OF THE ULTRAMARINES 1ST COMPANY Captain Invictus was the head of the Ultramarines 1st
Company when it was destroyed defending the polar fortresses in the
Battle of Macragge during the first Tyrannic War. Invictus had honed
the Company carefully after the losses of the Corinthian Crusade, gradually
expanding it with stolid veterans drawn from the rest of the Chapter
in accordance with the edicts of the sacred Codex Astartes. As such
it suffered none of the failings of many reformed Companies; squad cooperation
was flawless and fire discipline superb. Invictus was fanatically committed
to ensuring that his battle brothers deserved the respect they gained
from the rest of the Chapter and drove them with relentless energy.
Invictus also acted as Regent of Ultramar, and oversaw much of the rulership
of Macragge itself when the Master of the Ultramarines was busy with
other duties. As such it was he who requested that the 1st Company be assigned to protecting the two polar fortresses, the vital lynchpins in Macragge`s orbital defence network. He judged, rightly as it transpired, that the Tyranids would attempt to make landings at these places to neutralise the defences, opening the door for untold numbers of the creatures to swarm down and infest the planet. The presence of the elite veterans of the 1st Company ensured that the Tyranids suffered unsustainable casualties overrunning the fortresses, delaying the inevitable for long enough that Calgar and the rest of the Chapter could forge a victory in space. Captain Invictus body was discovered among those of the last stand of the 1st Company in Silo 8 of the northern fortress. It is said that the bodies of their enemies stretched six deep for twenty yards all about them, and every pace from the silo to the entrance four levels above. An Ultramarines army which contains ten or more Veterans or Terminators (including his bodyguard) may include Captain Invictus. If you decide to include him then he counts as one of the HQ choices for the army. Captain Invictus must be used exactly as described below, and may not be given additional equipment from the Space Marine Armoury. Invictus can be used regardless of whether the players have agreed on the use of special characters (don't worry, the rules are balanced!). Wargear: Terminator armour (save shown below, also gives 5+ invulnerable save), teleport homer, Terminator honours (bonus included below), plasma blaster, power fist.
Plasma blaster: The plasma blaster was a specially built combi-weapon crafted by the famed Artificer Putus in the 38th Millennium. It incorporated two plasma guns on a weapon mount suitable for replacing the storm bolter on a suit of Terminator armour. The plasma blaster counts as a linked plasma gun which is always stationary. This means it may always rapid fire as if stationary even if Invictus moves, and re-rolls his To Hit dice, minimising chances of an overheat.
Bodyguard: As captain of the 1 st Company, Invictus is able to equip his personal troops to the highest standard. As such he may either choose to be accompanied by a Command squad which must be upgraded to wearing Terminator armour (+25 pts per model) or accompany a unit of Terminators or Veterans instead. If a unit of Terminators or Veterans is chosen, each model in the unit may be given up to 50pts of additional equipment from the Space Marines Armoury. In either case, Invictus ceases to be an independent character as he leads the unit instead. (Designer's note - this opens up a lot of unique options for equipping squads, particularly veterans. However many of the more... esoteric combinations may well require some heavy miniature conversion work to achieve, you have been warned!) Independent Character: Unless accompanied by a bodyguard, Invictus is an independent character and follows all the special rules as detailed in the Warhammer 40,000 rulebook. |
