Forge World Inspirations

[Tyriks]

What have people used as inspiration to devise their FW's history/ideals? I really love playing AdMech but it's hard to motivate myself to actually work on the models since I haven't been able to settle on a solid foundation for the army. I find it much more difficult than working on SM chapters since they are so thematic. There isn't that much of that for the AdMech though so what have people used to make a FW really their own?

[Dark Bjoern]

At the end it´s the same as with a SM chapter. Choose an existing forgeworld or create a new one. Maybe a forgeworld under siege, may it be by the orcs, tau or chaos.

Or your army is part of an explorator fleet. An unpopulated planet with a lot of old ruins. Your Skitarii had been send out to protect an Archmagos who search for a STC to bring glory to your forgeworld.

[Tiger9gamer]

So I play as the Forge world of Lucius but I made my own army/legion from that world:

 

 http://www.bolterandchainsword.com/topic/321848-413th-lucius-extermination-legion/

 

basically I thought of a character's name after goofing around in an electricity class, then thought up his army, then decided it was the army I was currently putting together and painting. It's more electricity themed than 'normal' and I decided to make it a sort of armored company back before the FAQ screwed me over. 

 

Still have to try and convert my guys to look more electricity based, but that's a project for later. right now, I got all the fluff down I think.

[Tyriks]

I thought about doing something like that with an existing FW but the color schemes are all so similar... I already play a BA successor so the one or two schemes I like from the codices are basically how I'm already painting my BA. The ones that aren't just red with a new highlight color don't appeal to me that much.

 

I also have a hard time sticking to existing patterns. I like having the freedom to decide something should look different without just making it "wrong" (and people already think my DIY chapter is just "wrong" Flesh Tearers).

[thevoodooman]

My marine chapter are based to guard a relic world, so I figured that there would need to be some representatives from the mechanicus along with their skitarii guards, oh and they're pink

[Magos Takatus]

I've started to theme my army over the radioactive ores found on the forge world. I've decorated my bases with an ore that looks a bit like Torbernite 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

I have made a reference to the mineral Tiberium from the Command and Conquer games as a result.

 

I've also got the beginning of a homebrew space marine force and will link the two armies with a mutual trade pact for my Forge World to gain mining access to the asteroid belts that surround my space marine chapter's home world in exchange for military support and training the chapter's techmarines.

[JeffTibbetts]

I decided on my color scheme first, then reverse-engineered the story from there. I like how the red robes of AdMech are inspired by the red dunes of Mars. I chose a sort of muted blue, and I knew I wanted to use a worn brass and a shiny copper as well. I looked up a bunch of stuff about copper and bronze because I knew they could produce a blue or green patina that I thought would contrast well. In doing research I learned that it's not oxidization in the same way as rust, but copper ores do produce a blue compound called azurite that was even used as a paint pigment historically. I fell down a weird rabbit-hole looking up copper, brass and bronze in history and alchemy, and ended up using a lot of greek words for the FW and Skitaari. I even used the alchemical symbol for copper in my FW symbol, a stylized K you can see in my signature. My FW is name Kal'kaplos (which is a corrupted form of a greek word meaning something like 'brazen gates') and the Skitarii are called the Kal’kendutos or brass-clad. Their world is rich in copper in various forms, and they've taken to creating new alloys from it. The brass they use instead of the usual silver metals is as hard-wearing as steel. Copper is one of the most conductive metals around and the planet is embroiled in constant electrical storms that the Ad Mech use to power their equipment. This has led the FW to specialize arc weaponry and promotes the Motive Force as the most revered third of the trinity. 

 

Suffice to say all that started by looking up steampunk stuff and settling on blue, brass and copper. It's interesting how the seed on an idea can come to encompass so much. 

[Tyriks]

That's what I need to do. I just decided a couple days ago to use the same colors as my BA successor (saves on paints and my only other idea was white which I can't paint well yet). It'll look similar to Stygies VIII. Looking into metallurgy is a good idea for themes!

[Carlson793]

I came up with my forge worlds history by being a lazy who had an interest in the Red Planet well before he had an interest in 40k.

[JeffTibbetts]

Metallurgy could be cool and has obvious ties to alchemy, which is a big part of the Adeptus Mechanicus lore.

[Vel'Cona]

Oh, I thought we were talking about FW models. Derp.

For my FW, I just went to the lore and dug up a FW that didn't have any existing history (or not much). I liked the symbol for Triplex Phall in the codex and I figured I could make it my own without having to reinvent the wheel. The other bonus is there was no dictated paint scheme.

[Magos Takatus]

I love the idea of using metallurgy and alchemy for a base (unintended pun ahoy!). Just thinking what materials your Forge World has plentiful supplies of (or minerals they lack) provides a more interesting hook for narrative games.

 

Perhaps somebody could have an Admech faction fighting another imperial faction because that agri-world is found to have a bounty of mineral supplies? Being able to come up with real reasons for imperial factions to fight can sometimes be tricky so perhaps that would help?

[Tyriks]

Alchemy is proving to be a wellspring of inspiration. I knew I wanted my Forge World to be a little aberrant (so if I have to fight Imperials there's an easy explanation) and I think this is exactly what I needed!

[Battybattybats]

For me it was Mars and the conspiracy, new-age and occult beliefs around it through history and the religious/occult aspects of the Mechanicus. Hence my Forgeworld is named St Hoagland after Richard Hoagland who was responsible for much of the Face-on-Mars and Pyramids-of-Mars stuff, my nearby Knight world is New Ares, my Knight House is House Cydonia.