Genetor

"Subject species "Ork," height is 218.6cm, 25.56cm above observed mean. Mass is 163.15kg, consisting mostly of dense skeletal structure and musculature, and 31.4% above observed mean. Epidermal layer is thick and lacking in nerve endings compared to the human norm. Pain response is... less than anticipated, demonstrating extreme tolerance for discomfort. Previous test has awakened subject, and it now attempts to free itself. Muscle relaxant administered to reduce disruptive motion, at 460% of human standard dosage—tolerance for chemical influences is considerable. Preparing to open chest cavity..."

— Genetor Aurelius Thoze, Adeptus Mechanicus Xenobiologist

A Genetor of the Adeptus Mechanicus

Essentially geneticists, a Genetor is an Adeptus Mechanicus scholar who studies all matters genetic and biological. Sometimes referred to as the Magos Biologis, Genetors number alongside the Logis, Artisan and Magos ranks of the Adeptus Mechanicus as members of its ruling Priesthood, possessing access to knowledge and resources far beyond that of the lesser Enginseers and Lexmechanics. A Genetor's field of study makes him distinct from the majority of Tech-Priests, their professional obsession with organic life often making them seem strange to their more mechanically-inclined brethren. For the most part, Genetors differ little from other Tech-Priests -- they bear the same manner of implants, venerate information and understanding as the manifestation of divinity, and engage upon the Quest for Knowledge in much the same way. The difference is that they are not so quick to judge flesh and blood as inferior to steel and plasma, seeing living creatures as extremely complex and adaptable machines. Where some are content to make this observation distantly, others embrace it, seeking to improve their forms not with steel, but with better flesh and better blood. To an unknowing observer, a Genetor may appear little different to any other Tech-Priest when swathed in their robes. However, where most Tech-Priests’ mass is derived from steel reinforcement and implanted armour plate, a Genetor may have augmented himself with vat-muscle, toughened skin, and organic-reinforced bones instead.

Their interest in the organic not only pertains to the human form, but to the study of xenos life as well. The study of alien genetics, intended to better understand them and thus how to better slay them, falls to a sub-sect of Genetors collectively known as the Xenobiologists. The study of alien genetics, to understand how they function so as to slay them the better, is a common field of study for Genetors. Such knowledge is dangerous, and many Genetors have been condemned as heretics for claiming the superiority of a particular xenos’ biology to that of humans. Regardless, the presence of a Genetor, particularly a Xenobiologist, is seen as an asset by Explorator Fleets and Rogue Traders alike, as their knowledge of human and inhuman forms allows them to discern the nature of a newly-encountered Xenos or indigenous species, or categorise a new strain of Abhuman found on a far-flung world. Genetors are also known to introduce common Imperial animals to a new colonial ecosystem, such as the Grox, a large reptilian animal that serves as a common food source on many Imperial worlds.

Another duty of Genetors of the Magos Biologis is receiving and studying the required Gene-Seed tithes of all Space Marine Chapters for genetic corruption or deficiencies. The Horus Heresy had revealed weaknesses in the gene-seed of several Space Marine Legions. These defects had been exacerbated by the accelerated gene-seed cultivation techniques needed to keep the huge formations of the Space Marine Legions up to strength in the terrible wars being fought at the time during the Great Crusade. The insidious powers of Chaos had been able to manipulate this corruption to turn Horus and many of the Space Marines under his command against the Emperor. Once Horus was defeated, it was decided that the forces of the Imperium would be reorganised so that a similar catastrophe could not be repeated. The Space Marine Legions were divided up to create one Chapter of the same name as the founding Legion and a number of new Chapters with new names. This event was called the Second Founding, and over two dozen further Foundings have occurred in the ten millennia since. During the Second Founding, it was determined that the first objective of the Magos Biologis was to recognise and expunge these genetic weaknesses. Space Marines would be created and trained slowly and the genetic banks used to cultivate the implants that turn a normal man into a mighty Space Marine would be carefully monitored, and cultivated organs would be subject to the most stringent tests of purity. Young initiates would undergo rigorous trials of physical and psychological suitability before they were accepted, and only those of the highest calibre would be chosen. On Terra, the Adeptus Terra created genetic repositories to produce and store Space Marine gene-seed. These banks were used to provide all new gene-seed for Space Marines and, to prevent cross-contamination, the genetic material of each of the old Legions was isolated. Henceforth, the new Space Marine Chapters would receive gene-seed only from their own genetic stock. The gene-seed of the Traitor Legions was placed under a time-locked stasis seal, although at the time, many believed these dangerous stocks should be destroyed. By taking direct control of the genetic stocks, the Adepts of Terra could ultimately control the Space Marines. Now they alone had the power to destroy or create Space Marine chapters at will.

Becoming a Genetor

The difference between a Genetor and a more conventional Tech-Priest is one of training, aptitude and focus. As is so frequently the case in the Adeptus Mechanicus, understanding begets power, which in turn begets knowledge, and only those who possess the will and the wit to understand that knowledge can properly obtain any form of status amongst their kind. A particular and unusual disposition is required to become a Genetor; the tendency to view organic life as a form of machine in its own right, rather than as the weak fleshy shell many Tech-Priests view it as. Beyond this, however, it takes mainly dedication and research for an Explorator to become a Genetor, using his knowledge of the organic sciences to aid in the exploration of the realms beyond the Imperium.

