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Merry Christmas (and happy holidays to everyone who doesn't celebrate Christmas)! For this one day I want us to all stop arguing, shouting maths at each other and yelling whose better than who... And, in return, I want us to all sit around the fire and talk about what, for the vast majority of players, got us playing and keeps us playing 40k... our imagination and how our armies are an extension of that (and an extention of ourselves)! 40k is a game about stories... each time we bring our guys to the field, be it tournament play or casual, we're not just bringing plastic to a wooden table... we're bringing soldiers to a battlefield! Each model is personified to be real! We give them names, personalities and we root for them when they're making that clutch 1 in a million shot, even though it's all determined randomly through a dice thrown by us. We make them real when we write entire rich background narratives for our armies or believe one model is luckier than the other. We debate over made up history because to us it's real and that's what's important and why I still play 40k even when I disagree with the direction it goes in.
So! Like I said previously, what is your armies background narrative. Just tell us about them, can be anything from the entire back story to going into detail on a single model in your army you like the most. Go wild!
Now for my lore story, contrary to what many people believe, I play an Imperial soup army. They're just a mixture of inquisitor troops and Space Marines. The idea is that they're from the almost extinct chaoter called Shadow Wolves (An imperial Fist Successor chapter who paint themselves purple and silver). In the real lore of 40k they're mentioned once or twice only with the story going the typical route of "Damn Space Bugs ate their planet! Now there's like 30 of them left scattered throughout the galaxy". Last time the lore mentions them there are a few of them at Cadia just before it falls so... yeah, they're not having a good time! And they're scattered unlikely to find each other. Fun fact: They like to collect imperial relics! That's a real thing aparntly. So it's lore friendly they're all in 30k armour (don't tell anyone I only found out about this lore after I bought 15 30k marines) XD
My standard marine army is basically 23 guys lead by a Terminator capt in that 30k heavy armour who's basically angry the tyranids ate his friends, a 30k chaplain who's holding the chapter together through faith, 5 tarty terminators, a contemptor dreadnought, 15 marines and a razorback. As you can tell, they're not exsactly a strong force ready to take on an entire hive fleet. However, they do hate tyranids! And this is where the inquisitor comes in... my inquisitor dude is all like "Yo, you hate tyranids? I hate Genestealers! How about you follow my commands and we'll purge the galaxy ? In return I'll double yah force and save your chapter from extinction!". And the Shadow Wolves being in the state they're in (and the captain being all like "Purge? Tyranids? In same sentence? Where do I sign up?") they agree and the old Inquisitor becomes their boss. True to his word the inquisitor delivers to them the new Primaris marines (with a nice primaris Lt to help out with commands) and doubles their force over night! And so they go on their merry way purging and cleaning the galaxy. However! Something seems off with the inquisitor... he keeps sending the force on more and more dangerous missions against races and armies they've never seen before... and the inquisitor, while clearly having a hate for xenos races, seems to have 2 or 3 followers helping him out... that speak weirdly... and float... and have their heads spin round 360° and say very blasphemous things. Almost like the inquisitor is a little crazy in his hate for the xenos... so much so, he might be a little on the maybe not very super following all the important emperor rules side.
The Militarum Tempestus regiment that I’m building is known as the 7th Alphic Hawks. Most all of the members that are not support staff came from a small sub sector made up of a few feudal worlds (meaning there was no shortage of orphans of royal blood) which were almost completely decimated by tyranids. The nearest Schola Progenium has a very large influx of new potential progena.
Even though the Progenium culled the weak, and the various other organizations found ample students for recruitment, the Schola Tempestus, nonetheless, had many Scions-in-training.
This left a rather sizable regiment which could afford many Scions for large scale operations, as well as Scions that could be deployed as Killteams and aboard naval ships.
In smaller numbers, they often deploy as drop forces, penetrating behind enemy lines to prepare for Imperial operations, taking vital sites and disabling planetary defenses.
In larger numbers, the Hawks can muster a Tempestus Strike Force. This force storms high importance targets, racing forward in supersonic Valkyries and Taurox Primes, with Scions deploying at break neck speed at the weakest parts of the enemy line. Flashes and the piercing howl of hot-shot fire put smoking holes in infantry while vehicles are reduced to slag by the high energy bursts of melta and plasma. Fortifications are destroyed by missiles, battlecannon shells, and lascannon blasts.
My entire army, when finished, will be one of these Tempestus Strike Forces. I will be making a Killteam as well, representing a smaller, yet to be named, drop force.
If the truth can destroy it, then it deserves to be destroyed.
The Cult'um Tau'va... a Darker side to the Gue'vesa.
A cult, in essence, that has taken worship to the Tau'va to the extreme. The cult started with the ritual of chopping one's handoff and replacing it with a 4 fingered robotic one to closen oneself to the pinnacle of the Tau'va. This practice was found out by the Ethereals, and instead of destroying or forcibly changing the Cult's belief, they regulated it.
Keeping it a secret from the rest of the Empire, they gave these humans the most dangerous missions they could find, testing to the extreme their loyalty. Again and again the Cult'um Tau'va proved themselves to the T'au empire, and as such, the Ethereals decided to give them a splattering of their own weaponry and earth caste support to work with the looted Imperial Guard arsenal they had.
