After sending the last snow-shrike to the Kingdom of Disorder, Nareth did not visit the great library at the Phoenix's Crag.
He entrusted the cataloguing and recording work to the Librarians and Arsena's attendants.
Nareth returned to the Shadow's Sovereignty and convened a council of his Chapter Masters.
In his office, Nareth leaned back against his throne, first addressing Rosicky Czechk.
"The new pattern of power armor has passed combat testing. You will oversee its mass production."
"Complete the full replacement of Mark II and Mark III patterns within fifteen years."
Nareth intended to complete the full replacement before the Heresy. While other loyalist Legions still relied on Mark II Expeditionary armor as their primary equipment during the outbreak of civil war, his Legion would be equipped with the superior new generation of power armor.
"By Your will," the Forge Lord said, bowing in acknowledgment.
Nareth then surveyed the Chapter Master and continued.
"The new Cataphractii-pattern Terminator armor has also been combat-tested. Based on each Chapter's composition, I have decided on the allocation of the three existing Terminator patterns."
"The Saturnine-pattern Terminator prototype will be primarily issued to the First, Second, Eighth, and Eleventh Chapters."
The psychic burden of all three Terminator patterns can be met by Sequence 7 or higher beyonder beings. The limiting factors are physical strength and whether the combat style demands agility.
The Twilight Giant Pathway, predominant in the Eighth Chapter, grants the most robust physique. Sequence 9 "Warriors" possess superhuman strength and agility. Sequence 7 "Weapon Masters" gain further superhuman strength, constitution, and agility.
Sequence 6 "Dawn Knights" receive a terrifying enhancement; even a normal human at this stage would be comparable in size to an Astartes. Wearing the Saturnine-pattern Terminator prototype, they still retain superhuman agility.
The evolved Black Emperor Pathway, predominant in the Eleventh Chapter, ranks second in this regard.
The core ability of Sequence 8 "Barbarians" is "Physical Enhancement," granting terrifying strength and a powerful physique.
When Nareth himself became a "Barbarian," his genetic memories awakened early, his size growing to 4.11 meters. Despite the Emperor's design not conferring size and strength advantages, he still ranked among the foremost Primarchs.
Subsequently, Sequence 7 "Bribers" receive a moderate physical enhancement.
By then, Nareth could overpower most of his brothers in strength, but without "Bribe-Weaken," he was still outmatched by the fierce Leman Russ, and certainly not by Vulkan. He had lost a contest of strength with Vulkan on Nocturne.
Sequence 6 "Barons of Corruption" received further enchantment and "Force" an ability of instantaneous burst of power can even exceed that of a "Dawn Knight" at the same Sequence.
At that point, Nareth, while maintaining "Force "could overpower all Primarchs, including the terrifyingly strong Vulkan.
The physique of Sequence 5 "Mentor of Disorders" depends on the state of their "Ambition."
The greater the ambition, the stronger the physique. The fiercely ambitious might even surpass the "Guardians" at the same Sequence.
Now, even "Force" without Nareth's physique and strength, driven by his ambition to become a god and control his own destiny, neither modest nor boundless, exceed those of all Primarchs.
The main pathway of the First Chapter is the "Judge." At Sequence 7 "Interrogators," they gain a moderate physical enhancement; at Sequence 5 "Disciplinary Paladins," their physique becomes more robust and their flesh more resilient.
The Sun Pathway, predominant in the Second Chapter, grants enhanced physique at Sequence 9 "Bard," further enhancement at Sequence 7 "Solar High Priest," and a significant enhancement at Sequence 6 "Notaries."
The mid-Sequence beyonder beings of these four Chapters can bear the physical burden of the Saturnine-pattern Terminator prototype, though with slight differences.
"Dawn Knights" can wield superhuman agility while wearing it. "Disciplinary Paladins" and "Notaries" do not rely on agility for their combat styles.
"Mentor of Disorders" also possess agility comparable to "Guardians," as not only can ambition make them swifter, but "Stretch and Extend" allows them to attack from bizarre angles.
