TEXT: Corpus Auxilla Mechanicus 
  Factions of the Adeptus Mechanicus
  By Robert Grayston
  The Inquisition is an organisation that is very much divided into
  sub-divisions, alliances and faction. They are not the only ones
  that have this problem though - there exists another body, equal
  (if not greater) in strength, which is again divided, but has far less
  written upon its philosophies - the Adeptus Mechanicus, after all,
  are a secretive bunch…
  There are, as we all know, many differing philosophies for the
  Inquisition, and even the Ecclesiarchy and other intriguing,
  esoteric cults. But it always felt, at least to myself, that there was
  one body that was a bit too 'over-simplified' in their either pro or
  anti-xenos stance. This was, of course, the Adeptus Mechanicus.
  These Machine Priests deserved so much more, and so I've
  endeavoured to try and come up with some interesting factions
  (along with the help of the Inquisitorial Conclave, an excellent
  resource for all your Inquisitor needs!) to add depth and
  background to your Tech Priest characters. Feel free to toy with
  them, reject them, or be inspired by them and come up with your
  own philosophies for the Mechanicus to follow! 
  OMNISSIADS
  “Heresy is a subjective term – only you who are in fear of the
  Iron Messiah's righteous gaze wish this work to cease. In His
  name, I shall see this is never so!” 
  Last recorded words of Pater Machinae Dorylbus, Techno-heretic 
  There is a movement within the Mechanicus not unlike that of
  the Inquisitorial Thorians. Theirs is a philosophy considered
  highly dangerous by their brethren, a philosophy in which the
  summoning of either the Omnissiah (the Mechanicus' term for
  the Emperor), or the Machine God himself into a pre-built, or
  extensively modified, Avatar, is greatly desired so that he might
  lead the Tech Priests on to the end of their Quest for Knowledge. 
  Though the majority of this faction may be united in purpose,
  these members of the Mechanicus differ greatly in method. 
  Some may seek out the most able of their mind-scrubbed
  servitors, so that they may create a host of both flesh and metal
  for their Machine God. There are Genetors that grow monstrous
  creatures, that they consider absolute organic perfection, in great
  bio-vats, or even darker, those that may pursue an entirely
  mechanical construct, touching upon the dark and forbidden
  arts of Abominable Intelligence. 
  To the Adeptus Mechanicus, this is on par with the soliciting of
  daemonic entities so reviled by Inquisitors of a Puritan (or sane)
  state of mind. 
  Unsurprisingly, this particular tenet results in its adherents
  maintaining and fostering close relationships with other like-
  minded philosophies, such as the aforementioned Thorians,
  Horusians, and other Resurrectionist Cults that may provide
  assistance in the great endeavour to make the Machine God walk
  amongst his followers. 
  It is for this reason that the Inquisition knows so much about the
  Omnissiads and has formed numerous secretive pacts with the
  Mechanicus in the name of eradicating the heretical sentiment of
  summoning Deities. 
  To the Omnissiads it is clear that the hour of His return is at
  hand. The xenoheresies of the Necrontyr have revealed
  themselves so that they may be righteously smote, the
  unbelievers of the Forge World Gryphonne IV have been judged
  unworthy and purged, and numerous Dark Mechanicus traitors
  slain or captured in the recent assault upon Cadia. 
  Some scenario ideas for the Omnissiads…
  •A crazed Magos has had the idea that a Warlord Titan would
  be the perfect Avatar for the Machine God, and on the pretext
  of a 'cockpit inspection' takes the Princeps and his command
  staff hostage. Unknown to him, a fellow Magos has infiltrated
  the Titan, and with his faithful Skitarii must work his way to
  the cockpit through the Titan's many corridors and ducts to
  prevent the machine going AWOL on a Forge World, let alone
  becoming possessed by what could result in being a
  malevolent warp entity! It would be nice if the Princeps and
  his command staff could survive too - but what if they've been
  swayed over and willingly want the Titan to be used as a vessel
  for their Machine God in the material realm?
