The Hammer Guard IA 6.0

[WeaponAdept]

After a couple of years away from the B&C I'm returning after re-writing and creating a few new IA's

 

BBCode will follow if I feel like making it all pretty :)

 

I hope you enjoy.

 

 

Hammer Guard

 

Origins:

 

The Hammer Guard where founded mid-M33, raised to fill a gap in Imperial defenses in the Ultima Segmentum. The actual Astartes Founding is not known but they are suspected of being raised between the fourth and fifth. Records concerning this remain classified.

Founded and trained under the supervision of the Praetors of Orpheus there have been many rumors surrounding the involvement of the Adeptus Mechanicum in political motivations behind the creation of the chapter though nothing has ever been proved.

 

History:

 

The Hammer Guard once patrolled a cluster of Imperial star systems in the galactic north east from their home system, Incus.

Incus IV was an industrial world of 12 billion souls. The Chapters fortress monastery, The Fornax, stood proudly on Mons Ignis Altus. The neighboring system of Ross 154 was and remains to this day, home to a large forge world, supplying the Imperial Guard regiments and Astartes of the sector. The Hammer Guards technical prowess was well known, their extensive Armoury famous.

In early M35 Ross 154 was targeted by a large Ork Waarg. A Space Hulk dubbed Rogues Demise materialized outside the system and almost immediately it spewed forth hundreds of Ork vessels.

The Hammer Guard reacted as quickly as possible, pulling in all its forces from local systems, knowing that the death of Ross 154 would mean the death of the sub-sector.

By the time 700 Marines and two regiments of Imperial Guard made planet fall the Mechanicum Skitarii and broader cybernetic forces had all but fallen.

With Space Marine and Imperial fleets engaged in orbit the fate of the Forge World was to be decided by the ground war.

When the dust had settled the world was saved, but at great cost: One of the Guard regiments was dead to the last man, the other decimated. Ross 154 lay in near ruin. Only the Manufactorum Majoris remained viable. At its gates lay over 600 Space Marines of the Hammer Guard. The Chapter Master and most of the Chapters upper hierarchy among those martyred.

During the defense of Ross 154 a second Ork fleet had lay waste to the Incus System. Rad and Chem weapons rendered the surface uninhabitable. It is not common for Orks to employ this kind of warfare and a more sinister influence is suspected. With their home world and main recruiting pool gone and with such heavy losses the Hammer Guard braced themselves for centuries of rebuilding. The true scale of the tragedy of the Hammer Guard had not yet been realised. Some unknown taint, perhaps born by the Orks with their chemical weapons or perhaps released on Ross 154 by the destruction of a sinister Mechanicum facility had washed over the fallen and buried itself deep within the chapters geneseed.

As the Chapter began the rebuilding process it was immediately obvious that something was drastically wrong and the Hammer Guard lamented their fate.

To this day only Only 1 in 3 initiates survive the first two stages of implantation. The secret of the tainted gene seed has never revealed iself. The Hammer Guard are bitter and selfish, they have to time to worry about the survival of anyone but their own.

Inquisition records have tied Ross 154 to an "Anti Astartes" weapon. The Hammer Guard would never hear words against the Mechanicum, especially not while they receive the finest weapons and armour Ross 154 can produce.

 

Organization:

 

The Hammer Guard strives to uphold the Codex but millennia of hardship have driven the stoic chapter to adapt in order to avoid destruction or worse.

The Hammer Guard has been struggling to recoup great losses for 5000 years since the loss of their home world and subsequent transition to a fleet-born force. Once cut down to fewer than 400 Brothers they have clawed their way back to a stable 600. Unwilling to risk fielding Codex companies for fear of further losses that may result in the destruction of the Hammer Guard, smaller formations were adopted. These formations have remained in place as the Guard grew in strength. Necessity became tradition.

