Lamenters
| Lamenters | ||
|---|---|---|
 |
||
| Battle Cry | For those we cherish, we die in glory! | |
| Number | Unknown, always seen falling | |
| Founding | 21st Founding | |
| Successors of | Blood Angels | |
| Successor Chapters | None, they die too much | |
| Chapter Master | Malakim Phoros | |
| Primarch | Sanguinius | |
| Homeworld | None, Fleet-based | |
| Strength | Less than 400 | |
| Specialty | Surviving and fighting for the helpless, and having the worst luck in the galaxy | |
| Allegiance | The Imperium doesn't deserve these heroes | |
| Colours | Mustard yellow with black & white checkerboard detailing | |
"How unlucky I am that this should happen to me. But not at all. Perhaps, say how lucky I am that I am not broken by what has happened, and I am not afraid of what is about to happen. For the same blow might have stricken anyone, but not many would have absorbed it without capitulation and complaint."
- – Marcus Aurelius
One of the most fucked-over Space Marine Chapters in Warhammer 40K history. Cursed to die horribly, turn to Chaos, or both in every single bit of fluff they appear in. You think the White Scars got fucked by Games Workshop? Nothing compared to the Lamenters. Think the Chaos Pretty Marines got owned hard by Angron? Nothing compared to the Lamenters. Think the Afriel Strain soldiers are cursed? Nothing compared to the Lamenters. Think that the Raven Guard, Salamanders, and Iron Hands got beaten horribly on Isstvan V? Nothing compared to the Lamenters.
They are truly the Unlucky Marines. But you know what? If there are good guys in W40k, then they are undoubtedly it. They have been endlessly persecuted by the very people they fight for, and they even fight their own nightmarish cynicism and despair; yet they still fight on because they refuse to abandon the innocent and the helpless, and it is their burning star that keeps hope alive for one more day in that dark world. Along with that Imperial planet that found a cure for all diseases ever but got mercilessly fucked by Nurgle and the Panacea STC that was stolen by the Dark Eldar who were curious as to what an Ark Mechanicus was doing in the middle of nowhere, the Lamenters are one of the greatest examples that nothing good can exist unmolested in the grim darkness of the far future where there is only war.
How unlucky can they get?
The Lamenters were formed during the 21st Founding; where the AdMech believed they could improve on Big.E's template. The end result was... weird. (Guess they should have waited for Grampa Cawl before trying to mess with gene-seed.) Most Chapters founded at that time suffered from some kind of mutation. At least one ended up terminated by the Inquisition with the remaining ones staying under very close scrutiny for deviancy.
At first the Lamenters seemed to be the ones getting the best deal out of the whole sorry lot, since they did not suffer from the Red Thirst and Black Rage; unique case among the Blood Angels and their descendants. Unfortunately, they seem to have been the specific target of Tzeentch's eternal dicking ever since; they have been cursed with more misfortunes than any other Chapter out there. It's even gotten to the point where Imperial "scientists" are wondering what the hell is going on because, sure, shit happens, some people are never lucky, some statistical impossibilities become true on a fluke... and then there's the Lamenters.
As if it couldn't get any worse, eventually the Black Rage came back. Sometimes you just can't win.
TL;DR: *weeps a single tear of manliness.*
List of how hard the Lamenters were screwed over:
- Founded during the Cursed Founding, earning them distrust among fellow Space Marines. Being a fleet-based chapter, they decide wisely to depart to the fringes of the Imperium to crusade against the xenos and the enemy without, rather than be mired in conflicts within.
- Were eventually recalled to the interior of the Imperium by
Tzeentchthe High Lords of Terra. - Tasked by the High Lords of Terra to partake in the defense against Failbaddon's 9th Black Crusade. They were abandoned by the Mortifactors chapter in the defense of Corillia due to their origins. Being the heroic fuckers that they are, they decided to stay and fight anyways, and try to save the innocent people. Outnumbered as they were facing numerous combined Traitor forces, only 200 Lamenters were left 'standing' after the Ultramarines and White Scars finally gave enough of a shit to come in to reinforce them.
