Thothakh Dynasty





The Thothakh Dynasty is one of the oldest, yet smallest Necron dynasties, possessing only five worlds. They have never needed more. The Thothakh Dynasty has little appetite for war or conquest. Though Haset and its subordinate tomb worlds hide vast legions of slumbering soldiers and warmachines within their dark depths, only rarely are their military forces brought to bear, and even then they nearly always used for self-defense.

The reason for this dynasty's insular nature is simple: it is not a dynasty of warriors, but a dynasty of chroniclers and historians.

Birth of a Dynasty
The Necrontyr idolized death. Cursed with short lifespans and painful lives under their harsh sun, the Necrontyr became a morbid and fatalistic race, seeing life as merely a brief prelude before the permanence of death, and erected great monuments and temples to those who had come before them. As the Necrontyr Empire expanded, these grand necropolii also grew in magnificence, and slowly, a culture of craftsmen emerged, all specializing in properly memorializing death.

Skilled architects, builders of tombs and chroniclers of the deeds of the dead, these individual craftsmen began to band together. Partnerships came together and became brotherhoods, brotherhoods merged and formed guilds, and each individual learned from and improved on the techniques of others. It was to nobody's surprise that the crypt-builders eventually grew large enough to become a Dynasty of their own, taking the name Thothakh, 'historian' in the Necrontyr language, for their duty was the record and remember the history of those who had died.

Wars of Secession
The Thothakh Dynasty already had a reputation for being filled with master architects and biographers, but it was during the Wars of Secession that they truly came to prominence, and in a new role.

As the thousands of Dynasties warred for control of their destinies, nobles began to visit the halls of Haset, the ruling world of Thothakh. Each had a single request: to have a chronicler of Thothakh loaned to them so that their deeds in battle may be recorded. Some made threats; some offered tithes of resources and technology; some offered aid in case of attack. The then-Phaeron of the Thothakh Dynasty considered their demands, and acceded.

The Thothakh Dynasty, by dint of the services it provided, became recognized as a neutral force in the Wars of Secession. By unspoken agreement, none attacked the small and weak dynasty, and their people never came to any harm, even if found working for an enemy dynasty. And since the Phaeron's agreement, Necrontyr in the gold-and-white livery of the Thothakh Dynasty became a common sight in the royal courts of many nobles. All that the Phaeron asked for in return for his Dynasty's service was that they make history.

War in Heaven
During the War in Heaven, little about the Thothakh Dynasty's policies changed. Still it provided historians to the Necrontyr nobles. Still it remained neutral in intragalactic affairs. As it had very little in the way of soldiers, its military contributions to the war against the Old Ones were negligible. But in terms of culture, the Thothakh Dynasty blossomed.

During the War in Heaven, the Thothakh Dynasty saw a renaissance. Deeds of battle and politics transformed from simple retellings of history to ballads and epic poems as its historians began to push the boundaries of historical record. Some of the most famous Thothakh writings were made during the War in Heaven, featuring works such as "Exodus", "The Selfish Immortals", and, towards the end of the great war, the classic "Star Gods".