IO - Armies of the Machine God

[bluntblade]

The survivors were wracked with a fury worsened by their own impotence in the battle, unable to wield their immense power aboard ships. Emerging from the Dragon of Autumn’s torturous voyage into the Sol System, the Demi-Legio Honorum Ursa stationed aboard found an enemy they could finally engage on their own terms. With only a few thousand Iron Bears present, both Honorum Ursa and the surviving warriors they accompanied were attached to Irvin Ruel’s task force, which had henceforth been reliant on the garrison forces of the Legios Tempestus and Ignatum. Their arrival was most welcome, the Deathbolts having already fallen to the treacherous Death Stalkers. Auris’ hard-earned skill in supporting Legion actions swiftly proved its worth yet again as they fought for the fate of a world that had shunned them for so long.

 

Material Strength

Largely made up of Reaver and Warlord Titans at the outset, Auris’ composition would continue to favour heavy battle Titans, with Mirage and Warlord patterns making up the majority of their engines by the time of the Qarith Triumph. Daer’dd prized them above all as a force for clean conquest, recognising that other powers must field similarly monstrous weapons and well aware of the threat they posed to vehicle formations. With roughly a hundred Titans at his command, he deployed them in demi-Legio forces first to conquer and then to stand guard over Huron as he solidified its defences.

 

In due time, this arrangement would continue as Auris accompanied Daer’dd in his early forays into the warzones of the Great Crusade. Fighting as part of an integrated army of infantry, armour, aircraft and walkers, flexibility became a key facet of their tactical doctrine and leadership. Their anti-personnel weaponry was relatively scarce, Daer’dd preferring to surround them with capable support forces and instead equip the Titans for combat against machines and monsters of their own stature. To this end (any suggestions?) dominated their arsenals, although the more bellicose crews cultivated some renown for their skill in close combat.

 

The Ice Giants’ Auxilia were notable both for their power and unusual composition. Neglect by the Mechanicum mainstream served only to encourage a further mingling between the Three Fires sects and the culture that surrounded them. Therefore, while Auris boasted three Cybernetica cohorts at the Insurrection’s outbreak, the Skitarii in its service had dwindled to just two battalions’ worth of soldiers. Instead the Titans were increasingly abetted by mortal troops, comparable to Solar Auxilia. As a result of the oath-bonds that united Auris with the Iron Bears, each Demi-Legio was accompanied by a designated company of Iron Bears and Daughters of Daer’dd. Their support vehicles were also noted for their general conformity to standard STC patterns - as well as some developed within the Three Fires - rather than the esoteric machines that so often accompanied Titans to war.

 

War Maniple Honorum Ursa

Demi-Legio Honorum Ursa was spared destruction aboard the Dragon of Autumn, and needed little attention before they were ready to take to the surface of Mars. It is a testament to the strength of the compacts between Titan Legion and Legiones Astartes that the authority of Lord Chief Nibaasiniiwi kept the Titans from plunging into quixotic battle. Instead, wrestling with their pent-up fury, Honorum Ursa took the field with their oathed allies and the Halcyon Wardens.

Edited October 17, 2017 by bluntblade

[Slips]

In terms of pure anti-titan weapons from range?

 

Reavers: Laser Blasters, Volcano Cannon and Melta Cannon.

 

Warlord: Mori Quake Cannons, Bellicosa Volcano Cannons, Sunfury Plasma Annihilators with Turbo-Lasers or Reaver Laser Blasters on the carapace/shoulders.

[bluntblade]

Cheers Slips

[Slips]

Also, if you have Inferno handy, read up on the Emperors personal Titan Legion or the little that exists on it, that is.

 

http://warhammer40k.wikia.com/wiki/Ordo_Sinister

 

Should give some the freedom to make some truly DAoT Titan weapons.

