Arco-flagellation is a form of capital punishment in which the condemned is transformed into a living cybernetic weapon known as an Arco-Flagellant. The punishment is carried out by the Tech-priests of the Adeptus Mechanicus but usually ordered by the Ecclesiarchy or the Inquisition. Arco-flagellation can be used to punish those who have committed any number of crimes against the Imperium of Man, but most commonly it is used to punish those who have expressed heretical views, and utterances or carried out heretical actions.