Liber Challenge III- 93rd Ostheim 7th Company Timber Wolves

[Father Mehman]

93rd Ostheim Infantry Regiment

Ostheim, the third planet orbiting around the star, Heim, has been a planet rich with life since its founding during the Dark Age of Technology. A world first colonized by settlers selected from the Scandinavian Emirates of Old Terra, Ostheim was terraformed to remind the colonists of the world they left. Little did they know the flora and fauna they introduced would thrive better than they had since before Ancient Terran records.

Populations of animals that were on the brink of extinction back on Terra exploded and changed, subtly at first, to become terrors of what they once were. The largest and most fearsome of these newly adapted creatures was to be called the Timber Wolf. At home within the towering conifer forests of the middle region, peat bogs of the south, and the tundra of the far north, the Timber Wolves were, and still are, kings.

To combat these roving monstrosities, villages of ages past would band together and form hunting parties the likes of which made the pogroms during the Age of Strife look tame. They would strike out against the giant beasts until their numbers could be roughly counted and mankind again ruled the planet. From the ashes of the hunting parties of old, the Planetary Defence Force was moulded and formed, just as the fires of the Horus Heresy were dying out.

To join the Imperial Guard is to take a fork in the road between the forestry villages or ore smelter centres; a simple task. The people of Ostheim are a proud and hardy stock, used to bloodshed against all manner of creature- man or beast. To this end, youths are given a choice: serve in the Planetary Defence Force or test Fate and serve the wider Imperium in the Imperial Guard. There is no shame in either choice as each brings glory in battle.

The 93rd Ostheim Regiment was formed after the news of the much lauded 92nd Ostheim Infantry Regiment was destroyed to the man warding away the advances of foul Chaos denizens found to be inhabiting the unknown reaches of the Triedes Sector. Within a fortnight, the new regiment was almost complete, citizens of Ostheim traveling through the haunted wood to reach designated muster points. Each man and woman was then sworn to the service of the Emperor and immediately given one last week to see their families

After having completed their task of eradicating the galaxy of what was to be a simple cultist uprising-turned-multiple planet war, the 93rd Ostheim are on the move again, hot on the trail of the supposed birthplace of a “new” Plague of Unbelief. Only the Emperor and His agents know of their next move.

The Founding

Thousands of lightyears away, Oberst Hod Ari, known to his men as the “Line-breaker”, thought of home, of Ostheim. He recalled the mountains’ proud defiance against the oceans’ roar and clamour. The fjord in which he used to swim, and whose waters he could feel even now, was the most peaceful place he had found in the Imperium, to be sure. The most vivid memories of Ostheim were those of his wife, Astrid.

Oh, his Asta! None could call her that except him. Even for all her love and warmth, she always corrected those who would be so familiar. He could see her lovely blonde hair...or was it red? The oberst shook his head and smiled through the unknown. When he was appointed to lead the first Ostheim regiment to glory, they both laughed and embraced each other. Already High Chieftains of the north-eastern cities and villages, they had both experienced high times and struggles with their people. For Hod to lead the whole of the planet’s men was a great honour that Astrid expounded upon daily until he voyaged into the stars.

She was the best thing in his life, besides the news of their child. His son would follow in his footsteps...his daughter would be the most beautiful of all the people aboard the transport ships. His thoughts not clear, his mind clouded with misjudgment, the Oberst opened his eyes.

He wasn’t on Ostheim with his wife and child. He wasn’t even on a transport ship. On his back, all Ari could see was the black-mottled sky above him. His adjutant, now mindful that the officer was awake, stopped slapping the oberst’s slab-like features and helped him to a sitting position on the edge of the crater that had blown the command staff to ribbons. The boy kept going on about a medic but Ari couldn’t understand what or who that was. All the while he kept smiling. He would meet his end soon.

He tried to tell the adjutant to stand him upright so that he could lead his men by example but all that came from his mouth was a froth of blood. As he drifted off to Death’s grip, Oberst Hod Ari never saw the ship named after his deeds for this valorous battle; his statue which rose from the fjords of Ostheim; his son.

Guardsmen of Interest

Løytnant Orjan Hroarrson

Company duelist and marksman, Løytnant Orjan Hroarrson has served with the 93rd Ostheim, 7th Company for decades in an officer role with the 1st Platoon. It comes with great honour to be selected for service in his platoon because as long as his troopers do their best, he gives the best. Spirits, tabac, over-charged power cells- nothing is too good for his troopers. On the field of battle, he is ever the wolf, dogging his opponents until they tire and then setting his jaws upon them. Off the field, he is a gracious and kind man; ever popular with ladies from several planets. If his honour is broached or if it is just for sport, Hroarrson leaves his kindness off the dueling range. Apt with bolt pistol and thrusting sword, nary is the man that can boast a winning bout.

Far Magnus the Wrathful

Before taking the title “Wrathful”, the monk Magnus was a peaceful shrine-keeper in the wilds of Negrobi, the first planet in the Sumatari System.

