The first company of the Dark Angels is one of the most famous space marine companies in the galaxy. Always deploying in the sacred tactical dreadnought armour the Deathwing strikes fear and awe wherever they go. ORIGINS OF THE DEATHWING: The facts about the creation of the Deathwing remain buried within the deep vaults of the Tower of Angels, the fortress base of Dark Angels chapter. That they were created by the tactical genius of their primarch is an accepted fact by the brethren of the chapter. Their origins and their endeavours in the early years of the imperium remains clouded by the sands of time, but some knowledge permeates through for us mortals to imbibe in awe. After recognizing the emperor for who he was, and paying immediate obeisance, the Lion was rewarded by command of the first space marine legion. That the emperor saw fit to release command of his praetorians, whom he had led in person, to the command of his first born, was evidence of the trust and bond between the two. Jonson's tactically inquiring mind did not simply allow him to accept command of the legion. Instead he set about assessing the quality of the war machine at his disposal and creating unique changes to better utilize the massive legion. The legion, by virtue of having been the emperor's bodyguard, had been lavishly equipped with abundant quantities of the most advanced technology, including hundreds of tactical dreadnought armour. Using this advantage many innovations in battle formations, deployment and tactical and strategic doctrine were put in motion by his brilliant mind. The value of the tactical dreadnought armour (TDA) was instantly apparent to him. Up to that time these were deployed in small squads almost exclusively in boarding actions in space and for assault within closed fortifications. The advantage of using these highly experienced veterans in shock assaults in large numbers was obvious to the farsighted Jonson. Thus was born the Deathwing units, each one assigned to the chapter sized regiments within the old legion. Using their penchant for teleportation, these angels of death were given the name Deathwing as a reminder to the galaxy of the swiftness of the emperor's retribution. As the great crusade expanded the borders and reclaimed the Imperium of Man, most battles and fleet actions usually required small Deathwing detachments to be used with pin point accuracy in a surprise assault role. Jonson began to slowly deploy ever increasing size of the Deathwing units in large teleportation assaults, resulting in the rapid victories that became legendary and second only to Horus. The first truly massed teleportation assault took place against the crimson fortress of the Tyrant Durath, governor and heretic of Dulan. The assault on Dulan has gone down in imperial records and is mostly known for the beginning of the feud between Russ and Jonson. However, hidden within that battle was the first successful mass teleportation assault by the terminators of the Deathwing. Materializing accurately on the ramparts of the crimson fortress, they overcame enemy resistance in rapid succession. Subsequently these were used more regularly by the legion. A notable achievement was the assault on the Shield Worlds where the tyrant Masashi was killed. The legions exemplary history records a final massive teleportation assault by the Deathwing. This was the assault on the Eternity Wall spaceport, at the raising of the siege of terra, when every single battle brother capable of wearing the TDA was teleported in history's largest ever mass teleportation. The fall of the spaceport completely cut off the supply routes for the remaining traitor legions on terra. The value of the shock assault of the Deathwing was recognized when Jonson re-structured the legion in to chapters, the first company of each being equipped to fight entirely in TDA and be called Deathwing. Following the betrayal of Luthor, they retained the colour of their parent legion as a reminder of the fallen and their shame. OVERVIEW OF THE COMPANY STRUCTURE In adapting the new chapter formations for his legion, the Primarch of the Dark Angels closely maintained what Guilliman had proposed but retained the tactically useful features of its preceding legion. He recognized the need for conformity in the aftermath of the greatest disaster for mankind. That the Deathwing units, equipped exclusively with Tactical Dreadnought Armour would feature prominently in his plans was a foregone conclusion. However, most members of his high command were more than surprised when the Lion assigned a single company of one hundred terminators to each chapter, designated as their first company. The reasons were many but important. The primarch was endeavouring to remain within the guidelines that brother Guilliman was developing. Conformity was paramount. Also, with the creation of the one thousand man strong chapters, the resources available for each chapter