"We are His Sword, We are His Wrath. Suffering is our prayer and faith our armor. We shall not submit!"
-Unknown Battle Sister
Background
The Adepta Sororitas, also known as the Sisters of Battle, are an elite sisterhood of warriors raised from infancy to adore and worship the
God-Emperor of Mankind Their fanatical devotion and unwavering spiritual purity is a bulwark against corruption, heresy and alien attack, and once battle has been joined they will stop at nothing until their enemies are utterly crushed. Battle-Sisters will stride through fire if need be, their bolters spitting staccato bursts of destruction every step of the way. Not even death can stay the wrath of the Adepta Sororitas -- indeed, the blood of martyrs only strengthens the resolve of battle-sisters, spurring them to greater acts of heroism in the name of the honoured fallen.
The
Adeptus Ministorum -- or the Ecclesiarchy as it is generally known in the Imperium -- is
a monolithic state church founded on the worship of the God-Emperor as the saviour of Mankind and the preaching of the Imperial Creed throughout the whole galaxy. The Sisters of Battle are the army of the Ecclesiarchy. Clad in ceramite power armour, they carry an awesome array of weaponry with which to vanquish their enemies; the incredible wealth of the Ecclesiarchy ensures that they are equipped with the best wargear the Imperium has to offer.
The Sisters of Battle are trained to the peak of human ability and stand amongst the
Imperium of Man's most dedicated and disciplined warriors. Wherever there are foes of the Emperor, the Sisters of Battle will be found fighting with faith and steel. When not actively prosecuting the Ecclesiarchy's wars, the battle-sisters of the Orders Militant divide their time between rigorous training and devout worship of the God-Emperor.
Indeed, to the Adepta Sororitas, the disciplines are nigh inseparable, for whilst combat drills and studies of battle tactics can hone the body and the mind, only penitent prayer can bolster the spirit, and all three are required to defeat the Imperium's foes.
The combination of combat doctrine and prayer is most evident on the battlefield, where battle-sisters loudly proclaim their faith in hymn and verse as they march to war, calling upon the Emperor to aid them in the fight against their enemies.
The intense, unquestioning nature of this faith is a potent weapon indeed, manifesting as divine inspiration that drives the Sororitas to unprecedented feats of martial prowess. Sisters of Battle gripped with holy fervour banish worldly fears from their minds, shrug off mortal wounds, and summon preternatural strength to smite their foes.The Sisters of Battle believe their faith to be a weapon stronger than any steel, and those who witness their battlefield miracles are left in no doubt that the spirit of the Emperor indeed walks with these pious warriors.
Once battle has been joined, the Adepta Sororitas will stop at nothing until their enemies are utterly crushed.
Organization
In the 41st Millennium, the Adepta Sororitas is part of the Ecclesiarchy and is divided into two convents. The Convent Prioris is located on Terra, and the Convent Sanctorum is based on the Shrine World of Ophelia VII.
The overall commander and spiritual leader of the entire Sisterhood and all its myriad Orders is the abbess sanctorum, the leader of the Convent Prioris on Holy Terra.
As the recognised leader of the Adepta Sororitas, the Abbess Sanctorum is sometimes elected to join the ranks of the High Lords of Terra, while at other times she is subservient to the commands of the reigning ecclesiarch.
The Convents of the Sisterhood are organised into several Orders. Each Order follows the same basic hierarchical structure:
Order: An Order is led by the most senior canoness, called the "canoness superior," who commands and administrates the entire Order. Each canoness superior is subservient only to the will of the abbess sanctorum.
Preceptory: A Preceptory contains a single convent with up to 1,000 sisters, so an Adepta Sororitas Preceptory is equivalent in size to a Space Marine Chapter and is led by a sister with the rank of canoness preceptor or prioress.
Hierarchy
Unlike the many
Chapters of the
Adeptus Astartes , the Sisterhood is united into a single organisation with a centralised ruling body.
The overall head of the Adepta Sororitas holds the rank of abbess sanctorum, and is elected from and by the leaders of all the Orders. Beneath the abbess sanctorum are two prioresses, one leading each Convent, and below these, the canonesses superior of each individual Order.
There exists a hierarchy of sorts amongst these leaders, though to outsiders it is highly arcane and ritualistic and based on a system of precedence. Orders that were established by "Ecclesiarchal Writ" are ranked higher in the order of precedence than those that were formed by a group splitting off from a preexistent Order.
This is especially visible in the six Orders Militant Majoris, each of which has spawned dozens of far smaller Lesser Orders Militant, the canonesses superior of which rank lower in the order of precedence than those of their parent organisation.
The canonesses superior are aided in their duties by their Order's palatines. These are highly experienced and capable officers, from whose ranks the next canoness superior will be drawn.
It is the palatines that often lead Missions in the field, whether the Order is an Order Militant fighting the enemies of Mankind, or an Order Hospitaller establishing a hospital at the front lines.
Below the palatines are essentially the non-commisioned officers known as the sisters superior, who lead or supervise groups of their sisters in whatever tasks the Order in question is focussed upon.
