Litanies of Hate and Discontent; Index Astartes: Invectors

Veteran Sergeant · December 3, 2012

Index Astartes for my homebrew Chapter, associate with my project log found here: Leave No Model Unconverted: A 31mm Space Marine Battle Company Log.

in·vec·tive
inˈvektiv/
noun
1. insulting, abusive, or highly critical language.

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Clad in deep blue and black, their armor often decorated with grisly trophies and scrawled litanies of hate, the Marines of the Invectors Chapter are a ruthless and enigmatic presence on the battlefields of the Ultima Segmentum. Prized by Imperial commanders as allies for their efficiency and stratrgic acumen, but often viewed with suspicion by their fellow Marines and other Imperial agencies, the Invectors have a long and storied, if troubled, history.

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T

he origin of the Invectors is shrouded in controversy. Their own Chapter records indicate a lineage traced back to the Ultramarines Legion and the Second Founding. And evidence seems to corroborate their homeworld in the Ultima Segmentum as being in the region of the galaxy once referred to as the Five Hundred Worlds of Ultramar. The Ultramarines own Chapter histories speak of the 79th Company, the “Tribunes of Cerceus”. However, the Ultramarines were split many times and neither Administratum nor Ultramarines records can verify that the Invectors are truly one of the Primogenitors. Many Imperial historians speculate that they are perhaps of the Third, or even Fourth Founding, and the Invectors' records and histories have erroneously traced Ultramarines heroes with whom they are only lineally tied to via geneseed.

According to the Invectors' histories, their first Chapter Master was Cestus Pullo, Captain of the 79th and famed for his heated and forceful rhetoric. Pullo gained acclaim during the Scouring in the aftermath of Horus's defeat at Terra, leading the 79th in a relentless pursuit, hounding the fractured, demoralized, and often leaderless heretical warbands which scattered to the galactic winds. With the adoption of the Codex Astartes and subsequent dissolution of the Legions, the fiery and bellicose Pullo christened his newly founded Chapter the Invectors and assumed control of the Cerceus system and responsibility for the surrounding sector.

The Invectors became known for their tenacity and viciousness against the bitter remnants of the Traitor Legions. The Kakos campaign in particular during the Third Black Crusade brought no small fame to the Chapter and gave birth to one of its first heroes. At the height of the conflict, Brother Captain Smedlus Butor, with only two of his Marines, infiltrated an Alpha Legion stronghold and defeated the cell leader in single combat. His actions led Butor to become the first recipient of the Honorifica Valorum since the Scouring. And he would go on to earn a second one only a few years later. Butor's disappearance in early M33 was considered a tragic loss for the Chapter.

In 405.M37, the Invectors joined the Fire Hawks and a task force of Imperial Navy and Guard in crushing the Vasilus Crusade, led by the Dark Apostle Kor Vasilus, then-leader of the Sons of Damnation warband. After three years of ferocious combat across the Aldoloth sector, the crusade came to an end with the death of Kor Vasilus on the Shrine World of Etrithea. Pinched between strike elements from both Chapters, the Dark Apostle found himself trapped on a hilltop on the Sordos peninsula and annihilated by an orbital strike from the Invectors' flagship. Leaderless, the remaining Sons of Damnation were forced to retreat to the Maelstrom. It took them nearly a millennium to become a significant threat in the Segmentum again.

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S

itting to the Galactic West of Ultramar and the Tau Sept Worlds in the Ultima Segmentum, the Invectors' chapter fortress lies on the 4th planet of the Cerceus system. With the planet effectively governed by its republican civilian administrative body, the Invectors involve themselves little in the stratified tribal and socio-economic politics of their world. The elites know that their power stems from the good graces of their masters, and as such, the war machine behind the chapter is kept well-oiled. From a very early age, the educational systems are designed to identify the strongest and brightest youth, attempting to isolate suitable candidates. By their seventh birthdays, these potentials are whisked away to the Chapter's screening facilities. Selection is one of the few honors that transcends wealth and status, and so prestigious is it for a family to have a son selected for indoctrination, that while the young recruit is almost never seen again, and whether or not he ever successfully became a Marine almost entirely unknown, he will often remain a local legend for generations to come, and imagined stories of his exploits play in the minds of any who catch a fleeting glimpse of a craft bearing the deep blue and black livery of the Invectors.

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A fairly small and climatically unremarkable world, most of its civilian population is concentrated on the western continent in sprawling city-states, while a smaller eastern continent is home to the Invectors' Chapter fortress and its training areas. A third continent at the southern pole is bitterly cold, mountainous, and largely uninhabited save for small pockets of miners and fishermen.

Further out from the sun lies Cerceus VII, a ringed gas giant whose largest moon supports a thin but breathable atmosphere sustained by ancient terraforming constructs. Life there under the hab-domes is far different from the homeworld, with the influence of the Invectors being more visible in the shipyards and defense platforms, but less invasive. The colonists of Big Seven are rarely screened and even more rarely selected for recruitment, so the Marines are viewed as omnipresent guardians rather than militaristic patrons and idols. While the home world's martial culture provides the bulk of the defense force's recruits, growing up accustomed to space travel leads many of Big Seven's youth to service in the sector fleet. The colony itself boasts a significant native population, and its primary purpose is to support the system's many void-based industries. These include mining the asteroid belt that lies just beyond the gravitational influence of the massive planet, harvesting ice from the planet's other moon, and the manufactorums which produce a large amount of the war material for the Chapter and the system's Defense Forces. Docks and maintenance facilities spin a vast metal web around the moon, servicing the numerous military vessels and commercial ships which pass through the system, while tiny shuttles and maintenance drones flit to and fro between their massive superstructures.

