IA : Warmongers

[SCC]

I've been working on this for a while with the help of folks like Rogue Trader, Aurelius Rex and the crew over Astartes Vocates and it's heading towards completion (slowly!). The primary idea was to do a mini-IA of 1500-2000 words on a Chapter that is now extinct, the secondary idea was to create a socially well adjusted Chapter, one that played well with others, unlike say the DA or Marines Malevolent. The article has come in slightly over that word total but it hits most of the spots I was aiming for.

 

As with 'my' Brazen Claws the Warmongers are an official GW Chapter I've fleshed out and as with the BC they sport a quartered colour scheme:

 

http://www.fortressmonastery.iinet.net.au/images/chapter_thumbs/Warmonger.jpg

 

 

C&C welcome:

 

 

Index Astartes: Lost Chapters of the Adeptus Astartes

 

Warmongers

 

Throughout the history of the Imperium the myriad Chapters of the Adeptus Astartes have stood vigil, sheltering Humanity from the assault of heretic, xenos and traitor alike. Many Chapters, such as the Space Wolves, Ultramarines and Black Templars have won renown across the galaxy, their very names are breathed as prayers by loyal citizens and spat as curses by heretics. Other Chapters have lived, fought and died in obscurity. The Warmongers are one such Chapter...

 

*Insert Quote*

Last words of Chapter Master? Quote representative of Chapter history? The sum of a thing is often greater than its individual parts??

 

Origins/Homeworld

 

The Warmongers were raised as part of the 17th Founding from the geneseed of Rogal Dorn. Amongst the Chapters of the 17th Founding the Warmongers were unique, for alone amongst their brethren they were singled out to work closely with Imperial Guard and Imperial Navy forces. This unusual specialty was the result of studies by the Tactica Collegiate that showed the varied arms of the Imperial war machine would benefit from improved integration and closer co-operation.

 

Much was made of the reputation of Astartes Chapters to act as a law unto themselves and the distressing tendency of certain Chapters to abandon their erstwhile allies or worse yet to use them as a shield for the Chapter's own secret activities. The Collegiate further determined that the likelihood of forcing the avowedly independent Astartes Chapters in existence to abandon these practices was slim. Instead they recommended that a newly Founded Chapter be used as a vessel to discover the ideal Astartes-Guard relationship.

 

The Collegiate recommendation coincided with increased Ork and Eldar activity on the Eastern Fringe of the galaxy and a consequent rise in Guard and Navy operations in the area. The High Lords of Terra approved the Founding and the specific plan for the Warmongers assigning the newly born Chapter to the Eastern Fringes.

 

The Warmongers were raised from the tithed stores of geneseed from the sons of Rogal Dorn and then assigned an initial cadre of experienced warriors from their geneseed line, in this case the (? Need an IF descended not too famous chapter?), to aid in their initial training and early campaigns. The new Chapter spent many of its early campaigns working hand in glove with the regiments of the Imperial Guard and the ships of the Imperial Navy. Early analysis of these campaigns indicated an overall improvement in Astartes-Guard efficiency but noted that the Warmongers sustained slightly more casualties than more independent Marine Chapters in similar situations as they fought to protect and aid their Guard comrades. (last sentence needs some polish...

 

As part of the drive to integrate the Chapter with the wider Imperial command structure the Warmongers homeworld, Lancastria, was located in a system shared by other Imperial authorities. The Halifax system comprises eight habitable planets and moons from a total of 17 celestial bodies. Located coreward of Ultramar, Halifax has served the Imperium as a vital staging point for many crusades into the Eastern Fringe since before the Age of Apostasy. Most of the habitable worlds were and still are given over to training for newly recruited Guard and Navy units before their deployment to the Eastern Fringe.

 

The proximity of Guard, Navy and Warmongers training bases facilitated the growth of co-operation and mutual respect between the three organisations. Regular combined arms exercises were held and cooperation was encouraged on all levels. Marines could be found working closely with Guardsmen, Navy pilots regularly exercised with Marine Thunderhawks, and Land Raiders and Leman Russ battle tanks frequently worked alongside each other. Such cooperation helped each unit to better understand each other

[Custom Hero]

Good work! So will we see a follow up article for the Avenging Sons?