Members of the Adepta Sororitas can and do transfer from one Order to another, depending on their own unique skills and experience. In particular, a sister of an Order Militant may eventually transfer to a non-militant Order to carry on the Emperor's work should age or injury render her less effective a warrior.
Furthermore, it is not unheard of for a senior member of the Sisterhood to transfer to another organisation entirely; several canonesses are known to have become Inquisitors, one a cardinal palatine and one even a Rogue Trader.
Orders Hospitaller
The Orders Hospitaller is a non-militant order of the Adepta Sororitas dedicated to healing and the provision of medical care for all the citizens of the
Imperium of Man . Novice Sisters of the Adepta Sororitas who show a gift for healing and attending to the needs of others are often ushered into the ranks of the Orders Hospitaller.
Amongst the most widely welcomed of the Adepta Sororitas, the Hospitallers are sent to war zones or disaster-stricken areas of the galaxy, providing the people of the Imperium with medical care and compassion when it is most needed.
The Sisters of these Orders aid the poor and heal the sick and the wounded in the many hospitals and clinics across the Imperium operated as charities by the Sisterhood. Their convents often take the form of hospitals and retreats, and large numbers of them accompany the armies of the Astra Militarum. They are often found as part of an Imperial Crusade serving in battlefield hospitals on board warships in orbit.
Sisters Hospitaller often serve in conjunction with members of other Orders of the Adepta Sororitas. Their ability to heal and return wounded Battle-Sisters to the battlefield makes them invaluable allies of the Orders Militant, but their knowledge of genetics also makes them useful to Orders Famulous investigations. At the same time, their command of the anatomy of the human body often leads them to accompany an Inquisitor into the torture chamber.
Ranks
- Legatine - The Legatine is among the highest-ranking sisters in any Order of the Adepta Sororitas. The most skilled of warriors, healers and the greatest spiritual leaders the Sororitas possess, they inspire great devotion in those that follow them and are political powers in their own right in the Imperium. Most legatines go on to serve as a canoness preceptor, prioress or even the canoness superior of their Order.
- Sister Superior - A sister superior is essentially a non-commissioned officer who leads a single squad of battle-sisters, and is thus equivalent to a Space Marine sergeant, though the ranks is used by sisters in Militant and non-militant Orders alike. This senior non-commissioned rank is held by battle-sisters of sister superior rank that have been singled out and nominated for the honour by their fellow sisters, recognising those who possess the ability to lead. Sisters superior are inspirational leaders, acting in the forefront of the Adepta Sororitas' work, demanding unflinching obedience to the Rule of the Sororitas and unwavering faith in their subordinates. They are often given command of forces on the battlefield, field hospitals in active war zones or particular missions of investigation, as the purpose of their individual Order or the Inquisitor they serve warrants.
- Sister - The lowest rank of the Adepta Sororitas; a sister has fully accepted the Rule of the Adepta Sororitas and taken her vows to the Emperor.
- Novitiate - A novitiate is a candidate for the Sisterhood who has simply to take her final vows to the Emperor to be recognised as a full sister.
- Cantus - By the time a novice sister reaches the rank of cantus she has mastered the fundamentals of her duties and may have already been chosen to serve within a particular Order, but the Adepta demand that each sister know the fundamental skills of all Orders so she can be a multi-purpose tool in the Emperor's hand -- to cure, learn, counsel or kill. It is as a cantus that she will train her hands in these skills before being assigned her final place in an Order.
- Constantia - In the final stages of the noviciate, before they are raised to the full rank of sister adepta, the novice's learning encompasses the use of the Chamber Militant's sacredly ordained weaponry such as the bolter and resistance to the deceits of heresy. At this rank the sister confirms her complete devotion to the Imperial Creed.
- Novice - This is the lowest rank within the Adepta Sororitas. The Rule of the Orders is harsh and a novice sister must endure many hardships during her training. Self-denial, rigid discipline and religious contemplation are indivisible parts of their training. They are armed not only with skills needed to defend the Adeptus Ministorum but also with training that teaches them to fan the flames of their faith into a roaring blaze.
Orders Hospitaller Ranks
- Almoness Advance - This is the senior-most rank of the Sisters Hospitaller. These sisters are as hardened to the horrors of the battlefield as any war veteran. Many of these experienced Hospitallers are called upon by both the Inquisition and the Astra Militarum to put their extensive skills and knowledge of medicae to darker ends in the service of the Imperium.
- Curia Advance - A senior rank of the sisters of the Orders Hospitaller. The Curia Advance has been forged in the crucible of war and catastrophe, honed by faith and discipline. These sisters' skills encompass not only the healer's arts, but also personal survival and the stewardship of those under their care in the harshest and most deadly of circumstances. These Hospitallers must know when to heal, when to give the final mercy and when to watch for the hidden enemy.
- Hospitaller Advance - A rank of the sisters of the Orders Hospitaller, who serve as physicians and offer palliative care at the frontlines of the Imperium's many war zones and disaster areas. To the common citizenry, they are saintly figures beyond reproach, but they are no more forgiving nor compassionate than the battle-sisters of the Orders Militant if confronted by heresy or the works of the Ruinous Powers.
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