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I'm putting together a BA successor chapter and my chapter has a slightly different view on the Black Rage, instead of seeking a cure for the chapters flaws my chapter believes that those who succumb to the Black Rage have been given a gift by Sanguinius. They think that to fight "alongside" Sanguinius in his greatest battles or "as" Sanguinius in his final moments is a weapon or tool to be used in the defense of the Imperium.

To this end the chapter honors those who fall to the Black Rage, though they are given the chance to die honorable deaths in battle those few who survive aren't executed but are instead place in stasis until called to fight again, some of these brothers have fought for centuries and are believed to have destinies chosen by Sanguinius.

This finally leads me to my question of how are the Death Company organized in the BA chapter? I know that the BD usually falls on the eve of battle and the rare times it doesn't marines are kept locked up and that the DC isn't an actual company like the rest of the chapter but other than that I haven't found alot of information regarding how the DC is organized?

The death company is always formed on the eve of battle. Survivors - with rare exceptions like Lemartes and Mephiston - are supposedly 'put down' afterwards - that's Astoreth's job, and why he gets the big axe.

There's certainly no formal organisation.

Generally its a unit that is not counted towards a company makeup or such, listed in some chapters as up to 30 marines. They are formed on the eve of battle, taken from their squads, and used more or less as shock troops where the fighting will be hardest. Every force of BA seems to combine their DC together, as its listed as one unit chapterwide, but its more likely companies or groups working together would share one DC force. The entire chapter doesnt come together often.

When not in battle i believe there is a tower mentioned in the second blood angels omnibus where they have members kept, but for battle, look at lemartes for inspiration. He is kept in stasis until he is needed to lead the Death Company. They move him from battle to battle, and they really never give him a rest between them. His life is one large battlefield now.

It seems like you would have more than the maximum number of DC marines in your chapter, so it is likely they would have a dedicated force of them and their own ship that operates outside the chapter, collecting extra DC marines from battlefields and showing up on the tough battlefields with its contents of shock troops. Something like your version of Astorath leading it, perhaps Lemartes.

You would definitely want to make it more organized than other DC's. Perhaps you could make it so that the veneration of the DC has made some better able to control the Black Rage and thus able to lead their brothers in the DC into combat. Perhaps you could create a few of them that were able to return from the madness that took hold of them; this because they were not summarily executed after battle and thus had time to conquer the Ragefire in their hearts.

Thatguyhsagun wrote:
Generally its a unit that is not counted towards a company makeup or such, listed in some chapters as up to 30 marines. They are formed on the eve of battle, taken from their squads, and used more or less as shock troops where the fighting will be hardest. Every force of BA seems to combine their DC together, as its listed as one unit chapterwide, but its more likely companies or groups working together would share one DC force. The entire chapter doesnt come together often.

When not in battle i believe there is a tower mentioned in the second blood angels omnibus where they have members kept, but for battle, look at lemartes for inspiration. He is kept in stasis until he is needed to lead the Death Company. They move him from battle to battle, and they really never give him a rest between them. His life is one large battlefield now.

It seems like you would have more than the maximum number of DC marines in your chapter, so it is likely they would have a dedicated force of them and their own ship that operates outside the chapter, collecting extra DC marines from battlefields and showing up on the tough battlefields with its contents of shock troops. Something like your version of Astorath leading it, perhaps Lemartes.

See my chapter is fleet based with their fortress monastery being a Ramillies class star fort so I'm not so sure about having 1 seperate company of just DC with their own ship and such. Though I do agree that since the chapter doesn't execute those few DC marines that do survive battle they would have a larger number of DC marines than normal. What I'm thinking is having a chamber in the fort (maybe called The Crypt) where DC brothers are kept in stasis and monitored by the Chaplains until they are assigned to a warzone where they may die honorably and do the most good.


Automatically Appended Next Post:

 dusara217 wrote:
You would definitely want to make it more organized than other DC's. Perhaps you could make it so that the veneration of the DC has made some better able to control the Black Rage and thus able to lead their brothers in the DC into combat. Perhaps you could create a few of them that were able to return from the madness that took hold of them; this because they were not summarily executed after battle and thus had time to conquer the Ragefire in their hearts.

The chapter doesn't "venerate" the black rage, they see it as a tool given to marines who have been chosen by Sanguinius. The Red thirst is thought of along the same lines except the Red Thirst can be resisted, it's seen more as a test to strengthen the marines.

 Warboss Imbad Ironskull wrote:

Thatguyhsagun wrote:
Generally its a unit that is not counted towards a company makeup or such, listed in some chapters as up to 30 marines. They are formed on the eve of battle, taken from their squads, and used more or less as shock troops where the fighting will be hardest. Every force of BA seems to combine their DC together, as its listed as one unit chapterwide, but its more likely companies or groups working together would share one DC force. The entire chapter doesnt come together often.

When not in battle i believe there is a tower mentioned in the second blood angels omnibus where they have members kept, but for battle, look at lemartes for inspiration. He is kept in stasis until he is needed to lead the Death Company. They move him from battle to battle, and they really never give him a rest between them. His life is one large battlefield now.

It seems like you would have more than the maximum number of DC marines in your chapter, so it is likely they would have a dedicated force of them and their own ship that operates outside the chapter, collecting extra DC marines from battlefields and showing up on the tough battlefields with its contents of shock troops. Something like your version of Astorath leading it, perhaps Lemartes.

See my chapter is fleet based with their fortress monastery being a Ramillies class star fort so I'm not so sure about having 1 seperate company of just DC with their own ship and such. Though I do agree that since the chapter doesn't execute those few DC marines that do survive battle they would have a larger number of DC marines than normal. What I'm thinking is having a chamber in the fort (maybe called The Crypt) where DC brothers are kept in stasis and monitored by the Chaplains until they are assigned to a warzone where they may die honorably and do the most good.

I dont mean a full company, something like a scout company. Most times just listed as "scout squads" on the rosters, you could simply call it 11th/death Company with the population simply being "Death Company Squads." No need for specific numbers in a unit that is constantly varying in size. Just listing it as a set part of the chapter, as they utilize it to much greater ability than most BA successors. As for the ship idea, it needn't be a large class, a strike cruiser should be more than enough(which a fleet-based chapter should have aplenty, hell the SW alone have 27).

You thought of making your own characters for the DC vets? So many possibilities

I actually already have a character that I've made named captain Minaeus, he believes that he is fighting alongside Sanguinius at the gates of the Imperial Palace. I'm thinking of representing him as a Space Wolf Lone Wolf in TDA with a TH and SS

 Warboss Imbad Ironskull wrote:
I actually already have a character that I've made named captain Minaeus, he believes that he is fighting alongside Sanguinius at the gates of the Imperial Palace. I'm thinking of representing him as a Space Wolf Lone Wolf in TDA with a TH and SS

Interesting, is he an upgrade character like Lemartes or a character unto himself like DC tycho? and terminator armor makes sense if you dont expect them to die i suppose

I don't believe there is any.

Death company has no lords or commanders. As there are none left to command that are still sane.