A passage capturing the essence of your fave legion...

[b1soul]

Please share..

 

Here is mine:

 

'Just tell me this,' he said. 'Why does it matter to you so much?'

 

'Why does what matter?' I asked.

 

'To reach the Khagan. Why are you determined to do this, Putting our formations, our warriors, in jeopardy? We don't even know he' s on the planet. Tell me. Help me understand.'

 

His words surprised me. I knew that Torghun was more cautious than I was; that his way of war was different. It had not occurred to me that he did not place importance on fighting alongside the greatest of us.

 

'How can you not wish for it?' I asked.

 

I actually felt sorry for Torghun then. I assumed that he must have missed something in his ascension, or perhaps forgotten it. He called himself a White Scar; I wondered if the name meant any more to him than his Legion designation. For me, for my brotherhood, it was everything.

 

I felt I had to try to explain, even if my hopes of making myself clear were not high.

 

'War is not a tool, my brother,' I said. 'War is life. We have been elevated into it, we have become it. When the galaxy is finally cleansed of danger, our time will have ended. A brief time, a speck of gold on the face of the universe. We must cherish what we have. We must fight in the way we were born to fight, to make art of it, to celebrate the nature given to us.'

 

I spoke fervently. I believed those things. I still do.

 

'I saw him fight, once, from a distance,' I said. 'I have never forgotten it. Even from that one glimpse, I saw a possibility of perfection. Each of us has a part of that perfection within us. I long to witness it again, to see it close at hand, to learn from it, to become it.'

 

Torghun's blood-stained helm gazed back at me blankly.

 

'What else is there for us, brother?' I asked. 'We are not building a future for ourselves; we are creating an empire for others. These warlike things, these grand, terrible inspirations, they are all that we have.'

 

Still, Torghun said nothing.

 

'The future will be otherwise,' I said. 'For now, though, for us, there is only war. We must live it.'

 

Torghun shook his head in disbelief. 'I see they breed poets on Chogoris as well as warriors,' he said.

 

I could not tell whether he was mocking me.

 

'We do not distinguish between them,' I said.

[DarKnight]

‘I do not care who knows the truth now, tomorrow, or in ten thousand years. Loyalty is its own reward.’

[Beauceron]

‘I do not care who knows the truth now, tomorrow, or in ten thousand years. Loyalty is its own reward.’

This!

[The_son_of_Dorn]

Le man russ i think,

 

"An enemy neutralised ceases to be an obstacle, an enemy destroyed ceases to be a threat, remember the difference"

 

More or less.

[Marshal Rohr]

'We bleed this much when we are dying'

[Boldthreat]

'For Dorn and the Imperium, brother.  Your objective is the Iron Blood.  Execute Perturabo.'

 

- Alexis Polux

 

This part of the story always grabs me.  I know it seems minor, but when given thought I believe it captures the Imperial Fists and their whole mindset.  Leading up to this moment the Imperial Fists are outnumbered and stranded.  Through steadfast training and sacrifice they are able to turn a slaughter into a even fight... then they realize they are fighting a Primarch... and Alexis Polux immediately assigns 50 ships to Captain Tyr and orders him to execute a freaking Primarch!  Nevermind that the attack fails.  Never mind that we all know that Perturabo does not get executed.  Right there... in that moment... regular Space Marines are ordered to their certain doom, and they didn't bat an eye.

 

For the freaking Emperor!

[Ranwulf]

I like plenty of Legions, but I guess this has always been a good quote about one that I like:

 

The warriors of the IX Legion didn’t strive in the same way as the soldier-artisans of the III. The Emperor’s Children sculpted, painted, composed to achieve perfection. They crafted great works to bring about something superior to anything shaped by lesser hands. In the act of creation, they exalted themselves above others.

 

This external, proud focus was anathema to Zephon and many of his brothers. The creation of art in song, in prose, in stone, was to reflect on the nature of humanity; a step forwards in understanding the distance between mankind and their Legion-evolved guardians. Like all of the Legions, the Blood Angels were born and shaped for battle, with rolls of honour a match for any other, with valour beyond question. But away from the eyes of their cousin Legions, they celebrated a culture of enlightenment: a quest not merely to understand the nature of man, but to understand their distance from the root species they were destined to fight and die for.

