What's your Legion Theme/ Creative Idea?

[Operative]

Since a lot of people have been posting questions in various threads about how to help them create a fluffy side to their army, I think it's time we as a community pooled our knowledge.

 

Whether you've got an idea about a method of war for a legion army, unique origin story, unification era theme or even some ideas for a praetor's backstory that you've had floating around your head for a while just post it.

 

Even if you're not feeling pretty creative and you've just clicked on this thread to see what I'm on about just post a little fluff summary on your army.

 

To get the ball rolling: A Raven Guard splinter force makes up of fresh recruits from the primarch project gene code (from deliverance lost) that are harassing Horus' fleet around the Galaxy and luring them through star systems only to leave behind specialised raven guard insurgent forces to assassinate key traitors and interrogate captured hostages.

[Huggtand]

I have finally decided what to do

The 81th Rogue Trader Militant exploration/scouting/pathfinder flotilla.
From terra the flotilla sailed east through the galactic core and then north out in the Ghoul stars. After Isstvan V it is operating in the galactic north-east harrying and sabotaging the traitors behind their lines.

The forces consist of a small attached force of the VI legion, a Mechanicum detachment, a small household of Knights and the Solar Auxilia directly under the Rouge Trader.

The packs of the Rout focus around two elements. The first is a heavy strike force focusing on siege and boarding actions. They are heavy with terminator armour and breacher´s and are led by Sven Yggjung Blodnacke. The second is a hunter/scout force witch are experts of clandestine operation like infiltration, counter-infiltration, assassinations and sabotage (dancing with the Alpha Legion ) they are led by Inge Vakr Haraldson.
A large portion is still of terran origin and there are even some surviving unification war veterans. Due to infrequent resupplies there is a shortage of new equipment and the bulk is equipped with mark II and III armour. Only the hunter/scout force has more of mark IV suits.

The Astartes left the flotilla briefly for the Prospero campaign. After they returned to the 81th and got the news of the Heresy they took complete command of the flotilla and uses it as a harrying/guerrilla force.

[heron]

Good timing for this post. I recently got the Conquest book and it finally helped me figure out what to do. I have been collecting mechanicum figures for about 8 months but wasn't sold on just making a taghmata army. I really liked the back story they wrote up for the House Aerthegn Knights, especially the Wraekan Dreor factions that decided against following Horus and maintained their traditions of reaving- intervening on both sides of the conflict throughout the Coronid Deeps.

 

I am painting up a group of knights, as well as their household support forces (Solar Auxilia) and their Sacristans (Mechanicum). I am still working on a warlord/sensechals name, but in the meantime I have been practicing hand-painting crows wings in white. When more is painted I will post some pictures.

[Conn Eremon]

Not to be rude, but if this is meant for us to spitball our random ideas so that others can be inspired or for those looking for ideas to utilize themselves, then isn't it rather redundant with the pre-existing stickied thread?

 

Or are you wanting everyone to share what ideas they are using for their own work?

[Hesh Kadesh]

For my small loyalist Sons of Horus army, I've decided that instead of being limited to a single Storm Eagle, the "Minotaur" which rammed into loading bay during the purge of the loyalists during the earliest days of the Heresy, there was an entire company. For handwavium reasons the majority of the company was not present during the Isstvan campaign(s), and are now renegade marauders. They are using a Praetor in the Legion Relic Armour, Paragon Blade, Archaeotech Pistol. They are the Minotaurs, pretty much in 30K form. I remember reading a post a while ago about how there maybe some link between the 21st Founding's "chimeric" and "hidden" geneseed with regards to the Minotaurs (of which the mystery deepens with each new Imperial Armour Campaign book detailing them), and then some fan wishlisting about how they were linked with the Minotaur Storm Eagle. So far, I only have a Fire Raptor and Asterion Moloc, which I keep messing up on getting the Heresy colour scheme right. I want to turn it eventually into a full "Descent of Angels" parody with Fire Raptors and Tacticals, Terminators etc dropping out of Storm Eagles.

