IM - Vasalius 1st Terra Heredes Imperial Auxilia

[TheBlindPrimarch]

The Armis Ruptor

 

The Armis Ruptor Rifle (Commonly referred to as the "Astartes Cracker" by the rank and file of the Heredes Auxilla.) is an ancient, massive, bolt action rifle STC that uses solid munitions fired at a high enough velocity that the rounds are capable of punching through even the advanced armor of the Legion Astartes with relative ease. The weapon is so large that it requires two men to move, position, and even to fire the weapon effectively. The STC was discovered by the Leadership of Vasalius before the Purge and was moth-balled by the then peaceful people until it was discovered two hundred years later by the planet's war hardened inheritors.

 

Xander Purechild championed the adoption of the weapon for use in the Heredes Auxillas, claiming that it would give the Auxilla the edge they would need were they to ever have to prove their claims of superiority over the Emperor's impure Ab-human Legions and their Primarchs. The Armis Ruptor Rifle would indeed prove invaluable to the Auxilla during the dark days of the Insurrection, reaping a heavy toll in traitor Astartes lives during the length of that conflict; but as was shown during the disastrous battle of Carrion Hill, was wholly ill-suited to dealing with the mass charge of thousands of angry Legionnaires.

[TheBlindPrimarch]

Atlas Armor

Built by the fabricators of Vasalius' "Tomb" hive, the Atlas Armor was actually based off of STC meant for heavy lifting and construction but was re-purposed to serve as a siege-breaker by the Homeguard. The Atlas armor's heavy forward plating allowed it to weather the heaviest fire pouring out from the defenses of rouge bunkers, wading through incoming fire that would shred any normally equipped man right up to the outer walls of the objective, where it's powerful servo-claws could then be put to work tearing open the gates. The armor was so effective in this role that more often than not only a few suits would be deployed during any given operation. It wasn't until much later, after the arrival of the Emperor and the immeasurable material wealth of his Imperium, that the armor was deployed in any great number.

 

Once the proud Vasalians joined the Imperium the Atlas Armor was adopted for use by the Terra Heredes as it was seen as a more than capable alternative to the use of disgusting ab-human auxiliaries like Orgryns and was even considered equal to an Astartes in terms of raw killing potential among the leadership of Vasalius. It would prove an invaluable asset to the Heredes as they marched forth into the darkness of the unknown in the Emperor's name, allowing them to persevere against xenos that many other regiments of the Imperial Army would have had to call upon the Legions in order to triumph against, and silencing many of the Auxilla's nay-Sayers who criticized the Vasalian's unwillingness to utilize Ab-human Auxiliaries.

 

The armor's effectiveness against Astartes wouldn't be discovered until much later however, not until Icarion plunged the Imperium into civil war with his denouncement of the Emperor. Sadly it wouldn't be against traitor legionnaires that the Atlas Armor was first blooded against the genetically altered super soldiers, but loyal sons of the Warmaster himself, found stranded and badly wounded by the Grand Marshal's fleet. In an act of supreme treachery, Xander Purechild ordered that the Astartes not be given aid as any ally should, but that any attempt to call for aid or to escape be blocked after which he proceeded to order Heredes suited in Atlas armor to board the crippled Astartes ship and eliminate any survivors left on board resulting in the deaths of just over forty Wardens and fifty five Heredes. Of course every effort was made to destroy any proof of this having had happened, but the reports that did eventually surface would state that the Lord Commander's motive was scientific, not based on the Vasalian's veiled hatred off all things not purely human. Regardless of the reasoning, the results were clear...while not nearly as agile or as fast as a legionary in close combat, if the operator could score a hit against his opponent Atlas Armor was deadly to Astartes, a fact that was reinforced every time the Terra Heredes Imperial Auxilla deployed them against the traitor legions.

[TheBlindPrimarch]

The Pure Bloods

 

Detractors of the Terra Heredes speak of the arrogance of the Vasalians behind closed doors and out of earshot of any who might hear. Those voices fall silent when the Pure Bloods are present, and for good reason. While some would question the claims of the wider Heredes, as an elite force the noble sons of Vasalius' effectiveness is beyond question and some have even been known to assert that the Pure Bloods prove the Heredes claims of being equal to the Legion Astartes in terms of effectiveness.

 

Formed entirely from the noble blood lines of Vasalius, those families that could trace their linage all the way back to the days of Gregor Purechild; they were originally trained to serve as the guardians of the Purechild family line and even now serve as the bodyguards of the Grand Marshall Xander Purechild. The Pure Bloods receive the best equipment the forges of Vasalius can produce and fight in the most dangerous theaters the Heredes are called to, marching into battle in gleaming silver armor and with white and red cloaks bellowing in the wind; starkly contrasting with the black and red of the Heredes rank and file.

