Perditia

[Ace Debonair]

Pretty pleased with myself for getting so close to the mark in my approximation of the characters. Hopefully I maintain that in the story.

 

I think this fits well, although I'd rather you be aware of the distinction between "quickest-tempered" of the four and "short-tempered", for while Tobulo is probably the former, he is not the latter.

Noted. :D I'd already guessed that a short-fused marine would be unlikely to make captain, forget commander of a campaign. :lol:

 

Hopefully I'll get this written up properly quite soon, although I've been able to sneak a rough draft together. More or less.

 

May I request something? Upon the revelation of the 'hidden moon', Aleksei would become 'strangely enthusiastic'. Nothing drastic, but a subtle change. Why? Can't tell you, but it would be nice if you could work that in somehow.

Sure, why not. Quick question though - enthusiastic in what way? I mean to say, enthusiastic at discovering that the Eldar have tech and mind-power enough to hide a moon, enthusiastic as in eager to do battle with a hated foe, enthusiastic that the xenos have exposed themselves and the campaign might be coming to an end... you can see there's a lot of ways I can take this one. Can you clarify without giving the game away somehow? (Tall order #1 placed <_< )If not, are any of the options I have suggested acceptably close to the mark?

 

Also, should this meeting take place before, during, or after the last of the conflicts on the other planets? (I was thinking during, but those last dying battles are more for the IG to mop up the feeble remnants of the Gehenna forces. Sound good?)

 

Lastly, what sort of losses are we looking at for the astartes chapters prior to the last battle? Anyone thought of roughly how many casualties would be sustained? I presently think the IK might have lost the most troops of the four, but I don't know (yet) how the battles the Arctic Lions, Death Heads and Warriors Eternal went.

[Codex Grey]

Mostly 'eager to do battle with a hated foe', but any words he express would be more of the 'xenos have exposed themselves and the campaign might be coming to an end' type if that makes any sense.

 

As for when, I vote for the last of your options.

 

Due to the Warriors' small numbers and heavily specialized force they will only fight as special reserves in the other battles. Their main engagement is the assault of the Palace obviously, and this is then where they will take the most casualties. I still don't have an exact number, but I'm thinking minimal, somewhere between 4 and 10 marines.

[Ferrus Manus]

Hmm, I think I could see the Lions losing about 6-10 marines and maybe 5 Scouts during the World Train, mostly cause they take the brunt of the fighting whilst the Death Heads act as the final hammer blow.

[Donkey Kong]

Death Heads, Four Companies, brunt of the Astartes fighting, probably around 15 fatalities altogether ;) !

[Ace Debonair]

:P Oh, alright.

I'd assumed we'd lose more than that. But hey, what are guardsmen for? :P

 

I'll revise my estimate that the Infinity Knights had lost twenty from each company, and go with maybe five from each. Their tactics are meant to yield a slightly higher loss of life anyway.

 

I've hit a snag in my rough draft. Should all of the captains from the four Chapters be present, or only the primary four?

[Ferrus Manus]

I'd say primary four otherwise you'll have too many Characters and it could end up with them being bland and without depth.

[Ace Debonair]

Roger that. I have to admit, I was starting to get a bit worried about how to do that.

It's not going to be too long of a piece of writing in the first place, so this is probably the better route.

 

I'll just have to re-read everything I can find about the Arctic Lions and the Warriors Eternal so I get the proper feel for the characters, likewise the Death Heads so I can work out how to best portray a more archetypal Death Head than Filo. At least I have a good idea how to write Altram. :lol:

 

I'd do it right now, but my brain hurts because it's getting late. Let's see what I can do next time I get a few hours to myself. :P

[Ferrus Manus]

Just as a note Ace, all Arctic Lions are albino white with grey hair. Not because of geneseed, more due to the fact of genetic mutation on their homeworld.

[Ace Debonair]

Oh, thanks.

I had him down as blonde. <_<

 

Any other characteristics from any of the captains (Arnkel, Tobulo and Aleksei) that I ought to know about? I want to get this right, after all. :lol:

[Donkey Kong]

I imagine Tobulo to look something like the guy pictured on the second page.

Curly, dirty blond hair, gray eyes, maybe a bit broader, more venerable looking, clean shaven, no obvious bionics, no real scars.

