THE
BENE GESSERIT
SISTERHOOD

The Bene Gesserit Sisterhood was formed as a school for women to enlighten themselves and expand their minds.  The Bene Gesserit are a powerful political force, sitting alongside the Guild as silent partners with the Great Houses and the Emperor in the CHOAM Company.  It is an ancient establishment that would train women mentally and physically ever since the Butlerian Jihad destroyed the "thinking machines." The location of their headquarters is kept a secret, known only as Chapterhouse planet.

The Mother School of the Bene Gesserit is located on Wallach IX, ninth planet of Laoujin.  It is here that the acolytes are initiated through the gom jabbar.  The gom jabbar is known as "the high handed enemy," a specific poison needle tipped with meta-cyanide.  The acolyte is forced to endure hideous agony which is caused by a box-like mechanism in which the acolyte places their hand.  The box inputs burning pain directly into the nerves without doing any physical damage, however, should the acolyte attempt to withdraw her hand before the test is concluded, the Bene Gesserit Proctor stabs the gom jabbar into the acolyte's neck.  The point of this death-awareness test is to tell whether or not the subject is human by testing their willpower.

Prana-bindu training causes the initiates to become much more aware of their own bodies and the chemical reactions and processes within.  Prana-musculature is a reference to the body's muscles when considered as unites for ultimate training. Bindu-nervature relates to the human nervous system, especially to nerve training. As they advance in skill, Bene Gesserit can even go into a special form of self-induced catalepsis called a bindu suspension.

This training enables the Bene Gesserit to undergo the spice agony required to ascend to the status of Bene Gesserit Reverend Mother.  The Reverend Mother is a Proctor of the Bene Gesserit who has transformed the "illuminating poison" within her body, raising herself to a higher level of awareness.  This "illuminating poison" is known to the Fremen as the Water of Life, the liquid exhalation of a sandworm when submerged in water, which is almost like a corrosive poison to it.  This poison allows a dying Reverend Mother to pass her memories and the memories of all previous Reverend Mothers to the subject taking the "illuminating poison."  These memories, once acquired, become known as Other Memories.

The Bene Gesserit are also known for their other institutions, particularly attempting to shape human history.  The Bene Gesserit have the utmost skill in conditioning, and their Imprinters are the finest conditioners they have to offer.  Imprinters create certain impressions in the subject's psyche through their relationship to them, causing the person to develop a psychological weakness, allowing the Bene Gesserit to manipulate them.  Likewise, their organization, the Missionaria Protectiva is charged with sowing infectious superstitions on primitive worlds, then opening those regions to exploitations by the Bene Gesserit.

However, they are best known for their manipulation of genetics.  They possess a huge Mating Index and massive lists of Breeding Records which form a basic guideline for the manipulation of bloodlines toward the production of the Kwisatz Haderach, or superbeing.  The Kwisatz Haderach literally means "the shortening of the way."  He is essentially a male Reverend Mother, the only male in existence who can undergo the spice agony and survive drinking the Water of Life.  He is a man whose organic mental powers can bridge space and time, much like the Guild Navigators, only without the deep dependence on spice.

The Bene Gesserit received more than they bargained for with the birth of Paul Atreides.  He was not planned for by the Bene Gesserit, and indeed angered many of them, especially when he turned out to be the Kwisatz Haderach.  And the reprocussions have reshaped history.

Reverend Mother…70 pts per model

 

Weapons

Laspistol and slip-tip.

Armor

Flak armor (6+ on save)

Wargear

The Bene Gesserit Reverend Mother may be given additional weapons chosen from the Armor, Assault Weapons and Grenades section of the Wargear list.

Special Rules

Break Tests: Because of their rigorous training and intense mental conditioning, the Bene Gesserit are not easily frightened. Therefore, should any Bene Gesserit Reverend Mother fail a break test, she is shaken rather than broken, and the same rules that apply to shaken Space Marines apply to them as well.

Psychics: A Bene Gesserit Reverend Mother has a psychic mastery level of 3. She may receive powers from the Bene Gesserit deck.

Voice: A Bene Gesserit Reverend Mother may use the Voice upon an opponent or a retreating friendly squad or individual. The Voice is the combined training which allows an adept to control others merely by selecting tone shadings of her voice. She can command any single model within 4" to cease firing, fire on a friendly model, retreat, or rally. Use of the Voice requires no Force Cards and cannot be nullified. Any enemy models affected are required to take a Leadership test with a -2 modifier to resist the Voice. It does not work on psychics, due to the high level of mental training necessary to harness psychic powers, which generates a high resistance to the Voice.

 

Bene Gesserit…40 pts per model