The final populated planet in the system is Cerceus II; known affectionately by its inhabitants as The Maze. A moderately sized planet whose close proximity to the Cercean star makes life on the surface nearly impossible, it serves a dual purpose as a training facility for the Marines, and an underground mining operation populated by a colorful cast of hardy pioneers. The extensive networks of tunnels and underground cities that give the planet its nickname are a wonder to behold, with miles of ancient but elaborately carved reliefs along the major transit routes. The mined ores and fuels are shipped off-world through a network of timed launch windows from underground launch facilities and a small space facility that maintains a fixed orbit in the planet's shadow.

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s true sons of Guilliman, the Invectors are learned students of the philosophies and strategies of the Codex Astartes. And while they revere the book's wise teachings, over the millennia, the Invectors have slowly but surely adapted it, expanding the tome with lessons learned against a myriad of opponents, and the notes of many other great Space Marine generals from Chapters they've fought alongside. Invectors aspirants are steeped in a variety of tactics and strategy even before they set foot in the Scout units, and the importance of leadership and initiative is stressed at all levels.

Only the Veteran and Scout companies operate according to the traditional Codex Astartes model; the Invectors field eight full Battle Companies. Newly initiated battle brothers are integrated into existing squads to gain the valuable mentorship of their more experienced peers, while the Veterans and Scouts are distributed as attachments to the Battle Companies. This leaves each Battle Company its own self-contained fighting unit, though it is not uncommon for an Invectors task force to be comprised of two or more companies commanded by the senior officer present. Designations of rank or office are subdued and practical, though many individual Marines will make subtle alterations to the Chapter livery on their battleplate. Only for the rare parade or diplomatic situation will they adopt traditional Codex colorations, most notably when serving as delegates to the Council of Ultramar where the Invectors' interpretation of the Codex occasionally creates friction.

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On the battlefield, the Invectors are utterly ruthless, preferring well-timed, decisive actions intended to shock and disrupt their enemies' will to fight and ability to communicate. They also obsessively collect enemy prisoners. More than once have Invectors detachments clashed with Imperial agents over the rights of possession to captured foes. Little is known about the fates of these prisoners, as captives disappear swiftly aboard orbital transports and deep into the bowels of the Invectors' vessels. It is whispered that ruthless interrogations of the unclean and the alien have brought them remarkable success in their campaigns, but it has also placed them under repeated scrutiny. Some extremely xenophobic Chapters have refused to fight alongside them on occasion, and open hostilities almost erupted between a contingent of Black Templars and the Invectors' 4th Company over the fate of Eldar captives the Templars had wanted to put to death. Adding to this suspicion has been the propensity of individual Invectors Marines to take souvenirs and display trophies of exceptional kills on their battle plate. Often displayed to terrorize their enemies, these range from xenos helmets and skulls, to armor plates and other artifacts, and the Invectors' integration of those items into their armor and wargear has on more than one occasion offended more traditionalist chapters horrified by what they see as defacement of sacred relics.

As the Invectors' interpretation of the Codex evolved, so did the Invectors' adherence to its dictates. The flourishing industries of their home system provided the sub-sector with a strong standing defense force. The line between what was the Chapter and what was the Cercean Defense Forces has blurred even further over time. After significant losses to their Chapter Fleet at Arnessk in 429.M38, the Chapter replaced several of its destroyers with standard Imperial hulls seized from the rebellious sector fleet, and integrated the Dictator-class fleet carrier Valeria Victrix along with its complement of attack craft. In conjunction with the ever-present detachments of Cercean auxiliary regiments which accompany Invectors forces, this practice skirts the guidelines of the Codex Astartes and the limitations it places on Space Marine power projection.

With the emergence of new enemies of Mankind in recent centuries, the attention of the Invectors has moved eastward. The Chapter, which had spent so much time developing its doctrines against the insidious threat of Chaos insurrections and the occasional emergent Ork warlord, became particularly vested in combating the nascent Tau Empire's efforts to poach Imperial held systems, and the ravenous hive fleets of the Tyranid menace. Seconded Battle Brothers from the Invectors have began to show up alongside Chapters in the Eastern Fringe which had found themselves most often engaged with the Tau and Tyranids, likely with the purpose of gaining insight into their experiences. The reception of these small detachments is not always warm.

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

Messor · December 3, 2012

Wow, that was great. I would say you accomplished what you set out to do. I only noted one small grammar issue. In the second to last sentence of that first Origins paragraph, here, "the Ultramarines were split many times and neither Imperium nor Ultramarines records can verify that the Venators are truly one of the Primogenitors."

By Primogenitors, do you refer to the second founding or the Venators? Because a primogenitor is an early ancestor, and not a descendant. Other than that, ship shape and looking great!

Chronotonic · December 8, 2012

now dont get me wrong i like how it is done..

but as i read through it i do not think you are an ultramarine 2nd founding....much less have any ultramarne genetics to boot....

heck i do not think you have any loyalist genetics...

what did you think i could not read between the lines...legionare...

-pass or fail as a group in training....

-took out not one or two cells but more...

-interigation of capitives..

-an orginal copy....really any 2nd founding or further would have a final copy that guillman would approve of...your legion with their tactics got an early copy learned it and adpated like always...

-how come no decendents...your a second founding with a glorious record....why are they not using your geneseed...

busted...hahaha

Veteran Sergeant · December 8, 2012

In the interest of cleaning this up a bit, I'm condensing all the stories here:

Bogdan heard it first. With a shriek, a gunship dropped out of the thick morning haze

hanging over the battlefield. The shriek became a roar as its vectored thrust engines
kicked to life and stabilized it into a hover which drowned out his warning to the other

troopers in the entrenchment. It tilted slightly, shifting right and the twin underslung

rotary cannons spun to life, methodically stitching fire along the length of the fortification.