[SCC]

Actually yes and they'll be somewhat different...

[Sugrjunke7]

I really enjoyed that a lot. All I would have to offer is... maybe a few word changes here and there, and some couple little errors that I have already forgotten what they were by the time I had finished reading! <_< I would say though that, the "working hand in glove" sounded really awkward to me. But, I loved it none the less! :rolleyes:

[Ferrata]

Another great article <_<. One thing which is a pet-peeve on mine is using numbers instead of words, it always breaks the flow in my eyes. The only other thing I would add is the deployment of the tenth company as a company. I'm not sure how often this is done, but it would seem more likely that a large detachment of the tenth company being deployed along side a battle company instead of just the tenth. As for a quote (I'm sure this is stolen from somewhere)

 

"It is better to die in the service of the Emperor than to die peacefully in ones sleep."

 

Edit:

 

Just remembered something I noticed.

The Warmongers’ beliefs were based largely on the precepts of their cadre of Sons of Guilliman tutors and reflect those of most Codex Chapters.

I thought the chapter was of Dorn descent, not Guiliman. As for the "unknown Imperial Fist successor" how about just making up a name.

[Sugrjunke7]

I noticed that same thing that Ferrata did, but, I figured it was a trick of my brain, and I didn't go back to re-read it.

 

In agreement about te fielding of the 10th company.

[SCC]

Yeah the UM/IF geneseed thing is the result of an excellent idea RT had that I didn't really follow through on, they'll go back to UM geneseed and SoG tutors in the next edit. The more I think about it the more the last section needs a rewrite, I'll have to come up with some other way to kill almost a 1000 Marines I guess ;)

[Sugrjunke7]

umm.... a battle in space? There are a lot of inter-space conflicts. Have the chapter be mopped up in space?

[Sword Brother Jeramakus]

I loathe and admire you in equal measure for your ability, SCC. This was a fun read!

[Marshal Quintus]

thats really good

[Sugrjunke7]

I do have to agree with Marshal Quintus and Sword Brother Jeramakus, it does have a lot of information, without having too much. If that makes sense.

[SCC]

Thanks guys, glad you enjoyed it. The next revision is slowly nearing completion, the main stumbling block is still how to kill an entire Chapter in such a fashion they can blame it on the IG commander and thus spawn the Avenging Sons...

[Sugrjunke7]

The Navy under the Guard's Command fled? Leaving the fleet of the Marines to fend for themselves?

[mekboy bigdakka]

May I ask why you don't like what you had SCC? Many times in history has incompetence at the top left the guys on the ground swinging in the wind. It's personal too. It was bad luck or just an ugly situation that killed the chapter, it was the ponce at the top of the chain.

 

I like what it says about the warmongers too, they lost their marines trying to save the guard from a horrible decision. But then I'm a space wolf, and you know how sentimental we get. :(

 

Something I'd be curious about though, why didn't Chapter Master Ridan just take over when things started to head south? But I'm not sure what the pecking order would be at that level. Could a chapter master relieve a warmaster of command?

[SCC]

Something I'd be curious about though, why didn't Chapter Master Ridan just take over when things started to head south? But I'm not sure what the pecking order would be at that level. Could a chapter master relieve a warmaster of command?

I think Grimnar could relieve a Warmaster and maybe Dante and Calgar, but the Chapter Master of a Chapter less renowned like the 17th Founding Warmongers who are probably less than a thousand odd years old? I doubt it, it goes back to the whole Astartes command Astartes, Guard command Guard ethos in the Codex Astartes that prevents a second Heresy I guess.

 

May I ask why you don't like what you had SCC? Many times in history has incompetence at the top left the guys on the ground swinging in the wind. It's personal too. It was bad luck or just an ugly situation that killed the chapter, it was the ponce at the top of the chain.

