Shadow Wardens WIP

[Teetengee]

Isn't recruitment often restricted or disallowed during penitence crusades? That might contribute to the dying age of elves feel.

[Olis]

It can be a perfectly legitimate stipulation, imho. A penitence crusade of 100 years is probably more than enough to add character. Question is: Why (and how) were they sent on a penitence crusade?

[Tiberius Cato]

They petitioned (if that is possible) to embark on a crusade of penitence to atone for the loss of a large portion of the chapter to the ruinous powers. They had been convinced by a possessed Librarian that the Imperium was out to destroy them and that the dark gods Khorne and Slaanesh seeked to help them throw of the shackles of the Emperor. After the schism the remaining librarians were killed, with the chapter now barring any psyker, save for the necessary ones, from being with the chapter.

They were granted the privilege of atoning for their heresy and went on a century long crusade, losing many brothers along the way. All that reamains of the now rebuilding chapter is a diminished reclusiam and apothecarion, less than half of the veteran 1st and a battle company composed of the remnants of what little their was remaining of the original companies, and an armoury with little in the way of special weaponry and vehicles.

[Olis]

A Nikaea adherant (like the Marines Malevolent). Nice.

[Teetengee]

I think the elf feel could be served well by still having a large percentage of well made weapons rather than a depleted armoury, or possibly collecting weapons they had lost in ancient battles. (I am thinking about when Glamdring and Sting were found for example).

[Tiberius Cato]

I was thinking that they would recollect their lost weaponry whilst searching for the warbands that emerged from the schism. Not only would they purge the galaxy of their heretic brothers, but they would reclaim their prized weapons, many of which were weilded by some of the chapter's greatest heros.

[Tiberius Cato]

Okay, so here's my thoughts.

 

When the traitorous warden were exposed the grabbed as much arms and armour as they could before fleeing. Now scattered throughout the galaxy, the Wardens are soley focused on rebulding their good name by hunting down every last one of the traitor brothers. In doing so they find weapons that were weilded by the chapter's many heros throughout the years.

Now their mission becomes twofold, exterminate the heretic and reclaim our relics. They are also doing all of this at severely low numbers, with only 200-300 battle brothers remaining including a veteran company only yeilding 47 (arbitrary number) brothers.

[Resarys]

The nature of the Chapter would change with the Librarians destroyed. I don't think the entire branch could be ignored. The psykers could be purged, and it would fundamentally alter the way the Librarius works, but the Chapter would still need its history kept. And if the entire Librarius was destroyed (something I could see happening), then I would imagine the burned of the Chapter's history and so forth would fall largely on the Chaplains. Or perhaps every brother now carries an added responsiblity of learning their history - their songs and their stories. That would be very Tolkein.

 

Another thought is that while new Tech-marines might be difficult for a penitent Chapter to obtain, the quest to recover wargear and relics would play well with the AdMech, to a certain extent. I don't mean to the extent of the Iron Hands, but it could simply be that, while much of the Imperium views the Chapter with distrust, the AdMech or a certain Forge World nods approvingly.

[Tiberius Cato]

It is possible to completely ignore librarians, the Black Templars do it. As for record keeping, that would fall to the chaplains.

 

I have thought about relations with the AdMech, but the recollection of relics are only of those of importance to the chapter. And all the wargear and such was stolen from the chapter by it's heretic brothers, it is still technically in the hands of the Shadow Wardens. So I don't know what the AdMech would think of that.

[Resarys]

That's true, the Black Templars are a perfect example, it's just that with the unintended shift the Shadow Wardens would be experiencing, it would be, well, a big change for everyone to get used to. And I imagine at least some history would be lost. But then, loss is very Tolkein-elf

 

Ah but ALL wargear is important to the Omnissiah. I don't think it would really put them in any kind of special standing with the Priests of the Machine God, but it might mitigate the Chapter's bad reputation a little bit, in their eyes.

 

Not to say they have a bad reputation, but some Imperials are bound to go "Oh, you're on a penitent crusade? Well, that's mighty honourable of you." *shuffles away hurridly while getting ready to dial 911Inquisitor*

[Tiberius Cato]

Ah, I see what you mean brother. I agree, the transition from having a full fledged librarium to operating without one would be a difficult one, history would be lost. I don't know what shall be lost, some battle records amongst other things most likely.

 

A relationship with the AdMech could be interesting, the battle brothers perhaps would develop an affinity for crafting wargear and become a more mechanised force to compensate for their losses. For example, more rhinos and land raiders. Also, the amount of dreadnoughts would increase; it would become vital to preserve wounded brothers to avoid extinction.

[Teetengee]

I like where this is headed, I just wanted to point out that 47 is going to attract some 47 ronin attention (whether you want that is up to you.).

[Tiberius Cato]

I have no knowledge of that, the number isn't entirely arbitrary; my initials are AK and in every sport I played my number was 47, so when you look at the roster it would say A.Kay 47 haha. I'm like this aswell, I may have to get an Iron hands chapter upgrade for all the bionics these guys are going to need. I really like the idea of taking every action necessay to preserve their battle brothers, becoming cyborgs with the sheer amount of bionics they'll have.

 

Tabletope-wise it looks like the way these guys are going IH CT is going to be the way to go, or salamanders for the Master-crafted weapons.

