Black Book - Insurrection (PUBLISHED)

[Hesh Kadesh]

Maybe we could swap Isstvan for another planet? Only, I did a little Pariah blurb for Simison which involved the Wardens of Light totally breaking Isstvan's religion by silencing the Warsingers. Partly as a way of showing their power, so Isstvan rebelling in this verse would go against that a little.

 

Could it be somewhere like Colchis? So the Iron Bears land and are set upon by the heretics and the other legions? No need to retain any Word Bearer characters.

 

Or alternatively we could have Icarion choosing a planet brought to compliance by the Berserkers and carefully egging it on. There's been a comic piece building up in my head with a governor having a breakdown as he realises whose mess he has to clear up (how do you hold a banquet when the whole populace faints at the sight of sharp objects?!) and it'd be nice to put a sting in its tail.

Colchis is a backwater planet, and broken by the Drowned. Kor Phaeron is executed by Boræo (XVI equerry) and his understudy, Erebus is taken on as a Remembrancer, taking the title 'the Ereborean'. The planet is terraformed, and the Grey Flowers became a source of wealth for the planet, now that the conservative nature of Kor Phaeron had prevented the improvement of it and his influence removed. A Knightly Order was set up, and they shared a close relationship with the Drowned; collected in their entirety by Morro after he left the Vizenko Prosecution.

[Grifftofer]

I have a couple of comments about the battle. But first I want to say that it is really good and only want to suggest a few minor changes to match with legion background stuff that I've written, but not shared with you all yet :P

 

First the fleet of the XV is large but consists primarily of light cruisers and escort-sized ships. They are set up to allow for hit and run strikes much like the legion itself and rely heavily on stealth and ECM equivalents. This means that Hidden Shadow would likely be a light cruiser and there probably wouldn't be any dreadnoughts under the XVth's colours.

 

Second taking 1000 totem guard aboard the Grave Stalkers command ship seems a touch of overkill, if only when compared to the size of my legion. I have only 10k marines so having enough to be able to fight the Bears to a standstill aboard my flagship seems a little unlikely. Especially as all the totem guard are the veterans of their legion and represent the very best of the VIth. Even if the complement of marines aboard was limited to only the 300 odd reapers then it would still be a large proportion of my total strength.

 

EDIT: I have had a small thought on this. Given the rite required to become a reaper involves giving up their progenoid glands to the legion. It is possible that they wouldn't be counted for the purpose of marines under arms or whatever... Hmm. That gives me a little more wiggle room perhaps. And allows me to proclaim a bloodless victory as no marines other than Reapers fell. And they were functionally already dead ;)
 

 

Reading both accounts of the battle, it strikes me that I still can't get a mental image of K'awil. He's one of two primarchs I just can't picture, no matter how hard I try.

I think that this hjas a lot to do with the fact that I've never really described him to anyone. I do have a few ideas, but they are very vague and mostly limited to the fact that I think I want him to have dreadlocks :P

[MikhalLeNoir]

I have a couple of comments about the battle. But first I want to say that it is really good and only want to suggest a few minor changes to match with legion background stuff that I've written, but not shared with you all yet :P

 

First the fleet of the XV is large but consists primarily of light cruisers and escort-sized ships. They are set up to allow for hit and run strikes much like the legion itself and rely heavily on stealth and ECM equivalents. This means that Hidden Shadow would likely be a light cruiser and there probably wouldn't be any dreadnoughts under the XVth's colours.

 

Second taking 1000 totem guard aboard the Grave Stalkers command ship seems a touch of overkill, if only when compared to the size of my legion. I have only 10k marines so having enough to be able to fight the Bears to a standstill aboard my flagship seems a little unlikely. Especially as all the totem guard are the veterans of their legion and represent the very best of the VIth. Even if the complement of marines aboard was limited to only the 300 odd reapers then it would still be a large proportion of my total strength.

