Report by Inquisitor Tarna to the Concilium Ravus
1. Introduction
Widely feared across the Eastern Fringe, the Liberators (also known as the Angels of Cain, His1 Angels and the 21st Legion2 ) are a warband of Traitor Marines that follow the banner of the Black Commissar Ciaphas Cain. Since the first confirmed sightings during the Adumbrian Incident, they have been involved in numerous skirmishes and a smaller number of pitched battles conducted across Cainite space and the wider Damocles Gulf.
Originally composed of a small number of Astartes from the World Eaters Legion, the Liberators have expanded to a force numbering almost a thousand, composed of Marines from eight out of nine traitor legions3 . Parallels can be drawn to the Ordo Xenos' Deathwatch, and the comparison is an apt one. The Liberators deploy in mixed groups containing members of several legions in order to best utilise their individual strengths while minimising their weaknesses. Note that despite the usually fractious nature of the followers of the Ruinous Powers, the Liberators work extraordinarily well together, with infighting essentially non-existent4 .
1 See earlier reports by the Ordo Dialogus on the Cainite Heretics use of He/Him/His to refer to the Black Commissar, as opposed to Him on Earth.
2 Although never exceeding the size of a loyalist chapter, many of the Liberator's Astartes referred to themselves as the 21st Legion, perhaps as a rejection of their original legions, or to further connect themselves with their battle brothers, who came from widely varying lineages.
3 The absent legion is, of course, the Death Guard, with the Cainites' antipathy to the followers of Nurgle being well established. The presence of renegades from loyalist chapters is nothing more than unsubstantiated rumour, and anyone insisting otherwise should be immediately executed for spreading heresy.
4 This level of cohesion between followers of different Chaos Powers is usually only seen during the various Black Crusades. Above all, this is the feat that shows that Cain's claim to the title of Warmaster are not unfounded
2. Combat Doctrine
Despite its origins as a Khornate force, the Liberators eschew the highly aggressive, melee focused tactics usually favoured by their kind, instead preferring a balanced combined arms approach more akin to that utilised by the Ultramarines5 or Imperial Fists. Indeed, on several occasions the Liberators have been able to defeat numerically superior forces of loyalist Astartes by utilising ambushes and stealth tactics.
In the early days, the Liberators were largely deployed alongside regular USA troops, with a single Astartes leading a squad of unaugmented soldiers. Whether this was an attempt to impart some of their tactical knowledge, or simply a result of their relatively low numbers, it was highly effective, with the USA squads under their leadership proving vastly superior to their Imperial Guard equivalents6 .
As their numbers swelled, their role changed, instead being deployed largely as shock troops, a role in which they excelled. The Liberators of today operate in small mixed groups comparable to Death-Watch kill-teams, utilising the varied skills of their members to maximise their strengths and minimise their weaknesses. While former World Eaters still make up the majority of the Liberators forces, members of other legions are used heavily in specialist roles7 .
5 As mentioned earlier, there is no evidence that Astartes from loyalist chapters have defected to the Cainites, and the multiple sightings of Ultramarine Sigils among the Liberators is clearly a tactic to sow discord amongst the loyal followers of Him on Earth
6 Indeed, on one occasion, a force of USA troopers led by a single Traitor Marine were able to defeat a significantly larger force of Tempestus Scions supported by sanctioned Psykers.
7 In particular, see the attached AARs for notes on the deployment of Thousand Sons Sorcerers, the usage of Alpha Legion infiltrators, and the role of Iron Warriors in constructing the Slawkenberg defences.
3. Wargear
Lacking the support of a forge world or the true Mechanicus8 , the Liberators use vastly different equipment to Loyalist Astartes or their more conventional traitor brethren. Instead of the venerated power armour that is almost synonymous with the Adeptus Astartes, the Liberators use a scaled up version of the armour used by the human forces of the USA. While marginally inferior in protective ability, the armour provides vastly superior mobility, comparable to that enjoyed by Tau battlesuits. Although the Liberators all wear armour of the same red as the rest of the USA, they employ shoulder pauldrons painted with the insignias of their original legions9 .
The Liberators deploy a wide variety of weapons, ranging from standard Astartes equipment like Bolters and Power Swords to more exotic artefacts either of alien or BoRG origin. In particular, their widespread use of Tau plasma rifles is clearly evidence of collaboration with the perfidious Xenos and requires further investigation10 . The eclectic nature of their armouries makes their behaviour difficult to predict and anyone facing them must be aware of the huge range of capabilities that they could potentially bring to the battlefield.
8 See the attached Adeptus Mechanicus report on the so called "Bringers of Renewed Greatness" and their technoheresy
9 The presence of several loyalist symbols clearly being an Alpha Legion attempt at sowing discord among the loyal followers of Him on Earth.
10 Their deployment of Gauss Flayers does not require the same scrutiny, as it is clearly impossible for anyone to make an alliance with the Necrons