Shadow Hawks RG Successor

[Lord Marshal Ragnrok]

I am going to do a Raven Guard successor chapter but i need help with ideas. i really did not take an interest in the Raven Guard until i started reading Deliverance Lost so iv been trying to read up on them. here is the very short list of ideas i have so far:

Shadow Hawks

 

 

Founding WIP

The Shadow Hawks are a well equiped fleet based chapter created in the 2nd Founding from Raven Guard gene stock. The exact reasons for their founding are sealed, but their over-vigilance in hunting down the traitor legions suggests (which means it is the reason) they were created to bring justice to the traitors.  They are known to frequently serve with AdMech Explorator fleets in search of RG research data and chaos activity.  This relationship has benefit the chapter by providing their excellent war material, a rarity among RG successors.

 

Since the introduction of the Primaris Marines, the chapter is being slowly transformed in an all Vanguard Marine force with a high emphasis on Vanguard Eliminator squads.

Geneseed WIP

i know that most the geneseed for the RG and their successors comes from Terra so the recruitment process would be slow. maybe they have taken time to recruit and grow in strength. growing to numbers larger than most chapters, but also operating in small units for most of their history, until now.

Hatred of the Night Lords[/skullheaderhalf]
The Shadow Hawks have a particular hatred of the Night Lords due to the Massacre at Istvaan V. Not only was their parent chapter nearly wiped out, but Konrad Curze nearly killed Corax. Additionally a large force of Shadow Hawks was ambushed and the slain (particularly the company Chaplain) were defiled by a Night Lords warband. These Night Lors then put the mangled bodies on display for the chapter to see. This event would become know as The Murder of Crows and combined with events of the heresy, has earned the Night Lords the eternal hatred of the chapter.

Apothecaries & Legacy Research[/skullheaderhalf]
The Shadow Hawks maintain a higher number of apothecaries than most chapters for two reasons. The geneseed of the RG, their parent chapter, and thus their own, is unstable and because of their gene research. The chapter actively researches the Raptors experiments of Corax based what little data remains from the RG and those apothecaries in their founding ranks who worked on the project.

Beliefs

They believe themselves and other successors of the RG to still be part of the legion/linage of Corax. Shadow Hawks believe the chapter master is a more honorary position in Corax's absence. They await his return, when he will unite the legion. As such, they have a great reverence for their Primarch.

[skullheaderhalf=000000]Chapter Relics WIP

relic relating to chapter master - Black Crown - literally a crown worn by the chapter master at ceremonies. it was created at their founding and services a symbol of the chapter master's place as a sort of regent of the chapter until Corax's return, until the remaking of the legion. RG stealth tech

[skullheaderhalf=000000]Fleet WIP

 

Battle Barges - Eternal Wrath, Fury of Deliverance

Strike Cruisers - Raptora, Halycon, Emperor's Talon, Retribution's Claw

ship of some class named Huntsman, Hawkspur?

 

Marine Images

 

will be more similar to Raven Guard post Massacre

Edited April 17, 2020 by The Lord Marshal

[soddinnutter]

If they are well equiped then chances are they have either performed some great help to the Adeptus Mechanicus at some point in the past or are currently providing them a service. Suggestions are that they could have reclaimed one of their old Ark ships from the deep, provide astartes bodyguards for explorator fleets to bolster the skitarii ranks, found a forgotten vault full of Legio Cybernetica in standby mode or provide them with vast amounts of mineral wealth.

 

The Black Crown? What is it?

 

Maybe the Huntsman is just the oldest ship they have. The last one from the days of the Founding. A small unassuming ship that is very good at sneaking and ambush.

[Lord Marshal Ragnrok]

If they are well equiped then chances are they have either performed some great help to the Adeptus Mechanicus at some point in the past or are currently providing them a service. Suggestions are that they could have reclaimed one of their old Ark ships from the deep, provide astartes bodyguards for explorator fleets to bolster the skitarii ranks, found a forgotten vault full of Legio Cybernetica in standby mode or provide them with vast amounts of mineral wealth.

 

The Black Crown? What is it?

 

Maybe the Huntsman is just the oldest ship they have. The last one from the days of the Founding. A small unassuming ship that is very good at sneaking and ambush.

 

first, thanks for the help! i want as many raven guard ppl to respond as possible because, as i said, im kinda a noob when it comes to raven guard.

 

i will definitely brainstorm something appropriate and, more importantly, believable in terms of a service to the AdMech.  thanks for the suggestions to get my brain going!

 

im thinking the black crown is literally a crown worn by the chapter master at ceremonies. it was created at their founding and services a symbol of the chapter master's place as a sort of regent of the chapter until Corax's return, until the remaking of the legion.

 

yea i like thinking up chapter fleet dispositions and names.  i figured the Huntsman would be like a fast frigate sorta idk.

