Perditia

[Ace Debonair]

Firstly, as far as a status report goes I suddenly realised halfway through that this story of mine was total rubbish.

 

Secondly, here's the ammended version story I've been threatening you all with. :lol:

 

---.---.M41. On the surface of Grahdan, a mountainous, barely habitable world in the Gehenna system.

Captain Filo of the Death Heads' 4th company and Captain Haedar of the Infinity Knights 6th company have joined battle with Eldar of the Kel-Altasar Craftworld and traitor guardsmen in their final bastion in the cluster of worlds know as Iber. The battle has been fiercely fought on both sides, and with the arrival of the Eldar Farseer Ei'valir the tide of battle has begun to turn against the Imperium factions.

 

Captain Filo ducked gratefully behind the cover of the Rhino. The battle had taken an unexpected turn with the arrival of the enemy Farseer, but it was not yet lost. All he needed was a moment to think - to work out the best possible counter-attack. It would have been the perfect time for the Infinity Knights to reinforce their position with their Dreadnoughts, but as Filo had learned, Haedar considered such recklessness a sort of sacrilege. The only way to turn the tide back in favour of the Death Heads would be to kill the Farseer. A simple task, he reflected bitterly, considering the Farseer was protected by three lines of enemy forces and simply content to hurl vast psychic energies into the ranks of the astartes, and also that Filo's only functioning weapon was his power sword. The one trick Filo had up his sleeve was Sergeant Gare, one of his most trusted men. Gare and his squad had deployed a small distance away, and were waiting to pick off the Colonel commanding the rebellious guardsmen. If Gare could eliminate one leader, it might be possible for him to eliminate the Farseer as well.

 

At this point, some instinct, keen as a razor but impossible to name, told Filo to move. He got up and ran towards a low wall, but wasn't fast enough to escape the explosion as Eldar firepower punctured the engine of the Rhino transport. Filo was thrown flat with the force of the blast. Cursing, and spitting mud, he pushed himself up. There - barely thrity paces from him - was the Farseer. She saw him rising to his feet, and pointed a hand at him, fingers splayed. Filo took his chance, and ran directly at the farseer, screaming battle cries.

 

As the psychic energy built up in the Farseer, Filo closed the distance admirably. He wasn't more than four or five paces away when the Farseer blasted him square in the chest with force enough to unbalance him. In that moment, a large group of Eldar guardians and traitor guardsmen burst out of their cover, opening fire on Filo. Filo leapt behind the ruins of one of the loyalist's Leman Russ battle tanks, buying himself some time. The ground shook, suddenly, as a series of booming thuds, louder than any explosion, rent the air. Haedar had called in the Dreadnoughts, at last. Filo sprang to his feet, taking the scene in at a glance. The four dreadnoughts of the Infinity Knight's sixth company were tearing apart the platoon that had opened fire at him. The Farseer, Filo realised, was running. That was what Haedar had been waiting for - a chance for his dreadnoughts to tear the enemy's heart out with the death of the Farseer. Seeing the Farseer retreating sent a fresh wave of adrenaline through Filo, and he gave pursuit, ignoring the enemies that fired at him from either flank as he closed in on his target. Another thud rent the air as an Infinity Knight drop pod crashed into the floor not four feet from the Farseer, causing the Eldar to fall backwads heavily and land against a small, jutting rock, causing the Farseer's helm to crack. The doors of the drop pod burst open, and marines burst out, opening fire on the surrounding Eldar forces. The Farseer struck them with a burst of lightning, perhaps unaware that Filo was closing in. Filo leapt forward, his sword tracing a brilliant crescent through the air, but the Farseer skipped nimbly aside, avoiding the strike. Filo's second stroke clashed against the Farseer's sword, and for the first time he got a good look at his opponent. The Farseer wrenched her helmet off, and Filo found, to his surprise, he was face to face with a young-looking, blonde-haired female. In other circumstances, it would have been hard to even imagine her as a dangerous enemy. She snarled at him, trying to push away his power sword. Filo gritted his teeth, suddenly spinning out of the sword-lock and aiming a backhand slash at his opponent's head. The Farseer ducked under the attack, and came up with her empty hand, which rested delicately on the side of Filo's face for a fraction of a second before vast psychic energies threw him through the air, landing with a crash some distance away.

 

Filo was in a dazed state. He couldn't see straight, and his legs felt weak. He tried to push himself up onto his feet, but his legs gave way, and he landed awkwardly on his back, his power sword falling from his grasp. Even as he reached for it, the Farseer's psychic grip enveloped it, and pulled it from his reach. She strode over to him, her sword point at his throat.

"You were a fool to challenge me, Captain Filo. I am Ei'valir, Farseer of the Kel-Altasar Craftworld - and I cannot be bested in battle."

Filo would have liked to reply, but he felt as though his head was filled with fog - as though everything was happening a long way off. Concussion, he realised. Suddenly his vision was filled with a figure in dark armour, and the Farseer's sword was knocked aside as Chaplain Habir of the Infinity Knights attacked Ei'valir. But he had been with the Seventh Company, on the moon of Zidas. Where had Habir come from? Was Filo imagining him?

Filo shook himself. The other marines in the drop pods must have been from the seventh; Habir had been in charge of the company in place of Altram ever since the battle at Tecton. He was a brave fighter, but already the Farseer had wounded him. Filo scrambled to his feet, ran foward, picking up his power sword, and accelerated towards the Farseer.

 

Ei'valir didn't even acknowledge Filo's presence, merely sidestepping his attack and knocking him aside for just long enough to turn and run Chaplain Habir through with her sword. Ei'valir wrenched the blade free of the chaplain's chest, skipped back gracefully and turned to face Filo. There was a roaring noise above him, and a marine, dressed in the colours of the Infinity Knights, landed heavily on the floor between him and the farseer. He wore the blue-and brown tabard that amongst the Infinity Knights denoted a commander, and carried an ornate chainsword.

