The Rift Lords - Ace's idea for traitors

[RagingGriffon]

they might generously allow other, smaller Warbands* into the fold - essentially granting them Sanctuary within their domain, and allowing the other warbands or renegade/traitor chapters to settle there for a time, provided they promise to honour the four great Gods while they do so.

*I was thinking DIY warbands/traitor chapters/renegades, mostly for if anyone else wants to make use of the Shroud Stars. :rolleyes:

 

I think this is pretty standard amongst the renegades. I am having renegades and guardsmen either swear fealty to The Sovereign Viktor Zur or they can have their skulls *donated* to the skull throne.

[Ace Debonair]

Ok so you've got all this information on what they are now, what is their origins?

 

This is the tricky one. My original plan is as follows:

 

There aren't any real records about their precise origins, the Warband's records only really start from when Maluk took over the warband. Their initial composition was largely made up of several smaller warbands, and nobody is certain which of them has been with the Rift Lords longest.* Geneseeds are, to start with, more or less used randomly from within the warband to create new marines - the only unifying factor being that they are all taken from marines who hate the Imperium. When Maluk takes over, he will start using geneseed specifically from one group of marines, although I'm not sure who they'll be. This will allow the geneseed mutation I was talking about, as well as give the Rift Lords their own actual geneseed.

 

As far as the early years go - the key order of business is staying out of sight of the Imperium. Striking targets only when they have to (for supplies), and when they can ensure there are no survivors (and can drag their own corpses away, leaving no trace behind). The warband steps up it's agression when Maluk takes over, and Keja often guides the Rift Lords to battlefields where Imperial forces are hard-pressed, allowing the Rift Lords to strike hard when they are least expected and causing enough damage for the Imperial forces to lose and be destroyed. They are, initially, highly successful. But... you just know it isn't going to last. :P

 

The first recorded Imperial engagement with the Warband is a battle against the Stonebound on the former homeworld of the Stonebound's parent chapter, the Red Sabres.

It's not the full warband**, and the force involved, after the battle with the Red Sabres, don't have the numbers to wipe out the Stonebound. After losing more than half of their troops, the remaining Rift Lords cut and run. Maluk, realising his warband is discovered, takes his force and gets the heck outta there. :P

 

From that area of the galaxy, the Rift Lords first head south, are attacked by the Twilight Talons, and eventually cut and run north (avoiding the Stonebound), eventually winding up at the Shroud Stars, many hundreds of years (and several battles with other Astartes both loyal and renegade) later.

 

From there Maluk and Keja conduct their 'attack/enlighten the entire Imperium' plans, and the rest, as they say, is the history section. ;)

 

Now, bear in mind this isn't even a first draft. This is just what I am envisioning - with no idea if it's plausible and good, or totally and utterly stupid, lame and impossible.

 

 

* The reasons for this are simple.

Firstly:

The Rift Lords are essentially (in terms of character and personality), a combination of Night Lords, Word Bearers, Alpha Legion, and possibly a pinch of Black Legion. :P However, as soon as any association is made with any of those Legions, the Rift Lords would be expected to behave in a certain way. This then changes the way certain aspects are - you'd expect Word Bearer successors to be devout, you'd expect dulpicity and fiendish cunning from an Alpha Legion splinter, and you'd expect fear campaigns from a Night Lords faction. Such things then cease to be a unique route for the chapter to take, and become obvious and uninteresting.

 

I'd rather leave the possibility that the warband could be a splinter of any of the aforementioned legions.

 

Secondly:

I personally don't care where they came from - the origins of the chapter will not be the moments that define them. Where Maluk came from, how he met Keja, and how he rose to power and prominence within the warband are not, particularly, important to the IT, although I don't doubt there's a story or two in there somewhere. Far more germane to the issue is the effect he has on a relatively unimportant, unassuming traitor force who isn't considered a threat to the Imperium.

 

**Still working on the reasons for this - the general idea, though, is that not all of the Red Sabres are at their fortress monastery, and the main body of the Rift Lords are taking care of the other Red Sabres.

 

Hopefully that disjointed ramble answers some of your questions. :D

 

Is that a bit much? Am I taking too many liberties with the shared universe by doing that?

Or is it a cracking idea and have I earned myself another purity seal?