- The 200 survivors were subsequently lost in the warp after a freakish warp storm appeared. In a rare show of good luck for them, they did return afterwards, after fighting the whole way out. Which, of course, just made other Space Marines trust them even less.
It is speculated Tzeentch only changed his plans at the last minute (!??!!)*BLAM* Heresy! so he could screw them over more. What a dick.
- The 200 survivors were subsequently lost in the warp after a freakish warp storm appeared. In a rare show of good luck for them, they did return afterwards, after fighting the whole way out. Which, of course, just made other Space Marines trust them even less.
- Joined the Corinth Crusade with 300 Marines (all they had on hand at the time) in order to repay the Ultramarines for when they saved them on Corillia. (Because a debt of honour is a debt of honour, even the Chapter dying out doesn't get in the way of being bros!) In a decisive battle against an Ork slave mining world nicknamed "Slaughterhouse III", they liberated the 3 million human prisoners on the planet, who they decided to rescue (they did this alone, mind you - Calgar could not risk jeopardizing the entire crusade by attacking a planet that would most likely tie up their entire battleforce). Just a few moments after the victory, however, an Ork reinforcement fleet came over Slaughterhouse III. While everyone on the ground tried to evacuate as many people as they could, using their own ships and any planetside slaver ships that were still operational, the Lamenters realized they didn't have the time or resources to get everyone off-planet before being overrun, but decided to fight on to the last regardless. The remaining prisoners, though, wanting to spare their saviors from death and volunteered to be left to die so that the Lamenters could escape and deny the orks the planet. Reluctantly agreeing, the Lamenters detonated the seismic charges they had planted deep in the planet's mines and performed Exterminatus on the rest of the planet, utterly making sure the orks couldn't get anything valuable off it quickly and/or use it as a staging ground. (give Orks enough time and they'll loot/strip-mine/... a dead planet just fine; but Calgar & co didn't grant them the time.)
- After the Crusade, Marneus Calgar wanted to award them with denying the Orks a vital mining planet and rescuing the few slaves they could get off-planet (mostly women and children) by giving them an Iron Halo, but due to the losses (both theirs and civilians) they didn't feel like winners and turned it down. Despite how this was a case of manly tears, most Space Marines instead took it as an insult to their spiritual liege, so everyone hated the Lamenters even MORE.
- Asked to partake in and to defend the area around the Maelstrom along with the Astral Claws and the Mantis Warriors after they got back to strength. For once, their fellow warriors the Astral Claws and the Mantis Warriors actually cared about them and the Lamenters had finally found true, believing friends. Then Lugft Huron decided to instigate what would become the Badab War with the Imperium because the Imperium ignored his pleas for launching a crusade into the Maelstorm. Understanding a trend here yet? When he does, the Lamenters and Mantis Warriors are drawn into the conflict as well out of bro ties to the Astral Claws — there is no way they are going to abandon their first genuine friends and only people in the Imperium who didn't treat them like shit. (And on top of that, from an outsider's point of view, it really seemed like the Imperium was bullying the Astral Claws pointlessly.)
- Reluctant to attack fellow Space Marines the Lamenters managed, for a time, to win conflicts with loyalists indirectly via their numbers, cunning maneuvers and effective shows of force causing ultimately little damage on both sides. But this strategy abruptly fell apart when the High Lords of Terra sent the Minotaurs into the fray, who were much less inclined to pull their punches. The Minotaurs discovered and ambushed the Lamenter's Fortress-Monastery and so began a brutal 17 hour siege with heavy losses on both sides where the Lamenters ultimately came out the worse. Outnumbered and outgunned by the infamously ruthless and well equipped Minotaurs (who are known for fighting en masse at nothing less than full Chapter strength and specializing in taking on other Astartes) the Lamenters were forced to surrender having been (once again) reduced to only 300, mostly wounded, Marines. Adding insult to injury, as recompense for their losses and just generally being poor winners, the kleptomaniac Minotaurs saw fit to pillage much of the Lamenters best equipment and even stole/were GIFTED a bunch of their ships, like a certain other chapter, which they would eventually crash. Cherry on top, it was then the Lamenters learned that Huron and the Astral Claws had fallen to Chaos and that they'd ultimately been fighting for the wrong side.
