Warhammer 40k Wiki
Register
Advertisement
Warhammer 40k Wiki
Adeptus Astartes Icon

The Icon of the Adeptus Astartes

The Apocrypha of Skaros is the oldest-known surviving copy of the Codex Astartes written by Roboute Guilliman, the Primarch of the Ultramarines Legion, as a guide to the organisation, battle order and combat tactics of the Adeptus Astartes. The Apocrypha has been frequently copied and cited religiously amongst the Imperium's Codex-compliant Space Marine Chapters.

This crumbling tome claims that the Ultramarines Legion sired twenty-three Primogenitor Chapters, but famously omitted to list them all. Other sources do not necessarily agree with this number.

The Apocrypha of Skaros also lists the number of Second Founding Chapters created from the Space Wolves as two, the current Space Wolves Chapter and a Successor Chapter called the Wolf Brothers, who were disbanded due to the corruption of their gene-seed and rampant mutation into Wulfen. Furthermore, no version of the Codex Astartes lists Second Founding Successor Chapters as having been raised from the Salamanders Chapter, though this does not mean that none ever were.

Though no comprehensive list has ever been assembled, the current known Primogenitor Chapters sired from the Ultramarines during the Second Founding include the following:

Chapter Progenitor Chapter Legion Number
Aurora Chapter Ultramarines XIII
Black Consuls Ultramarines XIII
Doom Eagles Ultramarines XIII
Eagle Warriors Ultramarines XIII
Genesis Chapter Ultramarines XIII
Inceptors Ultramarines XIII
Iron Snakes Ultramarines XIII
Libators Ultramarines XIII
Mortifactors Ultramarines XIII
Nemesis Ultramarines XIII
Novamarines Ultramarines XIII
Obsidian Glaives Ultramarines XIII
Patriarchs of Ulixis Ultramarines XIII
Praetors of Orpheus Ultramarines XIII
Silver Eagles Ultramarines XIII
Silver Skulls Ultramarines XIII
Viridian Consuls Ultramarines XIII
White Consuls Ultramarines XIII

Notable Excerpts

"They shall be my finest warriors, these men who give themselves to me. Like clay, I shall mould them, and in the furnace of war forge them. They will be of iron will and steely muscle. In great armour shall I clad them and with the mightiest guns will they be armed. They will be untouched by plague or disease, no sickness will blight them. They will have tactics, strategies, and machines such that no foe can best them in battle. They are my bulwark against the Terror. They are the Defenders of Humanity. They are my Space Marines, and they shall know no fear."

— Prelude, The Codex Astartes - (Apocrypha of Skaros) (Deathwatch: Core Rulebook, pg. 12)

"Let them bestride the galaxy like the gods of old. Sheltering Mankind from destruction at the hands of an uncaring universe."

— From the teachings of Roboute Guilliman as laid down in the Apocrypha of Skaros. (Codex: Space Marines 5th Edition, pg. 31)

"And within each company, the mightiest warrior shall be anointed as Champion. He shall bear arms and armour of great craftsmanship, and he shall protect his Captain from all harm, though it cost him his life. Great honour shall be bestowed upon him in life and in death, and he shall be lauded with great praise."

— From the teachings of Roboute Guilliman as laid down in the Apocrypha of Skaros (Index Astartes: Company Champion, pg. 4)

"A Captain leads from the front. By his example shall his men know what it is to be of the Adeptus Astartes, and from his teachings shall they learn the trade of battle in the Emperor's name. No ordinary man can a Captain be, for many are the paths to victory and he must be master of them all. His very being shall be an extension of the Emperor's work. With every strike of his sword, with every word of his speech, does he reaffirm the ideals of our honoured master. He will vanquish darkness and heresy with every thought, word, and deed. So shall his coming be a sign of deliverance to the dutiful, and a herald of dismay to all traitors. No living man shall stay his wrath."

— From the teachings of Roboute Guilliman as laid down in the Apocrypha of Skaros. (Codex: Space Marines 5th Edition, pg. 54)

"As you are a knight in service of the Emperor, so is the Rhino your steed. Honour it, respect it, see that its needs are met, and it shall serve you well through all the battles you must face."

