Index Astartes: Arctic Lions (V3.0)

[Ferrus Manus]

Firstly can I say it nice to be back posting in the Liber, there's plenty of new faces and I recognise only a few names these days and I'm looking forward to reading through some of the topics here.

 

Anyway, with it being a month until the fourth anniversary of the Arctic Lions entering the Librarium, I want to return to the article and give it a polish and if necessary a rework. Having read it back myself I can see a few contradictions which I'm keen to fix.

 

So for now, I'd appreciate it if some others could take a look over and offer up opinions on what they feel needs to be reworked and what they think is missing.

 

Here's the link

 

Thanks in advance.

 

 

++++++++++++++++++++++

 

 

Homeworld (V3.0)

 

Edited September 14, 2011 by Ferrus Manus
Fixed the link.

[Donkey Kong]

Welcome back, Ferrus!

 

During the 38th Millennium the High Lords of Terra declared another founding of the Adeptus Astartes, in response to another of Abaddon’s Black Crusades.

 

The first sentence is written almost as if the two events are trivial. You're looking at the 23rd Founding and the Ninth Black Crusade. However, not all Chapters in a founding are doing to be dedicated to a single cause.

 

Once the reputation of the new chapter grew hundreds sought to join their ranks. Rycius took only the very best, and thus their ranks began to swell.

 

One of your contradictions, I assume? It needs to be clarified where these recruits are coming from, and if they're taking only the very best, their ranks should be maintained, not swelling.

 

Rycius had served the Emperor for nearly all of his three hundred year life.

 

It was after three centuries of warfare that the Chapter was granted rights to homeworld

 

It's not necessarily a problem, but it's an odd repetition, even if it is unintentional. Time wise, it would also mean that the Chapter did not have a name, nor heraldry for 300 years. It's kind of odd to imagine people idolizing Chapter 837.

 

The Lions made their Fortress-Monastery on an icy deathworld known as Three-Delta-Omega, or Ursrik to its’ people.

 

Its is already possessive, no apostrophe needed.

 

The entire Homeworld section regularly repeats the words "endure" and "brutal."

 

On another, semi-related note,

 

Once there the chapter took the planet as there own and immediately began to fortify it.

 

They began to fortify the world? This should be reworded to fortifying a mountain, or a cave, something that will become the Fortress Monastery. There's no real point in fortifying a world that already has one of the best natural defenses.

 

An example being the case of the planet of Gereon was lost to the Imperium because of Imperial forces delaying in their decisions and their actions, of which the Arctic Lions were involved, and took huge casualties.

 

Gaunt's Ghosts namedrop? I'd change it.

 

Thus, when they did arrive there objective wasn’t to rescue their brothers, just extraction of geneseed.

 

Upon a Battle-Brother’s death his geneseed is removed

 

The chapter take no chances with their geneseed

 

gene-seed

 

Many members of the chapter‘s Librarium and Chaplaincy

 

Reclusiam

 

Only the fittest and greatest may have the chance to become astartes

 

Space Marines

 

The Lion and the Beast kind of flies over my head. I don't see it's significance, and I don't see how it affects the Chapter. I guess it's justified in a sidebar, but I still say it's just another battle or a wasted opportunity, ie: have Orks on the homeworld, have some sort of feeling of failing at losing half the chapter, etc.

[Ferrus Manus]

Welcome back, Ferrus!

Thanks mate!

 

The first sentence is written almost as if the two events are trivial. You're looking at the 23rd Founding and the Ninth Black Crusade. However, not all Chapters in a founding are doing to be dedicated to a single cause.

Noted. The Origins section is one among a few that I'm looking to completely re-write.

 

One of your contradictions, I assume?

Actually, it wasn't but good spot. I'll fix it. as for the 300 thing, yeah it is a long time. I can see your point but I think it kinda fits their humble aspect, in that they refuse the honour of an actual name. Apostraphe removed.

 

They began to fortify the world? This should be reworded to fortifying a mountain, or a cave, something that will become the Fortress Monastery. There's no real point in fortifying a world that already has one of the best natural defenses.

Hrmm, I always imagined that Astartes homeworlds would have the main fortification as their Fortress-Monastery and then secondry defences clustered around the planet - things like ground-orbit batteries.

 

Gaunt's Ghosts namedrop? I'd change it.

Unintentional, but yeah I'll get rid of it.