 

- Master of Mankind

 

I also enjoy this one, that says something close in spirit:

 

But it did not. Because as long as one single Blood Angel lives, he will be the master of his spirit. He will not let the abyss that lies in the hearts of us all take him into darkness. That is the truth you did not understand, the truth that Horus has forgotten. It is not the descent toward the shadow nor the rise toward the light that makes us superior. It is the endless struggle between the two that greatness of character lies. We are tested, and we do not break. We will never fall! Take that to my brother and tell him!

[b1soul]

‘That alpha Wolf you killed,’ he said. ‘The hero. I forget his name.’

Khârn felt the edge of his lips pulled in another smile. Two in as many minutes. How rare. When he spoke, he put on a thick, halting accent of elongated vowels and rough consonants.

‘Aevalryff,’ he almost growled, imitating the dead Wolf’s voice. ‘Baresark of Tra. Bearer of Serpentfang.’ Khârn even beat a fist against his chestplate, as the Wolf had done.

Kargos grinned. ‘That was it. So proud, he was! He died badly.’

‘Everyone dies badly. We lead violent lives, and we die as we live.’ Khârn rose to his feet, reaching for the helm he’d discarded moments ago.

Kargos followed, replacing his helm at the same time.

Edited September 11, 2017 by b1soul

[Xin Ceithan]

Regarding the Thousand Sons, I love Magnus speech during the Trial in "A Thousand Sons"

 

"I am Alpharius" in "Legion" ( before it went viral). But more recently, I feel the whole set up of the infiltration force in "Praetorian of Dorn" is very Alpha Legion, so I am going with "What word do you bring?"

 

Sevatar choosing the Kyroptera replacements in "Prince of Crows" at the End of the Thramas Campaign is brilliant in portraying the VIIIth.

But my all time favorite is from the dialogue between Talos and Octavia in "Soul Hunter":

"I wanted to be a hero. And look how that turned out"

[Indefragable]

But it did not. Because as long as one single Blood Angel lives, he will be the master of his spirit. He will not let the abyss that lies in the hearts of us all take him into darkness. That is the truth you did not understand, the truth that Horus has forgotten. It is not the descent toward the shadow nor the rise toward the light that makes us superior. It is the endless struggle between the two that greatness of character lies. We are tested, and we do not break. [/background][/size][/font][/color]We will never fall! Take that to my brother and tell him![/size][/font][/color]

Yea, that pretty much sums up the IX and my affinity for them.

 

This is more a quote about a character, but Legions and Primarchs go hand-in-hand:

 

"If you truly do hail from the realm that men once called hell, when you return there, tell your kindred it was Sanguinius who threw you back."

 

—Sanguinius

 

***********

 

Fulgrim: "I hear you do strange things to your ships, Jaghatai."

Jaghatai Khan: "I hear you do strange things to your warriors."

 

^perhaps my favorite quote from Scars and one of my favorites from Khan. While not quite the epicness of other quotes, it shows so much about the character of Khan and his Legion. Other Primarchs would chafe at such a silk-clad insult. Others would beat their chests and demand a duel. Khan instead offers a riposte that stings both from its accuracy as well as its speed. It shows that there is so much more going on in his head than the "outcast barbarian" reputation would ever convey. Khan is able to hold his own in the veiled verbal duels of the courtroom as much as he can hold his own in the sword fights of the battlefield.

 

To wax even more profound, it shows how misunderstood Khan and his Legion are, just how profound the disconnect is. Yet it is mostly on the side of the other Primarchs, and not Khan's. His outsider view provides a stinging criticism few would openly voice. One could even go so far as to say it represents the divide between East and West to this day in M2.

Edited September 11, 2017 by Indefragable

[TheAlephNull]

'Before we go, let me say this: I understand the conflict in your hearts, how one may beat for duty while the other bleeds for your Legion brothers who will be sacrificed. But this is civil war. It is a time of confusion, and realigned loyalty. We have many heads but we act as one – one Legion with a single will. We are a union of the alike and the like-minded. We will not tolerate treachery. We will not allow our compact to fracture. We will not suffer the short-sightedness of our brother Legions, nor the averted gaze of the wider Imperium. We are Alpha Legion and we take the long view.'