"Altram?" Filo called out in surprise. Altram didn't take his eyes off of the Farseer as he replied.

"Good to see you, Filo." Despite the fact Altram was wearing no helmet, his voice sounds wrong - deeper and harsher. The Farseer moved quickly, bringing her sword up in a vicious lunge. Altram parried the attack easily, and the fight began in earnest.

Filo stepped forward, his power sword held ready to strike, but suddenly a call came through to him on the vox system.

"Captain? We've got a problem."

"Gare? What's the problem?"

"The Colonel, sir. He's taken to the field in a tank - I can't get a shot at him."

Filo took the opportunity to mutter a curse against all scheming traitors before replying.

"Then don't hang around, Gare. We need every man on the field right now - the Xeno leader is right in front of us."

"Moving out, sir." Gare's signal went dead. Filo turned his attention back to the fight. Altram was winning, but behind him, an Eldar sniper was taking aim. Filo ran forward, operating solely on reflex. The sniper saw him, quickly shifting aim and firing. The shot clanged harmlessly off Filo's shoulder armour as he rushed foward. The sniper was taking aim again - this time at Filo's head. With the keen reactions of a space marine, Filo sidestepped as he ran, and shifted his grip on his sword. But the sniper was less than twenty paces away now - there was no way the enemy could miss. Almost at the same time the enemy fired, Filo threw his sword. The shot clanged off of Filo's kraken helm, and the sword buried itself in the sniper's torso. Filo retrieved his sword, thanking the Emperor for the good fortune that had made him a captain and afforded him such a durable helmet. He turned back to Altram, in time to see the Farseer swing at him, and Altram catch her arm in mid-swing. Filo noted that Altram had been disarmed - his chainsword lay on a pile of rubble several paces away.

 

"I am Ei'valir of the Kel-Altasar! I cannot be defeated!" The Farseer howled at Altram, who replied simply and calmly.

"You have no say in the matter - your life is in The Emperor's hands."

As Ei'valir brought her empty hand up towards the marine's face, Filo tensed himself to call out a warning, but Altram's reflexes were superb - his other hand had already closed around his bolt pistol, which came up with the speed of a striking snake and fired once. Her expression became one of genuine surprise, and her hand, reaching up, rested gently on the marine's face. The Farseer's eyes were clouding over as she whispered to him.

"Who... are you?"

Altram brushed the Farseer's hand aside, letting her body fall to the floor in front of him. He looked down with contempt at his fallen foe.

"I am Mors Altram; Captain of the Infinity Knights 7th company. Pay the price for your trickery, witch."

Filo approached Altram in shock.

"Altram? By The Emperor, I was told it would take until the end of next year for you to recover!"

Mors Altram turned to face Filo, and filo could see the bright silver band that ran around his neck.

"What's that?"

Altram shrugged.

"My voice was too damaged to save. I speak with the voice of the dead - what you hear was formerly the voice of my brother, Shiron."

"A battle-brother?"

"My own flesh and blood, Filo. He died in the battle at Tecton."

Filo opened his mouth to speak, but he was interrupted by a volley of gunfire from a battery of enemy guardsmen.

"We'll talk later. We still have a fight to finish."

"I don't think that will be a problem, Filo." Altram said, a smile creeping across his face. Filo, on instinct, looked up. Drop pods were hurtling through the sky towards the enemy position.

"Dreadnoughts?" He asked.

"Dreadnoughts." Altram nodded his acknowledgement. Filo shook his head ruefully as the drop pods smashed into the enemy positions.

"You could have told me you were taking command again, Altram. You know Haedar and I don't get along."

"I wanted him to learn from you. Hopefully he has - but that's a discussion for another day." Altram hefted his bolt pistol. "We still have work to do."

Filo raised his sword, too, the pair standing side-by-side before the last bastion of the rebel and xeno forces.

"Right. Ready your men, Altram. Let's put an end to this rebellion." Altram gave him a thin smile which had nothing to do with humour.

"The Infinity Knights are always ready, Filo. Let's make an end of this once and for all - to their deaths or ours!"

 

 

 

So, there we go. ;) Any good? I know I'm not much good at writing battles.

I told you it wasn't anything earth-shattering for Altram.

Is the attitude of this story too laid-back as well?

Also, apologies for the long time it took me to post this one. What with the holidays and getting caught up in working on the Infinity Knights and the Red Lords, I almost forgot about Gehenna for a week or so.

 

I strongly suspect a small piece about Filo & Altram hearing about the hidden moon might be in order; it's how I wanted to finish my part of this tale, and I'll get onto that maybe at the end of the month.

[Codex Grey]

Good to hear everyone is still on board (except for GHY that is).

 

That's ace, Ace! ;) But seriously, I quite liked it. I'm doubting my own ability to write combat as well, but I thought your style worked well. Looking forward to see your story's conclusion.

 

Reading this got me inspired to work on my story, if only just a bit more.

[Donkey Kong]

Not bad, Ace, a little repetitious, but not bad.

I know writing combat can't be all that revolutionary, but other things like the "metallic-voice" seems a little overused.

You've certainly inspired me to try my hand at something.

 

So, final assault on the last Iber Bastion is made by the Death Heads 4th Company and the Infinity Knights.

[Ace Debonair]

Repetition and I go way back. ;)

 

Good to see I didn't totally screw-up, at least.

 

So, final assault on the last Iber Bastion is made by the Death Heads 4th Company and the Infinity Knights.

 

Er, if that's alright, then yes.

Otherwise, I'll make whatever neccessary changes.

 

That's ace, Ace!

:)

Thanks, Grey.