— From the teachings of Roboute Guilliman as laid down in the Apocrypha of Skaros. (Codex: Space Marines 5th Edition, pg. 76)

"Of the Tactical Space Marine, bedrock of his Chapter and paragon to his brothers, I shall tell thee. He shall be steeped in the lore of battle and schooled in ill manner of weapon and strategy. With combat blade, boltgun and grenade he shall assail the foe. But these are mere tools: a Tactical Space Marine's true weapons are his courage, his wits and his dedication to his brothers. He will bring his foe to battle in a manner and time of his choosing, never himself caught unready or ill-prepared for the task at hand. In defence he shall be stalwart as the mountain, a bulwark stood firm against the enemies of Man. In attack he shall strike with the wrath of the Immortal Emperor, felling the foe without mercy, remorse or fear."

— From the teachings of Roboute Guilliman as laid down in the Apocrypha of Skaros (Codex: Space Marines 5th Edition, pg. 59)

"And of the Assault Marine so do I decree: He shall descend upon the perfidious foe as an Angel of Judgement from on high. Let the jump pack be his wings, and the roar of its engines a hymn of retribution. Let the chainsword be his sceptre of decree, its harsh voice singing joyfully with each and every blow. With it shall the Assault Marine bring bloody retribution to the heretic, the traitor and all alien aggressors who trespass on the Emperor's domain. So will the Assault Marine be the hunter of warlords and the slayer of kings. His armour shall run slick with the life-blood of the vanquished, and all shall honour his name."

— From the teachings of Roboute Guilliman as laid down in the Apocrypha of Skaros (Codex: Space Marines 5th Edition, pg. 60)

"A Devastator's reach shall be without limit and his touch without mercy. Fire shall roar from his fingertips, but it shall consume him not. Thunder will roar when he calls, yet it will swallow him not. Let the Devastator squad be thy blazing wrath, bringing the light of the Emperor's justice to the darkest corners of the battlefield. Wherever he stands, that shall be his fortress of righteousness. He shall hold in his gift the fate of all who pass before his unblinking gaze. All shall fear him, and he shall fear no one."

— From the teachings of Roboute Guilliman as laid down in the Apocrypha of Skaros (Codex: Space Marines 5th Edition, pg. 61)

"Use your Bike Squads as a blade, striking the enemy and turning aside his counter-blows in equal measure. But in all things beware that speed is nothing without direction, just as even the mightiest weapon is worthless without careful aim. A biker's stance should always be resolute and dauntless, but never immobile or rigid. Speed is his advantage, and surprise his deadliest weapon. In fluidity he will find success, and in success shall he find renown."

— From the teachings of Roboute Guilliman as laid down in the Apocrypha of Skaros (Codex: Space Marines 5th Edition, pg. 68)

"As a commander your tools and devices shall be myriad, yet the wise man knows that battles are won by flesh, not the machine. Flesh can learn, whilst the machine must be forever instructed. Flesh knows loyalty to its brothers and veneration of its Emperor, whilst the machine knows not these things. Whenever the day is darkest and victory in doubt, look not to the machine for aid, but to your Battle-Brothers. The machine can only bring you victory if you tell it how such a thing can be done. Your brothers will walk through fire, they will stride through the most terrible carnage at a single word from your lips, and they will bring you victory simply because you ask it of them."

— From the teachings of Roboute Guilliman as laid down in the Apocrypha of Skaros (Codex: Space Marines 5th Edition, pg. 72)

"Make the Predator's virtues your own. Let your resolve become as impervious as the Predator's armoured hull, and let your rage strike with the righteous fury of its guns. As it crushes the foe beneath its remorseless advance, so shall you smite the traitor and the alien without hesitation or regret. Know that to take the field alongside a Predator is to fight at the side of one of Mankind's most honoured guardians. To strive with less than your all beneath its iron gaze is to dishonour yourself and your Battle-Brothers before one of Mankind's greatest heroes."

— From the teachings of Roboute Guilliman as laid down in the Apocrypha of Skaros (Codex: Space Marines 5th Edition, pg. 78)

See Also

Sources

  • Codex: Space Marines (5th Edition), pp. 31, 54, 59-61
  • Codex: Ultramarines (2nd Edition), pg. 13
  • Deathwatch: Core Rulebook (RPG), pg. 12
  • Deathwatch: Rites of Battle (RPG), pg. 53
  • Index Astartes I, "Codex Astartes: The Holy Tome of the Space Marines," by Rick Priestley & Andy Chamber, pg. 13
  • Index Astartes: Company Champion, pg. 4
  • Sanctus Reach: Penumbral Spike (Short Story) by Ben Counter
  • Calgar's Fury (Novel) by Paul Kearny
Advertisement