[bluntblade]

I don't, I'm afraid. Though I reckon Auris should get an awesome Warlord with terrifying tech, as do Gojira (be that Rex Monstra or a different Titan)

[Talonair]

I need to write up more about the Legio Carnifex sometime

[bluntblade]

Wondering how Auris' symbol should look. I'm thinking a shard of ice (like the Frost Magic symbol in Skyrim) within the cog. Does anyone with drawing tekkers feel like having a go?

 

As for colours, blue ice and black iron?

[bluntblade]

Skal would like the Legio Victorum, so I suggest Mortis be largely free agents, except for one or two war maniples assigned to the Void Eagles.

[bluntblade]

Does anyone know anything about the Carnivore, Mirage, Nightgaunt and Nemesis Titan variants? This is all I could find.

[simison]

I can take a look when I get home.

[bluntblade]

Thought: we should also include sects which are particularly specialised. Thus, the Lasarine Mechanicum, long tied to the Grave Stalkers and having been molded according to K'awil's preferences. Emphasis both on combat automata to supplement the XV Legion's numbers, and stealthier machines to go where even Grave Stslkers cannot

[simison]

Does anyone know anything about the Carnivore, Mirage, Nightgaunt and Nemesis Titan variants? This is all I could find.

 

I took a look and found the original references in Tempest. Legio Praesagius is renowned for their efforts in minimizing casualties and precision fire. So, my guess is that these variants are better suited to those ends. 

[bluntblade]

Well apparently they'll all feature in Titanicus, rulesets and all

[bluntblade]

Title: The Legio Gojira Ordo Titanica

Militaris Grade: Secundus

Patent: Pre-Unity, Tanya'ba

Warden Domain: Yamatar

Cognomen: The Monstrous Vigil

Allied Knigh Houses: Toho

Allegiance: Fidelitas Constantus

 

Legio Gojira

“Eccentric” does a disservice to a Titan Legion with Gojira’s formidable record of service, yet they were and are to this day regarded as a deeply unusual force. This would have seen them relegated to the margins of the Great Crusade had they not found an advocate in the form of Pionus Santor, who saw a Legion almost tailor-made for the aquatic campaigns in which the Scions Hospitalier excelled. Long the core of Yannatar’s defence against their monstrous attackers, Gojira became renowned the length and breadth of the Imperium as slayers of beasts. In stark contrast to their allies, they adopted the aspect of their foes, and their Titans bore heads fashioned into bestial faces and skulls.

 

When Yamatar willingly bowed to the Emperor, the masters of Gojira were as quick as any to seal their pacts. This was to the consternation of Kelbor-Hal, who reluctantly tolerated the divergent paths that Kirya had taken, though emissaries were dispatched to temper some of their more egregious departures from orthodoxy. However, he was powerless to arrest Gojira’s rise to prominence, as they accompanied Pionus and his sons into their deadliest battles, and built a repute that rivalled several of the Mechanicum’s “core” Titan Legions.

 

While enemies of all kinds fell to the blades, cannon and claws of Gojira, it was against gargantuan beasts and machines that they showed the greatest skill and fervour. Yet while other such specialised Legions as Praesagus favoured superior firepower above all to bring down their foes, Gojira were as willing to engage in close combat as they were to blast them into submission. This was demonstrated early on in the Mothran Purges and when the Urfshaykur Mob barred the Scions’ advance through the Gevayn Sector.

 

The Orks of Urfshaykur fetishised size, as their kind are wont to do, but on a scale rarely seen in the annals of the Great Crusade. They fielded a bizarre array of Titan-analogs which had already caused severe losses to the Army regiments who had faced them, wielding guns of terrifying potency. Loosed upon Imperial dropsites, the Ork machines had glassed a dozen square kilometres around the Imperial dropsites in the initial battle.

 

The senior princeps of Gojira saw a vulnerability in the greenskins’ tactics, and beseeched Pionus to let them lead the next attack. Descending to the surface in a veritable cloud of escort craft, their Titans engaged the Orks blade-to-blade, too close for the Gargants to safely use their city-killing weapons. This, of course, was not enough disincentive for all the Ork pilots, and several god-machines were lost when a Gargant loosed its payload of plasma at point-blank range. But the Titans moved with a speed and purpose which their foes could not counter sufficiently, and their weapons mangled the lumpen machines. When dawn pierced the clouds of dust and smoke, the surviving Titans of Gojira stood proud among the broken bodies of the Urfshaykur behemoths.

