Acolyte Hybrid

An Acolyte Hybrid is a Genestealer hybrid of the first or second generation following infestation of an organism by the "kiss" of the Genestealer Patriarch.

Unable to pass for remotely human, they often serve as shock troops and the inner coven of the Patriarch.

Role
Repulsive, cruel and possessed of an animal cunning, the Acolyte Hybrids are the foremost disciples of the Genestealer Cults. They are the offspring of the very first hosts to become infected. Though the parents of the Acolyte Hybrids are outwardly whole and sound members of their species, part of their mind has been taken over by the Genestealer Curse. Their love for their hideous alien offspring is even more intense than the usual bond between parents and children because of the psychic influence of the Broodmind.

The first generation to be born unto them are twisted beyond recognition by the horrific alien germ-seed that has been carried to fruition within the implanted parent; these hybrids appear more like mutant Tyranids than altered humans. Those that reach maturity will flock together and interbreed, producing more generations of the Genestealer brood-cycle in their turn.

Too obviously xenos in form and behaviour to blend into human society in the manner of third and fourth generation hybrids, the Acolytes instead haunt the dark places beneath urban and industrial sprawls. They learn the arts of stealth and ambush warfare by preying upon those unfortunates who stray into their lairs. They do not kill with impunity, for nothing must alert the ruling classes of their world to the hidden menace lurking beneath them until the time is right.

Those intruders who are not sliced into bloody ribbons are dragged into the darkness to meet a far darker fate: the horrific embrace of a Purestrain Genestealer.

Those Acolytes closest to their Patriarch in body and mind form its inner coven -- though savage and ferocious, they have a cold intelligence that makes them powerful agents of the cult. Having assimilated an echo of their parent's brain during gestation, they are often able to use complex machinery and Imperial weaponry -- some even carry industrial tools to battle, wreaking devastation upon the flesh of those who stand before them.

Huge drills, cutters and buzzing rock saws have proven devastatingly effective against even the most formidable protection, chewing through the ceramite plating of Space Marine Power Armour in moments and even pulverising the thick metal hulls of Imperial tanks and troop transports.

Though Acolytes typically prefer the clash of brutal melee combat, their dextrous limbs are well suited to the use of ranged weaponry. Many carry Hand Flamers, sadistically savouring the screams of foes wreathed in fire, while others wield crude yet effective Autopistols taken from their gene-sect's underground armouries. Some amongst their number relish the devastating eruptions of mining explosives, and charge into battle hurling high-yield demolition charges.

Almost all Acolyte Hybrids bear not two but three unnaturally powerful alien arms that mark them as the true inheritors of their Patriarch's curse. Their Genestealer ancestry makes them excellent shock troopers, able to tear apart the finest defenders of Humanity when they bring their claws to bear.

For all their ferocity, the greatest weapon at the Acolyte Hybrids' disposal is their ability to strike from the shadows. They boil up from hidden lairs into the heart of the enemy formation, slicing and tearing their prey apart before guns and blades can be brought to bear.

Unit Composition

 * 4 to 19 Acolyte Hybrids
 * Acolyte Leader

Wargear

 * Autopistol
 * Cultist Knife
 * Rending claws
 * Blasting Charges
 * Hand Flamer (As replacement for Autopistol]]
 * Heavy Rock Cutter (As replacement for Culist Knife and Autopistol)
 * Heavy Rock Drill (As replacement for Culist Knife and Autopistol)
 * Heavy Rock Saw (As replacement for Culist Knife and Autopistol)
 * Sacred Cult Banner (Only for Acolyte Iconward, if present)

Acolyte Leader

 * Bonesword (As replacement for Cultist Knife)
 * Bonesword and Lash Whip (As replacement for Cultist Knife and Autopistol)