Iron Rangers
Summary of Legion I
Asymmetrical Warfare Specialists (Assassination, Guerrilla Warfare, etc.)
Legion Tactics
The Iron Rangers are pragmatists. They don't need to use a direct and costly assault when a sneaky assassination would get the job done. They are taught to work alone or in small groups, often using guerrilla tactics, or supplementing other forces. Utilizing these strategies, they have outfought much larger well equipped foes.
Pre-Heresy Tactics
Before falling to Chaos, the Iron Rangers preferred diplomacy over force. When force was required, they would often merely launch small strikes against individual leaders that opposed them, to reduce collateral damage and make transitions more or less peaceful. When possible, they would use methods harder to trace back to themselves (poison, utilizing local weaponry to make it look like an in-house job). When they were required to be fielded in larger campaigns, they rarely attacked in full. They had a threefold plan for working in Campaigns. Their Tactical Squads (and some Captains/Command Squads) would split into small teams to bolster and assist whatever allied regular human forces were available, in the form of additional training, better equipment, strategic/tactical advisors, additional, specialized firepower, and the morale boost of fighting next to Space Marines. Their scouts would deploy to set up Observation Posts and various Rally Points and Forward Operating Bases, whilst their Jetbikes, Skimmers, Assault Marines, and Air Power would be delivering hit-and-run missions against enemy Supply and Communications lines, Supply/Equipment Depots/Caches, destroying key strategic and defensive assets, and assassinations of High Value Leaders. As a result, most campaigns the credit went to whatever forces they were allied with, which left them seeming to be the weakest of the Legions, rather than being credited as one of the most subtle and inspired strategic thinkers.
Legion Doctrine
Rogerius Merrill, Primarch of The Iron Rangers
Appearance
Merrill is smaller than almost all of the other Primarchs, yet still stands head and shoulders above your average Space Marine, with dark, reddish skin, and long, black hair, shaved along the sides. He is also considered softer of features, and, in comparison, seems one of the most unassuming. In stark contrast to this are his eyes. While soft brown in color, they are eyes that have clearly seen hardship, giving a bitter, resentful look to what would otherwise be a rather bland and unassuming face. He wears a lighter version of his brothers' armor, leaving more soft armor, his neck, and arms exposed for greater flexibility. When not in a combat zone, he is often seen wearing softer leather and fur clothing, in the style of his homeworld.
He is among the physically weakest of the Primarchs, but what he lacks in brute strength, he makes up for in speed and cunning. His signature weapon is the spear, both for the sentimentality of being raised with one on Profi Tiroedd, and for its gains of reach and defensive uses in combat.
Youth
Upon his landing on Profi Tiroedd, he was found by one of the local tribes, who raised him as their own, and gave him his name. They taught him the necessities of living in the forest. How to hunt, track, gather food, and how to fight. However, his tribe was one of the smallest and weakest, and so, had to stay constantly on the run, else be targeted for raids and attacks by other, larger tribes. Merrill was a quick learner, though, and rapidly adapted to every problem thrown his way. Eventually, though too young to be considered for the position, he was unofficially made chieftain. It was at this point he made a decision: no more running. The tribe would never again have to flee for its own safety. With that in mind, he began a number of small raids against the more warlike neighbors, burning longhouses, stealing, and destroying supplies under cover of darkness before returning to their own tribe. Eventually, this led to assassinating the leaders of the tribes that would oppose them. As he slowly destroyed the larger tribes, others came to join him. Slowly, either by diplomacy, surrender, or annihilation, he united all of the tribes under his own rule, and created a council of elders to act as advisers and lesser rulers.
The Coming of The Emperor
The Coming of the Emperor was marked by tribesmen noticing "Great Birds" in the sky. Many became worried, and reported their sightings to the Great Council. Merrill decided that he should lead the hunt to find out what these were and where they went, as he was the best hunter and warrior of the tribes. So, with a select handful of his best, he set out to find them.
Several days into the hunt, they did discover the "Beast," surrounded by Custodes. Merrill attempted diplomacy, but that failed, and was forced to fight, killing three Custodes before being rendered unconscious. He awoke to the Emperor, who told him of his birth and design. Merrill reluctantly agreed to take control of the legion, while learning everything he could of life in the 31st Millennium. Oddly enough, he requested that Profi Tiroedd be kept at its current technological state, only asking for Medicae facilities. If Profi Tiroedd were to be his recruiting world, he needed the difficulties of life and the hunt to be ingrained in his future soldiers. Men pampered with technology that made all aspects of life easy made poor warriors, and poorer hunters.
The Great Crusade
Merrill decided to keep the original title of the chapter, as he believed anything else would be insulting to the men that had served in the Legion before his discovery. He disliked having his forces in direct confrontation with the enemy, and was best suited for long range asymmetrical warfare. With that in mind, he requested for, and was approved of, a fleet of Imperial Army soldiers. He would use his regular soldiers to bolster their fighting capabilities and dispense advice to their command structure, relieving him of having to plan and read large-scale engagements, so he could move his men around the planet like a Regicide board, to strike their most valuable assets.
During an extended battle with Eldar pirates, an STC was discovered, with what was believed to be an AI for targeting, strategic and tactical advisement, friend or foe designations, and other battlefield aids. Not wishing to wait for the STC to be confirmed as safe for use by Mars, he had it researched and studied in-house, and then installed it into all Power Armor in the Legion, in order to provide his soldiers with an extra edge against their foes. Unbeknownst to all involved, it was already corrupted with the seeds of Chaos, which started taking root in the Marines through the neural link.
As the infection began to grow, Merrill and his men became increasingly distant, bitter, and resentful. Their use of Imperial Army changed, slowly using them in a role more fitting as well-trained distractions and human shields, as opposed to their previous view of sending some Marines to aid the Army.
The Heresy
Post-Heresy