IL I - The Harbingers (thread 2)

[simison]

Still hoping someone takes a look at the material to make sure it's grammatically correct. 

[Sigismund229]

I'll have a look asap

 

EDIT: looking through it, some is in the past some is in the present. Which one do you want to be using sim?

[bluntblade]

Has Athrawes indicated what METAL BAWKSES his Legion favours?

[simison]

I'll have a look asap

 

EDIT: looking through it, some is in the past some is in the present. Which one do you want to be using sim?

And here I thought you hadn't done anything yet. It's supposed to be in FW standard. EDIT: Past.

 

Athrawes has not mentioned that topic. In fact, I don't think he's replied to me since he's picked up the pace on his Thousand Sons project.

[MikhalLeNoir]

Is it known if he returns to the lightningbearers/ harbingers after he finished the thousand sons? He mentioned in his thread that he wants to finish his 6000 points army on the one year anniversary. So will he then rejoin this little project of ours?

[bluntblade]

I don't think anyone knows, that old comment in the II Legion thread aside.

 

Come to think of it, Lord Caldera has been silent as well. No new Lightning Bearers from anyone :(

[MikhalLeNoir]

Well the finish his "6000 points army on the 1 year anniversary"- comment was only a few days ago.

 

Yeah. New Lightningbearers/ harbingers would be cool.

[simison]

 So will he then rejoin this little project of ours?

 

I don't know. Keeping an eye out so far.

 

Sig, did you get my last message to you in this thread?

[Sigismund229]

 

 

So will he then rejoin this little project of ours?

I don't know. Keeping an eye out so far.

 

Sig, did you get my last message to you in this thread?

Just seen it

[Sigismund229]

Given the historic role of the Lightning Bearers in establishing many of the same standards used throughout the early legions, Icarion's discovery would lead only to a few structural changes. As the new commander of the First Legion, Icarion chose to leave a light touch upon the legion's structure to honour the work had done before him. Among the few changes Icarion enacted, the terms 'Chapter' and 'Company' were replaced by 'Company' and 'Maniple', respectively. As such, companies formed the largest unit within the Lightning Bearers, comprised of three to five battalions that were in turn composed of five maniples.

By far, the largest impact felt by the I^st Legion would be the adoption of the Astral College of Madrigal and the Celestial Orders. Henceforth from Icarion's ascension, the battle-psykers of the legion would be enrolled into the Astral College often as the last phase of their training. Given the large number of psykers within the Lightning Bearers' ranks, this would affect much of the legion. This proclamation would become the source of the sole point of contention within the legion. Prior to Icarion's discovery, the battle-psykers of the Legiones Astartes operated on a new frontier as several legions underwent an ethereal awakening of sorts, primarily the I, V, and XI Legions. Of the three, the battle-psykers of the XI^th, lead by the talented Ahriman and Ohrmuzd, encouraged passionate exploration of each of the traditional psyker disciplines to maximise their abilities.

Although the flesh-change would strike down the XI^th, the precedent Ahriman established would linger on. Although one of the greatest psykers in the Imperium's service, Icarion approached his powers, and the Warp by extension, with a mindfulness caution that clashed with the prevailing view. view of who?

Icarion and many of the magisters of the Astral College believed that the more garish Warp powers should be eschewed due to the inherent danger in wielding Warpcraft for one's own purposes. Instead, divination was considered the supreme discipline since only the psyker himself was exposed to the Warp for much gain. Although many Lightning Bearers would follow in their gene-sire's footsteps, a minority refused to do so. For a time, this rebellious element within the legion were at odds with Icarion who refused to support them and often argued against their cause, seeing their unbound powers as reckless. It was only after his brother, Alexandros, interceded on their behalf that Icarion chose a more permissive attitude. These Lightning Bearers were organized into a new Celestial Order called the Praxis.

