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So in the spirit of my inspiration, Ace, I've decided to post up the rough point overview of the last chapter I envisioned before I left. They're not quite as close to my heart as the Blazing Sons but I like the idea I had for them, so let's see if anyone else does. ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Storm Riders Ultramarines Geneseed. Ultra-no-nonsense, military minded. Efficiency is striven for, however victory with the best possible outcome is prized above all else. Extreme reliance on shock and awe assaults, close quarter battle tactics and coordinated maneuver to hit operational objectives before rapid redeployment. This isn't raven guard infiltration, this is true shock and awe. Drop Pod assault, operational air-dominance and surgical use of artillery and heavy weapons. Fleet Based. Hold no grudges, they aren't useful, but they will remember your actions and factor them into future decisions. Burning hatred for traitors and the dispensing of His Golden age of Enlightenment (requires founding by original legion member). ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Organisation. The chapters home fleet is one defensive in nature, the Storm Surge and the fleet anchor at the most strategically viable point within a sector, typically the chapter operates as a whole within one larger sphere of operations, but the companies themselves split off to pursue any crisis or calls for aid within the area. The leadership of the Storm Riders has always attempted to be stabilizers. They tackle any and all problems that are laid before them that they have the capacity to handle before the calls for aid from other sectors become too pressing to ignore. Each company is self contained, is assigned it's own ships, serfs, arms-men or servitors that are needed to carry out whatever is under their remit in the region from what is available. Each company commander is responsible for their own cadre as well as the men of the company under their command. They are also given the right to draw from the specialized divisions of the chapter that call the fleet home, such as the Reclusiam, Librarium and Apothacarian, and so forth. Vehicles, ships and equipment is drawn and rescinded depending on the tasks they see before them. Only the Chapter Master has the right to veto any request they may have, all other assets are to be shared as needed. It is common for a vehicle or even line weaponry to pass between several companies, each time gaining a mark or name to represent each campaign they have served in, the same as the Astartes that wield them. The Fleet. The Storm Riders don't just view the fleet as their home, but the Storm Surge itself takes the place in their collective psyche that a homeworld would in a more traditional chapter. This ship, a direct link to their founder and his legion from the Great Crusade. The fleet itself is made up of two Battle-Barge class capital ships, ten Strike Cruisers and approximately twenty escorts depending on potential combat losses. Known simply as 'The Fleet' within the chapter, it is their home and hearth, the heart of the chapter. In the Storm Surge they learn about their founder and first chapter master, his tenets and the will and mission he passed on to his brothers. The fleet itself houses a community made up of the armsmen and serfs who tend to the ships and wargear of the chapter, as well as crew and defend them. The Storm Surge has been given remit to house and maintain such a population under the Storm Riders, the ship itself being regarded as the chapters homeworld under Imperial records. Despite this designation, the ship doesn't produce anywhere near enough recruits for the chapter to be self-sustaining, though it does provide enough for the chapter to prevent being crippled after a disaster and slowly replenish some of their number, even while on the move. The serfs that crew the ships and call them home are very much generational, their families are raised upon the Storm Surge and all they will ever know is service in the fleet, dedicating their entire lives to supporting it. Whether they are agri-harvesters in the food-bays, line-smiths for the forge or pilots and armsmen, for all intent and purpose this is their home. The Astartes are the lords and avenging angels that live beyond them, their minds eternally turned to the will of the Emperor. While the Storm Riders themselves highly value their serfs and workers and are grateful for their service, they do not live nor mix with the people. Theirs is a life of constant training and study of war and the philosophies and strategies related to them. While this is not true of every brother of the chapter, the leaders of the companies and even some Sergeants and Lieutenants will build a rapport with those they interact with, they are far from the disposition of the Salamanders, and won't hesitate to sacrifice their serfs as well as themselves if the situation calls for it. At the end of the day, the Fleet is their home and one they'll fight for as viciously as any terrestrially-bound chapter. The Storm Surge. The chapters home is a now ancient battle barge, handed