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The Heralds of Death are a Warband who was once a loyal chapter of the Imperium known as the Fists of Purification. The are renowned for their spread of Chaos and loyalty for to Chaos Undivided. There current Lord, is Aurelian, who is famous for his fanatical personality and destructive means of victory. Although the arms of the Imperium are constantly at work, the Heralds of Death have made a strong push around the Warp Storm known as the Inferno Reach. They have turned many worlds to Chaos, which in turn has helped their ranks of followers swell to a number the Imperium will not ignore for long. It is noted that this Warband has a special hatred for the Chapter known as the Nomads. This is believed to be linked back to their days as a loyalist chapter.

History
"Brothers? I will not except a band of renegades and lunatics as my brothers. They are nothing more than a blight on the Imperium, one that should be wiped clean..."

-Aurelian, chapter master of the Fists of Purification , speaking on the topic of the Mad Nomads Chapter

Originally known as the Fists of Purification, the Heralds of Death were created during the Twenty-First Founding, also known as the Cursed Founding. As with many Loyalist Chapters that turn Renegade or Traitor, many of their records have been locked away within vaults at order of the Ordo Hereticus. With most records kept locked away, only fragmented data can be found mentioning their early history. What is known is that around the time of their founding, in early M36, there was a drastic increase in worlds rebelling against the Imperium and chapters turning renegade. Due to the sudden influx, it is believed that a chapter, who's faith was almost unmatched among others, was created to bring rebellions to an end and to cleanse those chapters who turned against the Imperium. Though there are no records to indicate, it is believed that the gene-seed comes from that of the Imperial Fists chapter. This is mainly due to their strong will and unshakable faith.

Notable members

 * Aurelian (chapter master)

Gallery
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History
The date on which the Legion of the Mad was founded is unknown to all except Prefect Gnilo Breckmann, his predecessors, and strangely enough, the Astartes Chapter Masters of the Mad Nomads. It's presumed, based on records of deployments, that they were founded sometime in the 36th Millennium, and draw its near constant stream of convicts from the worlds Maidstone and Thorncross in the Raldoron Sub-Sector. Even for a Penal Legion, there's scarcely any unsealed records about their actions. The only known conflicts the Penal Legion, recently dubbed "Legion of the Mad" due to both their almost constant encounters with the Mad Nomads, and high ratio of men deemed unstable, are the Volparis incident, and the pacifying of the Armand Sub-Sector in Segmentum Pacificus.

While heretical uprisings on planets are not uncommon, the eradication of the coordinates to Volparis makes it a special case. Along with it's location, most of the records of the incident were sealed as well. The only known information about the incident comes from declassified fields report from Prefect Breckmann and his subordinates.

The pacifying of the Armand Sub-Sector is a very open book however. The early days of the pacification, the Legion of the Mad was under orders to push the capital world of the Sub-Sector, and take it all costs. As they made planetfall, warp storms around the system were wreaking havoc on any capability of reinforcements being sent. On the fifth month of solid combat on the planet, when the Legion had nearly spent all of its resources on capturing the capital, two Astartes battlebarges had slipped in through a break in the Warp Storms, dropping reinforcements down to the Legion, and with the convicts in the lead, took the capital of the primary planet in the Sub-Sector.

With this devastating blow done, the resistance and fight in the hearts of the chaos forces had begun to wilt and die. All over the Sub-Sector, planets began to fall to Imperial forces. While the Legion wasn't directly credited with taking the capital, the Astartes of the Mad Nomads chapter had congratulated them on their will and service to the Emperor.

Past this point in the history of the Legion, not much is known. Sealed under inquisitorial orders, the Legion is only documented in the presence of the Mad Nomads, and seems to have adopted Astartes into their command structure. Something completely unknown to wider portions of the Imperium.

Recruitment and Training
Recruitment and training of the Mad Legion is very basic. Anyone that doesn't already have a basic understanding will be given rudimentary lasgun and shotgun training. As for recruitment, convicts are simply torn from their penal worlds and thrown into the legion.

Anyone found to be incapable of being trained and disciplined, or mentally unstable, will be given combat stimulants and be treated even more like animals than their fellow convicts in the Legion.

Penal worlds
The planets Maidstone and Thorncross, situated in Sub-Sector Raldoron, are the main conscription grounds for convict replacements.

Organization
The Mad Legion typically organizes its penal soldiers into companies of two-hundred convicts. These companies are then split in the middle. One hundred will be armed with shotguns and wired up to combat stimulants, the rest will be armed with lasguns and kept free of the confining strain of the drugs to ensure they can at least aim adequately.

The companies are usually lead by a Marshall from the Adeptus Arbites. A peculiarity among this penal legion is the strange intervention of space marines from the Mad Nomads chapter to intercede as authoritative figures, and even taking over the fighting companies should the Marshall fall in battle, or be killed by the Space Marine himself for any number of reasons.

Down past the fighting companies, are the squads of penal soldiers, broken down into groupings of roughly 20-30 men per squad. Death tolls from previous engagements can leave some squads in higher strength than another. Among the fighting squads, every two squads will be commanded by a single arbitrator. The only times when squads will lack arbitrator leadership is during the lightning charges into enemy formations.

Tactics
The "Mad" Legion specializes in lightning fast, suicidal charges deep into enemy formations. Once their transports are either immobilized or stop, penal soldiers armed with shotguns and close combat weapons disgorge from the vehicles and tear apart the men around them in a drug addled fury.

The vehicles they use to thrust their murderous spearhead into the enemy are nearly worn out Centaurs, and mostly gutted Salamander Scout variants. Still capable of driving at high speeds, but long gone are the Salamanders days of recon.

Weapons
Battle worn Kantrael Pattern Lasguns, and Vox-Legi Pattern Arbites Combat Shotgun.

Notable members

 * Prefect Breckmann


 * The Lucky Giant

Salamanders
Used mainly to transport combat squads into the heart of the enemy. These Salamanders have been stripped of their highly valuable communications equipment and power generator for them. With this room opened back up, more convicts can be loaded up in back of this open topped vehicle.

Quotes
"Forward, in the name of the Emperor! You will redeem yourself in his eyes this day, or die trying!" - Prefect Gnilo Breckmann, during a charge of the Mad Legion at the Volparis Offensive, ahead of a main force of Mad Nomads Space Marines.