As one can infer from the Order of the Praxis, the Celestial Orders functioned as identifiable schools of psychic disciplines within the legion. To become a member of a Celestial Order required dedication to the espoused teachings and the self-control to master the powers practiced by that particular Celestial Order. Often initiates would make their desires known to a member, who would then present them to the local master. After introductions were made, the ranking member, or sensei, would typically measure the candidate in whatever way they saw fit. If satisfied, the initiate was paired to a seasoned member, who would instruct them into the ways of the Celestial Order. How long the initiate remained an apprentice depended solely on the initiate, as gifted candidates have been known to achieve what status? status in months, while others took years to satisfy their masters. Once their master believes they are ready, they would be once again be presented to the sensei who would test the apprentice. If the apprentice passed, they were inducted as a full member of the Celestial Order.

Beyond the belligerent Praxis, half a dozen Celestial Orders operated with the Primarch's blessing. A primary colour and a symbol distinguished each of the Celestial Orders. Among the minor Celestial Orders were the Kitsune of the Golden Blossom, the Aki of the White Hill, the Tengue of the Jade Diamond, and the Sha of the Black Star.

I've put questions in bold

[simison]

"Although the flesh-change would strike down the XI^th, the precedent Ahriman established would linger on. Although one of the greatest psykers in the Imperium's service, Icarion approached his powers, and the Warp by extension, with a mindfulness caution that clashed with the prevailing view among the legions." 

 

"...as gifted candidates have been known to achieve membership status in months..."

 

I only saw two questions. Better?

[Sigismund229]

Change mindfulness caution to just "mindful caution" and you're good

[simison]

Thank you for the help, Sig. 

 

For Exemplary Battles, I'm going to go with the usual trio, focusing on different specialties and times. One will be the Battle of the Crystal Fortress from the Unification Wars. Two will be mid-Great Crusade at the height of the Lightning Bearers' popularity, focusing on either the Volta or the Oni. The final battle I want to feature them but hint at their nature of becoming Harbingers. I'm thinking the battle involves the Praxis and is secretly part of Icarion's on-going purge of his legion. 

 

So, should the Volta or the Oni be given the spotlight?

[bluntblade]

Maybe the Volta early on, with the Oni becoming prominent later due to the esoteric tech they use.

[simison]

Volta it is then.

[simison]

Exemplary Battles

 

Not only were the Harbingers the First Legion, but many had believed that they had been first among the legions. No other legion could boast more battle honours than the First. No other legion could claim to be larger. Finally, no other legion could assert that the Emperor had preferred another. For among all of the legions, it was the Lightning Bearers who the Emperor chose again and again to be his favoured weapon of war. It was thus that the Emperor's choice of Alexandros for Warmaster became all the more confusing given the preferential treatment Icarion and his sons had earned and enjoyed. Given the sheer volume of their victories, it is not the place in this tome to record all of them. Rather, the following three incidents give perhaps the purest views into the nature of the I^st.

[simison]

Silencing of the Eternal Dirge

 

From the darkness of Old Night came the Cult of Rapture, a society of human blood mages and gene-grotesques who reveled in the ritualized slaughter of millions. Over centuries the Cult subjugated the southern Polar Region of Terra enslaving entire generations of that once prosperous region. The Cult was comprised of more than the petty tyrants all too common across Terra at that time. They were instead, an organized religion, exulting the abhorrent mutations of the Psyker and worshiping dark and ancient false gods. Each day, hundreds of innocents were sacrificed to feed the bottomless hunger of their warlocks, creating in the process a great psychic malignancy afflicting the region known as the Eternal Dirge, a reality-bending affront to the natural order of the universe, both twisting the perception of those enslaved and guiding those who abased themselves to the abhorrent cult. Wherever the Cult’s grotesques were lead by the Dirge, a grisly pogrom was enacted to cull hundreds in order to strengthen their enclave and sustain the song which fueled them.

 

Until the coming of the Emperor.

 

As unity slowly began to encompass Terra, the Emperor turned his attention to the Crystal Fortress of the Cult, the diseased seat of the ritualized power. Every effort of the Emperor’s mortal soldiers and gene-crafted thunder warriors to pacify the polar region had met with disaster. More often than not, entire armies were enthralled by the Dirge and turned back to cruelly assail their fellows.