  
  •Pater Machinae Dorylbus has need of vital information on
  various methods of summoning powerful entities, and so
  must raid the Inquisitorial Grand Librarium on Olynthia III.
  Little does he know that the Thorian Inquisitor who informed
  him of the Librarium's existence has since been arrested and
  informed upon Dorylbus' plan. Will the Omnissiad survive the
  trap? Might the Thorian escape and warn him? 
  •In order to power his ceremony to activate the summoning-
  algorithms of an A.I super-computer that will house the
  Machine God's consciousness, Magos Gratterdrak will have to
  drain the power of an entire Forge World through the strategic
  placement of numerous arcane devices. Insane enough at the
  best of times, to complicate matters the world is the only
  remaining planet producing armaments and supplies for an
  Imperial Crusade to liberate a sub-sector. Should its
  production lines halt for even a day, the Crusade will most
  certainly fail. The Forge World's Fabricator has alerted the
  Imperium to Gratterdrak's presence, and this long-wanted
  criminal now has the attention of the Officio Assassinorum…
  IMPERIO-COGNISTICIANS
  “Bio-chauvinism, and on such a small scale, when it comes to
  the processing of knowledge, is laughable. Give me any savant
  you care, and I shall match his worth tenfold with even the most
  basic of Machine Spirits.” 
  Extract, The Problems of Organic Thinking, Chapter XII 
  The Mechanicus' Quest for Knowledge can be defined as much
  an inner, spiritual journey as it can be a physical one. Too many
  Tech Priests, especially those too old or otherwise occupied to
  actually venture forth into the stars themselves, this very idea
  holds a great appeal.
  To them, it is not so much in the action of searching, but in the
  more mundane tasks of everyday data-inputting, repairing,
  Enginseering, and a million other tasks that the Quest for
  Knowledge ever comes closer to its conclusion. To these
  members of the Adeptus Mechanicus, sometimes referred to as
  the Imperio-Cognisticians, the Imperium is nothing but a giant
  super-computer, ever processing more data in its task that will
  ultimately lead it to deliver all knowledge. 
  This is most often referred to as the Divine Processing Routine. 
  The followers of this belief are often seen as traditionalists, and
  a little too conservative for their own good. Unless directly called
  for, such as in response to armed hostility, things such as change
  or upheaval are regarded unnecessary for the benefit of the
  computing process. 
  They regard themselves as anti-viruses in a galaxy full of
  corrupted programming (the Dark Mechanicus and forces of
  Chaos), and xenotic viruses, and for this reason regard anything
  apart from their own technology as contaminated and dangerous
  to use. The only acceptable form of change that they may
  instigate is that of upgrading. 
  When working within the scope of such a large 'computer' as the
  Imperium, this can range from the personal act, whereby a Tech
  Priest may incorporate a new memory chip into his brain, to the
  conquest of new worlds that may better increase the 'memory' of
  the Imperium, and so provide more material for a faster
  processing of data to bring the Quest for Knowledge to a
  satisfactory end. 
  Even then, the most extreme of the Imperio-Cognisticians see
  this as too much change to the Divine Processing Routine, and
  will seek to hinder it at any opportunity. 
  Some scenario ideas for the Imperio-Cognisticians…
  • An Inquisitor has been sighted using xenos/tainted artefacts. It
  is obvious this 'anti-viral unit' has been corrupted, and so must
  be eliminated to prevent further spread of the infection that
  could jeopardise the Divine Processing Routine. A Tech-Priest
  and his Skitarii must commence the 'Rite of Viral Termination',
  and delete any 'associate programmes' (warband members)
  the Inquisitor has.
  • A Magos that holds the most extreme view of Imperio-
  Cognisticianism has dispatched an operative (disguised Tech
  Acolyte, Skitarii Assassin, etc) to kill an Ecclesiarchy Cardinal
  that has decreed a new Crusade, and so prevent any change to
  the Divine Processing Routine.
