IA: The Celestial Zealots

[Lephisto]

This is my DiY chapter that I've been working on. Please provide any C&C if you have any. I'm always looking to improve the background of this chapter. I have also a Work in Progress thread located here: http://www.bolterandchainsword.com/topic/300556-index-astartes-the-celestial-zealots-update-119/

 

The Celestial Zealots

Founding: 25th Founding
Primarch: Roboute Guilliman
Successors of: Ultramarines
Descendants: None
Homeworld: Ligarius IV
Fortress Monastery: Fortress of Agoston
Specialty: Assault Specialization & Intelligence.
Colours: Dark Blue, Bone, Gold and Purple
Battlecry: “Ad Infinitum!” – “To Infinity Without End!”

Origins & Early Beginnings.

In 738.M40 the Imperium founded the twenty sixth founding of several new space marine chapters. Among the many newly founded chapters, The Celestial Zealots chapter were forged. The Celestial Zealots have a very strong sense of duty in exterminating the Xenos threat especially the Tyranids which surround their native homeworld.

A great warrior of courage named Titus Eracio of the Ultramarines who had served valiantly, was chosen to serve and lead the newly born Celestial Zealots. It was up to him now to make sure that his brothers were trained rigorously to serve the emperor with all their zeal.

The Celestial Zealots were primarily a fleet based chapter soaring through space in endless time. During this time the Imperium had come under attack by the new alien threat known as the Tyranids. The Celestial Zealots had sent many scout ships to monitor the Segmentum Solar system. Luckily one of the scout ships saw the approaching Hive to a certain world. The Celestial Zealots were now in a race against time to defend the planet from the rancid fiends.

Fortunately The Celestial Zealots arrived on time and warned every inhabitant to prepare and defend their planet. Many of the inhabitants were amazed and surprised by their arrival as they had never anything like the Space marines before. However the inhabitants were more than compliant to the orders of Eracio and welcomed their new allies. The Chapter waited for the arrival of the Tyranids and prepared cautiously as this was the first time they had ever faced a foe such as this.

Heavy Artillery and many of the Chapters companies were deployed under Eracio’s directions. The inhabitants were used to make fortifications and to gather supplies for the Chapter. Eracio had made to be sure that this world would stay claimed for the Imperium untainted by Xenos.

Finally the Tyranids arrived but only to their disappointment as they saw that The Celestial Zealots had already prepared to face them. Both sides engaged furiously in the blood fight. Death tolls on both sides were high. The Ligarius IV had been under attack by the Tyranids for just a few hours and the casualty toll of the inhabitants were already accumulating. Most of the marines on the front line were getting killed faster than they could hold off.

The first company of The Celestial Zealots were in charge of the front-lines, however majority of them were killed and pinned down in the trenches of the front lines. However the Tyranids were also running out of numbers to overwhelm the defence. Eracio knew that this was going to happen. The wise master prepared a huge fortification where all the inhabitants were gathered and the majority of the chapter were armed with heavy artillery to deliver the final blow to eradicate these fiends once and for all off their planet. The wise master and the last squad of the company rushed back to the fortification.

Explosions and bullets were tearing through the skies. The battle brothers at the fort started to open fire but this time with more firepower. Eracio commanded that sets of explosions was to be delivered near their fort. The effect of it was devastating. The whole of the surviving Hive were nearly destroyed. Izgon and his battle brothers arose out of the fort and fought the remaining fiends with all their might. On the corner of Izgon’s eye, he saw the hive tyrant, he immediately leaped forward to slay the beast. Bullets ripping through the rib cage of the tyrant weren’t enough. The master ran out of his bullets and had to rely on his pure strength.

After six long hours of struggling, all the remaining of the Tyranids were now all eradicated. The remainder of the Chapter and inhabitants gathered around the Eracio and the hive tyrant. Tears started to roll down the cheeks of the inhabitants as they saw Eracio as their personal saviour dying in front of them. The rest of the marines knelt and bowed down in honour around the master. As he was lying on the ground he turned his head to the right and saw a young man. He noticed that this young man fought like no other and had great potential. He beckoned him to come over to his dying body and commanded that Ligarius should be recruited to be a Celestial Zealot. The Chapter Master bid his final farewell and left the rest to the Captain of the first company - Lephisto Izgon.

The battle reports were sent to the High Lords of Terra and granted The Celestial Zealots Ligarius IV as their home world. Their courageous act of duty was noted. How the Celestial Zealots defeated the Hive Fleet Medusa and Eracio killed the Hive tyrant will always be remembered in the hearts of those that fought in the war. Their valiant service in the name of the Emperor was never to be forgotten.

The people of Ligarius IV saw the chapter’s arrival as an answer to their prayers. They also saw it as a prophecy fulfilled which was prophesied by their leading chief many years ago. The Celestial Zealots were able to defeat the menace. Although their victory was great, it had also come with a great cost. The first company nearly wiped out and their Chapter Master dead. The death toll of the inhabitants would have soared if it weren’t for the timely arrival of The Celestial Zealots.

Lephisto Izgon the Captain made vigorous plans to rebuild the planet and replenish the First Company. The Fortress Monastery was built upon the ground where the Chapter Master died. Lephisto Izgon also sensed the great potential of Ligarius and took it as part of his duty to train and recruit him. Since the war Ligarius Sidonis is now the Captain of the Second Company and also the Chief Librarian. The Celestial Zealots are now roaming through space to fight for the Emperor and the Imperium.

