The action is heating up, as War Zone Charadon – Act II: The Book of Fire is up for pre-order very soon. Among the rules sections contained within the second book is a dedicated supplement for Codex: Adepta Sororitas that dives deeper into the largest and most renowned of the Orders Militant – the Order of Our Martyred Lady. The Book of Fire offers up a bountiful selection of new Warlord Traits and Stratagems for this esteemed Order. While we wait for the new tome to arrive, let’s take a closer look at their history to find out why the Order of Our Martyred Lady are feeling especially vengeful as they arrive in the Charadon sector.
Given that the Abbess Sanctorum herself, Morvenn Vahl, is set to arrive in the Charadon Sector at the head of a huge force of these holy warriors, we thought we’d delve into their lore a bit more and reveal two of the most famous conflicts in which they fought.
The Legacy of Saint Katherine
The Order of Our Martyred Lady was once known as the Order of the Fiery Heart. However, when Katherine, the beloved matriarch of the Order, was slain in battle and subsequently canonised by the Ecclesiarchy, the Order changed its name in the honour of their new patron saint. Ever since, the Order has borne the remains of Saint Katherine to war in a solemn procession to inspire their warriors to ever greater feats of valour.
In life, Katherine was foremost of the five companions of Alicia Dominica, the founder of the Orders Militant, and bore her holy shield, Praesidium Protectiva. Her status as Dominica’s shieldbearer was apt, for the Order of Our Martyred Lady are renowned for their stoicism and self-sacrifice in battle. To die in battle as a martyr in the God-Emperor's service is an honour to which every warrior of the Order aspires, and they have proven their determination to do so time and time again throughout their institution’s long and proud history.
Defiance on Armageddon
The Third War for Armageddon saw the green tides of Ghazghkull Thraka crash against the war-torn hive world once more, this time in far greater numbers and armed with ingenious ‘tellyporta’ technology and submersibles designed by the visionary Mekboy Orkimedes. Not even the inspired leadership of the fabled Hero of Hades Hive, Commissar Yarrick, could hold back the greenskin hordes as they ran amok across the planet’s two vast continents.
Fortunately for the defenders of Armageddon, the Order of Our Martyred Lady had maintained a strong military presence upon the hive world for many years, and they played a crucial role during the early stages of the war. Their most notable action was in the defence of Hive Tempestora, which was swiftly overrun when the greenskins utilised a massed submersible assault from the Boiling Sea to deploy huge numbers of Orks behind the Imperial lines.
The warriors of the Order of Our Martyred Lady bore the brunt of the attack and fought a desperate rearguard action all the way back to the gates of the Sanctorum of St. Katherine. Even though the Orks eventually overwhelmed them, the stalwart Sororitas made the greenskins pay a terrible price for each Battle Sister who fell in its defence. The few survivors of the conflict spent the rest of the war meting out their vengeance upon the invaders, but the loss of so many of their sisters still haunts the Order to this day.*
Last Stand on Cadia
When Abaddon’s 13th Black Crusade vomited forth from the Eye of Terror and crashed into the Cadian System, the Warmaster’s primary objective was the total destruction of the indomitable fortress world itself – and, more importantly, the Necron pylons that had held back the warp anomaly for so many millennia. Even as a terrible fleet battle raged in Cadia’s orbit, the planet’s surface was subjected to an invasion on a scale never seen before by its stoic defenders.
Although the Imperium desperately mustered every military force it could spare to counter the invasion, few expected to see five commanderies of the Order of Our Martyred Lady arriving alongside none other than Celestine, the Living Saint. Once thought lost during their warp translation to the world of Chandry many years earlier, these wayward sisters had been guided by Celestine’s divine light, and she led them into the heart of the battle against Abaddon’s forces.
The Sisters of the Order of Our Martyred Lady fought valiantly, and Celestine herself delivered the Emperor’s holy wrath to countless foes, though against the endless tide of traitor forces hurled against them there could be no victory. Even as Cadia’s valiant defenders fought to the last, Abaddon launched a final, desperate gambit – crashing the Blackstone Fortress Will of Eternity into the planet to utterly destroy it along with all those who remained on the surface.
Whether you already collect the Order of Our Martyred Lady or have been looking for an opportunity to start a collection, War Zone Charadon – Act II: The Book of Fire's new codex supplement rules have you covered. For now, bolster or kickstart your collection with a Battle Sister Squad box (or two) – remember that you can assemble the models in the set as elite Celestians and special weapon-toting Dominions too for added flexibility.
* In fact, there’s even a Stratagem in the Book of Fire called Vengeance for Armageddon…