This is the lore for my Gue'vesa project. The idea is to take IG things (Humans w/ Pulse Rifles - Fire Warriors, Sentinels with Jump Packs - Crisis Suits, Grav Russes with Ion Cannons - Hammerheads), and give them T'au tech. The base infantry models are from Anvil though, as the variety of options is better (And I hate painting faces.) Lore wise I imagine them as a more Special Operations force, used where other forces wouldn't be able to know about them and only some do know. Probably some lore inconstancy, but it sounded cool as an idea.
This message was edited 1 time. Last update was at 2018/12/25 03:49:56
"For the dark gods!" - A traitor guardsmen, probably before being killed.
My Honor Company of Salamanders are attached to Vulkan He'stan to aid him on the search for the rest of the Lord of Drakes relics.
They utilize the best equipment in the Chapter with more Artificer arms & armour than a normal battle company of the 18th. Relics from the Age of Darkness; Contemptors, Deimos Pattern Rhinos & Predators, Tartaros & Cataphractii Terminators abound.
Kings, Nobles, vaunted Smiths from the great cities of Nocturne all aspire to be chosen by the Forgefather to join the crusade in search of our liege.
The Primaris reinforcements brought by Guiliman have proven themselves worthy on the battlefields wherever they have been set against the arch enemy. They have also proven themselves when their arms and armour need repair or improvement. Showing their skills in both in the art of war and of the forge.
All members take the special brand of the Forgefather and wear it with pride in coming to the aid of all that seek shelter in the Emperors light.
Bastions of Justice and standing ever vigilant against those that would wish to extinguish the forges of Nocturne and our Emperors shining benevolence.
My Space Marine army has been cobbled together from a collection of starters and random purchases over many years - its lore reflects that.
The Avenger of Horus are a loyalist Space Marine force that was borne at the end of the Horus Heresy. At the battle of the Gate of Terra, a handful of marines came to their senses from the mindshackles of Chaos when the Emperor finally defeated Horus. These marines fought their way through their traitorous brethren to help rout the remaining forces of Chaos that still infested the broken citidel on Earth. At the end of the fighting, the marines turned themselves over to face for initially siding with their traitorous brethren. Instead of being slain however, the courageous marines were stripped of their names and chapter and formed into a penitent chapter, named the Avengers of Horus. Death in the name of the Emperor on the battlefield would be their absolution.
As part of their discommendation, a Commissar (the same one in charge of the loyalist guardsmen the marines surrendered to and whom was augmented into a marine) was placed in charge of the chapter. Further, the first company of the chapter would be filled in with Grey Knights (the Grey Knights "non-existent" 6th company) - both acting as role models for the reformed marines and watching for signs of corruption or rebellion among the ranks. Finally, the tiny chapter would receive its replacements from primarily guardsmen squads (such as Cadians and abhuman stock) who had confronted and overcome Chaos forces - some among the Inquisition (namely the GK assigned to the chapter) saw the utter destruction of those witnessing Chaos to be a waste, instead turning those forces to facing off against the dread foes of the Imperium. In rare cases - such as with some captured and redeemed Fallen of the Dark Angels, turned marines would grow the ranks of the Avengers. The original traitor marines are now long dead; the current Avengers are a mix of Grey Knight, recently recovered marines (primarily Fallen) and guardsmen who have been transfigured into marines. Of late, a few primaris have been inducted into the chapter; they are the first marine stock not to have been formerly swayed by chaos, though only those that have directly faced chaos have been brought into the chapter.
Since that time, the Avengers have fought in secret against the forces of Chaos. The names of those in the second company and beyond are no more, even unto death. Only their deeds are remembered, for the individual was lost long ago...
The Avengers have a color scheme of green, gold and white. Initiates begin their tour in dark green colors, which represents their exposure to Chaos. At the initiate level, a thin line of gold is added to their armor to show the trust of the Emperor and a similar line of white designates their purity against chaos. As the initiate traverses upwards with experience and devotion, the green becomes a lighter shade and slowly replaced with white. Likewise, gold comes to edge the wearer's armor, outlining the devotee in the light of the Emperor. The first company, composed exclusively of Grey Knights, are the only part of the force allowed to don entirely white armor, with the edges either lined in gold or the seams glowing with green, psychic energy.
-----
My Tau army is a bit simpler - it is the personal retinue of an as-yet-unnamed Tau Ethereal. Clad in colors of shimmering blue, gold and white they are more often found in parades than on the battlefield.
My Admech is even simpler - an unnamed cadre from Mars
I play the "Damn Space Bugs" and I like my bugs to be nameless, because there are many alien menaces to the imperium, and what really makes the bugs shine for me is that they are nameless and unreasonable.
Every time i play, my list represents a group of bugs with no distinctive features, it is built to never represent an important achievement for the opponent to destroy, but just another wave of hungry bugs.
I follow the lore of the bugs for the amount of resources that each beast "costs" to the hyve, and make my lists affordable and expendable. Sometimes i use the unique bugs like deathleaper and red terror, but for me they are more like experimental versions of the lictors and raveners, think of Lictor Alpha of DoW2.
Recently i also developed a total love for the lictors, when i discovered that they are a single creature. An hyve mind inside the hyve mind. How cool is that!
I have several armies with lore that I track game to game; tell me which you'd like to hear about and I can elucidate!