I dunno, the Cvantz section was written for the previous incarnation of the IA and I just cut'n'pasted it in with a few edits and I'm just not 100% happy with the way it meshes. It may be I'm biased as I know how it went originally :angry:

 

Ultimately it may be the evacuation and 'rebellion' that's the problem, as much as I like the idea of two way loyalty between Warmongers and Guard/Navy I just can't see a wholesale rebellion like that working in the 40K 'verse. Star Wars, yes. BSG, maybe. Star Trek, who cares ( ;) ). 40K, not really. Maybe I ought to have Ridan convince Daara he's cocked up and then get ordered by Daara to cover the retreating forces, thus leaving the Chapter with the choice of signing their own death warrant or that of tens of thousands of their comrades in the Guard...yeah, I think that'd be much better...

[mekboy bigdakka]

Maybe I ought to have Ridan convince Daara he's cocked up and then get ordered by Daara to cover the retreating forces, thus leaving the Chapter with the choice of signing their own death warrant or that of tens of thousands of their comrades in the Guard...yeah, I think that'd be much better...

 

 

That could work. But that is one hell of a cock up for Daara to be admitting to. A career ending admital at best but more probably a life ending one. In the Imperium a warmaster would not come away from that. He'd most likely be exectued and you can be damn certain his political adversaries would drag his name and his family through the mud. I can't see anyone with Daara's character just admiting to such a mistake then letting Ridan clean it up.

 

How bout Ridan convinces Daara of his mistake and Daara is so shattered that he demands Ridan allow him to save his family honour with an honourable death. Ridan refuses, wanting Daara to face court and instead Daara tops himself. Ridan is left holding the bag and like you said, he has the choice of cut and run or cover the retreat.

[Sugrjunke7]

I don't have much to add in the way of assisting... at this point, but, I did want to add my $0.02.... I think a Chapter Master might very well just take charge in a situation, supposed to be men of tactical genius, hundreds of years in the making, commanding the power of one of the Imperial's strongest weapons, an entire Space Marine chapter. I mean, guardsmen often cowl at a single marine, let alone the man that commands 1000 of them? :lol: But, as was said, he may have left it alone, as the separation of guard and Astartes, but, meh. What happened in his head, who knows?

[SCC]

That could work. But that is one hell of a cock up for Daara to be admitting to. A career ending admital at best but more probably a life ending one. In the Imperium a warmaster would not come away from that. He'd most likely be exectued and you can be damn certain his political adversaries would drag his name and his family through the mud. I can't see anyone with Daara's character just admiting to such a mistake then letting Ridan clean it up.

Perhaps I could have Ridan convince the senior Commissar of the problem, have the Commissar sort Daara out and then have the Commissar order Ridan to act as rear-guard :teehee:

 

Alternatively Daara ordering Ridan to cover the retreat could be his way of 'getting rid of the evidence'. I mean a Chapter Master to Warmaster chat isn't going to be on a common frequency, it's going to be encrypted up the wazoo and intensely private, so no on else is going to know what the two talked about. So Daara can admit his mistake, agree to the retreat and order the WM to act as rearguard knowing they're going to get slaughtered doing so. Then with the WM out of the way he can blame them for the defeat, saving his reputation and pride.

 

Of course the survival of a handful of WM would be a barrier to this, perhaps Chaplain Tellier ought to challenge Ridan to a duel or simply administer Imperial Justice after he gets off the planet and before he storms off in a huff...

[Sugrjunke7]

In the end good sir.... it's all your work, your decision.

[SCC]

Holy threadomancy Batman!

 

Well, not really, as I've finally come up with a way I like of killing off the Chapter and making it the fault of Warmaster Daara. The IA still needs some polishing so C&C is welcome but I think it works better this way than the original...

 

 

 

 

Index Astartes: Lost Chapters of the Adeptus Astartes

 

Warmongers

Commisar, commend our souls to the Emperor. Let the story of our sacrifice and the Warmaster's shame be heard across the galaxy as our mourning chant. Warmongers, stand fast!

 

Final transmission of Warmongers Chapter Master Ridan from the surface of the doomed planet Cvantz

 

Throughout the history of the Imperium the myriad Chapters of the Adeptus Astartes have stood vigil, sheltering Humanity from the assault of heretic, xenos and traitor alike. Many Chapters, such as the Space Wolves, Ultramarines and Black Templars have won renown across the galaxy, their very names are breathed as prayers by loyal citizens and spat as curses by heretics. Other Chapters have lived, fought and died in obscurity. The Warmongers are one such Chapter...

