Broken Key

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Iron Hands

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Word Bearers

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Dark Mechanicum

The Broken Key was a raid that occurred in 007.M31 during the Horus Heresy. It saw the Word Bearers send several Dark Mechanicum Skitarii Conclaves to steal the Keys of Hel from the Iron Hands' homeworld, Medusa.^[1]

History

This was as the Iron Hands were still wracked by madness, grief and internal dissension, following the death of their Primarch, Ferrus Manus, during the Dropsite Massacre. With their foes distracted, the Word Bearers sought to claim the Keys of Hel and used the warp to insert a small cruiser into Medusa's system. Once it reached the Iron Hands' homeworld, the cruiser then deployed several Dark Mechanicum Skitarii Conclaves to claim Manus' treasures. However, the attack rallied the Iron Hands together and the conclaves were only able to escape with a few of the Keys of Hel.^[1]

The invasion ultimately galvanized the Iron Hands located on Medusa and led the Legion to launch a campaign against the Word Bearers, which became known as the War of Bitter Iron.^[1]

See also

• Battles of the Horus Heresy (List)

Sources

• 1: Journal Tactica: Skitarii, pg. 24 - The Bloody Trials of the Skitarii: The Broken Key