Story idea for a DIY CSM Warband

[Hyaenidae]

So, I have been working on a warband for some time now, but I am one of those individuals who paint away, then realize I need a story to go with the army. Originally, I wanted a Mad Scientist feel, kinda a cross between the Iron Hands and Fabius Bile. Less mutations, more mechanical madness. After reading 'Fulgrim', I was inspired by the thought of a grand company gone traitor in the middle of all the madness. So here's the idea...a company of the Iron Hands travels and fights alongside the Luna Wolves/Sons of Horus for an extended time on a smaller side crusade. The Iron Hands become more attached to Horus's Legion, feeling abandoned by Ferrus for sending them away for so long, and seeing strength in the Sons actions. Eventually, their loyalty to the Sons is repaid in lodge membership, and the Iron Hands Company falls down the path of the traitor, learning of Horus's plans for Isstavan. The leader of the Iron Hand Company, desperate to prove his loyalty to his adoptive father, swear to tear down their former Legion, and rebuild it in Horus's image. In return, Horus will give the Company Commander leadership of the rebuilt Legion, and full salvage rights on most of the armour and gene-seed of Ferrus's Legion, as long as the traitor stays 'Ironbound' (the name of the warband, by the way) to his vows to him. The traitor Hands make a convincing 'escape' from the Sons, and re-integrate themselves within their former Legion. On Isstavan, at the moment of betrayal, the traitors begin transmitting squad placement, targets for artillery, etc. to the Iron Warriors, Night Lords, Alpha Legion, and so on. By the time of the Siege of Terra, They wear the pale green colors of the Sons, and are mentally and spiritually shattered by the death of Horus. Still sworn to the vows they made to Horus, they align themselves with Abaddon, and delve further into madness and hatred of self. They experiment with anything and everything they can get their hands on, from weapons from the Dark Age of Technology, to the melding of flesh, steel, and the warp. They now wander the Imperium, searching for new technology to exploit for the Warmaster, selling the tech he doesn't want to procure other warbands to further the Ironbound's goals, and leaving tortured human experiments in their wake.

Mind you, I know there are plot holes you could drive a baneblade through, but I would appreciate any (friendly)input and criticism. Please note, these guys already are made, and are loaded down with bionics and experimental weapons, and carry corrupted Iron Hands icons, so the fact they are of Ferrus's gene-seed is staying. I'm open to anything else though.

[RagingGriffon]

I was really liking it from start until, "company of the Iron Hands travels and fights alongside the Luna Wolves/Sons of Horus." Just keep clear of the Horus Heresy. In fact, I stopped reading at "The Iron Hands become more attached to Horus's Legion." Trust me. Keep away from the Heresy. The premise of a "Mad Scientist feel" is great. Maybe they were an Ad Mech leaning Legion, and they treaded on the Relictors side of thinking, started using possesed weapons, then vehicles, etc. Just please steer clear of the Heresy.

[Hyaenidae]

Fair enough. I just enjoy the idea of 10,000 years of stewing in insanity. Helps with the creative process when you're carving up a few thousand experiment victims. A couple thousand years younger will be ok though. So, no Horus Heresy, maybe 'Ironbound' by oaths to the Dark Gods instead. Any other thoughts?

[Brother Martemis]

now i am new to liber, and do agree to a certain extent with RG, i wouldn't say the Heresy was out of bounds, but would say be very careful

 

Iron hands would not pick horus over ferrus just because he was there. but if they were maybe tempted (tricked) by the dark mechanicus too....

 

don't take them to istavaan, or emps palace, say they were sent somewhere to find forbidden tech, or steal things from obscure forge worlds for the dark mech.

 

if it was a point that they were tricked by the dark mechanicus, they could go mad when they heard about the death of ferrus, and try to prove his decision NOT to use forbidden tech wrong (and got corrupted by deamonic weapons)

 

having said all of this, there is no need for it to have been the heresy for any of these to work...

[Hyaenidae]

Alright, here's the new idea.

 

The Medusan Knights chapter, founded in M33 from the Iron Hands gene-seed, was created to fill gaps in the defences around the Eye of Terror's northern sectors. They continued to serve the Imperium with honour for 3,000 years, until their forge-monestary was struck by the Dark Mechanicus and 4 full Traitor Titan Legions. Practically annihlated, the survivors were subject to experimintation and torture as their homeworld was enslaved and turned into a new Deamon-Forge. Their bionics were stripped and rebuilt with foul sorceries, their flesh torn and remolded, thier minds shredded of all sanity by constant forcible scrap-code inloads that polluted their souls. Neither the Emperor nor the Machine God heard their screams, or pleas for mercy. Every one of their weaknessess were brought to the fore, and the Knights could no longer hide their fears behind the mechanical modifications wreathing their bodies.

 

One by one, the Medusan Knights broke their oaths to the Imperium in a fit of madness and self-loathing, and swore themselves to the Dark Gods in an effort to permanently purge the faults inheirent within themselves. With the Titan Legions gone to fight elsewhere, the Knights broke free, and using their new modifications and loyalties to the Gods to shatter the leaders of the Dark Mechanicus who sat within the corrupted former fortress monestary. With the help of the Gods, they counter corrupted the scrapcode pouring across the planet, subsuming the skitarii mortals to their will. Clinically insane, and Ironbound to their oaths to the Dark Gods to "forcibly purge the failures of the human flesh and soul", they took the world for their own again, and began their war against the weakness that is mankind.

