After reading through Mechanicum and doing some browsing through the Lexicanum and the Deathwatch core, I've started wondering about the Knight Worlds. The section in Deathwatch that lists Imperial forces in the Jericho Reach mentions a 'Korvath Knight Household', so obviously the Knights are anything but retconned or extinct. So with that in mind, what would the best origin to represent someone from a Knight World? Forge World doesn't seem quite right, and Feral World is right out. So, Imperial World? Noble Born? Or something new?

Why not "Forge World"? While the Knight Worlds are not a ForgeWorld, the mindset and livestyle the Origin suggests might be very fittig to some classes of a KnightWorld.

Knight worlds haven't been fleshed out as actual settings, really. They're clearly not Forge Worlds - they're worlds that are feudally tied to the Adeptus Mechanicus, but they're not used for the production of anything other than the Knights themselves. (or maybe some agriculture based on the megafauna that live on the world.)

If you were going to have a character from a Knight world, I'd suggest there are 3 principle types of people on the planet:-

(1) Members of the arcane tech-brotherhood who construct and maintain the Knights (no doubt now heavily infiltrated by the Adeptus Mechanicus)

(2) The actual Knight pilots themselves, who are effectively feudal warriors with some unique tech-skills

(3) The serfs who live at the bottom of the social pecking order.

Type 1 characters could be used as tech priests, though perhaps with a unique bespoke background.

Type 2 characters would probably work best as Guardsmen, possibly with a very detailed alternate rank scheme starting at rank 1. You may also need some unique Pilot (Knight Walker) skills to accompany the concept.

Type 3 characters could really come from any archetype apart from tech priest.

All three types would benefit from a new homeworld package. I wouldn't make it either a Forge World or Feral World package; I'd go for something inbetween, perhaps with a few very specialist tech skills thrown in. Perhaps some sort of Tech skill related to the maintenance of Knight walkers as an optional skill?

I would make a Knight World origin effectively the same as Imperial World but skew everything to the Mechanicus instead of Imperium and tweak a couple of things.

My view of Knight and Titan pilots is more of Nobel Adepts with a tweaked Starting package and unique MIU. Guardsman could work, but the Adept seems more fitting to me.

Imho "Imperial World" with a fitting bachground package would represent the Knight World origin best, short of designing a whole new origin specifically for this heritage.

I always considered them a "classic" example of a Warhammer 40K Feudal world.

Nerd King said:

Which would be a Imperial World home world again.

It's an easy one to tweak, they have a lot of 'treat as basic skills', replace with tech use, Common lore: Tech, Trade: agriculture perhaps change the supior origins (+3 willpower) for +3 int.

The penalty (of -5 to forbidden lores) doesn't make as much sense, possibly replace it with -5 to common and scholastic lores directly involving the Imperium.

If you wanted a specific Knight pilot character then you can add the required skills (and MIU) as part of a background package.

Given that there's only really two things certain about a Knight World-

Adeptus Mechanicus explorators arrived at some point pre-imperium on long range ships, got forgotten about and end up closely based on a feudal governance. Later, when things calmed down slightly they are slowly rediscovered, the Ad-Mech move in to claim their country cousins out in the back blocks of the galaxy and the Imperium makes use of their mini-titans.

Few different ways of looking at neofeudalism if you don't mind poaching ideas off other systems...

1: Megacorporations focused on production, you are born into the corp, your kids will be born into the corp and the corporation is all you know along with your designated employment in it. Insular, self sufficient and entirely based upon divergent Adeptus Mechanicus principles. So there would be very little Imperial Creed bandied about and even less church influence.

2: Clans... very much Mechwarrior clans that have been out into the boonies and have their own tightly knit social strata and demographics based on Adeptus Mechanicus principles, however they would consider themselves allies of the Ad-Mech first and the silly Imperials you fight near sometimes as being those guys that die a lot and get trodden on if they're in the way. Extremely arrogant and almost borderline heretical, but they keep you around because you f**k up the enemy so bad!

Im more inclined towards the "Clan" type of mechwarrior feudalism than megacorp.

from france

this are old quotes from an unused site since 2008. their are not mine. so i can't confirme but i am pretty sure they are correct.

The Tech-Priests’ spacefleets found an anarchic galaxy where the ancient confederacy of interdependent human planets no longer existed. They discovered that the Eldar too were facing social degeneration. Many of the Eldar had taken to the worship of the Dark Gods of Chaos, and everywhere the Eldar worlds were falling into ruin. Some Eldar had already chosen to abandon their homeworlds and set up new colonies of Exodites untainted by the evil of Chaos. The Tech-Priests also found that wild Ork warbands rampaged throughout the galaxy, looting and destroying, causing unrest everywhere.