And just to remind everyone I still have some homeworld questions that need answers. :P

 

EDIT: RagingGriffon strikes from nowhere!

Actually, I meant that whole idea as a way of opening up the ship's graveyard for other warbands to hide in, either permanently or temporarily. They wouldn't be absorbed by the Rift Lords, but they would be tolerated in the Shroud Stars provided they don't do anything silly like try to take over. :D

Edited May 27, 2010 by Ace Debonair

[Brother Argent]

Well, as your guys are to blame for me finally starting their IT (and I love the ship graveyard idea and wish that I had a Chapter it would suit) perhaps my Iron Dragons could have a little stronghold there. I cant remember what sector you said it was in but it would probably still work. Could be cause for some inter Chapter fiction later on, maybe?.

 

Oh and I like the idea of other warbands sheltering there, much like the Maelstrom or Eye. Who knows how many fractured warbands are hidden in their. Its like a renegade pinata. Start wacking and all sorts of traitors will fall out.

 

I like how you don't intend to mention too much about their early days, althoguh you will have to mention something. As a side not, perhaps you don't even want to suggest they came from any of the traitor legions. Or at least not all of the leadership. Like SCL did with his Iron Gods. No one knows whom spawned those baddies but it doesn't really matter as they are shooting your face.

[Heru]

In regards to "homeworld" perhaps they don't have an actual homeworld in the Shroud Stars, considering that you are going with the ship graveyard idea perhaps they make their base of operations on a massive immobile space hulk?

[Guest Mordray]

Or better yet... a black stone fortress... lol... don't do that...

 

 

Actually instead of a hulk how about a Pre-Imperium space station that got stranded/forgotten/lost in those crazy days of the past. Could be the Shroud stars once meant something to pre-imperium humanity... dark mechanacus ties right there...

[Lysimachus]

massive immobile space hulk/Pre-Imperium space station

 

That is a very cool idea. Maybe combine these and have the hulk with the space station at its core?

 

 

My only concern is that if you go with the multiple warbands thing, you need to keep it fairly small, otherwise why haven't the Imperium cleansed it, or at least put up a cordon of Astartes Chapters, Navy fleets, etc like they have around the Maelstrom/Eye. That would surely make it hard for the Rift Lords to do their sneaky stuff.

 

With regard to numbers of the Lords themselves, there probably doesn't need to be a huge horde of them. If you're doing the sneaky, terrorist cell idea, then just a handful of Marines on any given planet could have a big effect. When you want to bring them together to attack, I wouldn't go for more than 2 or 3 hundred total, remembering that a Codex Company of 100 Marines is usually accepted to be more than enough to take over a single world. They need to be big enough to do what you want them to, but not so big as to attract more attention than they can handle.

 

Side point: Perhaps there could have been more, but they lost a lot against the Stonebound and since then. Come to think of it, you could keep their numbers now quite low, split them up into their various cells, and when they need to attack in force, perhaps they could make up their numbers with 'hired' guns from other warbands. Would give them another reason to share their base of operations with these other groups?

[Ace Debonair]

Guys, this is all gold. :D

 

As for where they are... If you look on the star-map in GHY's siganature, there's a planet called Corinthe in the north. near the dominion of storms. I figure that the Shroud Stars are north of there, and west of the Ghoul stars. Somewhere in that empty region.

 

My only concern is that if you go with the multiple warbands thing, you need to keep it fairly small, otherwise why haven't the Imperium cleansed it, or at least put up a cordon of Astartes Chapters, Navy fleets, etc like they have around the Maelstrom/Eye. That would surely make it hard for the Rift Lords to do their sneaky stuff.

 

The Infinity Knights are already just south of there.

I'm sure if any other DIY chapters want to set up shop nearby they can - the Rift Lords will just get more devious in response. :P

 

With regard to numbers of the Lords themselves, there probably doesn't need to be a huge horde of them. If you're doing the sneaky, terrorist cell idea, then just a handful of Marines on any given planet could have a big effect. When you want to bring them together to attack, I wouldn't go for more than 2 or 3 hundred total, remembering that a Codex Company of 100 Marines is usually accepted to be more than enough to take over a single world.