 

From that day forth, Gojira had a guaranteed place in the Scions’ line of battle and Pionus’ councils, and the master of the XIXth worked to strengthen Yamatar. Gojira benefited most conspicuously from the arrangements made, given the resources to repair and replace their god-machines on campaign. The already extensive modifications to their Titans were taken further still with the input of XIXth Legion techmarines and bound Adepts, enabling them to serve in many of the oceans where the Scions often plied their trade. The lords of Mars did not hide their consternation at this development, and some older Titan Legions made clear their antipathy for these “upstarts.”

 

A Primarch was not deterred by such complaints, however, and Gojira’s rise continued. Their formidable service record was increasingly difficult to argue with, no matter the antipathy that the likes of Mortis held for them. The Legio’s fealty to their Omnissiah was as sincere as any, and it was with bitter fervour that they confronted their traitorous brethren when the Insurrection broke out.

 

Material Strength

While never close to matching the likes of Tempestus or Mortis, Gojira boasted an impressive number of Titans, and could readily claim to be among the best-equipped. At the Insurrection’s outset it was a Secundus-Grade Legio, with 140 Titans in service. The bulk of the Legion was made up of Reaver and Warlord Titans, often configured to the Carnivore and Nightgaunt patterns. This suited the Legion’s preference for close-range engagements, although as they came to face a broader variety of foes, several war maniples came to use Nemesis Titans as a counterweight to their melee-oriented machines. Warhound Titans were optimised for operations against infantry and light armour; however it was rare for them to go without a melee weapon, a holdover from the days of the Ke’mano.

 

While Gojira lacked Emperor-class Titans such as the Imperator and Apocalypse, they possessed Warlord variants considerably larger than the standard Mars and Lucius patterns. The Tanya'ba pattern, as it became known, retained the ability to mount close-combat weapons, making it far more desirable to the armies of Yamatar. Even after reunion with the wider Mechanicus, Gojira stubbornly continued in their use of this distinctive pattern over the more common and arguably more utilitarian behemoths used by other Legions. The Rex Monstra, the Legion's most famous war machine, remains the exemplar of this unusual variant.

 

Gojira enjoyed exceptionally strong and diverse support forces for their size. Besides their close alliance with House Toho and the mortal armies of Yamatar, they could call upon three Skitarii battalions, five Cybernetica cohorts and several thousand tanks. It hardly needs to be added that their integration into the XIXth Legion’s forces granted them further protection, with companies of Scions dedicated to the defense of their ships.

Edited November 5, 2017 by bluntblade

[simison]

Reading through Tempest, any ideas on what to do with Legio Suturvora, the Legio that fought with the Word Bearers on Calth?

 

Also, updating Demus' list with the Steel Legion:

 

I Harbingers - Legio Telesto

 

II

 

III Crimson Lions - Legio Audax

 

IV Void Eagles - Legio Astorum

 

V Halcyon Wardens - Legio Tempestus

 

VI Iron Bears - Legio Canis Rex

 

VII Bezerkers Of Uran - Legio Cruciatus

 

VIII Godslayers

 

IX Warbringers - Legio Mortis

 

X Fire Keepers - Legio Tonarum

 

XI

 

XII Wardens of Light - Legio Atarus and Legio Lysanda

 

XIII Eagle Warriors - Legio Starii, Legio Masla, and Legio Mexicana

 

XIV Dune Serpents

 

XV Grave Stalkers

 

XVI Drowned

 

XVII Warriors of Peace

 

XVIII The Steel Legion

 

XIX Scions Hospitiliaer- Legio Gojira

 

XX Predators

Edited October 22, 2017 by simison

[bluntblade]

Canis Rex? Last time I checked they had two Tertius-Grade Legions, Auris and Fatalis.

