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Alright, so, I've been reading about the cursed founding some (It's my curse) and I can't seem to figure these boys out anymore. The old rules for using cursed founding marines (Index Astartes? Forget the book name...Had feral orks and stuff like that in there too) stated that they were 'cured' of the black rage and the red thirst only to cursed with something much worse, the worst luck in the galaxy. Now...I've heard of them not being cured anymore in more recent fluff? So they've got all the draw backs of the BA plus their own sh***y stuff? Yeah, they're ?

Problem is I haven't read instances of them succumbing to the thirst or the rage myself. Only heard about it in those dumb wikis. So anyone got a source on this one way or the other? I kind of liked them being a hope for the BA, if a nearly wiped out and elusive/unwilling one.

Also, are they all dead or what? Some sources seem to tell me four companies left, some under two...The end of the Badob wars was ~912.41k? The Kraken incident was ~982-992.41K? So their recruitment ban is almost up, right? (100 year penitence crusade?)

OK lets see what I can find here for you.

According to Imperial Armor book 9 page 111, after being crushed in battle by the Minoraurs there are 311 surviving battle brothers interned in a prison hulk orbiting Sagan for the remainder of the war. The date looks to be about 908.M41. Now crossreferencing with data in I.A. 10 page 109. The Minotaurs leave the Maelstrom zone in 913.M41 after the fall of Badab Primarus taking with them several former Lamenters warships to replace their own losses. Then on I.A. 10 page 54 is the trial and its results of the secessionist forces as judged by 5 Astartes chapter masters who's forces were not involved with the conflict, as in keeping with Astartes tradition. Date is 2 895 913. M41, Astral Claws chapter is declared traitors most foul and any of them still in custody are judged to be put to the sword, chained, shackled and blindfolded in dishonour. The other chapters are to take on a 100 year penitent crusade. As to the Lamenters they were condemned to surrender reparations in ships and war gear to the Minotaurs, (this in essence being a rubber stamp approval of actions already taken place). The Mantis Warriors also loose in perpetuity their claims in the Maelstrom zone and those are to be given to the Firehawks chapter.

So it looks like the start date of the penitent crusade is the date of the judgement 2 895 913.M41. They start with 311 battle brothers or less with fewer ships and war gear due to the Minotaurs and general battle losses.

Imperial Armour IX is the only up-to-date tabletop source on the Lamenters of which I'm aware. According to that they are indeed affected by the black rage, and would be drawn up on the tabletop using the Blood Angels list.

So far as numbers go, IA IX states that 311 survived the Badab War, Codex: Tyranids mentions three companies remaining after numerous costly engagements with the Kraken - I would presume those could not be full companies, half-strength might be a reasonable guess.

According to the novel Red Fury, all contact with the chapter has been since been lost, and a Lamenters dreadnought attached to the Deathwatch believes himself the last survivor of his chapter.

Bleak, isn't it?

The lamenters were created during the Cursed Founding. This founding is infamous for all the gene-seed manipulations that it saw. Basically, the AdMech tried to improve and modify their stocks of gene-seed to make the SM from this founding more badass.

It didn't really work properly (see the black dragons or the flame falcons).

One of the few chapters that apparently emerged from this founding with a perfect gene-seed was the lamenters. Indeed, they were created using BA gene-seed and yet showed none of the flaws of their progenitors (no black rage, red thirst, etc). They only suffered from some jinx, but I prefer to see it as just plain bad luck, and not necessarily from a gene-seed problem.

However, towards the end of the Badab War, probably due to the extreme tension and stress suffered by the marines, some lamenters got affected by the Black Rage.

As said by Zakiriel and English Assassin, the lamenters were defeated by the Minautors (ironically, another chapter from the cursed founding). The surviving marines were sent on a penitent crusade and were last seen being nommed by nids.

Gee, I still can't figure out why GW thought Lamentors would be a good name for them...

The background about them being one of the first chapters to bump into the Nids is still valid I hope? Always thought that was quite neat, as others have pointed out they really were a 'cursed' founding..

I remember reading somewhere that the Lamentors were still on crusade against Hive Fleet Leviathan. They were down to their dozens and had only a single ship.

This being Black Library may or may not be a valid story continuation.

Laodamia wrote:
It didn't really work properly (see the black dragons or the flame falcons).

Also due to possible interference by Fabius Bile

From the old GW site on the Lamenters

Following the Lamenters' involvement in the Badab Uprising, they were investigated and eventually granted the Emperor's forgiveness subject to a one hundred year long penitent crusade. The chapter's ill luck followed them, however, as that crusade led them straight into the jaws of Hive Fleet Kraken. Today, barely three companies of the Lamenters are at large in the galaxy, and it would seem their curse of sorrow and ill fortune follows them still.

From WD 145

Only the vaguest details of the fighting have reached the Imperium. Millions of human warriors have died. Entire Chapters of the Imperium's Space Marines have vanished without trace leaving no clue to their fate. The Lamenters Chapter is presumed to have been destroyed and the Scythes of the Emperor has been reduced to a few scattered remnants.