 

My Word Bearers is an on-going labour. They were among the least "pious" of the Chapters within their legion prior to the humbling at Monarchia, but after the Gal Vorbak of the Serrated Suns came to bring the chapter into their new found godhood, the Heterodoxii Chapter were left out in the cold by their new faith. However, they didn't turn their backs on the legion, as they believed that the Emperor and the rest of their ilk were wrong in how they were treated (it didn't help that as Outriders and fast, hard hitting vanguard units for the legion they were unfairly sanctioned as well), and lied. Well - here was proof - but the chapter were completely apatheitic (recognised in the god, but didn't care for them) -They refused to even change their colours from the granite of their origin to the blood of their new faith - or they were, until they encountered Be'lakor, the Dark Master. In what is thoughtto be the first time he has ever directly revealed himself to human-kind, he was able to turn to the Heterodoxii to their new gods fully - but (meta knowledge here) as he is the incarnation of the [now defunct] Malal (for those too young, Malal was the anti-chaos Chaos God who was lost when the writer took his copywrite protected work with him - he's either too chaotic, or ultra-lawful, and the paragon of chaos absurdity - the Sons of Malice are  GW's #TBT to him to keep the raving hordes of fans happy), it remains to be seen in what role they play after the Heresy. Although they still have not changed their heraldry, they do carve ritual scars in its marble-like finish, and miraculously, blood dribbles from these gashes/carvings in the ceramite for no sound reason. (That explains why they're still the grey legion so far, having not had a lick of paint)

 

My White Scars are on hold, but they're essentially going to be the prelude to the Mantis Warriors of Badab fame, and I have an Ultramarines Praetor part modeled to represent those who would become the Iron Snakes as represented in Know No Fear.

[Nakuth]

Was working on some ideas last night for a portion of the 331st Expedition Fleet, which had been tasked with annihilation orders of the degenerate proto-human, and xenos, colonies in and around the Mandragoran Sector. The fleet consisted of the Night Lords 78th company, an as yet unidentified company of Death Guard, and some Questoris Knights elements.

 

Both Astartes forces contain a large number of Terran legionaries. After returning to Imperium space shortly after the outbreak of the Heresy, the fleet engaged in a brief internecine war between those still loyal to Terra, and those who wanted to follow the Warmaster. The loyalists won, and decided to make their way to Terra.

 

On the way, the fleet makes numerous raids on sectors that have declared for Horus, visiting terror and death in punishment for their sins. A number of colonies still loyal, or whose loyalty is in question, also have terror visited upon them, as a warning.

 

The Night Lords maintain their 'midnight clad' livery, with only minor variations used, whereas the Death Guard, with a larger number of Terran veterans, restored their Dusk Raider livery.

 

***

 

What I like about the idea is that it allows for three single faction armies to be constructed, as well as several variations of the multiple factions. It also makes different playstyles available. What I really love, however, is the fluff possibilities, especially the continuously questionable allegience & motivations of the various componants of the force as they drive towards Terra.

[Leonite]

My force are the World Eater's 14th Company, and an odd one at that. While they have the same anger and rage as the rest of the World Eaters they tend to rely less on brutal close combat and more on furious strikes and more use of advanced tactics. The Praetor Atron  does this because while he has the Butcher's Nails he simply refuses to have the Rage control them, so the motto of 14th Company is "Rage is our Weapon, Glory our path". To be used just like the Chainaxe or the Bolter. This is helped by the fact that the Company has a strong presence of independent leaders who each follow the teachings, which would later go on to be a sizable amount of Chaplains. Chief amongst these is the Red Chaplain who is both the main advisor to Atron and voice of his will when the battle isn't one Atron will take part in.

 

Notably the Company did have a single Librarian even up to the point of the Heresy, with Atron outright ignoring the edicts of Nikea. "Why waste a perfectly good weapon?" This falls under the company's second part of the motto. It's seen as an insult to let the rage consume you and make you a mindless beast, better to die in battle, fighting the enemy, then to become a beast or be stabbed in the back. Even in the Heresy Atron's company would show no hatred for their Loyalist brothers, seeing it as their duty to give them a glorious death. Red Butchers were deployed and it was thought that Atron had lost his mind just before Istavaan... but even as he was placed inside a Red Butcher suit, he returned to clarity, enlightened and in control of his own Rage. He and the Red Chaplain usually take to the field of battle in Red Butcher terminator armor as a result, both to show that even that level of rage can be controlled and used, but also to guide the Red Butchers to glory. 