 

The Battle of Carrion Hill would be a black mark against the Pure Bloods that they would struggle to get out from under for much of the early days of the Insurrection, and would drive them to extreme acts of suicidal heroism until the daughter of Xander Purechild, Selene Purechild, inherited the position of Grand Marshall and began her long road towards being the first non-Primarch saint of the newly formed Imperial Faith. The Pure Blood's steadfast support of the new savior of Vasalius, even against her opponents among the noble families of Vasalius, would cleanse them of their shame and allow them to once again march to war in the Emperor's name with their heads held high.

[simison]

I believe Sig had already written a redbox about the shoulder-break rifle many moons ago. So, I would check with him to iron that out...whenever he gets back.

 

First, Legionnaire -> Legionary. That's something we discovered earlier as the FW standard. Other than that, it's good and unexpectedly dark. Is this tied into Xander going Dark Side idea? 

 

Fairly straightforward for the Pure Bloods, until the last paragraph where it gets extra tasty. So, some background. There's a short story somewhere in this sub-forum where Alexandros presents the Lectitato to essentially the first priest of the Imperial Faith. With Alexandros is Euphrati Keeler, older but essentially the same character. So, in theory, the title of 'first non-Primarch saint' is already taken. 

 

...but I'm slightly unsatisfied with just borrowing from canon, especially since the Luna Wolves aren't here. Could you expound more about your ideas for Selene? Or potential ideas?

 

Also, of note, I don't typically think of the Primarchs as saints per se. As hinted by the theological perspectives, since Alexandros takes a much more direct approach to the proto-Creed, the Primarchs are viewed as being on a higher level than saints. Instead, since the Emperor is a deity in this religion, the Primarchs are upgraded to demigods. 

[bluntblade]

Had we got properly acquainted with the Solar Auxiliary and their weapons at the time the shoulder-breaker happened?

[simison]

Had we got properly acquainted with the Solar Auxiliary and their weapons at the time the shoulder-breaker happened?

 

Acquainted? As in, do we understand Solar Auxilia weapons?

[bluntblade]

 

Had we got properly acquainted with the Solar Auxiliary and their weapons at the time the shoulder-breaker happened?

 

 

Acquainted? As in, do we understand Solar Auxilia weapons?

Yep. Or rather, did we? Were we filling a niche that's more effectively filled by weapons we weren't aware of, back then?

[TheBlindPrimarch]

I believe Sig had already written a redbox about the shoulder-break rifle many moons ago. So, I would check with him to iron that out...whenever he gets back.

 

First, Legionnaire -> Legionary. That's something we discovered earlier as the FW standard. Other than that, it's good and unexpectedly dark. Is this tied into Xander going Dark Side idea? 

 

Fairly straightforward for the Pure Bloods, until the last paragraph where it gets extra tasty. So, some background. There's a short story somewhere in this sub-forum where Alexandros presents the Lectitato to essentially the first priest of the Imperial Faith. With Alexandros is Euphrati Keeler, older but essentially the same character. So, in theory, the title of 'first non-Primarch saint' is already taken. 

 

...but I'm slightly unsatisfied with just borrowing from canon, especially since the Luna Wolves aren't here. Could you expound more about your ideas for Selene? Or potential ideas?

 

Also, of note, I don't typically think of the Primarchs as saints per se. As hinted by the theological perspectives, since Alexandros takes a much more direct approach to the proto-Creed, the Primarchs are viewed as being on a higher level than saints. Instead, since the Emperor is a deity in this religion, the Primarchs are upgraded to demigods. 

 

Legionnaire vs Legionary:  I'll go through what I've written and make the necessary corrections.

 

Xander's path towards darkness:  Actually no, this is more so a reflection of the disdain the Vasalians have towards those they consider impure. Xander wanted to test his Atlas suit against Astarte armor, and much like Joseph Mengele of Nazi Germany, he has little to no inhibition towards using live Astartes to conduct said tests.

(It's a somewhat tasteless comparison, and I'm sorry if it offended anyone, but it serves the purpose of explanation of both Xander's character and Vasalian cultural beliefs.) 

 

The Selene concept: Selene is the daughter of Xander Purechild, and as is quite often the case with the children of powerful people; she is the polar opposite of her father. Where he is cruel, she is compassionate. Where he is ruthless, she is merciful...etc. The concept is still rather rough, but the basic idea is while Xander is a mix of Alexander the Great, Napoleon and Hitler with a sprinkling of psychopath; Selene is similar in character to Joan of Ark, in both tactics and beliefs.