down to them by their gene-brothers after the passing of the last soul of their training cadre, Ancient Vexillus. The Storm Riders returned the last son of Macragge and, moved by their cousins honour and loyalty, the Ultramarines gifted the chapter the Storm Surge in return, a time worn ship is a battle barge on the same template as the Nemesis class. A ship built for the legions, but left at the wayside after the Heresy, now given a second lease of life and purpose. The enormous space given over for hangar bays as been a boon for the chapter, many have been converted to training grounds from city mock-ups to slalom courses for vehicle drivers. The ship can house the entire chapter if needed and has become a much-adored home for the battle-brothers of the Storm Riders, and they fight for it as fiercely as other chapters would a homeworld or people. Recruitment "A true warrior fights not only because he hates what is before him, but because he loves what is behind him." Given the Storm Riders lack of any one world or system to draw from, their recruitment practices have been adapted to their nature and draw recruits from whatever region in which they are currently operating. In any other circumstance, drawing recruits in this manner wouldn't be unusual for a fleet-based chapter, however the Storm Riders do not search for feral worlds, nor do they demand tithe or raid under-hives. In the pursuit of stability, the chapter draws recruits from the worlds they fight for. Imperial worlds under threat are the chapters best source of potential recruits for the chapter. The psychological sway the Storm Riders hold over a population that has now seen the fabled Astartes of legend fight for them, spill their own angelic blood to save them, the honour of becoming one of them and punishing those that made them and theirs suffer is a heady cocktail for your average imperial citizen. The orphans of the conflict, the numbers of which on Imperial worlds are usually far higher than many of a softer soul would like to countenance. Only in times of desperation or extreme loss does the chapter entreat the families that remain. Worlds being brought into compliance are similar in many ways, except instead of the Astartes being their saviors, they are truly seen as the avenging angels of a mythical Emperor on Terra. Great pains are taken to reinforce the shock and awe of the Astartes actions on the world, with set piece objectives being pursued that hold only a value to the native population, with the aim of fear, awe and submission in mind. Regardless of the world in question, the Storm Riders will not countenance taking what they need without consent. The recruits are the lifeblood of their chapter and they must be driven to make the sacrifice that ascendance requires. Not least though are the ramifications on the quality of recruits themselves, as a willing applicant is far easier to train and more receptive to the surgeries and psycho-conditioning used in an Astartes creation. The Chapter does not completely wipe away all traces of the initiates home and culture. While some clarity is lost due to the trauma of an applicant's ascension, the Storm Riders want their warriors to remember why they are fighting, and how His Astartes can change the galaxy. The beliefs of their founder heavily influence this process, a warrior who's borderline obsession with what humanity had lost with the decline of His Imperium. With the end of a campaign comes an influx of recruits. From the moment they arrive they're broken out of whatever cultural or social groups they may have formed and are assigned a new group or 'section', made up of other inductees selected specifically by their new masters to build commonality as well as friction between the individuals as their sections are taken through the process of becoming a Space Marine. Over time they are encouraged to let their pain, their trauma be transformed and build them into better warriors. As the sections mature physically and emotionally, they find common ground and are also at this crucial juncture given over to study on the tenets of the Storm Riders, their philosophies and the teachings of the chapters founder. As they begin to emotionally invest in each other, if nothing else than for their survival and success, they begin to take in and assimilate the cultural bedrock of the chapter, and are encouraged to use it practically in their training. Once they cross the threshold into becoming a 'true' Astartes, they have been distanced from their origins yet without forgetting them. Viewed as if from another life, they are taught to draw an understanding and knowledge from their past. Those drawn from worlds forced into compliance often find an affinity for the main battle-line and assault roles, while those drawn from the population of the Storm Surge tend to follow their natural traits towards the Forge and Devestator companies. Finally, those from Imperial worlds being defended or rescued tend to find themselves drawn to the Reclusiam and the Apothacarian. Even in their creation, the Storm Riders undercurrent of maximizing the strengths of their warriors and their chapter are evident above all else