It beats the heck out of the trial version I'd done, at any rate.

 

I'd have come up with something more original for Altram in place of a metallic voice, but come on. The guy had his throat wrecked. :P

That said, I'll take any other ideas on board.

 

Glad to see my meandering depiction of conflict has served as inspiration, too.

I suspect my work will look quite inferior by the time you guys are done. :P

[Donkey Kong]

Okay, remember when I said I'm editing the time line (again :lol: )?

I'm trying to do that mystical magic called maths, so for lack of better words, I'm trying to get an accurate figure for the population of humans in the Gehenna uprising.

As of January 7, 2010 (or according to Wikipedia at least) the Earth's population is about 6,794,800,000 people.

43 moons all ~ the size of Earth.

4 major production moons

- Iber

- Zhu's World

- Tazad

- Raztur

4 x 6,794,800,000 = 27,179,200,000

 

Jupiter has a surface area of 6.21796×10¹⁰ km², approximately 121.9 Earths (according to Wikipedia). I'm using Jupiter for the sole reason that that is what I intended Gehenna to be like. Like the Earth, the Gehenna ACN doesn't cover the whole giant, it has gaps (like the oceans).

121.9 x 6,794,800,000 = 828,286,120,000

 

Iber, Zhu, Tazad and Raztur together have about 44 other (livable) moons (all of various size and purpose, agricultural, smaller factories, etc.

44 x 6,794,800,000 = 298,971,200,000

 

27,179,200,000 + 828,286,120,000 + 298,971,200,000 = 1,154,436,520,000

 

1,154,436,520,000! In words that's . . . well, hundreds, thousands, millions, billions, trillions . . . one trillion one fifty four billion four thirty six million five twenty thousand people.

;) :( :ermm:

 

Okay, the best answer I got, god knows how accurate it was since in came from answers.com, was that 0.1% of the world population was under arms.

 

That gives an estimated 1,154,436,520 Gehenna PDF, and that's "normal" circumstances, I.E. when the Imperium isn't knocking on your door with a battering ram.

 

According to Wikipedia, 100 million (100,000,000) served in WW2 (probably the biggest crisis in history I can imagine).

In 1950 the world population was 2,521 million (2,521,000,000). Yes, I am aware that World War 2 ended five years before this, but what can you do, wikipedia doesn't have a population number for 1945 :lol: .

 

(100,000,000 / 2,521,000,000) * 100 = 3.97 % of the population under arms.

 

That gives another estimation of 45,831,129,844 PDF for the Imperium to exterminate.

 

Now, it's 43 Guard Regiments, and 4 Chapters I'll do the math for those later, but in all fairness:

NOW I KNOW WHY GW SUCKS AT THIS NUMBER GAME, IT'S HARD!

 

Maths . . . :sick:

 

Hope you all enjoyed my stream of thought, 45,831,129,844 PDF for those who cannot be bothered to read the whole thing. I remember a post earlier asking why so many forces dedicated to this one spot, hopefully, now you know :lol: !

 

EDIT: It seems in my desire to find accurate numbers for this project, I've forgotten to show you a pretty picture I found on deviantart:

 

http://fc07.deviantart.net/fs14/i/2007/035/6/1/Cloud_Mining_by_Orpheus7.jpg

 

This is sort of what I imagined when I thought of the Imperium gathering resources from Gehenna.

To give the artist his due, his deviantart page is here: http://orpheus7.deviantart.com/

 

EDIT:

Started a little bit on the Loyalist numbers

Death Heads: 425 marines (not counting vehicle crews or dreadnoughts)

Warriors Eternal: 123 marines (not counting vehicle crews, note: which company does the Lexicanum belong to? and Eighth Company lacks an apothecary)

Infinity Knights: 203 marines (not counting dreadnoughts or vehicle crews, note: no specialists present)

Arctic Lions: 133 marines (note counting dreadnoughts or vehicle crews, note: no apothecary present)

 

All of you don't have anything defined as far as armored support goes (tanks, bikes, etc.)

So, that makes a total of 884 space marines.

 

I honestly don't know how I'm going to calculate the number of Imperial Guard invading. There's that 3 to 1 rule about sieges, but I honestly don't know.

 

For giggles, I've been thinking (dangerous I know, but I'll post it here just to have some fun with it and see what you all think):

1. A Gehenna guardsmen becomes a living saints of sorts, martyring themselves trying to kill an Avatar :lol:

2. I already proposed moving the time line so that a good portion of the campaign has been finished by the guard with the ACN and some outposts remaining.

3. There's approximately a Chapter's worth of marines, an attack on the Craftworld would be an interesting event, I think.

4. The ACN could have knight titans, sort of a trade with the Mechanicus.

5. I've been thinking of having a loyalist titan legion, albeit they wouldn't be doing a lot on the ACN and it would make for an interesting Imperial messed up (we dropped the titan. Oops.).

 

So, when you get around to it, anyone who wants to check my maths, please do!

[Codex Grey]

Math was never my strong point... Thumbs up for trying!

 

I see nothing wrong with the math itself (again, maths, not my thing), but I feel the approximation of the population on each moon is a bit high. I just see some of these moons more barren than others, and the population of earth is a bit much for a production moon IMO. But the final number of one trillion is actually a good one, and it really shows the scale of not only the Gehenna war, but larger wars of the Imperium in general.

But if you're going for a final number that we can reference, then something like - nearly or approximately 1,000,000,000,000 - would be good enough I think.

 

But really if you come up with any problems regarding numbers, don't try to come up with the perfect numbers. Like you said, GW doesn't worry too much, why should we? I don't think not having all the right numbers is going to hurt the Campaign, but a good approximation of everything would be nice.

 

To your questions.

1. ...I don't know, I think it would just detract from the rest of the campaign.