The human worlds discovered by the Tech-Priests retained little of their old technology. They had devolved into feudal states ruled by aristocratic nobles who welcomed the Tech-Priests as long awaited saviors. Those that did not welcome the Tech-Priests did not survive long. The Tech-Priests settled amongst these feudal empires, or Knight Worlds, choosing planets that were mineral rich where they could rebuild their industries. The established contacts between the Knights, trading with their worlds and investigating the ancient ruins where surviving technology could still sometimes be found. The Knights provided manpower and security against enemies such as marauding Orks and land-hungry Eldar Exodites. In return the Tech-Priests provided technical expertise and help rebuilding their planets.

Over the millennia the Forge Worlds became powerful and the Knight Worlds flourished under their wing. The Tech-Priests and Knights became mutually dependent and each Forge World became the hub of an empire consisting of the forge World and its surrounding Knight Worlds. The Knights learned much from the Tech-Priests and their societies were gradually transformed into technically sophisticated cultures. Many of the Forge Worlds were successful in maintaining sporadic contact with each other, and the Tech-Priests’ obsession with knowledge ensured that discoveries on one world were down-loaded to altars throughout the galaxy.

The most important innovations that the Tech-Priests brought to the Knight Worlds were the fighting machines called Knights. These machines were one-man versions of a Titan, much smaller and less powerful than a real Titan, but far more suited to the mobile style of warfare prevalent amongst the nobility of the Knight Worlds.

Today these Knights fight alongside the Titans and form a reserve of troops which can be called up into the Titan Legions when required. Each machine is piloted by a noble of the Knight Worlds, a Knight warrior within a Knight machine, for these worlds have maintained their feudal societies over the millennia. Indeed, the acquisition of technology and the active support of the Tech-Priests enabled the warrior nobility to strengthen its position of power on their worlds.

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On many of the worlds, groups of artificers and technicians became the most important of the nobles' subjects. They initially simply maintained the Knights for the nobles but soon learnt to speak with one voice, threatening to withdraw their services from any Lord who failed to take heed. They styled themselves as a priesthood for the half forgotten mysteries of technology and were called Sacristans. As their power grew, they arbitrated between the different houses to ensure they did not wipe one another out in bitter feuds. The ever-present dangers of their worlds meant the Knights could not survive wars of attrition and genocide, and this necessitated the use of chivalric values to settle disputes. Eventually the Sacristans on many worlds ritualised the virtues of Honour, Duty and Valour and passed on these traditions from generation to generation. With the acceptance of these values the nobles became known as The Chivalry.

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Often, a Knight world would be affiliated to a Titan forgeworld, producing food for it, while the Sacristans would come under the control of the Adeptus Mechanicus. Other Knight worlds were left with a large degree of autonomy, required only to produce food and obey the call to arms when given.
The Imperial Cult was introduced in such a way that the Chivalry could be called on by the Imperium to enter a crusade. Old rivalries forgotten, the Knights (especially younger ones) would form family units to fight with Titan Orders or the Imperial Guard.
Young Knights sometimes don't have their own armour, but train on that of their father. When fighting in a crusade they are given their own armour, built on a Titan forgeworld. Once they return home they are able to keep the armour and form their own house.
Thus units of Knights are often fielded by Titan Orders and the Imperial Guard. During the Horus Heresy, Knights fought on both sides - many of the agriworlds declared allegiance to Warmaster Horus and were only brought back into the Imperium after decades, even centuries, of terrible armed struggle.
Knights usually fight as single units from each house which means they are usually seen in large groups. After a period of time on crusade, the Chivalry can return home, well-rewarded with loot and new armour. Normally the Wardens stay on the homeworld to protect the keep but occasionally they have taken the field when required, more than compensating for their age with stoic tenacity.

