The Rubicon Strait Crusade - Story to go with...

[Marshal Varas Mortez]

 ++++++++++++++++Here follows the first two accounts of my current Campaign Crusade.  ++++++++++++++++

 

 

The Strike Cruiser Dorn’s Sword eerily smashed back into the real time, leaving great tendril like waves cascading out and around as the forces of the immaterium tried desperately to reclaim it's lost prey. The massive strike cruisers warp drives shook and howled at the sudden snap of transition. Mechanicus adepts rushed to soothe the ships tired machine spirit and ready the formidable range of defensive weapons that had been resting during the long journey. Navigator crews fired off the highly advanced probes to scout the system. 

 

Marshal Varas Mortez walked across the bridge looking out of the view screen that now showed a series of planets orbiting the local star, now that the blast could be withdrawn. His hair was held in a topknot and his beard was flecked with grey, his eyes were a dark green and his stare was hard. Another figure walked up beside him, both were garbed in power armour, although the second figure had a skull faced helmet clipped to his waist. 

 

“Brother-Chaplain Ikarion, we will be arriving at the planet Rayan in ten hours time.” Mortez said without turning, his eyes still examining the system before him. “I will supervise deployment of our forces from the ship, while you inspect the chapter keep on the planet, the gates should have held since the last of our brethren were here.” He paused and turned his head to look at Ikarion, “If they have not, kill whoever has entered without permission and desecrated one of our fortresses.” 

 

“It will be done Marshal.” Ikarion said with a nod, his heavily scarred shaved head and bionic eye giving him a more terrifying look than his stern, foreboding features already did. “I will take the vindicators and two squads of initiates, to clear the keep if necessary and the heavy tanks, in case it is has been fortified by any foe.”

 

“I shall be ready to send further troops to assist you if required Brother-Chaplain.” Mortez said looking forward once more. “ For Dorn and the Emperor.” 

 

Ikarion nodded once more before adding “No Pity, No Remorse, No Fear.” He turned and walked from the bridge to let the battle-brothers know they soon would have a chance to end the pitiful lives of more enemies of the Emperor.

 

 

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Dorn’s Sword took station above Rayan, the planet was meant to un-habited after an ork invasion and destroyed the populace. The Templar’s had cleansed their taint but none had resettled the planet. Their keep remained however, to remind any settlers of the wrath that would be met out to any who tried to take the planet for their own. 

 

Ikarion had stood in the hanger bay, two squads of initiates were with him, their armour pristine and their heads held proud, their helmets were already in place and their weapons had been attached to them with devotion chains. The two squads had no leader, but were made up of warriors who had fought for decades together. Each squad was known by the longest serving member, Halrik and Artarion. 

Without being told both squads were already making their way onto the thunderhawk. Two vindicators were already cradled beneath a thunderhawk transporter, ready to accompany them to the surface.

Ikarion walked onto the thunderhawk after the two squads, his skull faced helm in place. He took his seat facing the two squads seated on either side of the transport. The ships lifted off and sped from the strike cruiser. They soon entered the atmosphere

 

“Brothers.” Ikarion said turning his head to take them all in with his deathly stare. “Remember, should you ever feel the agony for the loss of your brothers due to enemy guns, bear through it with a stern smile and let your enemy know that you will get into combat soon enough. His judgement cannot be avoided! Should your charge falter under heavy resistance, roar your devotion in His name and amount whatever strength you have left at one enemy point and crush it utterly! Let the enemy feel your pain by turning their’s into agony! Should you lay beaten and dying on the field of battle, laugh with pride for even in death our enemies will fear us, leave them with a scar that will haunt them till the time of their retribution!” He roared and the answering cry from the battle brothers around him was strong and proud.

 

A voice from the pilots came over his helmet comms. “Brother-Chaplain, are auspex is picking up life signatures at the keep.”

“Very well.”, Ikarion replied, before changing channel, to that of the two squads before him. “Brother’s it appears someone has tried to use our keep for his own, they stand on holy soil, we shall purge this desecration!” The rage was building amongst his men, they would cleanse their keep and kill any who they found.