The Cavorting Carnibal: A Slaanesh Daemons army for both AOS and 40k! They're a Courante legion.
The 2nd Concordian Independent Super Heavy Tank Armored Regiment: An Imperial Guard superheavy tank regiment, with 22 vehicles in 7 companies of 3 plus a Command Tank!
The Chortaxi Vanguard: A mechanized Imperial Guard regiment from the Death World Chortax.
The Order of the Luminous Beacon: A minor order of the Adepta Sororitas.
There's characters and lore for each of them, but I can never decide which specific one to elaborate on in threads like this...
The army I'm currently working on is a 'soup' consisting of The Children of The Violet Heart, Second Circle (Emperor's Children Heretic Astartes), The Grand Cavalcade (Slaanesh Daemons) and the Kronstaat IV Worker's Defence Force, 29th Army (Renegades and Heretics).
I have a fluff thread at The Fall of Kronstaat IV - Волшебная Сказка A Fairy Tale (including a free showcase of my 'mad' Paint skillz) but the tl:dr version is that the K4WDF are unwitting Renegades, having been 'sold out' by their higher-ups. It's all loosely based on the Kronstadt Rebellion, the 'Eastern' Front and plagiarizing pop culture.
This message was edited 2 times. Last update was at 2018/12/25 15:18:07
I play Space Wolves so I used Warpy time travel to not be stuck with the established companies and time travel seemed the least Mary Sue way of being separate.
Beyond that they found a Space Hulk with a Heresy era Space Wolf ship in it and camp out there. Because the Imperium is generally awful they spend their time using their Rune Priest to find places that are about to die horribly and try and save some of them. So they can all live happily ever after in a giant piece of space junk full of nasty aliens, disease and the chance that it could all explode anytime.
tremere47-fear leads to anger, anger leads to hate, hate, leads to triple riptide spam
The world of Kymerus II was first colonized at a now unknown period dating back before the Age of Strife. When contact was lost, a small mechanicum explorator vessel from the Belt of Iron attempted to reinitiate contact with the forgeworld. Instead of a thriving mechanicum center, they found only the half submerged ruins of a once flourishing forgeworld.
The limit of human habitation had been reduced to only a few populated islands, whose human descendants had regressed into a pre-industrial level of technology and governance. After the Conclave of the Iron Belt, mechanicum representatives from Stiranex and Obellion III concluded that resettlement was the best viable option. Those forgeworlds would direct efforts into the resettlement of Khymerus II, sending small teams ahead of the vast convoys of gallions filled with tectonic stabilizers and prefabricated geothermal conductors. Mechanicum exploratory teams found the toppled spires of the ancient forges in ruins. The derelict structures judged beyond salvage, were stripped of essential parts, and a new place of settlement planned to become the heart of mechanicum operations. The new force would be established around the marine vents along an undersea volcano which would supply ample power to the fledgling forge. Mount Kiluea, became the first mechanicum facility to be built on Kymerus II since the age of strife. But with tumultuous warpstorms plaguing the region, the convoys never arrived. Further expeditions were dismissed, and Kymerus II would remain isolated for a century.
But progress had not stopped on Kymerus II, and after nearly a century the station had grown considerably in size. Mount Kiluea’s forge had spread, hollowing out the undersea mountain and stretching towards the surface in massive spires.
It was in this time that the first rumors began to spread of a prophet, one claiming to hear the voice of the Omnissiah emanating from a breach in realspace. This anomaly would be known in later eras, as Lacrimosus Spirae. The realspace breach was largely ignored by the forge leaders until it began to expand and fluctuate. Discontentment ran rife through the upper eshelons of the forge, coming to a head after an attempted assassination plot, against the so called prophet Iwaes, was foiled. Dissidents took to calling themselves the Vox Eius. They took to the gathering places, and open rebellion seized Mount Kiluea.
Leadership in the forges enacted purification and subjugation protocols, quelling uprisings with merciless force. In the wake of several high profile repressive pogroms against cult sympathizers, the leadership led an exodus to the surface and took shelter in the desiccated ruins of the abandoned forges, once deemed beyond repair by the explorators. While thought to be beyond resettlement, armed expeditions by the mechanicum overseers came to a halt in the crumbling labyrinthine ruins. Soon, strange reports of unnatural warp creatures inhabiting the bowels of the labyrinths emerged. In order to protect the rest of the planet, melta charges were used to destroy every known entrance to those ruins, in the vain hope of trapping its inhabitants forever.
To make matters worse, once steadfast and loyal members of House Kymerus began to record and detail similar audio-visual signals, thought to be from the Omnissiah. The Screaming Vortex continued to violently expand, though few attributed the resurgent voices with the aetheric disturbance. Others, troubled by these reports, began work on a series of overlapping surface-based geller field generators to protect themselves from the predations of the warp. City defenses became even stricter until all external access was halted on pain of death. Forge Kiluea was sealed under order of Fabricator-General Iosoqth Eibira. The most important members of the magi would be placed into stasis to re-emerge when aetheric scryers detected the passing of the warp tumult.
The warpstorms which had engulfed Kymerus II shrank once more, releasing the planet from its grip in 842 M30, 44 years after the great crusade had taken to the stars. Deep in the hibernating halls of the slumbering forges, old sensors detected the threshold safeties had been reached. Re-emergence subroutines toggled a systemic all clear, and the lockdown was ended.