 

The First Human Saint: To be honest, when I came up with the idea of Selene I envisioned her as being a possible replacement for Keeler in the BotL universe. It's through her that the Imperial Faith gains such a foothold on Vasalius and gradually supersedes the Purechild system as the primary cultural motivation. When she gains control of the Heredes she uses her position to spread the Imperial Faith, leaving a trail of shrine worlds in her wake as she fights in the name of the Emperor.

Had we got properly acquainted with the Solar Auxiliary and their weapons at the time the shoulder-breaker happened?

 

Is this a questions for the Heredes or in terms of the project? If it's the first, then the people of Vasalius discovered the STC for the Armis Ruptor over two hundred years before the Crusade brought the Emperor to the Giant's Paradise, but having no use for it on a generally peaceful planet they mothballed the weapon.  It was rediscovered by the sudo-techpriests of the "Crypt" hive but wasn't adopted for use until Xander championed it due to it's effectiveness against heavily armored targets. (Like Astartes) 

[bluntblade]

In terms of the project

[TheBlindPrimarch]

Oh, well in that case, I don't know...I don't know if I was involved in the project at that time

[bluntblade]

Right.

 

I'm still not sure just how cumbersome the shoulder-breaker is. From what I've read it might be fine for tackling a Zerg rush of marines on foot, but a Legion has a lot of ways around that.

[simison]

 

 

Had we got properly acquainted with the Solar Auxiliary and their weapons at the time the shoulder-breaker happened?

 

Acquainted? As in, do we understand Solar Auxilia weapons?

Yep. Or rather, did we? Were we filling a niche that's more effectively filled by weapons we weren't aware of, back then?

 

 

I'm still really confused by your wording. Or you asking about the ideas we pitched around about how to improve the Imperial Army's arsenal against the Traitor Marines? In which case, you should ask Sig when he gets back. I recall him being the one coming up with most of the ideas. 

 

Back to Selene. I looked and found my old short story. It hasn't made it to the Stories thread, which I need to fix. But that also means I haven't picked a year for it...which is actually good because I fear how many Stories' timeline need to be reworked into the new timeline we've set up. 

 

Anyway, reading the context, I think this story happens about mid-Insurrection, not long before the First Solar War or maybe even right after it. Could Selene theoretically feature here:

 

"Othnil awaited his sentence in the small cell. The small man, like others judged, disagreed with the authorities that his actions had constituted a crime. Unlike others, Othnil could honestly say that he had stolen nothing or shed anyone's blood. What he had done was tell the truth. An uncomfortable truth that the Imperium struggled with. 

 

The Emperor, praise be his name, was a god. 

 

Despite his claims to the contrary, the Emperor had worked miracles through his own divine power. As in the myths of old, he was immortal and and great in presence. And, as an angel, he had come to humanity in its darkest hour to bring salvation. The evidence was undeniable. If that wasn't enough, Othnil had personally witnessed the power of the Emperor brandished against the forces of darkness, a score ago. Ever since that day, he had been a faithful disciple of the true Imperial Truth. 

 

Which had led to his current predicament. He understood not everyone was ready to embrace this truth, although the people of Mictana owed much to the Emperor. He had tried to ensure his testament reached only those ready for this truth. Yet, as the Agent of Darkness, Icarion, spread his evil across the stars these past, terrible decade, Othnil's small congregation of a few dozen had exploded as hundreds more sought comfort and hope. It was perhaps inevitable that word would reach Governor Snow's ears. Othnil held no ill will toward the Governor, who was merely carrying out his duties. 

 

The cell door unlocked as two guards stepped in. "Prisoner #59285, come with us."

 

Othnil obeyed, his old bones struggling for a moment with the simple action before he hobbled towards them with a back long exhausted by work in the mines. To his surprise, one of the guards held out his cane. "Thank you, young man," he murmured as he accepted his cane. 

 

Silently, they led him out of the prison barracks, and, in another surprise, to the prison complex's administration building. Although he burned with questions, Othnil dared not ask any of them. Was he to be executed? Exiled? They led him to an elevator and picked the highest level. From there, they walked in toward the center of the building. At last, the guards stopped outside of a set of double doors. "Prisoner, proceed inside," the right guard ordered as he opened one door.

 

Othnil studied the guard's face for any hint of what awaited him in the room, but the guard's face was blank. Steeling himself for the worst, he shuffled inside. The door closed behind him. He froze in wonder and awe.

