Making Sisters Cool

[Onisuzume]

Oh, that is what I want. I want Relic to make a Space Marine-style video game with a lone Sister of Battle fighting across a death world. With a story by A. D-B. And a sound track by Skrillex.

While I'm wish-listing, let's make this game free-to-play.

Skrillex... really now?

That'd better be the name of whoever did the Chaos Gate soundtrack.

Otherwise I'd at the least suggest Kajiura Yuki instead. Plenty of ominous faux-latin chanting in her repertoire.

Or even

.

But yeah, the Sisters should get another computer game appearance.

Really, the only place a lack of women really stands out to me is in the IG. Players have been begging for that for ages, and GW doesnt seem to think theyre up to the task for some reason.

Mixed regiments are, apparantly, quite rare - for the obvious reasons.

And I think that GW could do it if they really wanted to - which they don't.

if there are 3-400 Sisters per marine then there are between 94 and 124 Space Marines. I don't know the full number of all the Space Marines but I'm pretty sure there are more than 10 full squads of them.

94-124 marines? I call that a company.

Seems my memory was a little faulty - that particular piece of fluff implies that it's only the Orders Militant represented at that ceremony. Still, five hundred a year is ridiculously small.

Well, there's probably some variation in number from year to year...

But I doubt we'd be seeing leaps and bounds by going as low as 500 and as high as 5000.

They cant shoot laserbeams from their eyes?

I doubt that novicia gets such high-end bionics.

[*Furyou Miko]

Dark Heresy likes to paint Faith as space magic for some reason. Literal magic, with fireballs and illusions and stuff. I strenuously disagree with this interpretation.

 

Also, yay, a thread about Sisters and music and I wasn't the first one to bring up Kajiura! (Seriously, though, Kajiura captures the Sisterhood perfectly, if unintentionally. Salva Nos is just... perfect).

[Bishoujo]

My (realistic) hope is that when Forge World is done with the Horus Heresy, they do a book or two on the Age of Apostasy.  I can't see them doing releases on the scale of Horus Heresy, but even a single Imperial Armor book with a handful of Daughters/Brides of the Emperor models could help generate some buzz for the Adepta Sororitas.

 

My (unrealistic) hope is for a new physical codex accompanied by new units and models - including several new multi-part plastic kits.

[WarriorFish]

It would be very cool and right up FW's street as a smaller force/army that would have fancy models, but it is very hard to imagine them not doing HH models these days Maybe they'll stop when the book series is complete?

[*Furyou Miko]

I dream of an Age of Apostasy series as well.

 

>< I even had half a chapter of the novel written before I realised they would never accept it as a cold submission.

[oreaper84]

It would be very cool and right up FW's street as a smaller force/army that would have fancy models, but it is very hard to imagine them not doing HH models these days Maybe they'll stop when the book series is complete?

Which will never happen it takes 2-3 books to cover 6 months in the Heresy. Reading will be replaced by direct cranial downlaod by the time the get to Terra

[Knight of the Raven]

Forge World supposedly said there would be only three trilogies.

Of course, they had also said they would never do the Horus Heresy.

That said, even if GW loves space marines so much I could make crass jokes about it, and even with the large scope of the 30,000 setting, I suspect the FW sculptors will get sick of space marines eventually.

 

And again, sisters are already cool. They just need attention. I'll take monopose plastic models ala (early) Lord of the Rings at this point.

[BassWave]

Only reason sisters aren't popular is because GW hasn't tried hard at all to promote them. If they got the dark eldar treatment, there would be an explosion of new sisters players.

 

As far as sexiness goes, I'd say make them less sexy. These people are fanatical soldiers, the only makeup they should be wearing is war paint to put the fear of the Emperor back into heretics. Sisters should be crushing skulls and melting mutants, not worrying about if they are pretty or not.

 

Also, in my opinion, they should lose the boob hugging armor for something more practical. I don't see the cod pieces of space marines being blown out of proportion. I understand that sex sells, but leave that to the Xenos and daemons.

[Andurin Marvak]

What kind of identity should the Adepta Sororitas have?