 

Origins

The Warmongers were raised as part of the 17th Founding from the geneseed of Roboute Guilliman. From the inception of the Chapter the Warmongers were marked by fate, destined for a role not played by Astartes since the days of the Great Crusade and an ending not seen even in those times. For alone amongst their brethren they were singled out to work closely with Imperial Guard and Imperial Navy forces, this unusual specialty was the result of studies by the Grand Tactica Collegiate on Terra itself that showed the varied arms of the Imperial war machine would benefit from improved integration and closer co-operation.

 

Much was made of the reputation of Astartes Chapters to act as a law unto themselves and the distressing tendency of certain Chapters to abandon their erstwhile allies, or worse yet, to use them as a shield for the Chapter's own secret activities. The Collegiate further determined that the likelihood of forcing the avowedly independent Astartes Chapters in existence to abandon these practices was slim. Instead they recommended that a newly Founded Chapter be used as a vessel to discover the ideal Astartes-Guard relationship.

 

The Collegiate recommendation coincided with increased Ork and Eldar activity on the Eastern Fringe of the galaxy and a consequent rise in Guard and Navy operations in the area. The High Lords of Terra approved the Founding and the radical plan for the Warmongers, assigning the newly born Chapter to the Eastern Fringes.

 

The Warmongers were raised from the tithed stores of geneseed from the myriad descendants of Guilliman and duly assigned an initial cadre of experienced warriors from their geneseed line, in this case the the Sons of Guilliman, to aid in their initial training and early campaigns. The new Chapter spent many of its early campaigns working side by side with the regiments of the Imperial Guard and the ships of the Imperial Navy. Early analysis of these campaigns indicated an overall improvement in Astartes-Guard efficiency but noted that the Warmongers sustained increased casualties compared to more typical Chapters in similar engagements. Further examination determined that the closer than average links the Warmongers has been encouraged to forge with the Guard allies led to the Chapter accepting greater risk and casualties than regular Chapters in the name of brotherhood with the Guardsmen fighting alongside them.

 

Homeworld

As part of the drive to integrate the Chapter with the wider Imperial command structure the Warmongers homeworld, Lancastria, was located in a system shared by other Imperial authorities. The Halifax system comprises eight habitable planets and moons from a total of 17 celestial bodies. Located coreward of Ultramar, Halifax has served the Imperium as a vital staging point for many crusades into the Eastern Fringe since before the Age of Apostasy. Most of the habitable worlds were and still are given over to training for newly recruited Guard and Navy units before their deployment to the Eastern Fringe.

 

The proximity of Guard, Navy and Warmongers training bases facilitated the growth of co-operation and mutual respect between the three organisations. Regular combined arms exercises were held and cooperation was encouraged on all levels. Marines could be found working closely with Guardsmen, Navy pilots regularly exercised with Marine Thunderhawks, and Land Raiders and Leman Russ battle tanks frequently worked alongside each other. Such cooperation helped each unit to better understand each other's strengths and weaknesses and led to an increase in camaraderie and synergy between units.

 

Warmongers recruitment was based on the Ultramar model, 10 academies were set up across Lancastria and all male youths were required to attend an academy for military training from a young age. The master of each academy was a Warmongers Marine whose duties included the training of all youths attending the academy and more importantly, the selection of promising lads as potential recruits for the Chapter. As with all would be Astartes the chosen youngsters faced a battery of tests and trials to ensure they were suitable for geneseed implantation.

 

Organisation

The Warmongers retained an essentially Codex structure, the only major change being a minor reorganisation of the Reserve Companies. The 6th and 7th Companies were designated as Battle Companies with the 8th and 9th retaining their traditional roles as the Assault and Devastator Companies respectively. This change allowed the Warmongers a degree of extra flexibility when simultaneously supporting multiple Imperial Guard and Imperial Navy actions across the Segmentum.

