DIY Chapter: Phoenix Knights

[thade]

Geneseed is, to most chapters, a spiritual link to both their Primarch and Emperor, I would ahve thought there would have been a tough time convincing the Marines, especially the Chaplaincy, to accept anything as impure as crims having the most holy sacred geneseed! Thats pretty much a sacrilege.

This is weird on lots of levels.

• More than a few chapters use criminals as recruits for their chapter. The Blood Ravens definitely do this (think: Thaddeus) and are not unique.
  
• These "criminals" don't have much of a history, being picked up between the ages of 10 and 14 at the latest. Some chapters recruit much younger to see if the children can endure basic rigors so they're more sure the child will survive the transformation into space marine. The reason they pick them up so young is that it's when the process has to start.
  
• It's a massive investment to put gene seed into a host because it's sacred, rare, and nobody really knows how it works anymore. That secret sleeps with the Emperor.
  
• The Progenoid glands (which manufacture the geneseed) aren't installed until the very very end...meaning the marine has seen combat training, has most of the other parts installed, and is hypnotically indoctrinated into the chapter cult. Why are they installed so late? They need the other organs to be in there, stable and working, first.
  
• As has been said, there's no way your chaplains and librarians would stand for this. It goes against everything they stand for.
  

Are you saying that these criminals are captured after age 10 and then used as dummy-hosts to ultimately grow gene seed many years later? It seems more efficient to do it the standard way...with your real recruits.

 

This is all meaningless if your chapter is a Chaos chapter though. I bet the Chaos Peeps would get all sorts of giddy over tinkering with gene seed in this way. It's what Fabius Bile does for fun. Like, really. And even if you're doing this, whatever apothecary is responsible is some nigh-Primarch-level powerful guy to have figured out enough of the gene seed's make-up in order to manufacture it in any way other than the manner SM's typically do it.

 

Remember, this is the Grim Dark. There are no human scientists, and no amount of their chanting or banging on crap in ritualistic ways is going to reverse engineer the quantum-by-quantum-level of engineering that the Emperor put into the gene seed. Nobody is smart enough. Xenos aren't either, so no amount of abusing Tau will help them figure out what the Emperor did. ;) He didn't write it down anywhere. Even with his tools at hand, the High Lords and all of their horses and manz can't figure out much more than we know now. We have the parts. We can grow em with gene seed. We need Space Marines to harvest gene seed.

 

Sorry to be the jerk, but I just don't find it fitting to the setting, and given how much work you've done I feel your chapter deserves better. You want your guys to be dark and mysterious for some reason, I recommend not tampering with gene seed (as the DIY guide does).

 

You have probably read the Lexicanum's notes on Space Marine creation, but if not here it is.

[TrashMan]

Erm...Ok, help me figure this out a second..

 

The AM, when it creates a chapter, uses THE SAME METHOD of growing gene-seed. Seed grown in criminals/slaves.

 

This actually make sense, since those poeple aren't going anywhere. The gene-seed will grow in safety, it won't be lost in battle. Set aside just 2 gene-seeds to use in this way (the rest is used normally), and in 100 years you can have enough to make a full chapter. How the hell is this NOT more efficient than what SM's are doing now?

 

 

Aslo, the Tau have nothing to do with the gene-seed. The inital idea was forcing tau prisoners to teach some selected and gifted individuals the basics of science. Workings of tau weaponry. NOT biology/genetics.

Of course, I'll either leave this is a rumor or drop it completely.

 

 

And lastly, the question about the craftworld..I still need input on that.

 

 

EDIT:

Actually, I stand corrected:

 

The gene-seed used to create new chapters is stored by the Adeptus Mechanicus, originally tithed by existing chapters. New progenoids are created using human test-slaves. Zygotes are grown from gene-seed and implanted into the slaves - the zygotes develop into progenoid organs and are removed. A single slave is used in this way to create two progenoids, which are then implanted into two more slaves, and so on. One thousand sets of organs are created, taking over half a century of constant reproduction

 

Apparently, from a singel gene-seed it takes 50 years to produce 1000 organs from just the starting 1.

Edited August 26, 2011 by TrashMan

[Brother-Sergeant Bohemond]

Ahhh, but thats the AdMech.

 

To a Marine, the geneseed is a spiritual thing. It links a Marine to his brothers. His Primarch (father) and the Emperor (Grandfather). It is holy to them, the AdMech do not see geneseed the same way. They would grow geneseed the normal way. Inside a battlebrother.

 

I find it easier to believe the Tau weaponary thing (which would result in excomunication if the =][= found out) although I still do not think Astartes would do that...mainly because its a heresy and against the Emperors commands and because, to a Marine and the AdMech human stuff is still better and pure and holy, becuase the Emperor is also the Omnissiah. But, this is definetly a lot more believable than geneseed in criminals, so if you want to go with one of these rumors, then Tau weaponary is what id put in, though you run a lot of risks.

 

That said, its your chapter :P

[TrashMan]

Wouldn't that kinda depend on the Chapter.

For another thing, what if the gene-seed is not grown in criminals, but in those recruits who weren't up to the standard of becoming a full battle-brother, but still passed the rigorous tests? In that case it would be considered an honor to be a host for the gene-seed. Eve moreso since the chapter uses false astartes and normal mortals.

 

not to mention that...I have no idea who the primarch might be. I don't even know it the chapter knows who their primarch is. There is no primarch listed for the Flame Falcon (or was it fire eagles?...that chapter that got butchered by the =I= )

 

 

And yea..the Tau thing. It's not about using their weapons - it's about finding out what makes the weapons work. And the Astartes are not the ones doing it, but a division of loyal engineers/tech priests.

Altough I do think I'll drop it compeltely. Arturian is supposed to be progressive and a reformer, but I don't want to go overboard.

Edited August 26, 2011 by TrashMan

[Brother-Sergeant Bohemond]

That would be better I think, and I like it as that fits in better.

 

Well, there are only a few Primarchs it could be, chances are its Guilliman, seeing as hes the father for two thirds of the Space Marines. As its not that important to the feel for you chapter go with Guilliman or Dorn and if GW ever tells us who the Fire Hawks Primarch is then you cna change your chapter accordinly.

 

And as for progressive, some people would say how is learning form Tau progressive?

[TrashMan]

Argh...at an impasse here...

 

 

I intially created a new eldar craftowrld to interact with the chapter. and now I noticed it's very similar to an existing eldar crafworld - Iyanden. Thematicly, that craftworld is perfect. Everything about it fits my plans perfectly.

 

Yet I'm hesitant to make an alliance with a canon and existing world...

[TrashMan]

Added a new section, concering boardghame rules for teh chapter.... jsut started it, but I'd like your oppinion:

 

http://warhammer40kfanon.wikia.com/wiki/Bo...Phoenix_Knights