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Hello all who visit my thread, I've been lurking on the forums for quite a long time, getting inspired by the big guys on here to maybe throw together a WiP thread of my own. I haven't been into the heresy game for that long, only coming up to three years now, and after a little lot of back and forth with what legion I want to play - I started with Luna wolves, tried WE once, then AL before again coming back to SoH in their pre-heresy format. I've also cheated on marines with some mechanicum which I sold of, and halfway planned a 3k solar auxila force before settling back into the comfy seat of the legion list. However the obvious problem was how to frame a pre-heresy army taking part in what is definitely a heresy game. So I sat down and thought of the outline for the fluff of my guys, I'll give you a dry outline but will expand and focus on the fluff around their eventual demise once I get to posting the individual members of the squads. I have around 2k painted up to a tabletop standard and I'm finishing up with custom transfers and starting to eventually weather stuff to - the photos are kind of a last memento before I ruin everything with weathering. (not that I'm good enough of a painter to actually have anything that could be ruined but I try my best and hopefully I'm slowly improving.) So the outline of the fluff before I get to the picture of my horrible paint jobs is that my guys are part of the 81st expeditionary fleet, they're a mixed bunch of old terrans who were disappointed in Horus after fighting alongside the Emperor a whole lot in the early crusade / solar war - so expect a lot of raptor imperialis around. They've also picked up some newbloods from around the galaxy, including good ol' cthonia, but because of their reluctance to accept their father, Horus sent all of them away, and they have mostly cruised around what would later become Segmentum Pacificus. So, for most of the marines barring the old terran guard they have never met Horus. But they have fought on the sides of several of the other legions and met other primarchs (in particular the blood angels and iron warriors), thinking themselves (rightfully) scorned sons. because of this most of the force while initially well equipped with MKIV armors have found themselves having to kitbash together suits from whatever functions. Relying on stockpiles of other patterns of armor to maintain as much MKIV hybrids as possible. the "battalion" (although such formations are considered unorthodox by SoH standards) would eventually met up with their genefather one last time - At Ullanor. This is where a majority of the marines would be annihilated, the survivors being merged into a company sized element to retain battle readiness, this company would eventually find itself rudely awoken to the heresy not at istvaan III, but at a later surprise attack by Loyalist Iron warriors out to prove their loyalty to Terra, Ironically seeing the destruction of a company of marines that would have (for the most part) stayed loyal to the emperor. But enough boring blathering about the background - I'm sure you guys would prefer it in the context of models, to set the bar high enough I'll start with my most recent (and thus prettiest imo) of the wolves, an apotechary! Apotechary Aenas Aenas was a son of a blacksmith from a world called Duratine which had submitted to unification without fighting, intimidated by the "Stone men" that fell from the sky clad in their furs and draped in the cold marble like armor. Aenas was part of the first and only muster on Duratine, netting the battalion 200 souls out of a whole planets population. During selection he was found adequate at any task set before him, mastering both the bolt and blade fast, yet never rising beyond the expected, if he is said to have one defining characteristic its his ability to stay calm under pressure - eventually he found his true calling as an apothecary, his steely nerves under fire ensuring that relatively few of those who fell into his care didn't live to see another day. One of the younger members of the apothecary he is semi permanently attached to the 3rd company, which in the 18th battalion is called "Tempest" - They are the boarding and drop assault vanguard of the 18th, consisting primarily of despoilers, breachers and terminators. He would eventually die at Ullanor, spared the horror of the heresy. A frequent tag along on any boarding party, where his calm nerves and strong friendship with breacher sergeant Faustus ensured that many ork kroozers fell onto the grounds of Ullanor. Both of them giving up their lives to take down the ork kroozer "Big Booma" - Saving the 18th's battle barge "Luna's Glow" from certain destruction.