 

2. I always felt that the main reason for the Astartes involvement was to invade the ACN and kill Ferze(WE), destroy the Train and reclaim the rest of the ACN(AL), Kill any surviving big shot names throughout the cluster like generals and farseers(IK) and finally attack the hidden moon when it is revealed(all the Chapters but mainly the DH).

So moving the timeline is fine by me.

 

3.Weren't the Craftworld going to escape at the campaign's conclusion?

 

4. Sure.

 

5. Sure. But only a small one.

 

 

And about the questions specifically regarding my specialists. The Apothecary is of the 8th, just like the Chap. The 1st company Apoth. and Chap. are fighting or working elsewhere in the galaxy. The lex. is part of the Libraium and doesn't belong to any Company.

[Ferrus Manus]

Firstly, nice work on the Maths. Being an A Level Math student, I'd hope I'd be able to follow it - I succeeded :).

 

Secondly, the Lions would have an Apothecary within the 3rd Coy Command Squad.

 

Thirdly, as part of my latest project I've been writing up fluff for saints of the Imperium. Would you mind me writing up something for St. Zhu? Do you have any ideas on him so far?

[Donkey Kong]

and the population of earth is a bit much for a production moon IMO.

 

:huh: Really? I would have thought production moons would be like hives, running rampant with working families stacked on top of each other living each day as a routine of punch in, pull lever for 8+ hours, punch out.

 

Thank you both for clearing up the little details with your Chapters.

 

There are approximately:

1.15 trillion humans and abhumans in the Gehenna Cluster (including PDF)

45.8 billion Gehenna PDF in the Gehenna Cluster

 

Imperial Forces

43 Regiments Gehenna Imperial Guard:

20 Gehenna Regiments

8 Gagotha Regiments

15 Protomangate Techguard Regiments

Consisting of:

18 Infantry Regiments (10 Gehenna; 8 Gagotha)

1 Combat Engineer Regiment (1 Gehenna)

12 Techguard Regiments (12 Protomangate)

3 Skitarii Armored (3 Protomangate)

5 Tank Regiments (5 Gehenna)

4 Airborne Regiments (4 Gehenna)

 

Somewhere around 900 Space Marines

 

I think it's also fair to say that the Gehenna space craft strength is negligible, with the exception of some trading vessels to move supplies between worlds and ACN.

Doesn't one book have a fleet commander using a bunch of suicide vessels like these just loaded down with tons of explosives and ramming larger ships?

 

Anyway,

Imperial Fleet:

1x Imperial Emperor Class Battleship

6x Vengeance Class Grand Cruiser

4x Cruiser

11x Light Cruiser

57x Destroyer; Frigate; Escort; Transport

1x Adeptus Mechanicus Battleship

5x Adeptus Mechanicus Light Cruiser

3x Adeptus Mechanicus Cruiser

 

Navy Assets

x Valkyries

x Vultures

x Lightnings

x Thunderbolts

x Marauder Bombers

x Arvus Lighters

 

So . . . I'll figure out why I compiled all of this information tomorrow.

If anyone would like to give round numbers on what the Imperial strength should be, please throw something out there.

 

Another point for argument's sake, not all of the ships will be there at the same time, maybe in the final assault on the ACN all of those ships will be around. Not all of the regiments will be present immediately either, regiments will be periodically reinforced as more and more Gehenna guard are called back to pay penitence for their homeworld's crimes.

 

I don't know whether or not I should include the Titan Legio, and if it is included, what should it be called?

 

The "Campaign" will still last 11 years, the Space Marines will probably be around for the last 5 years, starting with the Death Heads and Warriors Eternal.

The Space Marines will now come when the guardsmen have literally began running into brick walls.

Few, isolated fortresses remain on some moons, some being harder nuts to crack than others. The ACN is basically the toughest fortress of them all.

Fun Fact! The Red Spot on Jupiter (in this context, the Beast of Gehenna on the Gehenna Gas Giant) is the size of Earth. It really is a monster .

 

The last battle will still be on the moon below.

 

1. ...I don't know, I think it would just detract from the rest of the campaign.

 

I suppose so.

 

3.Weren't the Craftworld going to escape at the campaign's conclusion?

 

Probably better to forget about attacking it by boarding, then.

 

Oh, the problems with reading Imperial Armor, you get ambitious ;) !

[Codex Grey]

Everything looks good to me, King.

 

quick question: how many eldar guardians would you consider to be good fight fluffwise(but the marines will still pretty much destroy them in the end) for about 70 assault marines? It's close combat, the marines have to charge first though.

There will also be a warlock present, but don't take that into consideration.

[Donkey Kong]

I think 100 - 150 would be a good amount.

[UltimateJake]

I found this and I must say this is awesome. Kudos to you guys. Good job and good luck. I will certainly be looking for updates.

[Codex Grey]

Finally, the second part of my story. I included the first part again because of some tinyl changes.

___

The storm was alive. Hissing with the static noise of endless rain, howling with the fury of raging winds, roaring with the crack of thunder. The screams of Thunderhawk gunships rushing through gas clouds were all but silenced by the Beast that was Gehenna.

 

Captain Gregor Ballakk of the Warriors Eternal kept vigil, his gaze fixed on the assault ramp. Covered in the tribal tattoos of Molior, his face expressed an unbreakable focus. With a slow and disciplined motion, Ballakk placed his Corvus helmet on his head, sealing it to his armor. The HUD came to life as a wealth of information popped up, a myriad of datastreams and overlays that would overwhelm any guardsman. Three gunships of the Warriors Eternal, flanked by another four of the Death Heads Chapter; A spearhead formation followed by a larger Imperial fleet, aimed at the capitol of the Artificial City Network, tasked with penetrating and neutralizing the enemy defenses. The Death Heads would take control of the districts surrounding Chancellor Gior Ferze’s palace, while the Warriors Eternal would assault the palace itself, and execute Ferze. The remaining Imperial forces would bring up the rear and secure the city platform. The plan was sound, no room for error.