 

The Cadres are formations of 30 Marines. Each operates in a similar manner to a standard codex squad. Each cadre contains each of the disciplines of Astartes combat; Tactical, Assault, Devastator and Scout.

 

The Cadres are named for the Captain that leads them and are divided into squads of 10 as per the Codex. They operate much as one would expect, as a small company. The most obvious difference other than the small size is the inclusion of initiate marines in the Cadres to increase the likely hood of them surviving to become fully fledged Astartes. Battlefield scout duties are taken on by veterans. Hammer Guard reconnaissance teams often chose full Battle plate over scout carapace armour.

 

The Prime Cadre is made up of the Chapters most honored veterans who take to the field in TDA.

The Cadre of Mars is made up entirely of Techmarines and their Initiate apprentices. Similarly the Emperors Cadre is made up exclusively of Chaplains. While the Techmarines within the Hammer Guard are numerous, Chaplains are few in number. This has raised questions about where the Chapters loyalties lie.

 

Wargear:

 

Ross 154 is an old forge world. It’s relationship with the Hammer Guard is strong.

With the aid of the Mechanicum the Chapter has maintained many older variants of power armour and will often be seen in Mk IV plate.

Many more armour components of older suits of power armour are kept within the chapter. These are presented to Battle Brothers who have proved themselves.

In close combat the Hammer Guard will prefer to bear their namesake rather than edged weapons. The thunder hammer is also a badge of office and is carried symbolically by officers, sergeants and other important members of the chapter.

Certain Offices within the Imperium have taken note of the Chapters habit of presenting technology instead of seals of purity to its members.

Plasma weapons are numerous within the Chapter thanks to Ross 154.

Heroes of the Chapter have been recorded carrying Volkite weapons. This is not confirmed.

The Chapter employs Ross Pattern Predators and Razorbacks which employ plasma weaponry.

 

Heraldry:

 

The Chapter Symbol is a hammer superimposed over a starburst on a shield.

 

The Hammer Guard wear burgundy armour with a yellow visor and pauldrons.

 

Personal heraldry is worn on the right pauldron. Cadres are identified by markings on their kneepads or greaves.

[Leonaides]

I would say that after 5000 years they ought to have recovered to their full number a few times by now. It took the Ultramarines 250 years to recover from around 1/4 to 1/3 casualties, it took the Blood Angels less than 600 years to recover from c. 95% casualties (according to the 2009 space hulk fluff). The Raven Guard struggle with numbers since the Dropsite massacre is due to the damage done to their geneseed, rather than anything else. 

 

Perhaps you might want to go a similar route - say that much of the geneseed recovered from the dead outside the manufactorum majoris was affected by some unknown chem/radiation leaks from battle damaged portions of the buildings nearby but this damage was not immediately noticable and has built up over time after the damaged geneseed entered the chapters stockpiles (and thus into 'circualtion'). Perhaps (and borrowing a trick from the Flesh Tearers) your chapter apothecaries are charting an increased rate of implant failiure...?

 

Perhaps the Ad Mech feel a little 'guilty' about poisoning their protectors and are giving them more pretty plasma/vehicles/armour than usual in an attempt to buy the chapter off or make them think not to ask exactly what it was that caused the damage to their geneseed. Maybe this last factory that your marines saved just so happened to be producing one of the Inquisitions 'answers to the space marine question' (ie: how to take down a rogue chapter) and your chapter got a little taste of it (and might even have become a field study in its effectiveness!).

 

Just a few grim/dark thoughts for you - feel free to use/ignore at your leisure.

[WeaponAdept]

Hey, great ideas thanks!

 

The non viable implants would fit well. Less successful initiates fits in well with them being precious.

Also recruiting people into a chapter where 3/4 of implantees die might be a struggle.

 

I also thought that they would have succumbed and been unable to recoup without assistance from the ad mech. But if there was a problem wouldn't the ad mech sort out their pet chapters with some new un tainted gene seed?

 

I was aware of the long period of low numbers, I really wanted my guys to be a long serving chapter to make the old war gear theme fit.

