Ibram Gaunt
From Lexicanum
|
 |
Colonel-Commissar Ibram Gaunt was the Commanding officer of the Tanith First and Only Imperial Guard regiment, also known as "Gaunt's Ghosts." Gaunt and his Tanith troops served with distinction in the Sabbat Worlds Crusade.
Contents |
Early History
Ibram Gaunt was born on Manzipor, the son of the second in command of the Jantine Patricians regiment. After the death of his father at the hands of Orks, Gaunt was sent to the Schola Progenium on Ignatius Cardinal. After his graduation he saw action in many theatres while attached to the Hyrkan Regiments. It was during this time, that on Darendara he learned that his 'Uncle' General Aldo Dercius of the Jantine Patricians was responsible for the death of his father, and executed him for the cowardice that led to his father's death. Eventually he was promoted to full Commissar, at the death-bed of his Mentor, Commissar-General Delane Oktar, poisoned by Orks on Gylatus Decimus.
He then served with the Hyrkan 8th to their victory at Balhaut. It was during this time that Gaunt tracked down Dercius and executed him for the death of his father under the authority of his new commissarial status. Gaunt came to the attention of the Sabbat Crusade's Warmaster, Slaydo, during the action on Balhaut. The two warriors came to trust each other and because of his great respect for Gaunt, Slaydo gave another death-bed promotion of Colonel-Commissar to Gaunt, making him the only man in the history of the Imperium to hold the Rank of Colonel Commissar
The Tanith First And Only
Gaunt was to take command of 3 regiments raised from the planet Tanith, the Tanith 1st, 2nd and 3rd light infantry regiments. Known for their excellence in stealth tactics, all they required was a great leader to lead them to victory. But before they were fully mustered for departure the planet of Tanith was attacked by the forces of Chaos which broke through a gap in the Imperial Navy's lines. In one night Tanith was lost, but Gaunt made a decision to save as many troops as possible instead of letting them burn with Tanith.
Over his years with the Tanith 1st was renamed the Tanith First and Only, or nicknamed Gaunt's Ghosts, he has earned the respect of the troops under his command and led the Tanith First and Only to multiple victories on many different planets during the Sabbat Crusades.
The current makeup of the Tanith regiment is from 3 different cultures, the original Tanith troops, the Verghastite recruits who joined them after the actions on Verghast and the Belladon troopers who were mixed in with the Tanith due to battle losses (at which time the regiment was known as the 81st/1st Recon).
Weapons
Ibram Gaunt is well known to use a Bolt Pistol both for his duties as a Commissar, aswell as in battle. In the early Gaunts Ghosts novels he also used a Chainsword which was a gift from his mentor Delane Oktar, but this has been replaced by the ancient Powerblade of Heironymo Sondar given to him after his brave defence of Verghast.
Known Enemies
Gaunt is a rebellious figure and has been known to have many conflicts with his superiors. Some of his enemies tried to kill him and destroy his regiment, such as Colonel Flense, Lord General Dravere and Lord General Lugo amongst others. Gaunt also found himself caught up in a plot to remove Macaroth from command of the Crusade. In which he was guardian to a vital piece of information that almost got him killed in a number of attacks on both him and his regiment.
Sources