 

Space Marines

Going to have to agree with AD-B on this one, Space Marines kinda sounds silly. I prefer Astartes or Astarte.

Noted on the other points though.

 

The Lion and the Beast kind of flies over my head. I don't see it's significance, and I don't see how it affects the Chapter. I guess it's justified in a sidebar, but I still say it's just another battle or a wasted opportunity, ie: have Orks on the homeworld, have some sort of feeling of failing at losing half the chapter, etc.

I'm not sure if I'm going to keep it yet, maybe I'll rework it or perhaps I'll write something new to put in its place. Only time will tell.

 

++++++

 

Thanks for that. On another note, was there anything more general you noted? Mostly in regard to the themes and character of the Chapter, that's what I want to work on in this rendition. Were parts of the article stronger or weaker than others? any comments are appreciated, though I know it can be time consuming reading through a whole article in detail.

[Donkey Kong]

Hrmm, I always imagined that Astartes homeworlds would have the main fortification as their Fortress-Monastery and then secondry defences clustered around the planet - things like ground-orbit batteries.

 

I suppose so, but it doesn't change the fact that you don't begin with everything. Fortress Monastery, then Planetary Defenses, and satellites and in-system defenses before, after, and in between. It's a minor wording issue :P .

 

Space Marines

Going to have to agree with AD-B on this one, Space Marines kinda sounds silly. I prefer Astartes or Astarte.

 

I hate to burst the bubble, but:

 

To explain a little more:

 

Arbites aren't Arbites, they're Arbitrators. Custodes aren't Custodes, they're Custodians. Astartes aren't Astartes, they're Space Marines, and their faction is called the Adeptus Astartes (Adepts of the Stars).

 

The others tend to use specifics like enginseer, techpriest, adept, etc.

 

Regardless, that's not relevant to your question.

 

Off the bat, I've never been a fan of the name. I find "Arctic" too specific, especially for an organization that theoretically should be able to fight anywhere. "Void" captures the same ideas of "cold" and "brutal," perhaps even more so. It also doesn't perfectly align with the idea of "seeing lions," but even that doesn't line up perfectly. Rycius is written receiving many messages, and, presumably, visions as well. Why is this one so much more significant? Lions evoke the idea of a ruler, a lord, not necessarily something humble. But, that's just my opinion.

 

This is an odd one, and perhaps something you'd even laugh at me calling out. I don't like how only one section is headed by a quotation. I've always felt that it should be an "all or nothing" concept.

 

The names of the companies seems out of place. They're not titles, they're not really important at all, they're just there. It doesn't fall in line with being humble, it falls in line with being different for the sake of being different. Even in your story, Fourth Company is referred to as the Fourth Company, not the Fourth Tooth.

 

In terms of combat doctrine, my interpretation of Ork organization goes: you have a clan headed by a boss, and in that turn that boss is subservient to a bigger boss, and there may be a third tier. Remove the head, you may get infighting at the next level down, but now, instead of one enemy, you have five, or ten, enemies that hate each other almost as much as they hate you, but it's still a bigger problem. Constant fighting against Orks should, in my mind at least, give a mindset of needing to purge entire areas, worlds even.

 

Passing mentions are made at the roles of Chaplains, and even faith in general. However, like I said, they're passing. Is the Reclusiam larger? Is there anything special we should know? If there is, there should even be a sub section under their organization.

 

Their character is kind of conflicting. "Cold" and "Brutal" rarely fall in line with "Humble." I'm not saying that they should be bubbly, and I understand brutal, all marines are brutal, but that idea of "Cold" needs to be fleshed out.

[Ace Debonair]

Firstly can I say it nice to be back posting in the Liber, there's plenty of new faces and I recognise only a few names these days and I'm looking forward to reading through some of the topics here.

 

Welcome back, buddy.

What's the weather been like in the warp? :)

 

The Arctic Lions have always been one of my fave DIYs, so I'll make sure to read through and get my best Liber-Game-Face on later. :mellow:

[Ferrus Manus]

Firstly can I say it nice to be back posting in the Liber, there's plenty of new faces and I recognise only a few names these days and I'm looking forward to reading through some of the topics here.

 

Welcome back, buddy.

What's the weather been like in the warp? :P

 

The Arctic Lions have always been one of my fave DIYs, so I'll make sure to read through and get my best Liber-Game-Face on later. <_<

It's all gravy.