Beyonder abilities can also affect this: "Distortion" of distance, alteration of "Geometric" displacement.
'The effect of the "Black Emperor" pathway potion materials is quite apparent. If William hadn't acquired the Farseer puppet, Pell would be my most powerful subordinate.'
"The Tartaros-pattern Terminator armor will be primarily issued to the Fourth Chapter and the Chaplains."
The Death Pathway, predominant in the Fourth Chapter, grants enhanced physical attributes at Sequence 9 "Corpse Takers"; at Sequence 8 "Grave Diggers," they become stronger and more agile.
The Chaplaincy of the Shadows of Order is composed of the "Visionary" and "Sun" pathways. Each company has five Chaplains: four of the former, one of the latter.
Although the Visionary Pathway from Sequence 9 to Sequence 7 provides no physical enhancements, upon reaching Sequence 6 "Hypnotists," they gain a considerable physical boost.
"The Cataphractii-pattern Terminator armor will be primarily issued to the Third, Fifth, Sixth, Seventh, Ninth, Tenth, and Twelfth Chapters."
These seven pathways differ but can be broadly divided into two categories.
The first includes those whose physical attributes are not enhanced: the Door Pathway, predominant in the Fifth Chapter, and the Hanged Man Pathway, predominant in the Tenth Chapter.
The second includes those with moderate physical enhancements but who need to maintain agility for various reasons.
The Red Priest Pathway, predominant in the Seventh Chapter, is the most typical. Sequence 9 "Hunters" receive a significant enhancement to their physique, strength, speed, reflexes, and bodily control. Sequence 8 "Provokers" also see slight improvements in strength, reflexes, speed, and agility.
While their physique is enhanced, their agility, reflexes, and bodily control are also their strengths. To preserve this advantage, the more balanced Cataphractii pattern is better suited for the Seventh Chapter.
The Tyrant Pathway, predominant in the Ninth Chapter, is similar.
Sequence 9 "Sailors" possess remarkable strength. Sequence 8 "Wrathful Men" gain significant increases in both strength and agility. But Sequence 6 "Wind-blessed" have the ability to hover and glide. Wearing Tartaros armor would prevent them from flying.
Even the Cataphractii pattern, when combined with the Yeld-pattern Armor's collapsible frame structure (sacrificing the mimicry function), allows the "Wind-blessed" to fly.
The "Night" pathway, predominant in the Third Chapter, grants "Midnight Poets" enhanced physique. In darkness, they are nearly equal to "Grave Diggers," but their combat style also demands agility.
The main pathway of the Twelfth Chapter is the Fool. Similarly, though Sequence 8 "Clowns" possess decent strength, their true advantages are their exceptional bodily coordination and balance, as well as their remarkable agility and speed.
The Tartaros and Saturnine patterns would make them too heavy, losing their precise bodily control.
Most of the Shadows of Order's Librarians follow the Hermit Pathway. Their armor is centered on the Squat CORV drones.
The Grímnir's runic arrays provide some psychic amplification, but more crucially, their isolation mechanism can sever the connection to the Warp in case of power loss.
The Techmarines, following the Paragon Pathway, and the Apothecaries, following the Moon Pathway, have unique requirements. Besides combat, they have specialized tasks.
Whether servo-arms or Nartheciums, both impose specific demands on the armor. Their armor is crafted to meet their own needs.
All full-fledged Shadows of Order officers will have the privilege of having their armor forged by Malevolus, who previously only crafted armor for the Primarchs themselves.
The Armor Master will tailor-make their armor based on their individual characteristics and the Yeld-pattern Armor's growth and adaptive systems, ensuring the longer they use it, the greater the enhancement to their abilities.
Pell, who had just arrived at Heliosa, along with the other eleven Chapter Master, regarded the matter with solemn faces. They were heartened by the richness of their armory, but also felt the deliberate preparations of the Black Emperor.
Flamini, the "Winner," and William, the "Marionettist," both diviner-psykers, sensed that a storm was brewing.
"By Your will," the Forge Lord, Rosicky, accepted the command.
....
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