Alternate Legion - The Scions Hospitalier

[Skalpynock]

Thing is, that devotion only extends to a few in the legion. Yucahu may be inconditionally loyal, but his legion itself is already 'shattered' even before the Insurrection. His legion is spread over so much space (pun not intended) the fleets other than 1, 2, and 7 are seldom in situation to answer directly to their primarch. As the events unfold, one large contingent will disappear, and another pledge itself to the Stormborn.

[bluntblade]

I thought that, as of the parting of the Berserkers and Shepherds, the Morning Stars were included in the Auxilia arrangement?

[MikhalLeNoir]

Is there any legion ( besides the wardens of light[yes, we side with nobody at first then only with the loyalists. Eat this traitors!!!) whi doesn't side even with few units with the traitors? Edited April 1, 2016 by MikhalLeNoir

[Sigismund229]

Crimson Lions, Iron Bears, Scions Hospitalier all stay 100% unsided with the Stormborn(Turrus and his buddies are actively trying to nick the Maelstrom zone as their own kingdom so they are most definitely not on Icarion's side).

 

Halycon Wardens&Fire Keepers have small units of traitors but mostly stay loyal.

 

Dune Serpents I'm not sure

[MikhalLeNoir]

Doesn't have the bears the wendigos who went over? And turrus counts as traitor although temporary;)

[Big Bad Squig]

Serpents split with sections going to each faction, although the majority stay loyal.

[simison]

Thing is, that devotion only extends to a few in the legion. Yucahu may be inconditionally loyal, but his legion itself is already 'shattered' even before the Insurrection. His legion is spread over so much space (pun not intended) the fleets other than 1, 2, and 7 are seldom in situation to answer directly to their primarch. As the events unfold, one large contingent will disappear, and another pledge itself to the Stormborn.

 

Hm, perhaps splintered then. Which leaves the Lions possibly holding the title.

 

Crimson Lions, Iron Bears, Scions Hospitalier all stay 100% unsided with the Stormborn(Turrus and his buddies are actively trying to nick the Maelstrom zone as their own kingdom so they are most definitely not on Icarion's side).

 

Halycon Wardens&Fire Keepers have small units of traitors but mostly stay loyal.

 

Dune Serpents I'm not sure

 

Interesting.

 

Bringing the subject back to the Scions, they are definitely a contender for Totalis. The other two candidates I see are either Fire Keepers or the Crimson Lions. Who should get what?

[Slips]

Seeing as how much of a Follower of the Imperial Truth (grew up in a scientific community) and Believer in the Emperors Dream/plan that Pionus is and how strongly the marines under him cling to him (for whatever reason) I dont really see any large splinters breaking off and being all like "Screw you dad and the legion! Icarion was right! Promethium can melt adamantium beams!"

 

Which lends itself well to being totalis.

 

Also helps that they get murderlated in a surprise attack by Morro effectively neutering them for much of the Beginning and mid point of the insurrection before they come back with a vengeance and dark secret.

[Demus Ragnok]

Well as far as the loyalty level of the Fire Keepers lets consider some things,

 

After the ambushes Alex is on Terra and he reaches out to Niklaas ( my story "A Message"), was that just a sit rep or was Alex specifically reaching out to brother he knows he can trust beyond doubt?

Niklaas is responsible for fortifying the Imperium against Icarions forces, does that imply that Niklaas is Alex' front line commander and trusted to coordinate the other shattered legions in the defense?

 

Further, what is the relationship like between Niklaas, Yucaha, Pionus, and Hectarion? Do the others trust/respect Niklaas enough to fight at his direction on the front line without Alex around to guide them?

 

All this affects the Fire Keepers loyalty rating. I believe.

[Sigismund229]

For Hectarion it's difficult to make a judgement as Niklaas is still a bit of a shadowy figure for me but from what I know:

 

He wouldn't be happy serving under Niklaas. While he respects him for his stalwart dedication to the Imperial cause, he wouldn't follow orders from him unless Alex told him to and even then only with gritted teeth. And he trusts Niklaas to hold the line to the death but not enough to say Niklaas is entirely loyal so he'd keep an eye on Niklaas just in case(as that hatred of pyskers could have made Niklaas a recruit to Icarion because the Emperor and Alex are both pyskers)

 

Also, this may be wrong but wasn't the reason Niklaas was entrusted the defences because he's a siege specialist?

Edited April 1, 2016 by Sigismund229

[Demus Ragnok]

@ Sig Um Icarion is a witch also so...

 

Yes he is the resident siege expert.

[bluntblade]

There might be some respect from Niklaas reinforcing some of the Lions en masse during the Barbarus campaign. Even if it took some work to get them to do as he wanted. Edited April 1, 2016 by bluntblade

[Sigismund229]

@ Sig Um Icarion is a witch also so...

 

Yes he is the resident siege expert.