Edited June 22, 2013 by The Lord Marshal

[Wulfebane]

The almighty questions.. Why were they founded? What is their name? Insignia?

 

Also, how much of the primogenitor remains? Given the mutation of their geneseed (and is it still in short supply? I forget), were they even permitted to use RG geneseed or were they created using another chapter's, but the core command structure stems from RG veterans that branched off (as is often the case with circumspect geneseed successors).

 

Will you be granting them those RG-only stealth shields for their ships in your fluff? I wouldn't make a ship titled the "Huntsman" a fast frigate personally. It emotes a more steadfast, patient tracker that doesn't have to race to meet his prey. Maybe it's a highly modified cruiser decked out in advanced sensor arrays.

[Lord Marshal Ragnrok]

The almighty questions.. Why were they founded? What is their name? Insignia?

 

Also, how much of the primogenitor remains? Given the mutation of their geneseed (and is it still in short supply? I forget), were they even permitted to use RG geneseed or were they created using another chapter's, but the core command structure stems from RG veterans that branched off (as is often the case with circumspect geneseed successors).

 

Will you be granting them those RG-only stealth shields for their ships in your fluff? I wouldn't make a ship titled the "Huntsman" a fast frigate personally. It emotes a more steadfast, patient tracker that doesn't have to race to meet his prey. Maybe it's a highly modified cruiser decked out in advanced sensor arrays.

 

im still very much in the brainstorming stage here. im thinking that the exact reasons for their founding are sealed, but their over-vigilance in hunting down the traitor legions suggests (which means it is the reason) they were created for that purpose.  i know i want them to have a particular hatred for the Night Lords.  as for name and insignia im still thinking.

 

i know that most the geneseed for the RG and their successors comes from Terra so the recruitment process would be slow.  im thinking they an early founding so as to limit the mutations as much as possible.  im also thinking that they actively research the raptors experiments based on RG data and the presence of apoths who worked on it in their founding ranks.

 

Huntsman - ill think about it

 

Thanks for the help!

[soddinnutter]

If they see themselves as the heirs to Corax then that would make relations with their sibling chapters strained. It would also make them as proud as angels, pitiless, relentless and without and utterly without mercy. Not to say they would be cruel, just cold.

 

Or at least thats what image i get when their leader believes himself heir to such a legacy.

 

Also what is the origin of the Black Crown?

[Lord Marshal Ragnrok]

to clarify, they see themselves not as heirs over the RG, but rather as part of the bigger organization that is the legion of Corax.  each chapter master of the successor chapters essentially leading only until he returns to lead them all.

 

origin of black crown - not sure exactly, but it is part of their founding. i have to think more

[Lord Marshal Ragnrok]

ok so i updated the first post to reflect summarized ideas thus far

Edited June 26, 2013 by The Lord Marshal

[nestor73]

I like what you're planning. You could refer this to the sons of corax site, http://sonsofcorax.freeforums.org/ you'll get plenty of help there I imagine. If you're going to have them, your chapter, with lots of Apothecaries, you might well want to use the Blood Angels Codex for your army list, I know others have done it. This would let you access a command squad with jump packs and be able to field 4 apothecaries/sanguinary priests and assault squads as troops. The only down side with that, in my opinion, is that scouts in the BAngels codex are pretty duff. You could call them Blood Ravens....no, wait, someone's already thought of that one  joking aside, do you have an initial army list you'd like to start with?

[Lord Marshal Ragnrok]

thanks for the site reference! actually its just DIY fluff writing. i dont actually play any table top. dont have the time or the patience haha

[nestor73]

Ah, I see. Still, I'd be interested to hear what you come up with. Will you be posting up your "creation" here or in a different part of the site?

[Lord Marshal Ragnrok]

i will probs put it in another thread in this forum and put the link here for ya

[soddinnutter]

If they see themselves, and all Raven Guard chapters, as just waiting for the opportunity to rebuild the Legion when the King of Crows returns then they might not be too adherent about the whole division of authority that the Codex represents. They could really resent Gulliman, and by extension his progeny, for the crippling of the Legions and be a little exasperated with their sibling chapters for embracing this sin of dependency on others.

 

To this end they could have a distinctly over-sized navy. For information gathering, and providing protection to Imperial supply convoys and such during crusades and other big protracted campaigns. Loaned to other authorities often but emphatically still very much their own.

 

An extremely large and well trained and equipped PDF. Conscription between the ages of 14 and 24 might be compulsory for their home-world if full citizenship ever wants to be had. Refusal to join the military when its time may result in arrest and deployment in the Penal Legion, because the Adeptus Arbiters is hilarious like that. On paper they are there to loan out to the Imperial Guard with a few choice regiments working closely with the chapter but only heeding the chapters advice and not officially taking orders.

 

Often these gatherings of chapter assets might be referred to by archaic names like "Expeditionary Forces" and "Imperial Army" and maybe they have a bunch of serfs tending the archives called "Remembrancers". But you will never see any of this on official documentation.