Genetor Philosophies

Within the Calixis Sector, Genetors have a particularly illustrious history - Xenobiologists in great numbers joined with the Angevin Crusade to study the aliens native to the region as their realms were shattered by the forces of the Imperium. Since that time, they have remained a noteworthy, if often overlooked, element of Cult Mechanicus politics within the Lathes and beyond, and they gather in significant numbers to join expeditions into the Koronus Expanse, seeking to be the first to new life to dissect and analyse. Over time, three distinct philosophies emerged amongst the Calixis Sector’s Genetors:

• Primus Humanum - The first and oldest of the three philosophies espouses the purity of the human form as a vessel for knowledge, viewing the Emperor’s form as that of the ideal.
• Apexists - The second and presently most dominant amongst the Genetors of the Lathes are collectively known as Apexists, believing that adversity breeds strength in the organic, and that the perfect organism is the one that has overcome every rival and every challenge; the philosophy itself is an adaptation of the writings of an ancient pre-Imperial scholar. human and that of the perfect vessel for knowledge.
• Vogelists - The third philosophy, currently gaining favour amongst more widely travelled Genetors and causing concern amongst more traditional Genetors, is espoused by the Companions of Vogel, whose leader, Heydrich Vogel, returned from a century-long expedition into the Koronus Expanse and began preaching a creed of forced genetic and biological augmentation in order to strengthen humanity for the troubles ahead. Some believe that Vogel’s ideology verges upon heresy, and its suggestion that humanity is somehow insufficient in its current state is seen by many as being a blasphemy in its own right.

Genetor Factions

• Organicists - A faction of the Adeptus Mechanicus, the Organicists are a group of tech-priests who esteemed biological enhancement as being equal in value with the cybernetic, a somewhat radical if not heretical position from the tech-adepts point of view.

Notable Genetors

• Magos Genetor Nexin Orlandriaz - Nexin Orlandriaz was a notable Mago Genetor of the Magos Biologis during the Great Crusade and Horus Heresy eras. After the disaster of the Drop Site Massacre at Istvaan V, he became instrumental in assisting Raven Guard Legion with rebuilding their sorely depleted numbers. Consumed by the loss of over 75,000 of his Legion's Astartes, and obsessed with thoughts of revenge against Horus, Corax ordered his survivors to return to Terra, where he intended to ask the Emperor for help in rebuilding the Legion. Following a number of delays and setbacks, and despite the disagreement and displeasure of Rogal Dorn and Malcador the Sigillite, Corax psychically communed with the Emperor, who revealed that the Primarch Project's genetic assets had not been destroyed, as everybody thought, but still existed and were dormant—including living samples of the original gene-stock the Emperor had used to create the 20 Primarchs. The Emperor, who offered no explanation as to why such facilities and the gene-stock still existed, demanded only one thing: this genetic material could never be allowed to fall into the wrong hands. Accompanied by several Raven Guard squads, a contingent of Adeptus Mechanicus specialists, including Magos Genetor Orlandriaz, and a number of Custodians to serve as the Emperor's "overseers," Corax managed to locate and enter the Emperor's well-protected gene-laboratories deep beneath the Imperial Palace in the Himalazian Mountains, after his strife force suffered a number of casualties. The Primarch gene-stock and related technical information was secured, and Corax and his Raven Guard warriors returned to Deliverance to begin remaking the Legion. After several weeks of effort by Corax, Chief Apothecary Vincente Sixx, and Magos Genetor Orlandriaz, a breakthrough was achieved, and a new reservoir of stable Astartes gene-seed was extracted from the Primarch DNA. The gene-seed was more pure than "normal" Raven Guard gene stock as it came from undiluted Primarch DNA before it was broken down to the 20 different recombinant strands that gave birth to the Primarchs. It was implanted using an extremely accelerated development schedule within 500 Aspirants, with excellent results. The resulting Astartes, though lacking combat experience, were even more capable than typical Raven Guard Space Marines. The traitorous Alpha Legion had other plans. Patiently waiting until the Raven Guard had achieved the genetic breakthrough, they were fomenting rebellion among the old tech-guilds of Kiavahr, the Forge World that the moon of Deliverance circled, while assembling an Alpha Legion force nearby, and simultaneously misleading both their nominal allies among the other Traitor Legions and their supposed allies in the Cabal about their true purpose. With the help of Adepts from the Dark Mechanicus the Alpha Legion operatives within the Raven Guard contaminated the pure Primarch gene-stock held by the Raven Guard with a virus that was tainted with daemonic essence. The nature of the virus was unknown to the Alpha Legionaries until after the gene-stock had been contaminated, as their Dark Mechanicus allies had insisted the virus could be easily extracted once the Primarch gene-stock came into their possession. The next cadre of 2,000 Raven Guard Astartes was predictably a disaster. All manifested hideous Warp-related mutations after they were implanted with their gene-seed organs, and many had to be kept imprisoned. The Primarch DNA and all information about it was secured by Omegon, who had been secretly on Kiavahr all this time, manipulating events as needed. Yet the destruction of the Raven Guard's gene-seed was prevented by the Raven Guard Mutants, who were tasked by the dying Chief Apothecary Vincente Sixx to save the future of the XIX Legion.

Sources

• Rogue Trader: Into the Storm (RPG), pp. 82-83
• Deliverance Lost (Novel) by Gav Thorpe