Lychguard

"Only the deathless can truly comprehend the burden of unfailing loyalty."

- Vargard Obyron of the Sautekth Dynasty.

A Lychguard is a specialized Necron warrior. Long ago, when the Necrontyr were still flesh before the War in Heaven, the Lychguards were an elite military formation, who served as the bodyguards of the Necrontyr kings and nobles, bulwarks of flesh and martial prowess against any danger. Biotransferance to a machine body has nothing but improved these unflinching warrior's abilities to protect the "life" of their Lord, leaving their personalities and martial prowess intact while increasing their resilience and loyalty. The Lychguards enjoy a certain loftiness of position in the current Necrontyr 'society', as their intact personalities allow them to shoulder the burden and privilege to serve as emissaries and proxies for their master for those situations where his regal presence is unnecessary.

History
In ancient times, Lychguards were the wardens of the nobility, said to be incorruptible and utterly dedicated to their charges. Then, such an assertion was as much propaganda as it was truth. Though the Lychguards doubtless possessed greater loyalty than the common run of soldiery, they were still but mortal and prone to all the temptations and weaknesses to which flesh is heir. Now, Lychguards are indeed that which legend made them. They are no longer capable of straying from their master's edicts - careful engram manipulation during biotransference saw to that each Lychguard is programmed with unswerving loyalty to a particular noble, or sometimes to a whole dynasty. This, combined with the fact that they have retained most of their personality intact makes Lychguards the ideal emissaries and lieutenants in situations deemed too dangerous to risk the existence of a Phaeron or his regal subordinates.

Physically, Lychguards are incredibly imposing, housed in the same heavily-armoured forms more commonly reserved for Necron royalty. This is mostly due to practicality - after all, what use is a bodyguard if he has not might and hardiness enough to defend his master? However, there is also an underlying arrogance to the Lychguards' thickly-armoured design, a brazenness meant to present an irresistible challenge to the noble's enemies. Accordingly, Lychguards can inevitably be found at the heart of any battle, either because their master's army has rallied around them, or the enemy has chosen to make the destruction of their charge, and therefore the destruction of the Lychguard, a priority.

As with much of the Necron army, a Lychguard's armament is decreed largely by tradition. Most are equipped with heavy-bladed Warscythes drawn from their patron's personal armoury - when combined with a Lychguard's prodigious strength, there is very little such a blade cannot penetrate. Phalanxes employed by more influential Overlords instead carry Hyperphase Swords and Dispersion Shields, trading a little in the way of raw might in favour of the incredible protection granted by the Dispersion Shields' interlocking force barriers. Whilst such a squad might make slower progress as they carve their way through a Space Marine strike force, the ability to withstand anything from a siege shell to a Defence Laser blast is ample compensation.

Regardless of armament, a Lychguard always favours a single, dismembering strike over a flurry of lesser blows and will trust its own hardiness to hold the enemy at bay. Unlike lesser Necrons, Lychguards take pride in - and even relish - their bloody work. Indeed, for a Lychguard, anything less than a perfect strike is something to be regretted. Some Lychguard even go so far as to seek forgiveness from their sovereign if they land anything less than an immaculate stroke. So will a Lychguard sometimes stand motionless in the heat of battle, its blade raised and unmoving whilst it awaits the most auspicious moment to strike. When that moment arrives, the Lychguard brings its blade about in an unstoppable arc to sever limbs, lop heads or cleave torsos in twain.

Combat Role
On the field of battle, the Lychguard form the core of any Necron army. Whether standing tall and proud between their lord and master and any danger, or patiently waiting for the teleportation signal from their Night Scythe transport to boldly bring the battle to an enemy commander, the Lychguards always find themselves in the thickest of the fighting, anchoring the Necrontyr batlle line, and loping of heads and limbs from their opponents with wide sweeping slashes of their arcane weaponry.

Wargear
Necrodermis Body - Like all Necrons, Lychguards have endured the biotransferance process, housing their sentience in a machine body made primarily out of the living Necrodermis metal. As befits bodyguards, the Lychguard's bodies are stronger, more durable and better at self-repairing than those of the average Necron warrior.

Warscythe - The traditional weapon of Necrontyr nobility and their bodyguards for eons, a Warscythe is an energy-bladed battle-staff. The energy field that encompasses the Warscythe allows it to cleave through almost anything with ease. Heavy and ungainly, these weapons are only effective in the hands of an untiring Necron combatant.

Optional Wargear
Hyperphase Sword - An Hyperphase Sword is a sword outfitted with a molecular agitator that 'excites' the blade, allowing it to oscillate between quantum states and cutting through almost everything easily. An Hyperphase Sword has destructive capabilities comparable to the other race's much cruder Power Weapons.

Dispersion Shield - The force barrier projected by a dispersion shield can be used to fend off close combat attacks or deflect incoming enemy fire, similarly to the Imperium's Storm Shield. However, unlike the brutish Storm Shield, the much more refined Necrontyr Dispersion Shield allows the Lychguard to actually deflect incoming fire upon an enemy nearby, turning his opponent's firepower against them.