 

Appreciate the effort mate, and I'm glad you like them :D

 

@ KHK - I've spent some of this evening amending the error from the first post, and writing some notes based on your later comments. I'll post them up tomorrow when they're a bit more concrete.

[Ace Debonair]

Ok. Game face on.

No real major holes, so I'm resorting to nit-picking I'm afraid. :devil:

 

The Chapter gained a reputation for being calm, cold-hearted killers; having no tolerance for heretics, more so than other chapters, who they always brought, swiftly and brutally, to justice.

 

That sounds like they bring justice to other chapters. :)

I'd reccomend "Perhaps even moreso than other Chapters, the Arctic Lions have no tolerance for heretics, who are always brought to merciless justice" or something of that nature.

 

The chapter owns sixteen of these suits, their bearers’ filling tome after tome within the chapter’s Librarium.

I think there is a word missing here, after 'bearers'.

 

Eighth and Ninth being the Assault and Devastator reserves respectively, known as ‘Ursrik’s Wrath’.

This bit's alright as it is, but can I suggest Ursrik's Claws, just to fit in with the Fangs and Eyes? :D

 

Thus, when they did arrive there objective wasn’t to rescue their brothers, just extraction of geneseed.

Their, rather than there.

 

 

...And that's the nittiest that I can pick. :tu:

Hopefully that's of some use to you.

[SnakeoilSage]

A solid Chaper, but it feels a little Vanilla. If that's the intention then it'd make a good addition to the list, but maybe you can add more examples to help emphasize their personality? Detail incidents that show off their ruthlessness (maybe they were fighting alongside another Chapter, and the Arctic Lions' actions caused a brief fight?), their desire to scour the foe (some scorched earth battles?) and add some aspects of Ursik's culture to the Chapter.

 

A few touches will give them that extra personality to help them stand out!

[Ferrus Manus]

Ace -

 

Thanks mate. Noted the first two.

This bit's alright as it is, but can I suggest Ursrik's Claws, just to fit in with the Fangs and Eyes?

To be honest, I'm probably going to get rid of that, I think its kind of silly. Noted the next point.

 

A solid Chaper, but it feels a little Vanilla. If that's the intention then it'd make a good addition to the list, but maybe you can add more examples to help emphasize their personality? Detail incidents that show off their ruthlessness (maybe they were fighting alongside another Chapter, and the Arctic Lions' actions caused a brief fight?), their desire to scour the foe (some scorched earth battles?) and add some aspects of Ursik's culture to the Chapter.

I'm glad you mentioned their homeworld and culture, here's some of my notes on these aspects. Some C&C would be welcome. The two sections I really want to work on are their Beliefs and Homeworld - the two important ones as far as I'm concerned.

 

 

- Icy death world, similar to Fenris.

Perhaps it was once a normal terra-like planet, some sort of event transformed it into what it is now.

- Nomadic tribes

Move from campsite to campsite in search of food and perhaps more permanent shelter – why can’t they stay in one place? Natural occurrence? Areas of safety are hotly contested by the various tribes.

- Predators

Perhaps they gravitate toward large centres of activity, maybe this is why the tribes people stay in one place.

- Induction

Does the Chapter send out watches? Preferably not, too similar to Space Wolves. Perhaps re-invent the Feast of Iron somehow, could be akin to the Blood Angels – youths travel to place to prove themselves under the gaze of one of the Chapter.

- Culture

Ice world barbarian has been done by GW. Perhaps these guys are more noble in aspect. Similar to the greeks and romans in character.

Edited September 8, 2011 by Ferrus Manus

[SnakeoilSage]

I'm glad you mentioned their homeworld and culture, here's some of my notes on these aspects. Some C&C would be welcome. The two sections I really want to work on are their Beliefs and Homeworld - the two important ones as far as I'm concerned.

 

 

- Icy death world, similar to Fenris.

Perhaps it was once a normal terra-like planet, some sort of event transformed it into what it is now.

- Nomadic tribes

Move from campsite to campsite in search of food and perhaps more permanent shelter – why can’t they stay in one place? Natural occurrence? Areas of safety are hotly contested by the various tribes.

- Predators

Perhaps they gravitate toward large centres of activity, maybe this is why the tribes people stay in one place.

- Induction

Does the Chapter send out watches? Preferably not, too similar to Space Wolves. Perhaps re-invent the Feast of Iron somehow, could be akin to the Blood Angels – youths travel to place to prove themselves under the gaze of one of the Chapter.