 

EDIT: I have had a small thought on this. Given the rite required to become a reaper involves giving up their progenoid glands to the legion. It is possible that they wouldn't be counted for the purpose of marines under arms or whatever... Hmm. That gives me a little more wiggle room perhaps. And allows me to proclaim a bloodless victory as no marines other than Reapers fell. And they were functionally already dead ;)

 

 

 

Reading both accounts of the battle, it strikes me that I still can't get a mental image of K'awil. He's one of two primarchs I just can't picture, no matter how hard I try.

 

I think that this hjas a lot to do with the fact that I've never really described him to anyone. I do have a few ideas, but they are very vague and mostly limited to the fact that I think I want him to have dreadlocks :P

Dreadlocked primarch? It will be a pleasure to see him built.

And you don't see close ties betweem the wardens and the grave stalkers ;)

[Raktra]

Mine has half-dreads... I couldn't make my mind up on a style.

Side note, and sorry if I've missed this but there is quite a lot going on, do we have a whole Shattered Legions deal going on in our universe? And if so, aside from Vyrn, who's involved? I have some little ideas swimming around.

[Sigismund229]

Squig, question. I'm going through the Death of the Bear. What are Koschei's reasons for joining the insurrection?

[Hesh Kadesh]

The Armies of Dark Compliance certainly affects the Drowned. They break into their different parts so as to allow Morro to hunt Crone, Maiden and Craftworlds.

 

Hennasohn (Loyalist Drowned) could theoretically be Shattered Legion, but he returns to Terra. I suppose he could be a part of the Knights Errant? Although I'm wondering if Hennasohn should really be a Loyalist. He doesn't do much, really.

 

Should there be 'Black Knights?'

[Raktra]

I keep forgetting about the Knights Errant as well.

[Skalpynock]

Side note, and sorry if I've missed this but there is quite a lot going on, do we have a whole Shattered Legions deal going on in our universe? And if so, aside from Vyrn, who's involved? I have some little ideas swimming around.

Well, one of the ideas I had for Osaun was to have him wash down on some battlefield where the loyalists had lost (Lions during the shadow crusade?), and assemble a shattered fleet. I also have hinted at a VE captain turning to blackshield, and Armies of Dark Compliance will probably be the Revolutionary standard practice.

[Big Bad Squig]

Squig, question. I'm going through the Death of the Bear. What are Koschei's reasons for joining the insurrection?

 

Nurgle visits him in multiple visions in the guise of a legionnaire Koschei fought with in one of the Legion's exemplary battles, slowly feeding him with ideas of a better and more equal world, and the consequences for Koschei if he does not heed the vision (his death in the canonverse).  Nurgle promises to make this world where all men are equal a reality in exchange for a favour from Koschei.  Icarion then approaches him about joining his cause, ostensibly to make the Imperium a better place.  He is sent after the Bears, who Icarion says are a threat to justice in the Imperium, drawing parallels between Daerr'd and Russ.  Koschei doesn't know whether Icarion and the man in his vision are working together, but he believes that dispatching Daerr'd is the favour that Nurgle has asked.  After the deed is done, Nurgle imparts his gift, killing the entire Godslayers legion as a part of his cruel joke (for now, they are all equal) bar a select few, who are used as leverage.  But I'm pretty sure it was agreed that the Godslayers go zombie after the Death of the Bear campaign.

 

Anyway, ramble over.  Hope this is good enough information.

[Sigismund229]

Thank you Squig, that will be enough for me to include a brief summary of why he's gone over to Icarion. 

@bluntblade, the world will be changed from Istvaan soon as I find out where it's supposed to be happening. For now, Istvaan III is just a placeholder. 

@Griftofter, the necessary changes will be implemented, thanks for telling me. And I'll cut down the Iron Bears numbers to 200 hand picked Totem Guard. As for dreadnoughts...I'll find a replacement. 

Right, editing shall begin. 

