoning loyalty. These tribes eventually formed the gene-base for all future Red Scorpion marines, giving them the tenacity they are now revered for.

Not long after the inception of the chapter and the settling of the homeworld the Red Scorpions were called into action. A large force of world eater chaos marines had invaded a planet only 2 systems away from the homeworld. The Red Scorpions, though barely settled in, and badly equipped set out to destroy them.

The battle lasted over 2 years, in which over 500 of the Red Scorpions were utterly destroyed, and few of their gene seeds were recovered. However, the purity of the Red Scorpions was such that not one succumbed to the power of chaos, and eventually, the scourge was completely eliminated.

One of the casualties during this battle was the founder himself, who was killed only after single handedly killing an entire squad of Lightning Claw Terminators. His wounds were too great for the medic that arrived all too late. His deed however, prevented the World Eaters from destroying a field hospital full of wounded marines. Luckily his gene seed was recovered and was placed back into the pool of the chapter.

The Red Scorpions recieved the Emperor's highest commendations for thier valor in that battle. Due to the low number of progenoid recoveries in the war however, the Red Scorpions were relieved from tithe until their chapter had returned to full strength. This took over 500 years, and some members of the inquisition believe this may be one reason for the near insanity of the chapter.

Due to the badly battered state of the chapter, and the extreme grudge the World Eaters now held against them, the Red Scorpion homeworld was now in a critical position. Attack was feared by the new Brother-Commander Varion Sarlon, and he knew, even with the ferocity and strength of his brothers, his homeworld was in serious danger. The Emperor ordered that the newly founded marine chapter of the Fire Hawks have their homeworld located in the same system as the Red Scorpions, to protect them from possible destruction.

Originally both chapters were loathe to this agreement due to the fact that expansion within the system was now going to have to be shared. And production would be difficult, at minimum. Tension began to grow between the two chapters not long after the Red Scorpions reached full strength.

Due to the limited size of the gene-pool, the chapter began to develop strange qualities. Those marines that had survived the war were the most loyal, and unreasoning of the whole chapter, added to that the founder's gene-seed, and the in-bred tenacity of the nomads of the homeworld, and the result was obvious. The Red Scorpions had become utter purifists, their bravery was unmatched, and thier adherence to the codex was unheard of.

The Red Scorpions began to tire of the Fire Hawks ruling over thier system. The Fire Hawks had quickly seized all of the planets in the system while the Red Scorpions were recovering. The Red Scorpions began preparing for war with the Fire Hawks. Members of the Inquisition quickly moved in to prevent the imminent war.

In the year M34.186, the World Eaters set out to take their revenge. Knowing that the two chapters had been on the brink of war, they assumed that war had allready consumed them, and revenge was now at it's most attainable point. They did not however know of the large peace-keeping forces of the Inquisition, and the Adeptus Arbitus that had swarmed in to prevent the war. Over 8,000 World Eaters landed on Telron Beta supported by Daemons of Khorne.

The Chaos forces were taken completely by surprise. The Red Scorpions were so prepared for war with the Fire Hawks, that they had become nearly battle frenzied on a permament basis. Thier armories were swollen with ammunition and supplies that could feed a thousand years of conflict. Even some of the Inquisitors that had served on Mars were utterly astounded by the sheer volume of military supplies. Even the nomads had been armed to the teeth and trained for battle.

The World Eaters instantly realized their mistake, but were no less intent on total immolation of the Red Scorpions. They called back for reinforcements, and before the Fire Hawks knew what happened, over 10,000 Chaos Marines had swarmed into the system. The Fire Hawks, while helping the Red Scorpions defend their own planet, had not bothered to leave a sufficient defensive force behind. Their homeworld was quickly overwhelmed, as were many of the other planets in the system. The Inquisition desperately pleaded for reinforcements fearing total destruction of both chapters. Unfortunately all of the nearby chapters were involved in quelling the ork assaults on many of the surrounding worlds.

The Red Scorpions and the Fire Hawks were now pinned down on Telron Beta. Fire Hawk Brother-Commander Regio Annote expressed severe doubts on the survival of the chapters, and even considered a tactical retreat. Luckily, he did not express this to the Red Scorpions, who were already battle-frenzied and fully prepared to fight to the last man. Had he done so, the entire situation would have turned hopelessly sour with Red Scorpions killing Fire Hawks for battle cowardice.

Instead, the Red Scorpions surprised even the Inquisitors with their ferocity. They managed to regain control of the entire fourth continent, and were beginning to press on to the third. This early victory in the face of utter hopelessness stimulated the Fire Hawks to fight with renewed vigor, and they quickly seized control of the second continent. Inquisition forces, along side the nomads managed to overtake the fifth continent, and now, only the largest, the first continent remained.