 

They are pushing their luck as far as it can go.

 

Were they not so friendly with the Mechanicus and a few other institutions they would have been declared excommunicate a very long time ago.

 

Some say that maybe they are preparing for the eventuality of the Imperium dying. If that day comes they will have a firm enough foundation to carve out a little Empire of their very own. Until then they have their orders.

[Lord Marshal Ragnrok]

overall, i like most of your ideas though i will probs tone down things a bit.  i def figured they would not adhere to the codex very well.  i love having big navies!  so you can expect that.  as for the pdf/imp guard ideas - i didnt really think about that at all, but i like it.  specifically the idea of have a close working connection and loyality with the guard regs from their recruitment worlds.

 

 

"They are pushing their luck as far as it can go."  that seems to be a tread with my DIYs...... 

[Lord Marshal Ragnrok]

need an opinion: Color Scheme 1, 2 or 3?

 

1       http://the-lord-marshal.deviantart.com/art/RG-suc-3-400530767?ga_submit_new=10%253A1379286111

 

2       http://the-lord-marshal.deviantart.com/art/RG-suc-2-400527678?q=gallery%3AThe-Lord-Marshal%2F45622694&qo=0

 

3       http://the-lord-marshal.deviantart.com/art/RG-suc-1-400527520?q=gallery%3AThe-Lord-Marshal%2F45622694&qo=1

[Lord Marshal Ragnrok]

last chance for anyone to vote on the above is today

 

EDIT - Decision Made

Edited September 23, 2013 by The Lord Marshal

[Lord Marshal Ragnrok]

color scheme decided upon and uploaded.

[Lord Marshal Ragnrok]

updated images!!!

[Veteran Sergeant]

If they are 2nd Founding, the reason for their Founding is "We had too many guys, and the Codex made us split into bunches of around 1,000." No need, nor any room for mystery. No Chapters were "founded" (in the traditional sense) during the Second Founding. The first batch of new Chapters was the 3rd.

[Prefect Apollyon]

Above Chapter strength stood out like a sore thumb to me. How will you justify this?

 

EDIT: I also thought the whole Raptors project was very hush-hush? May be wrong there.

Edited January 9, 2014 by Prefect Apollyon

[Lord Marshal Ragnrok]

If they are 2nd Founding, the reason for their Founding is "We had too many guys, and the Codex made us split into bunches of around 1,000." No need, nor any room for mystery. No Chapters were "founded" (in the traditional sense) during the Second Founding. The first batch of new Chapters was the 3rd.

 

thats true, but i was trying to give them a more specific purpose.

 

Above Chapter strength stood out like a sore thumb to me. How will you justify this?

 

EDIT: I also thought the whole Raptors project was very hush-hush? May be wrong there.

 

the chapter strength and geneseed is very much just ideas right now.  see i would like to make them larger than the average RG successor yet still connected to the Raptor project.  but i need to balance them somehow, im thinking with geneseed or recruitment process, but i dont know how.  also, the Raptor project was hush hush throughout the Imperium, but not the RG itself.  RG marines knew about the new Raptors, access to the project however, was limited.  So, if the Shadow Hawks had founders who had worked on the project, then it possible that chapter can be connected to it.

 

The balancing of the chapter is what i really need help with right now.  Once i have that down i can develop things more, but im stuck right now. All help appreciated!

Edited January 9, 2014 by The Lord Marshal

[Prefect Apollyon]

In that case, having them at full Chapter strength would make them larger than a standard RG/Successor; they are always understrength due to the genetic issues.

 

The Marines from the Raptors project were mini-Primarchs, whos ultimate fate is currently unknown I believe (not sure, I'm not up to date in the series), so a future book could have them all killed off, destroying the premise of your Chapter.

 

Of course you can imply it, such as saying the recruits take to the Gene-Seed very quickly, and are all brilliant quality Marines, but this will be branded as Mary Sue-ish. Got to be careful.

Edited January 10, 2014 by Prefect Apollyon

[Lord Marshal Ragnrok]

In that case, having them at full Chapter strength would make them larger than a standard RG/Successor; they are always understrength due to the genetic issues.

 

The Marines from the Raptors project were mini-Primarchs, whos ultimate fate is currently unknown I believe (not sure, I'm not up to date in the series), so a future book could have them all killed off, destroying the premise of your Chapter.

 

Of course you can imply it, such as saying the recruits take to the Gene-Seed very quickly, and are all brilliant quality Marines, but this will be branded as Mary Sue-ish. Got to be careful.

 

touche i guess that is true....

 

their fate is that Corax personally gives each of them the Emp's peace.  only the first batch of Raptors remained untainted. their fate is still unknown. however, i was toying with the idea of officers and apoths who worked on the project being in the chapter's founding ranks, not Raptors themselves.  at least until a follow up to Deliverance Lost is released.