For Hatred's Sake - Narrative Doubles Campaign Log

[BrotherCaptainArkhan]

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For Hatred's Sake

 

 

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‘...has been slain. I repeat...’

 

‘...all Thirteenth Legion forces in the vicinity are to evacuate immediately, contingency Ultio in effect -’

 

‘...belay that, the Primarch still lives! Reroute emergency landers to my position – ‘

 

‘...say again, my lord, say again – we’re getting interference across all vox channels – ‘

 

‘ – have disengaged, I repeat, XII and XVII Legion forces appear to be disengaging. What in the Throne’s name is happening in the heavens? Talon and Victrix flights report atmospheric disturbance like nothing they’ve seen before – ‘

 

-vox-chatter fragments c. Second Battle of Nuceria, XIII Legion archival log

 

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The destruction unleashed by the advent of Lorgar’s Ruinstorm was without precedent during the apocalyptic wars of the Horus Heresy. Until the war reached the shores of Sol, no other event inflicted as much sheer chaos or systemic disruption across the Imperium. Whole systems were lost to Imperial records, never to be heard from again, and on hundreds of worlds the skies split apart as the nightmarish denizens of the Immaterium poured forth from the roiling, seething tides of unreality now isolating the eastern domains of the Imperium.

 

For those who populated the Five Hundred Worlds, the nascent empire-within-an-empire carved by honoured Guilliman and the XIII Legion, the infamy and treachery of the Word Bearers and World Eaters Legions was all too clear; in this darkest hour the state of the Imperium-that-Was – and the fate of the Throneworld itself – was unclear. Many in the highest echelons of the Five Hundred Worlds and its protectors believed the Imperium to have been irrevocably sundered.

 

During the fateful first weeks of the Ruinstorm’s creation, the XIII Legion counterattack across the Five Hundred Worlds foundered and ground to a halt. Those planets not flensed of life by Angron’s hounds or sacrificed to malevolent powers were where the XIII Legion focussed their efforts of reconquista.

 

Celerax Magna, a densely populated garden world on the western edge of the Five Hundred Worlds, became the stage for a brief but particularly brutal war in the weeks following the advent of the Ruinstorm. Before the Heresy, Celerax Magna had been a navigatory terminus for Imperial fleets and frequently housed members of the Navis Nobilite. Left relatively untouched by the Traitor advance, the survivors of the Navigator houses fleeing the carnage wracking the Five Hundred Worlds sequestered themselves in Celerax Magna’s teeming utopian cities, hoping to avoid the worst of the wars tearing apart Guilliman’s empire.

 

Such a peaceful dream was as naive as it was false. As the Ruinstorm worsened, XIII Legion reserves drawn from censuria companies and VII Legion survivors of the Phall debacle spearheaded a Loyalist force from several Legions intended to secure the terminus, liberate any Navigators that could be located and with their aid forge a safe passage through the Ruinstorm, if one could be found.

 

It was not to be so. The Traitor Legions arrived in force mere hours after the Loyalist vanguard arrived on Celerax Magna, alerted to the presence of the Navigators by powers dark and nefarious. Knowing that they could not count on reinforcement, and that to fail now would be to doom Imperial efforts to escape the Ruinstorm, the vengeful Loyalists readied themselves for a conflict that would be utterly without respite or quarter.

 

The resulting war lasted for seven days without pause and saw the deaths of more than twelve billion souls.

 

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For Hatred’s Sake is a narrative doubles event made for the Age of Darkness supplement for the Warhammer 40,000 (7^th edition) ruleset, with myself (BrotherCaptainArkhan) as author. In this event, players form teams of two to take on opposing teams battling for the fate of Celerax Magna. During the chaos and confusion of the Ruinstorm, the members of many Legions from both Loyalist and Traitor allegiances arrived in the domain of the Five Hundred Worlds, some by chance, some by darker design.

 

Teams will face off across three themed scenarios, attempting to decapitate rival forces, capture valuable information that will enable them to locate the Navigator survivors who may be critical to the war effort, and finally enact their escape.

 

This log will document the weekly buildup to the event itself, with army pictures, lore, force dispositions, themed scenarios and finally battle reports detailing the final hours of the garden world Celerax Magna, and the fate of the warriors fighting over it.

