New BA successor WIP

[Lord Marshal Ragnrok]

Blood Angels Successor

This chapter WIP is very much in the development stage. founding and history to come next. suggestions welcome!

 

Chapter: Im brainstorming a name right now

 

 

"For Sanguinius! For the Emperor!"

 

Gene-Seed Flaws

Like its parent chapter, The ? are cursed with the Black Rage and Red Thirst.  However, they are affected slightly differently then other chapters of Sanguinius's bloodline.  These flaws have a more constant effect on the battle brothers than usual.  Every marine is touched by the Black Rage from shortly after their transformation into an astartes and it never subsides.  Similarly, the images of death invoked by the Red Thirst heightens the effect of the Rage.  These effects would have driven the chapter to extinction if the Sanguinary Priests and Chaplains had not developed the Sanguinor's Enumerations, a series of conceptual prayers/iterations that help the brothers of the chapter focus and control their anger and rage.  These Enumerations have allowed the chapter to survive by restraining the worst effects of the Rage and Thirst and instead channeling it into their battle fury.  As a result, the chapter has become known for its marine's fury, an unstoppable force of righteous rage that is formidable even by astartes standards.  Quiet simply, the chapter would not survive without the Enumerations, nor would it be as effective in battle.

 

Chapter Beliefs

 

Like the Blood Angels, they strongly believe that things can be changed for the better.  Also like the Blood Angels and Sanguinius himself, they strive for perfection in war, art, and discipline.  They believe that as the lasting gifts of Sanguinius, as his sons, they must carry his beliefs and strive to be ever closer to him.  Their shared beliefs, fight against the flaws and conviction in humanity has allowed them to develop a strong bond with their fellow Sons of Sanguinius.

 

Combat Doctrine (Needs improvement)

All Sons of Sanguinius have a natural tendency toward aggressive assualt based warfare, in which they excel.  This even more true in The ? Chapter, for the constant effects of the curses on their marines develops extreme battle fury in their battle brothers.  This has led to a force that almost always takes an opportunity for assualt warfare.  The chapter is known for these extremely ferocious assualts and for leaving few enemies alive.  Other Imperial forces can do little more than support the unstoppable fury of The ?.

 

Weapons: http://images1.wikia.nocookie.net/__cb20111110152646/warhammer40k/images/6/68/BloodAngelsWargear.jpg

 

Chapter Organization

The chapter uses the Codex teachings to a limited degree.  Companies' organization and command structure are per Codex.  The chapter maintains 8 battle companies with 3 Reserve Companies, the !st Company and a separate Recon and Training Unit.  The 1st Company is made up of the chapter veterans, mostly assualt troops.  The first 4 Battle Companies follow Codex organization (6 tactical, 2 assualt and 2 devastator squads), and the last 4 have 4 assualt, 2 tactical and 2 devastator squads.  The Reserve Companies are composed of squads with the same designation (one company of tactical, one of assualt and one of devastators).  Each Company also maintains an Honor Guard unit for the Captain which is roughly the size of a squad and does not follow the Codex.  The chapter maintains 3 organizations that do not follow Codex, the Sanguinary Priests, the Sanguinary Guard, and the Death Company.

 

Unit Insignia - The chapter uses a combination of Codex insignia and non-Codex insignia.  Squad markings are painted on the right shoulder and right knee in the color of their company.  Honor Guards and Captains have their company number painted in the company color on their right knee instead.  Squad designation shape markings are Codex.  Differences in helmet color usually designate veterans, sergeants, Honor Guard, death company or officers.  Veterans and Honor Guards wear golden colored helmets, non-1st Company sergeants often wear helmets painted in the secondary chapter color (bleached bone), death company helmets are always colored black and officers may wear a variety of color combinations on their helmets.

 

Non-1st Company Sergeant

 

 

Veterans and Honor Guard

 

Terminator

 

 

Company Honor Guard

Each Company maintains an elite Honor Guard that fights beside the Captain and is composed of hand picked marines of the Company.  These veteran marines are organized into unit roughly the size of a squad and have access to the company armory.  This unit also consists of a veteran sergeant, company standard bearer, company champion and sanguinary priest.  They act both as bodyguards and advisors to the Captain and as inspiration for the company.

 

Sanguinary Guard

Like all chapters descended from The Angel, they maintain a Sanguinary Guard consisting of the greatest warriors of the chapter.  They alone carry the chapter manner into battle and guard the great standard and their chapter master.  In charge into battle in the traditional armor and weapons of their order and inspire all Sons of Sanguinius to fight ever harder.

 

Sanguinary Priesthood

Also like all chapters sired by the Blood Angels, they maintain a Sanguinary Priesthood which performs the duties of normal apothecaries as well as their duties specific to Sons of The Angel.  Alongside the Chaplains, they watch over their brothers for the gene curses and tend to those consumed by them.  The early Sanguinary Priests of the chapter worked with the Chaplaincy to find a way to save their chapter from extinction.  Together they developed the Sanguinary Enumerations that help contain the curse and are used by every battle brother to this day.