 

Valid point. I was thinking of having them somewhere above the 1,000 mark*, though, so the Rift Lords actually have the muscle within the Shroud Stars to see off any threats to their authority from other warbands that they take in. Although, they will probably almost never field the entire warband in any one battlefield, the threat is there.

 

*I'm also considering their size to be undetermined - rumours and hearsay put the number of Rift Lords anywhere between 400 and 1,500 or something like that. Maluk and Keja are also unavailable for comment. :lol:

 

Side point: Perhaps there could have been more, but they lost a lot against the Stonebound and since then. Come to think of it, you could keep their numbers now quite low, split them up into their various cells, and when they need to attack in force, perhaps they could make up their numbers with 'hired' guns from other warbands. Would give them another reason to share their base of operations with these other groups?

 

Very nice! I like this idea. Even if the Rift Lords did have larger numbers, this is something they could do so assure victory against Imperial forces without having to draw too many Rift Lords together.

 

EDIT: I ought to get in touch with Dark Apostle Thirst about this too - here's an opening for those mercenary-styled chaos marines he always wanted. :D

EDIT EDIT: Actually, I'll wait 'till I finish the first draft of the IT. I'll probably start on it after the weekend.

 

In regards to "homeworld" perhaps they don't have an actual homeworld in the Shroud Stars, considering that you are going with the ship graveyard idea perhaps they make their base of operations on a massive immobile space hulk?

Actually instead of a hulk how about a Pre-Imperium space station that got stranded/forgotten/lost in those crazy days of the past. Could be the Shroud stars once meant something to pre-imperium humanity... dark mechanacus ties right there...

 

Heru, Mordray, you guys are geniuses. :D Those are both awesome ideas. I'm going to have to go with Lysimachus and combine the two together - that's just too good an opportunity to pass up.

 

Its like a renegade pinata. Start wacking and all sorts of traitors will fall out.

And that might be the best line I've read all week. :P

 

To be honest, SP, I was hoping the Iron Dragons would hop into the Shroud Stars, at least for a while. The Ship's graveyard was your idea, and I suspect the Rift Lords would be all too happy to introduce your renegades to the glories of the Gods. ;)

 

Besides, if it doesn't work out they can just salvage some ships and leave. :lol:

 

I'll get to work on the IT after the weekend is over. I'm going to be regrettably busy for the next few days.

Edited May 28, 2010 by Ace Debonair

[Grey Hunter Ydalir]

I'm sure if any other DIY chapters want to set up shop nearby they can - the Rift Lords will just get more devious in response

 

Actually 2/3 of my most recent chapters (Bloodsworn, Blazing Sons and Corsairs Serpentis) were to be situated to the galactic north since it's one of my favourite areas. That and anywhere within spitting distance of the Tau, for they must be cleansed!

 

 

Very nice! I like this idea. Even if the Rift Lords did have larger numbers, this is something they could do so assure victory against Imperial forces without having to draw too many Rift Lords together.

 

What I'd like to see personally is moving away from the typical chaos worship with these guys. They are more structured, more 'civilized', kind of the same way the ancient Aztecs were civilized but still sacrificed people on the altar of their gods. This is just an idea of mine though, so feel free to dispense with it all together.

 

Perhaps they knock heads with other more 'chaotic' warbands? Perhaps rather than swearing fealty anyone residing within their territory must at least pay lip-service (it is chaos after all) to the Rift Lords views. I can see them falling upon smaller warbands who make their 'religion' look particularly bad, if that's even possible for chaos followers.

[Ace Debonair]

Perhaps they knock heads with other more 'chaotic' warbands? Perhaps rather than swearing fealty anyone residing within their territory must at least pay lip-service (it is chaos after all) to the Rift Lords views. I can see them falling upon smaller warbands who make their 'religion' look particularly bad, if that's even possible for chaos followers.

 

Ah, that's actually what I was going to have, more or less. Pardon my clumsy attempts at the written communication of the ideas chasing each other around my brain. :sweat:

[Brother Argent]

Well the Iron Dragons are always looking to expand their power base :P I figure this is where the more devout members of the Iron Dragons could be sent, to remove the possible 'complications' of Chaos worship at home. Figures well into both Chapters histories.

[Lord_Reven]

Since the idea of an enormous, multiple-system-spanning, warp-storm protected ship's graveyard is far, far too cool to keep to just one warband...

