Red Hunters
| Red Hunters | ||
|---|---|---|
 |
||
| Battle Cry | Unknown | |
| Number | Unknown | |
| Founding | Unknown, possibly Second Founding | |
| Successors of | Unknown | |
| Successor Chapters | Unknown | |
| Chapter Master | Daemar (as of 445.M41) | |
| Primarch | Unknown | |
| Homeworld | Montsegnur | |
| Strength | Unknown | |
| Specialty | Being Inquisitonal lackeys | |
| Allegiance | Imperium/Inquisition | |
| Colours | Red and | |
The Red Hunters are a secretive Space Marine chapter, a little too close with the Inquisition for comfort. They are directly tied to and subordinate to the Inquisition, with their history kept mostly hidden or erased. They often serve under an Inquisitor Lord, functioning as his or her personal Space Marine strike force. This is extremely convenient for the Inquisition, who has a storied and tenuous relationship with the Space Marines at best. In this regard, the Red Hunters willingly allow themselves to be used as a tool, often to hunt down traitor marines. They are thus a bunch of badasses, willing to do the dirty work of the Inquisition in missions that Inquisitorial forces are too chickenshit to take on themselves. And that's saying something. Given the Inquisition's propensity to root out Chaos and fight daemonic incursions, the Red Hunters are required to undergo routine Men In Black style mind wiping.
Surprising that the mighty Space Marines would willingly subject themselves to this, but it is theorized that they are honor bound to serve the Inquisition and therefore accept it as part of their duty. The rest of the Astartes accepting it is most likely A) the Adeptus Astartes know they can purge the Chapter whenever they wish and B) the Custodes are likely keeping a close eye on them and C) the Red Hunters are doing things Space Marines would normally do anyway, so the rest of the Astartes would be willing to look the other way. They are frequently involved in campaigns that expose them to the ruinous powers of Chaos, which, with long term personalities and memories, might otherwise slowly begin to corrupt their souls. The Inquisition is furthermore not particularly fond of anyone knowing their secrets or objectives, even Space Marines, which the Red Hunters seem to respect. After every few campaigns, like a puzzle, the chapter's history and roles of its members are shifted around by the Inquisition to account for secrecy and the marines being "reset". Ironically, due to the mind wiping, the marines themselves are not aware of these changes and when they occur. After each mind wipe, they are equipped and retrained intensely for the next campaign. This makes them an extremely insidious and deadly tool, as they can therefore be used for the Inquisition's sometimes unethical plans without resistance from the marines themselves. This mind-wiping might actually be a good idea for all Space Marines, though with leaders not being wiped so as to ensure Chapter records are straight (and making sure the Ordo Astartes keeps track of it for their own jobs). Really, working closer with at least the Ordo Astartes would make the Space Marines so much better protected from Chaos corruption. You can't develop heretical thoughts if you can't remember anything but absolute devotion. Leave watching the Ordo to the Custodes for obvious reasons.
Serving a different purpose than the incorruptable Grey Knights who also operate with the Inquisition, the Red Hunters serve as more of an all around tactical force. It is not known how they handle resetting the personalities and experience of their marines without ruining the overall effectiveness of the chapter. Nor is it known how much the officers and dreadnoughts of the chapter are subject to mind wiping. It can be assumed they are either trusted enough not to undergo it, or are subjected to it on a less frequent and intense basis than the chapter's rank and file. The chapter's marines and/or scouts (Even maybe the Chapter Master) might be cycled for missions, training and promotions depending on their success in the field and time of their last mind wipe. With that in mind, the Red Hunters are still capable of operating independently, executing operations against forces other than Chaos without an Inquisitor present. They seem to do primarily by the request or permission of the Inquisition, but have executed actions in self-defense independently before. They participated in "The Months of Shame" battles against the Space Wolves.
They're probably created from Alpha Legion gene-seed considering they're basically the Inquisitions' pet version. Or...actual Alpha Legionnaires.
