Eternal Zealots

"In the name of the Gods! Before all species, go forth and enlighten! Let none be spared the truth of the Primordial!"

Aubrey, speaking out to his Legion moments before descending on Terra.

Eternal Zealouts
Battle Cry	"We march eternally!" "For the Dark Gods!"
Number	XVI
Founding	First Founding
Primarch	Aubrey
Homeworld	Lazerus(Purged)
Strength	120,000
Specialty	Generalists, Chaos Undivided
Allegiance	Chaos Undivided

This page details people, events, and organisations from The /tg/ Heresy, a fan re-working of the Warhammer 40,000 Universe.

Summary of Legion XVI

Numeration: The XVIth Legion

Primogenator: Aubrey the Grey (also known as "The Surgeon")

Cognomen (Prior): The Emerald Doom

Observed Strategic Tendencies: Close Combat, Strategic Strikes, Tactical Decapitation, Planetary Pacification.

Noteworthy Domains: The Lazerus System (Primary), Tithe Rights to five systems in tributary fiefdom.

Alliegence: Traitoris Maximus

"The enemy has a collection of tumorous growths in their head. It is not their fault. We shall take but a moment to cure them of their cancerous leadership."

Legion Chaplain Zachery Irisus, M.30

Proud, passionate, and self-righteous, the Eternal Zealots fought with barely matched enthusiasm during the Great Crusade. Their tolerance and acceptance of Xenos assistance painted them with scorn by their fellow humans, leading ultimately to their censure when the Xenos they so ardently crusaded for betrayed them. The Legion's Primarch Aubrey, dismayed at the response of humanity towards the actions of only a few was easy to deceive by Uriel Starikov. Now the Legion pledges themselves to the four Dark Gods of Chaos, having special sects dedicated to exemplifying their worship on the battlefield.

Legion Doctrine

Great Crusade

As the Legion expanded beyond the early years of the Great Crusade a tendency towards close combat and fast attack developed within them. With that favouring of close combat came a level of zealotry, becoming almost barbaric and suicidal in the face of the enemy, fuelled by increased adrenal glands.

With Aubrey's guidance, many became trained in the ways of medicine and his surgical mentality, however the men had multiple problems. Tumours within the men were rampant, their abuse of their own above-astartes healing capability. Their also enhanced adrenal glands sent the men into psychotic rages, even so far as to sending eight of the ten sacred band members charging to their own doom.

He came to them, a broken band of barbaric zealots and turned them into warriors of medical knowledge and strict technique, he made the Eternal Zealots, a reflection that would never die to their own zealotry.

Combat

Unlike other close quarter centric legions, the Zealots would not throw themselves at the enemy blindly or commit to costly and dangerous assaults. Zealotry tempered with reason was the motto of the Legion.

Aubrey used his Zealots' ferocity into more elaborate forms of waging war. The people of the worlds he fought usually didn't want to oppose the Imperium, but were forced to do so.

Eliminating the corrupt or misguided heads of these states allowed the Legion to peacefully occupy the rest of the world as army after army surrendered.

"The patient is not at fault for the disease. Kill it, not the one you are caring for."

(Aubrey on his surgical tactics.)

This tactic grew and grew as they faced myriad horrors along the Great Crusade. Their focused wrath came down upon the foolish Corsair Captains and blithering Orkish Warbosses, who, once dead, saw the rest of their cobbled together forces crumble in moments.

Medicae

Aubrey found himself overworked alongside the apothecaries when dealing with the rampant mutation of the legion, he questioned Galle Nacht and Varus Tithonus how the legion was will operating, only to be given a pair of mumbled replies.

He couldn't just assign apothecaries to every squad, it would be a ridiculous waste of time and resources, he could however do the next best thing and had all marines above the rank of Sergeant to be trained in basic medicae, soon become the pride of their legion.

The Auxiliary

The Zealots desired to be the epitome of fair tolerance to all castes and Xenos alike, they used a Xenos Auxiliary which served with distinction, starting with the Tarellians of Lazarus.

The lizard creatures were set the responsibilities of covering the advancing melee focused Astartes with ranged support and seeking out the enemies weak spot using their scouting prowess.

Tension within the Imperium

Because of their tolerance, the Zealots were always second guessed and reviled by the Imperial Army and other Legions.

On the worlds they came to conquer, the Zealots and their auxiliaries became known as 'The Healers with their Helpers'. Weeks, sometimes months after a world had been taken, the Eternal Zealots would stay on its surface teaching science, medicine, and repairing the damage they had caused to the planet after the war was over. This endeared many worlds to them, making it easier to sow the seeds of corruption.