I'm thinking, since the Rift Lords promote salvation through Chaos, they might generously allow other, smaller Warbands* into the fold - essentially granting them Sanctuary within their domain, and allowing the other warbands or renegade/traitor chapters to settle there for a time, provided they promise to honour the four great Gods while they do so. Obviously, the Rift Lords would have sufficient forces to maintain their dominance there should any challenges to Maluk's authority occur, and the Rift Lords would be adept at watching the other traitors to make sure their promises of undivided worship were upheld...

 

*I was thinking DIY warbands/traitor chapters/renegades, mostly for if anyone else wants to make use of the Shroud Stars. :D

 

Is that a bit much? Am I taking too many liberties with the shared universe by doing that?

Or is it a cracking idea and have I earned myself another purity seal?

 

Well, unleas your chaos warband is a bit bigger then chapter (1k marines) sized, i would think they would have a hard time being in control of multible other warbands. So unleas you have somewhere to get more troops i can see a few problems here. What you could do though, is use this place as a recruiting ground. You could accept sinlge (or more) marines that have been "abandoned" by the Imperium into your warband. Also you could mass recriut those converted imperial citizens and have them as part of your warband. You could also make renegade chapters who wish to hide here pay tribute not only to chaos, but to your warband. This could be through arms or maybe even (!!!) more fresh recruits.

 

Obviously, the Rift Lords would have sufficient forces to maintain their dominance there should any challenges to Maluk's authority occur, and the Rift Lords would be adept at watching the other traitors to make sure their promises of undivided worship were upheld...

 

It really is the only way I could see that part happening... well, maybe not exactly the way i stated, but something along that general vibe. One other option i just came up with is that you can have Maluk form a pact with some deamon who controls the warpstorm, wich would mean he has the power to destroy anything that were to enter his domain.

Hope this helps!

 

Edit: Duh.. just realised there was a whole nother page of comments i dident see.. cant be bothered to change this though, so if im commenting on anything that was outdated please ignore it :P

Edited May 29, 2010 by Lord_Reven

[Wildfire]

Well, unleas your chaos warband is a bit bigger then chapter (1k marines) sized, i would think they would have a hard time being in control of multible other warbands. So unleas you have somewhere to get more troops i can see a few problems here.

 

Unless they're not maintaining their dominance through sheer numbers/force of arms. What if Maluk and what's-his-name have some other way to maintain their hold over the rest of the warbands. Such as blackmail. It might be interesting to have the Rift Lords be weak in terms of numbers, but hold some threat over the heads of other warbands which could force them to do their work for them. It would help the Rift Lords maintain their secrecy if they never had to do their own fighting.

 

I think it also fits with their beliefs. After all, chaos is all about personal power, and these guys are trying to save all of mankind. That's not a normal chaos marine goal, in fact it's almost the exact opposite of the typical chaos devotee. These guys would probably have very few members, and would have to find another way to project the power necessary. Perhaps they even clash with other chaos forces who might interfere with their self-appointed mission.

 

Perhaps they control/possess the chaos artifact which maintains the warp storm. If they destroyed it, the protection the storm grants against Imperial invasion would disappear. Soon a huge crusade would appear and kill/drive out everyone in the Shroud Stars. The Rift Lords might threaten to destroy this artifact, effectively committing suicide and taking everyone else with them, unless Warband X accomplished such-and-such task. Even just the threat would make other warbands in the area put pressure on Warband X, because they don't want their protection stripped away.

[Ace Debonair]

Well, unleas your chaos warband is a bit bigger then chapter (1k marines) sized, i would think they would have a hard time being in control of multible other warbands. So unleas you have somewhere to get more troops i can see a few problems here.

 

Unless they're not maintaining their dominance through sheer numbers/force of arms. What if Maluk and what's-his-name have some other way to maintain their hold over the rest of the warbands. Such as blackmail. It might be interesting to have the Rift Lords be weak in terms of numbers, but hold some threat over the heads of other warbands which could force them to do their work for them. It would help the Rift Lords maintain their secrecy if they never had to do their own fighting.

 

I think it also fits with their beliefs. After all, chaos is all about personal power, and these guys are trying to save all of mankind. That's not a normal chaos marine goal, in fact it's almost the exact opposite of the typical chaos devotee. These guys would probably have very few members, and would have to find another way to project the power necessary. Perhaps they even clash with other chaos forces who might interfere with their self-appointed mission.