Bogdan threw himself to the ground and scrambled on his elbows and knees towards

the closest bunker. He was splattered with gore as the stubber gunner Yaro's torso

came apart. Dirt and pulverized rock pelted him from the opposite direction as the back
wall of the trench was chewed up by the fusillade. His vision, already limited by the

eyelets of his respirator mask, tunneled down to the salvation of the bunker's entrance,

and he barely noticed as he crawled over the shattered and pulped bodies of his

squadmates. Then, as quickly as it had come, the gunship's engines spooled up again

and it shrieked off. The cacophony had left his ears ringing, and he couldn't hear

anything except the dull scraping of his body against the ground and the heaving breaths

inside his mask.

But then he felt them. A rumbling series of soft thuds that were definitely not his heartbeat.

He rolled over onto his back, pushing himself halfway up to lean against a sandbag

which had toppled to the ground against the revetment, and saw the first of the Space

Marines vault into the trench. Their armor was a dark blue, with black arms and a black

chest plate which sported a dull silver eagle across it. A head taller than the tallest man

he'd ever known, the Space Marines were massive. And they had come out of nowhere.

Had a transport landed under the cover of the gunship? Bogdan froze, his eyes wide as

he watched them move. The closest one was coming towards him. Emblazoned across a

banner on its shoulder armor in Low Gothic scrawl was the word “Punish.” Horrifically, it

stomped down on the head of Radomir, who had been trying weakly to pull himself along

the floor of the trench, his left arm missing just above the elbow. Radomir's head

disappeared under the massive boot, and Bogdan could only see the blood and gore

which splashed out above another corpse which had mercifully blocked his view of the

carnage. But he could feel the force of the boot as it connected with the solid ground of the

trench floor.

It looked at him, and he knew he was about to die. Bogdan's mouth opened and closed

without a sound as the towering warrior moved towards him. It was only then that he spotted

the two wicked looking blades attached to its thighs. Sword sized blades that the Marine

carried as if they were just knives. Its left hand reached across its body to draw one of them

as it approached.

With guttural cries which sounded muffled and far away to his damaged ears, several of his

fellows charged out of the bunker, Wenzel streaming ignited promethium at the Marines with

his flamer. However, the approaching Marine ignored the gout of fire, charging straight into

them, burying the blade into Wenzel's gut. It pierced all the way through him and Wenzel's

mouth opened up as if to scream, but instead only fountained blood. The Marine dropped the

massive bolt rifle to its side, right hand flashing down even as flames licked across its arm, to

seize the other blade, which glinted with an otherworldly sheen. It was slightly curved and of a

manufacture Bogdan had never seen before. The Marine's left arm swung around in an outward

arc, the inertia tearing Wenzel's body free of the blade, nearly bisecting him in the process and

scattering blood and entrails. The body bounced off the side of the trench, contorting

gruesomely around the massive wound as it fell to the ground. Almost simultaneously, as

another soldier's point blank las fire scored the armor on the Marine's chest, a sweeping

backhand slash with its right arm sent that soldier pirouetting to the ground, his rib cage opened

up from armpit to armpit, and arm partially severed. The right side of the Marine's torso was on

fire, and yet it seemed to pay the flames no heed. The third trooper was caught by a downward

stroke from the Marine's left blade, driving him to his knees, chest cleft to the nipple. The Marine

ducked into the bunker, and out of Bogdan's view. He was all alone.

As the kneeling trooper toppled into his lap, Bogdan recognized him as Cibor, and could feel the

man's lifeblood pumping out to soak through his trousers. A second Marine, his armor charred by

fire but no longer ablaze, looked down at him, and clomped right past to follow the first. Then a

third. His ears were still ringing, but he could feel the reports of gunfire and explosive impacts he

could only assume were the Marines firing their bolters. There were only two Marines left in the

trench. They were both on one knee, one studying some kind of picter mounted on its left arm.

Bogdan's eyes darted around. Even if he could will his limbs to move, the only weapon in reach

was Cibor's lasgun, but it was pinned underneath his body. The two Marines rose to their feet,

and walked in his direction. The first moved past him, and Bogdan's heart raced. They hadn't

noticed him. He was going to live.

The last Marine swerved only a half a step toward him, and a deep, tinny voice emerged from the

vox caster on the front of its scowling faceplate.

“Traitor scum.”

The Marine's left boot caved in Bogdan's chest, striking the right side below the plane of the heart

and lifting him up. Air was forced out of his mouth, mixed with blood in a gust of reddish froth, and

none rushed in to replace it. Bogdan slumped back down, suffocating as his lungs refused to work.

He blinked a few times, mouth agape and leaking blood. He stared numbly at the dancing flames

atop the corpse of one of his friends which had been set alight by Wenzel's flamer, his vision slowly blurring.

* * *

They found the Minotaurs sergeant lying near a tangle of mutilated bodies.

It had been a vicious and brutal close quarters fight. Stretched out around

the large dugout were the bodies of Night Lords renegades and cultists alike.

Inside the fighting position itself, the ground was a mess of severed limbs,

rent bodies, and spilled innards. Though his helmet's filters kept out the

smell, Veteran Marcus knew it must be awful. Discarded and empty weapons

lay strewn about, suggesting that the final confrontation had been a

whirlwind of blades and rifle butts. Three of the Minotaur's battle brothers

lay unmoving amidst the carnage. Apothecary Tulio knelt down to check

them for vitals. His vox silence told Marcus everything he needed to know.

The sergeant stirred, looking up at them. Marcus turned back to Tulio and

motioned with his head. “Get him on his feet.” Tulio worked diligently,

patching his narthecium into the suit's receptors, and working to identify the

sergeant's most grievous wounds and push the proper stims to render him

combat effective. Tulio was feeding the Minotaur's suit vitals to Marcus over

the squad comms. The physiology of a Space Marine was extremely resilient,

but it would still take some weeks before he would be at 100%. However,

within a few minutes, Tulio was helping the Minotaur up, his system pumped

full of combat drugs.