The Chaos forces were utterly astounded by the tragic turn the war had taken on them. Though they did not dare ask for more troops, fearing the Daemons would have them destroyed for losing such an "assured victory". They did however mass troops from the other, now well controlled planets on the continent.

The battle lines were drawn, and it looked like a gruesome battle, with either side being the potential losers. Red Scorpions led the assault on the continent, pushing straight to the center with a solid line, against the orders of the Inquisition. This left the entire chapter completely enclosed in the center of the continent by chaos forces. Fire Hawks, and Inquisition forces tried desperately to carve deep enough to reach them, but were halted nearly 400 miles south of them.

What the inquisition did not know is that the Red Scorpions had made a B-line for their largest underground cache of weapons. Here the Adeptus Mechanicus had stored in secrecy a huge number of terminator suits, specially outfitted for the Red Scorpions. Originally the intention was to outfit the entire chapter in terminator armor for the war with the Fire Hawks. Chaos forces had not found the massive armory, though much of it was laid to waste by heavy shelling from orbital ships in the initial landing.

Yet, over 250 suits of specially crafted Red Scourge terminator suits remained. Additionaly, 100 suits of Mark II Devestator Armor was also left. The Red Scorpions suited up and unleashed their wrath on the once again over-confident Chaos forces, and literally tore their way through the lines, completely conquering the northern third of the continent. When the Inquisition learned of this, they, along with the Fire Hawks, now proceded to scissor the remaining chaos forces, and along-side the Red Scorpions, completely liberated the planet. Wiping clean every last infected beast.

When the Red Scorpions learned of the valiant effort put forth by the Fire Hawks to attempt to reach them during the siege, all former hatreds were forgotten, and a special bond was formed between the two chapters.

Now with their planet freed, the two chapters assailed the rest of the planets in the system, and were able to easily overcome the depleted forces of the World Eaters. Both chapters claim that not one tainted filth escaped that system alive after the two brother chapters set down on the planets, though the Inquisition still holds otherwise.

It was assertained that all of the worlds previously held by the Fire Hawks in that system were too far gone with infection to be redeemed, so soon they were toxin-balled, and completely wiped clear of all life. The Fire Hawks were still grateful to the Red Scorpions for their valiant efforts to redeem the homeworld of the Fire Hawks, despite previous conflicts. And it was decided in the interests of brotherhood that the Fire Hawks would move to the adjacent system to start anew.

After the wars, which lasted over 200 years, the two chapters partook in a ritual mixing of their gene seed. 100 gene-seeds from each chapter were traded, to forever bond the two chapters, and both chapters signed a pact that would ensure that any futher wars would be fought together. To this day many Red Scorpion forces will be found with a contingency of Fire Hawks, or vise-versa. And the mixing of the gene-seeds prevented the Inquisition from having to deal with the overly battle-mad problems of the Red Scorpions. The Red Scorpion seed also assisted the Fire Hawks by completely eliminating the taint of cowardice that had been in them.

What the inquisition did not know however, was the fact that the Red Scorpions had managed to steal many of the gene-seeds from the fallen inquisitors, Astropaths and Ordo-Maellus while fighting the battles on Telron Beta. Originally the High Adeptus had feared for the Red Scorpions due to the fact that in the three thousand years up to this war, not one psyker or librarian was born among them, nor did it seem that any were to come. The Red Scorpions took this as thier chance to finally mix some "psyker blood" into their gene-pool, not to mention the fabled power of the inquisition. Later the inquisition did learn of this through study of the gene tithe, but it was too late to do anything about it, and the adeptus terra was loathe to condemn one of thier most formidable chapters for making themselves even more powerful, especially after winning two wars against impossible odds.

The Red Scorpion gene seed did suffer however some mutation from the original seed that was given to them. The mass depletion, intense mixing, and hostile conditions of their lives, coupled with the rituals and practices of the chapter changed them drasticly. One such change was the utter loss of the ability to gain knowledge from the ingestion of their foes. Up to now, the only foes they had ever fought were chaos, which they were not about to eat the corpses of. It was forbidden within the chapter to eat the fallen enemies because of this, and eventually, this implant was completely forgone. Most noted however is the venemous glands in the mouth of the marines. These were enhanced greatly by the apothecarion and eventually became much much more potent then the originals. The Red Scorpions became well known for their devestating effects in close quarters fighting, and are among the most feared hand to hand warriors in the galaxy. Fueled by the preference of hand to hand combat by the nomadic tribes of their world, the Red Scorpions have become tuned to close combat far more than any existing chapter. Red Scorpion initiates and scouts are most noted for their hand to hand efficiency, and not their ballistics usage. They are trained practically from birth in this art, and are therefore different from other marine scouts. (ws= 4 bs= 3)