-Omegon, twin-Primarch of the Alpha Legion

[Phoebus]

The Emperor's Children isn't even my favorite legion, but this is one of my favorite parts of the Heresy series:

 

“Every soul he had ever ended, he had done so as the mortal warrior he had been from the start, bearing the colours of the Legion as they had been forged on Chemos. Throughout all – the great Turn, the slaughter of the Terra-cleavers, the march towards the Throne – he had been himself: Ravasch Cario, Palatine Blade, most perfect warrior of the most perfect Legion, devoted to nothing but the quest for exactitude.

He regretted nothing, no choices, no kills, for he had wished for all of it. But no longer. The fate of Konenos would not be his, and he would die as he had lived – the true and only Child of the Emperor.”

 

Excerpt From: Wraight, Chris. “The Path of Heaven.” iBooks.

This material may be protected by copyright.

 

Check out this book on the iBooks Store: https://itunes.apple.com/us/book/the-path-of-heaven/id1099490279?mt=11

[Phoebus]

And then another, also from Path of Heaven (Chris Wraight did so well with that novel!), but from the other side:

 

“So we stand here!’ roared the Khan, defiant against the gathering swarm. ‘We stand in this place! We are the Talskar, Sons of Chogoris, and this is the last test!’

They broke through then, screaming and yowling, the heralds of the greater horror – slim-limbed, hook-handed, horn-headed, cloven-hoofed, dropping like liquid from the inner hull.

‘To the ends of time!’ the Khan thundered, braced to meet them. ‘We defy the dark!’

Then every mortal voice rose up in acclamation and fury, undaunted by the legion of terror bursting through matter to claw at them, bearing every weapon they still possessed, and led into battle by their primarch as the fleet plunged deep into the forgotten ways of the aether.

‘Khagan!’ they roared, drowning out the screams of the empyrean. ‘Ordu gamana Jaghatai!”

 

Excerpt From: Wraight, Chris. “The Path of Heaven.” iBooks.

This material may be protected by copyright.

 

Check out this book on the iBooks Store: https://itunes.apple.com/us/book/the-path-of-heaven/id1099490279?mt=11

SHIVERS DOWN THE SPINE.

[Kastor Krieg]

'For Dorn and the Imperium, brother.  Your objective is the Iron Blood.  Execute Perturabo.'

 

- Alexis Polux

 

This part of the story always grabs me.  I know it seems minor, but when given thought I believe it captures the Imperial Fists and their whole mindset.  Leading up to this moment the Imperial Fists are outnumbered and stranded.  Through steadfast training and sacrifice they are able to turn a slaughter into a even fight... then they realize they are fighting a Primarch... and Alexis Polux immediately assigns 50 ships to Captain Tyr and orders him to execute a freaking Primarch!  Nevermind that the attack fails.  Never mind that we all know that Perturabo does not get executed.  Right there... in that moment... regular Space Marines are ordered to their certain doom, and they didn't bat an eye.

 

For the freaking Emperor!

Actually, IT DOES NOT FAIL. Were it not for the orders from Dorn to retreat to Terra, Perturabo would be dead, a thousand TDAs teleported in front of his face. He knows that all too well, that is why he destroys the cogitator showing him the outcome projections.

 

Alexis Pollux was as much of an epic talent at void warfare as Sigismund was in single combat.

[DarKnight]

 

But it did not. Because as long as one single Blood Angel lives, he will be the master of his spirit. He will not let the abyss that lies in the hearts of us all take him into darkness. That is the truth you did not understand, the truth that Horus has forgotten. It is not the descent toward the shadow nor the rise toward the light that makes us superior. It is the endless struggle between the two that greatness of character lies. We are tested, and we do not break. [/background][/size][/font][/color]We will never fall! Take that to my brother and tell him![/size][/font][/color]

Yea, that pretty much sums up the IX and my affinity for them.

 

This is more a quote about a character, but Legions and Primarchs go hand-in-hand:

 

"If you truly do hail from the realm that men once called hell, when you return there, tell your kindred it was Sanguinius who threw you back."

 

—Sanguinius

 

***********

 

Fulgrim: "I hear you do strange things to your ships, Jaghatai."

Jaghatai Khan: "I hear you do strange things to your warriors."