 

Perhaps they control/possess the chaos artifact which maintains the warp storm. If they destroyed it, the protection the storm grants against Imperial invasion would disappear. Soon a huge crusade would appear and kill/drive out everyone in the Shroud Stars. The Rift Lords might threaten to destroy this artifact, effectively committing suicide and taking everyone else with them, unless Warband X accomplished such-and-such task. Even just the threat would make other warbands in the area put pressure on Warband X, because they don't want their protection stripped away.

 

That's awesome. :P

I'm probably going to have the numbers be unspecified. That is to say, there'll probably be a few of them, but there's going to be lots of hearsay and rumours that are too consistent to just ignore.

In short, probably only Maluk and Keja know the total number of Rift Lords, and they aren't very giving with the information. :P

 

Well, unleas your chaos warband is a bit bigger then chapter (1k marines) sized, i would think they would have a hard time being in control of multible other warbands. So unleas you have somewhere to get more troops i can see a few problems here. What you could do though, is use this place as a recruiting ground. You could accept sinlge (or more) marines that have been "abandoned" by the Imperium into your warband. Also you could mass recriut those converted imperial citizens and have them as part of your warband. You could also make renegade chapters who wish to hide here pay tribute not only to chaos, but to your warband. This could be through arms or maybe even (!!!) more fresh recruits.

 

I'll leave the 'recruiting strays from other chapters' to other DIY warbands. The Rift Lords will have their own way of getting recruits. :P

Mostly it's either going to be recruiting from worlds within the Shroud Stars or picking up aspirants from converted planets.

 

 

I know I promised an IT for the Rift Lords this week, but I'm going to have to put it on hold. Real life is interfering with me again. ^_^

[Lord_Reven]

Get lots of coffie and stay up all night some day :) Its amaizing how much more time you have to do stuff once you suddenly dont need to sleep anymore... Edited June 2, 2010 by Lord_Reven

[Wildfire]

That's awesome. :P

I'm probably going to have the numbers be unspecified. That is to say, there'll probably be a few of them, but there's going to be lots of hearsay and rumours that are too consistent to just ignore.

In short, probably only Maluk and Keja know the total number of Rift Lords, and they aren't very giving with the information. :yes:

 

You're welcome. ;)

 

As I said in my IA, I really like some mystery. Spelling everything out is not as much fun as leaving some stuff to the imagination.

[Dark Apostle Thirst]

I see what you meant, Ace, and the Wraiths already have a recruiting ground as well as a home - but they could have a station set up in case somone needs to contact them...

 

You could make it not only sanctuary, but a big Chaos market as well.

 

Turns out I didn't know what you meant and jumped ahead of myself. Foot, meet mouth...

 

I like that idea as well, having a force being permenantly held in reserve just in case the Rift Lords need some help.

Edited June 3, 2010 by Dark Apostle Thirst

[Grey Hunter Ydalir]

Ace, would I be infringing on your intellectual property if I used your chaos enclave as a good reason for my Blazing Sons to be careening around the same area of space. A firey faith vs a firey faith? :tu:

 

If it's not your cup of tea it's no problem, I just had the idea and jumped on the computer before heading off to work to put pen to paper, so to speak.

 

Its amaizing how much more time you have to do stuff once you suddenly dont need to sleep anymore...

 

You wait till the third day running. ;)

[Heart of Oak]

That's awesome. :P

I'm probably going to have the numbers be unspecified. That is to say, there'll probably be a few of them, but there's going to be lots of hearsay and rumours that are too consistent to just ignore.

In short, probably only Maluk and Keja know the total number of Rift Lords, and they aren't very giving with the information. :)

 

In terms of the numbers, a nice twist on this might be if the rumours are a lot more ambitious than the actual fact - this can be part of what allows them to maintain control of the Shroud, because others think they have more military might than they actually have.

[Grey Hunter Ydalir]

That's quite interesting. It could be fairly fun if you highlighted some nefarious individual was working on that premise, noting how their forces diminish whenever they bring liberal beatings down upon some poor unfortunate's head.