As the first mechanicum adepts emerged, they discovered that their forges had once more fallen into disrepair and were nothing but empty halls bereft of their former glory. Many areas were flooded and barbarians, creatures, and worse roamed many sections of what were once promising hab zones.
The mechanicum exerted what force they could and an effort was made to salvage any materials from the surface in order to reap new organic components for their cybernetic levies and raw materials to rebuild and rearm. House Kymerus would rebuild, though the time needed to reach the previous thresholds would be significant.
They were not given the luxury of time. Roaming Ork warbands flooded in-system now that the warp storms had subsided, launching raids on the salvage teams from House Kiluea. What forces could be assembled from Kymerus's Legio Tagmata would test themselves against the Ork. They proudly strode into battle against the greenskins, but losses were severe and defeat seemed inevitable. Even as recall and last-stand protocols were drawn up, distress signals were sent from aged receivers with little hope of rescue.
But rescue did arrive in a form none of the mechanicum could have foreseen. Silver fleets of unknown vessels arrived in-system, announcing themselves as warriors from the XIV legiones astartes, the Dusk Raiders. The skies of Kymerus II seemed to burn as their 22nd Company made planet fall and fell into the unprotected rear of the ork-army. Indebted to the warriors who had answered the call, and renewing bonds of unity long since thought extinguished, the Fabricator-General pledged the legio's service to the cause of the XVIth legion. A vow that would change them fundamentally by the end of the Great Crusade in the days when the Dusk Raiders would transform themselves on Barbarus to emerge as Mortarion's Death Guard.
My Marine Chapter has no name. Not one that's known, anyway, and certainly not one that comes up.
I've been working on some short story with two separate narratives, one with a newly recruited Scout (at least he thinks), and later on a team of three Inquisitors and their retinue sent to investigate what exactly is going on with the Chapter.
The Scout ends up not feeling right about anything, because everyone around him besides the other Scouts is frickin creepy, along with him not exactly remembering how he got there. Trying to play detective he then thinks he discovers something, but before anything is revealed the Scouts are sent on their first assignment against a sizable force of Black Legion and Emperor's Children and, long story short, they all basically die as if they were sacrificial lambs once the Captain disappears. As he lays there dying, he witnesses said Captain appear out of thin air, and suddenly more and more of the Chapter just...appearing and doing what Space Marines do. The guy that might be the Chapter Master then says the Scout's sacrifice was meant to be, and, as much as he liked him, it is a shame he wouldn't survive to join the Chapter for aeons to come. The story ends with the Scout pleading for help and that he would do anything to continue service for the Emperor. Then the Chapter Master kinda does an evil chuckle and the story ends.
I'm still working on the Inquisitor part.
CaptainStabby wrote: If Tyberos falls and needs to catch himself it's because the ground needed killing.
jy2 wrote: BTW, I can't wait to run Double-D-thirsters! Man, just thinking about it gets me Khorney.
vipoid wrote: Indeed - what sort of bastard would want to use their codex?
MarsNZ wrote: ITT: SoB players upset that they're receiving the same condescending treatment that they've doled out in every CSM thread ever.
Noting that I am incredibly slow at building and painting stuff, so none of my armies are completely done (hell, most of my stuff is sitting in boxes waiting for me to start them)...
The 4th Malina Mechanized Infantry Regiment hails from a dual classed Imperial/Forge World, with convoluted borders and markings declaring what belongs to the Imperial Governor, and what belongs to the Adeptus Mechanicus. All this is muddled by the fact that for the past 150 years or so, the Governor and the Fabricator-General have been the same person, and the fact that a splinter Tyranid Hive Fleet struck the system fairly recently, doing heavy damage to infrastructure and population.
The regiment consists mostly of Chimera mounted infantry with support vehicles, but also has a large attachment of Stormtroopers (the Fabricator-General wants to show off the quality of the goods his world makes), and an attachment of Leman Russ tanks that got folded into the regiment while merging under strength units during the invasion.
I also have a handful of Skitarii, some Genestealer Cult troops, and a few Tyranid models, though the only thing built of the lot is a single Arminger Knight. I plan to base them all in a similar fashion to the Guardsmen, so that the bases tell the story of the Defense of Malina. I've got a number of Greenstuff World base rollers, so using a common theme on the bases depending on roadways, interior, or wilderness, combined with a mixture of mud and snow to blend it all together.
I've got a pretty big collection of Dark Angels (around 11k points), including enough regular and Primaris marines to make up an entire Battle Company plus some leftovers, in addition to elements of the Deathwing and Ravenwing. This is my favorite army and was the first that I started collecting and playing with.
My second biggest army is probably Chaos Space Marines, which started with the Chaos half of Dark Vengeance and has since grown into a fairly large army. I haven't really settled on a single Legion yet, as I first started making them into Khorne Daemonkin in 7th edition, but I now run mostly Alpha Legion and Black Legion, with some of the Khorne stuff being repurposed into World Eaters.
My tertiary army is T'au Empire. I started them because I liked the sleek, high-tech aesthetic and I really like the concept of battlesuits. I didn't expand them into a full army until they got their 7th edition codex and campaign books (The two War Zone Damocles books), whereupon I picked up a bunch of the new models and started getting them painted. I went for a more unique look for my Tau rather than the ones commonly seen on the kit packaging (the T'au sept orange and the Vior'la sept white), which is why my Tau are blue with yellow highlights.