 

^perhaps my favorite quote from Scars and one of my favorites from Khan. While not quite the epicness of other quotes, it shows so much about the character of Khan and his Legion. Other Primarchs would chafe at such a silk-clad insult. Others would beat their chests and demand a duel. Khan instead offers a riposte that stings both from its accuracy as well as its speed. It shows that there is so much more going on in his head than the "outcast barbarian" reputation would ever convey. Khan is able to hold his own in the veiled verbal duels of the courtroom as much as he can hold his own in the sword fights of the battlefield.

 

To wax even more profound, it shows how misunderstood Khan and his Legion are, just how profound the disconnect is. Yet it is mostly on the side of the other Primarchs, and not Khan's. His outsider view provides a stinging criticism few would openly voice. One could even go so far as to say it represents the divide between East and West to this day in M2.

 

In context, what did Fulgrim mean by "You do strange things to your ships"?, overcharged engines or something?

[The Doctor Of War]

"What would you know of struggle, Perfect Son? When have you fought against the mutilation of your mind? When have you had to do anything more than tally compliances and polish your armour?" [...] "The people of your world named you Great One. The people of mine called me Slave. Which one of us landed on a paradise of civilization to be raised by a foster father, Roboute? Which one of us was given armies to lead after training in the halls of the Macraggian high-riders? Which one of us inherited a strong, cultured kingdom? And which one of us had to rise up against a kingdom with nothing but a horde of starving slaves? Which one of us was a child enslaved on a world of monsters, with his brain cut up by carving knives? Listen to your blue-clad wretches yelling of courage and honour, courage and honour, courage and honour. Do you even know the meaning of those words? Courage is fighting the kingdom which enslaves you, no matter that their armies outnumber yours by ten-thousand to one. You know nothing of courage. Honour is resisting a tyrant when all others suckle and grow fat on the hypocrisy he feeds them. You know nothing of honour."

 

Angron, the only honest Primarch of the only honest Legion.

[bluntblade]

 

 

But it did not. Because as long as one single Blood Angel lives, he will be the master of his spirit. He will not let the abyss that lies in the hearts of us all take him into darkness. That is the truth you did not understand, the truth that Horus has forgotten. It is not the descent toward the shadow nor the rise toward the light that makes us superior. It is the endless struggle between the two that greatness of character lies. We are tested, and we do not break. [/background][/size][/font][/color]We will never fall! Take that to my brother and tell him![/size][/font][/color]

 

Yea, that pretty much sums up the IX and my affinity for them.

This is more a quote about a character, but Legions and Primarchs go hand-in-hand:

"If you truly do hail from the realm that men once called hell, when you return there, tell your kindred it was Sanguinius who threw you back."

—Sanguinius

***********Fulgrim: "I hear you do strange things to your ships, Jaghatai."Jaghatai Khan: "I hear you do strange things to your warriors."

^perhaps my favorite quote from Scars and one of my favorites from Khan. While not quite the epicness of other quotes, it shows so much about the character of Khan and his Legion. Other Primarchs would chafe at such a silk-clad insult. Others would beat their chests and demand a duel. Khan instead offers a riposte that stings both from its accuracy as well as its speed. It shows that there is so much more going on in his head than the "outcast barbarian" reputation would ever convey. Khan is able to hold his own in the veiled verbal duels of the courtroom as much as he can hold his own in the sword fights of the battlefield.

To wax even more profound, it shows how misunderstood Khan and his Legion are, just how profound the disconnect is. Yet it is mostly on the side of the other Primarchs, and not Khan's. His outsider view provides a stinging criticism few would openly voice. One could even go so far as to say it represents the divide between East and West to this day in M2.

In context, what did Fulgrim mean by "You do strange things to your ships"?, overcharged engines or something?

Something like that. The book actually goes into detail on it a little bit later.

 

For context, Sanguinius has remarked that Jaghatai is so hard to read, Sanguinius has no real idea what he wants. Fulgrim declares that all Jaghatai wants is to hunt xenos "on those delightful jetbikes". (This exchange actually works on several levels: FW tells us Fulgrim digs jetbikes, wise Sanguinius suspects Jaghatai has hidden depths and Fulgrim doesn't consider it a possibility) And then Fulgrim, going for a second layer of varnish on his ego, lets slip how he heard from a contact on Mars...

