Index Astartes: Falcons

[StruManChu]

INDEX ASTARTES - FALCONS

+++ CHAPTER NAME: +++ Falcons
+++ FOUNDING: +++ 24th. Gene-seed origin uncertain
+++ CURRENT CHAPTER MASTER: +++ Issachar Vehr
+++ CHAPTER WORLD: +++ Atraxis Tertius, Velic Sector, Segmentum Pacificus
+++ FORTRESS MONASTERY: +++ Inveroran, the Black Mount
+++ MAIN COLOURS: +++ Blue and Copper, Quartered
+++ SPECIALITY: +++ Drop Pod Assaults, Air superiority, Massed Firepower
+++ CURRENT STRENGTH: +++ Full strength at present
+++ KNOWN DESCENDANTS: +++ None



Following the events of the Nova Terra Interregnum and the Age of Apostasy, the need to reinforce the Segmentum Pacificus with forces of unswerving loyalty to the Emperor and the Imperium became paramount to the High Lords of Terra. Much of the Segmentum had stood in resistance or outright rebellion for the better part of two millennia, and now, in the grip of what would become known as the Plague of Unbelief, the High Lords were growing increasingly desperate.

So it was, in the time of the 24^th Founding, that the order was given for the creation of a Chapter of Space Marines that would be dedicated to rooting out and prejudicially destroying heretical activity in the Galactic West. No enemy is so perfidious as the enemy within, and the traitors, mutants and witches of the Galactic West had grown in strength and boldness for too long. And so, to this end and to the service of the Emperor, the Falcons were born.

The Falcons would spend the first two hundred years of their existence dedicated to wiping out the legacy of the Apostate Cardinal Bucharis' treason from the Segmentum Pacficus. Fighting at full Chapter strength, and in conjunction with elements of the Subjugators and Space Wolves, who had fought against Bucharis's armies on Fenris, the Falcons fell upon the Segmentum's traitor strongholds with extreme prejudice. Any Planetary Governor or senior official known to have harboured sympathies to Bucharis' uprising is put down with a ruthlessness and efficiency that would establish the Falcon's approach to warfare for the millennia to come.

The heraldry of the Falcons is quartered mid-blue and copper, with the image of a Falcon's head on each Space Marine's left pauldron. This is the standard heraldry for all armour, from Scout Armour to a Land Raider's Hull, the only exception being for specialist units, which draw their colours from those laid out in the Codex Astartes. Veteran status is indicated by the colour of a Space Marine's helmet, which displays the company colours of the bearer. Demi-sergeants of Combat squads may also show their company's colours in this manner, though this is not mandatory.



Deep in the heart of the Segmentum Pacificus and sharing a long border with the Macharian sector, the Velic sector is home to a number of the region's more significant planets, including the Forge World Nastrillan IV and the Hive World of Thiesse, as well as the agri-worlds of Corinth and Jal II. Warp routes between these worlds and the region's unofficial capital Macharia tend to be calm, allowing trade to flourish and ensuring Velic's prosperity.

However, at the time of the Falcon's founding the sector's loyalty was unknown, and while many of these worlds neighbouring these would have made an entirely suitable homeworld for a Space Marine Chapter, the High Lords did not consider losing any part of a newly minted Chapter to an unanticipated traitor assault to be a risk worth taking. As such, the world of Atraxis Tertius was nominated. As close to a Garden World as the sector possesses, Atraxis III was an nigh-uninhabited paradise of lush pastures and vast forests, populated only in some lowland areas chiefly by farmers, stock-herders and other agriculturalists. Though some protested at such a potentially valuable world being handed over freely to the Astartes, the sector was in such upheaval that these concerns were quickly forgotten, and it was here that the Falcons made their home.

Situated in the high, rocky crags of the Northern continent's mountain ranges, the Chapter's Fortress-Monastery 'Inveroran', known to the native populace as the Black Mount, cuts an imposing figure, and is easily the largest non-natural structure on the planet. It is here that the Falcons draw recruits drawn from across the sector, from this bastion that the Chapter Masters of the Falcons have sent out Task Force and Battle Company to face the dangers that rise against the Velic sector and her inhabitants.



Knowing that their Chapter was created as a bulwark against heresy, the Falcons see themselves as being responsible firstly for their own integrity and righteousness. The first test undertaken by potential inductees to the Chapter is rigged to ensure their failure in order to break down their pride. Any youth who cannot humbly acknowledge their weaknesses at this point of their induction to the Chapter is rejected outright as an aspirant. Across their training and transformation into full Space Marines, the Chapter's Masters impart the lessons and wisdom that no Space Marine is beyond doubt or above failure, and that glory is won by Squad, Company and Chapter, not by individuals seeking fame and renown. Seeing themselves as instruments of the Emperor's Will, the Falcons do not seek fame or reward. While an individual's actions may be heroic in the moment, it is the lifetime of brotherhood and support that has enabled them to reach such heights, and so the honour is equally shared amongst his frater.

