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Greetings everyone!

So, I'm not sure where to put this, so I figured that “background” made the most sense. I wanted to talk about fitting an idea I had into the lore, how it might work, and what parts are problematic. Before I begin I want to make a few things clear:

1) My group is totally down with conversions, count-as, and outside of the standard lore

2) I know that my ideas are not going to be completely within the lore, but I would like to get it as close as possible while keeping the same flavor.

3) This is probably going to involve a fair bit of text, so I want to thank everyone ahead of time for being willing to read a bit.

Okay, with that out of the way, let's get to my idea.

I call my “count as” faction: The FAE.

In this case, it is an acronym meaning “Fabricated Aetherium Entity”

The background idea is that, at some point around the HH, a group of space marines found a group of dormant AI from the dark-age of technology within a nebula and then activated them. These A.I. Either willingly or unwillingly gained control over the space-marines and used them to rebuild and reactivate as much of themselves as is possible.

(Just to be clear: these were exactly the sort of A.I. That the Imperium has always been afraid of. These are the BAD A.I.)

Some of the technology that these relics have access to is closely analogous to both the transporters and matter replicators of Star-Trek. They used these devices to essentially scan in the space-marines, and then allow them a sort of immortal existence in their digital realm.

This existence does come at a price though. Agents of the A.I. Now routinely infiltrate imperial worlds and set up devices that allow their FAE to materialize for short periods as solid, living entities once again. During these periods, the FAE pull off daring attacks on Imperial and Xenos assets, gaining new resources for their war against the cosmos before fading back into the digital realm.

They have been operating in this regard for more than 10k years. Their existence is known to the inquisition and a few other imperial organizations, but is largely kept quiet because of the near certainty that the A.I. Have already infiltrated imperial organizations with their agents.

The original space-marine entities have, by now, lost almost all knowledge of their former existence. They operate as seemingly immortal warriors, moving from battle-field to battle-field with only a dwindling memory of their former lives. Their tactics, abilities, and technology have only improved over years of A.I. Upgrades and now they represent a small, but very real threat to the structure of the Imperium itself.

All of this is a lead-up to the idea of using a lot of cool 3rd party models, kitbashes, and some HH stuff (that also looks cool,) as stand ins for either Space-Marine elites or Custodes units. In terms of the fluff and the rules, I THINK that making them Custodes works (and I've done a lot of homework in terms of unit sizes ect) but I do wonder if it really fits decently well in terms of the lore.

A lot of Custodes rules seem to fit very well actually (like the teleportation representing the units being materialized onto the battlefield, or invulnerable saves that essentially let enemy weapons pass through what is not solid matter at that moment,) but I'm sure that that aspect of the army could be improved upon as well.

If anyone has any suggestions about the idea, I am open to suggestions. At this point I have what I think is a pretty cool idea for an antagonizing army that will do well in the VERY imperial dominated meta of my local group... but I just want it to be as cool and fitting as possible.

Thanks in advance for the feedback!

Just so I understand, you wish to use alternative models, with Custodes rules?

As far as that goes, your only limit is your playgroup’s tolerance for it. Essentially, if your group doesn’t mind proxies, the world’s your oyster.

I think Grey Knights have similar-ish weapons. And it would be a lot cheaper to buy 10-man strike squads instead of 3-man Custodes boxes. In 5th edition (ish?) I played against a GK army with 3rd party heads that represented Custodes before there was a Custodes Codex. Life was good.

When I glanced at the rules for Custodes, once upon a time, I thought about how fun it would be to convert some cybernetically enhanced Ogryn with heavy plate armour to run with my Guard as allies... counting as Custodes.

The only limits you face are those of your gaming group, so we can’t really make meaningful input. Unless your game group is also on Dakka.

This sounds really cool!

And yes, from the force you're describing, the custodes definetly make the most sense. And their low model count will allow lots of room for detail on each individual conversion.

As long as your gaming group is willing, you could even write your own character/unit and try to balance it as decently as possible so you can really let your ideas come to life.

I absolutely love the idea. It's original, it's well thought through, and should result in a unique army to play against.
One idea sprang to mind. In terms of matter replicators - it's not exactly the same thing, but you could consider the possibility that they've kept access to a fully-functional STC. Not blueprints, not designs - AN ACTUAL STC MACHINE. (gasp, faint!)

This would tie into the Dark Age of Technology origins, as well as giving the Inquisition another reason not to lean too hard on them - if they're aware of the STC's existence, they can't risk making the FAE aware that they know of their existence, causing them to go to ground, and losing the Imperium any chance to get at that STC in the process.

The boring choice is Stormcast Eternals, perhaps swapping out the heads for some aftermarket ones.

The Paladins make great Terminator alternatives whilst the normal stormcasts can easily be converted with their weapons (again, aftermarket such as Shapeways or Puppetswar for example.

I'd be tempted to try and recreate the ai drones from the comic pax imperialis.

https://m.imgur.com/gallery/278hW


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