Now, we come to my "minor" armies, which I don't have as much of and therefore use to support the others in some way. I have Space Wolves and Imperial Knights which make good allies for my Dark Angels. I do have plans to expand both of these at some point; I have 2 more Questoris Knights to build and paint, and I plan to get both a Valiant and a Castellan sometime next year, if possible. On the Wolves front, I don't have definite plans for expansion, although I do want to pick up some more Wulfen and possibly a second flyer.
I also have Death Guard and Daemons to ally in with my CSM. I started Death Guard when Dark Imperium dropped, as I loved the new models from that set. I also picked up a lot of the kits when they dropped, including some Blightlord Terminators, three Myphitic Blight Haulers, a Plagueburst Crawler (one of my favorites!) and Mortarion. I started Daemons in 7th with Khorne Daemonkin, but now I've sold a bunch of my Khorne stuff in favor of Nurgle to ally with my Death Guard.
In addition to all of these, I have some vanilla Space Marines (including Roboute Guilliman) and some Inquisition stuff, plus a few Assassins and even some Custodes and Sisters of Silence (from the Burning of Prospero set). My collection is pretty well flourishing, although space is getting cramped here at home!
My armies (re-counted and updated on 11/7/24, including modeled wargear options):
Dark Angels: ~16000 Astra Militarum: ~1200 | Imperial Knights: ~2300 | Leagues of Votann: ~1300 | Tyranids: ~3400 | Stormcast Eternals: ~5000 | Kruleboyz: ~3500 | Lumineth Realm-Lords: ~700
Check out my P&M Blogs: ZergSmasher's P&M Blog | Imperial Knights blog | Board Games blog | Total models painted in 2024: 40 | Total models painted in 2025: 40 | Current main painting project: Tomb Kings
Mad Doc Grotsnik wrote: You need your bumps felt. With a patented, Grotsnik Corp Bump Feelerer 9,000.
The Grotsnik Corp Bump Feelerer 9,000. It only looks like several bricks crudely gaffer taped to a cricket bat.
Grotsnik Corp. Sorry, No Refunds.
My Hive Fleet scheme arose from Dawn of War II and the original backstory for them was that they were a "reclamation fleet" following behind other fleets and re-assimilating scattered or defeated tendrils. With Hydra having taken that fluff niche, they have since evolved into tyrannoformation specialists that employ a more aggressive use of mutated local flora and fauna to debilitate the local defenders. I tend to run them as Jormungandr which works well enough as a representation of their use of the local environment, coupled with a good selection of deathworld forest terrain.
As far as their fluff they are most active in the western side of the galaxy, to the south of the Eye of Terror. My brothers and I have a made-up sub-sector in which all our armies are presently active, with Scorpius being one of the more looming threats.
The OMC actually has a fairly indepth backstory which may be viewed here. In short, they are a mining cartel subverted by a brood of Scorpius Genestealers and now on the run from a tendril of their parent fleet. My particular group consists of the 7th Cycle Resource Acquisition fleet lead by Primus Dravis Orion, which basically acts similar to a Tyranid Hive Fleet but with an interest in the mineral and material wealth of worlds rather than biological matter.
Of note, one of my Iconwards by the name of Maru has a peculiar habit of winning games of The Relic at the last turn through being ignored all game and then darting in to seize the prize at the last moment with an entourage of hybrids in tow. As such, he has become something of an adventure archeologist for the 7th cycle in addition to the caretaker of whatever relics the cycle already possesses.
Interconnectivity is a big thing for me. So I'm gonna put larger chunks in spoiler tags, and only really count the armies that have a good tabletop presence, or are actually finished!
Ultramarines Legion, 14th Chapter, 131st Company:
Spoiler:
Loyalist Ultramarines, led by Legate Ivocatus. 131st Company is nicknamed "the Dawn Blades" in honour of their standout battle, where they finally broke a city siege just as the dawn broke over the city for the first time in months (presumably world with a long day/night cycle), and after the paragon blade of the same name carried by Ivocatus (also named after the battle). Present at Calth, but didn't do much of note, and liberated the Knight World of Ferron, which prompted Knight House Smith to join the Great Crusade.
Fought alongside Imperial Fists under Captain Dantalion in the Charadon Sector, but suffered massive losses to Iron Warriors led by the Warsmith Archarus. Ivocatus dies, and the shattered legion allies, now led by Captain Dantalion and Ultramarine Centurion Labien, break out for Terra, but are too late for the battle. Dantalion commits his men to the Iron Cage, only to need rescuing by the 131st and Labien. Dantalion, his vengeance unfulfilled, becomes one of the first Black Templars under Sigismund.
The rest of the 131st, ruined by near constant fighting since the death of Ivocatus, are put on garrison duty in the Charadon Sector as an unofficial extra company post-Codex, where they continue to be whittled down. Ultramarines Chapter Master Decon disbands the 131st, and adds them to the 2nd Company, before the 3rd Founding.
Ultramarines 2nd Company, Strikeforce Praetorian:
Spoiler:
A large section of the Ultramarines 2nd Company, but not led by Sicarius (who is tending to duties on Macragge), but rather by Acting-Captain Hadris Aurelius. The Acting-Captain takes over from his forebear, Acting-Captain Dramorian, who is killed by Warlord Skullkrusha, an Ork Warboss of some notoriety in the Charadon Sector. Skullkrusha is wounded by Aurelius during the war for Terroria, but escapes further into the subsector.