 

As the Thunderhawks raced forward, the storms of Gehenna grew stronger and wilder. They were unwelcomed, their presence aggravating the Beast. Ballakk signaled his men, knowing they were getting close.

''Ready your equipment, Brothers.'' his orders were quickly followed by the sounds of dozens of bolt pistols and chainswords being readied. The low drone of Jump packs being activated, resonating off the hull. Ballakk was pleased by the clatter. He would not fail. His men would not fail. The Warriors would not fail.

Abruptly, the rasping sound of the ship’s voxcasters came through.

''Incoming fire.''

 

The dark skies above the capitol erupted into a hellish display of fire and light; Volleys of las bolts, missiles and other projectiles flying to and from both sides of the battle, all the while rain and lightning was shooting from the cloudy claws of the Beast. Defiant in the face of the terrible storm and enemy fire, the Astartes gunships opened fire, focusing their might on the turrets and cannons that guarded the palace. No longer in formation, the ships individually darted from one end of the city platform to another, cousing havok with every shot fired.

 

Inside the second Thunderhawk, Codicier Sergei Lazar was detached from the outside turmoil. His eyes were closed, seemingly undisturbed by neither vox chatter nor turbulence. Ever since their arrival in the system, Lazar had sensed the true nature of what petty guardsmen referred to as the Beast of Gehenna. The Eldar, their minds fickle and evasive, sickened Lazar. They were manipulating the great storm of the gas giant, creating a terrible obstacle for the invading forces to overcome. He felt a slight sense of frustration as he stalked the Warp for any sign of the elusive psyker aliens, but he would not allow it break his focus. He would find the vile creatures that hid behind cowardly tricks, and rip their minds apart.

 

Suddenly, a great bolt of lightning struck Lazar’s ship, the surge of electricity cousing lights to flicker and the entire hull to shift. But the mighty iron bird still soared. Lazar smiled, it was just as he had hoped. They had exposed themselves, and now he knew where they were. The Codicier turned his head to the sergeant on his left and nodded, turned back, activated his jump pack and clinched his force axe.

 

On the surface the rebels were in disarray, the city and its defenses crumbling underneath the Imperial onslaught, but still they fought. With graceful maneuvers, the Thunderhawks assumed formation, the combined firepower of all three ships blasting everything in eye’s sight, clearing way for jump assault.

 

Inside the third gunship, Reclusiarch Brutus Fyodor spoke to his brothers, chainswords growling in response. Pacing back and forth, his skull helmet of polished metal shimmered in the red lights that signaled the time was near. His words of hatred ignited their spirits. Their mission was clear.

''They have turned away from the Emperor, turned away from humanity. They are no longer human, they are alien, they are all Eldar. Their blasphemy can only end in death. My brothers, it is up to us, His loyal servants, His Warriors Eternal.'' Fyodor turned to the ramp being lowered. Below, the glorious battlefield lay crying for the Astartes to join. Fyodor grinned.

''In death do we rest.'' Ballakk proclaimed over his vox.

‘’In death do we rest.'' Lazar followed calmly.

''In death do we rest!'' Fyodor bellowed fiercly, raising his Crozius Arcanum up high.

''Now we fight!'' the roar of a near hundred Astartes boomed from the passanger bays of the Thunderhawks as they charged into the air. Gehenna would feel the wrath of the Angels of Death.

 

***

 

''We’re loosing ground quickly, sir, we can’t hold them back!''

''Get your soldiers out there, secure the courtyard. Now! Do not give them another inch!''

Colonel Jeru Raanan of the Yisa 1st Regiment barked at his men, hiding the regret of taking his frustration out on them, but the situation was grim. Outside the palace the battle raged, causing the pillars of the great entreance hall to vibrate in tune with every explosion, dust fell from the ceiling, misting the dimmed lights. Raanan coughed. He had breathed the air of war for so many years his lungs were failing. Clutching his chest, he felt the many accolades adorning his chest. They felt heavy. He had fought the Orks, then the Arbites, his trust in the Chancellor had been absolute. But was he hero, or a traitor? Had he not sentenced them all to death.

 

Raanan stared at the ground while his thoughts and doubts ran through his head, unaware of the surrounding soldiers staring at him. He felt a chill creeping up his spine, a feeling of doom and despair. His joints felt stiff, and the accumulated sweat of a hundred battles froze.

''Something’s not right''

''It’s freezing!''

Puzzled by the hushed grumbles of his men, Raanan looked up and saw the frost as they exhaled. The lights flickered. Suddenly the halls were filled with an eatheral glow, pulsing energy radiating from the center of the marble floor, the fading sparks slowly revealing gigantic armored figures holding tools of death and destruction. Ranaan knew, the Emperor had sent his judgment, and it would not be in his favor. As one of the figures fixed his eyes on the Colonel, Jeru spoke.

''Forgive me…''

 

''Fire!'' Captain Akim Aleksei of the Warriors Eternal bellowed, his Terminator-armored veterans of the First Company responded with the roar of their holy storm bolters. The soldiers of the Yisa 1st regiment could do nothing but die, as the bolter shells ripped through them like a hot knife through butter, exploding their limbs and spraying the walls with blood. A few seconds later the hall fell silent, the air polluted with vaporized blood, the floor littered with the bodies of Heretics. Aleksei quickly surveyed the area, signaling his squad to move forward. The several centuries old Astartes was pleased with the unsurprisingly weak resistance they faced, knowing that Ballakk had done his part in drawing the attention of the rebels. But it would not be this easy for long; The Chancellor would surely be guarded well by his most trusted and able men. And then there was the unpredictable Eldar; they would undoubtedly have sensed the presence of the Terminators.

