r/necromunda • u/genoside07 Palanite Enforcer • 1d ago

Discusion (N26) Hermiatus, the Second Son how does it work??

I’ve read a few things on Hermiatus; he was infected but added himself to the genetic code of the genestealer. So, he has his own miniature spawn group with hive mind and when he dies a new one is spawned?? Help me understand what is happening.

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u/Naive_Amphibian8179 1d ago

Lorewise the swarm decides when it needs to rebuild a specific DNA subtype, be it genestealers, "old one eye" or a 'gaunt. Hermiatus is just a different type of subtype. His role seems to be a type of medic and cult leader to this abandoned 'nid swarm.

In game, its in the rules

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u/Commercial_Arm5593 1d ago

Lorewise or ruleswise? 😉

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u/Major_Ad7526 1d ago

Hermiatus was a Magos Biologis that was studying a way to protect humanity against Genestealer infection in the depths of Hive Secundus. The experiments went wrong, the Genestealer(s) he was using to experiment on got free and all hell broke loose. Hermiatus was infected himself, tried to escape and was hunted down (and likely terminated) by the Inquisition (this was actually a 40K campaign/mission in the Rogue Trader era) and Hive Secundus was blown to bits and surrounded by a wall to keep any Genestealer monstrosities in, and any foolhardy adventurers out there (not with complete success).

The Genestealer(s) that escaped formed a cult using the surviving populace of the hive, but due to the radiation of the destroyed hive they are a twisted reflection of the usual Genestealer cults. Other cults on Necromunda actually despise them as a malformed version of their own perfected form. There is even some background somewhere (possibly the Secundus rulebook from N23) that the Tyranids themselves are turned away by the psychic beacon of the Malstrain.

Somehow Hermiatus became imprinted on the Malstrain cult. Possibly it is some sort of psychic echo, or his DNA was somehow combined with the Genestealers that he experimented on. Maybe the Malstrain Patriarch has created him to cure them of their curse. Whatever the reason, every so often a twisted version of Hermiatus will be spawned by the cult.

In game he is just a Dramatis Personae that can be hired by a Malstrain or Malstrain corrupted gang for a lower cost (other gangs can hire him too, though as an Arbitrator I'd probably want some good reasoning for this or maybe turn it into a sort of hook for the campaign, risking the gang getting corrupted etc.).