Pursuing the Ork in vengeance, Aurelius and Strikeforce Praetorian commit to the Crusade of Fury, and join a larger Imperial host in cleansing the Charadon Sector. Over the course of the campaign, Aurelius strikes up a friendship with Marshal Karak of the Black Templars, who recovers the "Dawn Blade" of Legate Ivocatus, a now-legendary relic. Not wanting to lose honour in front of the Black Templars, and the Crusade in general, Aurelius wins possession of the sword by hunting down and killing Warlord Skullkrusha at Sandfall. Over the course of the campaign, the Ultramarines soon become a byword for victory, earning them and the young Acting-Captain much renown and glory in the crusade, even acting as the Lord-General's retinue on several occasions. They grow close to the Cadian 13th, Black Templars, Ultramarines 3rd, and Faustian regiment.
After several cataclysmic events occur, and Aurelius is marked for dark purposes by an enigmatic Thousand Sons sorceror, the crusade is plunged into chaos. Warsmith Archarus, uniting and forging ironclad alliances with other Chaos and xeno factions, ascends to Daemonhood, and threatens to destroy one of the lynchpin worlds of the Imperials. The Imperials fall into infighting, with a traitor general executed by a Faustian Commissar inspiring his allies beyond the grave to betray the Imperials loyal to the Lord-General. Scions, Tallarn, and traitor Faustians all attack the loyalists as they also engage with Iron Warrior forces. Aurelius, and his human and eldar allies, face Warsmith Archarus, and nearly fail, before Archarus is distracted by an Ork Warboss after his head, and the same Thousand Sons sorceror. Aurelius and the Faustian Commissar banish Archarus to the Warp, but Aurelius is near killed. Before the Commissar can do anything, Aurelius is taken away by the Sorceror.
The loyalists are defeated and forced to surrender to the renegade Imperial force. The Tallarn commander, being in the best shape after the battle, is given command of the liberated system. She puts all guardsmen who fought against her to death, and forcibly mindwipes all the Space Marines who survive the encounter, with some Inquisitorial favours called in. The Ultramarines 2nd Company return to Macragge leaderless and severely bloodied, but unawares of the political power struggle. Despite the 'victory' of the Crusade, the loss of Aurelius, the relic "Dawn Blade" and a massive portion of the 2nd Company, the Ultramarines deem the incident to be a shameful failure.
The Dawn Blades Chapter:
Spoiler:
After the rebirth of Roboute Guilliman, a heavily damaged ship returns to Macragge, carrying one individual. Hadris Aurelius, the Acting-Captain of Strikeforce Praetorian, returns. Despite being judged pure and untainted by the Chaplains and Librarians, he is detained and reprimanded for his failure, commanding Strikeforce Praetorian. However, Roboute Guilliman takes a shine to Aurelius, and deems him worthy of wielding the Dawn Blade. To both rid the Ultramarines of the blight on their honour, and still get some use out of the soldier he sees before him, Guilliman offers Aurelius command of a new Chapter in the Ultima Founding. Aurelius accepts, and is one of the first of the old Space Marines enhanced into a Primaris Marine. He commands a small Chapter, who he names the Dawn Blades. They commit to several wars in the coming years, including the Plague Wars (earning themselves newfound reputation, and redeeming Aurelius in the eyes of some of his former Chapter), and Vigilus.
Knight House Smith:
Spoiler:
Saved from the brink of civil war by Guilliman and the Ultramarines of the 131st Company, the Knights from the world of Ferron are a series of clan-fiefdoms, ruling over pockets of land on the agri-world. Fights over territory exist, but are governed and regulated by the senior Knights of the Upper Court. Ancestor Worship and Family Ties are big for the clans, with each Knight being tied to specific bloodlines, dating back from the Horus Heresy. The Knights themselves are venerated over the pilots. The court system of the world gives every noble clan a seat on the Lower Court, with the head of that clan and pilot of that clan's Knight Titan occupying that seat. Four of these pilots are also members of the Upper Court, acting as the Warder Barons - a retinue and lieutenants to the commander-in-chief and liege lord of the world, otherwise known as 'Lord Smith'. The position of 'Lord Smith' or one of the Warder Barons is only contested upon the death of the previous holder of that title. Any and all Knights can challenge in a fight of submission, and the last one standing in a series of head-to-head duels claims the role. However, the severe damage and risk of death this entails deters all but the most skilled, most desperate, or most foolish, and usually the former is the victor.
Knight House Smith took part during the Horus Heresy alongside the Ultramarines Legion, and later on had close ties to the Ultramarines Chapter, fighting in their defence during the Plague Wars.
Cadian 13th Combined:
Spoiler:
A conglomerate of both the Cadian 13th Infantry and Artillery, fused by an administrative error. Both regiments have been destroyed and refounded many times, but always seem to be fused together. Fighting in the Charadon Crusade, as well as Vigilus and the Plague Wars, they missed the Fall of Cadia. Now unable to be refounded, save for being reinforced by other under-strength units and Cadian offshoots, the 13th are all too aware of the legacy their regiment carries, and fight harder to stop it being erased entirely. Some of the regiment are survivor of the massacre of the Charadon Crusade, but as lowly guardsmen against the political power of the now-Governor of the Charadon Sector, they keep their survival quiet. The regiment has been known for it's close ties to the Gallican 3rd, Omegan Drakes, and Ultramarines Chapter.