- In another rare show of things, they were actually granted a pardon along with the Mantis Warriors. But again continuing this theme of getting fucked over, they had to do a penitent crusade for a hundred years without being able to replace losses or recruit new Marines (i.e. their fate would be in the Emperor's Hands now, and theirs alone). Their tattered banner was given to the Adepta Sororitas for them to repair and re-sanctify. The Sororitas wept as they wove the Banner Of Tears, as they contemplated the life of the Chapter, and how these glorious bastards refused to stop believing in their fellow Man, despite everything they had went through.
- They again wisely decided to crusade on the borders of the Imperium and against xenos, lest they wind up getting fucked over in another internal squabble. But continuing this getting fucked over theme, in their first crusade action, they happened to encounter the Tyranid Hive Fleet Kraken. With only less than 400 marines on hand, they hold out to try to allow as many people as possible to escape whenever the Hive Fleet gets its OM NOM NOM'ing on.
- Just to make their shitty situation of repetitive forlorn hope rearguards even shittier, the Black Rage returned, meaning that the cure was a bust. So now the Lamenters have to form a Death Company and lose valuable battle-brothers that way... while still being unable to recruit (of course).
- A mere 13 years before their crusade was to end the entire universe stopped
- Perhaps even worse than all of the above, their colour scheme is masochistically hard to paint correctly. The yellow is alright, nothing wrong there. But the thing that basically makes the army Lamenters instead of any random yellow marines is their chapter's symbol, which is comprised of a black-and-while checker pattern with a circle and a heart in the middle. Trying to paint that on a few dozen miniatures is more-or-less painstakingly time-consuming, if not impossible, in the face of other Chapters having easier symbols to paint. Anyway, as a result the Lamenters are cursed to be the least represented official chapter in the game, and almost certainly even less than a lot of fan made and random bullshit chapters. To play Lamenters, you need to be an uncommonly good painter and have a taste for being fucked over in the fluff, on the tabletop AND for hundreds of hours of painting. Certainly an acquired taste!
Where are they now?
The Lamenters today are now almost dead, presumably OM NOM NOM'ed by the Tyranids. Only three broken companies of marines are confirmed to be alive and fighting. Only time will tell whether the Chapter will be able to survive their Crusade in time to recruit more Neophytes, or whether they will finally be added into the Hall Of Heroes on Terra. However, while they continue to exist, and no matter what horrible fate befalls them, it can be assured these heroic fuckers will selflessly continue to fight for Mankind, and quadrillions of ungrateful souls the galaxy over.
They are some of the baddest asses to ever don power armor. Every single thing that tried to screw them over, they proceeded to open up cans of FUCK YOU! in its general direction and despite losing Marines every time, THEY ARE STILL STRONG, SURVIVING AND HOLDING THE FUCKING LINE.
There are only two Lamenters characters confirmed to remain today: First is Brother Chyron, a very sad Dreadnought that serves with the Deathwatch and who considers himself to be the last of his chapter and thus is permanently attached to the Deathwatch. With everything lost to him, Chyron is only fuelled by one, tragic objective: revenge for his fallen Chapter, claimed in xenos' blood. This desire for revenge has often caused him to be irritable, stubborn, and downright insubordinate to his fellows and even superiors (It is not often a Deathwatch member flips off the Inquisitor giving them missions. Chyron does it. Twice. During the same mission.) Although despite this, his fellow Kill-team squad members refuse to abandon him.
The second is Malakim Phoros, the Chapter Master of the Lamenters who has served for over two centuries. He is a highly aggressive close combatant, carrying the Black Rage in his heart, and likely one of the few Lamenters to have a Glaive Encarmine, let alone Artificer Armor.