 

He was inside a conference room, dominated by a large, center table, ringed by chairs. At the opposite end of the table sat the Warmaster, Alexandros. In a moment, Othnil could feel his fears fade away by the aura of this loyal son of the Emperor. He fought the urge to fall to his knees in devotion.

 

The Warmaster smiled. "Hello, Othnil. I have a gift for you."

 

"My lord," Othnil managed to whisper out, "I am unworthy." 

 

The demigod chuckled and gestured for Othnil to sit. "You may think so, but I'm sure many of your followers would disagree. Your body may be old and broken, but I can see your spirit. It is a powerful fire that attracts others with its strength and its warmth."

 

Uneasily, Othnil sat, his amber eyes avoiding the Warmaster's emerald eyes. Although he did not wish to contradict the Emperor's son, he said, "They are not my followers. Merely fellow seekers." 

 

The red-maned Primarch nodded as he sat in his military uniform. "There is some truth in what you say, but it is also true that they look to you for guidance."

 

Othnil couldn't counter that one without lying, and he dared not sin against the Warmaster. "I still don't know why I am here, my Lord. Is my punishment to be severe?"

 

"There will be no punishment," Alexandros assured him. "On the contrary, I am here to free and commission you."

 

"Commission?"

 

"I know the rumours have already begun circulating throughout this planet, indeed, throughout the Imperium." The Warmaster's face hardened. "Tales of corruption, of dark sorcery employed by the Traitors." 

 

"May they suffer an eternity of damnation," Othnil refrained before freezing. It had become a common curse among the believers that it had spilled out without thinking.

 

There was a touch of regret to the Warmaster's expression. "I am here to tell you that there is truth to the rumours. A few of my brothers have contacted demonic beings within the Warp and have traded humanity for power. These same beings, they feed off misguided faith. Faith, despite what the Imperial Truth has said, is a powerful weapon within the Warp."

 

Every drop of wisdom was clutched and cradled in Othnil's minds. Yet, each one provoked a thousand new questions. One, in particular, burned brightest. "My lord, why reveal these things to me? I am but a man, closer to the grave than to life?"

 

The Warmaster smiled, a smile that empowered Othnil's spirit. "On the contrary, Othnil, you will be my most powerful weapon against the evils of the Warp. Remember what I said, faith is power. And who have you placed your faith in?"

 

"The Emperor," Othnil breathed.

 

"Yes, what you and the others believe is true. The Emperor is a god in human form. As we speak, He guards Terra and battles the daemons who seek humanity's ruin." The Warmaster pointed to the table's center. For the first time since entering the room, Othnil saw a book in front of him. It was titled, Lectitio Divinitatus. "For noble intentions, my father hid his divinity behind the Imperial Truth. No longer. The Imperial Truth has served its purpose, and it is to be replaced by a new Imperial creed. You are to spread the faith, Othnil, speak the truth. As the creed spreads, the stronger the Emperor will become."

 

Othnil tentatively reached out and ran his fingers across the book's face. "But, my lord, should you not have chosen someone on noble Terra? Why here? Mictana III is but a simple mining world. The other planets are either mining or agri-worlds. How can the truth spread from here faster than on Terra?"

 

"The Stormlord's spies have weaved a net over it. Although no enemy ship orbits above her, make no mistake, Terra is under siege." The Warmaster explained as he stood and walked over to Othnil. "The Mictana system sends her supplies throughout the Imperium. As you spread the truth here, it will attach itself to the supply convoys and spread it throughout the galaxy. I have foreseen it."

 

Excitement grew within his heart, but Othnil had one last question. "Warmaster, I know you have seen this future and will not fail you. But, will I see the end of the Traitor's evil?"

 

Alexandros knelt down and spoke to Othnil eye-to-eye. "I do not know when this Insurrection will end, but I do know that you will not see it. You are right, the strain of the mines will end your life in a few years. Take heart, what you begin here will reverberate through the decades to come. And, you will not face this burden alone. You will have a companion." The Warmaster knocked on the table twice.  Behind Othnil, the door opened to allow another to enter, a woman. "This is Euphrati Keeler. Like you, she saw the true evil we are fighting during the Great Crusade. A glimpse, really, but it was enough to awaken her to the truth. Now, the Emperor's power shines in her."

 

Other men would have balked at knowing how short their lifelines were. Not Othnil. With conviction that could move a mountain, he said, "I will make every day count, Warmaster."

 

[Sigismund229]

I'm having a bit if a lazy day, what with having no welcome talks or the like to attend, so I thought I'd use the time to reply to this.