 

They experiment with anything and everything they can get their hands on, from weapons from the Dark Age of Technology, to the melding of flesh, steel, and the warp. They now strike out at the Imperium, searching for new technology to exploit, selling the tech they don't want to procure other warbands to further the Ironbound's goals, and leaving millions of tortured human experiments in their wake.

 

A little better?

[Octavulg]

No, because there's no paragraph breaks and it makes my eyes hurt.

[Hyaenidae]

How about now? (picky, picky) :)

[Octavulg]

Disturbing and interesting. I like it.

[Hyaenidae]

I dig 'disturbing'. The more insane, the better. Thanks, Octavulg. Any other opinions, nice or otherwise? If not, I'll start working on the rough for the DIY Section.

[Sons of Erebor]

I agree with octa, the new story is muchhhhhhhhhh more interesting, and in my opinion creative. Get that rough draft goin!

[RagingGriffon]

Much better! I look forward to your Liber submission.

[Hyaenidae]

Thanks to everyone for getting me on the right track, and keep an eye out in the DIY's. The Ironbound have come. ;)

[- Deathwing -]

Sounds really interesting. I really like the idea.

[Hyaenidae]

Snap thought...is 4 Legio's of Traitor Titans too much? I was thinking of a quick, hopeless battle for the Knights ("throw on your Terminator armour and grab your thunder hammers, boys! It's gonna be long night!"), but not a slaughter...

[Shinzaren]

4 Legios would be a slaughter, if only because Space Marines lack the weaponry to effectively fight the bipedal Godmachines of the Titan Legions. Its a really big deal when a squad/chapter kills one, earning lots of honors and such. 4 Legios would scour them from existence. But perhaps that's good right? They realize the hopelessness and begin to retreat, and while doing so they are captured?

[Hyaenidae]

In a manner of speaking...I wanted a 'forlorn hope' charge at the end, which ends badly at the end of a Dark Mech EMP weapon.... bionic parts failing, the worst nightmare of an Iron Hand Successor, in my opinion...lol.

[Grand Admiral Thrawn]

I think four Legios would be fine, supported by other elements of course.

[Hyaenidae]

Oh, definetly the support elements...the Skitarii have an important role to play, in the end.....alright, one last question. Undivided, or tzennech (bad spelling, sorry) worship? Undivided will obviously work, but the Lord of Change kinda makes sense, considering the Ironbound's love of dirty, evil secret technology. The secrets the Change God could give them would help their mad experiments become more and more insane, and in game terms, the +5 Invul would work as prototype energy shields/heavy bionics protecting them from harm. Thoughts, please?

[Grand Admiral Thrawn]

I'd stick with Undivided as secret technology doesn't necessarily have to be Tzeentch only.

[RagingGriffon]

Oh, definetly the support elements...the Skitarii have an important role to play, in the end.....alright, one last question. Undivided, or tzennech (bad spelling, sorry) worship? Undivided will obviously work, but the Lord of Change kinda makes sense, considering the Ironbound's love of dirty, evil secret technology. The secrets the Change God could give them would help their mad experiments become more and more insane, and in game terms, the +5 Invul would work as prototype energy shields/heavy bionics protecting them from harm. Thoughts, please?

 

Keep game rules out of your IA. They don't translate at all.

[Hyaenidae]

Gotcha. Sorry, I think/type/speak out loud a lot. Let me re-phrase that...I imagine my warband, in an effort to better understand ways to purge the flesh through modification (daemonic or otherwise), would constantly hunt down the secrets of the mechanicum, and look for ways to modify that which they have, never content to let flesh or metal be left untouched. Maybe they hear evil whispers in their unhinged minds. Example: "I have a DeLorean and a bunch of plutoium, maybe..." (Evil Whispers) "Great Scott, that's it! I'll make a flux capacitor and travel through time! Muhahaha!"

 

Would something like this fit better with Undivided or worship of the Change God?

 

BTW, the Skitarrii (being counter-corrupted) are neccessary to overthrow the Dark Mech overlords, as the Ironbound will be ridiculously undermanned at this point in their history.

[Shinzaren]

Undivided. They could respect Tzeentch's ever changing nature as a symbol of progress and technology. They could respect Nurgle's constant rot and decay as a symbol of the stagnation of the past that needs to rot away. They could respect Slanneesh for his unwholesome dedication to excess and pleasure, both as a warning, and as a source of enjoyment in the tasks they accomplish. Perhaps the binding of Dark Augmentations to their bodies is one of painful pleasure to them? Khorne must always be respected as the marshal God, Lord of Warriors, which all Space Marines are. Undivided can easily work for your tech savvy crazies :) I think Tzeentch would actually work against you, as augmentations, and the mechanical in general, are designed for a purpose, thus largely unadaptable to mutation and change. However, as part of a whole, that change could drive your chapter forward to seek new tech and better methods.

[Hyaenidae]

Thanks Shin, much appeciated. And yes, I refered to the Doc from Back to the Future as evil, lol.