 

Nefarious individuals plotting against other nefarious individuals? The levels of nefair-itude are high in the shroud I suppose! :P

[Ace Debonair]

That's awesome. :P

I'm probably going to have the numbers be unspecified. That is to say, there'll probably be a few of them, but there's going to be lots of hearsay and rumours that are too consistent to just ignore.

In short, probably only Maluk and Keja know the total number of Rift Lords, and they aren't very giving with the information. ;)

 

In terms of the numbers, a nice twist on this might be if the rumours are a lot more ambitious than the actual fact - this can be part of what allows them to maintain control of the Shroud, because others think they have more military might than they actually have.

 

Would the Rift Lords really lie about vital military information like that? ;)

 

Ace, would I be infringing on your intellectual property if I used your chaos enclave as a good reason for my Blazing Sons to be careening around the same area of space. A firey faith vs a firey faith?

 

Sure. The more people locking horns with the Rift Lords, the better. :D

But, you might want to wait a few days and make sure the finished* Rift Lords are to your liking.

 

That's quite interesting. It could be fairly fun if you highlighted some nefarious individual was working on that premise, noting how their forces diminish whenever they bring liberal beatings down upon some poor unfortunate's head.

 

Nefarious individuals plotting against other nefarious individuals? The levels of nefair-itude are high in the shroud I suppose!

 

Not to mention the Shroud Stars are a net exporter of dastardly plots, intrigues, and evil schemes. :P

 

*You know what I mean. :)

[Heart of Oak]

Another twist that occurred to me is that there are two very distinctive elements to the Rift Lords.

 

1. You have two very dominant personalities in Keja and Maluk. This in of itself is not unique, but the interaction of any two personalities is distinctive in it's own way.

2. Your warband has a penchant for recruiting rather than just offering all and sundry to the Chaos Gods as sacrifice.

 

It might be a nice wrinkle to expand this a little and make Keja's 'disobedience' due to a fundamental difference in belief (towards how to further the cause for Chaos).

 

Maluk could be the conservative 'old guard' who wants to sacrifice captives to the Chaos Gods to gain favour, while Keja (who you have already said has the ability to think ahead five or six steps) can be the 'liberal' who sees the big picture and wants to swell their ranks to increase their resources in their mission to overthrow the Imperium - well as much as one group could overthrow the might of the Imperium.

 

This slant not only gives Keja a good reason for his disobedience beyond 'because I am right', which is quite important because I would have thought the Chapter Master of a CSM warband is 'the law' and should not be crossed lightly. It also gives some believability to Maluk who has an ongoing dilemma to follow his gut with his hard line conservative point of view or to let Keja do his thing (which invariably ends up being the right thing to do) as he sees the success that Keja's views have had.

 

Of course you could turn this on it's head and make Maluk the pragmatic soldier that lends him to liberalism on spiritual matters as he just wants to 'get the job done', while Keja is more the zealot who feels the Gods must be appeased.

 

Either way, these two characters have a real dynamic going and I think feathering out the 'why' of their tightrope like relationship will really solidify the whole backdrop.

 

Just some thoughts.

[Ace Debonair]

Another twist that occurred to me is that there are two very distinctive elements to the Rift Lords.

 

1. You have two very dominant personalities in Keja and Maluk. This in of itself is not unique, but the interaction of any two personalities is distinctive in it's own way.

2. Your warband has a penchant for recruiting rather than just offering all and sundry to the Chaos Gods as sacrifice.

 

It might be a nice wrinkle to expand this a little and make Keja's 'disobedience' due to a fundamental difference in belief (towards how to further the cause for Chaos).

 

Maluk could be the conservative 'old guard' who wants to sacrifice captives to the Chaos Gods to gain favour, while Keja (who you have already said has the ability to think ahead five or six steps) can be the 'liberal' who sees the big picture and wants to swell their ranks to increase their resources in their mission to overthrow the Imperium - well as much as one group could overthrow the might of the Imperium.

 

I was thinking about various motivations for Maluk and Keja earlier. If I write any stories about the Rift Lords (a possibility) then I'll explore what makes Maluk and Keja tick. I'm not sure the Rift Lords would recruit from captives, but I see where you're coming from. :D

 

 

This slant not only gives Keja a good reason for his disobedience beyond 'because I am right', which is quite important because I would have thought the Chapter Master of a CSM warband is 'the law' and should not be crossed lightly. It also gives some believability to Maluk who has an ongoing dilemma to follow his gut with his hard line conservative point of view or to let Keja do his thing (which invariably ends up being the right thing to do) as he sees the success that Keja's views have had.