- Culture

Ice world barbarian has been done by GW. Perhaps these guys are more noble in aspect. Similar to the greeks and romans in character.

 

Here are some thoughts on your fluff:

 

- Maybe the planet's sun has changed and is on its last legs? It still has a few million years of life left, but it is much cooler and the planet has largely frozen up because of it?

 

- The tribe migrate because of high-intensity solar flares during the Spring/Summer. Parts of the planet thaw creating intense weather: hurricanes and typhoons of freezing water, follow by massive tsunamis that flood an area and then freeze, changing the terrain and sealing shelter under meters of ice.

 

- Predators should be heat-seeking beasts of some kind: the more humans in one place at a time, the sooner these predators will notice and attack.

 

- I like the idea of hosting the Feast of Iron for recruitment: dozens of young men fight across the ice to reach the Fortress Monastery and compete for a place in the Chapter.

 

- Consider perhaps Cossack inspirations for the planet's inhabitants?

[Ferrus Manus]

I like you SoS, you have some good ideas.

Maybe the planet's sun has changed and is on its last legs? It still has a few million years of life left, but it is much cooler and the planet has largely frozen up because of it. The tribe migrate because of high-intensity solar flares during the Spring/Summer. Parts of the planet thaw creating intense weather: hurricanes and typhoons of freezing water, follow by massive tsunamis that flood an area and then freeze, changing the terrain and sealing shelter under meters of ice.

I like this, it works. The intense weather and natural disasters remind me of Nocturne and Fenris. The natural cycle of change on the planet works against its inhabitants - almost like it wants to kill them, adding to the lethality of the death world. Also, similar to Fenris and the Space Wolves, the Lion's Fortress would be protected by being built within the mountains, protecting it from the worst of the effects.

 

However, I'm now starting to think it would be better to move the Chapter off the planet to a moon of Ursrik, allowing them to tend to their duties and their faith in the silence of the void.

 

Predators should be heat-seeking beasts of some kind: the more humans in one place at a time, the sooner these predators will notice and attack.

Almost like sharks to blood, however, Im sure there would be more than one type of predator but I like the idea of an alpha predator race of the planet.

 

Consider perhaps Cossack inspirations for the planet's inhabitants?

Anything specific you had in mind?

[SnakeoilSage]

You could have the Arctic Lions set in orbit, or you could take an Iron Hands approach and have the Chapter broken up into multiple mobile fortresses; maybe gigantic ice-breaker vessels that slowly grind their way across the planet?

 

You could consider a few truly alien beasts to live on your planet. Giant ice-burrowing worms? Heat-devouring spiders? (read that one in a Star Wars book once). Maybe giant albino penguins eaten by giant living blobs of frozen gel, and mobile forms of enormous kelp (sea weed) forests that burst out of the ice in search of light and heat. (from the Mountains of Madness and 2061: Oddessy Three).

 

Wikipedia has a good chunk of info on Cossacks, but I've copy-pasted a section here for you to look at. I just feel that the tribes of Ursik could have a similar feel.

 

Culture and organization

In early times, Cossack bands were commanded by an ataman (later called hetman). He was elected by the tribe members at a Cossack rada (council), as were the other important band officials: the judge, the scribe, the lesser officials, and even the clergy. The ataman's symbol of power was a ceremonial mace, a bulava. Today, Russian Cossacks are led by Atamans, and Ukrainian - by Hetmans.

 

After the split of Ukraine along the Dnieper River by the Polish-Russian Treaty of Andrusovo, 1667, Ukrainian Cossacks were known as Left-bank Cossacks and Right-bank Cossacks.

 

The ataman had executive powers and at time of war he was the supreme commander in the field. Legislative power was given to the Band Assembly (Rada). The senior officers were called starshyna. In the absence of written laws, the Cossacks were governed by the "Cossack Traditions," the common, unwritten law.

 

Cossack society and government were heavily militarized. The nation was called a host (vois’ko, or viys’ko, translated as 'army'), and subdivided into regimental and company districts, and village posts (polky, sotni, and stanytsi).

 

Each Cossack settlement, alone or in conjunction with neighboring settlements, formed military units and regiments of light cavalry (or mounted infantry, for Siberian Cossacks) ready to respond to a threat on very short notice.