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Knight suits are similar to Titans in that they are controlled through a direct mind link. Human Knight suits do not have a permanently imprinted personality. Instead the Knight sits in a throne, which is imprinted with aspects of his own personality. The throne is plugged in to the armoured Knight suit and may be transferred from one Knight suit to another, though this is a rare occurrence usually only undertaken if the old suit is damaged beyond repair or the Knight wishes to become a Warden, passing on his old Knight suit to a younger relation. Imprinting your personality on a throne is a lengthy, sometimes dangerous, business. It has become a rite of passage for young nobles - this is how they become an adult. When he is old enough, a noble son who wishes to become a Squire undertakes a vigil in the family's chapel or sacristy, remaining seated in the throne throughout the long night. He is surrounded by the ancient thrones and battle banners of his forefathers which are kept in the sacristy, reminding him of the long traditions of honour and chivalry he is expected to maintain. The imprinting process tends to exaggerate dominant aspects of the young noble's personality, especially with regard to the way he is feeling during his vigil. If he is scared, the personality imprint will always be scared, making the suit difficult to control in combat. If the noble is angry with someone (say a brother who made fun of the noble before his vigil) the personality imprint will always hate that person, even if the noble has got over it.
When a noble dies, his throne retains some of his character. Nobody else can use it to control the suit until they have overlaid their personality onto the throne. It is still possible, however, to communicate with the personalities in the throne. Thus they are often kept and placed in the family's sacristy, a direct link with the ancestors of a noble house. It is the height of dishonour to deny a family the opportunity to salvage the thrones of Knights who have fallen in battle and the family will go to any lengths to get them back.
Note that the unarmed suits used by herdsmen are not controlled in the same way. They have a simple mind-link like that used on a Dreadnought. This makes them slow, lumbering machines when compared to the sleek thoroughbreds used by the nobles. The Sentinel walker used by the Imperial Guard is in fact a copy of the tried and tested Drover suit adapted for combat with the addition of basic armament.

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Each of the Imperial noble houses that field Knights have a livery of two colours. They use these, with adapted Imperial heraldry, to denote rank. Squires use the basic livery colour (usually the colour that is dominant on the household's banner). Knights use the basic colour halved with the secondary colour, and Lords use the two colours in a quartered pattern. The actual areas painted in different colours varies from house to house and between the different designs of Knight, but the basic pattern is always retained. Wardens are usually coloured all white, with a single panel in their household colours in a pattern appropriate to their rank. Emblems on the war machines and their banners are adapted from the main household banners. These banners usually show a heroic ancestor in battle with a mythological monster as their central image. Campaign banners and emblems are often added while the Knights are on crusade with Imperial forces.

this one is right but since it 's note a quote but a commentary of a player it s less prooved.

these knight titans are built like their larger brothers, the battle titans and have many of the same features. They have a strong machine spirit, they have power fields (weaker void shields) and powerful weaponry. There are three patterns of the knight titans that perform different roles on the battlefield just like the full size titans.

The Warden is the largest and rarest knight titan. It stands at about 2/3 the height of a Warhound titan and carries very powerful weapons. It most often has missile batteries on the shoulders and powerful energy weapons in place of arms. It is most often used to support its smaller brethren at a distance or to level enemy fortifications.

The Paladin is the most common knight titan and is a bit smaller than the Warden. It carries an energy weapon or battle cannon on one arm and a close combat weapon on the other arm. The Paladin is the most versatile pattern of knight titan, because it has decent firepower and the ability to do devastating close combat attacks. This is the main workhorse of the knight titan orders.

Lastly, is the Lancer pattern knight titan. This is the smallest pattern knight titan and is a little taller than a space marine dreadnought. The Lancer is armed mostly for ranged combat and is used as a scout for the knight titan orders in a similar manner to how the Warhound titan is used for full scale Titan Legions.

When it comes to battle these various patterns can be used together to complement each other on the battlefield or sometimes operate in groups of three for smaller missions. First and foremost they defend the worlds they are stationed on, whether it is from Eldar Pirates or a full scale invasion. They also receive requests for assistance from various other Imperial organizations and the Adeptus Mechanicus. Most of the time they are not powerful enough to assist in major Imperial crusades and their lager brothers the Titan Legions fill this role. However, they are often the saviors of remote isolated Imperial worlds who are under siege from the countless enemies of the Imperium. They are also heavily used to provide heavy security for the Adeptus Mechanicus explorator fleets exploring the dangerous edges of the Imperium. Most Knight Titan Orders also have some other form of military assets usually in the form of their own Skitarii. These Skitarii are often less well equipped then those of larger forgeworlds or Titan Legions, but they do provide security for the knight titans especially when their knights are not present at the orders fortress.

so for me they are agricultural world under control of the mechanicus so aside imperial world with a strong mechanicus presence and easier acess to thecnologies than usual agri world. on those world you may find imperial faith and omnissiah faith side by side.