Depth Hunters

The Depth Hunters are a non Codex-compliant Loyalist Space Marine Chapter who’s origins have largely remained the subject of speculation to the Imperium at large, though it is thought by some that they may be a White Scars Successor Chapter from the Thirteenth Founding. All that is known is that the Chapter was initially created to help maintain order in the Segmentum Pacificus in the wake of the Nova Terra Interregnum and ensure such an event could never take place again.

The Chapter's homeworld, Kyrion Prime, is dominated by massive oceans that cover the planet's surface and are infested by countless species of deadly aquatic predators which are hunted for both food and sport both within the Chapter and among the general populace of the planet. The Astartes of the Depth Hunters Chapter are well known for their self reliance and tenacity in combat, especially in the face of monstrous creatures such as the Tyranids and Squiggoths. While much of the Depth Hunters' history during and after the Age of Apostasy is well documented, the Chapter's primogenitor remained largely a mystery to the Imperium and the Chapter itself. However, numerous investigations carried out by the Ordo Astartes and the Magos Biologis in the last few centuries have led to the discovery of evidence that has led some to believe they may be a successor Chapter to the White Scars. This development has not had any notable effect on the Chapter itself, which continues to pay respect to no Primarch in particular.

====  History ==== The Chapter was originally created in the wake of the Nova Terra Interregnum to help maintain order in the Segmentum Pacificus and prevent possible rebellion. Despite their intended purpose the Depth Hunters have proven themselves to be much more effective when dealing with monstrous creatures like those utilised by the Tyranids, Orks, and Kroot

and also (to a much lesser extent) formations of heavily armoured vehicles and walkers. This is due to the influence of the culture and very nature of their homeworld upon the Chapter's own culture & combat doctrine; This has also lead to the formation of elite squads specialised in surviving the harshest environments and dispatching the very largest and most ferocious beasts the Chapter may encounter which are known as Beast Mauler squads. These squads have since come to replace the Depth Hunters' regular 1st Company Veteran and Terminator squads. Considering the Chapter's specialties it comes as no surprise that they spend a good deal of their time doing battle with the various bands of Ork Freebooters that inhabit the Veiled region of the Segmentum Pacificus.

 

Notable Campaigns:

 

* The Defence of Attis (888 M36): Charged with the defence of the Hive World Attis after  WAAAGH! Toofrippa left the Veiled Region to launch brutal raids on unsuspecting worlds in Imperial space, utilising a large numbers of Colossal Squigs and even Squiggoths to cause massive amounts of destruction and mayhem anywhere they went. The Depth Hunters deployed a full company to defend the otherwise woefully undermanned world from the Orks. The battle for Attis was long and brutal but in the end the Depth Hunters proved victorious as the Orks' numerous monstrosities were laid low by the at the time newly formed Beast Mauler squads of the 1st Company. However though the Warboss Toofrippa was defeated at Attis he fled back into the Veiled Region before he could be slain by Imperial forces, sowing yet more destruction on every planet his remaining forces happened by on their way.

 

* The Razing (005 M37): When the Forge World Gyax engages in open rebellion against the Imperium the Depth Hunters 5th company, led by Captain Petrus Dobu, are deployed after the Skitarii and the Cadian 101st and 232nd Armoured Regiments already attempting to retake the world proved ineffective against the heavily entrenched rebels who had no shortage of equipment and manpower due to their control over Gyax's massive factories. Seeing that the attempt to retake Gyax would soon devolve into a lengthy war of attrition and with little in the way of reinforcements coming Petra decided that the use of sheer brute force in an attempt to break the defending rebels would be the best way to end the conflict swiftly. The Deph Hunters' tactics proved to be surprisingly effective against the otherwise seemingly innumerable armoured vehicles at the traitors' disposal. However rooting them out of their defences proves a slow and difficult affair and though the rebels were eventually forced to submit victory came at the cost of heavy casualties for the Imperials, the 5th company being no exception, and massive damage to many of Gyax's facilities which were razed to the ground during the campaign. The damage caused by the extremely aggressive tactics used to retake Gyax by Petrus caused no small amount of of displeasure within the Adeptus Mechanicus and as a result relations between them and the Depth Hunters were strained by the events on Gyax.

