Stormwing
The Stormwing was one of the six specialized "Wings" of the Dark Angels Space Marine Legion during the Great Crusade and Horus Heresy.[1]
Contents
Overview
The largest of all the Wings, the Stormwing incorporated the majority of the Dark Angels line infantry, training battalions and mobile ordnance batteries within its ranks. The members of this Wing were drilled in the disciplined and stalwart arts of close order warfare and set-piece battles, unshakable on defence and resolute on attack. Its veteran warriors were the core of the Legion's infantry companies, capable of executing complex manoeuvres and formations under the heaviest enemy fire. When the Legion took to the field of battle en masse the veterans of the Stormwing stood in the front ranks, serving to steel the resolve of their brethren and to oversee the execution of orders in the chaos of battle; valued more for their attunement to the subtle shift of war as the massed ranks of friend and foe collided than their vaunted skill-at-arms.[3]
The inner circles of the Stormwing were notoriously difficult for initiates to gain admittance to, with rigorous trials for those seeking to assume the mantle of Marshal of the Stormwing. Only veterans of the largest engagements were honoured with titles in the Wing, including both senior officers and grizzled warriors of the line, for among their number the scars of war were the most treasured badges of honour. This inner circle also included a surprising number of the Legion's Apothecarion, who were often at the centre of the battle's fury and integral to the massed infantry assaults for which the Stormwing was famous. Indeed, at first the Master of the Stormwing had also held the title of Master of the Apothecarion for the First Legion. In contrast to the inner circle, whose ranks rarely changed and were accounted one of the most conservative and tradition bound groups within the Legion, the outer circles were in constant flux.[3] The Stormwing also specialized in boarding operations.[2]
Stormwing units typically consisted of Breacher Squads[2], Despoiler Squads[6], and Assault Squads[1] as well as large amounts of heavy infantry with Rhino and Land Raider transports.[3]
The Voted-Lieutenant of the Stormwing was known as the Stormbringer.[5]
As of M41, the unit no longer exists.
Notable Members
See Also
Sources
- 1: The Unremembered Empire (Novel)
- 2: Warhammer Community - Secret Orders of the Dark Angels (last accessed 14 January 2018)
- 3: The Horus Heresy Book Nine pg.104-105
- 4: Lion El'Jonson: Lord of the First (Novel) Chapter 1 Section III
- 5: Dreadwing (Novella) - Dramatis Personae
- 6: Liber Astartes (2nd Edition), pg. 154