Though they do not revel in the extreme zeal or fanaticism of some of their brothers, the Falcons are dogmatically loyal to the Throne of Terra and the Emperor seated upon it. Additionally, the Falcons hold to the ultimate truth of the Word of the Emperor, and believe that it is this above all else that will unite the fragmenting Imperium. Due to this, Reclusiam Command Squads will frequently travel from Black Mount to spread the message of the Emperor's might and humanity's destiny as his subjects. Whatever tensions or politic may exist between the two organisations in other arenas, the priests of the Ecclesiarchy are always grateful to hear the hush that falls over their congregants when a fully armoured Space Marine Chaplain takes to the pulpit.

Due to their love for the Emperor's spoken or written word, It is not uncommon for Astartes to inscribe into their armour, tattoo upon themselves or carry into battle passages or writings attributed to the Emperor. Indeed, the Black Carapace over each Space Marine's primary heart is engraved with the words of the Emperor's renowned 'They shall be my finest warriors' address. Given these beliefs, it is no surprise that the Falcon's Librarius and Reclusiam work closely together, the Librarius cataloguing and analysing ancient texts and records for any word attributed to the Imperium's ultimate master, and the Chapter's Chaplains disseminating new sermons and lessons to the brothers of the Chapter.



Much like the bird of prey from which they take their name, the Falcons are patient hunters, tracking their quarry and then striking with incredible speed and ferocity. The Falcons make heavy use of Drop Pod assaults and aerial insertion tactics, and are widely known for their ability to bring precise and overwhelming fire power to bear against key enemy targets in the heat of battle. Of particular note is the Chapter's adoption and subsequent mastery of the Skyhammer Annihilation doctrine coupled with the support of Stormwing Formations. Favouring the use of Devastator squadrons and mobile weapons platforms such as Landspeeders and Attack Bikes for the delivery of heavy firepower, the Falcons generally eschew the use of ground-based vehicles outside of a protracted campaign.

Battle Brothers drill and train constantly in order to best make use of overlapping cover fire and overwatch techniques so as to ensure their enemies are met by an unrelenting barrage of gunfire at all points. While it is rare squadron indeed that can achieve this level of martial expertise, Falcons Sternguard Veterans will occasionally attain a level of synergy such that they can to perform a full squad manoeuvre called the 'Falcon's Song'; the output of stunningly accurate bolter fire in a constant, overlapping 360 degree arc, while advancing, as long as their ammuntion reserves allow. Coupled with the Sternguard's special issue ammunition, this massed firepower allows this comparatively small group the ability to provide their own cover fire, allowing the squad to move some distance over open ground with little threat of return fire. In the event that the squadron is deployed via Drop Pod behind their enemy's lines, the sheer volume of shots that such a squad can deliver can turn the tide of a battle.

The Falcons are by no means as isolationistic as some chapters are known to be, and have gone to battle alongside various Astartes Chapters and Astra Militarum commands. In recent decades have worked very effectively alongside Siege Assault regiments from the Death Korps of Kreig, finding their stoic resolve a welcome Anvil to the Chapter's Hammer.



The original source of the Falcon's gene-seed is unknown, though according to the Chapter's Apothecarion, they exhibit no mutations and lack no secondary or auxiliary organs. As such, the Falcon's gene-seed is considered quite stable by the Tech Priests of Mars. It is likely that, based on the long-standing purity and completeness of the Chapter's gene-seed, the Imperial Fists, Salamanders, Blood Angels and Raven Guard, despite the obvious link in nomenclature, can be ruled out as possible sources. It is possible, given the Falcon's affinity for high speed deployment, that the Chapter's gene-seed is derived from White Scar stock, but there is nothing more concrete to suggest this.



Adhering to the Codex Astartes, the Falcons maintain ten standard companies as decreed in Guilliman's tome. It is rare to see the Falcons employ the use of Tactical Dreadnought Armour. Distrustful of teleportation in general, the Chapter prefers to equip the Veterans of its First Company with Power or Artificer armour for Drop Pod deployment, unless a particular engagement calls for heavier wargear. Bikes are also less common, but still favoured due to their ability to rapidly redeploy where their speed and firepower might be needed. Befitting a Chapter for whom humility and egalitarianism are so highly valued, the bulk of the Falcon's tactical reliance falls upon the shoulders of its line troops.