would be limited. Maintenance of TDA was both time consuming and an exceptionally complicated task. Jonson knew that the task of maintaining more than a single company of terminators would be beyond the capabilities of any single chapter and would strain other aspects of their logistics. Thus was born the Deathwing Company of the Dark Angels chapter. One hundred men strong, it was divided in to twenty squads of five men each. The five man squad being the tactically flexible formation used by the dark Angels. The quantity of equipment available to the Dark Angels ensured that they had enough accessories and weapons to be able to outfit each squad with a mix of heavy weapons, standard weapons and close combat weapons. In this they stand out from most of the other space marine chapters. The command composition of the first company consists of the Master of the First Company, who is almost always of Grandmaster rank. He is accompanied by a company chaplain. The first squad is also honoured by being the Master's retinue and includes the company's apothecary, techmarine and the company standard bearer. After the Horus heresy and betrayal by Luther, the Dark Angel high command set about with a vision to expunge their shame. The secret organization of Deathwing was created. Battle brothers who have accomplished themselves above and beyond the call of duty, having demonstrated true strength of will and dedication to the chapter are inducted in to the Deathwing. Only members of the Deathwing are inducted in to the first company. Thus all members of the first company are privy to the secrets of the fallen to some degree. Venerated heroes and members of the Deathwing Company who fall in battle may be interned in a sarcophagus to continue their service to the Lion as a living dreadnought. Only such dreadnoughts are assigned to the first company and continue their eternal vigilance for the fallen. Specialization of the first company to fight exclusively in TDA also demanded adequate mobility for these elite troops. The only heavy transports which have the capacity to ferry TDA armoured troops were the Land Raiders. Jonson structured their deployment so that the majority of Land Raiders were specifically assigned to the first company and maintained by the techmarines and artificers of the first company. The majority of Land Raiders belong to the new class MkIII. Eighteen Land Raider MkIII models are assigned to the first company along with a single Land Raider Crusader, two of the Helios pattern heavy support platforms and a single command platform, the Land Raider Prometheus. Unit Composition and Nomenclature within the Deathwing Company: |
This entire section is one attempt to describe the long history of the Dark Angels in a linear form. Every known piece of history and event based on GW publications has been written in my own words and linked together in a reasonably plausible manner by additional fiction. This is in no way the official GW version nor is it in anyway an attempt to infringe on their IP. There are many versions of imperial history buried within the sands of time and this is but just one of them. Read on if you dare! |
FIRST COMPANY "DEATHWING" Dark Angels Chapter Chronicled By ( Shadow Guard ) |
CODEX ASTARTES ANGELUS MORTIS |
Individual squads within the company are bonded together as members are inducted in to the company. Newcomers to the company are attached to squads as vacancies permit. This results in each less experienced battle brother being absorbed within the nucleus of more experienced squad members. Once formed the squad members remain as a unit until battle field wounds or honourable death removes them from active duty. Those exceptional veterans, who have the honour of being interned as living dreadnoughts are generally deployed in proximity to the squads in which they served. All these result in the creation of a sense of brotherhood and loyalty, which are ever so encouraged within the ranks of the Unforgiven. Each squad trains extensively in many battlefield conditions, always donning the sacred tactical dreadnought armour. They have the unique honour within the entire Adeptus Astartes in being so honoured. Each squad is assigned a specific land raider transport for battle field mobility and ground based assault. This allows the crews and their assigned squad to become very familiar with each other, which allows exceptional coordination when under fire. The land raiders are manned by space marines who are nominally under the command of the chapter armorium. However in the case of the Dark Angels they are permanently assigned to the first company and are painted in the livery of that company. They are maintained by techmarines who are inducted in to the Deathwing. All service and maintenance is performed in a section of the armorium exclusively isolated for the Deathwing. These warriors are also highly trained in the art of teleportation assaults |