Post-Heresy

The righteous fury delivered in concentrated, directed strikes faded out from the combat philosophy of the Eternal Zealots as they began their slow descent into the clutches of Chaos. Healing began to not matter as the lust to keep on the offensive drove them. Techmarines and Librarians combined over time to fill the gap this made, rapidly augmenting and mutating the wounded to keep them moving long after their mortal shells had crumbled under exhaustion and damage.

The Psyteks of Tzeentch

The Librarius and Frater Astrotechnicus melded into one whole during the Heresy, combing metal with mental. With the flesh bolstered by the machine, these minds have become great figures within the Legion. Each take on several human apprentices, who they are able to always match the Legion's geneseed through means both mundane and infernal. All that matters is the pupil's psychic potential and aptitude for learning. The Psyteks are in trusted with not only keeping track of mankind's inventions and archeotech, but also the replication and advancement from this building block of the past.

The Artisans of the Prince

It was the Apothecaries that were numerous in number of the Eternal Zealots, their core of healers and dedicated transports becoming mobile hospitals for the marines and Imperial Army in battle. It was they who approached Slaanesh's domain, whether they knew it or not.

The doctors had long become twisted in their chaotic days; their healing ways were broken, and instead they turned their hospitals into places of torture and pain. Slaanesh gifted these men with visions, and as such, they sought the path of the debaucherous prince.

They found that as they tortured their victims they found pleasure, so they turned their once practical medicines into sources of even more pleasure. Their Rhino Apothecarium was transformed, voxs mounted to the outside of the transport becoming a source of morale and fear as men would hear the screams of their foes or allies respectively.

So, Slaanesh gifted these men of medicae the speed in which to carry out their tasks, snatching up men from the battlefield to throw into the pain machines, but also to spark life in their brothers with stimulants and drugs forged by the artisans themselves.

The Disciples of Juggernaut

Following on from their Loyalist days, the 2nd, 3rd and 4th Companies, who were the foremost users of the "Astartes Centaur Exo-Suit," found their Xeno allies presenting them The Juggernaut, a daemonic steed. The Captains, Cyllarus, Hylonome and Kinnaras, slaughtered over 10,000 souls in battle to gain the honor of using such wonderful steeds to ride into battle. They had a battle hunger and lust for glorious slaughter, making them the perfect servants of Khorne.

Khorne listened. The Blood God was amused at this display, giving these 3,000 Astartes the gift they so desired. He had already pledged his support to Infernox and his Sons of Fire, and these measly offerings were nothing compared to the glories he wrought in Khorne's name without any demand made yet. Let it not be said that Khorne had no sense of honor, for he still rewarded these souls for their devotion.

In a flurry of red energies, the Astartes changed. Their legs shifted and changed into the headless bodies of the steeds they had once seen. Made of living metal and burning blood, soon the armorers equipped their bodies with the heavy weapons they once wielded, so the Cult of Juggernaut was born. Devastators would continue to use the Centaur suit until they would be interred by a Khornate ritual, becoming a shard of the Legions rage; Half Daemon, Half Astartes.

Legion Equipment

Centaurs

During the Loyalist days of Eternal Zealots, they made frequent use of the Lazeriun Pattern Additio-Arma or "Centaur Armour" with their Devastator squads.

"These suits, they turned simple men into anodises of machine able to haul weaponry deadly even to a Captain...I want it."

(2nd Captain Varus Tithonus on the "Minotaur Knights" of Vladimir II)

Captain Tithonus presented the concept of the design to the Forge Master, a prototype was deployed by himself personally, which he would continue to use in battle.

The aim of the armour was to make an imposing armour addition that could mount a pair of heavy weapons on their saddle, while keeping the astartes mobile.

This was accomplished by connecting the exoskeleton to the standard astartes armour while keeping everything modular incase of a systems failure. Few Forgeworlds produced the pattern, as most focused on the production of Power Armor rather than producing upgrades for it.

These units allowed for the Zealots to cleave through throngs of opposing infantry, making an easier opening in enemy fronts. These suits are now produced by several Daemon Forges.

Tech Heresy

The Legion makes use of the odd warp-based technology devised by their skilled Psyteks craftsmen and honored Cyfecti allies. These weapons are able to bring down Titans and rend apart armor and flesh as if they are nothing. Thankfully for the Zealots' enemies, these weapons are few and far between.

Most of the weaponry produced by the Cyfecti and Psyteks are odd warp-powered thrusters for dropships, more accurate teleportation devices, and bolter shells infused with the power of the Immaterium.