 

Mortis roll with the Warbringers, perhaps Ignatum with another? Berserkers have Cruciatus.

Wondering about having some of Mortis aligned with a VE fleet.

 

Not sure the Drowned actually keep a Titan Legio at their side, though Morro might do so once the Insurrection begins.

[bluntblade]

Demus has explained the nomadic heritage of Tonarum to me a bit more, so I'm wondering if they should come from a Forge World at all. Maybe they should have had a migratory Ark Mechanicus, and only taken up a permanent base after swearing their oaths to the Emperor.

[simison]

Demus has explained the nomadic heritage of Tonarum to me a bit more, so I'm wondering if they should come from a Forge World at all. Maybe they should have had a migratory Ark Mechanicus, and only taken up a permanent base after swearing their oaths to the Emperor.

 

Never heard that one before. It's certainly interesting.

[bluntblade]

He's always had them as nomads, but I thought that was just how they operated on Crusade.

 

Between them, Gojira, Cruciatus, Fatalis and Auris, Kelbor-Hal must have his head in his mechadendrites over who certain Legions show favour to.

[Skalpynock]

Legio Astorum is linked to the Void Eagles, I seem to remember. Teleporting Titans right into enemy ships.

[bluntblade]

Yes, I recall that as well now.

[simison]

Added

[bluntblade]

Bears need amending.

[bluntblade]

Ladies (we hope and pray) and gents:

Title: The Legio Yharma Ordo Titanica
Militaris Grade: Secundus
Patent: Crusade Era, Mars
Warden Domain: Gulaka
Cognomen: The Whip Hands
Allied Knight Houses: Various Freeblade Knights
Allegiance: Traitoris Perfita

The Legio Yharma
Wreathed in suspicion from the earliest days of their service, the Legio Yharma were one in temperament with the Astartes they fought beside. Raised from the mighty but infamous Legio Mortis, they represented an attempt to expand that Legion’s power and influence. Princeps Camulos, master of the Death’s Heads, had watched with disquiet as his hated rivals of Tempestus rose in favour due to their favour with Alexandros. Worse was the growth of Telesto and Gojira, upstarts who were not even of Mars.

Camulos resolved to found new Legions in the image of Mortis. In this he had the support of the Fabricator-General, who feared similar troubles for Mars itself. With Kelbor-Hal’s aid, the successors would swiftly be established in Mechanicum territories throughout the Imperium, shoring up the power and prestige of the Legio Mortis. When Raktra Akarro was found, Camulos saw opportunity where others were appalled by the changed VIIth Legion.

After a series of personal meetings with Raktra, Camulos raised a new Legio from his own. The Legio Yharma they were named, and rapidly they found a place in the Berserkers’ order of battle. From the first, they showed a viciousness equal to their forebears, burning entire hive-stacks during the conquest of Inwit and its domains. As if this was not enough, they cemented their notoriety a few years later at Ystrad, especially in the eyes of the Excertus. During this campaign, the commanders of the Mazkan Third had protested Raktra’s tactics, threatening to withdraw from the campaign. The response of the Yharma Titans present was to turn their weapons upon the Army, killing thousands in less than a minute.

Ever after, the Legio was known not as the “Scions in Umbra” as before, but the “Whip Hands”, a role they played with relish as penal regiments became the Berserkers’ main source of mortal troops. As Raktra fashioned the VIIth into the Legion he desired, so did Yharma take on their own character. Most notably, large numbers of their Titans were modified to bear Destroyer armaments, allowing the Berserkers to deploy these dreaded weapons on a scale unseen elsewhere.