Notable Campaigns:

• The Defence of Ligarius IV
• The Decimation of Loranel
• The Shadows of Nemedon
• The Hunt
• The Great Pilgrimage

Combat Doctrine:
The Celestial Zealots specialize in assault adaptability.  At the centre of their combat doctrine is to exploit the weakness of their enemies. Specializing in intelligence they are able to predict what their foes manoeuvres will be before they even go to war. They mostly mobilize their tactical squads in vehicles to reach the enemy as soon as possible to deliver a hard hitting approach. This is the preferred method the Celestial Zealots use to whittle down the forces of their enemies, and then the elitist such as their assault terminators can then drop in the enemies’ back-line to end the conflict quickly as it started.

Chapter Organisation:
The Celestial Zealots are organized based on the leadership of the native leadership of the tribes on Ligarius IV which they have adopted. When a Chapter Master is to be appointed, he chooses two counselors who are of Captain Rank. These counselors are no longer Captain’s of their respective companies. Instead they serve right along beside the Chapter Master himself and enter into battle by his side. These three men form what is known as The Consul. The primary leadership responsibilities fall upon these battle brothers. Their dictates and missions are to be overseen and supervised by twelve men known as the Apostolorum. The formation of the Apostolorum is made up of the ten company captain’s and two of the highest ranking librarians. The next and last governing body is called the Elders. These battle brothers called the Elders are made of seventy men that have proven their worth in battle. When campaigns or dire decisions are to be made concerning the chapter, it is these men who decide the fate of the chapter concerning the will of the Emperor for them.

Apart from these slight deviations from the Codex Astartes, The Celestial Zealots adhere strictly. Unlike most chapters, Librarians are welcomed and honored above most of their battle brothers. They are considered to carry the mind and will of the Emperor in their minds. The Chief Librarian can be relieved of his duty and can serve as a Chapter Master if appointed according to the dictates of the Apostolorum.

Chapter Appearance:

The Celestial Zealots are painted in Dark Blue with gold or a silver aquila. Their shoulder pads are painted bone trimmed with gold. The rank and squad markings are made on the right shoulder pad. The tactical markings are painted gold with the designated squad number painted in white on the tactical marking. The Chapter badge is painted Black.

 

 

 

In the past the Celestial Zealots chapter badge was a shield with an upside down V. This was later changed to a bird. This was the personal heraldry of their first deceased Chapter Master Eracio. In honor of him, they adopted this to be their new chapter symbol. The Celestial Zealots use the bird as their chapter symbol but use the shielded V on most of their vehicles to honor their early heritage.

[Bjorn Firewalker]

Good job, thus far.

[Doctor Perils]

This is a good start, but I'd recommend placing the detailed description of the Defence of Ligurius IV in a different section on its own: either in the notable battles chapter or in a side pannel. This will allow you to focus on the big picture in the Origins and history section.

 

Being such a young chapter, it might be interesting for you to explain how they interact with more venerable chapters, and how they deal with it themselves. They seem to already have quite a few traditions which is pretty cool, so this might come into account when dealing with other chapter.

 

Your appearance section might do with a teeny bit more detail, about the golden right arm for instance. Rank and honour markings can be detailed in this section, in particular this idea of gold or silver aquila. Also, on the battlefield, white on gold on bone will be difficult to make out. Are there any specific company markings (this is far from mandatory, but you need to mention it) ? Finally, the "upside down V" is called Lambda, it's a greek letter. Nice touch indicating that they still paint it on their vehicles :)

 

Since they used to be a fleet based chapter, I imagine they still have an extensive fleet? Or perhaps they had a chapter Barque? Some extra precisions on this would be welcome.

 

I really like the different political powers in your chapter. Perhaps a little precision on the Elders would be interesting, to know who can be inducted ? Only the veterans? Can specialists also take part? If so, are any forbidden from ever joining?

And does this separation of powers entail any frictions within the chapter (Apolostorum disagreeing with the Consul(ate)?) or without the chapter (with strict chapters who follow the Codex to the letter ?)

[Lephisto]

Good job, thus far.

Thank you very much!

This is a good start, but I'd recommend placing the detailed description of the Defence of Ligurius IV in a different section on its own: either in the notable battles chapter or in a side pannel. This will allow you to focus on the big picture in the Origins and history section.

Being such a young chapter, it might be interesting for you to explain how they interact with more venerable chapters, and how they deal with it themselves. They seem to already have quite a few traditions which is pretty cool, so this might come into account when dealing with other chapter.

Your appearance section might do with a teeny bit more detail, about the golden right arm for instance. Rank and honour markings can be detailed in this section, in particular this idea of gold or silver aquila. Also, on the battlefield, white on gold on bone will be difficult to make out. Are there any specific company markings (this is far from mandatory, but you need to mention it) ? Finally, the "upside down V" is called Lambda, it's a greek letter. Nice touch indicating that they still paint it on their vehicles

Since they used to be a fleet based chapter, I imagine they still have an extensive fleet? Or perhaps they had a chapter Barque? Some extra precisions on this would be welcome.

I really like the different political powers in your chapter. Perhaps a little precision on the Elders would be interesting, to know who can be inducted ? Only the veterans? Can specialists also take part? If so, are any forbidden from ever joining?

And does this separation of powers entail any frictions within the chapter (Apolostorum disagreeing with the Consul(ate)?) or without the chapter (with strict chapters who follow the Codex to the letter ?)

Thank you for the feedback. This is really good and has given me a lot to think about and to write about. I'm still constructing the origins part, yes I agree with putting the Defence of Ligurius IV in it's own side panel but I'm not too sure how to code that in here. I will post when i edit these parts and update them.