From behind his helmet, the Minotaur's voice projected from the vox emitter.

“Thank you brothers.”

The Invectors stood silent. The Minotaur continued. “I am Veteran Sergeant

Korragos. I am in your debt. Let me join you in taking the fight to what's left of

this rabble.” He moved to retrieve a bolter that was lying amidst the bodies,

but was stopped by Veteran Kester. He attempted to move around the

Invector, who moved again to block him.

“What is the meaning of this?” The Minotaur's voice was inflected with a

simmering rage.

Marcus looked to Veteran Arctos. “Arctos. Your blade.” Arctos drew the short

sword which was clamped to his pack behind his left shoulder, and tossed it to

Korragos, who caught it reflexively. Marcus turned to Tulio, calmly handing him

his boltgun, and then his bolt pistol. He then turned back to Korragos, and

drew his own blade. The other Marines stepped backwards to form a ring

around the two combatants.

“Traitors.” The Minotaur hefted the blade, assuming a fighting stance. Marcus

dropped into one of his own, but said nothing in reply. The two began to circle.

Korragos lunged, expertly striking at Marcus, who just as expertly parried the

attacks and moved out of the way. Korragos whirled back around.

“I will cut both of your hearts out.” The Minotaur struck at Marcus again, who

again deflected the blows, before delivering a short kick to his opponent's

thigh, staggering him. Korragos brought the combat blade around in a

sweeping arc, but Marcus was already gone.

They clashed again, Marcus catching the Minotaur's blade, and sliding it flat

to lock them guard to guard. The Minotaur tried to loop an overhand punch

at his helmet, but Marcus stepped back, sweeping around and the punch

landed flush against his power pack with a dull thud. Marcus shifted his arm

up to catch the fist between his collar and the pauldron before the Minotaur

could retract it. Taking advantage of Korragos's momentary surprise, Marcus

threw an elbow which rebounded off of the Minotaur's helmet, before

Korragos was able to wrench his fist free and separate himself. The Minotaur

was slow. This was almost too easy. Almost.

Korragos wasn't done yet though. “What did the dark gods promise you?

What did it take to turn your back on your vows, your brothers, and your

Emperor, traitor?” The Minotaur swung at him again, but he was a fraction too

slow, and Marcus moved inside the strike, catching it forearm to forearm.

The Invector drove two quick, short fists into Korragos's helmeted face, rocking

his head back. The Minotaur staggered, and Marcus kicked his legs out from

under him. The Minotaur dropped hard, but recovered quickly, rolling to avoid

a downward strike that never came. Instead, Marcus simply watched him roll

away and come up to one knee defensively. Realizing there was no follow-on

attack coming, Korragos stood. But he seemed to know he was fading.

“If I were not so gravely wounded, I would destroy you, coward. Your victory is

tainted and-”

“I've given you every chance you gave the Inceptors at Euxcine.”

The Minotaur said nothing, but the slightest flinch betrayed recognition. For

a few moments, the two Space Marines stood silently. Suddenly, the Minotaur

whirled, bringing his blade down on Kester. But the Invector veteran was

faster, deflecting the strike with his boltgun, and kicking at Korragos, who

leaped backwards out of the way.

In a sweeping cut, Marcus hacked through the soft armor behind the Minotaur's

right knee, severing the posterior ligaments. Korragos staggered, falling to a

knee, and Marcus looped the sword back around and down onto his wrist. The

blade bit deep into the Minotaur sergeant's flesh and bone, and he dropped

his weapon. Marcus gripped the Minotaur's pack with his left hand, wrenching

him around violently. The Invector struck him on the forehead with the pommel

of the blade, and delivered a kick that sent Korragos to sprawl on his back.

With a sweep of his boot, Marcus kicked the Minotaur's borrowed blade aside,

where it was picked up by Maro. Marcus walked over to Tulio, and retrieved

his bolt pistol. He turned back to where Korragos was sitting, having pushed

himself up with his one good hand. Their duel had trampled bodies and

entrails into the dirt, churning parts of it into a foul reddish brown paste which

now streaked the fallen Minotaur's armor.

Without a word, Marcus shot him in the neck. The bolt round punched through

the layered mesh of the soft armor, and into the Minotaur's throat, where it

detonated, pulping the airway and fracturing his spine. The Invector

re-holstered the stubby pistol as he approached the twitching Minotaur

sergeant. Kneeling down, he carefully disconnected the seals on the bronze

helmet, and lifted it gently off of his head. Korragos was not dead yet, his

superhuman physiology fighting to overcome even such an obviously mortal

injury, and his face was still contorted in rage. Through the dull black lenses

of his helmet, Marcus looked down into the Minotaur's eyes, a vicious smile

hidden behind his scowling faceplate.

“Burn the bodies. All of them. Their genetic legacy ends here.”

* * *

[/imageleft]http://www.blacklibrary.com/SiteImages/product-faction-icons/inquisition.jpgTo: Inquistor Ydron
From: Inquisitor-Acolyte Trelka
Date: 352.786.M38
Subject: Investigation into the power projection of Adeptus Astartes Chapter Invectors
Thought for the Day: Fulfilled is the heart bereft of doubt.