The nomadic tribes of the homeworld are also revered in the chapter for their efforts in the onslaught. Originally the Inquisition feared that the Red Scorpion homeworld would also need to be purified to avoid potential infection of the marines. However, it was found that the nomadic nature of the tribes saved them, by allowing them to take to the hills, and hide from the forces of chaos. Though many had been killed, and infected, a large number, nearly 20%, had survived the war completely untainted. The Inquisition was initially wary of this, and for over two thousand years kept a watchful eye on them to assure that none had gone unchecked, literally checking every nomad on the planet twice.

The Red Scourge armor, or so it was named by the Chaos forces who initially felt its wrath was the paramount of the Red Scorpion technology. The Red Scorpion Adeptus mechanicus are well known for their resourcefulness, and ingenuity (another trait taken from the tribes), frequently invent new weapons, and vehicles to assist the chapter in it's wars. The Armor however was the greatest creation of the Red Scorpions. It was based on the lightning claw armor, and modified to replace the claws, with enormous power claws to literally crush the enemy. Often in battle the claws are used to shatter the weapons of the unfortunate opponent. (RS marines can combine 3 or more successful attacks into a single weapon shatter intead of wounding the opponent) The claws themselves are much like the power claws found on many ork dreadnaughts, but they are powered by the same fields used by lighting claws, making them even more devestating. It is considered an extreme honor by the Red Scorpions to use these suits of armor, and any Red Scorpion marine of sufficient worth may volunteer to wear this armor. Many comanders, captains, seargents and even chaplains have worn this armor into battle with devestating results. (any terminator squad, or character with a WS of 5 or more may wear Red Scourge armor into battle instead of Terminator armor for an additional 10 points, not including the terminator armor)

Also well known is the use of ad-hoc armaments on vehicles. This stems from the original confrontation with the World Eaters where the Red Scorpions were horribly under-provisioned, and had to virtually build tanks from spare parts on the field. The Red Scorpions began to create strange tanks from rhino hulls, and modifying them highly to suit the conditions they required on the battle field. After the war, the Adeptus Mechanicus on Telron Beta continued this practice, this time however with adequate supplies, creating powerful, and devestating war machines. Simple rhinos were converted into deadly assault tanks capable of punching through enemy lines and laying down fire that would eliminate whole platoons. Often the las cannons on predators were replaced with multi-meltas to transform them into deadly assault tanks.

Most reknown however is the Red Scorpion's strict adherence to the codex. Their belief is that the emperor himself wrote the words, and chose the colors for their chapter. To question the word of the emperor is heresy, therefore to deviate from the codex, is heresy also. Red Scorpion vehicles and armor is painted with the utmost of care and precision, and after each battle every detail is painted back into place, to assure that even the emperor himself would be satisfied with any vehicle at any time, should he ever decide to inspect them.

This adherence is taken to an extreme by the Red Scorpions, more so than any other chapter in the imperium. On one occasion they refused to serve with even the Ultramarines, due to a mispainted detail on the track of one of their land raiders. They refused to enter combat with them until the track was repainted. On another, more severe occasion, the Red Scorpions actually went to war over a paintjob after lending a tank to the Novamarines. During the battle the Novamarines repainted the tank in camoflauge hues, and returned it to the Red Scorpions this way. The Red Scorpions were furious, and demanded that they repaint it immediately. The Novamarines paid no attention to them, until a force of Red Scourge marines landed in their homeworld's armory, and completely destroyed every vehicle there. A war broke out between the two chapters, and was eventually stopped by the Inquisition. To this day however, any chapter that borrows any equipment from the Red Scorpions is sure to return it exactly as it was, even spending years making sure every detail is perfect. Many members of the Inquisition still laugh to themselves over the unique, and rather fitting form of revenge taken on by the Red Scorpions in that particular case, though out of line. One Inquisitor was quoted as saying "Those Red Scorpions, total nuts... but you gotta hand it to them, they know how to get the point across real fast."