 

Whilst adhering to the Codex Astartes and training for all missions a Chapter might be called upon to perform the Warmongers naturally developed a particular expertise in working alongside non-Astartes units. Warmongers Companies frequently spearheaded assaults allowing Guard units to exploit the disarray they created in enemy lines, at other times Warmongers units penetrated behind enemy lines and set up defensive positions in order to act as the anvil to the Guard's hammer. Co-operation even extended to naval battles, with the Chapter's Strike Cruisers frequently distracting and harassing enemy forces in concert with Navy squadrons whilst Assault Squads seconded to Imperial Navy vessels acted as elite boarding forces.

 

Beliefs

The Warmongers' beliefs were based largely on the precepts of their cadre of Sons of Guilliman tutors and reflect those of most Codex Chapters. Their view of the Emperor as mortal rather than divine caused several notable instances of friction between the Chapter and a number of more fanatical Imperial Guard and Navy units. In the worst of these incidents the 63rd Kyborrian Hussars actually attacked the Warmongers 3rd Company during the siege of Fort Laminar.

 

The Warmongers were also noted for their open-mindedness amongst the ranks of the Astartes, being willing to serve along Abhumans such as Ogryns and Ratlings and even serving alongside Penal Legions on a number of occasions. The Warmongers saw all who bore arms under the Emperor's banner as equals in spirit, if not ability, an attitude that helped their close and repeated deployments with non Astartes units to be as successful as they were.

 

Geneseed

The Warmongers geneseed was considered stable and pure throughout the Chapter's existence. Derived from the near perfect stock of Guilliman the Chapter had no known deficiencies or mutations.

 

Combat Doctrine

The Warmongers' combat doctrine was essentially Codex, focussing on tactical flexibility and the ability to co-ordinate and communicate with allied forces. Renowned for their ability to fight effectively alongside units ranging from Rough Riders to Mountain Troopers to Penal Legions the Chapter went to great lengths to ensure good communications and coordination with their allies, far more so than is usual for Space Marines. The senior Sergeant in each deployment served as a liaison officer with nearby guard units and would frequently learn the native language and even the battle cant of his charges in order to ensure good communications.

 

Their willingness to work as part of a cohesive Imperial strategy rather than purely under their own auspices also contributed greatly to their success in combined arms actions. In such cases the Warmongers were granted exceptional tactical freedom to fulfill the strategic objectives given to them by the leaders of the Crusade or campaign and utilised the full array of tactics and battleplans recorded in the Codex to achieve their objectives.

 

This attitude and the Warmongers' impeccable record of co-operation with Imperial authorities led to them being considered the most reliable of Astartes Chapters in the Sector. In fact at the height of the Chapter's existence the Warmongers received a request for aid from a Guard, PDF or Navy unit approximately every 26 days and responded to more than 90% of those calls, a record of achievement far greater than almost any other known Chapter.

 

The Birkin Crusade

The Birkin Crusade was launched towards the end of the 38th Millenium and aimed to secure the Birkin Cluster on behalf of the Adeptus Mechanicus. Lost to a rebellion early in M.38, the Birkin Cluster had been home to more than half a dozen Forge Worlds and the Mechanicus wished to return these worlds to its control.

 

The Warmongers joined the Crusade at its inception, committing three Companies, the 3rd, 7th and 10th to the initial conflict. The Chapter contributed to several notable victories during these early years, though their success was not without cost. One action in particular cost the Chapter dearly - the defense of Kapel's Point, a battle that marked the Chapter's first encounter with the man who would doom it to extinction, Colonel, later Warmaster, Canto Daara a man renowned throughout the sector as a martinet.

 

Answering the call for aid from the Phall Irregulars was the Warmongers 10th Company, under the command of Captain Britten. The Company performed an emergency combat drop at the request of the flustered Daara, a once in a century occurrence for a Scout Company, to reinforce the faltering defenses of the Ortellian Cathedral. Daara's initial request to the Chapter had told of a lightly armed insurgent force but the Warmongers Scouts arrived to face the onslaught of an armoured division. The young Marines fought valiantly in defense of the Cathedral but many were lost on the open plains, terrain ill-suited to the lightly armed and armoured Scouts.

