Editing Loxodontii (section)

==History==
===Pre-Primarch History & Reunion===
The XIIIth Legion, often dubbed "Packmules" or "Workhorses" for their focus on supply lines and dedicated transport vehicles for their Astartes squads, was created following the [[Unification Wars]] and consisting mostly of recruits from Achaemenidia. Through the initial stages of the [[Great Crusade]], their expedition fleets were spread farther from each other than any other legion, leading to a strong sense of independence and self-reliance among the chapters that, at times, made upper command rather suspicious of them. Nevertheless, they tirelessly brought many planets to compliance and dutifully supported their legionnaire cousins whenever needed.

Ashur was the tenth Primarch to be discovered, and upon being reunited with his gene-sons fostered their chapter structure as the core of their identity, hoping it would create a strong sense of loyalty from the bottom up towards the Imperium as a whole. He also instructed them further and further into the near-religious adoration of their warmachines and wargear as his homeworld had left a serious animistic mentality imprinted on his worldview. While their new identity as "Loxodontii" gave them new vigour and the fresh blood in the form of Babylonian recruits allowed the Terranborn legionnaires to bridge the gap with their Primarch more easily.

Their time was cut short, however, as Ashur ordered the chapters to continue as they had before, contained within themselves but always an extension of the legion and the Imperium.

===The Great Crusade===
The Loxodontii were one of the slower legions to bring worlds to compliance, often dedicating their resources to a careful diplomatic approach instead of a decisive military strike. [[Ashur of Banipal|Ashur]] himself was the most hesitant when it came to bring arms, while his chapter commanders displayed less patience. Whenever combat was inevitable, the XIIIth would employ large numbers of transports to allow its infantry optimal mobility and protection, escorted by biker-squads to intercept possible counter attacks. While their goal was unmistakably to conquer the planet, outmost care was undertaken to leave its infrastructure and public service installations as unharmed as possible, as the Loxodontii believed it would allow the planet a much easier transition into becoming a functioning contributor to the Imperium's colossal economy. This, of course, left them vulnerable to stalemates as enemies would use these positions as cover for their own troops, forcing the legionnaires' hands.

One such instance was the campaign, labelled the "Baptism of Orm II", where an expedition fleet of the second chapter wasted Imperial standard years to bring a single planet to compliance through slow but dedicated oratory skills and diplomacy. This delivered a backlash on the Loxodontii as a whole, who had a reputation of dragging behind the Crusade already. Ashur reorganised the chapter's command and reprimanded them reluctantly, as he himself actually applauded their success and conviction in private.

Over the course of the [[Great Crusade]], one Stargazer by the name of Barabash slowly but steadily sowed the seeds of corruption among the chapters, founding warrior lodges that further strenghtened the bonds of brotherhood among the Astartes of the XIIIth. As the Loxodontii had become highly superstitious through their primarch's influence and the influx of Babylonian recruits, the belief in the ancient Babylonian gods and the Otherworld, which was now believed proven to be the Warp, became deeply rooted within the individual Astartes. This made them susceptible to the whispers of Chaos as translated by their very own Stargazers, whose psychic abilities were strongly enhanced by the Warp, further providing assumed evidence of the righteousness of their words.

These cannibal practices would have been nearly uncovered during the Sorvo campaign, where a first wave of Remembrancers would join the sixth chapter for their deployment in the sector. All Remembrancers would be slaughtered and all traces of their arrival deleted after a group of them accidentally happened upon a Loxodontii squad enacting their traditions. All accounts of them ever joining the expedition fleet would be denied.

Meanwhile, Ashur became increasingly disillusioned with the Great Crusade. The Emperor had promised him upon their first meeting that he would be instrumental to bringing humanity together as one glorious empire that would rule the galaxy as family, however as he encountered more and more planets who refused his offering and could only be brought to compliance through military action, he began to struggle with himself. On one hand, he wanted to be the dutiful son, making his father and his brothers proud, standing above his emotions, on the other hand, when he looked upon the ruin the brutal campaigns left behind, it made him weep inside and he knew all too well that many would still hate him as a malicious conqueror, and curse the Emperor as just another tyrant. His brother [[Rahman Keita'Mansa|Rahman]] often tried to give him comfort, opening a world of indulgence to Ashur into which he would escape more and more often.

While the 1st and 3rd chapter of the Loxodontii constantly accompanied their primarch on his expeditions, all the other chapters slowly but steadily declared for Barabash in secret. While they were still ordered to keep their intentions hidden, very soon they could not control their urges anymore, indulging into manhunting and cannibalism. Once these reports became too numerous and detailed to ignore, Ashur decided to make a stand and clean his chain of command. He ordered all chapters to rally in orbit over Babylon V, their homeworld, where he would execute all the traitors himself. However, Barabash could not have planned for a better opportunity to spring his trap. While the entire upper chain of command of the Legion was rallied in the launching bay of the ''Anu'', Ashur's flagship, they braced their weapons against the Astartes of the 1st and 3rd chapter, killing nearly all of them and wounding their primarch so much he had to submit. Yet, they could not bring themselves to kill him, however they did not need to do so, anymore. Barabash felt a darkness explode within Ashur's soul, a sense of grief, guilt, hate and despise, his disillusionment overwhelming the Lord of Bronze and Bone. He was broken, and ready to be filled with the Primordial Truth. As a safety measure, he was chained with an archeotech-collar which numbed his mind and made him docile enough to control.

