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===The Sable Brand===
Since the earliest days of the Raven Guard, some of their number have been prone to a battle madness known as the '''Sable Brand'''. This consists of cold-blooded determination to fight on with no regard for self-preservation coupled with an inability to separate the whispers of the dead from the words of the living. Thought to be an original flaw in Corax's gene-seed that he himself may have suffered, it is marked by one's eyes becoming completely black. Though its effects are not permanent, it is often ever-present amongst those who suffer from it. During the [[Great Crusade]], Corax organized organised those afflicted into units of Shadow Killers. However, after the Legion's near extinction on [[Isstvan V]], the Primarch could no longer waste troops like this.{{Fn|36g}}
After Isstvan V, Corax labored with various methods to control the Sable Brand. He developed the [[Trifold Path of Shadow]] as a result in an attempt to control the outbreaks of madness. The doctrine has indeed led to fewer battle-brothers becoming afflicted with the Sable Brand. However, should the afflicted not be slain in battle, they are eventually incarcerated in the [[Ravenspire]] and used in experimentation by the Chapter's [[apothecaries]]. This attempt to cure their gene-seed is carried out in total secrecy.{{Fn|36g}}
==Organisation==
===Pre-Heresy===
During the Great Crusade the Raven Guard Legion followed the basic organizational organisational doctrine. The Legion was divided into chapters, chapters were divided into battalions, battalions into companies, and companies into squads. However companies were preferred for most independent operations. Legion officers devolved command responsibility to sub-commanders, allowing them to make tactical decisions and to seek the initiative without interfering with the command chain. The influence of Terran recruits from the Xeric tribes was the cause of this.{{Fn|30a}}
During Corax's restructuring of the Raven Guard, he was able to commission several innovations for his own use from [[Mars]]. These were all then modified further by the Legion itself to maximize stealth and speed. Unique combat vehicles included the [[Whispercutter]]{{Fn|30a}} - an open-topped airframe flyer that was capable of dropping 10 Space Marines into a war zone in utter silence and with practically no chance of detection. Other unique variants included the stealthy [[Thunderhawk]] variant known as the [[Shadowhawk]] and the similar [[Storm eagle]] pattern dubbed the [[Storm Eagle Assault Gunship#Darkwing|Dark Wing]].{{Fn|61}}
After the Dropsite Massacre, Corax was left with a tattered Legion and had to reorganize reorganise them. They were combined into divisions based on combat specializations. The [[Tactical Squad|tactical companies]] became the '''Talons''', the [[Assault Squad|assault companies]] became the '''Falcons''', and light vehicle squadrons and air support were renamed the '''Hawks'''. Another unit of genetically enhanced Astartes dubbed the [[Raptors (Raven Guard)|Raptors]] were later added as well.{{Fn|30a}}
===Known units of the Great Crusade and Horus Heresy===