 

Worse was to come when Colonel Daara pulled his forces back to their second line of defence without informing Captain Britten. In the time it took for Britten to realise his flanks were exposed enemy tanks were able to trap the Warmongers in a pincer movement. Only the valiant actions of Captain Britten in singlehandedly destroying three Leman Russ tanks and disabling a fourth allowed the remnants of the 10th Company to escape, although Britten himself died acting as rearguard for his young charges.

 

The battle ended soon after when the Phall Irregulars mauled the weakened traitor force from fortified defensive positions near the Cathedral. The battle was a turning point and within months Imperial forces had regained control of Kapel's Point. In the aftermath of the campaign Daara was promoted to Brigadier for his succesful defense of the Ortellian Cathedral.

 

Cvantz and the death of the Chapter

It was nearly 30 years before the Warmongers encountered Daara again, by this time Daara had been given command of the Crusade following the death of the previous Warmaster on the Forgeworld Silas XI. Daara's appointment owed more to his political skills than his military ones and this was soon shown by the Crusade's increasingly futile struggle to dislodge the forces of Chaos from the Birkin worlds. Daara's response was as it had been on Kapel's Point - to call for reinforcements.

 

The Warmongers were, as ever, the first Astartes Chapter to respond to the call, dedicating the strength of the entire Chapter to the campaign, throwing their weight behind the faltering Imperial forces on numerous worlds. This intervention proved pivotal and within six short years the Crusade had been stabilised and was poised to sally into enemy territory once more. After two years of hard-fighting the Chapter was in poor shape, numbering less than 650 able-bodied warriors, and prepared to head back to Lancastria to refit and recruit. Once again fate stepped in.

 

On the planet Cvantz, the former capital world of the Birkin Cluster and now the headquarters of the enemy, Imperial forces had trapped Arch-Heretic Throsby and were slowly closing the noose around his forces. Daara's plan was simple - overwhelm the enemy with numbers and kill or capture the Arch Heretic thus ending the heresy at a stroke. Daara swiftly committed more than 30% of the Crusade's strength to this one battle.

 

Just days after the invasion began Throsby's plan was revealed and forces hidden by black sorcery soon had the Imperial units surrounded and outnumbered. Panicked, Daara again called for aid. Despite their battered state the Warmongers responded to the Warmaster's urgent please for help and headed for Cvantz, performing an emergency drop pod assault of the entire Chapter. Within hours Chapter Master Ridan of the Warmongers knew that the Imperials could not hold against the frenzied horde of traitors and he recommended all Crusade forces to prepare for evacuation. His orders were countermanded by Daara, the Warmaster boasting that all was going according to plan and that his counter-stroke would soon destroy the enemy.

 

For more than a week the Chapter formed the backbone of the Imperial defence as the Crusade forces were slowly decimated. Ridan himself was a tower of strength, on many occasions the Chapter Master and his Honour Guard were all that stood between the Imperials and a rout. However even the Warmongers were unable to stand in the face of the seemingly endless hordes of traitors and were soon reduced to little more than 300 Battle Brothers.

 

The Imperial perimeter shrank by the hour as Ridan repeatedly called Daara for reinforcements or permission to evacuate. Although Ridan would have been well within his rights to withdraw his Chapter he could not order the surviving Imperial Guard regiments to follow him to safety. The bonds of brotherhood forged between Chapter and Guard on the bloodied fields of the Birkin Crusade made such a decision next to impossible for the Warmongers. Knowing the only way he could get his Guard allies off planet was to convince Daara to retreat, Ridan resolved to confront the Warmaster face to face to force him to face the reality of defeat. Less than an hour later Ridan, having first been teleported to the Warmongers Battle Barge Connexio Frateris, was aboard the Imperial flagship, his armour still bearing the scars and stains of battle, determined to prevent the slaughter of the remaining forces on Cvantz.

