Editing Tollund Ötztal (section)

===Great Crusade===

Tollund Ötztal inspected the Eighth Legion and was quick to deem them fit for his purpose.  Even the oldest of the Legion, those born on Terra, had taken scars akin to those of his plainsman warriors.  Yet beyond their feral faces was the noble restraint that the Primarch so valued in a warrior.  The Eighth Legion was not something for him to change, only to expand and inspire.  Tollund Ötztal tried to lead more by example than decree, though he was forced to make some changes to the Legion's training regime to better accomodate the men of Tisenjoch.  But in matters of command, the Primarch felt that the men who had directed the campaigns of the Eighth from Terra to the stars were generally fit to carry on their mission.  His own role would be to stand at the head of the Legion's hosts, striking the first blows and weathering the greatest hardships.  If ties of genetics were not enough, this heroic pose quickly won Tollund Ötztal the love of his gene-sons.

His relationships with the other Primarchs were more mixed.  [[Hektor Cincinnatus]] was Ötztal's favourite brother and sometime role model, and he had a great admiration for [[Roman Albrecht]].  His ire generally fell on those of the Primarchs who strayed from the battlefield, such as [[the Voidwatcher]], [[Tiran Osoros]], [[Johannes Vrach]], and [[Arelex Orannis]].  But his greatest rival was [[Onyx the Indestructible]].

This rivalry began shortly after Onyx was rediscovered.  The Primarch of the [[Stone Men]] was keen to establish himself as the strongest of the brotherhood, and had thrown down Roman Albrecht, Brennus, and even Hektor himself in unarmed contests.  Tollund Ötztal was too humble to answer the open challenge on his own behalf, but Hektor pushed the lord of the Mastodontii to show off his skills as a grappler against mighty Onyx.  Reluctantly, Ötztal stepped forward and quickly humbled Onyx by bringing him to earth and locking up his mighty right arm.  Yet where a lesser man might have submitted to save himself from injury or pain, Onyx roared his defiance.  He boasted that his bones could not be broken while Ötztal would soon tire.

Tollund Ötztal's reply was simple and to the point.  He wrenched Onyx's arm, popping the shoulder from its socket.  Hektor and Roman laughed and applauded Ötztal's skills, though the humble Primarch only acknowledged them with a nod, then released his brother and got to his feet.  Onyx was up almost as fast and struck Ötztal with a tremendous left hook, knocking him senseless.  Before any further blows could be landed, Hektor and Roman interceded, but both Onyx and Ötztal would hold a grudge against the other from that day on.

However, brotherly meetings were rare.  For most of the Great Crusade, Ötztal would be far from the other Primarchs, leading his 51st [[Expedition Fleets (Hektor Heresy)|Expedition Fleet]].  Though he did not claim as many worlds as some of his peers, the lord of the Mastodontii was proud that his men passed lightly over the galaxy.  His Legion rarely left a newly-Compliant world much worse than they had found it, and they were quick to hand over their conquests to Imperial Governors.  Yet as reports of other Legion actions filtered through to Ötztal, he realised that he was an outlier among the Primarchs.  The [[Life Bringers]] were not averse to utterly destroying a world only to rebuild it in their own image.  The Sons of Fire seemed to almost relish destruction.  The [[Black Augurs]] and Stone Men cared little for collateral damage.

For some time, Tollund Ötztal brooded on the question, wondering what he could do to curb the tendencies of his warlike brothers.  When the Council of Nikaea was convened, Ötztal dispatched his Chief Librarian Erlik to speak on behalf of the Mastodontii.  Although the Mastodontii Primarch usually allowed his subordinates to plot their own course, Erlik was given strict instructions to call for restraints on the use of Warp powers.  The harsh decision at Nikaea greatly exceeded Ötztal's expectations, but he could accept the loss of the Librarians if it prevented the Black Augurs from laying waste to homes and lives.

Somewhat encouraged, Ötztal looked for another opportunity to reduce the destruction of the Great Crusade.  He settled on [[Gaspard Lumey]]'s [[Core Worlds Campaign|destruction of Karazak]].  The master of the [[Void Angels|Fifth Legion]] was ruthless and had no sense of martial honour, but Ötztal knew that Lumey was a devout believer in the rule of law over the rule of force.  If the War Council moved to discipline the Fifth Legion for excessive destruction, it was likely that the punishment would be accepted and an example could be set for the other unruly Primarchs.  However, before Ötztal could bring his case before the Emperor, the War Council was disbanded.  The Imperial government was organised in the Council of Terra, led by Malcador the Sigilite, while the Great Crusade was directed by Hektor Cincinnatus and the Military Council.

Sensing discontent over the division of powers, Ötztal took his concerns to Hektor rather than Malcador.  He appealed to the Warmaster to use his new powers to usher in an era of conquest with grace, rather than brute destruction.  It is likely that Hektor was less taken by Ötztal's moral argument than by the chance to demonstrate his authority - especially against a trouble-maker like Lumey - but for whatever reason the Warmaster agreed to preside over a tribunal.  Ötztal travelled to the Fortress World Ussur to present his case in person.  Many of the attendees suspected that a debate between Gaspard Lumey and the Mastodontii Primarch would be a no contest, but the Fifth Legion's Primarch seemed content to let Ötztal read his statement and confined his response to clarifying factual matters.  After the end of the Ussur Tribunal, Ötztal spoke to Lumey and found that his estimation had been correct.  Gaspard Lumey was content to lead his Legion into exile in order to set a good example to the soldiers of the Imperium.  Before parting, the two Primarchs clasped hands and pledged to work together when they met again.