The life out on the plains was full of hardships, even for the anchorite. Daily chores involved finding something to eat and a plentiful water source. Luckily, the Shrine to the Weapon Interred had both; giant, venomous Great Beetles- and the things that hunted them- for game and the only fresh water spring for kilometres. Other tasks required of Magnus were blessings of the interred weapon, daily close combat drills, and the reading of the Magnum Sumatari, the most holy text in the Sumatari System, detailing the life and death of Saint Melker the Scribe and his part in the events that surrounded the Brothers’ War thousands of years ago.

The day Magnus took his title, it was a day the sky should have rained blood. Cultists and a lone Arch-Enemy appeared around the shrine and demanded the monk kneel before their debased, pestilent god of disease or they would kill him in a most gruesome fashion. But first, they were to debase the shrine with raucous laughter and much joy. As the once-marine placed his foot at the base of the shrine, a spark exploded in Magnus’ head. That was all it took for the anchorite to snap- the devils were literally at his doorstep and he had to act.

Praying for righteous action and furious anger, the monk recalled his decades of combat practice. The Saint and the Emperor must have heard his hoarse calling because he did not martyr himself that day. Instead, he set the bar for the next shrine-holders of Negrobi by ripping the head from the Traitor Space Marine single-handedly. The Cultists fled but Magnus knew they would be back, and in numbers hard to count. The time had drawn nigh for the object of the shrine had to be awakened- its planet needed it once more.

With great reverence, Magnus said the prayers of awakening as he released the power couplings from the eviscerator. At the same time, Cultists were making their way behind his back, rusted knives dripping with poison to be the monk’s reward for killing their master. A great, cracking sound and force threw the assassins to the ground. Enoksstorsverd, the holy weapon, was free, and to all who beheld it that day, death followed quickly.

The monk was reborn in the blood of traitors. Calling himself Far Magnus the Wrathful, he vowed himself take pilgrimage and slaughter all forces against Saint Melker and the Emperor on Terra until the day he is martyred for their cause.

Misjonær Ajax Lux

When the Plague of Unbelief came, many souls were unprepared for the devastation. The populace’s hearts and minds had drifted from the light of the Emperor. Yes, they toiled at their daily jobs, maintained the same after-work routines, and more-or-less got on with one another, but there was something missing; something so fundamentally wrong that when the storm hit, all the dams broke.

Wayward Far Ajax Lux had noticed this missing cog within the society’s soul from the first few moments after he set foot on the arid soil of Sudari. His passing elicited few genuflections from the flock of the priest he was there to replace. There were some half-hearted signs of the Holy Aquila, a few just looked at the new priest (not in the eyes, mind you), but mostly those in his vicinity toiled with whatever there was to do: a hollow excuse for the unholy to thrive.

Rumours were the precursor to the horror that followed. At first, the whispers about town were of the recently dead “stirring in their burial mounds”. These whispers were beneath the Far so he continued on with his sermons to those with the wherewithal to guard themselves against the impure, the heretic, and the filthy xenos while he taught the younglings of the community about the heroic deeds of the Emperor. He was sowing seeds that would never grow to be harvested.

Guttural screams rang out through the cool night air but were cut short. It seemed to be a staccato from the hellish Warp. This was the night, Far Lux knew, that there would be pandaemonium throughout the streets and throngs would be coming for aid at his humble temple. He knew this because it had happened before. He was reminded of it every time he looked into a mirror. It never left his mind. This time- this place- would be different, he promised.

The temple bell did not ring to gather the multitudinous, devout followers for he knew that the few that there were were already outside the church. They would be armed for the coming battle but not the war. The Far smiled to himself for those gathered outside were the pious few the Emperor would surely remember and hold dear during and after their dying breaths.

When the doors did open, it was with a boom of electronic feedback and the sound of a well-maintained shotgun loading in its first shell for the night. Many would die. Many had already died. Far Ajax Lux would not be amongst them this night for he was yet to take the mantle of Misjonær and spread the Cult to wayward souls.

The Wars for Unification

First War for Unification of the Drowned Planets (aka, War of the Youth)

Fighting ensued over three Agri-Worlds in the Sumatari System that had pledged allegiance to the Ruinous Powers. The arrival of the 93rd Ostheim Regiment, 7th Company on the heavily forested Ethonia broke the war of attrition between the armoured 8th Midtenheim Regiment, 2nd Company “Iron Teeth” and the hated Arch Enemy. Utilizing basic stealth tactics, as learned in their youths on Ostheim during Herd Culls, the Timber Wolves crept silently through the densely forested No Man’s Land and took the enemy renegades by the throat. Hundreds of lasgun discharges lanced into the weakling, filthy infantry as Sentinels emerged through the cover of the trees, autocannon shot and lascannon blasts tearing apart their hull-down, rusted tanks. The program of Decimation was enacted by Triedes Sector Command and carried out by the 7th Company on the populace of Sumatari II for falling from the Emperor’s light. It was a “necessity” the war needed.