++Message Begins++

++ Following up on rumors of the unauthorized use of supplemental offensive forces by the Invectors Chapter, my team arrived in orbit of Zaertus Prime. Under the auspices of emergency repairs, we arranged to rendezvous with Task Force Hallogan and boarded the Admiral's flagship, the Exorcist-class attack carrier Magdan's Resolve. It was a rather small vessel to be at the head of such a fleet, however the nature of the xenos threat on Zaertus seems have dictated the need for its extensive complement of attack craft. The early stages of the Zaertus campaign have not gone well, by all accounts, and Admiral Hallogan seemed concerned I was there to investigate him. Reception was, to say the least, cold, and it took me some time to gain proper access to the ship's facilities I would require for my investigation.

By the Emperor's grace, our quick efforts to act had been rewarded. The Invectors forces had not yet arrived in system and we would be able to observe their actions and disposition from the beginning. When the Invectors strike force finally did translate into system, we noted that their fleet was far larger than would normally be required of a single reinforced company of Marines. While the compositions of Space Marine battlefleets are often unorthodox, typically due to the nature of legitimate seizure of prize vessels to replace lost fleet assets, this immediately struck me as noteworthy. I was not granted access to the debriefing between the Admiral and the Invectors command staff, but one of my acolytes was able to infiltrate the landing bay when the Thunderhawk transport arrived with the Invectors delegation. He observed several uniformed humans accompanying Captain Tyrus of 4^th Company, Invectors, wearing dress uniforms of unknown origin. While I am unable to substantiate this, it is my belief they were the senior commanders of the Invectors own sector fleet and planetary defense forces, which would explain the larger than normal fleet and be authorized only within the confines of the Cersean sub-sector.

Despite any question as to the identity of the attachés, what we later observed was the deployment of mixed-type transport craft to the surface of Zaertus Prime, and the back and forth orbit to surface movement of both identified and unidentified strike craft outside the templates of standard Adeptus Astartes hull classifications. Our cover here is beginning to wear thin, and I fear that if our presence is revealed inadvertently, it may cause the Invectors to withdraw from the system or divide their space assets to obfuscate any wrongdoing as they have in the past. Please advise.++

++Message Ends++

[imageleft]

http://www.blacklibrary.com/SiteImages/product-faction-icons/inquisition.jpgTo: Inquisitor-Acolyte Trelka
From: Inquistor Ydron
Date: 354.786.M38
Subject: Investigation into the power projection of Adeptus Astartes Chapter Invectors
Thought for the Day: Fury is a weapon best wielded with temperance.

++Message Begins++

++Excellent work Inquistor-Acolyte. Await my arrival in system. If you are able to deploy any of your acolytes to the surface to observe the maneuvers of the Invectors, do so. If that will compromise your presence, then remain aboard the Magdan's Resolve and continue to monitor movements and transmissions from orbit. ++

++Message Ends++

To: High Admiral Pragolis
From: Admiral Gerol Hallogan, Battlegroup Zaertus
Date: 381.786.M38
Subject: Loss of Inquisitorial Agent on Zaertus Prime
Thought for the Day: Through Sacrifice is the Emperor's Will Maintained.

+++Message Begins++

++I feel it of importance to report the disappearance of Inquistor Ydron, whose arrival I had reported in my last status update. The Inquistor never revealed the nature of his mission on the surface of Zaertus Prime, and had filed a flight plan and landing clearance requests to rendezvous with our ground commanders working with the Adeptus Astartes forces of the Invectors Chapter. Colonel Golgan of the 131st Borodian reported no contact with Inquistor Ydron. Captain Tyrus of 4th Company, Invectors, likewise reported no contact with the Inquisitor. I sent scout craft to survey the Inquistor's projected flight path for signs of wreckage or emergency landing, but no such evidence was found. Given the state of the surface at this point in the campaign, it may be impossible to accurately differentiate the Inquisitor's lander from any of the other destroyed and discarded war material. I am unsure of how to properly notify the Ordos, and defer to your judgment in this matter.

In better news, I am happy to report that prognosticators have judged the campaign will be brought to a close within months, if not weeks.++

++Message Ends++

Uaronain · December 8, 2012

I enjoyed reading about the Venators overall. My dislike of ultramarines aside I liked the work you did and I love the chapter symbol! Besides my misgivings about a second founding DIY I think the history is well done.

The taking of trophies and putting them on armor is a big no no for most chapters considering you put xenos scum on holy relics ;) But either way I like them!

Veteran Sergeant · December 11, 2012

I'm glad you liked them. Originally, I was just going to paint the army as Ultramarines, and make people uncomfortable about liking it. The Chapter symbol idea came really early on because of it. I had some Ultramarines gubbins I had bought that would go to waste otherwise, lol.

On another note, I'm playing with a new name. I decided there are too many Hunters, and I still don't like the Latin word usage. So I am trying out Invectors. Invective being "Insulting, abusive, or highly critical language". Sounds very 40Kish, is an aside joke, and thus amuses me. Maybe I'll make some Angry Marinesish conversions like one beating an Eldar to death with his own arm. That could be fun.

BrotherCaptainArkhan · December 20, 2012

Aha, the fluff behind the army. I like this a lot. I'll get the nitpicks over and done with first. Gotta come straight out and say from the start that I prefer the name 'Venators' as it somehow rings more Macraggian to me (which surely would have played a role in the original naming) than 'Invectors', although they do both work.

Secondly - and feel free to disregard this entirely, it really is a nitpick - I'd prefer to keep the sections set in the past *in the past tense*, rather than the following: 'The Kakos campaign in particular during the 2nd Crusade would bring fame to the Chapter, as Brother Captain Semedlius Butor would, with only two of his Marines, infiltrate an Alpha Legion stronghold...'

Gotta say I love the Smedley Butler reference though - can we get some more on him? :)

Otherwise I really like it. No criticisms, you've fleshed it out to an impressive degree and it works really well. It feels like an official IA article for a proper Chapter, and I like the straightforward, pragmatic attitude of the Chapter expressed throughout. I originally was going to go with the same kind of attitude for my Sons of Tyr before I decided they'd be mixed Raven Guard/White Scars geneseed...gotta go back and rewrite my IA article, come to think of it.

