Thrymr XII Impressed

Despite the name, the XII Impressed are a Planetary Defence Force regiment composed of a mix of volunteers and press-ganged members, drawn from Ravine Kotkovo. The regiment is generally fielded as a Pioneer infantry force, with the troops relatively lighted armed and mounted in poor-quality Chimeras, second-rate Valkyries and bulk transport vehicles of local manufacture. The mechanised nature of the regiment owes much to the nature of their role, as they mainly operate outside the protective warmth of the Ravines.

The XII Impressed are not a glorious regiment of the Guard, and are not made up of the best of the best. Their troops are slightly better than common conscripts, but only just. The Ravines of Thrymr produce poor-quality men and women: slight, wiry and with a variety of afflictions ranging from the physical (sores, vitamin D deficiency, rickets, poor muscle tone), mental (stimm-addiction, alcoholism and subterranean mania) to the spiritual (morale ague, lack of spirit, and poor piety). Most volunteers join to escape the drudgery of manual labour or personal debt, while many other members are press-ganged in huge annual intakes of prisoners, hive gangs and other ne'er-do-wells. Despite this, the lifestyle does attract some upstanding members of society – generally those who wish to live their lives under the sky and stars.