Editing Thunder Warriors (section)

==Origins==
Known as the Legiones Cataegis (Latin: Storm Legions), they were formed during the [[Age of Strife]], when the Emperor judged that it was the right time to make His presence known. He needed some advantage over the warlords, techno-barbarians, and other would-be world rulers that were currently reenacting Mad Max all over Terra, and so He created twenty regiments consisting of hundreds of genetically enhanced soldiers, led by commanding officers known as "primarchs" (one of these primarchs was named Ushotan, and he was in command of the [[Iron Warriors|IV Legion, who specialized in siege warfare]]). These soldiers wore simple, smog producing, yet flamboyant and decorative powered armor. Because the Emperor's symbol at the time was a raptor and thunderbolt, this symbol was prominently displayed on the chestplate of the armor, the armor came to be known as [[Mark I: Thunder Armour|Thunder Armor]] and the warriors who wore said armor were called Thunder Warriors in Low Gothic.

Created using a simplified cookie-cutter version of the Custodes' bio-alchemy on adult subjects (in contrast the Custodes' custom-tailored process subjected on infants), the Thunder Warriors were devastatingly effective and quickly became icons of the Emperor's armies; just the threat of the Thunder Warriors' arrival could convince a warlord to surrender, and those who refused quickly learned that the Thunder Warriors' reputation was not exaggerated. According to the fluff, they were even more physically powerful and ruthless than the Space Marines. And while roughly equal in strength, they were not nearly as mentally or physiologically stable, and overall '''FAR''' inferior to the Custodes.

And yet, for all their successes, the Thunder Warriors were not perfect. Though at the time, it was believed they were, in fact, the pinnacle of mass produced military genetic engineering. However, along with Amar Astarte (the "mother" of the Thunder Warriors, Primarchs and Space Marines), the Emperor was able to refine the process and stabilize the genetic instability that ran amok in the Thunder Warriors, utilizing the Astartes Primarchs as templates to stabilise a new breed of warrior.

None of them could be counted on to last long, as either their minds or bodies gave out at unpredictable intervals, and the technology didn't yet exist to give them a lifespan longer than the average human's. They were suitable for fighting the barbarian [[human]] armies of the [[Age of Strife]], but not for the long, star-spanning campaign of the [[Great Crusade]] that the Emperor had set as His next goal, so as soon as He had enough territory to set up a secure laboratory and enough scientists to man it, He set to work on the next generation of warriors: the [[Primarch]]s. Interesting to note, when confronted by Chaotic energy, whilst the Custodes were immune to Chaos, the Thunder Warriors seemed strengthened by it at the cost of mental control. During the war against the Confederacy of Maulland Sen (one of the earliest conquests in the Unification Wars), they were exposed to Warp energy, which drove them into a berserk frenzy and caused them to butcher everyone in their way, even noncombatants and those whom the Emperor would have preferred to keep alive. The amount of carnage from their exposure to sorcery was the first serious cause for concern in all Imperial chains of command.

This may indicate that the Thunder Warriors' augmentations involved Warpcraft. Which would make sense as Thunder Warriors and Astartes alike commonly demonstrate superhuman physical abilities far beyond any augmentation could hope to justify. Such as relatively unequipped Thunder Warriors slaughtering [[World Eaters|War Hounds]] with several Astartes killed for each Thunder Warrior dead even after many years of genetic degradation. Valdor even obliquely states in context with the Thunder Warriors that it was necessary to create subjects [The Primarchs] that were in ''greater control over their powers''. So it's clear psychic mumbo jumbo is at work and that it was not working right with the Thunder Warriors. He also states that the project failed and [after the Scattering] only the smallest fragments remained - hinting that the Astartes and Thunder Warriors were supposed to be much more.

===Eventual Fate===
[[File:Thunder_warriors.jpg|200px|thumb|right|P.S. the man in the picture is not an actual thunder warrior, he just stole the armor from a copy of one.]]
The Thunder Warriors were not what He [[Humanity Fuck Yeah|envisioned]] as the defenders of humanity; they were blunt tools of destruction and little else. It is very important to note that the Astartes were already in circulation before the Thunder Warriors were "retired", the [[Dark Angels|First Legion]] had already been established and Proto-Legions all the way up to the [[Salamanders|XVIIIth]] were seeing active combat. The Emperor saw no great loss in removing them for good now that they were obsolete. The Imperial records indicate that the last of the Thunder Warriors all perished at the '''Battle of Mount Ararat''', which is strongly believed to be a cover story. Though the details are scarce, the battle did actually happen and there were survivors, hinting at a possible betrayal and a cull instigated by the Custodians.