===Brotherwar===
The diplomatic conference on New Hope had ended in utter disaster as [[Malcador the Sigillite]] had been murdered and civil war had been declared. During these events, survivors of the 1st and 3rd chapter of the Loxodontii had escaped their brothers' slaughter and made to Holy Terra in order to reach [[Je'She of the Watch]] and to report the vile treason. A group of volunteers consisting of the [[Golden Mountains]] and [[Doomsingers]] would go on their way to annihilate the Loxodontii and to hopefully rescue Ashur of Banipal. What they found upon arriving on Babylon V was an entire legion's fleet infighting, murdering each other in gruesome boarding actions and insane bloodletting. The Loxodontii themselves had engaged in mindless self-indulgence after their primarch's capture, and the Stargazers with help of [[Lambach Kropor|Lambach Kropor's]] very own Warp Claws had prepared a ritual that would doom the legion's soul forever. As more and more sacrifices were made and the Loxodontii's frenzy reached a peak high, the powers of the Warp flooded into realspace and pervaded Ashur's body, grasping at his very essence. The corruption was sudden and powerful - Ashur had been elevated to Daemonhood against his will. His mind shifted between his embittered consciousness, delirious awareness and bestial frenzy.

Just as he ascended, the punitive fleets of the Doomsingers and Golden Mountains delivered several killing blows to the Loxodontii's fleet, and the once strong family splintered into various smaller warbands and fled into all directions of the galaxy. It was only through the efforts of Barabash installing Enlil of the 6th chapter as new leader of the Loxodontii when they would again rally under one banner - That of [[Marduk Engur]], Warmaster of Chaos.

Until that point, each warband murdered and trampled their way through Imperial space, terrorising planets and consuming everything they could find. One particular planet, called Escara, was where a warband of extremely violent Loxodontii were engaged by a contingent of [[Corsairs Gallant]]. While the Corsairs maintained the tactical advantage, slowly bleeding their erstwhile cousins dry, the warband's anger kept them going forward despite all odds. After months of gruesome combat, an Exterminatus fleet of the [[Titan Marchers]] arrived, called in by a distress signal from the planet itself. However, instead of saving the population, the furious astartes of the XVIIth Legion unleashed their board weapons upon Escara, obliterating the entire planet and all chaos traitors and despised separatists.

During the Siege of Terra, the Loxodontii mostly ravaged hab blocks and battled their enemies on open fields. However, thanks to their massed Mastodon-transports, they managed to breach the outermost defense of the Imperial Palace, unleashing their Daemonprimarch [[Ashur of Banipal]] upon [[The Sentinels]] and [[Je'She of the Watch]], who held them at bay until all the other loyalist forces could have succesfully retreated to the next ring of defense.

===Post-Brotherwar===
The Loxodontii again splintered into their warbands, their own base instincts now fully controlling their every step. They have become little more than beasts, only looking to feed and fight and appease their uncaring gods. Only one chapter always remained as one, united by their bloodthirst and bestial cunning unique among the Loxodontii: The fearsome 4th chapter, having taken their monicker "Mantikhor" as their new official name.

As they had fully embraced Chaos and the Primordial Truth, they await the coming of the Leviathan foreseen by the [[Leviathan Host]] and [[Marduk Engur]]

In the 41st millennium, to consume and eat everything they can fight and kill is nearly the only thing that motivates most Loxodontii warriors. Some believe that by consuming the very daemons of their uncaring masters will bring them closer to the Primordial Truth, and Champions have dedicated themselves to hunting and eating greater daemons of the Gods of Chaos and absorbing their power. Their unending feeding frenzy is only symptom to their grand degeneration, however, as almost every Loxodontii astartes has given in to base instincts, reducing each to a feral monster that prowls the stars in pursuit of food, combat, and the favour of the gods. This would render the Loxodontii warbands completely unsustainable, were it not for the fact that some among them viewed their maddening cravings as a test of will that they must pass each day. These individuals accomplish what the masses could not and maintain their intellect and character, which in turn elevates them into positions of authority. Stargazers, Apothecarii, Techmarines and Champions all are of this rare breed who defy the urge to let go of their humanity, and the future of the Loxodontii rests on their shoulders alone.

As a matter of fact, where once the Loxodontii were known for their strong sense of family and brotherhood, they are among the most fractured of the traitor legions, with warbands varying in size from a dozen astartes to the remains of a whole chapter, each prowling their territories for supplies and warfare.