Another thing I'd like is to see the Chapter's history with the Alpha Legion drawn out a little further - I know you've just mentioned you're not too keen on the current rendition of the AL (me neither), but it strikes me that (as mentioned in a prior post) there are some similarities between the two Chapters in some regards (although they're nowhere near the masters of insurgency the Alphas are traditionally depicted as) which might bear some further fleshing out. Dare I suggest the Invectors have learned extensively from past operations against the Alpha Legion and, in keeping with Guilliman's tenet of innovation, adapted some of the guerilla/insurgency tactics of the AL into their own battle doctrine? Maybe one battle company in particular could be portrayed as having learned as such - perhaps they were engaged in operations against the Alpha Legion centuries ago, became separated from reinforcements by a warp storm lasting a long time, and during that period they were forced to foster links with local populations in the sector to build up insurgent cells rivalling those of the Alphas, to support their own meagre numbers? Just a thought, and it might be too protracted an endeavour to add to the article. As it is they're extremely compelling and I look forward to seeing some painted models of them.

P.S. Final thought came to me - if they are entirely comprised of battle companies, presumably attrition rates in the Chapter are going to be very high indeed, although correspondingly the Chapter's Marines would reach veteran status very quickly.

blackoption · December 20, 2012

This was a pleasure to read. They seem like they would be good "brothers" for my chapter(bickering about what is best, but still got your back). I look forward to reading more about the Invectors exploits in the galaxy. My only caution would be involving them in known events and history of 40k.

In regards to organization: Have you looked at the Betrayal book from Forge world, it seems that your chapter follows the Battalion structure in spirit if not in letter.

Veteran Sergeant · January 12, 2013

I am more than happy if people want to reference my chapter in their works. I'd ask that you just message me about it with your idea and I'll offer what kind of interaction they might have in that setting without trying to commandeer your work. Given my vision of how 40K "would work", it's probably best if whatever that was happened in the Ultima Segmentum (maybe eastern Solar or Tempestus), because with 1000 or so chapters, I don't see much reason for a star system based chapter to do too much long distance traveling when there are plenty of squishy and crunchy things to kill closer to home. But half the fun of 40K is the communal aspect of it, and if my IA has sparked community interest, all the better. I wrote this for fun, and because I was brain-burned with the other projects I had been working on of a less "fun" and more "work" nature, lol. License fiction may not be the most creative thing ever, but I have an inner geek who likes 40K.

I've not read Betrayal too closely yet because I don't really play that much, and I haven't had the time. However, I did notice that the Legion Army brings in a lot of concepts I'd already been testing/planning out for the last year. Funny enough, my Company Command Squad always had a "Master of Signal" similar model planned for it with a big commo backpack and a sweet little arm mounted display (in fact, I have all the parts for it. I just never got around to assembling him before the modeling project got put on hold). The Forge World guys seem to have a slightly better grasp of warfare than the GW or BL guys, so it makes sense that if I'm trying to believabalize (One of my degrees is in English. I am allowed to make up words. It's in the charter) my chapter's organization, there might be similarities.

I've tried to keep the chapter out of known events too, but worked to show how they have interacted with the major happenings in their sector of space. Hence why they are dealing with Alpha Legion insurgency elsewhere in the galaxy during one of the Black Crusades, or carrying out punitive raids in other parts of Tau space during the Damocles Crusade, battling Hive Fleet Behemoth etc. Wouldn't make much sense if they just completely sat out everything. But it also retains canonicity by not injecting them into established events. I think that IAs actually need to show the chapter interacting with the universe, not merely running parallel to it.

On the tense usage, argh. Yeah. That's why I never copyedit my own work, even though I have been a professional copyeditor. Always read your stuff out loud. The whole article is actually written in that manner. Not sure why I made that stylistic choice now. As to more Smedley Butler references, probably not. I've peppered the whole article with historical and cultural references because it's fun, and totally in the spirit of Rogue Trader, which themes the whole modeling project too. Trying to keep it to one reference per event, thing, or personality, though. Besides, as much as Butler was a bad ass as a US Marine, he eventually went on to write one of the most famous anti-military industrial complex works of all time. And in the grim darkness of the far future, there's not enough room for that kind of nonsense. Maybe he falls to Chaos or goes renegade.

The heavy usage of the Alpha Legion was both intentional, and an accident of spaceography because they are a common bad guy in the Ultima Segmentum. To become masters of counter-insurgency, you have to have experience fighting insurgents. Doesn't hurt that I have a few official Marine Corps publications on the subject sitting around and some experience. But I didn't want the Invectors to become specialists in fighting the Alpha Legion, so I also tried to limit their involvement in the history of the chapter. The Invectors would hate the Alpha Legion for being all Chaosy and pesky jerkbags, but at the same time, there are other fish and xenos to set on fire which require different kinds of strategies and tactics.

Get to work on your IA Arkhan. There's always time to see the light and join the scions of Guilliman. Lots of flexibility to do what you want with the history of the chapter, and no genetic flaws. Maybe a newly discovered typo in the Chapter records sets the genetic record straight. I'm probably going to go back and polish this one up a bit at some point to try to enhance the "whispers of heresy" aspect of this Chapter. After all, these guys are running a bit fast and loose with the Codex while steadfastly maintaining that they are actually doing it the right way. Plus it will be too much fun, conversion wise, if I get back to building the ridiculously time consuming converted plastic toy soldiers again. Already have an old school style shuriken catapult ready to imitate this guy.

As an aside, it's amusing that if you Google "Space Marine Shuriken Catapult" it brings up several images from my project log.

