Creation of Skitarii

By Sinpoder, in Rogue Trader

Alright. I am currently in a campaign with the great homebrewer, and someone I think we all respect, Errant Knight. I have been in the campaign for nearly a year now and I have been extremely happy with the results of my character and I would like to think I added a lot to the group. Now that my character is fairly high rank, I need some more help to get the many projects I have in mind done due to the fact I am only one person/machine/genetor/thing.

Anyway, Skitarii are basically the equivalent of Imperial Guard for the AdMech, though as we will all admit more durable though far less in numbers for various reasons. So, my group may need some expendable assets that are a little tougher then imperial guard but can still get into those places our Baneblades and tanks can't get into. From what I understand about the Skitarii they can be made though basically growing a human and forcing them to be loyal to the AdMech in question. So, lets assume this assumption is correct. That means that if I were to grow a human, does anyone have any idea how long that takes in Canon?

Second, due to the fact that I am currently also working on... several different projects, some of which might be deemed heretical by the Mechanicus if they ever found out about them but that is not important, I will need to get some tech priests to work on this for me. I was considering going to get full blown Magos to work on this project for me, and lets assume I find someone that is specialized in making Skitarii as I am sure there are Magos that do that. How long does it take to train a Skitarii? A single Skitarii. With all of the hyper-indoctrination and all of that nonsense, how quickly can you make something that can function as a Skitarii.

All of this will be done on one of our planets that can support this level of activity. I would love to hear your thoughts and comments on this idea.

Well according to Codex: Skitarii the process is a well-kept secret to anyone outside the immediate Cult Mechanicus. The transformation from vat-grown clone soldier or mind-wiped convict to a Skitarii also varies from Forge World to Forge World, though some consistencies are found throughout.

  1. Their eyes are removed and replaced with rugged, goggle-like augmetics that not only enhance their sight and boost their aim, but also record everything the Skitarii perceives during combat. These recordings are then harvested at the end of each battle by the AdMech to better understand their foes' tactics.
  2. Their lungs are replaced with rebreather systems to filter out the polluted gases that fill the air upon Forge Worlds.
  3. Their legs are replaced with powerful prosthetic limbs.
  4. All are implanted with data-tethers that link them to their masters in orbit.

As for the time it would take to create such a soldier I would say with suitable candidate, like say a mind-scrubbed former Storm Trooper or House Guard, the process should be at most a few months. The majority of the Skitarii's prowess comes from their implants and the Doctrina Imperatives that drive them and guide their shots in battle, their skill at arms without those to me would be comparable to the soldiers of the Tempestus Scions and their like.