Due to the intense history of the Red Scorpions dealing with chaos, they refuse to deal with any tainted race. They will not serve with beastmen, under any condition, and utterly refuse to serve with squats for reasons unknown. (It is said that they are angry with the squats for taking credit for one of their vehicle designs.) They will never serve with an eldar force either. The reasoning behind this is that the eldar use a force known as the "Striking Scorpions". A term which the Red Scorpions find repulsive. Even though the eldar did indeed name their force long before the Red Scorpion founder was even born, the Red Scorpions refuse to deal with the eldar until this problem is solved. They have even gone as far as to send delagates to the eldar craft worlds, demanding that they change the name of these squads. They also readily volunteer to participate in any attack on eldar forces containing these units. The Red Scorpions despise ogryns too, but respect them for their ferocity in hand to hand combat. They despise the ratlings for thier aloof ways, and total lack of combat skills of any sort, referring to them as, "the little cowards". Red Scorpion forces are most often found along side Fire Hawk forces, and on rare occasions they serve with the mentor legion. The Mentor Legion has befriended them for a mutual trade of the technology the Red Scorpions love to brag about. The Red Scorpions also gladly accept new ideas from the Mentor legion, which they quickly incorporate into their new designs. However, unless strictly ordered, the Red Scorpions will not serve with most other chapters for a variety of reasons ranging from paint jobs to cowardice to "they just aren't brutal enough" as put by Commander Carab Culln.

After the liberation of their homeworlds from the clutches of the chaos forces, Red Scorpions found themselves in battle more and more often with chaos forces. The High Adeptus often sent them far out of their way to attack chaos forces due to thier extreme aggression versus them. Only on one occassion did the Red Scorpions ever actually fight tyranids. This battle was viewed as an utter disaster by many. Due to the Red Scorpion preference for hand to hand combat, they often forego heavy weapons altogether. This led to near disaster in the battle with genestealers. Luckily the Fire Hawks had seen this problem before it occurred and sent a massive contingency of devestators to assist in the battle. Though to this day the Red Scorpions still brag about how quickly their Red Scourge managed to slay the hive tyrant in hand to hand combat.

Many of the systems near Telron Beta are heavily infested with orks. Often the Red Scorpions are called on to assail these planets and deal with the ork problems. It is secretly noted that while the Red Scorpions despise the orks for being inhuman, they share a secret bond with them, for their mutual use of on-the-field modifications to support weaponry. Though the Red Scorpions correctly believe themselves to be far beyond the orks in this field.

The Inquisition often encounters many problems when dealing with the Red Scorpions. The Red Scorpions are far from heretics, and will obey any order given to them, however, they view the inquisition as "often getting in the way of the Emperor's will". Though it may seem like heresy to some, they will often completely disregard orders given by the inquisitors if they feel it is not what the emperor would truly wish them to do. The inquisition will often send surrogates to the Red Scorpions to deal with them, not wishing to create uneeded problems. Though one time this nearly ended in disaster when a Soriatus Squad landed on Telron Beta for a surprise armory inspection. Not ever having dealt with female marines before, the Red Scorpions instantly thought them to be some sort of hideous Chaos or Eldar farse on the marines, and assaulted them with an entire comapniy of Red Scourge. Though fully prepared for a problem, the Soriatus were simply no match for the Red Scorpions in hand to hand, and were quickly slaughtered. War nearly broke out, with both sides not having any idea what was going on. Finally the inquisition was called in (by both sides even) to deal with the problem. To this day the Red Scorpions will not serve with the Sister Soriatus, mainly due to thier lack of close combat skills.

In the year M41.501 Carab Culln was inducted as a scout marine. Originally he was a pledge to become a librarian, however it was found he was not powerful enough to control such powers. As was usual for the Red Scorpions, they hid this fact from the Inquisition, feeling that Carab Culln was too good a combatant to be absorbed by the emperor. Soon he rose in the ranks of the Red Scorpions, and eventually took command of the chapter in the year M41.622. During this time the librarians trained him, and eventually he attained the powers of a full initiate. Obviously the inquisition was furious when they found out about this, but by this time Carab Cullen was more than powerful enough to be risk free.

Interestingly enough, the Red Scorpion homeworld has absolutely no desert areas. It is almost all steppe and wide open plains. After Carab Culln took control of the planet, he decided to do something about this long time problem. He sent out expeditionary forces to all the nearby planets and searched for scorpions. Eventually over 400 species of scorpions were amassed in a artificial bioshpere created for them. They were all studied, and eventually one was found that was particularly suited to the steppe environment. In all actuallity, what had happened was this:

Inquisition Report: Telron Beta. Scorpion problem.

Adeptus Arbitus complaint #458021 vs. Red Scorpion Commander Carab Culln.

Charge: Releasing insect plauge.