 

The thunderhawks landed and the squads quickly deployed, fanning out to cover one another. Ikarion strode out, the second thunderhawk deployed the vindicators, their crew gunning them to cover the two squads. The keep stood before them, dark and proud, hanging from it seemed to be military banners, but not those of the chapter

 

“Brothers, No Pity, No Remorse, No Fear!” Ikarion roared.

“No Pity, No Remorse, No Fear!” Twenty four voices roared back. Already they could see enemy troops coming out in battle lines. 

“Let them come.” Ikarion growled. “The Templar’s have returned.”

[my_face]

Nice fluff there, I wonder who dared desecrate one of our holy keeps, it probably doesn't matter as they will all die anyway hehe! Not criticising but at the start you could say something like "the strike cruiser dorns sword eerily smashed back into the real time, leaving great tendril like waves cascading out and around as the forces of the immaterium tried desperately to reclaim it's lost prey. the massive strike cruisers warp drives shook and howled at the sudden snap of transition. Mechanicus adepts rushed to soothe the ships tired machine spirit and ready the formidable range of defensive weapons that had been resting during the decade long journey. Navigator crews fired off the highly advanced etc etc"

I like the description of the characters in the second paragraph.

Also it might flow better if they had received an sos and already knew the keep had fallen.

A little more detail here and there, you will have some wicked background for your crusade brother ;)

[Marshal Varas Mortez]

Thank you brother, I like the re-entry bit, I hope you don't mind if I steal. Well the first person to dare to face our brotherhood will be revealed tomorrow night after the battle. 

[my_face]

Steal away, it's only 40k relevant nouns and adjectives...fired, crashed,massive, streaked, dis-embarked, draped, charged, glowed, powerfully, shot, righteously, distorted etc

Enjoy your game :)

[Giarc]

Wow, I like the fluff a lot! keep up the good work, I would like to see more shorts stories like this!

[Andhil]

Awesome fluff. Looking forward to part2!

Tiny comment: (Sorry.. )

"The Strike Cruiser Dorn’s Sword the strike cruiser Dorn's Sword eerily smashed...."

Couldn't help but notice.

[Marshal Varas Mortez]

Ikarion glared at the forces arrayed before him, they
appeared to be Imperial guard. His men stood ready, he could feel the hatred
pouring from them, and felt his own matching them. He could taste ozone in the
air, and his one good eye narrowed further.

“Brother’s these trespassers are led by a witch!” He sent across the vox, the
men held no longer, squad Halrik rushed forward and Ikarion joined them. Squad
Artarion took position in some high ground, covering their brothers. The
vindicators leapt forward and began firing, the initial barrage blew against
the armour of the guard tanks before them.

The enemy returned fire shaking the Wrath of Dorn, the
firing mechanism seemed to have become damaged and so Squad Halrik and Ikarion
continued with only one vindicators cover for now. A rocket flew above their
heads smashing into one of the medusa tanks, causing it to burst into flame,
its crew bailing out in terror. As they raced forward, brothers were knocked
from their feet by heavy weapon fire coming from the chimera troop carriers. They
could feel the psyker attacks hitting them, and felt weariness overtake them.
But these were the sons of Dorn and despite the fatigue.

As Ikarion reached the enemy vehicles he could see tanks
smoking and on fire. Troops were running from the carriers and arranging
themselves into firing lines. Ikarion and the men still with him charged in and
cut them down. Fire continued to rain down on the other soldiers blowing them
limb from limb. “Brothers, No fear, no remorse, no fear!” he roared and they
returned his cry.

Despite the plasma fire firing at the tanks they continued
their rain of death. Ikarion and his men opened up with their bolt pistols,
knocking men from their feet as the mass explosive bolts ripped chunks from
their torsos.

Men lay across the ground, blood and organs visible
everywhere. The enemy commander glared at them, before with a flash and a smell
of ozone, disappeared in a blast of psychic discharge.

“Our home is our’s once more!” Ikarion said grimly, already
the apothecaries were checking the fallen Templars. He turned his comms to the
command channel. “Brother-Marshal, the enemy has been defeated, we are
searching the keep but all resistance seems to have been dealt with.”