Octavulg · January 21, 2013

Invectors &--#60;br /&--#62; "The Tribunes of Cerceus"&--#60;br /&--#62;

Founding Unknown (Second? M31)

Progenitor Legion Ultramarines

Current Chapter Master Madagar Matius

Homeworld Cerceus System

As you probably know, your code is screwed up.

I think I also like Venators better than Invectors. :)

“Be the hunter, not the hunted. Never allow yourself to lapse in your vigilance."

-Chapter Master Madagar Matius

Too much 'M'.

Posted Image

Pretty.

"No one need think that the galaxy can be ruled without blood. Our swords shall, and must, remain red and bloody."

-First Among Sergeants Caelas Hadrian

I like the quote, but found the term "need" made it a little confusing (not much, just a little). "Should" might be more obvious, but it would seem a little clearer.

According to Invectors histories, their first Chapter Master was Cestus Pullo, an Ultramarines Captain of the 79th Company, who gained acclaim during the Scouring following the defeat of Horus at Terra. Of his actions and accolades during the Heresy itself and the Great Crusade, there is no record, however casualties sustained at Calth and during the Scouring left command turnover somewhat high by Legion standards and promotions more common. Cestus Pullo was an early adopter of Guilliman’s Codex Astartes, using it to harry the often outmatched and largely leaderless traitor forces which still infested the Ultima Segmentum. Pullo and the 79th were relentless in their pursuit, and famed for their successful location and elimination of the fractured heretical warbands. With the forces of Chaos eventually rooted out and destroyed, or driven into the Maelstrom, the 79th returned to the Cerceus system, and would continue to carry out campaigns against the various xenos forces that still littered the Segmentum. When the Ultramarines Legion was broken up, the newly founded Chapter would take the name Invectors and continue their hunt.

You switch tenses partway through this paragraph. You go from past to future, which is WEIRD when you're talking about things in the past.

As the last century of M41 progressed, the Invectors found themselves involved in quashing an insurrection on the Agri-world of Arden’s Retreat as the Alpha Legion attempted to disrupt food shipments to hive worlds in the sector. While several small cells of Alpha Legionnaires were uncovered and eliminated or captured, it is believed that whoever had been coordinating the effort escaped. The Invectors, as part of a larger Imperial effort, would then clash with Tau forces over the course of several years as elements of the Sa’Cea Sept attempted to subvert Imperial planets along the northern edge of Tau space. As of 999.M41, three companies of the Invectors, alongside the 5th Company of the Ultramarines and a large contingent of Imperial Guard and Eclessiarchy forces, are engaged in scouring Eldar pirates from the Drasanac Nebula, while bulk of the Chapter has deployed to meet rising Ork threats originating from the Charadon sector.

This paragraph feels tacked on. I felt like the Naga/Kraken stuff was the natural conclusion. I think it's the disjointed nature of what happens in this one.

Their homeworld of Cerceus IV is actually only one of three population centers in the Cerceus system, which lies in the Ultima Segmentum to the Galactic West of Ultramar and the Tau Sept Worlds. According to Invectors histories, the chapter was allotted its home world when the Realm of Ultramar was broken up following the Second Founding. The planet is not disposed to much radical weather across most of its temperate zones, with most of its civilian population concentrated on the western continent. Most Cerceans go about the majority of their lives aware of the Space Marines, but rarely seeing them aside from surface launches of large space-going vessels. Despite being restricted to a single recruiting world, the Invectors attempted to retain the model of Macragge. In many ways they were successful, however the more martial culture of Cerceus never completely took to the meritocracy of its enlightened counterpart. Nominally governed by a republican civilian administrative body that is headed by a pair of consular officials, politics remains a complicated stratification of socio-economic classes and ancient tribal influences. As a planet that was locked for centuries in brutal civil wars before the return of the Emperor, skill at arms in in battle has remained a consistent source of pride. Having a young son selected for indoctrination into the Chapter grants a fair amount of social status and esteem to a family. And while the young recruit is rarely seen again, and his success or failure as a Marine almost entirely unknown, he will often remain a local legend for generations to come. Given the extremely limited numbers of Marines, most youth aspire to proud service in the planet’s Defense Forces. Modeled in the Ultramar fashion, the Cersean Defense Force maintains hundreds of regiments across the system which have deployed in expeditionary units alongside the Invectors, as well as in support of Imperium efforts across the Ultima Segmentum. Many regiments have long and proud battle records that rival some of the most hardened units of the Imperial Guard.

As-is, this is basically Macragge. Hell, it's completely Macragge (Battle-King = Consul). Something a bit more unique would be good. What distinguishes this place from Macragge?

Most of the stuff after this in this section adds little, IMO - lots of detail, little of it meaningful. Also, having lots of shiny new stuff is a little odd, since the old stuff is basically as good (and certainly seen that way).

In accordance with the instructions laid down in the Codex Astartes, recruitment for the Invectors' Marines begins very young, typically when the child reaches the age of six.

Don't recall the Codex saying that...

"We are entrusted to safeguard both the future and the history of our Chapter. The purity of our geneseed is necessary for the survival of the Imperium itself, so that Humanity may endure. This is the fulfillment of the mission left to us by the Emperor."

A rather dull quote, I fear. The second paragraph of this section doesn't seem to add much, either.

I've tried to keep the Chapter from being too Unique Special Snowflake. They're kinda run of the mill, combined with my own vision of how a Space Marine Chapter should operate, and blending my love of the Rogue Trader era flavor and color, mixed into the more modern mythology of the 40K universe.

I love me some run of the mill, but I think you succeeded a bit too well. What you have is pretty solid, but it's rather similar to the Ultramarines.

