I_D Makes Yet Another Chapter

[Imperialis_Dominatus]

I should really be trying to finish one of my other DIYs but all my notes are currently stored on a computer that is, to all intents and purposes, dead. Along with my many IAs, short stories, and several novels. This IA will not be an army project (only one of my IAs is actually represented on-table, or shelf as it were), but will join the multitude I have in my signature.

 

Anyway, will find a way to cast Technological Resurrection on it (Toll the Great Bell Thrice... Praise to the God of all Machines!) so I can at least get the important files but what I want to move on to is to at least nail down to the floor a few fleeting concepts that I want to tie together.

 

I grew up in the Pacific Northwest of the U.S. and so my entire life I've been inundated with the culture here- or I should say the non-white culture because white folks like me don't count apparently. Anyway, I've thought at one time or another that "man oh man, everyone uses Japan or Germany or Aztecs for their IAs, someone should really try something original..." when it struck me that it had been staring me in the face all along. I have seen a few Plains Indians concepts tossed around but most tie back to the origins of Deathwing. On the other side of the Rockies, however, there's the Tlingit, Tsimshian (had to look that one up), and Haida tribes in my hometown alone that I can draw on for this project.

 

Most specifically I can draw on their art. The Pacific Northwest natives have a very specific and distinctive art style that is most famously carved onto wood. Now, while I'm in no way advocating wood carved armor or weapons (Astartes combat tends to break anything not of adamantium, ceramite, or plasteel), I think the image of carved ceramite in these distinctive styles would actually be pretty cool looking, particularly if I were to mock-up something on the chest eagle and massive paldrouns.

 

The culture is matrelinial (sic), with clans and tribes, and very much a cooperative lifestyle. You don't get to act like a Big Damn Hero until the day you feel you're not useful to the tribe anymore and go off and die in the wilds, unless the rest convince you that you're still good at telling stories and stuff. Respect for elders so powerful for them that it goes against my demand for meritocracy. Perhaps could work that into the fluff, provide some conflict between 10th Co. and the rest, particularly Chaplains and 1st Company.

 

The way they wage war is important too. Due to the landscape (giant mountains jumping out of the ocean, literally, check out isostatic rebound), most wars between these folks was fought by assaulting with canoes straight onto the shore. This could perhaps be alluded to in an either macro or micro fashion, but in space would resemble what Astartes do anyway- get up close and personal and the enemy better prepare for boarding. Space-to-dirt it would probably resemble mass Thunderhawk deployment. On the ground it would probably be best represented by using lots of Rhinos in difficult terrain and succeeding at it. A fast rush army through terrain- the enemy can't escape, not because he can't find you (Raven Guard), but because the Astartes' woodcraft gets them to you hella quick.

 

Secondly I want to name a Chapter for bears. Because bears are awesome and as long as I'm drawing on my hometown I can just as easily draw on my high school mascot. I think due to the culturally-saturated nature of my hometown I can find similarities between the particular ideology of my sports teams (I was a very intense high school athlete and it was almost like a damned religion) and the traditional values of the Native folks here.

 

Thirdly... see diddly damn this is why I wanted to get on it quickly. I've gone and pontificated and proselytized about this topic and forgotten. AH! Yes. The mythology of the Native culture here ties very closely with something I saw recently on Warseer. A poster made a comment to the effect of describing various ways to worship the Emperor (who Protects, praise be to the Golden Throne of Terra). One of his listed ways was as a trickster god, and while the traditional imagery of the Imperium and its various inspirations don't lend themselves to worshiping the Emperor as a trickster god as opposed to, paralleling that, a Great Spirit or some such thing, I think the challenge is part of why I want to do it.

 

So:

 

1) Pacific Northwest native culture: music, language, myths, art, and war-style.

 

2) Bears (but no Bear Cavalry, that would be :D:ing overpowered I'm sure).

 

3) Emperor as trickster 'god' (likely really a deity to the people of this world, but the Astartes will of course disincline to ascribe to his apotheosis, if you get my meaning).

 

Name: Red Bruins (tentative, want bears)

 

Origins:

 

Founding blah blah. Named/Heraldry due to Tarot. Successor of Chapter, that Chapter provided officers and equipment surplus to what Mechanicus does. Chose home world due to all the reasons they do so.

 

Home World:

 

Islands everywhere, continents actually groups of archipelagos. Populated by Tlingits dialed up to 11, as is 40k's way with things.

 

Color Scheme:

 

I know it's typical for a DIY to use red and black Octavulg but in this case it's pretty apt. That's the colors for most of their inks, with white trim accents in turquoise.

 

Combat Doctrine:

 

Aforementioned allusion to actual fighting style.

 

Organization:

 

Codex, not much need for differences here. Transports might be popular depending on how I do Combat Doctrine.

 

Beliefs:

 

Emperor as some sort of trickster entity- perhaps play on the fact that they know he's not as strong as the Chaos Gods but he outsmarts them anyway. The myth of the Raven Bringing Light to the World could be used as an allegory to dragging Humanity out of the Age of Strife.

 

Lots of raven familiars and such, due to thinking of them as housing spirits of brothers lost.

 

Chaplains tellers of tales past. Librarians very shamanic, perhaps overlap somewhat with Apothecaries. Though as I want them to be Codex, they won't form their own separate rank. Although I don't think I've seen a Chapter combine those ranks. Speaking of which, I'm going to do a dissertation on that below since I don't feel like starting another thread.

 

Gene Seed:

 

Haven't used Raven Guard yet and it would save me the typical nature of having non-white dudes with non-white culture I guess. Besides, most of my Chapters draw their lineage from Guilliman. I've used Sanguinius twice, Vulkan once, World Eaters (not as a loyalist, don't worry) once, and Ultramarines four times. Ratio's still alright. Besides, they'll just have a vaguely similar fighting style (terrain use) and the use of raven iconography- the real focus will be bears. Because as I noted, bears are awesome.

 

Battle Cry:

 

We'll see how this goes before I pick one.

 

Aforementioned Dissertation on Mixed Specialist Ranks:

 

Might be interesting. In fact, looking at the special ranks there's some stuff I could do with other Chapters that is presently unexplored.

 

Chaplains have been combined with Apothecaries (Wolf Priests) and Techmarines (Iron Fathers), but not Librarians in any canon Chapter I know of. Perhaps the Blood Ravens would do this...

 

Librarians don't tend to be mixed with any rank. A Tech-Librarian would be difficult fluffwise and thematically challenging. The stigma of being a psyker precludes rather naturally the handling of geneseed and the preaching of doctrine.

 

Techmarines have been combined with Chaplains, as noted above. I'm sure the Priesthood of Mars wouldn't like being sent psychic supplicants and the chances of latent psychic powers emerging after the training would be low. Also haven't seen much of a combo with Apothecaries. Perhaps a theme of caring for the constitution of both the Man and the Machine, if this were done.

 

Apothecaries have a sort-of combo with Chaplains in the Sanguinary Priesthood, since the two ranks of Chaplain and Priest would logically split the ideological instruction of the brethren as they do the duties regarding the Curse. As noted Wolf Priests are Chaplain-Apothecaries.

[maligncomedy]

There's also the Makah, Salish, Nisga'a, Nuu-chah-nulth etc. Quite a bit of tribes on the Pacific coast.