However, while I was waiting for all that info, I started on the fluff for the featured Morro vs Pionius campaign. Voila: 

 

Underwater Madness

 

While Icarion had an advantage in sheer numbers of legionnaires, he knew that in some arena’s, who would hold the upper hand remained unclear. One such were the wars fought beneath the oceans of the galaxy. Of the legions who specialised in such brutal engagements, the Drowned and the Scions Hospitalier, only one had sworn itself to his cause. While the embittered and estranged Morro had been an early recruit to Icarion’s cause, Pionius, with his almost fanatical belief in the purity of the human form and fierce loyalty to the Emperor, would have been too dangerous to try and persuade to join the Insurrection as he would likely have sent word to their father of Icarion’s designs, which would throw the Stormborn’s plans into turmoil. This left the two opposing sides, those loyal to the Emperor and those loyal to Icarion, with equal strength underwater, their forces almost evenly matched and this was an inescapable fact when Icarion began to plan the opening phases of his betrayal. He couldn’t allow those loyal to the Emperor to outmatch him in any arena, for Icarion hoped to achieve as swift and bloodless a victory as possible(even now, he hoped that, as his treachery was revealed, he could sway the Warmaster to his cause) and for this he would need total superiority in all arena’s. 

 

            It was with this aim in mind, the securing of the underwater theatre, that Icarion dispatched his brother, Sorrosworn Morro, to the world of Untara Prime. It was here that Pionius Santor was currently prosecuting the Great Crusade alongside a force of perhaps some 45,000  of the Scions Hospitalier’s finest astartes.  In this, Icarion saw a chance to eliminate the entire Scions Hospitalier upper command structure, crippling the legion and dooming it to ineffectual guerrilla actions, securing the underwater theatre and removing yet another legion from those who opposed him. However, it would be no easy task for in the times before the Insurrection, Pionius had been the brother to whom Morro had been closest. To extent that any other than Morro himself did, Pionius knew all of Morro’s weaknesses and how to exploit them and so, Untara would be a test for the Drowned and their primarch, baptizing them to Icarion’s cause in blood, theirs and that of the XIX. Once he had turned upon the man who had once been his closest brother and bathed his weaponry in the blood of the sons of Iona, Morro would have no choice but to continue down the road of betrayal. This much, Icarion had seen and every path on which Morro shed the blood of the XIX was one where he also stood by Icarion’s side at Terra. 

 

 

           As ordered, Morro set off to Untara Prime, accompanied by nearly 60,000 of the Drowned, armed and prepared to fight under the crushing weight of the oceans and in the murky depths. While the Iron Bears would be outnumbered, surprised and unable to flee, leaving them no choice but to fight, the XIX would not have their backs against the wall as the VI had. The oceans of Untara Prime were enormous, covering almost 90% of the planet, giving the Scions Hospitalier ample room to disengage and fight a running battle in which they could hit the Drowned and then withdrew before the Drowned could hit back. In this kind of battle, even more than in ordinary marine warfare, numbers didn’t matter. All that mattered was who could deliver the harder punch faster. To this end, the Drowned were armoured entirely in reinforced and void hardened mkIV plate, a gift from the Lord of the Mechanicus, the traitor Kelbor Hal. While it was hardened in the same manor as the mkIII plate that was more common in actions fought in a void or in the murky deeps. While the armour had been in development for decades, designed as a replacement for the clunky and aging suits of mkIII armour many void specialists were forced to use, the only legion to receive a significant number of the suits were the Drowned(a benefit of their allegiance to Icarion). Included within the suits, in addition to extra mobility due to using the mkIV chassis rather than mkIII, were numerous features specifically designed for war under the waves, such as devices referred to by the Drowned as “gills” which enabled the suits to extract breathable oxygen from the water around them when activated and, although a major drain on power, this would allow the Drowned to fight for longer in an underwater environment. 

[MikhalLeNoir]

 

Squig, question. I'm going through the Death of the Bear. What are Koschei's reasons for joining the insurrection?