 

As if only to confirm his thoughts, the metal doors of the gallery at the end of the corridor opened up, unleashing scores of Ferze’s royal guard. Aleksei recognized the glow of several plasma weapons in the lines of the Guard as they rushed for cover behind the stone railing of the gallery.

''Karpov, pin them down.'' The assault cannon blasted away the detailed, hand carved decoration of the stone railing and shredded those unfortunate enough to not be behind cover.

''Up the stairway. Reyslav, take point.'' The heavy flamer pushed forth a cone of fire that reduced the heretics into a smoking heap. The few plasma weapons that were able to fire before the end of the skirmish had only caused minor superficial damage to the massive Terminator suits of the Astartes.

 

''Ballakk, this is Aleksei. We have breached the palace, over''

''Understood, Commander. The Emperor is with us. Out.''

 

***

 

Due to a abundance of inspiration and some free time lately, the third part will probably not be too far away. I've decided too write a fourth part as well, to better fit with my ideas. It will get a bit more intense after these two 'introductory parts'.

[Ferrus Manus]

I thought you may like to know that I have started compiling all this info into a rough Campaign booklet. If you guys would like to take a look, just drop me a PM with your E-mail.

[Codex Grey]

Just for fun, I wrote some short fluff and some rules for Aleksei. I tried make the rules balanced and characterful, not too powerful. I think it would be cool if we had rules for at least one character per Chapter.

 

AKIM ALEKSEI - Captain of the Warriors Eternal 1st Company

 

Like all of the Warriors Eternal, Akim started his life in a struggle for existance in the dark woods of Molior, before being abducted by Chapter. He showed early on the key qualities the Warriors Eternal look for in a recruit, and he rose through the ranks like few before him. After years of war and hours of mental training, his mind is now of pure adamantium, and through sheer strength of will, Akim refuses to die. He has survived wounds that would kill lesser Astartes.

 

Nearly five centuries old, Akim Aleksei is now one of the Chapter's oldest living members. Through his service he has gained the moniker Executioner of Debilis, for his axe has not only spilt the blood of the enemies of the Emperor, but also of those unwilling to fight for the Imperium. A man of utmost dedication and determination, Aleksei demands nothing less from his allies.

 

:lol: CAPTAIN AKIM ALEKSEI

Akim Aleksei6544453102+

185 points

1 Akim Aleksei (unique)

Infantry

Terminator armor Iron halo Storm bolter Relic axe

And They Shall Know No Fear Independent Character Eternal Warrior Iron Will Chapter Tactics

Iron Will: Any models in a Warriors Eternal squad Aleksei has joined benefit from the Feel no pain special rule (see the Warhammer 40,000 rulebook).

 

Chapter Tactics: If you include Aleksei then all units in your army exchange the Combat tactics special rule for the Stubborn universal special rule. If more than one character in your army has the Chapter tactics special rule, you must choose which version will apply.

 

Command Squad: Akim Aleksei is treated like a Captain with respect to Command Squads. If you include Akim Aleksei in your army, you may take a Command Squad that does not count against your HQ allowance.

 

Akim Aleksei is an HQ selection.

[Ferrus Manus]

Looking good Grey. Two things though:

 

1- Points Cost.

2- Considering he is wearing TDA, I'd change his Command Squad Rule to be more like Belials - I.e he gets a TDA armoured Command Squad.

[Codex Grey]

1: I used Lysander's point cost and profile as a base.

I replaced the super powerful Fist of Dorn with a relic blade. He can now go by initiative, but the Fist was a beast!

Swapped out the shield for a storm bolter. He now gains a ranged attack, but his invulnerable save is a whole point weaker.

I removed both bolter drill and bolster defenses, both useful extras, and added Iron Will, which I think is more characterful than useful.

EW and Chapter Tactics stay the same.

 

So in my mind, he's different, but also a bit weaker than Lysander, therfore the 185 point score. Is 190 better? Or even higher?

 

2: Maybe. But then I would have to write up a special TDA command squad entry as well. Not that it is too difficult, I just like the simplicity of just sticking him with a normal Terminator squad. I'll wait to see what King does with Tobulo.

[Ferrus Manus]

2: Maybe. But then I would have to write up a special TDA command squad entry as well. Not that it is too difficult, I just like the simplicity of just sticking him with a normal Terminator squad. I'll wait to see what King does with Tobulo.

Hmm, true. Or you could just stick a one Terminator may be granted a Banner for +30pts, one may be given a Reductor for +15pts? Either way. I do like what you've come up with.

[Donkey Kong]

Having read the Campaign Booklet as it currently stands, it's a good start, but let's see what I can do, even if it's just editing information like the Cluster.

 

Gehenna-Prime - Planetary Survey

 

Segmentum: Ultima

Sector:

Sub-sector:

System: Gehenna

Surveyed: Unknown

 

Planets

Inner Planets:

None

Outer Planets:

Gehenna-Prime

Satellites:

Gehenna – 80+

 

Asteroids: None known.

Comets: None known.

 

Summary: Gehenna is a gas giant with an imperial constructed city complex covering parts of its surface. Gas collectors float through the giant's surface, periodically returning to work facilities where gases are condensed into fuel for the Imperium's armies and nearby Forge Worlds.

 

Size: Equatorial Distance - 44,430 miles

 

Gravity: 2.6 G

 

Satellites: Gehenna Prime - 80+; 44 habitable; colonized

 

Population: 1.15 trillion (human and abhuman).

 

Rotation Speed: 28,000 mph.

 

Orbit: Mean orbital distance is 643 million kms from the star.