 

* Return of Toofrippa (017 M37): Captain Petrus Dobu, still disgraced by the pyrrhic victory that was the retaking of Gyax, is among the first on the scene when it is reported that Battlefleet Pacificus had engaged a massive Ork fleet near the Veiled Region. The same reports also stated that the description of the Ork flagship matched that of the Kill Krooza used by Toofrippa, the very same Ork Warboss that escaped Imperial justice just over a century prior. Arriving only with restoring his honour and that of the 5th Company on his mind Petrus immediately set his Strike Cruiser, the Maul of Kyrion, on a direct course for Toofrippa's Kill Kroozer, the Bluddklaw. Taking a small force made up of those few who survived the brutality of Gyax, Petrus led a direct assault on the Bluddklaw with the intention of slaying the Warboss and ending the second WAAAGH! Toofrippa before it could begin. Cutting down countless Orks, Petrus and his chosen few forged a bloody path through the xenos ship but with each hall taken and every bulkhead smashed a brother fell until eventually it was Petrus alone who reached the Bluddklaw's Command Deck and challenged the Warboss Toofrippa to single combat; the ensuing duel left the whole deck little more than a smouldering wreck. Toofrippa had gotten only more mighty since his last rampage through Imperial space and Petrus, realising that he could never best the massive alien, made the ultimate sacrifice. Priming all the grenades he possessed, the Captain launched himself onto the Warboss, the resulting blast killing both of them in a small but nonetheless glorious fireball. Despite falling to a man the suicidal boarding action of Petrus and those Astartes by his side left the Orks leaderless and made it easy for Battlefleet Pacificus and the Maul of Kyrion to once again drive off the xeno scum. It was that day that the short lived second WAAAGH! Toofrippa came to an end before it could lay waste to even a single world and the honor of the 5th Company of the Depth Hunters was regained after Captain Petrus Dobu's noble sacrifice.

 

* Operation Prologue (994 M41): The Inquisition, seeking a way to stop Hive Fleet Scylla before it reaches Terra, seek the aid of the Depth Hunters in capturing one of the Hive Fleet's Vanguard Drone ships for study. Knowing that they cannot possibly take such a creature alive but needing it as intact as possible the Depth Hunters teleport their entire first company directly onto the ship, led by the newly appointed Chapter Master Samson Karasimbe and armed with a neurotoxin to kill the xeno monstrosity. Despite the hordes of Tyranid bioforms aboard the ship, most of which comprised of Lictors and the dreaded Genestealers, the first company's Beast Maulers are successful in deploying the toxin throughout the Vanguard Drone with minimal casualties. The gargantuan corpse was quickly claimed by the Inquisition and the resulting research into a way to destroy the  Fleet before it can adapt to it continues to this day.

Chapter Organisation
Though the Depth Hunter's numbers stand at around the Codex prescribed 1000 Astartes the Chapter's 1st Company differs from that of other Chapters. Firstly, the Depth Hunters' 1st Company is led into battle by the Chapter Master himself instead of a Captain and rather than it calling upon the Chapter's most experienced veterans the 1st Company of the Depth Hunters is made up of those Battle Brothers who have proven themselves to be great hunters of beasts, trackers or those who have achieved other impressive martial feats. These individuals are organised into "Beast Mauler" squads whose purpose it is to track down and destroy the mightiest alien monstrosities and vehicles the Imperium's enemies possess. The process of selection the Chapter employs is rather indiscriminate and it has not been unheard of in the Chapter's history for members of the Depth Hunters' Scout Company to be added to the ranks of a Beast Mauler squad.

 

The selection process for many of the Chapter's officers also differs to that of most other Chapters. When a Sergeant, Captain, or even the Chapter Master dies a hunt is held on the Depth Hunters' homeworld at the earliest opportunity and whoever slays the largest creature in the depths of Kyrion Prime's vast oceans is named the successor of the fallen. Despite not appearing as such at face value his selection process is less haphazard than that of the 1st Company as only those who are immediately subordinate to the fallen officer may participate in the hunt (only Sergeants and Champions can become Captains, only Captains may be Chapter Master etc.) and, in the case of Sergeants and Captains, only Battle Brothers from the same company may participate. However due to how spread out the Chapter is at times Companies can spend months or even years with the Company Champion overseeing a campaign after the death of a Captain or Chapter Master.

Due to their initial purpose of helping curb rebellions in the Segmentum Pacificus the Depth Hunters often find themselves spread extremely thinly and as such their Chapter Fleet contain larger numbers of Gladius and Nova Class Frigates than would normally be expected so that they may quickly deploy small forces of Battle Brothers (often only one or two squads) throughout the Segmentum. However their purpose is often regarded as simple patrols and reconnaissance duties and if a proper threat should arise then the Depth Hunters waste little time in regrouping, deploying in larger numbers and bringing their mightiest ships to bear.