I think it'd help if you spent a bit less time emphasizing their similarities, and a bit more emphasizing their differences. What makes their home world different from Macragge - in what ways hasn't the Ultramarineiness stuck? Has the whole counter-insurgency angle changed their interpretation of the Codex? How?

Even the Genesis Chapter are different than the Ultramarines, if only because the Ultramarines are more secure with who they are. So what separates these guys from the Ultramarines? :)

Veteran Sergeant · January 22, 2013

So, at first I was a little confused by the fact that you saw no differences between the chapter and the Ultramarines. Then I realized that not only had the board restructuring completely murdered the formatting, but it had also completely removed a large chunk of the article, including the entire section on Combat Doctrine and Organization, lol. Originally wasn't going to bother editing until the board was back to "normal". but since it was only displaying an utterly incomplete version of the IA, I decided to do it anyway. The board's current encoding was such a pain in the ass, I converted all the quotes to image files taken as screenshots from the old version and embedded them that way. The tense conflict had been identified prior, so it's been addressed in this edit.

On to a few of your questions:

The Chapter Master's name is an homage to a real person. The alliteration bothers me a bit too, but I decided I like the homage more than I am concerned with the phonetics.

The similarities to Macragge aren't entirely accidental. I didn't want to go too far off the reservation. The planet was part of the historical Ultramar, so its culture being similar didn't really bother me. I'm a big history buff, so I injected a bit more Roman Republic/Empire influence to it than the normal light dusting of Greco-Roman the Ultramarines already get. But I also didn't go overboard with it either. Basically enough that the history buff would say "Ahh, kinda like Ancient Rome" and nobody else would notice. The article is full of those references to history, literature, and pop culture. If you know it, it will be obvious and you can smile along with me. If not, it should be fairly transparent and not get in the way of digesting the article itself. I wanted to describe the planets in a way that gave them life, while keeping them more or less "normal". Basically just interesting enough, but not too interesting. “This is where the chapter is from? Okay, makes sense” I liked writing Cerceus II the most, to be honest, but it's too wacky to be the home world for a chapter like this. Cerceus IV is literally supposed to be A_Chapter_World_01. It's a relatively unremarkable planet built around a Space Marine chapter, with all the benefits and side effects that would have. And also to provide a glimpse at a culture that had been heavily influenced by its Marines, rather than the other way around. But yeah, not terribly exciting. Space constraints are my biggest enemy. I wanted to get the gist of the planets out and create a believable star system, without making the section cumbersome and long. I chopped down what I considered to be the extraneous details about the planets which dropped the word count for that section significantly. Ultimately I wanted the meat of this article to be about where they had gone, not where they had come from. Though, without the Combat Doctrine and Organization section, I can see why that effect was lost.

The six years old thing comes from one of the only good things about the Uriel Ventris saga by Graham McNeill. I'd give you the page citation but it would mean reading/skimming through them again, and that's just something I'm not willing to do. Looking it up, Lexicanum says Warriors of Ultramar, and I'll take its word for it. Those books were bad enough the first time I sorta read a few of them before quitting in disgust each time. As far as the six year old concept goes, it just makes sense, given that Space Marine implantation processes can start as young as 8 years old. This gives a Codex Chapter two years to screen and prep the recruits for maximum compatibility before risking gene seed implantation.

Why new shiny toys is simple. I decided the modeling project log would be carried out with solely Mk VII parts (and a smattering of VIII). MK VII was the new hotness when I very first started playing just prior to 2nd Edition, and it's the image of Space Marines I've always liked best. Plus, the MK VII has the least amount of inconveniently inflexible plates (looking at you Mk IV) and ludicrously exposed cabling located center mass (where most incoming fire would be aimed). The IA is justifying why the chapter prefers to equip itself according to my own personal modeling whims.

Restructured the Geneseed section. Not wholly satisfied, but it flows a bit better. I chopped down the quote. It had a rather interesting inspiration for it, but the end result was bland, I agree.

I'll probably expand out the fluff for many of the other questions you had. I didn't want the IA to become TL:DR by going too far into the whats and hows of of counter insurgency, etc. Some of the battles are homages to real battles, some are homages to famous books. I might expand and add a “Notable Actions” addendum to it similar to the way the Forgeworld articles are in, say, the Badab War books. Assuming anyone is actually interested in reading such things.

Basically the thought process was: Gonna write this because I'm bored and I want to be creative for a little bit. Do people care and like it? If yes, write more. If no, well, no harm, no foul.

Chronotonic · August 22, 2013

I got done reading this and was about to post a comment about how I think that they were Alpha Legion for the last 10k years with the pass or fail as a group the counter-insurgency tricks and so on and so forth...

but then I realized that I had already done that...

damn I am good

Veteran Sergeant · August 24, 2013

So I've made some edits to this. I paid special mind to try and highlight differences between them and the Ultramarines, and altered several of the sections to bring them more into line with the concept of the Invectors and their unique mentalities among the Space Marines. I chopped out a few paragraphs to make it flow, and revamped the descriptions of their homeworlds and combat doctrine.

Some more inexplicable formatting issues have popped up, which is always an irritating part of post editing, but that's a project for another time. Plus, story time:

Bogdan heard it first. With a shriek, a gunship dropped out of the thick morning haze

hanging over the battlefield. The shriek became a roar as its vectored thrust engines

kicked to life and stabilized it into a hover which drowned out his warning to the other

troopers in the entrenchment. It tilted slightly, shifting right and the twin underslung

rotary cannons spun to life, methodically stitching fire along the length of the fortification.

Bogdan threw himself to the ground and scrambled on his elbows and knees towards

the closest bunker. He was splattered with gore as the stubber gunner Yaro's torso

came apart. Dirt and pulverized rock pelted him from the opposite direction as the back

wall of the trench was chewed up by the fusillade. His vision, already limited by the