 

Climate Classification: None.

 

Mean Surface Temperature: Artificial heating. 4 oC

 

Tropospheric Composition: Hydrogen %, Oxygen %, Helium %, Methane %

 

Tithe Grade:

 

Climate Regions: None known.

 

Climatic Phenomena: Electrical storms. Wind storms. Rain storms.

 

Flora: Lichens have been noted growing on artificial structures.

 

Fauna: None known.

 

Economy: Imperial Throne

 

Society: Gehenna's city network was built for the sole purpose of producing promethium from the giant's valuable gases. The entirety of the population exists to either produce material for the Imperial war machine or serve the needs of the population that does. Gehenna's army is split between the professional Emim Elite Guard and the Yisa PDF drawn from volunteer members in the work force.

 

A large population of Ogryns and Ratlings coexist and labor alongside humans to produce material for export.

 

Water Supply: Water is condensed from free forming hydrogen and oxygen in the atmosphere, filtered and prepared for distribution.

 

Principle Exports: Promethium. Munitions. Arms and weapons. Manufactured goods.

 

Principle Imports: Foodstuff.

 

Urbanization: The entire living surface of Gehenna, known as the Artificial City Network (ACN), encompasses the planet. Hab complexes, storage facilities, hangers, repair facilities, hangars, manufacturing facilities, barracks and administration buildings as well as guest and entertainment facilities can all be found on the surface and within the multi-layered city.

 

As wrong as it may be, I'm using Imperial Armor as a model. If anyone has anything to fill in the empty spaces or would like to add on, please post it below and I'll work it in.

I'll be working on another time line soon.

[Ferrus Manus]

Speaking of the Campaign Booklet, KHK, Any ideas for a brief History of the Gehennan System?

[Donkey Kong]

I'll wait to see what King does with Tobulo.

 

Unfortunately, Grey, I've never played a game, and I don't even own the Space Marine Codex, I wouldn't know how to make a character :lol: .

 

Ferrus, I've been reading through Vraks 1 again to see sort of how something like this starts. I used the Summary from Vraks-Prime to make something similar for Gehenna in my previous post.

 

A history would do well to give an idea of what the world is.

The whole purpose of Gehenna, the ACN, why it would be on the map, is because of prometium. That's what it makes, that's what it exports, it's why Protomangate throws a hissy and it's also the reason that it has a fairly large standing army.

 

The Waaagh that pushes Ferze over the edge would probably be the last in a regular series of attacks and this time the Imperium doesn't come around to help them, but the Eldar do. The Eldar help now because while the Imperium usually comes around to (unknowingly) protect their assets on the hidden moon, they're not showing up.

 

I'll be writing something more detailed up later today, but for now, the little overview above should give you an idea of what Gehenna really is and what it means to the Imperium.

[Codex Grey]

Unfortunately, Grey, I've never played a game, and I don't even own the Space Marine Codex, I wouldn't know how to make a character

Don't worry, neither have I :) But after several years on the B&C I actually feel like I could do pretty decent if I was thrown into game. Probably not, but I still feel like I have an understanding of what goes and what doesn't, what's balanced, etc.

If you could write something similar to my description of Aleksei, only about Tobulo, then maybe Ferrus and I could create some characterful rules for him?

 

EDIT:

 

It would be cool to see Special Characters from Ferrus and Ace as well.

I don't know what you think Ace, but maybe Altram could get the same ability as the Master of the Forge gets; the ability to have dreadnoughts as heavy support as well as elite?

[Ace Debonair]

Before I say anything else, sorry I missed this thread in my last few checks over the website. Grey, that story of yours is pretty good!

In the first line of the second part though, someone says they are 'loosing ground', which I think should be 'losing ground'.

Apart from that, very cool. Looking forward to part three.

 

It would be cool to see Special Characters from Ferrus and Ace as well.

I don't know what you think Ace, but maybe Altram could get the same ability as the Master of the Forge gets; the ability to have dreadnoughts as heavy support as well as elite?

 

Nice. I'll leave the character-generation stuff in your capable hands. If it's any help, I wanted Altram to have a chainsword and a jump-pack. Like some kind of super-assault-marine, or something.

Dreadnoughts are good. Would that ability still allow him to drop-pod deploy them? (Or is that only on Dawn of War? :( )

 

Like KHK, I don't actually own a codex or play any actual board games (apart from maybe Space Crusade once every 1,000 years)

 

I can, however, run up a quick description of Mors Altram. ;)

 

"Captain Mors Altram of the Infinity Knights hails from the desert world of Sharius, where survival is a matter of learning fast and working as a unit - qualities that have stayed with him all his life. Although sometimes he questions his own actions, on the battlefield all doubt is replaced by determination. Many of the Astartes that have fought alongside him consider Mors Altram himself to be almost as dangerous as the sacred engines that he so venerates: the holy Dreadnoughts that are at the heart of all Altram's strategies.

 

Coming up to his two-hundredth year in service, Altram has recently begun a tendency to isolate and cut down enemy leaders in close combat. In his own words, a victory thusly claimed echoes across the battlefield."

[Ferrus Manus]

Looks like me and Grey are going to be busy character creating over the coming days :(

[Donkey Kong]

Well I wrote a little something:

 

TOBULO – Captain of the Death Heads 1st Company

 

Taken from the warrior houses on his home world, Klysium, Tobulo showed great promise, even as a recruit. Through attrition and sheer will he has risen through the ranks of the Chapter, serving in all areas of expertise. A brilliant commander and tactician, Tobulo has led his battle brothers to victory against all manner of foes.

 

Over six hundred years old, Tobulo embodies the finest aspects of the Death Heads and humanity. Strong, wise and loyal to the core, he has risen above the petty squabbles and superstitions of his brothers. For Tobulo, the Astartes exist to serve the Emperor and his people, those who turn away from his light are fit only for extermination.