 

EDIT:

 

http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_30PRmkOl4ro/Sl3Fmi5DLeI/AAAAAAAAS7s/f5XsVQQHlvA/s400/mens%20short%20curly%20hair.jpg

 

Pic for reference.

[Ace Debonair]

:P

I had him down as grey and grizzled.

Glad you corrected me, though. I described Tobulo a bit in my rough draft, so that needs sorting out.

 

I'm stuck on where to start the story, too. I might just start it from Altram being guided to the war-room on the Nausicaa, and have the other three waiting for him.

The other option is to have Altram meet up with Arnkel and Aleksei on the way to the war-room, and I can't decide which would be better. :wub:

[Codex Grey]

Aleksei looks like a brute, bald with a wide jaw, powerful forehead and battle-beaten nose.

But after seeing how you originally envisioned the other Captains, I'm curious to hear how you first thought he would look like. :)

[Codex Grey]

All this talk about the Big Four Captains reminded me of something. Remember some time ago when I asked about the appearance of each of the main captains? The idea was that I was going to draw a small pic of each Cap. which would go along with their special rules, similar to the Badad pdf.

Well, I actually finished the sketches some time ago, but I wanted to take them into photoshop and improve my linework, add shadows and maybe even color. Up until now my photoshop skills have been pretty rubbish and they still aren't great, but I'm starting to see how I can finish them now. So since I forgot to show the sketches to you guys before, I though this would be a good time.

I've gone for a bit of cartoonish style, trying to exaggerate the characteristics of each Captain. Some of the lines are a bit off, so I'll try to fix those in photoshop later.

This is Aleksei. Pretty much how I described him in my previous post. I wanted to capture his hard attitude and a sense of strength. Pretty happy with the result.

Tobulo. Tried to convey a sense of authority. His hair was a challenge, but I've hopefully got it right.

Arnkel. After reading your latest description of him, Ferrus, I'm not sure if you wanted to give him more hair. I personally tried to portray the monk like nature of the Lions, by both his close shaved hair and calm features, with a hint of ferocity in his eyes. I personally think he was the one who turned out best, but I'll let you be the judge.

And finally Altram. Out of the four, he was the most challenging one. I struggled a bit with trying to visually represent your description of him, Ace. In the end I went with the notion of him not being as imposing as the others. Please tell me if you like it.

EDIT: What the heck...

Since I'm already sharing my work, I might as well show you something else. In between school assignments, I've been working on... ah shoot, I'll just show you.

Here is a super exclusive first look at my attempt at creating a suit of power armor in 3D. Since that render was made, I've enlarges the legs a tiny bit, but other than that I'm pretty much happy with the proportions. It is still very much WIP though, the most obvious thing would be the lack of helmet (I'm kinda afraid to start on it). And than there are a lot of small details and items I want to add, and of course a holy bolter.

[Ferrus Manus]

Wow, Grey, he looks great! Very cool. ;) Now I have something to base him on when I get round to modelling him.

 

As for the Power Armour render the proportions seem good to me, something that is tricky when dealing with Astartes, so well done. What are your plans for it?

[Donkey Kong]

Outstanding Grey :D !

 

Admittedly, I didn't imagine Tobulo to be so gaunt, but it works. you have a very unique style.

 

The Power Armor is just brilliant.

[Codex Grey]

Thanks guys, glad to see they are acceptable.

 

As for the Power Armour render the proportions seem good to me, something that is tricky when dealing with Astartes, so well done. What are your plans for it?

Tell me about it! I spent quite a long time just adjusting the size of the different part just to see what looked best.

 

Well, the plan is to make it represent a brother of the Heralds of Light Chapter. I don't collect or paint miniatures, so this is my way of finally visualizing my Chapter. Maybe I'll make an Insignium Astartes: Heralds of Light some day. But since most of the armor parts are pretty basic space marine stuff, I might do some small art pieces, like for example a shoulder guard with the symbol of the Arctic Lions/Death Heads/Infinity Knights/Warriors Eternal in some fancy lighting for the Campaign. That will depend on how much free time I'll have though.