The reason I started spewing out ideas for anti-legion stuff was that the IA as shown by FW doesn't yet seem to have any specific astartes killing weaponry. I thought that seeing as the Imperial Army in our 'verse is going to be doing a greater proportion of the fighting than in canon, it will be more urgent to give them kit which does something to level the playing field against legionaries. I also thought that even if the Administratum didn't start issuing such equipment, the troops would improvise it like they did in the first world war. 

 

Now, it's important to note I was thinking of gear that could be given to the bog standard Imperial Army rather than the Solar Auxilia, who I thought wouldn't be in so great a need of it as they would have greater access to things like volkites and plasma weapons. My thought with the shoulder breaker was that it could be doled out on a squad basis, so in terms of rules it could be something you'd get for a las squad to try and boost their firepower a bit and make them actually cause damage to legionaries without paying a lot. As far as I'm aware, the IA doesn't have anything that already does that

[bluntblade]

I mean, Sim, might there be a canon weapon that works better, and therefore would the Heredes adopt that?

[Sigismund229]

I mean, Sim, might there be a canon weapon that works better, and therefore would the Heredes adopt that?

Well, plasma would be less reliable technically and take more maintenance but plasma is a pretty much guaranteed legionary killer if you hit him. Volkites are too rare I'd imagine. Lascannons are possible but they're also difficult to make and I'd imagine the SA and IA would prefer to keep them as tank killers. Meltas are also possible although they share plasma's problem of being expensive and taking high amounts maintenance. 

 

Thing that the Shoulder Breaker has over all of these is that it's cheap and low maintenance. 

[Demus Ragnok]

Looking at the Militia list Grenadiers have access to bolters and support squads have a full selection of heavy weapons. And rapier platforms. I think it safe to translate the Militia lists to "regular army" so they have some power armor killing weapons available. How limited that availability is, well that is the question.

[bluntblade]

Shoulder breaker can certainly remain. It just wouldn't be half as effective as the propaganda would have it.

 

Actually, that could be the start of the Uplifting Primer issue...

[Sigismund229]

Shoulder breaker can certainly remain. It just wouldn't be half as effective as the propaganda would have it.

 

Definitely. The main thing it has going for it is that it's easy to maintain and cheap to produce compared to the other options. 

[TheBlindPrimarch]

I have a comprise I think we can all agree on given even a basic understanding of the weapons industry.

Let the IA have the low cost, low maintenance shoulder breaker...Not overly reliable, easy for the rank and file to use.

But...

Have it based off of the Heredes' Armis Ruptor STC, which is considerably more expensive to produce, requires a higher level of training to use, and is moderately more effective.

Given that often times there are multiple versions of weapons meant to do the same thing I think that this option works well.

[Sigismund229]

I have a comprise I think we can all agree on given even a basic understanding of the weapons industry.

Let the IA have the low cost, low maintenance shoulder breaker...Not overly reliable, easy for the rank and file to use.

But...

Have it based off of the Heredes' Armis Ruptor STC, which is considerably more expensive to produce, requires a higher level of training to use, and is moderately more effective.

Given that often times there are multiple versions of weapons meant to do the same thing I think that this option works well.

I was actually thinking something like that. Perhaps the Heredes/Solar Auxilia version could have some mechanism to compensate for the recoil, meaning that it's easier on the guy using it as well. And the ammo could be more akin to bolter rounds than upscaled autogun rounds. Although I'd be tempted to have the shoulder breaker come first and then the Armis Ruptor develop from that rather than the other way round. Unless the Heredes would already have the Armis Ruptor during the GC

[TheBlindPrimarch]

That's what I was saying, the Armis Ruptor is an STC found on Vasalius 200 years before the arrival of the Emperor, it was just mothballed because Vasalius pre-purge had no use for it

[Sigismund229]

Actually, question that has probably been answered already: what do Heredes uniforms look like? Are they distinctive or just standard SA?

[TheBlindPrimarch]

Similar to the SA in that they wear void hardened suits but their helmets are more angular and have a t-visor like Starwars clone troopers.

The rank and file wear black armor with red under-armor

Sergeants add a red shoulder cloak on the right side.

Lower ranking officers trade the red for white.

Higher ranking officers add a white crest.

Pure Bloods wear silver armor and white under-armor.

The Grand Marshal wears golden armor and white under-armor.

The lenses of all their armor light up red.

[TheBlindPrimarch]

Also they have a reinforced pauldron on their left shoulder.

[TheBlindPrimarch]

The first solar war is after the Blood Crusade, yes?