 

I honestly have no idea what I want to do with Tobulo equipment wise. The Kraken helmet (with some kind of leadership penalty, even though I hear those are basically worthless :lol: ), iron halo and Terminator armor, standard. Weapons, I'd like a sword, so I'm debating between some power sword (or some suitable relic sword or eviscerator) and storm shield or (if it's redundant to have both a storm shield and iron halo) a storm bolter.

 

Again, I'm not good with the game, so I have no idea, I'll leave it in your, more capable, hands ;) .

[Codex Grey]

Me and Ferrus have been working on some rules for each Character the past few days, and here is the result. The goal was to create characterful rules that reflected both the personal combat style of each character and their Chapters, and make the rules as different as possible from eachother. We still need to work out the points costs, but me and Ferrus will take care of that. Also, Altram needs a Chapter Tactic. We're still trying to find out how we'll handle that, but here is what we have for now:

 

:) CAPTAIN LUCIL TOBULO

Lucil Tobulo6544353102+

... points

1 Lucil Tobulo (unique)

Infantry

Terminator Armor Cutlass of Klysium The Repeller Kraken Helmet

And They Shall Know No Fear Independent Character Combat Tactics Rites of Battle Chapter Tactics

Cutlass of Klysium: This sword counts as a Master-crafted Relic Blade.

 

The Repeller: This is a Storm Shield with a built-in Storm Bolter.

 

Kraken Helmet: Any enemy unit that wishes to charge Lucil Tobulo must first pass a Morale check.

 

Rites of Battle: As long as Lucil Tobulo is on the table, all units in your army may use Tobulo's Leadership value for Morale or Pinning tests.

 

Chapter Tactics: If you include Lucil Tobulo in your army, all units in your army loose the Combat Tactics special rule. Instead, all units in your army, excluding Independant Characters, gains the Furious Charge universal special rule. In addition, all units in your army must charge any enemy units within 6'' during the player assault phase. If more than one enemy unit is within range, the player may choose which one to charge. If more than one character in your army has the Chapter Tactics special rule, you must choose which version will apply.

 

Command Squad: Lucil Tobulo is treated like a Captain with respect to Command Squads. If you include Lucil Tobulo in your army, you may take a Command Squad that does not count against your HQ allowance.

 

Lucil Tobulo is an HQ selection.

 

***

 

CAPTAIN AKIM ALEKSEI

Akim Aleksei6544453102+

190 points

1 Akim Aleksei (unique)

Infantry

Terminator Armor Iron Halo Storm Bolter The Beheader

And They Shall Know No Fear Independent Character Combat Tactics Eternal Warrior Iron Discipline Chapter Tactics

The Beheader: This axe counts as a power weapon. When rolling to wound, a roll of 6 results in instant death on the target.

 

Iron Discipline: Any models in a Warriors Eternal squad Aleksei has joined benefit from the Feel no pain special rule (see the Warhammer 40,000 rulebook).

 

Chapter Tactics: If you include Aleksei in your army, all units in your army exchange the Combat Tactics special rule for the Stubborn universal special rule. If more than one character in your army has the Chapter Tactics special rule, you must choose which version will apply.

 

Command Squad: Akim Aleksei is treated like a Captain with respect to Command Squads. If you include Akim Aleksei in your army, you may take a Command Squad that does not count against your HQ allowance.

 

Akim Aleksei is an HQ selection.

 

***

 

CAPTAIN DIOME ARNKEL

Diome Arnkel6544353103+

... points

1 Diome Arnkel (unique)

Infantry

Power Armor Iron Halo Lightning Claws (pair) Frag & Krak Grenades

And They Shall Know No Fear Independent Character Combat Tactics Leader of the Pride Chapter Tactics

Leader of the Pride: DiomeArnkel and any unit he joins benefit from the Fleet universal special rule. In addition, any friendly unit within 12'' of Arnkel gains +1 to their Attack value. This does not stack with the bonus of a Chapter Banner, and Arnkel himself does not gain an extra attack.

 

Chapter Tactics: If you include Diome Arnkel in your army, all units in your army loose the Combat Tactics special rule. Instead, the player may choose to give half his force the ability to outflank (rounded down), including Arnkel himself, before deployment.

 

Command Squad: Diome Arnkel is treated like a Captain with respect to Command Squads. If you include Diome Arnkel in your army, you may take a Command Squad that does not count against your HQ allowance.

 

Diome Arnkel is an HQ selection.

 

***

 

CAPTAIN MORS ALTRAM

Mors Altram6544353103+

... points

1 Mors Altram (unique)

Infantry

Power Armor Iron Halo Bolt Pistol Chainsword Jump Pack Digital Weapons Frag & Krak Grenades

And They Shall Know No Fear Independent Character Combat Tactics Shepard of the Ancients Litanies of Devotion Chapter Tactics

Shepard of the Ancients: If you include Altram in your army, Dreadnoughts, Venerable Dreadnoughts and Ironclad Dreadnoughts may be taken as Heavy Support as well as Elite.

 

Litanies of Devotion: Altram, and all friendly units within 12'' of him, may re-roll failed rolls to hit on the charge.

 

Chapter Tactics: ?

 

Command Squad: Mors Altram is treated like a Captain with respect to Command Squads. If you include Mors Altraml in your army, you may take a Command Squad that does not count against your HQ allowance.

 

Mors Altram is an HQ selection.

***

Finally, we wanted to create rules for a special unit, unit upgrade or even an extra character from each Chapter. We have some ideas, but I was wondering if there was any special unit or similar you could see being represented with rules. This question goes to you too, King, but I have already some cool ideas about a certain Sergeant Hayze...