+ inload: Brother Bastapol Einhorn +

+inload: Brother Bastapol Einhorn, Chapter 190, Ultramarine Legion+

+Brother Einhorn is a typical member of the post-Centesimine Chapters; a catch-all term that refers to all of the Chapters of the Legion beyond Chapter 100. Sometimes interpreted as a perjorative by outsiders who guess that those serving in Chapters 1–99 are somehow privileged above those later brethren, the term is meant as approbation. It is meant as a celebration of the Legion's success in gathering and maintaining such high numbers.

Telacos of the 15th Chapter, demonstrating
greater use of  personalisation, including heraldry.

+ While no Ultramarine courts anonymity – the Five Hundred worlds from which the Legion draws its intake take their cue from Macragge's tradition of 'Pride with dignity' – the post-Centisimine Legionaries tend to have less variety in their appearance than the older Chapters, who served through the early years of the Great Crusade. Contrast Einhorn with Telacos (see right), for an illustration of the greater customisation of the older Chapters.

+ That said, some decoration and variety is almost inevitable in a warrior brotherhood – whether through honorifics and awards achieved, battle damage to equipment and armour, or the myriad personal fetishes and charms that even the warriors of the Imperium hold close.+ 

Legionary Einhorn

+ Einhorn is a fairly typical example, then, of an Ultramarine of the later Great Crusade and Horus Heresy period. Like most amongst his Chapter, he wears mark II Crusade armour. The Legion was relatively isolated from Terra and Mars by both sheer distance and because the manufacturing might and organisation of Ultramar ensured that the Legion could mostly meet its own needs through allied Forge worlds and vassal manufactoria scattered across the region.

+ The torso piece, a common variant has the central sternum reinforcement decorated with inlaid ivory in a key pattern, which represents the interlocking and fluid nature of Legion warfare. It is a common decoration, widespread through the realm of Ultramar at large.

Assault tank crew, Praetor-pattern helm

+ Like many in the Legion, the 190th were kitted extensively with Praetor-pattern armour, a locally-manufactured pattern peculiar to the Ultramarines that owed much to the standard Mars pattern internally. Naturally slightly less efficient in overall protection owing to the difference in materials from the Martian ur-example, Praetor armour was sometimes reinforced with additional plates at the hips, across the chest and on the outside of major long bone areas; bringing the level of protection back to comparable limits. Most famously, the helm often had a flat plate added over the front, giving the armour – and Legion – a distinctive appearance.

+ Einhorn's helm is not only lacking this additional frontispiece, but also the top section! This neatly demonstrates one of the great advantages of power armour; namely the modularity and redundancy. Presumably damaged beyond utility, the Legionary has removed the top section while retaining the frontal grill. This lower section of helm contains the vox-system, aural dampeners and much of the atmospheric systems, while also protecting the rebreather – and face – beneath. 

+ While loss of a section of armour during combat is not unusual, removal of the helmet (while frowned upon) was sometimes done deliberately; allowing the terrifying Astartes a more relatable human face in order to win support on human worlds. The removal of the helmet does allow us a visual record of the strip haircut, a practical style that offered some cushioning to the head inside the notoriously uncomfortable Crusade armour helm if a skull cap was not worn. This image also shows Einhorn's main rifle, a Tigrus-pattern boltgun. This was not uncommon in the Legion, though most of the 190th Chapter bore the Umbra pattern that was common across the Legions during the Great Crusade. Note the three kill stripes near the muzzle.

+ This show shows how the reinforced rim of the pauldron in the upper portion provides protection to the critical area of the upper torso and head. The distinctive size and shape of the Astartes shoulder pad, along with the unmistakeable icons of the respective Legion left no enemy in doubt as to who they were fighting. 

+ Einhorn bears a small skull-and-crossbones honorific on his forearm, marking him as a tactical assault specialist. Perhaps this explains his unusual Tigrus-pattern boltgun – it may be recently issued to allow him to join a standard Tactical squad, rather than his preferred Tactical Assault (bolt pistol and combat weapon) formation.

+ Unfortunately, the answer to the question is muddied by the absence of tactical markings on Einhorn's left pauldron. This area would normally include Chapter markings, squad designation and sundry other information. Instead, Einhorn has merely a hastily-stencilled tactical arrow perhaps added in the field.

+All of these slight variances from the norm point to Einhorn's being attached to a unit that is not his usual squad. It is likely he is a fully battle-fit member of a unit mauled in combat – and he has thus been attached to fill a hole left by a casualty in another squad. This may be temporary or permanent, depending upon the level of damage the two units sustained, and whether the other members recover sufficiently. Astartes were, and are, extremely survivable; with a fatality rate of casualties being circa 6 per cent in 'normal' conflict (compare this to standard Imperial Guard figures of 16 per cent of casualties being fatalities). This is adjusted for the additional protection of the Astartes and capabilities of the enemies against which they were deployed, making their resilience all the more remarkable. A marine who is incapacitated on the battlefield – damaged to the point he cannot continue as an effective force – is still likely to heal and return to the field within weeks, if not days.+

+ The mark IV power pack here indicates this pict capture was taken towards the end of the Horus Heresy, after the War on Calth. It is almost certainly a replacement of the original suit. Note also the chequered pattern on Einhorn's mag-holstered boltpistol, a common decoration of the period.

+ More chillingly pointing to this date is the Mark III helm of an Iron Warrior from the IV Legion, upon which Einhorn is treading. The Ultramarines, by dint of their numbers, were instrumental in clearing the Imperium of pockets of resistance loyal to Horus. It is likely that these images date from the clearances of the Olympian Hegemony, Perturabo's micro-empire around his homeworld, a black mirror to Ultramar. These worlds were honeycombed with ingenious fastnesses and terrifying holds, and were only won through blood, toil and sacrifice.

Detail of the Iron Warrior helm.

Legionary Bastapol Einhorn, 150th.

+++
Also, I am back from Rome. Had a great time, and filled with architectural and painterly enthusiasm!