The Brotherhood of Peace

Summary
The Brotherhood of Peace are the former members of the loyal Stone Giants Space Marines. They have closely based their current philosophy on the Revenants Chapter, even going so far as to adopt similar heraldry.

Essential Information
Chapter Name: The Brotherhood of Peace

Chapter Master: Cyric.

Homeworld: Paxus.

Number of Marines: Currently 430, growing steadily.

Gene seed ancestry: Raven Guard

War Cry: "Earn your Peace!"

Status: Rebuilding.

Founding
The original members of the Brotherhood of Peace were made up of the 158 Space Marines who Vortigern, Chapter Master of the Stone Giants, knew for certain he could not convince to join him in betraying the Imperium; all of the Chapter's Chaplains (12 in total), 50 veterans and 96 Battle Brothers from across the various Companies, including Captain Cyric of the Third Company. These Marines were sent in a single strike cruiser to Peace, home world of the Revenants, ostensibly to deliver a message to Marius Tron, although the Chaplains knew that their Chapter Master was planning something more sinister (though they had no idea his betrayal would go as deep as it did). However, they went along with their leader's orders, for they were loyal even unto death. Upon delivery of the message - a declaration of the Stone Giants mutiny - the loyalist Stone Giants begged Tron to lend them aid to destroy the traitors. Though they did not expect aid from the Chapter Master, they received it - a full company of Revenants Marines and a ship to carry the combined forces. This act earned the respect of the Stone Giant's loyalists, and on the way to Adirio, Cyric asked to read a copy of the Doctrine of Peace, the Revenants guiding principals set down in writing.

Reading it, Cyric found himself agreeing with many of its tenets. Lending the copy among his brothers, he found that they all agreed with him: it was a wise Doctrine in many respects, one worthy of adoption, and quite the contrary of the "cowardliness" that most Chapters came to associate it with. They had little time to ponder this however, as they soon arrived at Adirio - in time to witness its destruction at the hands of the Inquisition.

Trial
The loyalists were placed on trial by the Inquisition, who judged them free from taint - partially since that was the reason they had been sent away in the first place - and granted them permission to rebuild, partly with influence from Chapter Master Tron, who testified on their behalf. However, by this time, Cyric and the majority of the survivors had grown disillusioned with the name of the Stone Giants and their tenets, seeing them as having failed. Instead, to honour those who had offered them aid where none others would have, Cyric - declared acting Chapter Master - named his new Chapter the Brotherhood of Peace, and the entire band of 158 repainted their armour to an alternate version of the Revenants' scheme, to honour their allies. They moved to the civilised world Paxus, and began their efforts to rebuild at once.

Rebuilding
The Brotherhood began recruitment as soon as they could, but it is a slow process, and even slower as they stick rigidly to the Doctrine of Peace, which states that no Scout Marine should ever be allowed to go to war. This made them appear somewhat useless to some, but Cyric and his senior Chaplains always knew that, as soon as they were able, they would go to war in His name, and that kept them strong in this dark time.

Their slow progress, hampered perhaps by a refusal to take to the field with their Neophytes, met with some calls for their dissolving from certain quarters of Imperial Authority, but the Brotherhood - aided in part by the Revenants, who were and are honoured by the Brotherhood's respect for them and their Doctrine - survived such calls and managed to rebuild their numbers to a point where they could become a viable force for the Imperium's cause.

Current Status
Currently, the Chapter's strength stands at 430 Marines, including 357 full Battle Brothers. Initially, their small numbers meant that they could ill afford to go to war, though they still sent small numbers of squads to support the Revenants, including two tactical squads and a squad of Terminators on the quest to find Hans Nieman, although only the squad of Terminators survived to the Battle for Orbis, and only three of those returned to Paxus. However, they have now reached the point where they can send troops to war, and have succeeded in sending small numbers of Marines as part of strike forces on cleanups on Armageddon, and also joining Captain Thaddeus of the Revenants' Third Company in his mission to defend certain worlds of the Eastern Fringe from the Tau Empire.

Home World
Paxus is close to Peace, but shares little common heritage with it. It is a civilised world with few spaceports or ships, but several large cities and recruits are drawn from a variety of sources; orphanages, mainly. The new Fortress Monastery of the Brotherhood of Peace is being built in the high mountains above the cities, so as to avoid the attention of the populous.

The result of not recruiting from Peace itself is that the warriors are not brought from the culture that enshrined the Doctrine from birth: rather, the Marines spend a long time attempting to understand the Doctrine, many never fully comprehending it, though they follow the Doctrine as they do the Imperial Creed, unquestioning and obedient.

Training
The Brotherhood of Peace trains their neophytes in the exact manner the Revenants do, following the tenets of the Doctrine of Peace. This adherence to the Doctrine, despite the need for active Chapters and the need to gain fighting forces quickly, earned the Chapter much derision from some quarters, but the Brotherhood refused to allow their standards and tenets to be compromised for any reason.

The warriors recruited into the Chapter are fanatical, following the Doctrine without question, but because they are not raised with the Doctrine, it can be hard installing into them the meanings behind certain tenets.