[Ferrus Manus]

You could have the Arctic Lions set in orbit, or you could take an Iron Hands approach and have the Chapter broken up into multiple mobile fortresses; maybe gigantic ice-breaker vessels that slowly grind their way across the planet?

Hmm, I think I would prefer them to be in orbit. The Iron Hands approach seems to lend itself to Chapters in which the companies have more autonomy, and are more self-sufficient. Where as I've always had the Lions as very codex, very chain-of-command. So, it could work.It would just depends on which direction I want them to go in.

 

You could consider a few truly alien beasts to live on your planet. Giant ice-burrowing worms? Heat-devouring spiders? (read that one in a Star Wars book once). Maybe giant albino penguins eaten by giant living blobs of frozen gel, and mobile forms of enormous kelp (sea weed) forests that burst out of the ice in search of light and heat. (from the Mountains of Madness and 2061: Oddessy Three).

I like the burrowing worms and the kelp, I will use those. Like I said, I like the idea of an apex predator that is considered the most dangerous to the peoples of Ursrik. Perhaps is even hunted by the chapter as an honour type thing.

 

In early times, Cossack bands were commanded by an ataman (later called hetman). He was elected by the tribe members at a Cossack rada (council), as were the other important band officials:

The election idea could work, and it could carry on through to the Chapter who elect their leaders at every level. So a Sergeant would be elected by his squad and so on. I would ensure that (even more so) the LIons would have no issue following their officers if they put them there in the first place.

 

On another note, maybe they could use 'hetman' or 'ataman' as a nickname title for their officers.

 

Cossack society and government were heavily militarized. The nation was called a host (vois’ko, or viys’ko, translated as 'army'), and subdivided into regimental and company districts, and village posts (polky, sotni, and stanytsi).

Considering the nature of their homeworld, I think it would be a given that every man, woman and child would be taught to fight form a young age.

 

++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++

 

On a similar note, I wrote this the other night, comments would be nice. There's still quite a lot to go in, such as peoples and predators:

 

The homeworld of the Arctic Lions is a frozen death world located close to the area of space known as the Gates of Varl, in the Segmentum Ultima, known as Ursrik. Due to its close proximity to several Ork held worlds, the Chapter is often involved in the quick extermination of up and coming Waaagh! There have been several black moments in history when the xenos have desecrated the blessed surface of the planet.

 

Ursrik is the last remaining planet in the system, a single satellite of a dying star. Ursrik was once the youngest of three planets, each of them was teeming with indigenous life forms, until the arrival of the Imperium. During the Great Crusade, the mighty legion of Russ came across the system; the first and second planets were bombed from existence due to the large presence of Orks. Their debris still haunt the system, an all too real reminder of the zealousness of the Imperium; perhaps it is fitting then that a chapter such as the Lions inhabits the surviving world. Over time as the system’s nameless sun began to die, and Ursrik died with it. In a short time Ursrik became the world it is today.

 

The planet itself is covered in thick sheets of ice, beneath which freezing oceans rage. Great mountains break the ever present stormy cloud line, below which deadly snow storms rage – to the point that the planet’s surface rarely sees large amounts of light. However, during a time known as the Tempering, in which high-intensity solar flares emitted from the dying sun cause areas of the planet to thaw out allowing the wrathful seas to break through, flooding vast areas of land. Alongside which hurricanes and typhoons and tsunamis of freezing water ravage the landscape, before finally freezing back over and allowing the land to recover. In which times it could be believed that the planet is trying to exterminate the last vestiges of life, allowing it to die in the solitude of space.

 

The fact that life even exists under such conditions is a miracle and more, each life form either adapts or dies.

 

(EDIT: I'm a bit gutted it looks so short on the net)

Edited September 9, 2011 by Ferrus Manus

[SnakeoilSage]

Nicely done! It's got lots of flavour and feels more unique among the million planets of the Imperium.

[Ace Debonair]

On a similar note, I wrote this the other night, comments would be nice. There's still quite a lot to go in, such as peoples and predators:

 

Sounds good so far.

 

It'll be a bit bulkier with sections detailing the nature of the people and predatory animals there, and you've got to bear in mind you need enough room for the other sections too.

 

EDIT:

Liking some of the other ideas, too. The idea of voting squad and company leaders in is a good one, seems to fit the Lions' personality quite well. :)

Edited September 11, 2011 by Ace Debonair

[Dosjetka]

On another note, maybe they could use 'hetman' or 'ataman' as a nickname title for their officers.