 

Nurgle visits him in multiple visions in the guise of a legionnaire Koschei fought with in one of the Legion's exemplary battles, slowly feeding him with ideas of a better and more equal world, and the consequences for Koschei if he does not heed the vision (his death in the canonverse). Nurgle promises to make this world where all men are equal a reality in exchange for a favour from Koschei. Icarion then approaches him about joining his cause, ostensibly to make the Imperium a better place. He is sent after the Bears, who Icarion says are a threat to justice in the Imperium, drawing parallels between Daerr'd and Russ. Koschei doesn't know whether Icarion and the man in his vision are working together, but he believes that dispatching Daerr'd is the favour that Nurgle has asked. After the deed is done, Nurgle imparts his gift, killing the entire Godslayers legion as a part of his cruel joke (for now, they are all equal) bar a select few, who are used as leverage. But I'm pretty sure it was agreed that the Godslayers go zombie after the Death of the Bear campaign.

 

Anyway, ramble over. Hope this is good enough information.

Hah!!! Koschei is MacBeth:)

 

One Question though: As Koschei belongs to the exclusiv Pariah Club or at least he is a psycbic supressant, how does nurgle connects to him?

[bluntblade]

Colchis is a backwater planet, and broken by the Drowned. Kor Phaeron is executed by Boræo (XVI equerry) and his understudy, Erebus is taken on as a Remembrancer, taking the title 'the Ereborean'. The planet is terraformed, and the Grey Flowers became a source of wealth for the planet, now that the conservative nature of Kor Phaeron had prevented the improvement of it and his influence removed. A Knightly Order was set up, and they shared a close relationship with the Drowned; collected in their entirety by Morro after he left the Vizenko Prosecution.

Fair enough. I like that.

 

And no worries Sigismund, I like what you've got written so far.

 

Just one minor thought- would the Dragon getting repaired be allowed given all the Warp stuff, or would it go the way of the Eisenstein ?

[Chief Captain Redd]

@Redd: Wow really? Only 90k? If I might suggest, could we possible put the number slightly higher? Like 124k? Because leaving the Iron Bears with 70,000 astartes still leaves them a sognificant threat and this battle was meant to "eliminate" them. (of course, having them take heavy losses now just makes it even cooler when they come back and give the traitors a good kicking ;) )

also, what's the world called? And I also need a name for the sergeant who delivers the speech I quoted in the passage?

The reason they become ineffective is it's so many of the actual fighting brethren whom are wiped out. The 4th is the largest fighting force in the Legion at about 35,000, but their last order from Daer'dd is to help safe guard Terra, so they basically wait out the insurrection on Terra until the seige. And then the 6th is small, mostly training neophytes whom won't be to legion standard for over a decade. So really it ends up being the survivors less than 30,000 Astartes whom are scattered and rebuilding their once famed Armouries. I think losing your Primarch is such a psychological toll on an Astartes. The Iron Hands had a greater remaining fighting force and yet they're absolutely scattered by the loss of Ferrus, little more than warbands.

[bluntblade]

The psychological aspect needs emphasising. Actually, I might combine that with Lotara and Ellan's hypoothetical pieces and give a few characters a "downtime on Terra" blurb. The Iron Bears who emerge from the Scouring are going to be a very different Legion.

 

One of my favourite small things in the Heresy books is Henricos the Iron Hand. That stuff about how he can't even look at his augments any more.

[Grifftofer]

I do love when you guys discuss combat viability of your legions after the sneak attack. "Only 30000 marines" :P

[Chief Captain Redd]

A thousand marines can conquer a world, but we are talking a war with almost a million marines on either side, Demi-God Primarchs, Titan legions, Knight houses, Daemons, countless human/ab-human/augmented Auxiliaries. A force of 10,000 Astartes could die in a day.

[Grifftofer]

Oh I agree. It just amuses me somewhat to see people say that 75% losses shatters a legion's ability to project it's power (which it would), when the remaining number of marines is still at least 3 times greater than my entire legion :P I'm not disagreeing with anyone on anything mentioned, I just wanted to share my amusement.

