I think they might do that, as they are indeed the elite of the IOM. Problem is how to fashion it, its all black and gold, and the powered armour is often not good for an infiltration-regiment.
Then again I think you have to have genetics to be offered to connect to even a very rudimentary suit of power armour. If you ain't, then you ain't which can explain a few things.
Last edited by Beaviz81; 26-04-2012 at 19:18.
In, short Power armour is exceptionally hard to get hold of and even harder to maintain.
If a Commissar got hold of a suit he'd have to maintain and power it not to mention find someone to train him to use it and/or implant him with the MIU required to to operate it easily.
Originally Posted by Spider-pope
You have to remember saying commisar is like saying priest its not a singular rank but a broad classification it could refrance your local churches newest father or the pope. one of them has no real infulence or resorces the other is basicly a world leader.
Most commisars even ones that are part of bigger command structures dont have the type of resorces or power to get there hands on power armor. Those few who are high enough up the chain of command to get it tend to be so far removed from the actual battlefeild that it would be almost useless. when you spend more time in formal dinners, courting favor and reading stratigic reports from battles lightyears away power armor is pointless.
As written in the Cain books, they don't have a rank structure- but length of service and number of commendations determine which takes the lead in situations like tribunals.
Commissar Lord/Lady is an informal term commonly used for those whose service and commendations are long and numerous.
Even Yarrick I expect wouldn't be able to get himself a suit of Power Armour... He does on the otherhand have a pimping ride (that he might have trouble getting into with a suit of bulky armour when he's not rescuing it from the clutches of Greenskins).
Oh, I'm sure Yarrick could get a suit of power armor if he wanted to. He just doesn't want Ghazzie to think he's getting soft in his old age.
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Commissars General are absolutely necessary; someone has to have hiring/firing powers, at the least.
The schola hires and death fires.
I don't see why there should necessarily be any hierarchy. They can be self-policing. And that, as long as there's nobody in charge that they can put a gun to, others with greater numbers are free to disobey them if their actions are deemed counterproductive. See von Strabb exiling Yarrick to Hades. It seems like a lot of the Imperial system works that way.
Not to mention Catachan-related workplace hazards.
That's pretty reductive. It's nice to be insightful and explain how things could work if they had to work that way, but unlike other cases like marine motor pools, it's not necessary to infer anything when their are good and consistent descriptions. The Compendium material on commissars and commissar training squads indicates a hierarchy that involves a senior regimental commissar placing cadets under line commissars and later certifying them fit. Commissars are definitely not minted out of scholam graduation if they serve first as cadets or sometimes have initial careers in the storm trooper regiment before mid-career transfer. This Abnett version of the career path is not unique to those novels, it is central and original to the Priestly-vintage concept.
Astartes armour has the neural links, other forms of power armour just work off the wearers movements.
A commissar assigned to the general staff might be able to wear it, especially if the officer he's advising wears it, there'd be enough reason there to get the AM to build a suit for them - and if there's any regiments that do wear it (there's probably a few out there, somewhere), a Commissar assigned to them would wear it too.
I think Commissars in the Rogue Trader era guard list had access to the random armour table (I know they had access to some of the others, but whether they had access to all I can't remember), so they could potentially have worn it then.
Most Warnasters wouldn't need power armor as much of a general's work is administrative in nature
tell that to Warmaster Slaydo :PMost Warnasters wouldn't need power armor as much of a general's work is administrative in nature
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I thought it was intended to be something like Inquisitors- with a fairly flat hierarchy- though trainees are outranked by full members.
Doesn't Cain wear Carapace armor under his trench-coat doohick?gaunt wears the armour of plot, and cain has the armour of awesome. they dont need anything else
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I can't imagine something like the commisars working as a flat hierarchy. Having a handful of commisars standing around bickering over a decision is not going to impress the rank and file, much less the officers so they will need some sort of hierarchy to facilitate speedy decision making for when there are multiple commisars present, whatever they be from different regiments or all serving inside the same.
In the Cain books "length of service and number of commendations" are the factors that determine who outranks who.
Most of the time it won't matter- they generally don't make command decisions, they just provide advice. Only when a commander is breaking rules will they shoot him and take over his role.
I thought Id weigh in here with something no one has pointed out. According to Dark Heresy/rouge trader/etc non-marine power armour has a use life of around 8 hours before it needs recharging. Now this is different for marines and SoB which have a fusion reactor on the back. For only having a limited amount of use seems uncharacteristic as they are engaged in long/relentless battles as opposed to the lightning/surgical strikes that the Adeptus Astartes conduct.
No, Lord Commisar is a rank, as is Commisar-General. There's just less ranks in their organisation. Colonel-Commisars and such seem to occur when a Commisar takes a more active role in command of a unit, ie. a definition of a Guard rank is required for chain of command.
Could a commisar choose to wear power armour?
Yes he can..
Power armor is not hard to get if sisters of battle can wear it so can commissars and anyone else really, power armor can be bought and sold, its not hard to imagine a commissar (after training) choosing to get power armor if he wants, I doubt imperium will provide him one though...
Maybe that's more a Gaunt's Ghosts or Rebel Winter thing?
The 5E IG codex doesn't say anything about Lord commissars being "promoted after exemplary service."
While it's possible that the stuff in Sandy Mitchell's books is subject to Unreliable Narrator (Vail may not know as much about the Commissariat as she claims), or retconning, it seemed pretty clear.
Page 333: The Traitor's Hand:
page 225: The Last Ditch1: Since Beije had no direct authority over Cain, or any other commissar for that matter, his accusations would have to be looked into by a tribunal of senior members of the commissariat (Commissars not having a structure of rank in the conventional sense, seniority would be determined by length of service and number of commendations.) If found guilty, Cain would be executed or remanded to a penal legion by the authority of the tribunal as a whole rather than any one individual; in this manner the Commissariat is able to regulate itself reasonably effectively, despite its members being essentially autonomous in most regards.
1: As the Commissariat doesn't have a hierarchical structure, like that of the Imperial Guard, seniority is determined purely by length of service and number of commendations. In the last century or so the convention of referring to the longest serving and most decorated of veterans as Lord (or Lady) Commissars has gained some currency, although Cain, who would most certainly have qualified for such an honorific, disdained the practice, and always refused to be addressed in such a manner.
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