This is a formal complaint by Superior Judge Antalion Arnaq of the Adeptus Arbitus Telron Beta against Commander Carab Culln of the Red Scorpions.

Commander Culln has brought into this system a strain of highly poisonous scorpion like insect life forms. These scorpions have swarmed over the planet, killing several of my troops, and much of the local government. Initially we began to spray the insects with a toxin to destroy them. However, Commander Culln has seen fit to make it a capitol crime to kill any of these insects. We demand that something be done about this problem before our entire force is killed by stinging insects.

Inquisition report follows:

Apparently in their study of various insects for population of their homeworld, over 400 were brought to a controlled environment. Unwittingly they were all placed in the same cage, and ultimately only one strain survived the situation. Obviously this was the most lethal of the bunch. Incidentally, these scorpions also happen to be red. They somehow escaped the controlled environment, and have adapted to the steppes. The Red Scorpions have developed a liking for these insects, and also created a drug, when administered, will make them immune for life against the potent toxin of the scorpions. I have hereby ordered that this drug be given to the local government and administered to the entire population of the planet. Commander Culln has been reprimanded for his actions, and hopefully no further problems along these lines will arise.

Carab Cullen is perhaps the worst of all the Red Scorpion commanders yet to come to power, at least in respect to his purifisim, and disrespect for the inquisition. Though he will obey orders, he often goes out of his way to make things miserable for any visiting inquisitors. The local arbitus have complained on numerous occasions about weapons testing too close to their palace, and other various problems. Commander Culln has requested on numerous occasions that the Arbitus be moved to an adjacent planet, and that they don't belong on his homeworld in the first place. On many occasions the Red Scorpions have set forth to drive the arbitus off their planet, by doing everything from pranks such as setting ogryns on fire, to tricking ratling snipers into thinking that the arbitus' using their training grounds are actually target dummies for the ratlings to practice on. Obviously the arbitus is in no position militarily to do anything about this other than complain, and the Inquisition is loathe to deal with the Red Scorpions in the first place. Though the arbitus claim the right to the homeworld still, they have moved most of thier operations to Telron Alpha.

The Badab war is perhaps the most interesting of all the Red Scorpion wars. In M41.901 Lufgt Huron, Master of the Tiger Claws attacked and destroyed an inquisition fleet as it entered orbit around Badab. Though the Red Scorpions and the Fire Hawks were very close to Badab, they initially refused to assist the Inquisition in dealing with the problem. This was due to respect for the Tiger Claws in not assisiting the local arbitus when they had asked them for assistance in dealing with the Red Scorpions.

Initially the Tiger Claws had secretly petitioned both the Red Scorpions and the Fire Hawks to join him in a revolt, thinking they were on his side. The Red Scorpions immediately refused such an outright heretic action vs. the Emperor, and sent his messenger back in pieces. This infuriated the Tiger Claws, and in M41.904, after gaining the loyalty of the Mantis Warriors, lamentors, and Executioners, the Mantis Warriors attacked a Fire Hawks ship passing through the sector. The Fire Hawks immediately retaliated, with minor assistance from the Red Scorpions. The Emperor at this time had approved the Red Scorpion request for a unique color scheme for it's close assault troops. A small unit consisting of scouts and assault troops wearing this new armor set down on the moon of Angstrom in the Lamentor system. Immediately they found a band of units massing for war. They attacked brutally, but were eventually destroyed by the overwhelming forces of the lamentors on the moon. It was said that the noble scouts truly proved their worth that day however, astounding even the Red Scorpions. The Red Scorpions immediately sent out a massive force of Red Scourge marines, in conjunction with the Minotaurs, quashed the threat to imperial shipping in 907. The Red Scorpions managed to retrieve all the gene-seeds from the bodies of the scouts, and were soon recalled to their normal duties. This was mainly due to the fact that Novamarines were being sent in to help with the situation. During this war many problems arose between the Minotaurs and the Red Scorpions. Being that the minotaurs were not a particularly stringent group about their chapter colors, and often the Red Scorpions would refuse fighting with them after seeing the horrid condition of their land raiders. Not to mention the fact that the Minotaurs often used camoflauge in combat, something the Red Scorpions see as "the colors of cowardice".

Though they were particularly valiant in their efforts during the war, they were given no merits for their actions, because of the refusals to fight along side many of the forces. Interestingly enough, the Fire Hawks were given many awards for their bravery, even though most of their fighting was primarily due to circumstance.