“Carry on Brother-Chaplain.”
Mortez sent back, before cutting the link. Ikarion walked amongst the dead and
dying humans, giving them the Emperor’s mercy with his bolt pistol.

“…Why...?” One dying man said as
blood ran from his mouth.

Ikarion looked down at him coldly. “Because this is our home, not yours.” With
that he shot the man between the eyes, ending his suffering.

[my_face]

Nice update! I take it you slaughtered them then!? A couple of pointers, if I may? I would call them renegade militia, cos they aren't our loyal cannon fodder anymore hehe. "but these were the sons of dorn. Their minds were better equipped to shield themselves against the psykers vile babblings and outrageous proclomations of the inevitable destruction of the blood gods enemys." "But despitet the plasma fire...the black Templars continued their merciless slaughter, cleansing all who had turned their backs on the emperor and the imperium. Chainswords tore through flimsy armour and mass reactive shells..."

It would be cool if you could carry on the crusade and make fluff for all games, if you lost you could always put an aspiring character in place, given the honour by the marshal on board dorns wrath

[Marshal Varas Mortez]

It was a route, the only bugger I couldn't get was the damn warlord psyker. The deal I made with the others is I wont vilify their armies more than I have to, to make it all work, I agree militia would work better, but sadly deals made for the good of the Imperium. I do plan on trying to continue the crusade throughout the campaign, then will go back through at the end and try and tidy it all up, so all comments are more than welcome and even though they might not be implemented now, suggestions are always welcome, will probably alter it a bit so that guard are traitors etc, but for now, I have to make our brotherhood be a bit..... in the grey as to why we are fighting, also doesnt help i have agreed not to vilify overly, but also no one else is writing fluff for their campaigns... gits :)

 

Here is an update, glossing over my crushing defeat at the hands of the stupid Dark Angels and neatly skipping the majority of info on the grey knights and Eldar battles that came so close, and ended in losses. Here is some Tryanid pulping.

 

 

 

Ikarion looked at the corpse of the Hive Tyrant at his feet,
ichor still running from the wounds he had ripped into it with his crozius.
Halrik and the men in his squad stood beside him, they had not even had to help
as their chaplain had fought the beast. Halrik thought back to the wraithlord
that Ikarion had climbed onto the head of and beaten to the ground. The
chaplain seemed to be going from strength to strength, in the background he could
hear the shelling from the vindicators and see the swarms of gaunts being blown
limb from limb.

“It seems that aliens are arriving in force.” Ikarion said
grimly as he turned from the foul alien leader. “First Eldar and now tyranids, it
is good we arrived here when we did.”

“Yes Brother-Chaplain.” Halrik said agreeing, the alien blood drying onto his
armour in the hot wind.

Soon all the aliens were dead and the thunderhawks flew in
to retrieve them, as the ramp lowered and the squads mounted they found
themselves facing another squad of initiates. These five however had jetpacks
on their shoulders. Artorion grinned at the site of the five men before him.

“Farus, you ugly bugger.” He said with a chuckle, clutching his battle-brothers
pauldron. Farus returned the smile.

“Marshal Mortez has sent us and one of the crusader’s to join you, as
operations here keep seem to be escalating.” He turned to Ikarion. “Brother-Chaplain,
I also bring word that the battle in space continues, and the sword brethren
are currently engaged in ship to ship boarding parties and so, the they and the
Marshal are still unable to join you.

“No matter.” Ikarion said smiling, “I am sure they are carrying
out the Emperor’s will.”  Farus nodded,
uneasy before Ikarion who had a fearsome reputation, and the rumours that had
been filtering back to the ship had shown that he had been backing up his stern
words with heroic actions.

Ikarion’s smile disappeared as quickly as it had arrived, “We
must be careful, those guardsmen we cleared from the keep alerted the
Inquisition, Grey Knights attacked one of our forces, they don’t trust us,
despite having crusaded longer than any other chapter.” The initiates around
him also became serious, a civil war was not what they wanted to start, it
could drag the chapter into destruction. “Trust in Dorn and the Emperor,
brothers.”

With steely looks in their eyes they took their seats, the
ramp closed and the force returned to the keep.