Hetman is already used in the Horus Heresy series for the leaders of a particular Imperial Guard regiment, though nothing stops you from using it too. I personally prefer "Ataman" though -_-

 

Ludovic

[Ferrus Manus]

Updated the original post with the Homeworld section - not quite finished yet, got to write about the people's culture and yet it's about the same size as the old version - comments would be cool.

 

Also, I've been considering how the Lions view one of my favourite units: the Librarians. I want them to have more than average, perhaps even have one Librarian permanently attached to each company. I'm going to go with the standard 'the planet's people have a higher than average amount of those with the psyker mutation' line. Considering the Lion's ideas of purity of the soul, I think they would have a great respect for their psychic brethren - as they have to guard against even more danger than normal. Thoughts?

[Dosjetka]

Also, I've been considering how the Lions view one of my favourite units: the Librarians. I want them to have more than average, perhaps even have one Librarian permanently attached to each company. I'm going to go with the standard 'the planet's people have a higher than average amount of those with the psyker mutation' line. Considering the Lion's ideas of purity of the soul, I think they would have a great respect for their psychic brethren - as they have to guard against even more danger than normal. Thoughts?

While being "standard", as you put it, I think it could work quite well. Still have to finish reading your IA though.

 

Ludovic

 

Edit: Not sure if I should point out the typos (?).

Edited September 13, 2011 by Battle-Brother Ludovic

[Ferrus Manus]

Not sure if I should point out the typos (?).

If your talking about in the new homeworld section, yeah sure. If you mean the IA, I'd prefer more general comments on the article to specific things like grammar and typos.

[NightrawenII]

Hello, I will look at the rest later I want just add some food for thoughts.

 

Icy death world, similar to Fenris.

Perhaps it was once a normal terra-like planet, some sort of event transformed it into what it is now.

- Maybe the planet's sun has changed and is on its last legs? It still has a few million years of life left, but it is much cooler and the planet has largely frozen up because of it?

- Well, (our) sun is actually not getting colder, but hotter. Also, after this period it will turn into Red Giant, increasing enormously its size and thus swallowing or incinerating its planets. :D

- For my desert DeathWorld, I'm using a "failed attempt of terraforming" excuse. + The Old ones and Eldar were known for messing around with Planets.

 

Nomadic tribes

Move from campsite to campsite in search of food and perhaps more permanent shelter

[WeaponAdept]

I liked it !

Refreshing work mate.

[Ferrus Manus]

Firstly, I've updated the homeworld section. I'm pretty happy with it, I think its miles better than the older version.

 

+++++++++

 

- Well, (our) sun is actually not getting colder, but hotter. Also, after this period it will turn into Red Giant, increasing enormously its size and thus swallowing or incinerating its planets.

- For my desert DeathWorld, I'm using a "failed attempt of terraforming" excuse. + The Old ones and Eldar were known for messing around with Planets.

True, but you never know they could discover a star type that does cool down and die. Maybe. Still the failed terra-forming sounds interesting. Do you have a link to your stuff? (Yep, I'm really that lazy) I'd like to have a look through.

 

Why a nomadic cultures exist? It's mostly because their food like to travel from one place to another. ;)

Touché. And thanks for the Eskimo link - I'll give it a read when I've got more time.

 

To be honest, this is a one step away from Fenris.

True, but then I think it's hard not to be when your talking about frozen death worlds.

 

@LostBritain - thanks mate.

 

EDIT:

 

Next up I want to work on the beliefs section:

 

The Chapter’s cult is based around the purity of the soul. If there is a flaw in a warrior’s soul he leaves himself open to corruption. [Talk about Librarians and guarding their minds and souls] The most prominent example being that of the Primarchs, the loyal primarchs represent the pinnacle of such purity – even when their very brothers became corrupt they stood strong in the Emperor’s service. But above all they venerate Gulliman. It was he that held the Imperium together after the dark days of the heresy. It was he who sought to balance the power within the Imperium and annihilate the foes from without.

 

The chapter believe that the soul is the most important part of a marine, and one must guard it against corruption. Through the purity of their soul, they can stand against the horrors that face them. And only with this purity, can their souls live on after the death, in the Immaterium together with the Emperor. As Astartes their purity is vital, and though they know that even marines can be corrupted, they know that through their faith in the Emperor their souls are guarded. To fail the Emperor is to leave their souls open to corruption, so they will give all before they fail in His service. However, those that survive and fail Him must always strive to atone for their failures and cleanse their souls.