 

Met in the docking bay by Daara's chief of staff, Ridan was shocked to be informed the Warmaster would not see him until he had made himself presentable. Ignoring the protests of the Warmaster's aides Ridan forced his way into Daara's personal quarters to confront him. He was greeted by the sight of the normally immaculate Daara dead drunk, his uniform filthy and a three day growth covering his well fleshed face. Enraged, Ridan hauled a terrified Daara from his bed and to the horror of the Warmaster's aides drew his bolt pistol, placing it against the man's forehead and reciting the Canticle of the Damned.

 

Before he could finish the canticle and pull the trigger, Commissar Ayling, senior commissar of the Crusade, drawn by the commotion the Chapter Master had caused entered the room and laid a hand on Ridan's arm. A few quiet words passed between the two and Ridan slowly let a petrified Daara slump to the floor, nodding to Ayling as he left the Warmaster's quarters. As Ridan left Ayling drew his own sidearm and with the simple phrase, 'You have failed the Emperor, your life is forfeit.', condemned Daara to death. Before the report of the pistol had faded Ayling had assumed command of the Crusade until a new Warmaster could be appointed and had ordered an immediate evacuation of Cvantz under the direction of Ridan.

 

Ridan returned to Cvantz only to find the situation had worsened in his absence. A week of slaughter had drawn the eye of Chaos to the planet and the foul rituals enacted by the Arch Heretic's pet sorcerers had torn reality asunder, drowning the Imperials in a gibbering horde of daemons. Ordering his Marines to stand fast as a rear guard, Ridan initiated the retreat of the remaining Crusade forces from the ruins of Cvantz. It was too little, too late. The Warmongers losses grew by the moment, Battle Brothers were overwhelmed by daemons and traitors across the perimeter as many of their Guard allies fled their posts in terror, desperate to reach the evacuation ships. Recognising the Imperial cause was lost Ridan gave an order seldom heard from a Chapter Master of the Astartes - every man for himself. Rallying his surviving Honour Guard Ridan led a desperate charge into the enemy lines to buy time for his few remaining warriors to board the last Thunderhawks.

 

Aftermath

 

Led by their senior surviving officer, Chaplain Tellier, the Warmongers refused all contact with the remaining Imperial forces, even ignoring the calls of the many Guard units offering praise and assistance as they returned to their fleet and began their sorrowful journey home. With much of their geneseed lost or destroyed on Cvantz and with few of the necessary specialists like Apothecaries and TechMarines remaining in their ranks the Warmongers had effectively ceased to exist as a Chapter, a fact soon recognised by the High Lords of Terra. Shortly after their return to Lancastria the Chapter was disbanded, its banners and battle honours were sent to Terra to be stored alongside those of other lost Astartes Chapters. The surviving Marines fought a few minor campaigns, their numbers ever dwindling before they were ordered to form a cadre for a new Chapter - the Avenging Sons.

 

The experiences of Cvantz and the Birkin Crusade lay heavily on the cadre teams and the Avenging Sons Chapter bears little resemblance to the Warmongers. The Avenging Sons are noted as insular and suspicious of outsiders, notably the Chapter refuses to be subordinated to any other force, fiercely maintaining its independence in order to avoid a fate like that of the Warmongers.

 

Lancastria was abandoned as an Astartes homeworld and now serves as a training world for many of the Segmentum's Imperial Guard and Navy units. Many of the regiments saved by the Warmongers' actions on Cvantz venerate the world as a shrine and have stationed honour guards on the Chapter's former holdings to ensure the Chapter's history remains unsullied.

[Hasoroth]

Just a few thoughts:

 

1) I really like how you've written this. I like the thematic elements and the fluff. (I may add that when you wrote about Daara's three day growth, I thought you meant a mutation at first! :rolleyes:)

 

2) I was thinking about how the message could be changed a bit. The storyline can be condensed into nice guys get reamed helping people, turn (justifiably) anti-social. Perhaps a change that could be pursued for an alternate Warmongers IA is that Ridan evacuated the Warmongers after his encounter with Daara leaving the Imperial Crusade to die. It doesn't change too much. The Warmongers would no doubt still be renamed as the Avenging Sons, but it makes them a bit grittier. Just a random thought at midnight though :)

[FuriousFerret]

1) Very good! I enjoyed this, and your old Brazen Claws IA as well.