 

I've always seen them as Angels of mercy to the Emperor's servants, and absolute hell unleashed to everyone else. Out of combat, they should be inspiring and encouraging, as a sudden dash of femininity and softness in the middle of the storms of war. They should be the Daughters of the Emperor in every way, and therefore remind people what it means to have Faith. In battle, they should scare the bejeebus out of their enemies almost as badly as Astartes, and be confusing the enemy by doing things even Astartes can't do, like come back from the dead, etc.

  

Do the Sisters need a change of theme to be appealing?

 

Not at all. They're great the way they are.

 

Should the Sisters of Battle be more or less sexualised?

 

I'd just settle for better hair and faces than we currently have, with more scarring to show you what they do for a living. And more of a sackcloth and ashes look for the Repentia as opposed to a bunch of chicks barely covered by parchment.

 

What should GW focus on when marketing the Adepta Sororitas?

Having them do things aside from getting killed or corrupted. Because those are most of the references they have in the current material.

What one addition to any aspect of the hobby would help raise the Sister’s profile?

 

GW talking about them as more than armor paint.

 

What one change to any aspect of the hobby would help raise the Sister’s profile?

 

The availability of plastic models and a freaking decent codex.

[*Furyou Miko]

 Basswave, take a look at the Scouts some time. Apparently, Marines are very well hung indeed... enough to make me feel awkward painting them.

[Naminé]

Basswave, take a look at the Scouts some time. Apparently, Marines are very well hung indeed... enough to make me feel awkward painting them.

That's where they store their camo cloaks when not using them.

[graysparrow]

 

Basswave, take a look at the Scouts some time. Apparently, Marines are very well hung indeed... enough to make me feel awkward painting them.

That's where they store their camo cloaks when not using them.

 

Ouch!  No wonder Scout sergeant Telion doesn't want to be a full battle brother!  He'd lose his 'camo cloak' !!

[Andurin Marvak]

Uh...I just checked the scouts. I don't get it. They look normal to me.

[RolandTHTG]

Uh...I just checked the scouts. I don't get it. They look normal to me.

You lucky bastard....

 

http://www.games-workshop.com/en-US/Space-Marine-Scouts

[Deus Imperator Vult]

I've just staggered in from work (it's 5 am here) and haven't read through all of the pervious comments so apologies if I'm going over old ground.

To my mind all they need is more attention. More books, more fluff victories, hell more named characters. You mention any (fleshed out) space marine chapter and even if I'm not a huge fan or upto speed with the lore I can think of some of their champions/leaders. The only sister I know by name is Miriya who, as far as I know, doesn't have her own model or section in the codex.

Give us a cannoness who stood her ground against Khârn and didn't end up a martyr. Or a Celestian who was captured by the Tau but fought her way out with sheer tenacity and faith. (You know when you type something random and it gives you a brilliant idea for a fanfic?) Give them a place in the lore their own fine cast model and special rules.

To me atleast the sisters are already cool. They just need to step from the shadows, blow the dust from their armour ,and rack up some kills. A trilogy of Soroitas Battles novels please

[*Furyou Miko]

Ephrael Stern fought in the pits of Commoragh for a while, until she broke out because someone gave her a kick up the backside and reminded her she had a job to do.

 

But yeah, a Sisters heroine who isn't a martyr or a special snowflake would be nice.

[Deus Imperator Vult]

Ephrael Stern fought in the pits of Commoragh for a while, until she broke out because someone gave her a kick up the backside and reminded her she had a job to do.

 

But yeah, a Sisters heroine who isn't a martyr or a special snowflake would be nice.

Shall we just bombard GW with fan fiction until they have to give one of us a job? :p

 

Do you think it would help if the silent sisters got more of a showing in the Heresy? I mean if I was a gamer and was unsure which Chaos army to pick it would be World Eaters just because of Butchers Nails and Betrayer. I know they got a little page time in Eisenstein and Prospero and I really enjoyed their story in Tales of Heresy but overall that's still not alot and we know the Heresy books have an almost garunteed readership.

[Onisuzume]

Uh...I just checked the scouts. I don't get it. They look normal to me.

You lucky bastard....

http://www.games-workshop.com/en-US/Space-Marine-Scouts

Makes for a bigger target to hit, imo.