Edited September 11, 2017 by bluntblade

[Angel_of_Blood]

The Emperor's Children isn't even my favorite legion, but this is one of my favorite parts of the Heresy series:

 

“Every soul he had ever ended, he had done so as the mortal warrior he had been from the start, bearing the colours of the Legion as they had been forged on Chemos. Throughout all – the great Turn, the slaughter of the Terra-cleavers, the march towards the Throne – he had been himself: Ravasch Cario, Palatine Blade, most perfect warrior of the most perfect Legion, devoted to nothing but the quest for exactitude.

He regretted nothing, no choices, no kills, for he had wished for all of it. But no longer. The fate of Konenos would not be his, and he would die as he had lived – the true and only Child of the Emperor.”

 

Excerpt From: Wraight, Chris. “The Path of Heaven.” iBooks.

This material may be protected by copyright.

 

Check out this book on the iBooks Store: https://itunes.apple.com/us/book/the-path-of-heaven/id1099490279?mt=11

 

 

 

And then another, also from Path of Heaven (Chris Wraight did so well with that novel!), but from the other side:

 

“So we stand here!’ roared the Khan, defiant against the gathering swarm. ‘We stand in this place! We are the Talskar, Sons of Chogoris, and this is the last test!’

They broke through then, screaming and yowling, the heralds of the greater horror – slim-limbed, hook-handed, horn-headed, cloven-hoofed, dropping like liquid from the inner hull.

‘To the ends of time!’ the Khan thundered, braced to meet them. ‘We defy the dark!’

Then every mortal voice rose up in acclamation and fury, undaunted by the legion of terror bursting through matter to claw at them, bearing every weapon they still possessed, and led into battle by their primarch as the fleet plunged deep into the forgotten ways of the aether.

‘Khagan!’ they roared, drowning out the screams of the empyrean. ‘Ordu gamana Jaghatai!”

 

Excerpt From: Wraight, Chris. “The Path of Heaven.” iBooks.

This material may be protected by copyright.

 

Check out this book on the iBooks Store: https://itunes.apple.com/us/book/the-path-of-heaven/id1099490279?mt=11

SHIVERS DOWN THE SPINE.

 

 

I'm going to have to go for another Path of Heaven extract. My god that book really was just golden. Snipping a few less relevant bits out of the passage.

 

 

“High up in the terraces overlooking the command throne, one hundred and thirty-two power weapons kindled, flooding the heights with a wave of neon-blue. One hundred and thirty-two storm shields slammed into place, and one hundred and thirty-two throats opened in battle-challenge. 

‘Khagan!’ they roared, in perfect unison. 

The sagyar mazan launched themselves over the edge, dropping down to the deck like falling angels. Bolter-fire roared out, flying across the gulf, punching into the metal columns and smashing through stone, and then they landed blades whirling.

*snip*

“Still the savages came on, fighting to reach the primarch, to drag him down and hold him up. The White Scars fought like the daemons themselves, shrugging off wounds that ought to have felled them, laughing with feral abandon as they surged up against the implacable Deathshroud. 

At their head was a lone khan, wielding a Terran longblade two-handed. With him came the others, whooping the war-cries of their bestial home world.

They were hopelessly overmatched, but their charge never faltered. The Deathshroud sliced them apart, their scythes throwing blood across the deck, but they refused to fall back. Mortarion himself came among the desperate attackers, sweeping three aside in a single blow and hurling their mangled corpses back into the pits. He blasted the chest of a fourth open, then strode towards the leader, the one who held them together. As he approached, the White Scars legionary dispatched his opponent and swung around to face the primarch.

‘Hail, Lord of Death!’ he cried, sounding almost ecstatic, angling his longsword to strike. ‘Torghun Khan greets you!’ 

‘Why do this?’ asked Mortarion, holding Silence back, just for a moment. ‘Why waste yourselves?’ 

But it was not waste, and he knew that. Every passing second brought the flagship’s doom closer. Every passing second gave time for the rest of the fleet to slip away. The ire of the XIV had been concentrated on this point to the exclusion of all others, and even now the lances were firing again, striking the shields that trapped their master on the rapidly decaying void hulk. 