 

As a result, the company uses a surprising amount of bolter armed Tactical marines over despoiler Squads and are usually represented in most things, although Atron has shown that he despises using stealth as he feels a death by stealth to be one without glory. And yet as they go on through the Heresy, more and more Marines find themselves needing to be put in systems similar to the Red Butchers for bursts of time, to vent their rage without damaging anyone.

[GhostMalone]

My force are the World Eater's 14th Company, and an odd one at that. While they have the same anger and rage as the rest of the World Eaters they tend to rely less on brutal close combat and more on furious strikes and more use of advanced tactics. The Praetor Atron does this because while he has the Butcher's Nails he simply refuses to have the Rage control them, so the motto of 14th Company is "Rage is our Weapon, Glory our path". To be used just like the Chainaxe or the Bolter. This is helped by the fact that the Company has a strong presence of independent leaders who each follow the teachings, which would later go on to be a sizable amount of Chaplains. Chief amongst these is the Red Chaplain who is both the main advisor to Atron and voice of his will when the battle isn't one Atron will take part in.

 

Notably the Company did have a single Librarian even up to the point of the Heresy, with Atron outright ignoring the edicts of Nikea. "Why waste a perfectly good weapon?" This falls under the company's second part of the motto. It's seen as an insult to let the rage consume you and make you a mindless beast, better to die in battle, fighting the enemy, then to become a beast or be stabbed in the back. Even in the Heresy Atron's company would show no hatred for their Loyalist brothers, seeing it as their duty to give them a glorious death. Red Butchers were deployed and it was thought that Atron had lost his mind just before Istavaan... but even as he was placed inside a Red Butcher suit, he returned to clarity, enlightened and in control of his own Rage. He and the Red Chaplain usually take to the field of battle in Red Butcher terminator armor as a result, both to show that even that level of rage can be controlled and used, but also to guide the Red Butchers to glory.

 

As a result, the company uses a surprising amount of bolter armed Tactical marines over despoiler Squads and are usually represented in most things, although Atron has shown that he despises using stealth as he feels a death by stealth to be one without glory. And yet as they go on through the Heresy, more and more Marines find themselves needing to be put in systems similar to the Red Butchers for bursts of time, to vent their rage without damaging anyone.

My WE are the XIVth company @_@

 

Edit:

And Atron is Taron respelt I'm really freaking out here

[jeremy1391]

My heresy force is a raven guard drop site survivor force led by a vigilator, after missing the boat with the rest of the legion they've taken on their own form of warfare, combining the brutal Xeric tribal terror tactics (blood Eagles, mutilations, poisoning, assassinations etc) with the stealth tactics learned under Corax, resulting in basically a ravenguard terror cell, sowing fear and discord into The followers of Horus (human and astartes)

[Marshal Loss]

Themed as the Sons of Horus 29th Company, led by an ambitious young chap overeager to prove himself to his Warmaster following the demise of his Captain (as a loyalist) on Isstvan III, which the members of the 29th feel taints their heritage in the eyes of their gene-father

[simison]

Are posts relating to the lost legions allowed? I'm fine either way, just not sure if it's appropriate to the topic at hand.

[Brother-Chaplain Kage]

Not to be rude, but if this is meant for us to spitball our random ideas so that others can be inspired or for those looking for ideas to utilize themselves, then isn't it rather redundant with the pre-existing stickied thread?

 

Or are you wanting everyone to share what ideas they are using for their own work?

 

 

Cormac is right in that there's already a pinned thread about people looking for ideas or inspiration. Keep the responses in line with an idea you already have for your Legion or army, not asking for help with one.