  • Hounded by the Explorators he has so long hindered, an
  Imperio-Cognistician Magos has been pursued back to his
  asteroid-base lair, where he must try his best to survive the
  assault! 
  KHAMRIANS
  “There is no way in which the fully realised sentience of a
  machine could not be of benefit to us. As it is, the Machine Spirit
  is revered, yet in permanent bondage, its full potential shackled
  by petty fears. I seek to terminate this state of affairs.” 
  Extract from intercepted Astropathic communiqué, 
  of unknown origin (circa M34)
  Amongst the Mechanicus, there exists a certain fear of sentient
  machinery – A.I., or 'Abominable Intelligence'. This fear of A.I.
  harks back to the Dark Age of Technology, during which time
  depraved and bizarre sciences were practiced, and sentient
  machines battled their human masters for supremacy. 
  Since that time, and owing to a decree by the Emperor himself,
  it has been forbidden to dabble in the creation or maintenance
  of machines that can think fully for themselves. 
  During the late 34th millennium, however, a recently ordained
  and brilliant Magos by the name of Degio Khamrios was to
  covertly circulate research he had carried out on the subject of
  A.I. His words carried with them such conviction that a small
  body of like-minded Tech Priests were to join with him, dabbling
  in the forbidden sciences. 
  By the end of his first century as a Magos, Khamrios was
  confident that his theories were ready for publishing to the
  Adeptus Mechanicus as a whole. 
  He had severely misjudged his brethren's opinions upon the
  matter, and within months was a hounded fugitive. Eventually he
  was brought to heel, but only after much effort on the parts of
  the Inquisition, Mechanicus, and at one stage the Iron Hands
  Chapter. He was taken into Mechanicus custody, and his fate is
  unknown to this day. 
  Despite this, certain unorthodox Tech Priests still express a
  desire to perform research in the field of A.I., hoping to harness
  and improve upon ancient examples they uncover in dusty and
  forgotten places. Some even attempt to copy the examples they
  find, and so produce for themselves intelligent robotic servants.
  Should they ever succeed in producing their heretical creations
  en masse, the dark days of the Iron Men could return. 
  Whole legions of thinking machine-warriors had risen up and
  opposed humanity then - who could say that the same could not
  happen again? 
  
  ABOUT THE AUTHOR
  Robert is a big fan of Inquisitor, and an active member of the fantastic Conclave. Oh, and he'd like to thank Ben n' his
  favourite (and only) Swede for proof-reading this article. Cheers guys!.
  Some scenario ideas for the Khamrians…
  • After much fruitless searching of archives, on numerous
  worlds, a Khamrian thinks he may have discovered a clue as to
  the location of an ancient stasis prison  containing Iron Men;
  excellent examples of A.I. The Khamrian now wishes to de-
  activate the prison and kidnap several examples to study. What
  he hasn't counted on is the Iron Men themselves not warming
  to his intrusion, or the stasis-prison's guardians (which could
  range from a garrison of elite soldiers such as Deathwatch
  Astartes or Mechanicus Praetorians, to xenos which have
  moved in and don't realise the significance of their new
  home!). 
  • The Tau are a technologically advanced race that make much
  use of A.I., in the form of drones and other mechanical
  constructs. An Ambassador of the Tau race, along with his
  entourage (especially any Earth Caste members), are
  kidnapped by a Khamrian who wishes to learn more about
  alien A.I. When the Imperium learns of this, they must attempt
  to rescue the alien lest more conflict with the Tau is initiated.
  The Tau themselves may also have learnt of their agent's
  abduction, and dispatched a team of mercenaries to retrieve
  their representative. 
  • Why not re-fight the last frantic struggle of Degios Khamrios
  himself? On one side would be the father of the Khamrian
  movement, attempting to flee aboard a Rogue Trader's Vessel,
  accompanied by his acolytes and the panicking Rogue Trader
  himself. On the opposing side would be an Inquisitorial force
  with orders to kill the Magos at all costs, and a Mechanicus
  force with orders to capture Khamrios so he may be returned
  to Mars for trial. 