Gallican 3rd Armoured: A Leman Russ regiment, inspired by German Blitzkreig and WWII style aesthetics.
Grey Knights, Deathwatch and Omegan Drakes Scion detachments: All small, elite taskforces, deployed as and when needed in the direst of situations.
As you can see - aside from the smaller skirmish-sized forces (Grey Knights, Deathwatch, Scions), all the forces are linked in some way, and I like the design of that.
This message was edited 1 time. Last update was at 2018/12/25 23:47:00
I play loyalist Death Guard, also in 40k. These are very bitter men, outcast and wronged. The Unbroken Blades that haven't dulled for ten thousand years. We are the Echoes of Eisenstein.
Basically the gist is that my guys trace their lineage to those few legionaires who deserted Isstvan under Garro's leadership to bring warning of Horus' treachery. As their legion turned into twisted monstrosities, they held true to their original creed and believe Mortarion could have saved the situation and what happened could still be saved by trying again. Cloning the primarch has not yet succeeded.
Meanwhile they've carried on defending the Imperium, with less and less support through the millenia. This has soured them pretty badly, for they have seen what a dystopia the Emperor's dream has become. They've been mistaken for traitor's many times and clash with the Imperium at large often, loathing the dogmatic fools that cannot see the big picture. Thus they are pretty reclusive and operate independently, with hidden recruiting worlds and forges.
Ruleswise they play as Death Guard (duh), with their legendary resilience and preference for chemical warfare. I don't use daemons, run cultists as potential aspirants to the ranks, Death to the False Emperor stems from us hating the self-engrossed idiots that endanger our common cause and so forth.
I've been linking my armies lately. Older Anime has been a bit of an influence, what with Taoist Mechanica priests, Shinto Shrine maiden Sisters of Battle, and Police enforcing traffic with DevilDogs.
They're all various factions based around a Navy run city on an imperial world. Political conflict between the planetary governor and the Navy have led to the city of StarSpire to function as a Naval enclave on the planet Hershey. The city specializes as a trade stop over, due to limited customs (as a transshipping location), and a R&R (or R&P...lots of joygirls...). Around the city itself is a near MadMaxian scrub, dotted with small semi-fortified farms and carriage houses. Much of the limited law and order is left at the hands of the sisters, and the local provosts (acting illegally).
Factions:
Imperial Guard: Navy Provost Company #29,489 (Armored) "StarSpire Blues" Motto: "Enforce and Redeem"
Spoiler:
The provost battalion functions as law and order in StarSpire, using their hellhounds and devil dogs to enforce traffic laws, and civil defense alike. They conduct regular patrols through the steps of the city, and their blue on blue patrol tankettes (taurox) are a common sight. For heavier duty, they can call on heavier gunned basilisks and a few lemon russ. The 'Blue' regularly patrol outside the city, stopping at the larger farms, radio spots and carriage houses, but risk violating imperial law to do so, as they're naval forces, rather than Militarum. Their heaviest firepower comes from the mars battlecruiser in orbit, it's support fire called in by Blue's support vehicles (manticores for light, death strikes for heavy, called in by artillery support vehicles, aka the actual vehicle model).
Get along well with the local sisters, due to being a primarily female unit.
A hard fighting Naval infantry unit, stationed to the Mars class battlecruiser "Joyous Refrain". This unit specializes in boarding actions, and ship to station combat. Currently assigned as an active reserve to Navy Provost Company #29,489. Comprised of an eclectic mix of void-born dock workers, and conscripted death worlders, Void Breath's bully boys are a common sight in the bars, joy clubs, and Blue lockup. Despite little love between the girls in blue, usually over too much beer and a regulation use of handcuffs, Void Breath is spoiling for a fight, anything to take away the routine of work, drink, lock-up, lash.
Mechanicus: Shrine/Workshop of Hzmat. "Incense, motor oil, and cyber-duality"
Spoiler:
"Senior Engine-Seer" (Dominus) Ryuska seeks solitude. Despite the bustle and noise of a busy city, Hzmat is a place of quiet and peace. The low relaxing hum of operating mechanica, the gentle measured grating of rakes and gravel, as electro-priests trace out circuitry diagrams in the white and red stone gardens, and the majestic silence of the gate kastillians, standing before the entrance. Though Hzmat is run by Techpriest Mikaelius, the senior priestess Ryuska commands the respect of the whole Shrine/workshop. Much of her time is spent studying schematica of almost arcane detail, or in contemplation of the Man/machine duality. With her two closest students, the Datasmiths Yukol and Heikol, they isolate themselves from most affairs, concerned little with anything outside their laboratory. For a few hours a day, more for Mikaelius, Ryuska will see visitors who seek advice on the machine, and occasionally will give unsolicited advice to others, usually Mikaelius. On rarer occasion, the three will even leave to assist the Mechanica's goals around the city, such as the recovery of aeiro-tech, though that time is given begrudgingly, despite the effectiveness of a Kastillian's fist.