True. But people don't alwayd behave rationaly. Perhaps Niklaas thought he could use the Insurrection to create a new humanity cleansed of pyskers? Who knows. I'm not saying Hec thinks he's a traitor, far from it, just that he better mind that Niklaas' hate of pyskers doesn't get used against the Imperium or smthn without Niklaas realising his loyalty was being twistes

[simison]

Well as far as the loyalty level of the Fire Keepers lets consider some things,

 

After the ambushes Alex is on Terra and he reaches out to Niklaas ( my story "A Message"), was that just a sit rep or was Alex specifically reaching out to brother he knows he can trust beyond doubt?

Niklaas is responsible for fortifying the Imperium against Icarions forces, does that imply that Niklaas is Alex' front line commander and trusted to coordinate the other shattered legions in the defense?

 

All this affects the Fire Keepers loyalty rating. I believe.

 

At the time of the story, it was more of a common sense approach rather than, 'this is the only one I trust' decision. By the time Alex is regrouping the loyalists, he already has a clear idea of who is and who isn't loyal. 

 

Let's see, at the start of the Insurrection, which Primarchs are available to be the Warmaster's Lieutenant. Daer'dd is dead, Pionus & Azus are unaccounted for a few months for their reasons, while Gwal has fled (as far as Alex knows). That leaves Niklaas, Hectarion, and Yucahu. It really does suck that Daer'dd is the first to die because he would be the natural successor to Icarion's spot as Number 2 to Alex.

 

Of the three, their downsides are Niklaas' hatred of psykers, Hectarion's bloodthirster shard, and Yucahu's lack of compassion.

 

Positively, Niklaas is the siege expert, which is a premium considering the Imperium is stuck on defense for the next decade or two. Hectarion's ferocity can work as an effective counter-attack force. And Yucahu's mastery of void warfare would make him ideal for out-maneuvering on a strategic level.

 

On a personal level, Alex and Hectarion have the best friendship, Niklaas' hatred of psykers adds tension, and so does Yucahu's lack of nobility.

 

In the end, since the Imperium is fighting a defensive war, Niklaas becomes Alex's Lieutenant out of sheer necessity. Granted, no official titles are handed out, but it's clear that to keep the Imperium standing, Alex needs the Fire Keepers to throw up a ton of roadblocks down to slow down the traitors. 

[Demus Ragnok]

Well for me that makes the FK Constantus rather than Totalis

[simison]

Well for me that makes the FK Constantus rather than Totalis

 

Alright, than the Scions get Totalis. 

[Sigismund229]

 

 

Well for me that makes the FK Constantus rather than Totalis

Alright, than the Scions get Totalis.

That makes the Lions Constantus...right?

[simison]

 

 

Well for me that makes the FK Constantus rather than Totalis

Alright, than the Scions get Totalis.

That makes the Lions Constantus...right?

 

 

If not the Sine Recursus one. 

[bluntblade]

Does any Legion here fit Sine Recurcis?

[simison]

Does any Legion here fit Sine Recurcis?

 

Only the Crimson Lions or the Void Eagles. Even then, the support is half-hearted, so we don't have to use it since no legion fits it 100%. Still, I'll make the offer because they do kinda fit, but if neither Skal or Sig wants the title, we'll let it drop. 

[bluntblade]

I'd say different Clans of Lions have varying boundaries.

[Sigismund229]

I'd say different Clans of Lions have varying boundaries.

Actually overall the legion's loyalty and willingness to prosecute the Great Crusade is pretty homogenous as is their loyalty to Hectarion

[bluntblade]

The Conquest of Punicia

 

In 932 M30 two Chapters of the Scions Hospitalier were called to aid a campaign against the Punicia system. A small but powerful stellar empire, the Punicians resisted Compliance with a system of fortifications and mechanised armies. These armies were the first target identified by Coch'ise, and Pionus devised a strategy to cripple them.

 

The Scions initially fought for a month alongside the Imperial Army, capturing lightly defended, mountainous territory on which to base themselves. This drew the enemy out, and for two days the Imperials engaged them, gradually falling back through the valleys. To their credit the Punicians advanced cautiously, but unbeknownst to them a second Astartes force had been lying in wait. Emerging miles behind enemy lines, squads of Ghost Walkers hit HQs and communication facilities.

 

Crippled, the Punician regiments faltered, and were suddenly attacked by the Scions and Army. Although their opponents fought fiercely and resisted for some hours, the Imperials managed to capture the lion's share of the opposing Army. Pionus now intended to take the fortresses incrementally, using the fair treatment of his prisoners as a bargaining chip. With the XXth Legion harrying their exposed units, he reasoned, Punician morale would collapse as their fate became clear.

 

However, having only served alongside the Ghost Walkers on xenocide campaigns, the Scions did not understand their cousins’ attitude towards non-Compliant worlds, and Co’chise disdained his brother's gradual approach.

 

Instead, as the Scions began their attacks on outlying fortresses, the Ghost Walkers converged well behind the Punician lines and laid waste to a regional capital. Army officers were puzzled by the strange lights on the horizon, but Pionus and his lieutenants immediately recognised the signs of phosphex and nuclear weapons, and raced to the city, leaving a few companies to secure the gains they had made.

