When most Warhammer fans think of the Skitarii they imagine ranks upon ranks of augmented soldiers slaved to the will of a Tech-Priest, who always seem to get stuck fighting the hard battles – superior to your average Guardsman, but expendable in the time of the 41st Millennium. Yet impressive as they are, these cybernetic warriors are a far cry from the original Skitarii, whose unsung exploits had more effect on the outcome of the Horus Heresy than anyone could possibly realise.
They were the mailed fist of the Fabricator General and the hunters of Humanity’s most dangerous technological relics. The Skitarii conclaves were feared across the galaxy, and you’ll find out why in the upcoming Journal Tactica – Skitarii: The Steel Hand of Mars.
… Or you could just keep reading. We’re going to talk all about it.
Mechanicum Taghmatas use all kinds of robotic and cybernetic thralls on the field of battle, but few approach the sheer power and complexity of the classical Skitarii. Rather than simply bolting augmetics onto a freshly de-limbed body and booting it out the door, conclaves put their future soldiers through a harrowing ordeal known as the ‘Flesh-shriving’, in which their mortal flesh is surgically removed and replaced with the sacred corpus-skitarii, as their augmetic armour suits are known.
These suits replace almost the entirety of an aspirant’s human body, swapping useless, fallible flesh for the strength and certainty of steel. Most curiously, they also bend the wearer’s mind by infusing them with the collective fighting prowess of all previous wearers, distilled into a stream of raw data that would shatter weaker minds.
This process rewrites their already indoctrinated minds with an identity built from the shards of a thousand past lives, leading some superstitious foes to whisper that the Skitarii can never be truly killed.
Combined with the cybernetic enhancements that come with the corpus-skitarii, this infusion of wartime experience turns harmless labourers into hardened veterans in a flash, far outpacing the recruitment time of other elite troops like the vaunted Space Marines. Only the best are accepted by the Fabricator General, and with such elite troops at his command, the quest for lost Dark Age technologies takes place across the galaxy.
When the Schism of Mars broke the Mechanicum in two and the Loyalists named their own Fabricator General in exile, just as many Skitarii conclaves flocked to their banner as stayed with Kelbor-Hal. Though now fighting for different masters, the conclaves continue to perform their highest religious duty by combing the galaxy for hidden treasures, and have ample opportunities to put their combat skills to use.
Once deployed on a mission, Skitarii are single-minded in their pursuit, following orders even if it means destroying themselves in the process. In the event they do have to muster for a fight, their loping legs make them perfect scouting and reconnaissance troops. They combine excellent marksmanship and the power of their strange voltlock arquebuses – refined volkite weapons with superior range and power – to strike down critical enemy targets before they realise they’re under fire.
The unnatural gait of their bionic legs, combined with minds of cold logic and a complete disregard for their own wellbeing, make Skitarii tough to work with, but ad hoc allies tend to develop a newfound respect for their skills once a flanking foe is shredded by disciplined volleys of voltlock fire. Just… as long as their hunt for relics lines up with the battle in question – otherwise, they’re liable to decide you’re less deserving of their attention.
Start your own force of Skitarii when the new miniatures and Journal Tactica go up for pre-order this Saturday, and start claiming the juiciest relics for Zagreus Kane/Kelbor-Hal (delete as appropriate).