 

The Emperor had foreseen the perils of warpcraft as a threat to his designs and turned to his 1^st Legion for the region's deliverance. While all Space Marines had been crafted to serve as the Emperor’s greatest warriors, the I^st Legion had been created with a further specialization in mind. To combat the malignancy of rogue Psykers and the repugnancy of warpcraft, the Emperor had looked to create warriors in his own image, the wider Legiones Astartes were all meant to reflect aspects of the Emperor, to become embodiments of his might, the I^st Legion, however, had been crafted at the genetic level to reflect a shard of the Emperor's psychic might.

 

While it is true that many Legions contained warriors proficient in the use of psychic powers, indeed some legions where psychic power was relatively common place, no Legion shared the innate and widespread psychic proficiency that became manifest within the First. This genetic propensity towards unlocking humanities psychic potential was further expanded by the Emperor's focused efforts to recruit children with noteworthy and controlled psychic talents into the I^st Legion.

 

At the time, the nascent legion comprised of five chapters, and five chapters would be deployed by the Emperor's command to eliminate this metaphysical threat. 

[simison]

To counter the cult's ability to enthrall its enemies, each Lightning Bearer was given a jewel to wear. Called a tama, these spherical crystals were constructed from a rare kind of rose quartz that was naturally sensitive to the Warp's touch. Any Lightning Bearer who failed to resist the Dirge, their tama would darken with corruption. Additionally, the day before the planned invasion was entirely spent in meditation, honing their mental defenses to perfection.

 

The First Legion attacked. Overconfident in the Eternal Dirge's ability to corrupt their enemies, the six Divines neglected their defenses. Instead of amassing their might to overwhelm the invaders, they sent only small mobs led by psykers of lesser power and favor within the cult. These forces were merely to slow down the Lightning Bearers' advance long enough for the song to take hold of their souls. Although zealous in their twisted faith, the cultists died quickly in these skirmishes, while their psykers found themselves outmatched by the psychic strength of the First. 

 

With battlefield casualties light, Korvost Sahaal, Legion Master of the First, focused his attention on the spiritual fortitude of his marines. While there was no escaping the Eternal Dirge's music, most of the Lightning Bearers resisted its insidious effects. The few who were threatened by its touch were quickly evacuated outside of the Dirge's range to recover and to reinforce the legion later. Thus, three days passed in this manner as the Emperor's chosen legion steadily made their way to the cult's capital, their casualties negligible. It was only on the fourth day that the Divines truly became alert to the blade approaching their throats.

 

Enraged by the Lightning Bearers' perseverance, the Divines gathered their strength and plotted to crush the legionnaires between a dual flanking attack with two Divines leading the assaults. 

[bluntblade]

One thing - is this before Icarion? If so, they should be referred to as the Thunder Legion.

[Nomus Sardauk]

I thought Athrawes scrapped that idea a long time ago? Like before the BotL started?

[bluntblade]

Ah. Err.

 

Still probably worth not having them be Lightning Bearers just yet.

[Kelborn]

According to his latest update in his Thousand Sons thread, it seems like he's got plenty of Sons' stuff left to work upon. With the release of Inferno closing in, I doubt that we might see Athrawes in the nearest future within the broverse. :/

[bluntblade]

Well, we have plenty to do on other fronts.

[Kelborn]

Sure.

Just sayin' that his return might be delayed because of his current activities.

[Athrawes]

I live. And there is a Box of Burning of Prospero earmarked for the the Reborn Bearers'  The whole army is going to be redone, as I've learned a lot from a modeling standpoint this last year on the Sons.

 

That said, Inferno and the Thousand Sons have top priority on my queue at the Moment for what I would hope are obvious reasons. 

 

In other news, I've been asked to speak on the Age of Darkness podcast about creating Missing Legions, from a lore and hobbying aspect. It has more to do with fitting them into the Cannon verse than BoLS but I''ll definitely try to give you lot a shout out.