The Amaranthine Syndicate is a young trade organization formed on the trailing/Coreward Border region of the Calixis Sector and one whose influence is quickly spreading from the troubled worlds of Hazeroth through Josian Reach. It’s growth has been so rapid, that in a few short decades since its inception, it has managed to achieve small footholds in the Koronus Expanse .

The Amaranthine Syndicate operates exactly as one might expect of any successful trade cartel. It is made up of a diverse group of private commercial interests that trade between the worlds on the Calixis Sector’s Trailing border and has recently made inroads into the more established areas of the Josian Reach, as well as the northern edge of the Ixaniad Sector. The Syndicate’s membership includes independent free-trader captains and local void born clans, as well as planet-based merchant houses, trade guilds, prospectors, petty nobles, and the like. While these members continue to operate largely independently, the Syndicate acts on their behalf to cement trade agreements, negotiate settlements, and quell discord between its members.

The Syndicate’s ruling body, known within the organisation as the “Principals,” also provides resources, financing, and armed force and punitive measures at its members’ request. These Principals demand that members give them a cut of their profits, that potentially useful information be reported back to them, and that when they do make a direct request of their members, it is carried out promptly, expediently, and without question.

However, its recent activities roused the suspicions of some with evidence of involvement in unlawful trades, smuggling, and backing trade wars. In recent years, individuals linked to the group have been the subject of capture and destruction by the Arbites and Navy, and several Syndicate vessels have been found in possession of forbidden xenos artifacts. Some have even been implicated in pirate attacks, horrific massacres on isolated outposts, slaver raids, and other atrocities. In each case, the Syndicate has disowned those involved and covered its tracks well. However, these incidents have roused the suspicions of the Inquisition’s Ordo Xenos, who suspect that the organizations unlikely meteoric rise is somehow being fueled by a xenos force or agency that has secretly infiltrated the organization and is now in control of it. These incidents have also drawn the ire of the Kasballica Mission, who are worried about a new competitor possibly threatening their dominance in the Expanse’s Cold Trade and about what Inquisitorial attention this new upstart group’s indiscretions might bring to their own activities.

The Amaranthine Syndicate and the Current Campaign

Inquisitor Sand and his acolytes have only had limited contact with the Amaranthine Syndicate- limited only to negotiating and fighting with some of its members on the forbidden world of Mara when both competing factions were exploring the planet’s surface for artifacts related to the infamous Rogue Trader Eramus Haarlock. But some of Sand’s acolytes have had run-ins with two individuals, Master Nonesuch, and later, Miss Book, who appear to be somehow involved with the Amaranthine Syndicate (possibly as employers or members). Both individuals were found to be extremely powerful in combat and are suspected of being some type of unidentified Xenos species. Both escaped destruction following a confrontation with Sand’s acolytes on the planet of Mara.