Mikaelius has set up Hzmat's servitor assembly and forges to construct equipment for both the city and the Navy, supplying tanks, armor, and small arms to the Provosts and Äther-Soldats. The small amounts of civilian goods Hzmat produces, along with it's small museum of Aeiro-tech, have earned him the good will of the cityfolk, and not a few recruits, who were sent to the orbital facilities for further induction and religious study. Hzmat is guarded by a small contingent of vanguard and rangers, it's resident electro-priests, and the space dock's supply of dune crawlers, being of more use on the steps of the city, than in the thin walls of the void stations. Mikaelius has also offered the Admiral governor the shrine's assistance in patrolling the scrub farms as relations between the Navy and the Hershey Planetary Governor have deteriorated. Despite the small amount of resources he can offer from such a small shrine, the Admiral Governor has been thankful.
Sisters of battle: Toride of the Kami-Emperor "For the Master of Mankind and Spirit alike" (Toe-ree-deh)
Spoiler:
Even the Navy is unsure about how many sisters are cloistered in StarSpire's basilica. After the conflict between the governor and the Navy began, the Abbes Youklu arrived at the gates with a small contingent of sisters, and politely requested entry. Not one to refuse a request from the eccliearchy without a good reason, the Admiral Governor let them in, providing lodging in a smaller fortified tower on the city's coastal cliffs. From then on, sisters, aspirants, and others continued to filter into the gates of the Toride. Unlike the quiet of Hzmat, the sisters are full of noise. Singing is common, as the sisters go about their duties, with the city's bells joyously ringing out hourly (during the day) praises to the master of mankind. From the beaches far below the city's mid-reaches, the sounds of training and mock combat ring constantly, barely audible over the praises the sisters sing out. Though the city, and planet have dozens, and hundreds of small shires, many with a single sister, Toride is the center of their activity on the planet. Even in their armor, the sounds of joyous refrain continue, with numerous small bells hung from their carapace ring with every step. The sisters have made themselves a welcome presence. Patrolling the wastes, helping the Blues deal with chaos cults, and psychic madmen in the scrub, ministering to the various scrub-farms, and providing aid when needed, whether it takes the form of a kind word, a drink of cool water, or a battalion of bell covered, hymn screaming, angry young women.
Sisters of Silence: Toride of the Kami-Emperor "For the Master of Mankind and Spirit alike"
Spoiler:
In such a noisy place as the Toride, there is one quiet location. Here no one speaks. Sisters in Bronze armor move noiselessly, through walls muted by heavy tapestries. None of them speak, except with complex hand signs. The other sisters will not speak of them, changing the topics to other matters.
Ministorum: Temple of the Holy Plasma "We are the stuff of stars, the Emperor has show us how to harness stars to burn away impurity"
Spoiler:
Temple of the Holy Plasma believe that plasma is a divine gift from the emperor. They praise it, they fire it, as much as possible, as often. When possible they join the various patrols and raids into the scrub to show the glory of plasma, greatest of his works. Mikaelius has become very popular with the temple, due to him providing them with a constant supply of high capacity plasma weapons.
Yes, they overcharge. Even when it's stupid.
Seraphim Kallan and her followers: "My death, to bring a flood of redemption."
Spoiler:
A long term guest at the Toride, this wandering seraphim is a sister orblata, formerly of the Order of Blue Robes. Having lost a relic given to her by her abbes, Kallan has left to seek her redemption for the Order. She seeks out relics, and personally throws herself into every situation, regardless how hazardous, hoping for that one glorious moment when she can bring redemption. Despite wounds and injuries, from clubs and autoguns, to Meltas and deathstrike warheads, she has yet to die. She does not know why the emperor wants her to live. Only that, often blows miss, las bolts deflect, enemy actuators fail, and when the worse happens, and a death blow lands, she wakes up hours or days later, unharmed. She doesn't remember how long she's been searching for relics and redemption, surely only a few years. But the names of the Abbesses she contacts back at her former home seem to change without her noticing. This worries her. What his happening that they keep changing so quickly? Seraphim Kallan has participated in five crusades, purged two noble houses (one by herself), and redeemed (actually redeemed) four more. She has found over sixty relics for her order. Still she drives herself onward. Currently, a successor chapter of the Dark Angels, the Robed Lions, are hunting her. She doesn't know why, only that they have said the name "Cypher".
Followers of Kallan: "Forever on the path, you shall not walk alone sister"
A group of space marines have taken to following Seraphim Kallan. They assist her in battle, watch over her while she sleeps, and offer prayers of support with their covering fire. Some have joined with their captain's permission, others have gone renegade. They still honor their chapters, but have added a white arm and a blue pauldron to honor the one they attend.
For Seraphim Kallan and her followers, I've been using the rules for Cypher and the Fallen.
A mercenary band of Freebooters, currently paid to fight bandits in the scrub. Captain Admeeral Claw-Teef fights for to show how auwsum he iz. Hiz boyz pay him hiz teef so they can fight with him. Claw-Teef has a writ from the inquisition allowing him to fight on planet. He and his boyz fight bandits, cultists, "bandits" (PDF raids), cultists, bandits, and small orc tribes that seem to be popping up lately. He also stages "Hunting trips" where he and his boyz hunt down scrub beasts for the "Goodezt teef". They buy quite a bit of beer, and while not successful, have made more 'progress' with the girls in the Blues then Void Breath has.