 

In the ensuing standoff in the ruined city, Captain Epinondas almost came to blows with Warchief Lakota. Both were restrained and the Primarchs managed to remain civil, but the two sides could not reach agreement. Pionus argued that excessive, even cruel violence would prevent an orderly Compliance. Moreover the Destroyers’ weapons had tainted the very earth on which the city had stood, leaving it uninhabitable.

 

Co’chise, however, castigated his brother for, as he saw it, prioritising enemy lives over those of the Emperor's soldiers. The Punicians should be punished for their defiance, whereas Pionus’ strategy was perceived as showing weakness. Any man who considered rebellion would have the remains of the fortress to remind him of the consequences. He would not be disuaded from launching similar assaults on other cities until the Punicians submitted.

 

Troubled by this development but unwilling to deviate from his own course, Pionus set out to end the conflict as quickly as he could. To achieve this he hatched an audacious scheme and, without informing Co’chise, led a strike on the planetary capital. It was a brutal battle that claimed over a thousand Scions’ lives, but after a day's fighting the Legion had control of the city. Taking control of the media apparatus, Pionus swallowed his disgust and broadcast images of the Ghost Walkers’ atrocity, promising that more would follow if the planet failed to surrender. To show that he was appalled by their actions would harm the Legions in the enemy's eyes.

 

After a few desultory battles the defenders’ morale gave out, and they submitted to Compliance. The Ghost Walkers moved on while the Scions remained, doing their best to heal the damage and ease the planet's integration. However, irreparable damage had been done to relations between the two Legions and they never cooperated on a large scale again.

Edited May 5, 2016 by bluntblade

[bluntblade]

The Malacos Purge

 

The discovery of Argynguilla in 894 M30 was greeted with pleasure by the Scions Hospitalier, as they saw so many parallels with Iona. Records indicated that it too had been an undersea community of scientists before the Age of Strife, and on approaching the planet they found signs that this civilisation remained intact. An awful revelation, however, awaited beneath the surface.

 

Argynguilla had taken a far darker path than Iona, its scientists embracing the perversion of the human form that so appalled Pionus. Integrating xenos material into their genomes, they succeeded in wiping out the monsters that dominated the seas, only to take their place. The population were hardly recognisable even as abhumans, and were dubbed the Malacos. They had become crustacean horrors of chitin and claws, and responded to any intrusion with murderous violence. In a cold fury, Pionus assembled almost his entire Legion to cleanse Argynguilla.

 

This was somewhat complicated by the imperative to take the strongholds intact. This world had excellent chances of harbouring precious technology, and Pionus would not risk destroying it. At the same time, while his reforms to the Legion had been successful, he was aware that some of the Legion's Terran elements were still struggling to adjust after the reunion. He had no desire to lead a divided army, and planned to remedy the situation.

 

The Malacos cities clung to the ceilings of vast, under hanging caves, the entrances of which were heavily fortified. To aid in their capture, Pionus called upon Scylla Cohort, the aquatic specialists of the Legio Cybernetica. With their automata fighting alongside his warriors, Pionus won several crushing victories, seizing Malacos strongholds and ravaging the armies they sent to challenge him. The modified Collossi, led by their Primus Heracleion and commanded by Legion operatives known as Praevians, proved especially devastating.

 

Having fought several underwater actions, Pionus was pleased with the chance to test the Scions' methods on such a large scale. Emboldened by their success, as the campaign advanced and targeted more elaborate fortresses, he and his captains opted for less conventional strategies.

 

Extensive research had yielded a number of biochemical options for destroying the Malacos, and captured schematics revealed that the citiess filtration systems were located in the rock above the strongholds. It was a weakness that, exploited properly, could destroy the top echelon of the Malacos hierarchy.

 

Modified automata were set to digging tunnels out of the rock above the largest city, allowing access to the caverns that riddled the rock strata. Into these, Pionus sent First Captain Antonidas with several squads of Terran marines. Meanwhile the bulk of the Legion assaulted a nearby fortress as a distraction.

 

Antonidas’ men descended through the caves, using sonar to locate the filtration systems. These men had learned their first lessons in combat among the alleys and tunnels of Mariannan, and overcame the Malacos guards with ease. Simultaneously they released a cocktail of toxins into each of the supply tanks, wiping out almost all the inhabitants. Descending into the city, they set about eradicating the remnants and falsifying distress signals.

 

Believing that their “capital” was under attack, the Malacos sent out a large army and found the city apparently under siege. When they approached the enemy scattered but, as they neared the city itself, the defences suddenly targeted them. With the enemy in disarray the Scions enveloped and destroyed them. All that was left was to seize the remaining, sparsely defended strongholds.

 

The war was a major turning point for the Phantom Squads. Having found a balance between their old methods and the ways of Iona, they carved out a niche for themselves within the reformed XIXth Legion where their skills were appreciated. Scylla also earned plaudits from much of the Legion for their aid, with the Scions going so far as to name Heracleion an honourary battle-brother. In years to come, with the careful oversight of the Praevians and Magos, Scylla would become an indispensable asset to the Scions Hospitaller.

Edited May 5, 2016 by bluntblade

[Slips]

I kinda envision the habitations of Argynquilla as being very much like Soma with a healthy dose of H.P Lovecraft and I love it @_@