[Ferrus Manus]

Mate, they are more than acceptable - your very talented at differentiating faces. As far as I can remember most of the faces I draw all look the same :lol:

 

Out of interest what programme did you use for the PA render?

[Codex Grey]

Thanks. I had the same problem as well. But I've learned a bit of theory about drawing at my school and the main point is that you should draw what you see. Instead of drawing the symbols your mind has stored away from various things like 'eye' or 'nose', you should try to forget about your prerecorded knowledge of how a nose looks like and focus on the lines that are in front of you. The shape and direction of each line, the angle between the lines and the horizontal/vertical lines.

Knowing the theory might not make you a great drawer, but it helps. Practice makes perfect.

 

I created all the armor parts in 3D studio MAX, rendered it in mental ray. I'll hopefully do some of the smaller details (aquila wings, skulls, inscriptions, scratches, etc.) in Mudbox and then do the textures in Mudbox and Photoshop.

[Ferrus Manus]

Hmm, some interesting ideas there Grey. I may just give it a shot :(

[Ace Debonair]

Aleksei looks like a brute, bald with a wide jaw, powerful forehead and battle-beaten nose.

But after seeing how you originally envisioned the other Captains, I'm curious to hear how you first thought he would look like. :)

 

Aleksei I had down as battle-scarred and rough-featured, and generally huge. Actually come to think of it, I had him down as the most nondescript of the four, but purposefully so, like even his very genes waste no time on pointless aesthetics.

 

 

And finally Altram. Out of the four, he was the most challenging one. I struggled a bit with trying to visually represent your description of him, Ace. In the end I went with the notion of him not being as imposing as the others. Please tell me if you like it.

 

:blush: One word: AWESOME.

 

Possibly slightly longer hair, but otherwise perfect. I haven't got any good examples of how I think Altram's hair should look, but I pictured it slightly longer and not so neat at the front. But his face is spot-on. You've got the slightly calmer, more detached demeanour spot-on, and he certainly looks the least authoritative and imposing of the four, while still looking capable and dangerous. Great stuff!

 

As a side-note I also had Arnkel down as long-haired, as a reference to a Lion's mane - but he looks very cool like that!

 

That power armour looks great, too. I am left astounded by your art skills - I can just about manage stick people on MS Paint. ;)

[Ace Debonair]

By The Emperor, that took longer than I'd anticipated.

 

But here it is, the not-quite-short story I've been promising.

 

Enjoy!

 

-=-=-=-=

 

 

---.---.M41: Aboard the Death Heads' Battle Barge Nausicaa. First Company Captain Lucil Tobulo has called an urgent council, requesting the presence of Diome Arnkel, Akim Aleksei, and Mors Altram. The three Captains arrive aboard the Nausicaa, and are directed up to Tobulo's war-room, where he awaits them...

 

 

The two Death Head sentries outside the war-room aboard the Nausicaa straightened up. They could hear voices at the far end of the corridor.

"...address him as Captain at all times. If you don't show the right respect, Tobulo can be quite...intense."

"I appreciate your concern, Filo. But I have made a point of researching etiquette aboard your ships."

"You have?"

"Of course. I've fought alongside a number of brother chapters, many whose behaviour is... unusual. Common sense dictated I find out as much as possible about your chapter, too."

"What's unusual about us, Altram?"

The sentries exchanged weary glances. Captain Filo of the Fourth Company and Mors Altram of the Infinity Knights rounded the distant corner at the end of the corridor, marching in quick pace towards the war-room. Filo was still clad in his power armour, but Altram wore a simple sand-brown robe, and carried no weapon.

"I didn't say your Chapter was unusual, Filo. I just said I did my research."

"Hmm," Filo frowned, "Well, I hope you did enough research, my friend. Take Tobulo seriously and treat him with the utmost respect."

The two arrived at the door, and Filo reached past the sentries and knocked upon the door thrice.

"Enter," boomed a voice from inside. One of the sentries opened the door at the deft touch of a button. Altram and Filo went inside.