[Chief Captain Redd]

Haha, yeah true. By the way, how come the super low Astartes count? Even the wolves and TS got retconned closer to the 100,000 mark.

[Grifftofer]

Honestly I don't remember. I think I said that the total was equivalent to the Thousand Sons, as a balance to them. But that was some time ago and we have 3(4?) pariah legions so the balance is less necessary. Honestly didn't know about the retcon up to around 100,000 marines for SW and TS though. My numbers may bear some adjustment. Though I'll make sure I'm still the smallest legion as it fits with all the bits I've written so far.

[simison]

Haha, yeah true. By the way, how come the super low Astartes count? Even the wolves and TS got retconned closer to the 100,000 mark.

 

There was? I thought the TS were still at 10,000 max before the Battle of Prospero. It's why Ahriman is shocked to learn that only a 1,000 survive afterwards. 

[Hesh Kadesh]

http://www.heresy-online.net/forums/showpost.php?p=2145154&postcount=97

 

This lists 10,000 although lacks citations.

[MikhalLeNoir]

We have 4 Pariah Legions, Which is nice cuz all specialize in a different form of pariahness^^

 

Grave Stalkers

Godslayers

Wardens of Light

Warriors of Peace

 

On the size, i found this list, which has some sources added.

 

http://www.dakkadakka.com/dakkaforum/posts/list/497859.page

 

 

I -- Dark Angels: 100,000
II -- (Deleted)
III -- Emperor's Children: 110,000 (HH: Betrayal)
IV -- Iron Warriors: 100,000
V -- White Scars: 100,000
VI -- Space Wolves: ~70,000 (described as smaller than average)
VII -- Imperial Fists: ~100,000 (implied by Shadows of Treachery)
VIII -- Night Lords: 100,000
IX -- Blood Angels: 120,000 (Fear to Tread)
X -- Iron Hands: 100,000
XI -- (Deleted)
XII -- World Eaters: 150,000 (HH:Betrayal)
XIII -- Ultramarines: 250,000 (Know No Fear & Dan Abnett)
XIV -- Death Guard: 95,000 (HH:Betrayal)
XV -- Thousand Sons: ~10,000
XVI -- Sons of Horus: 150,000 (HH:Betrayal)
XVII -- Word Bearers: 200,000 (150,000 at Monarchia, increased by the time of the Heresy according to Dan Abnett on Youtube)
XVIII -- Salamanders: ~70,000 (described as smaller than average)
IXX -- Raven Guard: 90,000 (Deliverance Lost)
XX -- Alpha Legion: 100,000

[Skalpynock]

 

Haha, yeah true. By the way, how come the super low Astartes count? Even the wolves and TS got retconned closer to the 100,000 mark.

 

There was? I thought the TS were still at 10,000 max before the Battle of Prospero. It's why Ahriman is shocked to learn that only a 1,000 survive afterwards. 

 

The Raven Guard are noted as being the smallest legion after the battle of Gate 42 with only 80 000 marines. However they said at the Weekender that the Thousand Sons couldn't afford standard warfare tactics due to their numbers, so… Inferno will eventually provide an answer, but for the time being, I guess you can come up with a good reason for the Grave Stalkers to be so few.

[Sigismund229]

Well if the Grave Stalkers only harvest the gene seed of their pariah's(that still cannon Griff?) then logically they wouldn't have a huge amounts of gene seed to implant. Then of those recruits who survive, not all will be pariah's. Also, given the GS...peculier methods of gene seed harvest, some might not be succesful, ruined etc. Then, if the XV himeworld is less than optimal for human life(like Mycenae) then they'll have a relatively small recruitmnt pool. Then you need to factor in cbat losses as well. With all that I could easily see them not surpassing 10K

[Grifftofer]

Pretty much yep. They do recoup some other geneseed from the Reapers, but not enough to expand to the size of other legions. Combined with combat losses means they have a stable number of marines. Their numbers slowly increase, but even upon the recovery of K'awil they did not experience the exponential increase in number that others would.