‘Why, my lord?’ the khan laughed, poised for the coming strike. ‘Atonement. At last.’ 

Mortarion readied his scythe. ‘No such thing exists.”

 

 

Long passage I guess. But I love it. Especially for just how Torghun finally understands what it means to be a White Scar. He finally gets it. And like Shiban used show him, he fights and dies laughing, with the sheer joy of being free and accepting his legion. It just reflects on the White Scars as a whole. The Sagya Mazan may have been marked for death by dint of their status, but you know damn well that any White Scar would have gladly stayed behind and been full of joy all the while.

 

Of all the legions given new life by the Heresy series, I still think what Chris has done for the White Scars is the best.

[Indefragable]

 

 

 

 

<snip>

 

 

In context, what did Fulgrim mean by "You do strange things to your ships"?, overcharged engines or something?

To elaborate on what bluntblade said above, Scars talks about how each Legion's fleet and flagship reflect its Primarch (in no small part since they got custom requests to the mechanicum shipwrights.

 

Hidden Content

Angron and his Conqueror.

 

The Space Wolves and their "longboats" in space (In Wolf King Wraight describes how the SW were not the best void warriors because their ships are made to just get Space Wolves to the enemy)

 

The opulence of Fulgrim's flagship (forget the name).

 

The pragmatism of the XIII Legion fleet.

 

...and so on.

 

When Khan was rediscovered and the mechanicum reached out to ask what he wanted of his ships, they got a single reply: "speed."

 

...so it's hinted at throughout Scars that the Imperium at large couldn't make sense of what was going on with the V Legion ships due to the extent of the modifications.

 

Edited September 11, 2017 by Indefragable

[Ranwulf]

 

The Emperor's Children isn't even my favorite legion, but this is one of my favorite parts of the Heresy series:

 

“Every soul he had ever ended, he had done so as the mortal warrior he had been from the start, bearing the colours of the Legion as they had been forged on Chemos. Throughout all – the great Turn, the slaughter of the Terra-cleavers, the march towards the Throne – he had been himself: Ravasch Cario, Palatine Blade, most perfect warrior of the most perfect Legion, devoted to nothing but the quest for exactitude.

He regretted nothing, no choices, no kills, for he had wished for all of it. But no longer. The fate of Konenos would not be his, and he would die as he had lived – the true and only Child of the Emperor.”

 

Excerpt From: Wraight, Chris. “The Path of Heaven.” iBooks.

This material may be protected by copyright.

 

Check out this book on the iBooks Store: https://itunes.apple.com/us/book/the-path-of-heaven/id1099490279?mt=11

 

 

 

And then another, also from Path of Heaven (Chris Wraight did so well with that novel!), but from the other side:

 

“So we stand here!’ roared the Khan, defiant against the gathering swarm. ‘We stand in this place! We are the Talskar, Sons of Chogoris, and this is the last test!’

They broke through then, screaming and yowling, the heralds of the greater horror – slim-limbed, hook-handed, horn-headed, cloven-hoofed, dropping like liquid from the inner hull.

‘To the ends of time!’ the Khan thundered, braced to meet them. ‘We defy the dark!’

Then every mortal voice rose up in acclamation and fury, undaunted by the legion of terror bursting through matter to claw at them, bearing every weapon they still possessed, and led into battle by their primarch as the fleet plunged deep into the forgotten ways of the aether.

‘Khagan!’ they roared, drowning out the screams of the empyrean. ‘Ordu gamana Jaghatai!”

 

Excerpt From: Wraight, Chris. “The Path of Heaven.” iBooks.

This material may be protected by copyright.

 

Check out this book on the iBooks Store: https://itunes.apple.com/us/book/the-path-of-heaven/id1099490279?mt=11

SHIVERS DOWN THE SPINE.

 

 

I'm going to have to go for another Path of Heaven extract. My god that book really was just golden. Snipping a few less relevant bits out of the passage.

 

 

“High up in the terraces overlooking the command throne, one hundred and thirty-two power weapons kindled, flooding the heights with a wave of neon-blue. One hundred and thirty-two storm shields slammed into place, and one hundred and thirty-two throats opened in battle-challenge. 

‘Khagan!’ they roared, in perfect unison. 