Organisation
Initially the Brotherhood of Peace had too few Battle Brothers to effect a proper organisation, but as their numbers have grown as they rebuilt, they have organised themselves similarly to the Revenants Chapter, whose Doctrine states that no Scout Marine will be allowed on the field of battle, and dictates an additional Battle Company to make up the numbers. Though they had many scouts initially, the Brotherhood of Peace refused to take them into battle, demonstrating the importance they place on the Doctrine.

Despite having no formal organisation, it was clear from the moment they knew of their brother's treachery that the current members of the Brotherhood viewed Cyric as their leader, and their leader he remains, initially under the title Acting Chapter Master. The twelve Chaplains serve as his council, aiding him in making decisions - it is partially their influence that makes the Brotherhood's adherence to the Doctrine of Peace so fanatical: when the Stone Giants rebelled, the Chaplains were perhaps the worst affected by the betrayal, for they were the guardians of their Brothers' spiritual loyalty and fortitude, and that so many of their Brothers had betrayed the Imperium was a blow to their confidence. when Cyric introduced them to the Doctrine of Peace, they found themselves clinging to it with a new fervour, for it was something new that they could believe in. Thus they have thrown themselves into their belief with an unmatched fervour, their words inciting their brothers to victory in the Emperor's name and self-punishment in the Doctrine's.

Many of the original battle-brothers of the Brotherhood - the 158 loyalist Stone Giants - were promoted to First Company. Thirty of these men were sent to aid the Revenants in battle against Hans Nieman and Sanctimonia Praesentia, but only eight survived to the last battle and only three returned to Paxus, but these losses were seen as worthwhile in service of the Chapter that saved the Brotherhood. Ten of the finest warriors of the original Stone Giants Marines have been chosen as Captains for the new companies that are being built. The newer Marines, rather than being placed in one company alone, are distributed between different companies, thus allowing the entire Chapter to build up apace.

Allies

 * The Revenants. The Revenants see the Brotherhood as a sort of protectorate, for want of a more fitting term: since the Brotherhood take so much inspiration from the words of the Doctrine, the Revenants feel it is their duty to see to it that the Brotherhood are aided and supported during their difficult rebuilding time.

Enemies

 * The Inquisition. Certain elements of the Inquisition oppose the rebuilding efforts of the Brotherhood, whether because the Brotherhood are emulating the less-than-well-regarded Revenants or because the Brotherhood are descended from the traitorous Stone Giants Chapter.

Battle Honours
Initially, despite being unable to send an entire Chapter to war, the Brotherhood of Peace sent the occasional squad or two of Marines out to aid their Imperium, most notably during the quest of Aldus Flynn to slay Hans Nieman, where two Tactical Squads and the Chapter's only Terminator squad were sent to aid the Revenants. These warriors fought in many campaigns but only the Terminator Squad survived to the final battle of Flynn's quest.

Gradually, as their numbers have increased, they have been able to engage in more solo actions, including minor supporting roles in some minor battles across the Eastern Fringe, including supporting Captain Thaddeus of the Revenants in his defence against the Tau.

Notable Members

 * Cyric. Cyric was a Captain of the Third Company of the Stone Giants, and a well respected man. He took the position of default Chapter Master of the Brotherhood of Peace when they were granted permission to rebuild, and takes his responsibilities seriously. He also is extremely loyal to the Revenants, willing to lead his entire fledgling Chapter to their deaths in order to support them.

Chapter Beliefs
If possible, despite not being gene-seed related to the Revenants, the Brotherhood are even more fanatical about the Doctrine then their spiritual founders, treating it with a religious significance. They take the Doctrine's stance on war to mean that for every life they take - save that of Tyranids or Necrontyr - they must be punished. There is a sub-cult of self mutilation amongst the Brotherhood, one they are completely secretive about but that the twelve Chaplains encourage; the Brotherhood see themselves as being tainted; self punishment is a virtue for them, one they practice wherever possible. There is a ritual performed by the Brotherhood's Marines after each battle; their company Chaplain leads the warriors in taking a ritualistic dagger to their arms.

"Brothers! Today we have slain in the Emperor's name. As the Doctrine says, this is an act that, though necessary for our species to survive, is nonetheless to be reviled. Therefore we shall exact suitable blood penance. We count our victims, and pay a blood price for each one. Let us begin the count." -The Brotherhood Of Peace's post-battle penitence ritual, as spoken by one of the twelve Chaplains.

This ritual of self-mortification is kept secret from all outside the Chapter, even the Revenants themselves. The Brotherhood are known to be covered in these ritual scars and they have become a perverse mark of honour; the more scars a warrior has, the more enemies he has slain and had to atone for, and so the closer to earning Peace for the human race.

The Chapter see the Revenants as their liege-lords, and even Cyric acknowledges their lordship; were the Revenants to order every member of the Brotherhood to die on the field of battle, every one of them would do so in an instant. The Revenants know this, and for their part they are mildly uncomfortable with this kind of devotion, being a Chapter unused to such: nonetheless, they do nothing to dissuade the Brotherhood from this position; partly from being flattered at the devotion (since not even Marines are free from pride), and partly from feeling they have no right to interfere.

The Chapter believe in being the ultimate in fighting potential; they train exclusively for excellence in combat. The sooner they end war - by destroying the enemies of mankind - the sooner peace can be achieved (hence "earn your peace" being their war cry). Their attitude would most likely not be accepted by the Revenants, but the Revenants don't know about that particular element of their attitude.