[Leonite]

 

My force are the World Eater's 14th Company, and an odd one at that. While they have the same anger and rage as the rest of the World Eaters they tend to rely less on brutal close combat and more on furious strikes and more use of advanced tactics. The Praetor Atron does this because while he has the Butcher's Nails he simply refuses to have the Rage control them, so the motto of 14th Company is "Rage is our Weapon, Glory our path". To be used just like the Chainaxe or the Bolter. This is helped by the fact that the Company has a strong presence of independent leaders who each follow the teachings, which would later go on to be a sizable amount of Chaplains. Chief amongst these is the Red Chaplain who is both the main advisor to Atron and voice of his will when the battle isn't one Atron will take part in.

 

Notably the Company did have a single Librarian even up to the point of the Heresy, with Atron outright ignoring the edicts of Nikea. "Why waste a perfectly good weapon?" This falls under the company's second part of the motto. It's seen as an insult to let the rage consume you and make you a mindless beast, better to die in battle, fighting the enemy, then to become a beast or be stabbed in the back. Even in the Heresy Atron's company would show no hatred for their Loyalist brothers, seeing it as their duty to give them a glorious death. Red Butchers were deployed and it was thought that Atron had lost his mind just before Istavaan... but even as he was placed inside a Red Butcher suit, he returned to clarity, enlightened and in control of his own Rage. He and the Red Chaplain usually take to the field of battle in Red Butcher terminator armor as a result, both to show that even that level of rage can be controlled and used, but also to guide the Red Butchers to glory.

 

As a result, the company uses a surprising amount of bolter armed Tactical marines over despoiler Squads and are usually represented in most things, although Atron has shown that he despises using stealth as he feels a death by stealth to be one without glory. And yet as they go on through the Heresy, more and more Marines find themselves needing to be put in systems similar to the Red Butchers for bursts of time, to vent their rage without damaging anyone.

My WE are the XIVth company @_@

 

Edit:

And Atron is Taron respelt I'm really freaking out here

 

Consider my company the XV Company then. I haven't assembled anything, so my stuff is still mutable. 

 

As from the name, I'll think of something else. Maybe a number name, and make him a former gladiator. from a different world, or even Terra.

[Operative]

In reply to Cormac Airt and BCK, my original idea was just for people to share what they've done or wanted to do so that other people in the community would be inspired to create some of their own ideas and see what can be done.

[Reyner]

My Iron Warriors are a Great Company who were left to fend for themselves then realise they can no longer see the Astronomicon and had for the only light they can see in the Warp. Ultramar! They might just turn into the 77th though Vhalen is too badass :P I also have a small collection of Sons of Horus who were going to be loyalists aswell but I am going to turn them into a Reaver company instead and go full traitor. 

[Brofist]

I'm a bit of a snowflake in that I play mostly 30K in 40K so my theme is geared more around that.

I settled on the 13th Grand Company, 49th Expeditionary Fleet. In 30k they are ignorant the heresy happened. In 40k they’re a living relic. The themes are technology, order, and pragmatism. Basically, I want them to look like veterans of a thousand wars who maintain their ancient gear and keep together through an 'iron' sense of duty for each other.

Pre Heresy

13th sees considerable deployment during the crusade and builds a relationship with the mechanicus. Perturabo shows up, they refuse to decimate, so he executes their leadership instead. New Praetor gets appointed from big P's “Flawed, but useful” list, the company is attached to an expeditionary fleet, and then gets sent off to do forgettable crusade work. Over time they become almost entirely abandoned, and in the absence of anything grow a culture of comradery and self-sufficiency. Their last orders are to meet with several other fleets before the begging of the heresy… but they never show up. There are contradictory accounts that they participate on both sides of the heresy, but the 49th is mostly lost to the sands of time.

Post Heresy

The 13th emerges into the system they were expected at, nearly 10,000 years later. Finding nothing but a lifeless world they jump to the nearest system- an imperial staging sector. Declaring themselves as the 49th Expeditionary Fleet of the 13th Iron Warriors Grand company… they are promptly shot at by panicking defenders. In the process of bringing the system “into compliance” they slowly realize that something is completely wrong. Unsure if this is some sick alternate dimension or really the far future, they retreat into the Halo Stars.

