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==Role==
Being a division of the Inquisition, the Ordo Malleus consists of exceptional individuals who are involved in a covert war for Mankind's continued survival which has been the case for the last ten thousand years. As every Inquisitor has sworn oaths to defend the Imperium from its worst enemies, the members of the Ordo Malleus are concerned with eliminating the physical manifestation of Chaos itself. They have pledged their existence to the discovery and removing the threat of the daemonic, wheverever wherever it is found. To aid them, they have at their disposal every member of the Imperium and will not hesitate to requisition local troops at a moment's notice.{{Fn|1a}} They serve as an inner college within the ranks of the Imperium with its activities and very existence being shrouded in secrecy. The Ordo goes to great lengths to hide the existence of Chaos and its servants from the greater masses of Mankind with the Emperor as well as his advisors fearing the dangers of such knowledge. As such, when the Ordo Malleus is ever mentioned, it is referred to as being the watchdog of the Inquisition itself though its actual purpose as the Imperium's elite Daemonhunters is a much more serious and sinister matter.{{Fn|2b}}
Within the Inquisition, the Ordo Malleus forms a secret order with a very specific role as daemon hunters. As such, it is their duty to root out sources of daemonic activity and combating such forces in whatever form they take. This means that only the most mentally stalwart and physically strong of Inquisitors are able to conduct this duty. Their missions can see them engage their foes either in hand-to-hand fighting or battle them in the realm of mental energy which requires special abilities and powers. This means that the Inquisitors of the Ordo Malleus are mostly psykers and those who lack such abilities have tremendous mental resolve. As they are a hidden group, the identities of Ordo Malleus Inquisitors is kept secret though this not an easy task when fighting against daemons. When members of the Ordo must appear in the course of their investigations, they are allowed to adopt uniforms that hide their features which allows them to keep their true identities a secret.{{Fn|4}}
==Organisation==
Unlike the Imperial Inquisition as a whole, the Ordo Malleus has a more rigid and formalised hierarchical structure. It is controlled by a council of 169 Masters, all of whom have the right to have a direct audience with the Emperor. Their authority even extends to the [[Inquisitorial Representative]] who has been, in the past, tried and executed by the Masters of the Ordo. Below the Masters are the Proctors and Proctors Minor with each being responsible as well as in control of a Chamber of the Ordo. The Chambers themselves are named after their founding Proctor and serve as the basic unit of the Ordo Malleus. Inquisitor Inquisitors Ordinary's form the rank and file whilst a parallel organisation is the ''"Chambers of Theoretical and Historical"'' that consists of Inquisitor HistoricalsInquisitors Historical. Inquisitor Historicals Inquisitors Historical are formed from the older ranking members who are unable to continue their service either due to ill-health or because of infirmity. Instead, they are assigned research and collation projects at the [[Administratum ]] Libraries. Within the Chambers, the numbers of Inquisitor Inquisitors Ordinary's and Historicals Historical to only a few in number to hundreds. The Chamber of Chambers Theoretical and Historical has only a few score members that are engaged in research and disputation whilst the Chambers Practical has hundreds who are responsible for [[sector ]] establishments of the Ordo Malleus in the field.{{Fn|2b}}
The Ordo Malleus works directly under the '''Emperor's Warrant''' and thus has a completely free hand in its operations. This means that an Inquisitor Ordinary of this Ordo is able to demand anything he sees fit in order to accomplish his duty with no explanation being offered. Any Imperial servant that meets with an Ordo Inquisitor must comply and obey their command. The most common demand is for troops to support their operations though such forces never survive in the service of an Inquisitor Ordinary. However, honours are given to units that are attached to the Ordo Malleus should they die in their service.{{Fn|2c}}
Members of the Ordo tend to favour simple yet sinister uniforms with black, loose-fitting habits over their armour along with large hoods that hide their features in shadows. Graphic electoos [[electoo]]s are an unofficial yet traditional addition to their uniform with their appearance beneath the skin being a disturbing quality to outsiders. By tradition, Inquisitors of the Ordo Malleus tend to have one electoo for each coven member that they have discovered and cleansed though its not uncommon for some of their number to be covered with elaborate designs all across their body. The designs of the electoos have been fixed for generations with the motiffs being variations of the Ordo Malleus's enemies namely daemonic in nature. The badge of the Ordo takes the form of the [[Imperial eagle ]] holding a rod and an axe which is worn either on the shoulder or on the right breast. Masters and Proctors are always [[psyker]]s who carry [[force rods rod]]s as a symbol of their authority, though in combat engagements this is supplemented with a [[power axe]].{{Fn|2c}}
==Military forces==
Only the ranks of the Grey Knights are expected to survive in the service to the Ordo Malleus. All other troops that are seconded to the Ordo end up dying in this duty. The simple reason for the high rate of deaths within military units attached to the Daemonhunters is due to their exposure to the daemonic. Thus, they become privy to one of the Imperium's most closely guarded secrets namely the existence of Chaos and of Daemons. As their duty is to hide this threat from the Imperium, the Ordo Malleus has any surviving troopers being executed following a campaign or battle. Those that are killed receive full honours shortly after their elimination. Ultimately, all such regiments and corps are seen as expendable which means that they are terminated after the completion of their duty.{{Fn|2c}}
The exceptions to this secrecy-by-extermination policy are units from the Adeptus Astartes which is the case only because the execution of a Space Marine is seen as being wasteful. Those Astartes serving with the Ordo Malleus are mindscrubbed [[mindscrub]]bed in order to remove any memory of the Ordo's existencetrue purpose. Ultimately, only the Grey Knights are allowed to retain their memories of their duty with the Ordo Malleus as their centuries of service has shown that they can keep the secret of the hidden war against the daemonic forces of Chaos.{{Fn|2c}}
===Grey Knights===
