Chapter Serf

A Chapter Serf is a human bondsman or bondwoman who act as a servant of a Space Marine Chapter. The battle-brothers themselves are far too few to fulfill all the tasks required to keep the Chapter running at peak efficiency. It is the Chapter Serfs who perform most of these sometimes very menial but nevertheless vital functions.

Most Chapter Serfs come into service of their Chapter by either being selected and found wanting for becoming full-fledged Space Marines, or being born to a couple of Chapter Serfs. A minority of Serfs are humans that have been rescued by the Space Marines on the field of battle and allowed to accompany and serve their saviors in gratitude. A Chapter's Fortress-Monastery is home to a large population of these hereditary servants and while they occupy a humble position, they are loyal members of the Chapter. The serfs are inducted into the Chapter cult, and do not begrudge the status they could have obtained, nor their lowly station, as they are constantly made aware of that their godlike masters could not fulfill their holy duty of prosecuting the Emperor of Mankind's war without their assistance.

Chapter Serfs are generally well treated, and are educated and trained to a much higher standard than most other servants of the Imperium in order to fulfill their duties. All Chapter serfs are for instance educated in High Gothic. Amongst the Chapters of the Imperium individual treatment of the Serfs vary: it is the Ultramarines and Salamanders that treat their serfs the most fairly, while the Imperial Fists tend to treat them as if they were invisible and inexistant, and the Marines Errant treat them as mortal slaves.

When Space Marines go to war, their Serfs maintain the Fortress-Monastery and defend it from attack. Chapter Serfs are normally never deployed in battle alongside their Space Marine masters. Their human limitations would blunt all the advantages the Space Marines exploit with their particular approach of warfare. They are still be trained to levels at least equivalent to that of the Imperial Guard, and are expected to assist in the defense of chapter assets such as fortresses and vessels.

Known Serfs Stations

 * Artificers - Artificers are Chapter Serfs who are given basic training in the ways of the Machine-God by the Techmarines, and perform the routine maintenance on all the equipment the Chapter uses, freeing up the Techmarines' time for the more advanced tasks.
 * Medicae - Chapter Serfs who are given medical training and assist the Apothecaries.
 * Monitors - Chapter Serfs who are trained as messengers. They undergo hypno-therapy that allow them to flawlessly memorize messages, and bury it in their minds to be able to restitute them only if given the correct activation code.
 * Ordinator of the House - This Chapter Serf serves as the personal seneschal of the Chapter Master. This makes him or her 'first amongst equals' and nominal leader amongst all the Chapter Serfs.
 * Sacratium - Chapter Serfs who tend to the Chapter relics and assist the Chaplains.
 * Scribellum - Chapter Serfs who assist the Librarians in writing down all the important deeds of the Chapter and its Marines. Part scribe and part artist, they make sure the knowledge of the past remains at hand. They also assist in the creation of Purity Seals and similar texts of devotion.

Chapter-specific Serf Stations

 * Brander-priests - Unique to the Salamanders Chapter. Each battle-brother is assigned his own Brander-priest(ess), whose role is to brand his or her master's flesh with a red hot iron rod while reciting sacred passages of the Promethean Cult. Brander-priests often become close confidents to their Astartes master, and often immolate themselves on their master's funeral pyre when he fall in battle.
 * Seneschal, Lictor and Absterge - Unique to the Excoriators Chapter. Each Excoriator has 3 personal Serfs who assist him in everything. The Seneschal is responsible for taking care of his master Power Armour and leather whip, the Lictor's main task is to flagellate his master's shoulders and back during the ritual of "Donning Dorn's Mantle" and the Absterge main task is to dress his master's wounds and ensure food is available when he requires it.
 * Helmsmaster - Unique to the Space Wolves Chapter. Unlike other Chapters, the Space Wolves have no Space Marine Captain in charge of the Chapter's Fleet. Each Great Company has her own ship, who is manned by Chapter Serfs. The Helmsmaster is such a ship's Captain, and trusted by the Space Wolves to get the job of delivering them safely to their objective (often the enemy midst) done.