Within a decade of joining his fleets, they had been granted the world of Gulaka on which to establish a Forge World, duly colonised with Kelbor-Hal’s assistance. Thus was the Whip Hands’ growth effectively guaranteed, and when the abhorrent Rangdan again emerged to wreak havoc and destruction, the Imperium would be forced to admit the utility of such a force. Indeed while Yharma suffered in the Xenocides, they also profited from it to a degree. Just as the Berserkers took in ravaged armies inured to the xenos horrors, so too were salvaged Titans and the remnants of broken maniples absorbed into the ranks of Yharma.

Yet this made few commanders, if any, happier to share a battlefield with them. Quite aside from the culls in which the Legio participated, it was whispered that the Titans they salvaged were often unstable, their machine spirits given to fury and outright malice. Close links with the Ordo Reductor coloured the Whip Hands’ interpretation of the Omnissian creed, coming to venerate the Destroyer God above all other aspects of their deity. The Mortis-derived customs of using enemy remains to decorate a Titan were very much in evidence, and the leaders of Yharma were every bit as disdainful of their perceived lessers.

The strange piety which developed in Yharma extended to their treatment of fallen machines. While some of the Collegia preferred to mourn and abandon a sufficiently destroyed Titan, Yharma saw it as their sacred duty to restore and “elevate” their husks. They would even claim those of other Legions if they were not openly resisted. Given the dogged support of Mortis, few would dare to stop them, although such prestigious and powerful forces as Praesagius, Atarus and Pallidus Mor proved able to defy them. The less powerful Legions regarded the Whip Hands with a mixture of dread and loathing, coining a new, private moniker for the “Bloody Jackals”.

While many had been fervently grateful that the Warmaster had limited their activities, once Yharma slipped the Imperial leash their depredations were visited on dozens of worlds. At first Icarion attempted to use them sparingly, but as he began his first march on Terra they were set loose with increasing regularity. A combination of scorched-earth tactics and raw spite saw them inflict even more damage during their retreat, as Icarion’s offensive unravelled.

As Travier moved to realise his goal of corrupting the Insurrectionists, he found Yharma eminently susceptible. Even with the Berserkers’ resistance, the divergent creed that infused the Whip Hands ensured that they were easily led down the bloody path that Travier intended for them. With such malign influence, they would bring carnage to Mycenae which far exceeded any of their prior deeds.

Material Strength
Such heritage and favour guaranteed Yharma a strong base from which to grow. Consequently they stood at approximately 120 god-machines, a Legio of the second rank, when the Insurrection broke out. Half of these were Warlords of the Mars and Lucius patterns, or variants on these. The rest were largely mid-sized Titans, with scout and skirmisher walkers present in only small numbers. Raktra saw little use for the Warhound and its kin, and the ethos of Yharma likewise favoured more powerful machines such as the Reaver and Warlord.

Sixteen Nemesis Titans, three Imperators and two Warmongers provided the Legio’s most potent strategic reserve, assigned in varying numbers to the Berserkers’ most powerful Hordes. The majority fought with the Blackening Scourge and Angel Rippers, those who stood highest in the esteem of the Ashen King. The former detachment were foremost in infamy, all armed with the same dread weapons wielded by their VIIth Legion comrades.

It has been noted that of the close-combat Titans fielded by Yharma, many were scavenged from the battlefield. Others seem to have been converted, even from Nemesis and Goth-pattern Titans. Those magos who cared to offer an opinion suggested that their machine spirits had grown unstable, to the point that equipping them with long-range weapons might prove an excessive risk to their own allies.

In terms of support, Yharma’s heritage and favour ensured that they wanted for little. Besides their supply base on Gulaka, a veritable army of magos and forge-thralls were brought into the Berserkers’ fleets, and these were often given the first pick of prisoners and failed Legion aspirants. These became combat servitors, bolstering a force that counted five Cybernetica cohorts and three Skitarii regiments, all with substantial armoured units.

Edited September 6, 2018 by bluntblade

[Kelborn]

Dies every Legion require a allied Titan Legio?

As far as I remember did not every canon Legion have one, right? Scars and Wolves came into my mind.

 

Don't think that a Legion of Titans would fit the Preds. Too slow, aye? ;)