"The most ideal of conditions for defeating the Daemon: be on a first name basis."
- —High Banisher Segrin
A Daemonym Seeker of the Collegia Exterminatus can be a powerful weapon against the Daemonic as an Acolyte of the Ordo Malleus. This young Seeker, like many Banishers of his order, is already outfitted with an augmetic arm.
A Daemonym Seeker is a Banisher of the Ecclesiarchy's special Daemon-hunting Collegia Exterminatus order tasked with discovering the True Names or "Daemonyms" of the Greater Daemons of Chaos, usually in service to the Inquisition's Ordo Malleus.
Role[]
Among the Banishers of the Collegia Exterminatus order of the Adeptus Ministorum it is considered a blessing that summoning a powerful Daemon of Chaos is not easy; it can take a lifetime of devotion and hundreds of standard years of preparation. Generational cults of worship exist that have secretive agendas hidden behind layers of faithful rhetoric. However, banishing or controlling a Daemon is a far less difficult task if the summoner or banisher possesses the True Name of the Daemon.
The True Name of even the most minor Daemon is a closely guarded secret among Warp entities. Knowing the True Name of a Daemon gives one power over that Daemon, any minions of that Daemon, and possibly even its mortal worshippers. Most Daemons are known by a variety of pseudonyms, should they desire to be called anything at all. However, among the Banishers, there are some priests who specialise in seeking out the True Name of a Daemon; they are called the "Daemonym Seekers."
When a Banisher wishes to become a Daemonym Seeker, there is no training or ceremony; they simply begin to hunt for the name of a specific Warp entity. This may be a Daemon who has given their patron Ordo Malleus Inquisitor trouble in the past or simply a beast that caught the priest's attention during the course of their normal studies. Whatever their reasons, the Seeker devotes themselves completely to the pursuit of this Daemon's True Name.
The path of the Daemonym Seeker is rooted in the work of Inquisitor Adorjin. She was a potent psyker, and employed a great number of Banishers. Many of her Banishers considered her one of their own, as she pursued Daemons with zealous determination. Adorjin devoted her life to hunting one vicious and particularly powerful Warp entity. For nearly two standard centuries, she studied the creature, learning its True Name and tracking it to the Calixis Sector. She brought with her several Banishers who had studied with her, a small squad of Grey Knights, a powerful relic weapon, and an ancient copy of the Liber Daemonica. Though she fell in the battle, her strategies were adopted by a great many Banishers, and her name is remembered by all of the Calixian Ordo Malleus.
Daemonym Seekers employ every resource they can in their search for the names of Daemons, from the study of ancient prophesy to dangerous séances. The majority of Seekers devote their entire careers to the study of one Greater Daemon, declaring that Daemon their nemesis and often growing to be obsessed with the target of their study. Daemonym Seekers are rarely trusted by any but the most Radical of Inquisitors, and more than a few Seekers have had their quests and lives cut short by Puritanical Inquisitors who did not approve of the dark path their Acolyte was travelling.
These Puritans' judgment is not unwarranted; more than a few Seekers have attempted to harness a Daemon for the benefit of the Imperium, but such a noble effort almost always ends in tragedy. Even more dangerous are those who secretly grow to respect or worship the Greater Daemon they obsess over, slowly being corrupted by Chaos and falling into the very heresy they seek to combat.
Becoming a Daemonym Seeker[]
To become a Daemonym Seeker is to take up the single-minded cause of exterminating a great evil from the galaxy. There is no ceremony; there are no badges of office. Once you have set out on the path to discover the True Name of a fiend, you have taken it upon yourself to become the hunter, dogging your prey across the sector. It will not be long before the beast knows that you are its enemy.
Daemonym Seekers' skills grow over time, reflecting the Banisher's growing knowledge of the target Daemon's True Name and special training in how to use that name against the Daemon. This is a difficult undertaking, as the True Name of a Greater Daemon is usually very long and quite complex. Pronunciation must be exact, and the name may even have a melody, requiring the name to be sung. As such, the Seeker's knowledge of the True Name and the effects this can generate, evolve over time, as indicated below:
- Minor Daemonym - The priest has begun to understand the very basics of the subject's True Name, granting a certain level of control over the mortal worshippers of the Daemon. While the devoted Chaos Cult may know nothing of the Daemon's true nature they are still susceptible to coercion and subtle manipulation by those who do understand the nature of the beast. When dealing with Human cultists who are servants of the chosen Daemon, the priest may even be able to command them as if the cultists are his subordinates.
- Lesser Daemonym - At this stage of their studies, the Seeker understands the True Name of the Daemon on a conceptual level, giving them a great deal of power over it and any of its mortal minions. While not in full control, their knowledge of the True Name allows the Seeker to sap much of the fearsome strength away from their powerful foe, making it far easier for the priest and their allies to physically damage them in melee.
- Greater Daemonym - The Acolyte has finally gained mastery over their foe's True Name, understanding all its subtle nuances and perfect pronunciation. While many may view this knowledge as heresy in itself, some within the Ordo Malleus know that this gives the Daemonym Seeker great power against their chosen enemy. At this stage, the Banisher is capable of performing the intricate reading of the Daemon's True Name from the Liber Daemonica (or a similar text) and may banish the Daemon back to the Warp with this knowledge.
See Also[]
Sources[]
- Dark Heresy: Daemon Hunter (RPG), pp. 52-53