Not surprisingly, there is a second account of the Angstrom incident, as accounted by the inquisition forces that were supposedly leading that squad. Inquisitors report that they had given direct orders to the scouts to halt, and to hold their current location until reinforcements from the Fire Hawks arrived. Almost immediately the scouts, eager to prove themselves took up pursuit of a routing enemy squad, and intented to follow it to their secret base. What happened, in short, was the squad led them into a trap, jammed their communications, and slaughtered them. The assault platoon tried to reach them in time, but were all too late. The assault troops let out there vengence on the lamentors in that ambush, but were too few to destroy them. When found, there were hundreds of fallen Lamentors around a pile of about 40 Red Scorpions. The lone survivor was mortally wounded, and blind, and reportedly, unkowingly, killed one of the Fire Hawk apothecarions in a final lash. He had seemingly thought the lamentors had come back to defile his troops, and showed impressive courage to save their bodies. Though it was unfortunate that he killed the apothecarion. The Fire Hawks realized this was an accident, and never told the Red Scorpions about the killing of their medic, and merely told them that their entire force was found dead. To this day the name of the Apothecarion and the brave survivor are regarded with honor by the Fire Hawks, who view it as a reminder of their once bloody past with the Red Scorpions. Best friends, locked in mortal combat, not knowing each is the other's brother.

Red Scorpions in Combat:

As previously stated the Red Scorpions are known for their ferocity in combat. Primarily in hand to hand, and in the use of vehicles. They are also insane speed demons.

The Red Scorpions love to use anything that will give them a speed advantage over their opponent. Often they use bikes, and jump packs to flash into hand to hand combat before the enemy knows what hits them. The Red Scorpions will also use Land Speeders whenever possible due to thier quick acceleration, and offensive capabilities.

The Red Scorpions show a extreme preference for hand to hand combat, and will allways have a large portion of thier army dedicated to close combat. Any Red Scorpion army must contain at least 30% close assault troops, or characters primarily suited for hand to hand combat. Often Red Scorpions will field a squad of Fire Hawks as a devotional tribute to their brotherhood, and these troops are not considered allies, but merely a portion of their squads. Often Red Scorpions will field dreadnaughts or strangely converted tanks and land raiders to assist them in battle. Most often speed is a major factor in thier attacks, so quick moving vehicles are preferred over all else.

Red Scorpions, unlike other marines, will not accept allies. They will not dedicate any portion of their force to any other army. They will however, if ordered, serve as allies for Imperial Guard armies. Though grudgeingly, they will accept Imperial Agent assistance, under certain conditions. They will never serve with any portion of the Adeptus ministorium, nor will they serve with any non psycik inquisitor. They will gladly serve with grey knights, due to the strict adherence to codex beliefs of that chapter. They will also happily serve with Adeptus mechanicus, (mainly the mentor legion) and the Aeptus Astra Telepathica, due to their high regard for psycik powers. They will serve with Adeptus arbites, if nothing more than to annoy them.

The Red Scorpions have perhaps the largest selection of dreadnaughts and vehicles allowed to any marine chapter. They can field just about any Imperial vehicle, or support weapon, provided that at least one vehicle on the field is a conversion of some sort. (such as a rhino with a bulldozer blade) Any vehicle or dreadnaught outfitted specially for close combat can count towards the 30% close combat percentage.

Special vehicles of the Red Scorpions.

Two of the most infamous vehicles of the Red Scorpions are the Gorgon and the Red Destroyer.

The gorgon is a modification on the imperial gorgon, though not based on it. A rhino hull is converted to an open top, then a bulldozer blade is fitted to the front. A small turret is placed on top, most often mounted with a pair of heavy plasma guns that will fire every other round at maximal power. Often a Hunter Killer Missile is also mounted to the vehicle to add to it's destructive potential, as is additional armor.

Points cost: 220 points.

The Red Destroyer is a modification on the older Imperial Dreadnaught. It has been refitted with two large power claws, and a tail. The tail is swept over the head, and is armed with a las-cannon. This Dreadnaught is primarily used in close combat, to tear through enemy lines.

Cost: same as close assault dreadnaught. Powerclaws act same as powerclaws on ork dreadnaught.

Personalities:

Commander Carab Culln:

Commander Culln is primarily the same as any other Imperial commander, aside from his limited psyker abilities. He is considered to be a first level psyker, and can only obtain librarian powers. He will often choose to lead a squad of Red Scourge marines into battle, and when he does, he also wears the Red Scourge armor.

Cost: 110 points. All other stats same as army list.