From here they continue the crusade- a living relic of times long lost. For them, the Imperium is a decaying vessel- a carcass of a thousand barbaric worlds identical to those brought into compliance millennium before. Unsure if they were abandoned by a selfish primarch or betrayed by a callous emperor, they persevere in the way they always had- sweat, unity, and discipline.

Hope that was a fun read and inspires somebody to do something creative

[KJB]

Iron Hands

 

Mine will be a terminator heavy group of survivors from Ferrus' heroic, yet slightly reckless charge into the traitor lines, led by an Iron Father who hates all the traitors with a vengeance, especially the Emperors Children, whom he hates to a near mythical level having witnessed the death of his Primarch first hand.

 

He also despises the Raven Guard for reasons he wont readily disclose (if you've read the novella Raven Lord you'll know the actual reason)

 

There will be a few Salamanders survivors in there as well most probably (though no Raven Guard...)

 

They will be taking ship to Terra to defend their Emperor

[Galron]

Running the 91st Grand Company "Sand Hogs" part of the 77th Loyal Grand Battalion. This is the heavy armored fist of the battalion consisting of mostly heavy tanks and terminator armor. Their primary mission is to force a breach and hold it while follow on forces pour through the gap. They are primarily made up of Terran marines and survived the encounter with the Alpha Legion relatively intact and have stayed in the fight operating along side distrustful and wary Imperial Fist allies.

[Marshal Rohr]

My imperial fists are a specialized infantry company with limited armor support (to expensive to bulk up on armor :D ). The breachers are modeled to look like roman legionaries, with half of each squad carrying gladii to achieve the aesthetic.

[Nusquam]

The theme, though not 100% fleshed out is Post-Istvaan RG. I have two forces within the main group if XIXth legionaries. More like a sub group I plan on using for campaigns and the over-all army.

 

The Campaign force has the last few Pale Nomads(some Tac squads and Destroyers) and Deliverers(Terminators), that have yet to be sent off to Nomad Predation fleets, assisting my Campaign character Sors Vihar, The Keeper of the Slain(Chaplain with the Fractal Harrow-Blade, leads my Dark Furies). They rally and do raids on the traitor legions. These are for Zone Mortalis and Strategic Raid Missions.

 

The main bulk consists of the above and strike forces of Mor Deythan, Dark Furies and Seekers. Supported by a Fire Raptor and Voss Lightning Fighters. This chunk is for Planetstrike, CoD and regular open warfare.

 

They both make full use of the RG RoW and are designed to be high speed and low drag with hard hitting alpha strikes and diversionary tactics.

 

Eventually as my army grows I'll go full Nomad Predation fleet, that will also double as Carcharodons for 40k, that have a Knight House oathed to them. Then I'll just keep adding models, if/when actual Dark Furies, Mor Deythan I'll get more and when Corax comes out.

 

That's the general idea anyway.

[GhostMalone]

 

 

 

My force are the World Eater's 14th Company, and an odd one at that. While they have the same anger and rage as the rest of the World Eaters they tend to rely less on brutal close combat and more on furious strikes and more use of advanced tactics. The Praetor Atron does this because while he has the Butcher's Nails he simply refuses to have the Rage control them, so the motto of 14th Company is "Rage is our Weapon, Glory our path". To be used just like the Chainaxe or the Bolter. This is helped by the fact that the Company has a strong presence of independent leaders who each follow the teachings, which would later go on to be a sizable amount of Chaplains. Chief amongst these is the Red Chaplain who is both the main advisor to Atron and voice of his will when the battle isn't one Atron will take part in.

 

Notably the Company did have a single Librarian even up to the point of the Heresy, with Atron outright ignoring the edicts of Nikea. "Why waste a perfectly good weapon?" This falls under the company's second part of the motto. It's seen as an insult to let the rage consume you and make you a mindless beast, better to die in battle, fighting the enemy, then to become a beast or be stabbed in the back. Even in the Heresy Atron's company would show no hatred for their Loyalist brothers, seeing it as their duty to give them a glorious death. Red Butchers were deployed and it was thought that Atron had lost his mind just before Istavaan... but even as he was placed inside a Red Butcher suit, he returned to clarity, enlightened and in control of his own Rage. He and the Red Chaplain usually take to the field of battle in Red Butcher terminator armor as a result, both to show that even that level of rage can be controlled and used, but also to guide the Red Butchers to glory.