The sagyar mazan launched themselves over the edge, dropping down to the deck like falling angels. Bolter-fire roared out, flying across the gulf, punching into the metal columns and smashing through stone, and then they landed blades whirling.

*snip*

“Still the savages came on, fighting to reach the primarch, to drag him down and hold him up. The White Scars fought like the daemons themselves, shrugging off wounds that ought to have felled them, laughing with feral abandon as they surged up against the implacable Deathshroud. 

At their head was a lone khan, wielding a Terran longblade two-handed. With him came the others, whooping the war-cries of their bestial home world.

They were hopelessly overmatched, but their charge never faltered. The Deathshroud sliced them apart, their scythes throwing blood across the deck, but they refused to fall back. Mortarion himself came among the desperate attackers, sweeping three aside in a single blow and hurling their mangled corpses back into the pits. He blasted the chest of a fourth open, then strode towards the leader, the one who held them together. As he approached, the White Scars legionary dispatched his opponent and swung around to face the primarch.

‘Hail, Lord of Death!’ he cried, sounding almost ecstatic, angling his longsword to strike. ‘Torghun Khan greets you!’ 

‘Why do this?’ asked Mortarion, holding Silence back, just for a moment. ‘Why waste yourselves?’ 

But it was not waste, and he knew that. Every passing second brought the flagship’s doom closer. Every passing second gave time for the rest of the fleet to slip away. The ire of the XIV had been concentrated on this point to the exclusion of all others, and even now the lances were firing again, striking the shields that trapped their master on the rapidly decaying void hulk. 

‘Why, my lord?’ the khan laughed, poised for the coming strike. ‘Atonement. At last.’ 

Mortarion readied his scythe. ‘No such thing exists.”

 

 

Long passage I guess. But I love it. Especially for just how Torghun finally understands what it means to be a White Scar. He finally gets it. And like Shiban used show him, he fights and dies laughing, with the sheer joy of being free and accepting his legion. It just reflects on the White Scars as a whole. The Sagya Mazan may have been marked for death by dint of their status, but you know damn well that any White Scar would have gladly stayed behind and been full of joy all the while.

 

Of all the legions given new life by the Heresy series, I still think what Chris has done for the White Scars is the best.

 

I miss happy Shiban, I know its character development but seeing him without the happy laughter kinda bothered me a bit.

 

 

 

 

<snip>

 

In context, what did Fulgrim mean by "You do strange things to your ships"?, overcharged engines or something?

To elaborate on what bluntblade said above, Scars talks about how each Legion's fleet and flagship reflect its Primarch (in no small part since they got custom requests to the mechanicum shipwrights.

 

Hidden Content

Angron and his Conqueror.

 

The Space Wolves and their "longboats" in space (In Wolf King Wraight describes how the SW were not the best void warriors because their ships are made to just get Space Wolves to the enemy)

 

The opulence of Fulgrim's flagship (forget the name).

 

The pragmatism of the XIII Legion fleet.

 

...and so on.

 

When Khan was rediscovered and the mechanicum reached out to ask what he wanted of his ships, they got a single reply: "speed."

 

...so it's hinted at throughout Scars that the Imperium at large couldn't make sense of what was going on with the V Legion ships due to the extent of the modifications.

 

 

Adding to that, the Raven Guard dedicated their ships for stealth.

 

Ran

[b1soul]

@Phoebus

 

What a gem you quoted . . .

 

. . . he had been himself: Ravasch Cario, Palatine Blade, most perfect warrior of the most perfect Legion, devoted to nothing but the quest for exactitude.

He regretted nothing, no choices, no kills, for he had wished for all of it. But no longer. The fate of Konenos would not be his, and he would die as he had lived – the true and only Child of the Emperor.”

 

Shows you the EC's potential when handled by a top authour

[karden00]

"All this will be for nothing if Guilliman's legion is allowed to intervene." 

 

From the Horus's mouth. 

[Boldthreat]

 

'For Dorn and the Imperium, brother.  Your objective is the Iron Blood.  Execute Perturabo.'