Chaplain Argosos Noration:

This chaplain is always purchased as a mighty hero, and has the same stats as any other. However, in close combat he always chooses a particular set of weaponry. He arms himself with a Crozius arcanum, a plasma gun, a power sword, and a rosarius. He does however, receive one extra attack in close combat, which may be taken only once per battle. This attack is a deadly acid spit. His acidic glands are the most powerful to date of any marine, and thus, the only ones capable of doing harm in a battle situation. Though it takes him all day to muster enough acid to make a succesful spit, when he decides to do so it is an automatic strength 4 hit with a -1 save modifier. Other marines, of any chapter are immune to this, including chaos marines.

Cost: 150 points.

Standard Bearer Alarion Zionate:

This standard bearer was to be the leader of his nomadic tribe, but was drafted as a marine initiate. Therefore he wears the ritual helmet of his tribe, a horned helm. He is allways accompanied by his two servants, who are vetran marine seargents. He usually fights with a power axe. He may take additional wargear, and up to one wargear card, as may his servants. The three are considered to be one character for victory points calculations, and must remain within 2 inches of each other.

Total cost for Alarion and 2 servants: 120 points

Apothecarion Ramses Telach:

This is a standard apothecarion in all respects but one. He is extremely adept at his art of surgery on the battlefield, and thus may re-roll any failed attempt on a patient only once(per patient).

Cost: 50 points

Inquisition notes on the Red Scorpion chapter.

Other than chapter owned records, and notes from the logs of Ultramarine commanders who served with Sergat, there is no actual record of the inception of this chapter. Unless this information has been obscured from us in some manner, it is highly possible this chapter was formed without Imperial permission. Though at this time, little action is possible, without proof of some form. The information may have also been lost somehow, though at this time it is impossible for us to know.

Chapter information taken from the Fire Hawks has been very useful in piecing together the past of the Red Scorpions. According to early Fire Hawk records, they had absolutely no idea the homeworld they were assigned to (originally Telron Beta) was inhabited. To this day the Fire Hawks are unsure of the origins of their brother chapter. The Fire Hawks originaly attempted to absorb the Red Scorpions into their own chapter, and this, above all else, is the actual reason for the two chapters going to war. Though niether chapter will admit it to this date, the two chapters did indeed declare war. There was indeed a massive battle consisting of over 200 marines from both chapters, which was barely stopped by members of our organization before the chaos fleet descended on the planet.

The Red Scorpion preference for hand to hand combat was not originally a preference, it was originally a blatant lack of actual weaponry. It is the belief of this Inquisitor that the Red Scorpions never recieved an imperial edict. Most likely it was a lone captain who decided to start his own chapter, and built his own armories from there. This also accounts for the large portion of ad-hoc weaponry utilized by the Red Scorpions.

One of the growing fears that I have about the Red Scorpions is the similarity between them and the Empire. Commander Culln's psyker powers resemble in a vauge sense that of the emperor. They have their own armories, and rarely requisition anything from the Adeptus mechanicus. They have in a sense, attempted to be totally self sufficient.

The only question remaining in my mind is the origin of the codex they adhere so tightly to. Even Sergat himself was strictly adhered to it throughout his life, and there is a good possiblity that there was some form of original codex given to them, which they might be hiding from me.

End of Imperial Documentation.

High Adeptus Report on Chapter #128 Legiones Astartes Red Scorpions:

In order to quell the increasing fears by the inquisition about the Red Scorpion Chapter, we are de-classifying these Imperial records and giving them to the Inquisition and the Fire Hawks. Portions deleted for security.

High Adeptus Command, Imperial Order #458-234.45B

Date: M32.951

Special Mission: Priority 1 Alpha.

Codename: Red Plauge

Mission Objective: Seek, Destroy, Inhabit.

Orders as Follows:

Effective immediately Sergat Surtek is ordered to gather a portion of the ultramarines who are best suited to deep space conditions. It is also imperative that they be the absolute best that chapter has to offer. They will not be told of thier mission until they are unable to contact anyone, and well within deep space.

Your mission is to hunt down a renagade chapter, the XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX marines, this chapter is believed to have fallen to chaos, and must be found and destroyed. Imperial agents have reported that a large force of world eater marines is set to meet with them in a system known as the Telron System.

Once the marines en route have been destroyed, you must pose as these marines and infiltrate the world eaters command. Once you have found out thier invasion plans for that sector, destroy them. Assume a homeworld in a nearby system, and set up a command base to coordinate defence for that entire galactic fringe.

If you encounter any other marines, you will tell them nothing, and accept no assistance from them, if they persist, destroy them. If members of the Inquisition find you, you are ordered to tell them nothing, and ignore any orders they give you, if it becomes nessecary, destroy them as well.