After talking to Augustus about this army(and how to pronounce b'raass) and not having any pictures to show him I figured I might as well start a blog. So here we go! When brother falls upon brother, We become Wolves again Sentenced to death for his psychic powers and loyalty, Crysos Morturg finds himself in command of several dozen Astartes and a few warmachines from the 14th and 16th legion. Mounting a deviant defence against the traitors descending upon them from orbit. The section leader himself: Crysos Morturghttp://i.imgur.com/m9RVji7.jpg A relatively straight forward kitbash based on the limited edition Herald. The backpack is from the red scorpion librarian. An as of yet unnamed Death Guard siege breaker. http://i.imgur.com/NjwRspU.jpg Wielding a Powerscythe and Boarding shield. The scythe is made from the a Talos claw and the handle from the Magos's axe. Right arm is actually a cut up lefty. Head from the Khorne terminators with the chaos star filled in. Contemptor Dread http://i.imgur.com/7cmrALy.jpg The lascannon is just the MM with barrels from the razorback(which were a HORRIBLE cast, even FW would be ashamed of that much mold slippage.) 10 man Breacher Squad http://i.imgur.com/UlK01Vd.jpg 2 Graviton guns, sergeant with plasma and powersword, when joined by the siege breaker these guys can put out a crapton of dangerous terrain templates. A common theme throughout my army is the veritable treasure trove of bits I accumulate. Heavy support squad http://i.imgur.com/UBx2s1p.jpg 5 Heavy bolters, mostly because I had those laying around, but you can never have enough of them right?(Couldn't get all 5 into focus so you'll have to settle for some mediocre photoshopping.) Last but not least, the centrepiece of this army: A Macharius Vulcan "reclaimed" from the Istvaanian armouries. http://i.imgur.com/DmsRqFT.jpg Sponge weathering on the body is mostly done, really happy with how my first tank paintjob is turning out. Not pictured but already assembled, though not yet based, are a painted squad of Sons of Horus Luna Wolves Tactical marines and 5 Justaerin terminators. Lastly I'll leave you with a teaser for things yet to come: The Luna Wolf Centurion will have an interesting choice of retinue. Any guesses?

+++ Alright ya lovely lot. Well, I volunteered to get some better pictures and fluff done for the company now that I've been more or less 'sold' on what I want the final group to look like. With a 30K League thing coming up, and a few of my mates hounding me to get better pictures of terrain (and make more, of course) I figured I'd make up a WIP log like all the cool kids are doing. So hopefully it'll keep up the motivation even in the absence of a painting event or the like. Anyway, I'll probably be asking about as many 'what's your opinion' questions for ya lot as I do with everyone else that's sick and tired of my constant barrage of questions (they say 'don't text at two in the morning', but I know they love my questions!). So, this'll hopefully have some painting bits, some fluff, some bat-reps, we'll see what comes of it, eh? I should be updating the cover page with the most 'up to date' army compositions, etc, and replacing photos when I can. And, y'know, I get to test out the B&C's BBCoding to see how stuff looks. All in good fun. +++ Origins: From Whence Wolves Become Dogs The 65th company emerged as any other line company in the XVIth legion, drawn up in the mid 10th century M.30 as a reinforcement unit from the 33rd battalions logistics base. The 200 strong unit of astartes was constituted during early restructuring protocols and saw intermittent service during the later years of the Great Crusade. The 33rd battalion included the 65th and 66th line companies, as well as the 17th Independent Reaver Company. The 33rd was placed aboard the grand cruiser Judicature as part of the 63rd expeditionary fleet's second line units. During the Callas compliance of 978 M.30, the 65th was placed on front line combat trials. A series of errors and miscalculations led to heavy casualties for both line companies. Advance elements from the 14th and 17th Luna Wolves companies fought through Callasian lines to relieve the embattled 33rd battalion. “Some bray for battle, some scream for truth, butwe've kept silent. We keep silent because there will be enough blood. We keep silent because we know we live amongst lies. There is only one truth for us: we are sons of Horus Lupercal". ~Centurion Lathyls Decadron M.31. The 66th effectively ceased to exist, and its remains were folded into the 65th company instead of reconstituting both companies. The 17th Reavers suffered fewer comparative losses by dint of their arrival in the third wave of the Callas Prime assault. While the 66th company would be refounded over the next two years, they would be part of the 35th battalion, leaving the 65th company and 17th Independent Reavers as the sole constituent of the 33rd. Their involvement in the Great Crusade and their influence in the upper structures of the Legion waned. While independent action with the Reavers continued unabated, the 65th company was tasked with rear line fleet guard duties and thus were given their sardonic title 'Cerberus Group', the guardians of old Terran myth. By M.31, the battalion had withdrawn to rear line duties, and come under intense political fire for wishing to incorporate organic militia elements within the Legion's rear echelon structure to supplement their wavering Recon groups and to help with garrison operations on newly compliant worlds such as Tennerak and Davin. While this never emerged, the 33rd battalion's reputation as a primary assault unit was stained by perceptions of other company captains who spurned the Imperial Army as anything more than clean up and support elements. This perception of the battalion would linger until their trial by fire at Istvaan