 

- Alexis Polux

 

This part of the story always grabs me.  I know it seems minor, but when given thought I believe it captures the Imperial Fists and their whole mindset.  Leading up to this moment the Imperial Fists are outnumbered and stranded.  Through steadfast training and sacrifice they are able to turn a slaughter into a even fight... then they realize they are fighting a Primarch... and Alexis Polux immediately assigns 50 ships to Captain Tyr and orders him to execute a freaking Primarch!  Nevermind that the attack fails.  Never mind that we all know that Perturabo does not get executed.  Right there... in that moment... regular Space Marines are ordered to their certain doom, and they didn't bat an eye.

 

For the freaking Emperor!

Actually, IT DOES NOT FAIL. Were it not for the orders from Dorn to retreat to Terra, Perturabo would be dead, a thousand TDAs teleported in front of his face. He knows that all too well, that is why he destroys the cogitator showing him the outcome projections.

 

Alexis Pollux was as much of an epic talent at void warfare as Sigismund was in single combat.

 

 

Very true.  I would argue though that even Captain Tyr knew it was a suicide mission:

 

"He felt a surge of pride.  They were waiting to go into battle against another Legion, against a Primarch.  It was a battle none of them had ever thought they would fight, but there was no doubt or hesitancy amongst them.  Polux had ordered this strike against Perturabo.  That surprised Tyr, he had thought that his brother had lacked the boldness for such a gambit.  That this mission might be his last did not matter.  That was the nature of war, and the Imperial Fists knew that death was often the price of victory.  The Emperor had created them to embrace that truth."

 

I underlined the section that I feel is most important.  Its that willful acceptance of duty, even in the face of certain death that I believe sets the Imperial Fists above their brother Legions in my eyes.  I am not sure that I can even accurately describe it... because 30k is chock full of Space Marines from all Legions with no fear of death... of seeking a heroic and glorious death.  There is a subtle difference that makes all the difference between the Fists and their brothers.

 

The Fists do not willingly die for glory.  They do not willingly die for honour.  They do not die for rememberance.  They die for duty.  Universally so.  To be an Imperial Fist is to accept duty above all else... duty to the ideas of the Great Crusade... of the uniting of Mankind.  These warriors are crusaders and believe in the Emperors dream of a United Mankind.  Dorn is the unyielding embodiment of this ideal.   Remember, the fists were this way even prior to their Primarch's return.  This whole short story is about Rogal Dorn's understanding of duty.  It is Sigismund's seemingly abandonment of this that causes Rogal Dorn to completely disown his favorite son, his own First Captain.  Because it is that principle that separates the other Legions from his own, including the traitor Legions.  It is Alexis Polux who is the perfect Imperial Fist, not Sigismund.  Sigismund... the greatest fighter of all the Astartes... is disowned from his own father not because of his skill... but because he let his pride get in the way of his duty.  Polux?  He immediately followed his Lord's orders... regardless of the cost.  It did not matter what he could have done to the Iron Warriors or Perturabo... the only thing that mattered was his duty to Rogal Dorn, and by extension... the Emperor and his Great Crusade.  

 

What a great short story that was.

Edited September 12, 2017 by Boldthreat

[LOYAL-TRAITOR]

 

'For Dorn and the Imperium, brother.  Your objective is the Iron Blood.  Execute Perturabo.'

 

- Alexis Polux

 

This part of the story always grabs me.  I know it seems minor, but when given thought I believe it captures the Imperial Fists and their whole mindset.  Leading up to this moment the Imperial Fists are outnumbered and stranded.  Through steadfast training and sacrifice they are able to turn a slaughter into a even fight... then they realize they are fighting a Primarch... and Alexis Polux immediately assigns 50 ships to Captain Tyr and orders him to execute a freaking Primarch!  Nevermind that the attack fails.  Never mind that we all know that Perturabo does not get executed.  Right there... in that moment... regular Space Marines are ordered to their certain doom, and they didn't bat an eye.

 

For the freaking Emperor!

Actually, IT DOES NOT FAIL. Were it not for the orders from Dorn to retreat to Terra, Perturabo would be dead, a thousand TDAs teleported in front of his face. He knows that all too well, that is why he destroys the cogitator showing him the outcome projections.

 

Alexis Pollux was as much of an epic talent at void warfare as Sigismund was in single combat.

 

was this is a novel

[BladeBreaker]

Short and Simple, The Salamanders:

"For the Emperor and his people"