Your primary function will be defense against chaos. You will be given little or no weaponry, as to avoid arousing suspicion in the Adeptus Mechanicus. You will find adequate supplies on your ship to construct your own armor. When you have time, you will fabricate your own codex and history. Enclosed herein are your chapter colors:

(color information follows)

It is imperative that you follow these orders exactly as written. Do not deviate from them in the slightest. The Emperor is counting on you. If you encounter any problems, contact the Adeptus Terra directly, do not deal with the Inquisition or any other office of the Imperium.

Go with the blessings of the Emperor,

Addendum : Fire Hawks.

You are hereby ordered to completely destroy the Fire Hawks chapter. Do not let one escape. Attempt to wipe out anyone who may have had contact with them in regard to your existence. We will determine the amount of information that has leaked out, and deal with it as nessecary.

Addendum : Emergency.

Emergency, disregard previous orders. Repeat, disregard previous orders in respect to the Fire Hawks. Chaos War Fleet invasion imminent. Inquisition forces are en route with orders to prevent your war with the Fire Hawks. They do not know of the invasion. You will coordinate the defense of that system. After you have destroyed the invasionary fleet, proceed to wipe out all inquisition, and Fire Hawk forces remaining.

Addendum : War.

You are hereby ordered to allow the fleet to invade all of the worlds in your system. A second fleet is en route. Once they believe they have crushed you, retake your planet, and procede to toxin-ball all other planets in that system, including the Fire Hawk homeworld. No reinforcements will be sent in order to prefent further leak of your existence.

Problem ----, khorne, ----- request permission, -------- red scourge.

(transmission garbled)

Permission is hereby granted to use the classified Red Scourge armor, regardless of the fact that others are present. Obviously we will need to deal with this problem down the road. The inquisition will be repremanded for interfering.

Addendum: Release of orders.

Due to the inquisition's high numbers of distress calls, you are hereby relieved of further duty. All items contained herein are to be kept secret, and are not to leak out under any condition. You will be placed in command of the Fire Hawks. Perform a ritual mixing of your chapter's gene seeds, but do not actually infuse their seed within your chapter. (note, on the Fire Hawks copy this was left out) All inquisition gene seeds aquired by your medics are yours, and you have permission to use them as you see fit. Also, permission is hereby granted for you to once again have psykers among you, and orders for a librarian contingency are contained.

From this point on you will be considered a normal chapter in most respects. You are not subject to orders from any member of the inquisition. Adeptus Arbites will be placed into your system to relieve suspision. You may do with them as you please, but you are ordered not to exterminate them.

Fire Hawks will be moved to an adjacent system. Your charge is to keep them in line. Thier blood is tainted with cowardice, and therefore they may not be trusted. Keep them infiltrated fully, and make sure they remain under Imperial control. (this section was also left out of the Fire Hawks copy)

End Transmission.

Addendum: Special Orders regarding Lufgh Huron.

It is our belief that the Tiger Claws are about to rebel. Feign sympathy and attempt to learn the extent of chaos infection. It is also rumored that 3 other chapters will join him. Find out which ones, and eliminate them.

Addendum: Abort!

Abort prior mission. The Three chapters have been identified. New orders as follows:

Coerse the Fire Hawks into sending a transport vessel through thier sector. It will promply be attacked. Convince the Fire Hawks to retaliate immediately.

The Minotaus will be moving in shortly after. IMPERATIVE. Keep them OFF the angstrom moon. Your orders are to invade the angstrom moon with all available forces. Enclosed is a new armor paint scheme that will disguise you. Push through to the --deleted-- and destroy it at any cost.

After the Angstrom incident is taken care of, you are relieved of duty from the war, as will be the Fire Hawks.

Addendum : Sister Soriatus

Warning, Soriatus craft en route to your world. They have inquisition orders to infiltrate your armories and ---deleted---. Do not let this occur. Destroy them, and their orbital craft at any cost. If questioned later, feign ignorance. I apologize for this inconvenience it will not occur again.

Addendum: Plea.

Commander Culln. The Inquisition is prying too deep. You are hereby given unrevokable permission to do with them as you please from this day forth. At all costs keep certain records secret. Do NOT allow them to fall into inquisition hands. If nessecary special agents will be sent to assist in a mock rebellion to take you from the public eye, and redeliver you into secrecy. We will send to them a highly cut copy of your current order history to shut them up. If they pry beyond this point, you are urged to coerse the Fire Hawks into Imperial rebellion. If so, you will be given new orders once this is accomplished. If they refuse, destroy them.

(the final section was not sent to either the Inquisition or the Fire hawks)

End Record Transmission.