 

The brothers of the chapter are silent zealots, their faith a private and internal matter rather than one to go exclaiming to the galaxy. Members of the chapter are extremely strict upon themselves and their bodies. Self induced punishments, such as fasting, are a regular occurrence, as it is just as common to find a high percentage of the Battle-Brothers to be mediating, at prayer or listening to a sermon conducted by a Chaplain during their free time. It is through strict regime and a lifetime of service and pray that they believe will help save their souls from the darkness of the Warp.

 

Upon a Battle-Brother’s death his geneseed is removed and his body is covered in purity seals, detailing his deeds, and burnt. This full account of a warrior’s deed will be needed when they meet the Emperor, so that he may glorify them with a place in the final battle against Chaos and all corruption, the Apocalypse. These are the beliefs and ideals place upon them by Rycius at the dawn of their creation; they believe that to fail in them is to fail Rycius, one who they look to as a father figure.

 

On the note of Rycius, the Chapter takes great store by his vision of the white lions. Many members of the chapter‘s Librarium and Chaplaincy have sort the true meaning of it, and which event it refers to: whether it be the Defence of Ursrik or a metaphor for the Imperium as a whole. It is something that plays vital part of their lives. There is a saying within the chapter: ‘If you fight like a lion, you can never fail the prophesy.’ I don't like this bit it's gonna go.

 

Thoughts on it would be welcome.

Edited September 14, 2011 by Ferrus Manus

[NightrawenII]

Still the failed terra-forming sounds interesting. Do you have a link to your stuff? (Yep, I'm really that lazy) I'd like to have a look through.

Nope.

My IA is in state of being stretched across the time and space. :D

 

Basically:

At the end of Dark Age of Technology a Lomechusa star system is discovered.

The terra-forming begins.

The warp storms of Age of Strife cut off the the system and the humans, overseeing the process.

Without any connection to outside universe, the humans die of starvation (or attemt to escape), while the lack of spare parts leads to failing of terra-forming machines, leaving the process half-completed.

After several thousand years, during the Great Crusade, the planet of Lomechusa is seeded with human population, but... That's story for another time. :D

 

++++++++

Beliefs? Let's see:

 

in the Immaterium together with the Emperor.

- I would avoid mentioning Immaterium, since it's realm of Chaos Gods.

 

To fail the Emperor is to leave their souls open to corruption, so they will give all before they fail in His service. However, those that survive and fail Him must always strive to atone for their failures and cleanse their souls.

- What happens, when are Arctic Lions faced with overwhelming odds? - Are they prone to a last stand over tactical retreat?

 

at prayer or listening to a sermon conducted by a Chaplain during their free time.

- This somewhat clash with this; "It is through strict regime and a lifetime of service and pray that they believe will help save their souls from the darkness of the Warp."

 

 

Cheers, NightrawenII.

Edited September 15, 2011 by NightrawenII

[Ferrus Manus]

what happens, when are Arctic Lions faced with overwhelming odds? - Are they prone to a last stand over tactical retreat?

Hmm, I would say that the are more inclined to hold their ground in a sell their lives dearly/ make their life worth something/ prove their faith kind of way, but saying that, for a Chapter that's very strict in their following of the Codex I'd think that perhaps only do so in a situation where a last stand would have some tactical value - giving time for someone/ something else. I'm not completely sure, I'll have a think.

[Ace Debonair]

As might be expected, the Arctic Lions are wont to change the fortunes of their people, believing that such conditions rear excellent recruits for the chapter. Once every year, mere weeks after the Tempering the chapter calls on the clans to send their best youths to the Charon Peak, a great mound of ice and stone atop which the recruits fight to earn their place in the Chapter. Those that make it to this place have already passed an almighty test – they have defeated Ursrik itself. To get to the Peak, they must make their way across the across the frozen landscape, evading or neutralising each and every threat that comes their way.

 

Wait, doesn't that mean they'd like to change the fortune of their people?

 

Or have I been getting that wrong all these years? ;)

 

EDIT:

As a side note:

I don't really see these guys as the 'desperate last stand' type. I've got the mental picture of a Chapter who would consider that wasteful, and instead be willing to reatreat and lose one battle in order to win the greater war.

Edited October 2, 2011 by Ace Debonair