However, contrary to this popular viewpoint, the retirement of the Thunder Warriors may not have been a betrayal and perhaps something less dickish; more like putting down an old guard dog with cancer than a complete betrayal. The Thunder Warriors leader: '''Arik Taranis''' is vague on the details and admits he holds no ill will towards the Emperor for what he did. Another survivor: '''Dahren Heruk''' still considers himself loyal to the Emperor and holds to his pre-Unity oaths. More interestingly, when Heruk rescues a Custodian from a group of Alpha Legion hiding on Terra, the surprised Custodian thanks him and seems prepared to leave him where he is, at least until a mortally wounded Heruk halts him to request and be granted an "honoured death" (basically a mercy kill with a blade through the heart). Like Arik and Ghota, Heruk's group of Thunder Warriors are all failing physically, filled with cancer, and required to undergo regular organ transplantation just to stay alive; and are failing mentally, wracked with hallucinations of the Unity Wars like soldiers with PTSD. It may be that the last of the Thunder Warriors went willingly to their ends at Mount Ararat at the very height of their eminence, knowing that they could go no further than that. The alternative being eventual madness and inevitable biological collapse, coupled with being rendered obsolete in the shadow of the newly rising Astartes. Heruk remembers the battle of Mount Ararat to have been glorious with little to no bitterness, and he and his companions all believe that they have simply [[Death Korps of Krieg|''lived too long'']].

The 8th Edition Custodes Codex explained that the Thunder Warriors were purged after they rebelled due to learning that they were engineered with intentionally short lifespans. More specifically, they revolted over what they perceived as the Emperor's betrayal for deliberately giving them a shortened lifespan. Ironically, the remaining Thunder Warriors were purged by the first few thousand prototype Astartes from the [[Dark Angels|I Legion]] in their first combat engagement after joining forces with Imperial officials planning a coup. As such, it would make sense that any surviving Thunder Warriors would be those whose loyalty to the Emperor prevented them from holding such a grudge. The ones who revolted got put down by the proto Astartes Legions, while those who marched to their ends likely were loyalists anyway and probably considered the last battle of the Unification Wars as something between a last chance at martyrdom, euthanasia and assisted suicide.

[[File:Thunder Warrior Model.jpg|200px|thumb|left|If only GW bothered to re-make the model like they did with the Space Marines... It seems big E wasn't the only one who abandoned them.]]

The so-called "cull" wasn't the end of the Thunder Warriors, though, as some of them managed to escape and spread throughout the Imperium. Per Horus Heresy Book Nine - Crusade, scattered bands of survivors endured in hiding through out Terra and the immediate space around the Sol System but most were systematically hunted down and liquidated by the I Legion. In one notable incident during the [[Great Crusade]], there was an insurrection on the asteroid prison colony of Cerberus. Though the Thunder Warriors ''were not'' the only members of the rebellion, there were enough of them to form a group calling themselves the '''Dait'Tar'''. The Emperor did not like that and sent an army of [[World Eaters|War Hounds]] to crush the prison riot with impunity. The Astartes having gotten bored with maiming and killing prisoners not worthy of their challenge, found themselves some Thunder Warriors grouping up in a defensive position. Instead of just showering bullets on the surviving Warriors like a more sensible Legion might have, the War Hounds rushed in and engaged them in close combat. But Thunder Warriors are basically mini-[[Primarchs]] without the immortality, and were able to claim three to four Marine kills in melee for each Warrior that went down. After five hours of carnage and RAEG of old vs. new, the [[Imperial Guard|Imperial Army]] forces waiting in orbit got bored and decided to join the party, but the party was already done and left nothing but Thunder Warrior corpses, lots of War Hound corpses, and lots and lots of regular prisoner corpses cut down apparently trying to escape the melee.

Others descended into the Underworld of Terra, taking roles amongst the criminal element or eking out a living as gladiators. One group managed to steal an Astartes progenoid gland to extend their lifespans and went into hiding, so far not to be seen again. This itself is not unprecedented as the [[Traitor Legion Loyalists|World Eater Blackshield]], Endryd Haar, was rumored to be a proto-legionnaire that was converted into an Astartes from Cataegis gene-stock; being mentioned to be a giant even among Space marines, having killed one of the Dait'Tar by breaking his neck in single combat, and was recognized by Malcador as one of the first Terran War Hounds. Likewise, [[Autek Mor]] was one of the first Iron Hands and his brutality was severe enough by Astartes standards to spread rumors that his gene-seed and lineage aren’t what they seem. [[Trazyn]] [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Rr7bf6tIzWs is known to have at least one in stasis] on Solemnace, which could perhaps be the enigmatic "giant in baroque armor" mentioned in the Necron Codex.