The Raven Guard survived near extinction after the Battle of Isstvan V to begin a campaign of vengeance against those who had betrayed them.
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Scattered Raven Guard survivors of Isstvan V managed to join with fellow Salamanders and Iron Hands aboard the Sisypheum, beginning a campaign of vengeance against those who had betrayed them. When Roboute Guilliman announced his “Codex Astartes” which would split the legions into organised chapters, Corax was circumstantially forced to adapt to the new rules, Albeit still retaining his legions overall structure, but in smaller chapters of 1,000 Astartes. This is how the Raven Guard chapter is to this day. The Raven Guard chapter birthed in the Second Founding from the Raven Guard legion remained a successful fighting force, even with diminished numbers (1,000 Astartes from the 3,000 survivors of the Drop Site Massacre). The hunt for Kernax Voldorius alongside the White Scars, 4th Company’s deployment of several Raven Guard warriors to aid the Ultramarines in their capture of Adaric Vaanes, and the defense of Ultramar, and many other campaigns have been successfully won by these masters of shadow.
The Raven Guard homeworld is Deliverance, a moon which their Fortress Monastery “Raven Spire” is built on. Deliverance was once known as Lycaeus, where 10,000 years previous to current events, Corvus Corax (soon to be Primarch of the Raven Guard Legion) lead a revolution to free his fellow slaves, and eventually the whole moon from the Slavery enforced on them by the Tech Guilds of the planet below. Kiavahr was converted into a forge world by the Adeptus Mechanicus upon the Emperor’s arrival, due to Corax’s wishes that the Tech Guilds no longer held sway, this meant that the Legion also received a vital supply line for materials.
The degeneration of the Raven Guard gene-seed means several of the unique organs of the Space Marines no longer work properly or no longer grow. Raven Guard do not have the Mucranoid or Betcher’s Gland. The Melanchromic Organ has a unique mutation that causes the skin of the Space Marine to grow paler. Eventually each Marine’s skin becomes pure white while their hair and eyes darken, becoming black as coal. The main issues could have come from Corax’s experimentation with the Raven Guard Gene-Seed to try and create stronger and faster-maturing Astartes (although the Alpha Legion is primarily to blame for causing his project’s failure), it is never fully stated what is the actual cause. In M32, a sudden degeneration afflicted the Raven Guard’s Gene-seed, causing organs to fail and implants to be rejected. From this time onward, the Chapter is forced to rely on Gene-seed stocks from Terra, a factor that slows the Chapter’s recruitment rates significantly but does not curtail their willingness for battle.
The Raven Guard are known for hitting weak points in enemy defences hard and they perform lightning strikes upon locations of tactical importance to cripple their enemy. The Raven Guard disdain the notion of recklessly charging into enemy ranks. This differentiates their tactics from those of the Blood Angels. The Raven Guard rely heavily on their Scouts for pinpointing enemy positions and to scout for good drop sites. Because of their hit and run tactics they also make extensive use of Assault Squads. The Tactical Squads of the Raven Guard are often deployed via Thunderhawks or Drop Pods. The favorite weapons of the Raven Guard Commanders are the Lightning Claws and it is a common sight that their command squads also come equipped with these weapons in addition to their Jump Packs. Raven Guard Captains are fiercely independent, and it’s incredibly rare for the chapter to fight as a whole. Individual companies are completely autonomous and are quick to lend their aid to Imperial commanders across the galaxy, with or without the sanction of their Chapter Master. Such behavior has led to some to question the Raven Guard’s soundness, but most recognize that such fluidity of command proves the presence of formidable discipline, not its absence. Due to their specialized combat style, the Raven Guard makes less use of heavier vehicles and tanks (such as the Land Raider and Predator) than most chapters.
The right shoulder guard trim denotes the type of Space Marine. Green is for tactical squads, red is for assault squads and yellow is for devastators. The left kneepad displays the company number.
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