Feasible DIY origin?

[Ekim_Trub]

Hey guys, I had an idea the other day regarding a potential complete overhaul of my DIY Chapter's origins- but I wanted to run the general idea past everyone to make sure it fitted in with the established background or not before trying to write it all up.

My idea is to have my Chapter born from the remnants of one of the Nomad-Predation Fleets that Corax exiled before the Dropsite Massacre at Isstvan V, and here's the rough plan for how I envision it to work.


 

• The fleet began to use the name 'Sable Hawks' to distinguish themselves from the old XIXth Legion & from the Raven Guard from which they were exiled. 
  (General feeling amongst the fleet after the Battle for Gate 42 was that Horus saw the XIXth as nothing more than a disposable tool to further the glory of his own Legion, whereas Corax viewed them as nothing more than a constant reminder of his traumatic past.)
• They drew the name from an ancient Terran myth that spoke of ominous "Black Hawks" that would descend upon the enemies of the old Tyrants to deliver their wrath. These mythological creatures were said to bring with them the Tyrants most elite warriors, highly trained hunters from which escape was almost impossible.
  (This ties into the XIXth's role prior to the great Crusade as the Emperor's hidden hand of vengeance, tasked with hunting down those who would rather flee than bend the knee.)
• The fleet was formed from the remnants of an Assault Company noted for their use of gunships to launch lightning assaults upon the enemy. Although originally made up entirely of Terrans, battlefield losses had seen about 40% of their number replaced with Deliverance-born Legionnaires.
  Reason for exile: Corax saw them as a reminder of the regime he had overthrown, due to their wholesale slaughter of the enemy and their refusal to accept any surrender once hostilities had began as well as their casual disregard for the lives of civilians on the battlefield.
   
• When the news of Horus' betrayal reached the fleet, it was brought by to them through a chance encounter with a Mechanicum fleet when they were forced to seek refuge in the Kasio System from warp storms. The Mechanicum Priests had declared for Horus and sought to turn the fleet to the Warmasters cause, however, they had no intention of being involved in any war between a Father & his Son(s).
  This was until they heard the details of the massacre at Isstvan V. Hearing how their brothers had been deceived, butchered then hunted like animals by those they had once called friend & ally enraged the fleet. 
• Rage soon became action, and the Sable Hawks attacked the Mechanicum fleet without warning, leading to a swift and decisive capture of their ships. With emotions running so high, the ships were scoured clean of all life save for the most high ranking Priests who were captured for interrogation. 
• Upon investigation, the data-stacks & holds of the ships would divulge a horrific secret- the traitor Mechanicum had created heretical creations that fused both machine & warpborn flesh. Furthermore, there was details of numerous Forge Worlds practising this blasphemous work.
• The news of their Legions demise and the discovery of these heretical creations led to a massive debate amongst the fleet, one that almost led to open war, for some of the Sable Hawks wanted to rush back to Deliverance to aid their brothers in their darkest hour, whereas others wanted to launch a campaign against the corrupted Forge Worlds before they could unleash their foul creations upon the Imperium. ​​

 

This leads me to a point where I could go several ways with them:

 

Idea 1- The fleet decides they must go to Deliverance to aid their brothers, for even in exile, they are XIXth Legion!
Idea 2- They decide to honour their exile, but remain loyal to the Imperium & the Emperor, so launch a campaign to destroy corrupted forge Worlds & hunt the heretic Mechanicum Priests.
Idea 3- They decide that they need to strike for Terra and take orders from the Emperor himself.

Whatever path I decide to take them, will see them set upon the path of relic hunters who seek out the lost & ancient tech from the Great Crusade and before to prevent the forces of Chaos using them against the Imperium.

As always, all thoughts and opinions are greatly appreciated. Hopefully this all makes some sort of sense and can be the new beginnings for my Chapter. Thanks in advance. 

[Sons of Ananta]

Well, I love it.  I can't speak as to whether it's totally in canon, but the story is nice.  Loyal to, but also slightly alienated from, their parent Legion, with the potential for some good grimdark slaughtering and fun. 

Really nice work, mate.

[Ekim_Trub]

Thanks for the reply, I am glad you feel it fits the background and I am going to take the lack of further replies as a positive sign and will proceed to try to write my ideas up properly now.

[Sons of Ananta]

I wish I could be of more help. But being poor, I haven't managed to catch up with all the HH stuff.

[Ekim_Trub]

Haha, yeah I feel you on that one. All the information I have is second hand taken from posts on here and other websites.

[Quixus]

Sounds good. Exiling and/or punishing a company is hardly unheard of. Big E chastised a whole legion for worshipping him and eradicated two legions for reasons we will probably never know.
 
IMHO option 2 would fit the Raven Guard best. They are very independent and sneaky.
 
I lol'ed at the mythological black hawks carrying the elite troops of the tyrant.

[Ekim_Trub]

Yeah, I am leaning towards option 2 myself, may even allow for the opportunity of a reconciliation with Corax as he travels to the EoT on his self-imposed exile. (They could maybe join up and do a spot of Dark Mechanicum hunting together?)

My Chapter are not overly sneaky, but they do use stealth and infiltration to get within striking distance, then descend on the enemy at a speed the White Scars would be proud of. 

Haha, glad you saw the humour in the "Black Hawks". That was inspired by something I read about how history in 40k is all about myths/legends/deeds being tales told or misremembered by numerous different people and then recorded by someone else- so nothing is ever as it seems.

[Brother Tiberus]

I like all of this. It's all very well thought out and makes perfect sense. Well done, top notch.

 

I'm agreeing with you (and everyone else) that option 2 is a good idea. Considering Corux is hunting down renegade Mechanicum as well, I can see a good story link with him bumping into his exiled sons, seeing the work that they do and giving them the "big thumbs up"