 

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Belligerents

 

 

Loyalist force disposition

                                                                          

VI Legion Pale Hunters

 

VII Legion Mountainfire Company

 

XI Legion Task Force Cornelius

 

XIII Legion The Black One Hundred

 

[Legion identifier missing] Strike Force Black Mamba

 

[Legion identifier missing] First Sphere

 

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Traitor force disposition

 

III Legion Third Company Elite

 

VIII Legion Pythius Strike Force

 

VIII Legion The Painted Exiles

 

XIV Legion Death Guard

 

XVI Legion Sons of Horus

 

V Legion White Scars

 

 

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Next update: Event Rules

Edited November 27, 2017 by BrotherCaptainArkhan

[BrotherCaptainArkhan]

Event Rules

1. Bound by Necessity: Players treat teammates’ armies as Fellow Warriors, per the Age of Darkness Allies rules - regardless of their usual relations on the Allies Chart. This reflects the uncertainty and mistrust born of the chaos and confusion erupting in the Ruinstorm’s wake, as well as alliances of necessity and common purpose that were made between the unlikeliest of allies.
2. Unsung Heroes: No named characters from any Forgeworld or Games Workshop publication may be used for this event; the battles of For Hatred’s Sake focus upon the unremembered warriors and leaders of the Heresy whose tales have since passed into the obscurity of legend. Note that this includes Primarchs!
3. Ragged Remnants: Supply lines across the Five Hundred Worlds are in tatters, with many Legions subsisting on battlefield repairs and repurposing weapons to whatever extent possible. Whether Traitor or Loyalist, the forces mustered for the assault on Celerax Magna have been brutalised by the Shadow Crusade and represent both sides drawing upon whatever resources and warriors can be mustered for the battle at hand. The following limitations are in place:
   All unit entries in the army list are considered 0-1 per player (note that this invalidates certain Rites of War);
   Rapier Weapons Batteries and Leviathan Siege Dreadnought Talons are 0-1 per team (no limitation on the number of models within a selection);
   Rapier Weapons Batteries may only select and use one ammunition type (to be paid for as usual) across the entire event, to be indicated on the player’s army list; Javelin Attack Speeder Squadrons are 0-1 per team;
   No Superheavies or Lords of War may be taken;
4. Guilliman’s Darkest Hour: Any game in which an Ultramarines force is entirely eradicated (no units with the Legiones Astartes: Ultramarines rule are left in play - discounting reserves) gains an extra Victory Point for the Traitor Faction.

Edited November 27, 2017 by BrotherCaptainArkhan

[BrotherCaptainArkhan]

 

 

Campaign Rules

 

• Warlord Traits are chosen, rather than randomly rolled for at the start of each game; on the respective army list note your Warlord’s pre-chosen trait (limited to the Space Marine Legion Warlord Traits list); this will apply across all three games.
• Veteran Tactical Squads must choose one Veteran Tactic marked on their army list and apply the same Tactic across all three games. The brevity of the war for Celerax Magna denied attempts to resupply or reform formations, as the desperate hunt for the Navigators necessitated continuous engagement without pause.
• Space Marine Legion Warlords may, exceptionally, choose a Refractor Field OR master-crafted weapon to be added to their wargear list for no additional points cost.
• A single Legion Tactical Squad Sergeant, Veteran Sergeant, Assault Squad Sergeant, Legion Terminator Squad Sergeant or Breacher Squad Sergeant may be granted the title of Optio Primus; he must be named in the army background and marked as such on the army list, and as long as he is alive, allows the owning player to benefit from the Delegated Command rule.

 

   

Delegated Command

One single D6 may be re-rolled once per game, affecting one of the following: Reserves, Warlord armour saves, a To Hit roll made by the Optio’s squad, or a single Leadership test for any unit in the force (in which case only one die is re-rolled). If the Optio is killed, the re-roll is lost if it has not already been used. The re-roll cannot be granted to a teammate and cannot be stacked with other re-rolls.

 

 

artwork shown linked from warhammermotivation.tumblr.com

Edited November 27, 2017 by BrotherCaptainArkhan

[Dosjetka]

Yep, looking forward to seeing how this turns out! :tu: Edited November 27, 2017 by Chaplain Dosjetka

[Nomus Sardauk]

Oooo this looks good, I shall be watching with great interest.

[Brother Heinrich]

Nice, I wanna know the who's who of contributors!

[Noctus Cornix]

Nice, I wanna know the who's who of contributors!

 

Ditto.

 

 

Edited November 27, 2017 by Noctus Cornix

[BrotherCaptainArkhan]

Cheers for the interest brothers - the contributors include those both on and off the Bolter and Chainsword - myself and Disease (Death Guard) are involved, and I'll get the usernames of the other guys in our group. Think most of them will be fairly new to this forum though (all the more reason to show off their stuff).

 

The preparation for the campaign is getting serious - the first Loyalist team defending Celerax Magna is battle-ready! All lore is written by the owning players, not me.

