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Chapter

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A Chapter is an self-contained Space Marine army usually made up of a thousand or so Space Marines, as well as a large number of administrative and functionary personnel.

The Adeptus Astartes is divided into roughly a thousand Chapters, but each constituent Chapter is autonomous and constitutes a complete army, with its own leadership, support and administrative staff, reliant only on its own chapter members. Unlike the Imperial Guard, the Adeptus Astartes has no leadership above the Masters of the individual Chapters. Also unlike many other Imperial military forces, the Astartes has no members which represent the organization as a High Lord of Terra.

Besides the Space Marine fighting brethren there are many non-combat personnel, fully part of the Chapter but generally not involved directly in combat. These include the chapter's hereditary slaves, Astropaths, Navigators, etc.

The chapter is not created overnight; it is created from the gene-seed of the donor chapter. The zygote is implanted in a human test-slave who spends his entire life in static experimental capsule immobile serving nothing but as a medium which from two progenoids will develop. When the progenoids are developed they are extracted from original test-slave and then implanted into another two test-slaves, producing four progenoids, and so on. It takes 55 years of reproduction to create a healthy set of 1,000 organs. These must be sanctioned officially by the Master of the Adeptus Mechanicus and then by the High Lords of Terra, speaking for the Emperor, who alone can give permission for the creation of a new chapter.

A codex chapter is made up of ten companies, each consisting of one hundred marines and commanded by a company commander with the title of Captain. Generally the first company is made up of the Chapter's most experienced veteran marines. The second through ninth consists of more ordinary warriors. Some individual companies are specialized assault or support companies, possessing larger proportions of Assault or Devastator squads. The tenth company of a Codex Astartes Chapter is a Scout force, made up of aspiring Space Marines not yet proven in battle. Each Chapter is led by a Chapter Master. Each chapter has its own traditions, specialties, its own cult, beliefs and practices.

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