 

Of course you could turn this on it's head and make Maluk the pragmatic soldier that lends him to liberalism on spiritual matters as he just wants to 'get the job done', while Keja is more the zealot who feels the Gods must be appeased.

 

Either way, these two characters have a real dynamic going and I think feathering out the 'why' of their tightrope like relationship will really solidify the whole backdrop.

 

Just some thoughts.

I think on some level both Maluk and Keja are aware that the combination of them working together is greater than the sum of their parts, which is one thing that keeps them both alive.

 

You have hit the nail on the head, though. Maluk hates that Keja often modifies Maluk's orders to suit him, or sometimes completely disregards them. It's a challenge to his authority, for one thing. On the other hand, Keja's plans seldom fail, even if the success is not immediately apparent. To Maluk, Keja is a valuable resource and a blasted nuisance all in one.

 

Whereas Keja is a highly ambitious sorcerer. He has his own goals, but knowing that he cannot achieve them alone is what brings him to work with Maluk. He is a highly charismatic, devious manipulator; his greatest asset is a natural skill at manipulating both people and events to get the results he wants. He has to tread a fine line, however - the warband is very loyal to Maluk, who is an exemplary Chaos Lord. To appease Maluk, Keja will have to follow orders to the letter quite often. The trick, of course, is to get Maluk to give the right orders. :huh:

 

Writing all that into an IT will mean there's no space for the rest of the warband, though.

I'll think this over later. It's close to midnight now, though, so my ability to make sense is greatly diminished. ;)

[Dark Apostle Thirst]

I have to ask the question: Since you mentioned my Wraiths earlier, what do you require me to write? A contract between the Spectre and Maluk? Examples of times that the Wraiths have ensured the escape of a discovered Rift Lord cell (mysteriously, of course)? Rumours of Wraiths enforcing the rule of Maluk/Keja in the Shroud Stars?

[Ace Debonair]

I have to ask the question: Since you mentioned my Wraiths earlier, what do you require me to write? A contract between the Spectre and Maluk? Examples of times that the Wraiths have ensured the escape of a discovered Rift Lord cell (mysteriously, of course)? Rumours of Wraiths enforcing the rule of Maluk/Keja in the Shroud Stars?

 

Hmm. You could (if you wanted to) relocate your merenaries to the Shroud Stars, the big ol' warp-storm protected ship's graveyard in the galactic north. Even if other chaos legions/warbands don't like the wraiths much (don't remember if that is still in your IT ;) ), they won't be able to do much about it without Maluk (and any other warbands). Failing that, you could just have a base of operations there, which doubles as a last bastion should the Wraiths ever fall on hard times.

 

Oh, there's also planets in that area, so you could just shift the location of your homeworld if you want to move your lads in. :D

 

Other than that, perhaps a sidebar where a senior Rift Lord contacts your lads with a mission. You know the sort, assisting in a raid on [NAME] base on [NAME] planet, or possibly even an attack on a weakened loyalist marine force.

 

I like the idea of the Rift Lords using the wraiths as 'law enforcement'. Could be some fun to be had there.

 

It might be worth holding on until I get the IT up, though, so you'll have a more solid platform to work from. ;)

I'm getting nowhere fast with the Stonebound recently, so I'll have a bash at these guys after the weekend.

[Grey Hunter Ydalir]

Jolly good show, what?

 

weakened loyalist marine force.

 

Better not be the Blazing Sons! :D :)

 

It might be worth holding on until I get the IT up, though, so you'll have a more solid platform to work from.

 

The problem is Ace, that no one wants to wait! Everyone is too impatient to have their own projects linked with one of your rather highly esteemed creative visions. Or perhaps they simply think far too highly of their own! ;) In either case, the sort of setup you have inevitably invites others to participate by force of providing inspiration, through no fault of your own, but simply by virtue of having the idea to have the Rift Lords set up this way.

 

Enjoy the avalanche! :P

Edited June 6, 2010 by Grey Hunter Ydalir