 

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The First Sphere

 

 

Alpha Legion: The First Sphere

The First Sphere, Gamma Epsilon Segment lead by Leghan the Dervish. Leghan entered this warzones without fanfare, but with murderous intent. His Venator Prime is tactical sergeant Lambda Six. To them brutality is a virtue, alliances are a means to an end and loyalty is the remit of narrow minds.

 

“Why do they call you The Dervish?
A history of battles best left untold. An old jest. I am likened to the dancing, screaming combatants of old Earth, something I cannot be. Mine is the stillness and the silence. Mine is the rangefinder and the rifle.

Where are we?
Does it even matter? Just another insignificant ball of rock. Just another kill team. Just another team to kill.

Who ordered this?
That’s what the last of them wanted to know. His own true brothers. His allies. Now all dead. Did the answer matter enough to be uttered on a last breath? No one needed to give the order.

When did you kill him?
Now that was a good question. A clever one. Always asked when their eyes widened and the truth fell into place. When they saw my true eyes, the cold darkness where once their comrade’s fire had been. When was the first time they had asked that? Isstvan? No, long before.

How did it come to this?
Come to what? The death of this pointless garden world? A galaxy aflame? Treachery and misery and deceit? Ask my father. Ask Horus. I can’t say.

Why are you doing this?
That is the question they asked. The remembrancers. Why indeed? I killed them just like all these broken legionaries. All meat for this world’s indigenous macro-worms now. Not an enemy corpse among them. Not the first time.

All of these questions. Always the same. My great crusade started before theirs and ended before they knew that theirs had. Nearly three centuries and so few questions. Always the same. Why indeed? Once it was to follow orders. Once it was to do the right thing. Once it was for glory. Once it was to serve. Once it was the Emperor’s word above all else. Now? Why not?”
 

 

 

 

 

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The Pale Hunters

 

12th Great Company 'War Pack'

VI Legiones Astartes - Hunter-Killer Force

Commander: Jarl Jorund Arnljot

 

Jorund ripped his weapon free of the Legionnaire. The Weapons expertly forged teeth making short work of the incredibly thick Cataphractii plate. He allowed himself a feral grin, "Atramentar", he had put the name to test and the Night Lord had been found wanting. His Great Frost blade "Godbrund" had carved through the warriors armour with ease, the Night Lord champion had no answer to the ferocity of his attack and he had died quickly, much like the rest of the 8th legion on board. His small Frigate had blind sided the Night lords vessel as it translated in system and they had boarded it immediately. 

The Night Lords had shut down all the lighting systems on the ship in a vain attempt to gain an advantage but his warriors were heard laughing over the vox networks. The wolves senses were enhanced beyond the already trans human capabilities of the space marines. Their vision cutting through the dark with ease and their hunters senses picking up the raw stench of the skin tabards the cowards used as trophies. That was the other thing that gave away the fleeing Night Lords, their pathetic little bone trinkets and skulls were like dinner bells for the Vlka Fenryka, the night lords who were attempting to hide and attack from unseen angles were flushed out and cut down. When his killers had met the petty murderers it was barely a contest. The Emperor had made them all with a purpose in mind, he understood that. Guilliman's monotonous empire builders, Lorgar's zealots and Pertuabo's trench diggers but few legions had real stomach for the fight. That was the true currency with which humanity's expansion had been won. He had fond memories of his Legions actions with Rogal Dorn's Imperial Fists and the brutal Tenth Legion, they understood war but the 8th, these were petty criminals used to scare mortals back into submission using children's nightmares and scarecrows. He spat on the Atramentar in disgust. 

 

He and his Terminator-armoured warriors had smashed into the ship a few levels below the command deck, while his slayer packs reaved through the lower levels and secured the engine decks and armourium chambers. The ship was seized quickly and they hadn't bothered to capture any traitors. It didn't matter at this point. Gunnlaugur had attempted to scalp one the traitors while the half dying night lord commander watched on, The failed attempt resulted in his chain fist simply pulping the mans skull. Gunnlaugur and the gathered Huscarls had laughed a bit too hard. He would have to watch him, his Varaengi's sense of humour was growing ever darker since Prospero and in truth it had effected them all in different ways, almost unlocking a savagery which was becoming harder for his warriors to control every time they engaged the enemy.

 

They couldn't enjoy the victory too long however, they had been picking off lone traitor vessels coming into Celerex Magna for weeks now, but their luck would not hold out long and numbers were not on their side. They had been cut off from the pursuing 13th Company after Prospero and many perilous warp jumps later they had stumbled upon the light of the Pharos and the 500 worlds. They had rejected the 13th Legion's wishes to stay, he wouldn't hide some like some preening maiden while like other loyal Legions he could be battling the Warmaster's turn coats. They had resupplied and started harassment and hunter killer operations straight away.