 

Cheers for the input.

 

Edit: first edit is done. I'm going to seperate some of these details into a gene seed sub heading when I have moe time.

[Leonaides]

Hey, great ideas thanks!

 

The non viable implants would fit well. Less successful initiates fits in well with them being precious.

Also recruiting people into a chapter where 3/4 of implantees die might be a struggle.

 

I also thought that they would have succumbed and been unable to recoup without assistance from the ad mech. But if there was a problem wouldn't the ad mech sort out their pet chapters with some new un tainted gene seed?

Not necessarily - ref 'the Astartes Problem' the higher-up Ad Mech guys might have just seen it as a fortuitous test subject chapter (with the bonus being they can always just get a new chapter created when this one finally kicks the bucket). I wouldnt worry about 3/4 casualties amongst your recruits meaning you struggle to get new recruits - most marine chapters probably have more like a 95% casualty rate amongst their recruits if you go from the initial total intake each time all the way through to Black Carapace implantation. And its not like most recruits would even get a chance to back out after initial selection unless they were found to be incompatible with the geneseed...

 

I was aware of the long period of low numbers, I really wanted my guys to be a long serving chapter to make the old war gear theme fit.

 

Cheers for the input.

 

Edit: first edit is done. I'm going to seperate some of these details into a gene seed sub heading when I have moe time.

 

Cross posted while you were editing in your ideas... D'oh!

[WeaponAdept]

I'm on about 3/4 of recruits dying receiving the very first implantation of the seed. Not even making it into training.

That would increase the mortality rate to mean an even lower number of actual initiates making it to the black carapace.

 

Test subject chapter surviving when not meant too sounds good. Would the ad mech 'waste' good tech on a chapter they were trying to kill for fun?

[Leonaides]

Not necessarily for fun, but an opportunity presented itself and in true mad-scientist style they went with it.

 

Heck - perhaps they still are 'testing' things on your marines. All those nice shiny toys couldnt be laced with some sort of toxin could they? Those fancy Power Armour air scrubbers to allow your marines to stay in their sealed environment suits longer couldnt have another purpose could they? The new boot magnets to allow them to clamp onto starship hulls might have a particular magneitc radiation signiature which causes a specific mutation in a particular geneseed organ slowly over time... Not enough for your medics to ever pin it down and when they discuss their findings with the ever-so-helpful Ad Mech Biologis next door it just doesnt make sense.........

Equally - while they are still alive they still might as well serve a purpose so maybe the Ad mech are just beefing them up with equipment enough to keep them functioning as a chapter while they also serve as a test-bed.

[WeaponAdept]

Some lovely ideas. A couple that fit in very well with another IA.

 

I never really thought of them as mad scientists, ha ha. That's going to be a tough image to forget!

 

Maybe it's the other way? Maybe they're trying to fix the chapter so no one (inquisition?) discovers their dodgy gene seed corrupting warp-virus?

Hmmm, can the inquisition go after ad mech?

 

Thanks again.

[Leonaides]

Well, if I recall the whole 'how to kill marines' thing is an Inquisition/Ad Mech/HLoT conundrum because how do you deal with 1000 of the greatest killing machines ever created and armed by yourself going rogue or doing things you dont like... You cant always rely on other marine chapters to deal with it (in case the marines you have a problem with are still true to the Emperor as judged by the other marines, and the IG/Navy might really have no hope). Probably kicked off at som epoint after the HH, but then redoubled when 3 chapters attacekd earth because they didnt like Vandire - the fact he was mad bad and dangerous to know doesnt necessarily matter - they still took down the Head of the Administratum/Ecclesiarchy, which will make every holder of those positions nervous.

 

I can see the Inquisition getting pissed at the Ad Mech nearly letting the secret out (if Marines ever got to know about the program there would be another attack on Terra i believe), but not necessarily about the existance of this particular weapon.