 

2) Cvantz. The beauty of language is such that what is a noble, exotic name to you basically means, uhm, the equivalent of the Oz term "poofter" in my language. :-) Gotta love it!

[Ferrus Manus]

The Warmongers' saw all who bore arms under the Emperor's flags as equals in spirit,

I think it is flag, you could say 'under the Emperor's Banner' not Banner's.

 

Led by their senior surviving officer, Chaplain Tellier, the Warmongers refusedz all contact

 

Apart from that I like it SCC. I'm looking forward to the IA: Avenging Sons.

[SCC]

Thanks guys :devil:

 

@Ferrus: Typos fixed.

 

@Hasoroth: I did think about Ridan pulling his men out, but decided it was out of character for him and the Chapter. I know that because in my head I know Ridan really quite well but a lot of that material doesn't fit in the IA. That said I might consider adding a couple of short sidebar profiles - one for Ridan and one for Daara - to give readers a little more info without breaking into the historical narrative with overly specific info. I admit that the Ridan/Daara confrontation at the end is a little too specific but I couldn't break it down and make it less personal whilst still conveying what happened so <shrug>.

 

@RRChristensen: Thanks, it's nice that someone remembers the Brazen Claws. The name 'Cvantz' is a corruption of the name 'Cervantes' author of Don Quixote, a copy of which was lying on the desk when I drew up the original draft I think. I quite like it so unless it proves particularly objectionable to a large number of folks I think I'll keep it.

[Ferrata]

Early analysis of these campaigns indicated an overall improvement in Astartes-Guard efficiency but noted that the Warmongers sustained increased casualties compared to more typical Chapters in similar engagements. Further examination determined that the closer than average links the Warmongers has been encouraged to forge with the Guard allies led to the Chapter accepting greater risk and casualties than regular Chapters in the name of brotherhood with the Guardsmen fighting alongside them.

 

I would suggest dropping the second mention of greater casualties and leave it at risks because you’ve already mentioned the higher casualty rate, disrupting the flow a little.

 

The Halifax system comprises eight habitable planets and moons from a total of 17 celestial bodies

 

Halifax? You got a captain called Howard :)

 

The proximity of Guard, Navy and Warmongers training bases facilitated the growth of co-operation and mutual respect between the three organisations. Regular combined arms exercises were held and cooperation was encouraged on all levels

 

Doubling of co-operation breaks the flow a little, plus you spelt it differently either time.

 

Maybe instead of having the 10th Company attached to the Crusade as a force, maybe mention that they were sent to gain valuable experience although they would spend much time training on newly compliant worlds (showing the strength of even lesser Astartes). The reason they were called to help was because they were training on a near-by world, which explains why they deployed and not another company/force. (Maybe include that the planet was thought fully compliant but Daara’s rule had caused an uprising.)

 

650 men isn’t overly bad, seeing as they have six Battle Companies, the loss of 350 men is a terrible loss for a chapter but I doubt it would be fall back to recruit level. Especially if there is still a fight going on. Maybe some of the chapter would return to recruit, but surely a Battle Company or two could be left behind.

 

Warmongers responded to the Warmaster's urgent please for help and headed for

Is that meant to be ‘pleas’?

 

Met in the docking bay by Daara's chief of staff, Ridan was shocked to be informed the Warmaster would not see him until he had made himself presentable. Ignoring the protests of the Warmaster's aides Ridan forced his way into Daara's personal quarters to confront him. He was greeted by the sight of the normally immaculate Daara dead drunk, his uniform filthy and a three day growth covering his well fleshed face. Enraged, Ridan hauled a terrified Daara from his bed and to the horror of the Warmaster's aides drew his bolt pistol, placing it against the man's forehead and reciting the Canticle of the Damned.

 

Maybe you could have him found not caring about the slaughter that was going on, because at the moment he seems actually concerned about his men (if not enough to pull them out). I’m imaging the scene from the Return of the King when the Steward of Gondor is happily eating a meal whilst Faramir rides to his death.

 

I still like the overall flow of the story, but my first feedback from the original draft still remains ^_^

 

Another great read :)