 

The war-room was huge. It was easily space enough to comfortably accomodate fifty Astartes. It was lit by a huge chandelier, which hung above a central table. The walls were decorated with maps, star-charts, weapons, ancient armour, banners and trophies. The far wall was dominated by a huge window, looking out into empty space. Far below, the moon of Prastum was visible. But even amid all the decoration, Lucil Tobulo stood out. He was standing in front of a smaller, more cluttered table in one corner of the room. Clad in ceremonial green and silver power armour, Tobulo seemed almost to embody the proud, fierce warrior tradition of the Death Heads. He looked weary, as though the years of constant battle were beginning to tire him, except for his eyes, which were filled with fire and purpose as he spoke.

 

"You must be Mors Altram. Good to finally put a face to the name. Roca, show the other Captains to this room as they arrive."

"Roca?" Altram said, puzzled.

"That's my first name," Filo explained, frowning at the perplexed look on Altram's face. "I don't use it often."

Tobulo interrupted further discussion.

"I expect Diome Arnkel and Akim Aleksei within the hour, Roca."

"Captain. I'll go wait for them in the docking bay."Filo saluted and left the room. Tobulo strode over to the large table in the centre of the room, signalling Filo to leave. After Filo's departure, Tobulo gestured to Altram to come to the table.

"Sit, Altram. Once Arnkel and Aleksei get here, we will have much to discuss."

"As you say, Captain Tobulo."

Tobulo stood silently, staring at a map of the Gehenna cluster in front of him. The campaign was all but over, Altram knew. The Infinity Knights' actions had been but a small part of the vengeful plans of Tobulo - elsewhere in the cluster the Arctic Lions, Warriors Eternal and Death Heads had struck with the ferocity synonymous with their chapters, wiping out any threat that confronted them. Altram and Filo had received word, after the death of the Farseer on Grahdan, that Tobulo had requested their presence aboard the Nausicaa with regard to a necessity for a change of plan. Altram suspected it would not be wise to press Tobulo for details until the other captains arrived.

 

Almost as if on cue, the door opened again to reveal Captain Filo, standing between two other marines. Filo bowed to Tobulo and backed out of the room wordlessly. Tobulo surveyed the newcomers for just a moment before speaking.

"Welcome, brothers. I am Captain Lucil Tobulo of the Death Heads, master of the Nausicaa."

Of the two newcomers, the first was a true giant of a man, large and obviously powerful. He was clad in a plain blue robe, his expression passive and eyes unblinking. He returned the greeting with a silent nod. The second marine was smaller in stature, but his eyes were constantly moving, taking in every detail. His expression was calculating, his skin pale, and his short hair a pale grey, just as the robes he wore. He stepped forward, a hand raised in greeting.

"Greetings, Captain Tobulo. Aleksei and I received your request, and have made haste to attend here."

"Diome. It is good to see you and Aleksei again," Tobulo said, gesturing for the two newcomers to sit at the table. Tobulo paused for a moment as the introductions between the other captains were made, marshalling his thoughts.

 

"Captain Tobulo." Akim Aleksei of the Warriors Eternal interrupted his musings. "With respect, you surely did not summon us here for pleasantries. What words do you have for us?"

"Words of congratulations, perhaps?" Diome Arnkel interrupted. "The strength of the enemy wanes - the Eldar are driven from the system like dogs, and without the guidance of Chancellor Ferze, the traitors stumble and fall like wheat before the scythe. This war belongs to us, now."

"It is true that the resistance here has become less stubborn," Altram added, thoughtfully. "Many of my men anticipate the command to return to Sharius within the next two months."

"Would that it were that simple," Tobulo said, quietly. "Word has reached me from our scouts - disturbing news indeed. It seems that the Eldar have not fled as far as we had hoped. Our sensors indicate that the xeno forces have been retreating to a space around Gehenna itself - then vanishing without a trace."

"So I had heard." Diome Arnkel nodded agreement. "I thought the ships had simply been destroyed somehow, but now that you mention it the results are too consistent. The xenos are not foolish enough to make the same mistake so many times."

Tobulo nodded his agreement. "Exactly, Captain Arnkel. Imperial Guard scout forces have now confirmed my suspicions - there is another moon orbiting Gehenna - a moon shielded from all our sensors."

"What?" Aleksei sat bolt upright, astounded. "How is such a thing possible?"

"At present, we do not know. There the Eldar gather, although their intentions are not clear. One thing that is for certain, however, is that the moon is well-defended. No Guard Regiment could break it."

