| rdfs:comment | - As with many of the Korps’ specialists, the Quartermasters’ origins lie during the bloody civil war that had torn apart Krieg in the middle of the 41st Millennium, when loyalists and secessionists fought over the radioactive ruins of Krieg’s former Hive cities. In the blasted, winter-shrouded and irradiated wastes that now formed the surface, death came in multiple forms; some where obvious to the sight, an onrushing shell or a bayonet-wielding enemy, and other were far more subtle such as a torn enviro-suit or seal or the colourless and odourless clouds of toxic gases. With only very limited resources at their disposition, especially in terms of medical supplies, battlefield triage became essential to survival as a whole, the loyalists loathe to "waste" their precious supplies on soldiers
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| abstract | - As with many of the Korps’ specialists, the Quartermasters’ origins lie during the bloody civil war that had torn apart Krieg in the middle of the 41st Millennium, when loyalists and secessionists fought over the radioactive ruins of Krieg’s former Hive cities. In the blasted, winter-shrouded and irradiated wastes that now formed the surface, death came in multiple forms; some where obvious to the sight, an onrushing shell or a bayonet-wielding enemy, and other were far more subtle such as a torn enviro-suit or seal or the colourless and odourless clouds of toxic gases. With only very limited resources at their disposition, especially in terms of medical supplies, battlefield triage became essential to survival as a whole, the loyalists loathe to "waste" their precious supplies on soldiers with low chances of survival or which could not be readily returned to the battlefield. Wounded soldiers trapped in no man’s land or behind enemy lines were counted as fatalities unless they had the means to return to their lines on their own. It was the Quartermaster’s task to judge the severity of the soldier’s wound and if he should and would be treated. Those that were too hurt to be anything other than a liability for their unit and company would receive "the blessing of the Emperor's peace" - an honourable field execution. This explains why in stark contrast to the medical personnel of other regiments, Quartermasters are always armed, but the Quartermaster’s task does not end with the soldier’s demise. Even in death, a soldier carries valuable tools of equipment that can benefit his comrades or given to new recruits as part of their basic kit: everything useful from weapons and ammunition, to pieces of clothing such as the iconic greatcoat of the Death Korps or regimental-issued socks will be stripped form the dead Guardsman. This task often requires the Quartermaster to venture alone into no man’s land, retrieving from the dead what the living need to continue the fight. This has often led outsiders to compare the Quartermaster to scavenger or carrion-eaters - sometimes quite literally picking the dead clean. The redistribution of arms and ammunition still count amongst the Quartermaster’s principal duties as well as the ministration of emergency treatment to injured Guardsman. In the modern day Death Korps, the Quartermasters also serve as tactical observers and logistics experts, monitoring the expenditure of ammunition during the battle, calculating attrition rates or spotting enemy guns and strongpoints which they then report to the competent officer. Additionally, as an incarnation of the Death Korps Cult of Sacrifice, the Quartermasters are charged with the deliverance of final rites to those too seriously injured to fight on. Amongst the Guardsmen, it is held in general belief that the deathmask of a Quartermaster should be the last thing a dying trooper should see.
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