Lamenters may be played as Blood Angels. Malakim Phoros has survived to 8th ed as a 'Blood Angels' HQ who excels in close combat.
Also in 6th ed was a bit of fluff about the Emperor's Tarot, a set of cards used by high-ranking psykers to try and make predictions (like Eldar seers, but less Heretical). The prediction stated that things were about to get even worse for the Lamenters. On one hand, fuck. On the other hand, this prediction came immediately after the Chapter was presumed destroyed for the fourteenth time, so do the math.
As of 7th Edition, when Dante made a call for all Blood Angels successor chapters to defend Baal against a simultaneous Daemon and Tyranid incursion, the Lamenters were the only chapter who did NOT respond. At least yet. Even the renegade Knights of Blood returned to defend their home (although it still hasn't been satisfactorily explained how the KoB found out there was a call, they just kinda showed up). It's unknown whether the Lamenters are all dead, were too busy or too far away to get the message, or if their penitent crusade out-ranks a call from the home world.
As of the beginning of 8th ed, NuMarines have been sent to reinforce several chapters that are low on marines. This means that the Lamenters are back in action, theoretically at least. But considering they didn't or weren't able to come back to protect Baal, whether they'll be reinforced and actually join the fight is anyone's guess. On the bright side, Chapter Master Malakim Phoros got updated rules for 8th Edition in the Imperial Armor Index - and he's the only Space Marine there is, aside from Guilliman, who can provide re-rolling of all failed wounds to nearby Chapter mates.
A Primaris Lamenter appears in the color scheme section of the 8th Edition Blood Angels Codex, as part of a rebuilt 5th company, and they're specifically mentioned as surviving their run-in with Hive Fleet Kraken.
Daily Rituals
04:00 - The Lamenters awake and assemble their wargear.
05:00 - Morning Prayer. The Lamenters pray to the Emperor and The Primarch to grant them the strength to make it through another day of their Penitent Crusade.
06:00 - Morning Firing Rites. The Lamenters hone in their firing skills. Occasionally the target Servitors accidently turn out to be Loyal Marines from another Chapter.
07:00 - Battle Practice. The Lamenters engage in practice battles. By the end, the medicae is filled to the brim with injured marines.
11:00 - Physical checkup, the injured Marines are tended to and prayers of thanks are given that no one was seriously hurt.
12:00 - Midday Prayer. The Sanguniary Priests lead the Marines in prayers of restraint as they all struggle with the resurgent Red Thirst.
13:00 - Midday Meal. Chapter Serfs prepare the meal, though sometimes it gets lost in transit and the Lamenters have to go without.
13:15 - Tactical Indoctrination. The Lamenters go over the latest tactics for fighting the Great Devourer, knowing that at any time they will be again be in combat against Hive Fleet Kraken. During this time; the remaining Captain's and Company Sergeants desperately go over tactics and stratagems to reduce or minimize the chances of further casualties.
15:00 - Battle Practice. The Lamenters again engage in practice battles. Knowing that their prowess is quite possibly the only thing standing between the citizens of the Imperium and the horrors of the Galaxy.
20:00 - Evening Prayer. The Lamenters give thanks to the Emperor and the Primarch for granting them the will to make it through one more day.
21:00 - Evening Meal. A feast is provided by the Chapter Serfs. This time, an escort of armed serfs guarantees the food makes it to the table
21:45 - Night Firing Exercises. The Lamenters hone their skills further in their ships firing ranges.
23:00 - Maintenance Rituals. The Lamenters work on their weapons and armor, as befits the Sons of Sanguinius.
23:45 - Free Time. Some Marines gather around the view ports of their ships, gazing into the void of space, contemplating why their chapter has such a terrible fortune. Others visit the Chapter Serfs, working with those who may be fit to become Space Marines when the ban on Initiates is lifted, though a sad look is evident in their eyes when they meet those who could have been Astartes, but are now too old for Insanguination.
00:00 - Rest Period. The Lamenters go back to sleep, silently counting the days until their crusade is over.