Second War for Unification of the Drowned Planets (aka, The Shifting Ways War)

After victory, and eventual pacification, on the second planet in the Sumatari System, Sector Command deemed it a matter of import for the first planet, Sudari, to be recaptured from the forces of Chaos. Showing great courage and determination, the 93rd Ostheim Regiment vowed to stop the foul Barogenic Cult’s galactic march eastward on Sudari. To this end, a regiment of Militarum Tempestus Scions, the 23rd Cetan “Dire Wolves”, were seconded to the 7th Company. Although regarded at first as insular and uncaring soldiery, attitudes quickly changed when the Dire Wolves showed a strong bond with their adoptive company by saving their lives time and again on that arid planet. Without the aid shown to each other, both units were surely to die against the traitor who outnumbered the loyalists twelve-to-one.

Third War for Unification of the Drowned Planets (aka, Plains of the Holy)

The third embattled world, Negrobi, saw the Timber and Dire Wolves least amount of fighting. They instead took on the roles of Military Instructors to the populace who were quick to say they would fight their own battle against the cancer of the Warp that infested their holy planet. Thousands of years ago, a young scribe ended a civil war that saw Negrobi embroiled in a firestorm of hate and malice by calmly walking up to the instigating force’s commander and whispering one question: Are we not the Emperor’s own? For this young man to get so far past No Man’s Land astounded all gathered. It is said that no one knows who fired the shot that killed him, but all agree that it was an atrocity for, when he died, he bled the light of the Emperor Ascendant that washed the lands clean of all ill-will. The end of the Third War came when Major Rune Dagrson cut the head from the Plague Marine, Baro, and then ordered his retinue burned at the stake for atrocities committed against the Imperium of Mankind.

[Inso]

Dire Wolves?

I have a Chaos marine army with the same name. I say army but really it is less than ten unfinished marines at the moment... but they are heavily converted.

These are the only finished ones:

http://i35.photobucket.com/albums/d161/Inso/GW%20Stuff/Dire%20Wolves/DW3_zps72dd059f.jpg

http://i35.photobucket.com/albums/d161/Inso/GW%20Stuff/Dire%20Wolves/Warsmith3_zps07e29659.jpg

With a couple of converted ones waiting for paint:

http://i35.photobucket.com/albums/d161/Inso/GW%20Stuff/Dire%20Wolves/FDPCOMP2_zps6fffa187.jpg

I really look forward to seeing what you come up with in the name of The Dire Wolves

[Father Mehman]

D'oh! I forgot I changed their name a while back. My Scions got the "Dire Wolves" moniker whilst my Guard Regiment took the name "Timber Wolves". I'll change it in the title but you'll see my Scions in this thread as well.

 

I took a look at your Chaos Marines and they look very nice! I especially like the Traitorous Tech Priest.

[Inso]

Oh... that's a shame :(.

 

Where are your Scions?

[Father Mehman]

I haven't put any pictures of them up...yet. I feel that the B&C isn't ready. That and they aren't based. It's funny, before I joined here I thought "no base no problem". Now? Eh, they've got to have it. The blame falls squarely upon the Lord Commissar and our amazing sub-forum painting competitions since they both make you do your best. Or else.

[WarriorFish]

Doing your best is what makes a model good, always trying to do better is what makes a good hobbyist ;)

[Father Mehman]

Woo hoo! Got this Liber entry done !

If you see anything that needs to be fixed, let me know. Also, let me know if it is awful.

Thanks!

[WarriorFish]

Well done Meh, it looks good to me. Maybe in the future you could embellish it with more details?

[Father Mehman]

That's what I was planning to do, Lord. I wanted to get the barebones (with a few extras) completed and then move on from there as I have time/willpower. A few more things that will be added include:

Company Breakdowns with small blurbs of information including battles joined, camouflage schemes, and listed specialties (this will happen in earnest when test models are complete)

A section on the 23rd Cetan "Dire Wolves" Militarum Tempestus Regiment with pictures, short story, and roster

In-depth look into the working of 7th Company

An Allies overview including the Freeblade Knight Band that travels with the 93rd

Who was the Scribe and why are his teachings so prevalent within the Triedes Sector?

Really, this small article will become my first foray into the world of the Index Militarum (or whatever it is called). Start off small and end up with a bang !

[WarriorFish]

I think its better to work out the outlines first, then you can spend as much time as you like colouring them in :)

[Father Mehman]

That's how this one was prepared. Of course, my outlines usually take the form of sticky notes and bits of paper until they get written proper on the computer. That is if the wife doesn't start cleaning up the immediate area around the computer. This challenge was already laid out so no worries on something falling into the Warp.

This happens to be my 700th post on the B&C. I'd say 700 posts since January isn't too shabby !

[WarriorFish]

It's all about post quality, not quantity I already had most of my stuff written out, just needed to flesh it out a bit more which the Liber challenge gave the perfect excuse. I will leave it for a bit and come back to it to see how I feel and what may need doing, helps recharge the fluff batteries too so that's what I'd recommend Plus there's got to be some models sitting around you need to be painting :P

[Father Mehman]

Just my ETL vow and that's not important at all !