 

Death Company

Like all successors of the Blood Angels, The ? maintain a Death Company.  It consists of those brothers who could not hold back the curses with the Enumerations, for the flaws had progressed too far.  It is led by the chaplains of the chapter.

 

 

 

Known Members: Still WIP

 

Augustin Maximus - Chapter Master

Torvangelo - High Chaplain and Watcher of the Curses

Justinian - Reclusiarch and Vanguard of the Enumerations

Belisarius - Warden of the Lost and Master of the Death Company

 

Marine Images

3rd Company, 3rd Squad Tactical Marine

3rd Company, 3rd Squad Sergeant

7th Company, 7th Squad Assualt Marine

 7th Company, 7th Squad Assualt Marine with jump pack

10th Company, 8th Squad Devastator Sergeant

1st Company Veteran

3rd Company Honor Guard

Captain of the 5th Company

 

 

[Lord Marshal Ragnrok]

New Images!

[legoss]

I like those, look pretty striking.

[Lord Marshal Ragnrok]

thank you sir!

[SRSFACE]

Looks like Blood Ravens from Dawn of War.

 

Which gets a thumbs up in my book.

[Lord Marshal Ragnrok]

hopefully they look slightly different. but i do love the Blood Ravens!

[Quozzo]

Don't Worry, the Blood Ravens have white(-ish) pauldrons, it looks like only your veterans have a single white pauldron.

 

I would also remove the sections about the Honour Guard, Sanguinary Guard, Sanguinary Priests and Death Company as they are all standard in Blood Angels successors and don't deviate in any way. In fact I would mention the Death Company in your opening paragraph as the assumption I got was that there was no Death Company as you mention the chaplains creating the Enumerations. "These Enumerations have allowed the chapter to survive by restraining the worst effects of the Rage and Thirst and instead channeling it into their battle fury." The worst effects of the Black Rage is succumbing to it, so I assumed there was no DC.

 

Also a little nit pick but I don't like the word "Enumeration", at least not in the context your suggesting. It is used to describe lists and things that need a number, not litanies, chants, rites or whatever the chaplains have concocted.

 

All in all, you seem to be comparing your chapter to the Blood Angels in every section, I know about the Blood Angels, everyone does, I want to Know about your chapter. Listing the similarities between them doesn't define the character of a chapter.

[JeffTibbetts]

So, questions and a comment: 

 

Maybe I missed it being stated explicitly, but does the fact that all the marines are hit with the Rage mean that it's less intense overall? You said they learn to control it through discipline but obviously other successors can't do that so it must be constant, but far less intense. Does that mean they don't have to use the special rules for the Death Company and whatnot? Or does the Thirst still cause some of them to lose it? 

 

I love that the BA have this sort of brooding artist image, and it ties in well with their curse that they lose it and become bestial. It suggests an intriguing struggle. The way you explained the Rage working with your dudes makes me think they are never able to control their biz well enough to pull off the artsiness. I like the idea of their 'refinement' being stunted and in decline compared to other BA successors. Maybe they're even really butthurt and defensive about the fact that they are more "base" then other BA successors. You know? It sounds like that mental discipline requires a lot of time that can't be spent perfecting the arts of war or fine arts. Maybe they're losing it, kind of like the Flesh Tearers and whatnot. 

[Heru]

The Black Rage is when a marine goes nuts and starts thinking he is Sanguinius fighting his last fight. The Red Thirst is the thing that is "always on".

[JeffTibbetts]

Thanks for clearing that up. I guess that means they really shouldn't have a Death Company, the way I understand it.

[exetus]

The big thing is that no successor DOESN'T have Marines that fall to the Black Rage.  The Lamenters were largely successful in avoiding it for millennia due to the tampering with their geneseed and trading the Black Rage for extremely :cussty luck, but even they have succumbed in recent years, almost making up for lost time.

[Lord Marshal Ragnrok]

every other official IA of a BA successor chapter has small sections on these specialist formations even though one can assume they have them.  thus it is necessary to have these sections.

 

Enumerations will not change. it is an adaptation of a similar idea i came across in A Thousand Sons. The Thousand Sons legion had something call Enumerations that helped them to shield their minds from the warp and control their abilities.  i have adapted it for my chapter, as it seemed like an idea that would work for helping curb the flaws.

 

exetus is right. it is inevitable that some brothers to fall to the Black Rage. hence why my chapter has a DC, just a slightly smaller one.  but in a sense, because the chapter is constantly effected to some degree by the Rage, you could think of the chapter almost as being a chapter sized DC and the actual DC being more of a super DC.  like, gone and really fricking gone.  but since it seems less clear, i will add clarity to the post.

[exetus]

Another possible way to go about it is how your Chapter is organized.  In my Blood Angels successors, for instance, they attempted similar methods to the Lamenters and were thought successful until an event triggered the simultaneous loss of an entire Company.  The way the Chapter treats it now is that they have minders with that Company and it is ALWAYS on some extended combat mission away from the eyes of the Imperium.  New Marines that fall to the Black Rage are instantly put into stasis and shipped off to wherever "the Lost Company of Captain Alastor" is and introduced into the ranks of a full Death Company where they are thrown into the most dire of fights.