 

He signalled his warriors to leave, the traitors would be here in force soon and the pact he had struck with Alpha legion consul was an uneasy one at best so he wanted to he and warriors to be ready. The operation had been named "The First Sphere" by the 20th Legion and as he stepped back in to the assault ram, he wished he was at Terra, riding out to meet the Warmaster head on, killing traitors in the name of humanity and the Emperor. He banished such thoughts from his mind. Instead he focused on the task at hand and vowed that what ever dark fate was in store for him and his warriors on Celerax Magna, the Vlka Fenryka would be ready. 

 

 

 

[Marshal Rohr]

I bet its awesome playing with people who care as much about their army fluff as you do. 

[Pearson73]

Two very nice forces there, looking forward to watching this.

[StoneSentinels]

Very smart forces and wonderful Fluff. Looking forward to following this. 

[Theradrussian]

*Desire to see more intensifies*

[Soldier of Dorn]

What theradrussian said. Brilliant exhibition of minis and armies so far, and I wait with bated breath for further updates, whatever form they might take.

[BrotherCaptainArkhan]

V Legion - White Scars

Whether by darker design or misplaced loyalty, a battlegroup of the V Legion under Bilhan Khan fought alongside the XVI Legion - the Sons of Horus - throughout the war for Celerax Magna.

 

 

 

 

[BrotherCaptainArkhan]

THE PAINTED EXILES

~Adeo Mori Imperator Fictus~

 

 

 

 

 

Company: 55th- Penal Company “The Painted Exiles”

 

Company Captain: Lord Vangelis -Son of the Albian Pits

 

Idiosyncrasies: The absorption of undesirable legionnaires from other legions. Severance of enemy comms networks, disruption of logistics and ambush.  Brutal enforcement of legion authority, protocol and doctrine.

 

Vessels: The Persephone -an outdated Slaughter Class Cruiser, and escorts.

 

Allegiance: Traitoris Perditia -Attack patterns and sightings indicate independent operation, but likely under direction of what remains of the 8th’s central command.

 

Notable Engagements: Oxia, Venerhem, Uluhoc, Fixzira IV, Nostramo, *********, Istvaan 5.

 

 

 

 

“I do not do this because I enjoy it, I do it because I must. Our purpose was the management of mankind's worst excess, to make examples, to cull the few to control the many.  We slay one tyrant, one Rebel, and in our wake another rises.

 

Endless, futile.

What hope is there for us beyond a meaningless struggle for survival in the stars?

 

Decimation is no longer enough to satisfy. Extinction is imperium’s only solution.”

 

The declaration of Lord Vangelis to the Salamanders’ Attache upon their descent to Istvaan 5.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

[Kizzdougs]

Awesome Night Lords!! I especially love the face paint/tattoo on the Praetor(?) :tu:

[Kizzdougs]

Woops  

Edited December 7, 2017 by Kizzdougs

[Bjorn Firewalker]

The Night Lords bikers look great!

[BrotherCaptainArkhan]

VII Legion - Imperial Fists - Mountainfire Company

 

 

 

 

 

 

[BrotherCaptainArkhan]

VIII Legion - Night Lords - Strike Force Pythius

 

[BrotherCaptainArkhan]

[Legion identifier missing] - presumed Loyalist forces

 

 

Legion Saboteur - ident- and command tags missing

 

 

Legion Heavy Support Squad - ident-tags missing

 

 

Unidentified Legionnaires - ident-tags and IFF tags missing

[BrotherCaptainArkhan]

Thanks for the comments so far, guys. I am uploading army pictures at the minute and then will post a more detailed breakdown of the scenarios used in the campaign day. As this was my first event - i.e. the first one I organised by myself - it was quite a hassle and there was a lot to coordinate in advance. Getting fluff and pics contributed took a lot of nagging, but as you'll hopefully see, it meant on the day there was some awesome Heresy action going on.

 

Only a few more pics, then it's down to the battle reports for the war for Celerax Magna!

[Bjorn Firewalker]

Good job on the Mountainfire Company. May I ask how they got the name? Did they fight on a volcano, or set alight the forest covering a mountain in one of their battles?

[LordTwisted]

http://www.bolterandchainsword.com/topic/337235-the-mountainfire-company-imperial-fistsultramarines-hh/

 

Their fluff is there! They're my force. I ended up using a slightly different army on the day - swapped a terminator for a Primus Medicae as I had the points. The pictures will come soon, it was an awesome event! Even if I got whipped like a one legged space wolf trying to run a 100m.

[Soldier of Dorn]

Mountainfire Company... That Praetor/Centurion is great.