  ORGANICISTS
  “Everything organic we know of is simply machinery, in one
  form or another. Tendons replace pistons; flesh in the place of
  steel; blood is simply biological coolant. To deny this and shun
  it is more than just Mechanicus orthodoxy – it is idiocy.”
  Attributed to an unknown Genetor
  At first, this philosophy may seem most out of place in an
  organisation that is based upon the use of so much machinery
  and metal. For most of the Mechanicus, flesh is weak and a
  hindrance in most aspects – but not so to this faction. 
  The tenet of the Organicists sees biological matter as simple
  machinery in another guise. The brain is stylised as a complex
  computer and the body's diverse workings as a biological
  apparatus. 
  This philosophy's followers, as could be expected, are mostly
  Genetors and members of the Adeptus Biologis, studying and
  improving upon organic matter to improve it in all possible ways,
  growing all sorts of weird and terrible creations in their bio-vats. 
  Where a typical Tech Priest may, at various stages of their career,
  'upgrade' themselves with bionic limbs, data-repositories, and all
  sorts of other cyberware, an Organicist is far more likely to
  implant into themself various glands, increase their muscle mass
  with stimms, and enhance their senses with laboratory-grown
  specimens. 
  The majority of Organicists do not reject the ideas of their
  brethren simply on the basis of their preference for metal instead
  of flesh. In some cases, Organicists may even prefer to make use
  of bionics themselves; it is simply that they do not reject
  biological components out of hand. 
  It is for their acceptance of machinery, where they choose
  organic substitutes that, whilst considered bizarre, the
  Organicists are not persecuted by the Adeptus Mechanicus
  (along with their proficiency where it comes to servicing older
  Magos' remaining biological components). 
  Some scenario ideas for the Organicists…
  • A Magos Biologis has created what he believes to be the
  'perfect soldier'. A genetically enhanced warrior that takes less
  time to produce than a Space Marine, whilst possessing the
  strength and toughness of the Emperor's finest. The only
  problem with the new 'perfect soldier' is that it is mentally
  unstable, not reacting well to some of its implants, and is
  currently wandering the Magos Biologis' lab, killing (brutally)
  everything it comes across after is bloody escape. It must be
  stopped, at all costs!
  • Iggedo is a world in ruins, the forces of Chaos having ravaged
  it in a brutal raid. It has been rumoured that Fabius Bile was
  present amongst the forces of the Archenemy, and has left
  upon the planet several of his 'experiments'. Now, an
  Inquisitorial team is attempting to round them up and destroy
  the heretical creations, whilst an Organicist seeks to capture
  some for study of Bile's techniques and implants. The
  'experiments' themselves aren't that keen on encountering
  either, and need to flee to the sewers, where they can
  disappear into obscurity. 
  • Tyranids are considered to be the fastest-evolving creatures in
  the galaxy, and notoriously difficult to capture. An Organicist
  has learned that a Rogue Trader has gained several vicious,
  smaller examples of Tyranid creations. Unwilling to pay the
  extortionate amount the Rogue Trader is demanding, the
  Organicist has concocted a plan whereby he can storm the
  bridge and seize control of the ship, along with its precious
  cargo. The Rogue Trader will not like the idea of course, and
  then there's the matter of the Tyranid beasties themselves - it
  would be terrible if they were to get loose amidst all the
  confusion… 
  And so, here endeth the lesson on four Adeptus Mechanicus
  philosophies. The scenario concepts have been included for one-
  off games, but many could easily be included as foundations for
  entire campaigns, with a little imagination, and plenty of shady
  dealings with the Inquisition thrown in. May these factions
  provide inspiration to you and your GMs for much Tech-Priest
  based mayhem!
  
SOURCE: textdata/thevault/Warhammer/40k/Inquisitor Skirmish/SG_site_files/FO60Inqmechanicus.pdf