III. Istvaan III: Dogs become Jackals The 65th remained part of the rearguard of the 63rd expeditionary fleet, but did not contribute significantly to the Davin suppression and performed only prefuctory assaults on Interex space installations during the Interex compliance. The mettle of the 65th was untested, but their strength had slowly accumulated over the intervening years. Reconstituted as a 295 strong company, they were given the designation Cerberus Assault Group as the Judicature arrived at the Istvaan III L2 lagrangian point. Marshal Ahazaar's rebuilt company was not called upon to participate in the opening assault, a not un-surprising decision on the surface. According to recovered logs from the Judicature, the marshal was apprehensive of the entire Istvaan III pacification operation but made no mention of it beyond his confidante and equerry Akkisen Shenzo. In an open conference with the Warmaster, he carefully pledged every asset at his disposal prior to the initial wave. This, perhaps, preempted doubts about the loyalties of the 65th. The 33rd battalion was locked down aboard the Judicature, Marshal Ahazaar remaining in his chambers under guard while the company's commanding officer, Centurion Ashram Kademius and his honour guard, occupied the command deck of the Judicature. The Grand Cruiser was one of the 63rd expeditionary fleet ships that descended into orbit to carry out the virus bombing, proving the loyalty of the ship crew, though the astartes of the 33rd battalion were still untested. In the ensuing firestorm, the 17th Independent Reavers were tasked with the capture of the frigate Shooting Star and were successful in their task. The 65th was held in reserve with a sizable contingent of armoured personnel carriers. After the revelation of intentions at Istvaan III, the 65th was dispatched on the 52nd day to suppress elements of the loyalist III and XVI legions who had escaped into the now wasteland countryside outside Istvaan III's capital Khry Vanak, the Choral City. For the next fifteen days, the 65th hunted for loyalist elements amid the ashen wastes, using a mixed doctrine of tank desant and rapid armour assault sweeps to destroy hidden strong points and overrun infantry contingents. Later analysis notes the lack of anti-aircraft guns, speeders, jetbikes, or other assets that could ensure the safety of the 65th in wide-band sweeps or be used to counteract the 118th squadron's Stormcrows and Fire Raptors who flew alongside ostensibly as air-support. Other sources indicate that the 118th acted as a control mechanism to ensure the compliance of the untested 65th in ground operations. It was their air-wardens who who named the 65th Ash Jackals, or alternatively Dust Jackals in inter-unit vox communication, and the callsign was adopted readily by the 65th as their nom de guerre. Whatever the motives, the 65th completed their tasks with enthusiasm and arrived in the ruined city suburbs to support other actions 16 days later as the Coral City's last bastions of resistance fell. However, to prove the loyalty of the 65th further, the 33rd released the last of its armour reserves and the 65th was sent in support of Legio Mortis elements at the same time as XIIth legion forces were being recalled from the battlezone. The 65th and 17th were pushed into the breach with straggling elements of the XIIth legion, pursuing loyalist remnants deep into the catacombs beneath the Precentor's palace. After a costly armoured assault that carried into the inner sanctum of the structure, the 65th was ordered to retreat, though the rear echelons and a significant portion of the 17th were caught in the undercrofts beneath the ancient structure and presumably destroyed by the barrage unleashed by Legio Mortis. The last 126 Ash Jackals were extracted by the 118th to the Judicature, bloodied but now proven. Operational Doctrine: The influx of new Cthonian recruits after Istvaan III had an effect on both the internal culture and combat doctrine of the Ash Jackals. Fresh from the fray, the leadership of the 65th reviewed after action reports, and through a systemic lobbying process on behalf of their marshal, capitalized on the events of the Precentor's Palace assault. Cthonian recruits were typically filtered through into tactical squads, through more emphasis was placed on advanced placement in Breacher squads. Many of the company's Rhino APC's were wrecked and abandoned on Istvaan III, but the Mastadon and Land Raider contingents were retrained and reinforced. The resultant units were forced to fight on foot in support of heavy armour assaults, favoring medium to close range firefights with an assortment of specialist squads. No one overwhelming combat doctrine was adopted, and holes in the 65ths melee squads was filled by the influx of terminator squads and close cohesive support with the 17th Reavers. The 65th would advance on static enemy positions, attempting to take them by storm, advancing rather than holding ground. At the same time, the first air-support was received as a spoils of war from Istvaan III. An unmarked Storm Eagle gunship was transported back by the 118th, but claims by their captain were undercut by Marshal Ahazaar. Soon after, the Mournful Song was put into service, ostensibly to transport seeker and reconnaissance elements meant to probe perspective targets. More recent developments has seen the Judicature onloading more Anvillus Dreadclaw Assault Craft and Storm Eagle transports, once earmarked for the 19th Air Assault company, but was overruled by 33rd battalion requisition requests. Now-Praetor Kademius has rallied for the 65th to incorporate a sizable bulk strike transit component, and the Storm Eagles and their escort fill those requirements well, though not without the loss of priority in obtaining more standardized Rhino armoured carriers. +++ Army updated: 19.05.17 M3.