 

As a result, the company uses a surprising amount of bolter armed Tactical marines over despoiler Squads and are usually represented in most things, although Atron has shown that he despises using stealth as he feels a death by stealth to be one without glory. And yet as they go on through the Heresy, more and more Marines find themselves needing to be put in systems similar to the Red Butchers for bursts of time, to vent their rage without damaging anyone.

My WE are the XIVth company @_@

 

Edit:

And Atron is Taron respelt I'm really freaking out here

Consider my company the XV Company then. I haven't assembled anything, so my stuff is still mutable.

 

As from the name, I'll think of something else. Maybe a number name, and make him a former gladiator. from a different world, or even Terra.

It's cool I just was a bit like ..... strange

[Hyaenidae]

In reply to Cormac Airt and BCK, my original idea was just for people to share what they've done or wanted to do so that other people in the community would be inspired to create some of their own ideas and see what can be done.

 

Thus the reason I created the Legion for You topic, and pinned it to the top. A half-dozen of these threads appeared every week, many asking the same questions, or were replied in topic with many of the same ideas over and over again. In an effort to condense these, I created the aforementioned thread to allow the current and future members of the AoD to rummage through for inspiration of their own.

[Allart01]

Mine is the World Eaters 16th company, also called "The Merciless" because of their battlebarge, that bears the same name. It is one among the many ships shown in Visions of Heresy: Just a small picture and the name, no fluff or further datas in other books. I liked that name greatly, so I decided to elaborate :)

The Company comprises 300 marines at full strenght, and they are specialised in  boarding assaults and Zone Mortalis operations.

Their leader is Tiberius Thanatos, a terran born veteran who saw the very beginning of the Great Crusade. His natural father was one of the last tecno-barbarian chiefs to be cast into submission by the Emperor, his promising son taken into His legions as a forced tribute. For this reason (being forced to fight for your enemy anyone? :P) Tiberius feels very close to his Primarch, and his loyalty is absolute. After sending some of his legionnaires to die on Istvaan III and leading the Merciless in the counter-assault which saw the fleets of the Raven Guard, Iron Hands and Salamanders almost destroyed in the orbit of Isstvaan V, he is currently stalking the black desert, hunting for Raven Guard survivors.

[Leonite]

Mine is the World Eaters 16th company, also called "The Merciless" because of their battlebarge, that bears the same name. It is one among the many ships shown in Visions of Heresy: Just a small picture and the name, no fluff or further datas in other books. I liked that name greatly, so I decided to elaborate

The Company comprises 300 marines at full strenght, and they are specialised in boarding assaults and Zone Mortalis operations.

Their leader is Tiberius Thanatos, a terran born veteran who saw the very beginning of the Great Crusade. His natural father was one of the last tecno-barbarian chiefs to be cast into submission by the Emperor, his promising son taken into His legions as a forced tribute. For this reason (being forced to fight for your enemy anyone? ) Tiberius feels very close to his Primarch, and his loyalty is absolute. After sending some of his legionnaires to die on Istvaan III and leading the Merciless in the counter-assault which saw the fleets of the Raven Guard, Iron Hands and Salamanders almost destroyed in the orbit of Isstvaan V, he is currently stalking the black desert, hunting for Raven Guard survivors.

Huh... so 14th, 15th and 16th all assembled here.

[Operative]

 

Thus the reason I created the Legion for You topic, and pinned it to the top.

 

The only issue I've found when posting on the thread is that whilst it was great (I really do love the thread) for people looking for specific help to take their first steps into starting a legion, for example people asking "What do I choose?" or asking about fluff topics , it wasn't as useful for me when asking general non specific questions like: "Can you help me create a theme for my army... I've got this in mind"

 

So therefore I decided this would be a good place to collect all the communities knowledge about creating individual background for their armies (although random suggestions have been prohibited which I personally disagree with)

 

Anyway, thank you everyone that has so far posted their background on here and please keep up the good work!