Homeworld
The Depth Hunters recruit their neophytes from the the Ocean Death World Kyrion Prime. Millennia before the planet became the Depth Hunters' Homeworld Kyrion Prime was once a Hive World with most of the planet's surface covered in thick snow, ice and vast mountains.

 

The large quantities of extra fuel consumed by the planet's populace made the pollution on Kyrion Prime severe even for a Hive World, increasing the planet's temperature & causing greater and greater damage to its atmosphere. Eventually the damage became so serious that in the early years of M32 the snow and ice covering Kyrion Prime started to melt incredibly quickly, causing much of Kyrion Prime to disappear under vast oceans of murky, polluted water infested with a myriad of monstrous aquatic life that had spent countless centuries hidden under the ice.

 

In this disaster simply known as "Kyrion's Vengeance" by the planet's inhabitants the nobility of the Hive Cities fled to find new planets to settle upon; abandoning the workers and gangs of the lower levels to their fates. However a lucky few of those abandoned managed to escape the doomed cities and eventually settled on the many small islands that were once the peaks of Kyrion Prime's mountains, banding together and forming numerous clans that now vie for resources. Though most of the Hive Cities have since collapsed some still stand, acting as both valuable sources of technology and resources and towering reminders of the world that was drowned so long ago.

 

In the wake of Kyrion's Vengeance the planet's populace have become adept at hunting down many of the creatures that call the waters of the planet's oceans home. However they fear what they believe to be the mightiest and most terrible creature of the seas. A monster many on Kyrion Prime have taken to calling "The Drowned One". Though the creature has only been sighted a scant few times in the last few millennia it's notoriety is such that it is believed that he who finally slays the beast is truly the Emperor's chosen and will lead Kyrion Prime in a last Great War. Some even go as far as thinking the Drowned One is the very Planet's malice made manifest. The Clans of Kyrion Prime have also developed a preference for items known for their reliability such as stub revolvers due to the effect their oceanic environment often has on less sturdy equipment.

 

Despite the hostility of the polluted oceans in which they dwell much of Kyrion Prime's aquatic life is in fact edible and the many Clans survive by hunting the horrors the lurk in the depths, striking out in small canoes cobbled together with whatever they can find and often armed with little more than a stub revolver and a stylised stone club these hunters draw in their quarry by singing a soft tune known as "The Lullaby of the Depths" that seems to attract many of the smaller creatures from the ocean. When their prey swims into close proximity hey strike, after taking a few well aimed shots at the eyes of their target they pull the creature onto their canoe before beating it into submission. Larger hunts are often held for special occasions where bigger ships are used and more deadly prey is sought out.

 

The Depth Hunters have adopted many of the beliefs and preferences of Kyrion Prime's mundane population with a Battle Brother's status among his peers being decided by what beasts h has struck down either in battle or on hunts on the Chapter's homeworld. While the Depth Hunters often join in the larger hunts held by the Clans it is not uncommon for them to simply do away with the canoes entirely and instead don their power armour so they may hunt the biggest and deadliest creatures living at the very bottom of the sea.

The Fortress Monastery of the Depth Hunters, known as the Hunter’s Wrath, is in fact a gargantuan seaborne warship the Chapter uses to travel the world’s oceans and ensure Kyrion Prime’s greatest Fortress can go anywhere at any time in a crisis. While it’s upper and middle decks are full of vehicle holds, training grounds, and countless lethal automated defences the ship’s lowest level is a massive airlock leading directly into the dark sea below so that any Astartes brave enough may engage the myriad beasts of the ocean directly if he should be so bold (or so foolish).

Combat Doctrine
Due to the huge oceans and deadly creatures of their homeworld, the Depth Hunters specialise in amphibious assaults and dealing with monstrous creatures such as those one would see in a Tyranid Hive Fleet. This has also led them to rely very little on heavily armoured and/or bulky land based vehicles such as Rhinos and Land Raiders, preferring instead to use skimmers & aircraft such as the Stormraven gunship to bear them into battle and provide heavy support for the Chapter’s infantry forces.

Depth Hunter infantry formations usually rely on more specialised Assault and Devastator squads in order to strike down larger targets with heavy weapons and prowess in close quarters rather than taking advantage of the flexibility tactical squads provide. The Chapter’s Scouts, known simple as Tracker Squads, are also highly valued for their ability to track enemy forces and pick off lesser foes so that their more heavily armed brethren can target the true prizes among the foe.