[Knight of the Raven]

More attention to sisters?

 

Sister Biggusrackus from the Order of Steel Ovaries was finishing driving Biel-Tan's Avatar of Khaine into a wall made of skulls using Iyanden's Avatar as a hammer when unholy light exploded upon the scene. A figure of dark majesty descended from heavens that wept blood.

 

"No," she screamed in abject terror, "the Obsidian Princess!"

 

"Who?" asked sister Clueless.

 

"When Saint Dominica died, her shame and rage at Vandire being prettier than her led her to turn into Tzeentch's most powerful daemon princess!" replied sister superior Exposition. "We're all going to die!"

 

"You should totally worship the Emperor more. Ssseriously," whispered loudly the Obsidian Princess while using second-in-command Redshirt's head as a yoyo.

 

"No!" yelled Biggusrackus. "We'll worship Him less. That's what He demands! We shall draw faith from not believing in Him!"

 

The Obsidian Princess howled in agony. "Logic! My ultimate weaknessss! NOOOOOO!"

 

Be careful what you wish for.

[BassWave]

@Raven- Way to open old wounds... *sobs*

 

In all seriousness though, that is something to worry about, considering how bad the "codex writing team" are at writing stories.

[sitnam]

Just thought I'd throw in my few cents into this conversation.
 
Question 1: What kind of identity should the Adepta Sororitas have?
 
They already have a well defined identity: They are the Emperors justice. They defend his faithful and destroy the corrupt. Their major role is IMO is quelling rebellions on his worlds, hunting down cults, witches, apostates, and false prophets. But their roles can go beyond that: defending the Ecclesiastical worlds from outside threats, searching for lost relics, leading Wars of Faith to liberate worlds. Their major theme is as the religous police force of the Imperium, with close range firepower and urban warfare being predominant, but they have room for other missions.
 

Question 2:  Do the Sisters need a change of theme to be appealing?
 
 No. They just need their theme expanded and given more showtime. Zealous female warriors in power armor wielding purifying the unclean with bolter and flamer is frikkin cool. 

Question 3:  Should the Sisters of Battle be more or less sexualised?

 

I think they are perfect where they are currently at. While the battle corset look isn't entirely functional, this is a universe where tanks have more ornamentation then Catholics cathedrals. It has a nice aesthetic imo and isn't overtly sexual but still remains feminine. The Repentia sculpts are a bit more sexualized, but the Repentia artwork doesn't show that at all. In the artwork they look like psychotic blood thirsty killers wielding giant chainswords. The sculpts need a rework (in plastic!), but not the overall theme.

Question 4:  What should GW focus on when marketing the Adepta Sororitas?

 

As others have said, they should start by marketing them at all. Right now they are a very niche army that few really pay attention to. Let James Swallow right more novels, let Forgeworld use them in one of their Imperial Armor books, get them in more video games, etc. 

Question 5:  What one addition to any aspect of the hobby would help raise the Sister’s profile?

 

I like the idea of more Ecclesiastacy. Keep Sororitas as the core, but in addition vary the army a bit more with other forces from the Imperial Church. However, I would not bring in some sort of Frateris Militia unit similar to Chaos Cultists. I mean you can have them in the army,  but keep Battle Sisters as the major force behind the Imperial Church

 

Question 6: What one change to any aspect of the hobby would help raise the Sister’s profile?

 

PLASTICS

[Wade Garrett]

Sister Biggusrackus from the Order of Steel Ovaries was finishing driving Biel-Tan's Avatar of Khaine into a wall made of skulls using Iyanden's Avatar as a hammer when unholy light exploded upon the scene. A figure of dark majesty descended from heavens that wept blood.

 

"No," she screamed in abject terror, "the Obsidian Princess!"

 

"Who?" asked sister Clueless.

 

"When Saint Dominica died, her shame and rage at Vandire being prettier than her led her to turn into Tzeentch's most powerful daemon princess!" replied sister superior Exposition. "We're all going to die!"

 

"You should totally worship the Emperor more. Ssseriously," whispered loudly the Obsidian Princess while using second-in-command Redshirt's head as a yoyo.

 

"No!" yelled Biggusrackus. "We'll worship Him less. That's what He demands! We shall draw faith from not believing in Him!"

 

The Obsidian Princess howled in agony. "Logic! My ultimate weaknessss! NOOOOOO!"

 

Knight of the Raven confirmed to be on the Games Workshop design staff.

[Sanguine_Knight]

Well I was just browsing this forum and came upon this thread.

I would really like to start a SoB army but never have simply because of price, availability and no plastic. The codex thing doesn't bother me as much because barring C:SM any codex is liable to be retconned, overhauled, forgotten or simply flushed down the toilet at any time and I have just learned to live with it. I could be wrong but I think I've also noticed a lack of any kind of vehicle with anti armour capabilities. That's kind of a turn off as well.

I think they are cool though. The whole idea of a militarized force of all female zealots who will unquestioningly do the bidding of an all powerful and often times capricious, religious governing body needs to be explored more. I mean if some Cardinal doesn't like you, he can call you a heretic and then you're dead regardless of your level of faith. Just think if he doesn't like your city or your planet. Enter the Sisters.

Other than the Repentia, wh0 could be toned down a bit, I don't find their look overly sexual. There is always something sexy about a woman you can't have. But one that will gut you with a chainsword or put a bolt round through your head if you so much as look at her the wrong way? That might be even more sexy.

Just my two cents

SK

[Naminé]

Well I was just browsing this forum and came upon this thread.

I would really like to start a SoB army but never have simply because of price, availability and no plastic. The codex thing doesn't bother me as much because barring C:SM any codex is liable to be retconned, overhauled, forgotten or simply flushed down the toilet at any time and I have just learned to live with it. I could be wrong but I think I've also noticed a lack of any kind of vehicle with anti armour capabilities. That's kind of a turn off as well.

I think they are cool though. The whole idea of a militarized force of all female zealots who will unquestioningly do the bidding of an all powerful and often times capricious, religious governing body needs to be explored more. I mean if some Cardinal doesn't like you, he can call you a heretic and then you're dead regardless of your level of faith. Just think if he doesn't like your city or your planet. Enter the Sisters.

Other than the Repentia, wh0 could be toned down a bit, I don't find their look overly sexual. There is always something sexy about a woman you can't have. But one that will gut you with a chainsword or put a bolt round through your head if you so much as look at her the wrong way? That might be even more sexy.

Just my two cents

SK

Now this I think is interesting... Assuming the current state of things remains constant; is there anything that GW could alter regarding theme, aesthetic, profile, exposure etc with adepta sororitas that would spur you to start a Battle sisters force, even though the model availability and price have not changed?

PS: Our main tank-killer vehicle is the Multi-melta immolator, though the Exorcist can do well vs light armour :p

[Sume]

The guys in my area that play 40k and Fantasy.  A lot of them mention one of the Dawn of War expansions.  I don't know which one, as I don't have it.  That let you play with Sisters of Battle.  Everyone says that they where cool in that and they would play a Sisters army... expect.  Well that's the ball breaker here.  Everyone says, no plastic, direct order, a digital codex, no real presence.  Now I went and looked at some very old White Dwarf from like 10 years ago.  Around the time the Wood Elves where released.  There is a bunch of Sister and Witch hunter conversions in display.  I got the Dawn of War 2 Retribution due to seeing the "Witch Hunter" Inquisitor on the front.  I was thinking to myself woot, I can play Sisters of Battle.  Of course I was disappointed that you can't and she just takes Imperial Guard.

 

I think GW doesn't realize or understand that there is a real demand for Sisters of Battle.  If they where made plastics, or actually in a store front.  People would use them.  Buy full armies, or use them as allies.

 

I am a rarity as people are like what are those?  When I tell them Sisters of Battle, newer people are like what are those?  Of course I explain the same things you guys do.  

 

I do like that over all the army is under estimated.  People don't see it much and don't expect to see the mid range fire power that can be dished out.  I had a Space Wolf player afraid to come in and charge a unit of my Battle Sisters.  Now that I see is a moral victory.

 

Excited also, as I need to now convert Repressors, and get the rules for the Sister Flyer.  As I can use them in tournaments.  I finally won that argument about forgeworld!