Due to their preference for rapid deployment and aerial assault, the majority of the Chapter's Strike Cruisers and Battle-Barges have been retrofitted with additional launch-tubes and hangers to accommodate the necessary Drop Pods and Aircraft that these tactics require. The Chapter is structured in order to rapidly respond to insurgent activity across the sectors surrounding their homeworld. Because of this, it is known that the Falcons can be slow to commit to longer campaigns, and famously rejected calls to join the Macharian Crusade. This is not due to any reticence or indifference on their part, but is simply due to the fact that there are none equipped to assume the weight of their already taxing patrols. The Falcons brook no tolerance for dereliction of duty, no matter how mundane. For almost five millennia they have watched over the Segmentum Pacificus, and have seen innumerable Generals, Admirals and Commanders rise to glory and fall to memory; their victories lost to the endless war the Imperium faces each day, yet the Falcons have always been ready to strike against the heretics and traitors who would stand against the Golden Throne and, Emperor willing, they always will be.




Conquest of the Caasir System (552.M37) – The Falcon's 3rd and 4th Companies, alongside two tribes of the Claws of Ursus Chapter, Skitarii forces from Nastrillan IV and several Imperial Guard regiments fall upon the Enslaver-held Caasir System with great vengeance, with no battle more brutally fought than the six-day firefight to reclaim Enstargo Hive on Caasir IV. Carrying out a series of stunning raids and attacks against the Enslaver-held defences, the Falcons prove their mettle against a particularly deadly foe, eventually liberating the system and its inhabitants from their captivity.

The Kar'lez Crusade (206.M40) – The most recent occasion where the might of the entire Chapter was brought to bear, the Kar'lez Crusade served as something of a precursor to the conquests of the Lord Commander Solar Macharius. Cleaving a wide path through the East of the Segmentum Pacificus, the Crusade was a great success, reestablished contact with dozens of lost human systems and crushed the forces of the Ork Warlord Bhazz Skargrim. This victory did not come without price, however. With the loss of the Strike Cruiser 'Vociferous Dawn' in the warp along with the majority of the 5^th Company, as well as the deaths of their Chapter Master and First Company Captain at the hands of Skargrim and scores of other losses during the campaign, the Falcons found themselves bloodied as they had never been before. Led by their Chaplain, those few of the 5^th Company that remained set out on a penitent crusade led to give chase to the scattered remnants of Skargrim's forces until the last of them perished. They were not heard from again, and it would be a full seven centuries before the Falcons had fully recouped their losses.

The Night of a Thousand Rebellions (999.M41) – Their resources already stretched by the events of the Constantinus Iconoclasm and the dimming of the Astronomican, the Falcons are caught completely by surprise by the events of this single night. As billions revolt across the Segmentum, word reaches Chapter Master Issachar Vehr that the light from Terra has all but disappeared and communication across nearby sectors is nigh on impossible. Rallying what few troops and assets remain at his disposal on Atraxis, Vehr mobilises the Chapter's fleet and begins to deploy the Falcons out in the wider sector in the hope of uniting the undoubtedly fractured loyalist elements against this rising threat. Leaving little more than a skeleton defensive force on Atraxis in order to commit as many men as he can to the fight for the Segmentum Pacifius, the Falcon's Chapter Master bids a final farewell to his homeworld, knowing that there is little hope that both will survive the battles to come.




“By His Word, and by our deeds!”


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Hail, brothers!

This is my first crack at writing an IA article, and I'd love some feedback if you have any. I'm working on these guys as a custom chapter to build as a bit of a break from my wonderfully fulfilling but oh-so-expensive Horus Heresy using leftover bits and pieces that I have lying around that aren't 30K-appropriate and some older 40K stuff. I'm trying to flesh them out a bit and create a solid, justifiable background for a force made up of the minis I have already (Lots of Heavy Weapons, Drop Pods, Storm Talons/Raven, heaps of Tactical bods, etc.).

I'm very aware that my instinct is to pull away from Mary Sue-ing, but I'm worried I've gone too far in the other direction and created a bunch of Humble Marines who don't look like they do much and aren't the great heroes Space Marines are meant to be.

I will be adding further posts/info regarding noteworthy Marines, Chapter Relics and so forth, but as I don't have fancy titles for those things, I haven't added them here!

Thanks!

[Carlson793]

Also, can someone let me know how to insert an image alongside the text at the top? I can't get it to do anything but start on a new line which pushes everything else down. Tis frustrating!

 

Thanks!

See the handy dandy B&C BBCode Guide, specifically the tags for Image Left and Image Right.

[StruManChu]

Brilliant! Cheers Carlson!