[Teetengee]

Well the 47 ronin story is about 47 samurai whose lord was declared traitor and they were forced to become ronin (wandering masterless samurai). They ended up fighting to redeem the honour of their lord and some other stuff too. The recent movie was based off of a much older Japanese story.

[Tiberius Cato]

Interesting. That could actually fit into the veteran company, becoming elite heretic hunters. This could shift the entire chapter even, going from huntin filthy xenos to hunting the heretics that ruined their name. Their armoury would change to reflect this as well, becoming focused on mowing down hordes of cultist and carrying weaponry that is capable of penetrating power armour. Everything else, with a few exceptions, becoming a relic of the past; each being a symbol of the chapter's glorious past, before they had to hunt their own brothers.

[Tiberius Cato]

So I had this idea while I was at work today:

 

The renegade brothers pledge their alliegance to a chaos champion who has rallied a mass number of cultist and orks to his cause, and the renegades becoming his elite battleforce (think uruk-hai)

 

These forces then eventually launch a massive assault on the Wardens on Anaria, forcing the Wardens to fight in a manner very unfamiliar to them. With the few reserve forces remaining on the planet, the chapter recalls it's forces to the defense of their world and most hold out until help arrives.

 

A nearby craftworld then picks up the distress signals and comes to assist the chapter in the defense of Anaria, having recently clashed with the very enemy present.

 

With bolstered defenses and renewed hope, the combined forces of Eldar and Space Marines bravely fight back against the incursion. However, in the heat of combat a drop pod slams into the outer wall of the fortress-monostary and promptly explodes, leaving a huge gaping hole in the defences.

 

When all hope seems lost the is a sudden sight on the horizon; the remainder of the chapter has arrived to defeat the seige. Being hit from both sides, the heretic forces quickly lose momentum and power. They are defeated swiftly and the day had been won for the Wardens and their Eldar allies.

 

This gives rise to an alliance with the Eldar. The Wardens agree to trade with the Eldar and work with them to defeat the champion that had ordered the siege.

 

Well, if none of that makes sense, then you ,dear reader, have my sincerest apologies; i'm writing this at 2:30 in the am and have worked a 10 hour shift in addition to have been awake since 5 am yesterday.

[Teetengee]

I like the battle for helms deep, but I feel like it isnt grim dark enough. Maybe have relations go sour?

[Tiberius Cato]

Possibly. Perhaps after the heretic menace is dealt with the Eldar turn on the crippled Astartes, foolishly. They underestimate the fortitude and prowess of the Astartes, who even with a diminished armoury can still put forth the firepower necessary to drive off the xenos.

 

They take heavy casualties however, losing three squads to the Eldar and four during the invasion. Things begin to look very bleak for the chapter, down to a meager 47 veterans, about three quarters of a standard battle company, a single chaplain and apothecary, a handful of techmarines, and an armoury that is beginning to look moreso like a museum.

[Resarys]

I think some kind of conflict with the Eldar is warranted. It removes a certain amount of possible suspicion from the Chapter. Working with the Eldar against Chaos, that's one thing. Becoming friends gets you classed as xenos horrificus. ...actually, are the Eldar even usually xenos horrificus themselves? Well, regardless, forming a strong bond would draw the ire of at least SOME inquisitors.

And it's very fitting to have an alliance of man and (space)elf fall apart, given the Tolkien-esque nature of the Wardens.

[Tiberius Cato]

Alrighty, brothers. I think this chapter has been properly decimated (although a little more couldn't hurt) I feel like a lot of the important parts are fleshed out, except for the penitence crusade. What exactly does that usually entail? Are the purged by flame and only the righteous live? Do the travel the Eye of Terror, looking for a good fight? I've been thinking about how to develop that part of the chapter history and tie up the chapter real nicely. Then perhaps I will move on to their current day situation and wrap up this little project of mine.

[Resarys]

I imagine it depends somewhat on how penitent the Chapter actually is. The High Lords can just say "go forth and kill in His name for 100 years", but they might also give the Chapter a specific goal. The Eye (or local warp storm) seems like a pretty reliable default for penitent crusades, but it could just as easily be an assignment to purge a xenos system, or even traveling past the edge of the galaxy. Depending on when your Chapter's problems are set, Armageddon or Cadia are very good locations. The crusade might not have any specific goal, either, and could simply be sent on campaign as normal for 100 years, just without recruitment.

 

So either "kill until we say stop" or "kill that thing over there".

[Tiberius Cato]

Quick question whle I work out some aspects of my chapter, brothers. Would it be a good idea to do an Index Traitorus for the renegade brothers of the Shadow Wardens?

[Teetengee]

I would keep all the information here for now. Just my .02.

[Tiberius Cato]

Yes, that's what I meant. Like tack on an IT to the original post to describe the heretics that have left the good graces of the Wardens.

[Tiberius Cato]

Brothers, I need your assisstance on deciding on a chapter symbol for the Wardens, my previous idea of using tengwar writing has subsided and now would like something more... iconic for lack of a better word.

 

I don't want to use a RG symbol in a different colour for sure. I was thinking of using something heraldic or trying my hand at freehanding the green mana symbol from MTG