"The Eldar gather there - this would be the perfect chance to strike, and wipe them out." Aleksei said, his eyes lighting up. "Say the word, Tobulo, and my men and I will lead this strike."

"Hold on, Aleksei. Your courage is beyond question, but an action like this requires careful thought." Arnkel rubbed his chin thoughtfully. "We need to know exactly what we are up against before we make any rash moves."

"My scouts have confirmed the layout of their defences." Tobulo said, striding to the smaller table and picking up a dataslate. Hear me now - I have a plan." Tobulo's expression grew more stern, and he looked from one captain to the next. Aleksei was still sat upright, staring back at him boldy, obviously eager to be in the fray once more. Arnkel by contrast was sat back, his hand rubbing idly against his chin as he watched the dataslate in Tobulo's hands, no doubt already coming up with possible stratagems and scenarios. Altram sat forward, elbows on the table, hands interlocked - a look of grim concentration on his face. Tobulo cleared his throat before continuing.

"Each of you will have your roles to play. Even if everything works according to plan, you will most likely be engaging in the fiercest battle of the entire campaign, facing powerful enemies fuelled by desperation. There will be little room for error; no quarter given nor asked for. Are you prepared to face the end of this campaign?"

The assembled captains exchanged glances. It was Aleksei who spoke for them.

"Tell us your plan, Captain Tobulo. We will not waver."

 

 

-=-=-=-=

 

 

Damn, but that was hard to write.

Capturing the character of the four different chapters and their captains' personalities in one swoop was a total pain in the neck. :)

 

I hope I'm not too far off the mark with this story, and if there's any problems with the portrayal of any of the characters (or the Nausicaa) I'll make any changes required.

 

Thoughts, anyone?

[Ferrus Manus]

Ace, that was great. Actually, I think it should be the first fluff piece the reader comes across if we make this into a booklet. The four character contrasts were excellent.

[Ace Debonair]

Ace, that was great. Actually, I think it should be the first fluff piece the reader comes across if we make this into a booklet. The four character contrasts were excellent.

 

Glad you like it Ferrus! :D

 

 

Hopefully Grey and KHK approve as well - I'm honestly not sure if I've captured Aleksei correctly, so I'm a bit nervous there. I suppose only time (and the other two) will tell if I've got their respective Captains right. :D

[Codex Grey]

I love it. The war room gave me a captain's-cabin-of-a-pirateship vibe, which I thought was great. I have no problems with your description of Aleksei.

I agree with Ferrus, this would definitively work as the first fluff piece, at least of any stories directly relating to the four Captains.

 

One thing though.

 

"Of course. I've fought alongside dozens of brother chapters, many whose behaviour is... unusual. Common sense dictated I find out as much as possible about your chapter, too."

For the common Chapter, inter-Chapter operations are very rare. The Astartes are spread thin throughout the Galaxy, each Chapter taking responsibility over large areas by themselves. Granted, you have the wandering Companies, but 'dozens' is IMO A LOT of Chapters. I could maybe buy it if it were 'our Chapter has fought alongside...', but for one Captains lifetime, that's too much.

[Ace Debonair]

I love it. The war room gave me a captain's-cabin-of-a-pirateship vibe, which I thought was great. I have no problems with your description of Aleksei.

I agree with Ferrus, this would definitively work as the first fluff piece, at least of any stories directly relating to the four Captains.

 

One thing though.

 

"Of course. I've fought alongside dozens of brother chapters, many whose behaviour is... unusual. Common sense dictated I find out as much as possible about your chapter, too."

For the common Chapter, inter-Chapter operations are very rare. The Astartes are spread thin throughout the Galaxy, each Chapter taking responsibility over large areas by themselves. Granted, you have the wandering Companies, but 'dozens' is IMO A LOT of Chapters. I could maybe buy it if it were 'our Chapter has fought alongside...', but for one Captains lifetime, that's too much.

 

Duly noted and edited accordingly. ;)

 

Thanks for checking the story, Grey! I was unsure about how I'd done with Aleksei - is his response to the news about the moon appropriate for whatever you had planned?

 

So that's three out of four Captains confirmed as OK. (I'm pretty pleased with my portrayal of Altram, naturally :lol: )

Just KHK to win over now. :lol: