Chaos Personalities

[Daemon Prince Marbas]

Do you think the personality of a traitor legion or renegade Chapter army should match the player? Why or why not?

[Maschinenpriester]

Not necessarily. But i think it is easer to motivate yourself to work on the army. I personally think that my warband fits my personality well and my friends think so too. =D

[the emperor is scottish]

I remember reading somewhere that people will develop traits of the army they are collecting while playing. Maybe some sort of subconscious immersion.

 

I think that's pretty cool and a good thing for the game. I'm not saying all of us are insane sociopath's hell bent on the destruction of the ruling government and willing to brutally sarafice innocents.

But if your playing csm it can't hurt to RP (maybe not the right word) as if you are this warbands cold, sadistic leader and let how you play be influenced by this.

 

However I was a butcher for 6 years and have always been drawn to khorne and the world eaters.

[MasterDeath]

In roleplay every character one builds is an exagerted facet of ones own personality, keyword here is exagerated. Its similar in tabletop. Best examples are the players who are in for fun and loonytoon madness, they often play orcs. 

[Sonoftherubric21]

This is an interesting question. 

 

I have found that in some people its quite obvious and rather fitting. I have a friend with.... a mild anger problem (nothing drastic, but definitely existent) and World Eaters are his legion of choice. 

 

I have another friend that is suspicious, cynical, and secretive....and is a huge fan of the Dark Angels. 

 

I also can reference myself for the Thousand Sons in this case....intelligent but also come across as pretentious and egotistical without meaning too....that is very much an issue I have had during my life.  but then again I also play Iron Warriors and I really don't see myself as a spiteful and vindictive brute.... but I can be quite stubborn lol!  

 

But then again there are alot of people playing legions that are nothing like them, I know one guy that plays Slannesh and Night Lords....he is pretty far from a decadent psychopath 

[Panzer]

Do you think the personality of a traitor legion or renegade Chapter army should match the player? Why or why not?

 

Other question. Why should that even be a question? I think a player should play the traitor legion or renegade chapter army he enjoys the most for whatever reason as there are plenty ways to enjoy an army. That's all.

[Kierdale]

No comment :D

[Slave to Darkness]

I do see some traits between players and armies, my Fiancee is an angry Eastern European and she automatically felt kinship with Khorne and shes soaked up as much lore as she can. I had a friend up north in my old group who drank a lot and got into fights, he now plays Wolves and Orks. As for myself and Slaanesh... well that would be telling.

[Brother Aiwass]

[REDACTED]

[Iron Father Ferrum]

We tend to play what appeals to us, and inasmuch "opposites attract" is a thing, most people like the things that are like them.

[Xenith]

Didn't you guys all have to wear the Chaos Sorting Hat when you bought your codex?

 

I got Ravenclaw/Thousand Sons.

 

I think one perhaps gravitates to a Chapter/Legion who's personality we find appealing. Mostly, we like ourselves also, so there is probably some unconscious overlap in our personal life/traits, and the Legion.

 

I also have Iron Warriors because mutant obliterators are cool. The army list I wrote performed better with Iron Warriors rules (pragmatism) and you're all out to get me (paranoia).

[Trevak Dal]

When playing my Tau in 5th, 6th and especially 7th I gained a reputation for cruelty and intense blood lust for killing space marines and generally being "yo dawg, you pay a lot of points for t4 'And they get out of leadership tests' and a 3+ save, it would be unfortunate if I wound you on 2s, (even on your bitch ass bikes or furry friends) and ignore your armor and any cover saves wouldn't it?"

 

I was a dick, because I thought I'd been deceived into playing the token alien army (they all played space Marines, either wolves or vanilla) and they had tried to push the gangbanger fungus monsters on me before at last suggesting Tau, who in 5th were narratively dead in the water.

 

Every idea I tried to come up with to give my army some unique character was deemed "not 40k enough" and I keep getting pasted again and again, because I heard (memba, this was back in 5th when rapid fire was 2 shots at 12" not half range of your weapon) "strength 5! 30" range!" So I had a lot of firewarriors and not a lot of anything else.

 

I went online and found out I'd been led astray.

 

I should probably have just thrown my stuff away or just boxed it up. But I was pissed and humilliated.

 

I got a bunch of crisis suits. Back when they were single models.

 

I stripped my army and redid them. Every army list started with the maximum number of crisis suits I could bring, pihranas and 2 minimum troops (6 per squad at the time) firewarriors kept in devilfish with broadsides with RealRailguns (S10) and I :cussed them to death.

 

I would drag the Marines out of cover screaming for their dead Primarchs to save them. In a campaign that went largely off the rails I glassed Fenris and was pushing for Terra before the loyalists dropped interest.

 

I killed every Primarch I went up against with my Enclave army. I have the heads of Angron, Guilliman, Fulgrim and Ferras on my Farsight's base.

 

My Tau were my hate made manifest.

 

They suggested I should maybe play chaos. One combat found with Berserkers and I wanted an army of them. I really liked Wade Pryce's army, and Kraut Scientist's and Biohazards, but ended up getting distracted along the way and made a pretty good Black Legion army that's more of a loyalist type army instead of the army I wanted initially.

 

My Tau army is basically the scene from the Punisher Netflix show where Frank beats Agent Orange to death and gouges his eyes out. It didn't matter if you had 20 space Marines (grey Knights) or 100 space Marines (legion or sisters lists), I was going to kill your :cuss. And if you brought a bunch of fairy knife ears, you were going to have a bad time.

 

My chaos has never developed like that. In a strange way, I'm more attached to my Tau even though I had a harder time becoming attached to them. My spite, bitterness and disdain led me to make two people quit the hobby (one guy after I charged his th/SS terminators and wiped them with firewarriors) and one guy after I made fun of his Eldar in a very Un PC manner.

 

I let the evil that came out when I played Xbox live ride high. I was That Guy and worse.

[Dr_Ruminahui]

I play Emperor's Children because I wanted to paint an army purple.

[Sception]

I like playing the bad guys, and I like playing bad guys who choose to be bad guys in response to the hypocrisy of the good guys.

 

Sort of a Magneto and his 'League of Evil Mutants' deal.  Like, that's what they called themselves, that's what Magneto named them.  "Good" is defined in a way to uphold an intolerable status quo, and if tearing it down makes them evil, if doing so requires acts of open malice directed at those who sustain or are sustained by that status quo then so be it.

 

It's not something I believe in real life, not really an aspect of 'my personality', but Magneto style villains are something I find compelling in fiction.  Much more so than villains who are motivated by greed or bigotry or just "letting the world burn", or those who tie themselves in knots coming up with justifications & excuses for why they're still the good guys.

 

All of this lines up with being a big fan of Abaddon, who seeks to tear down the Emperor and claim the Imperium for the soldiers who conquered it, forging a new Imperium where astartes are the lords of humanity and not their slaves and their shields, and if doing so makes him a villain then he'll be the greatest villain the galaxy has ever seen, and he'll claim that mantle of his own free will, with golden eyes open.  Contrast that with the traitor primarchs, every one of whom had to be manipulated into their fate.  As I've said elsewhere, the traitor primarchs fell to get where they are today.  Abaddon ascended.

 

 

 

There are heroic archetypes I like as well, most being similarly arch to the villains I like, but there aren't a lot of options for that sort of character in the grim darkness of 40k, so... *shrug*.

[Leonite]

I didn't start with Chaos. I started with Space Marines, like many others. I was introduced to the game through a cousin's 3rd edition box set, towards the very end of 3rd. I switched between many armies, basking in the flavor of all loyalists, Daemon Hunters, Witch Hunters for a time, and I thought I had settled on Grey Knights after a game with a friend's Chaos Army. But that Chaos Army... I remember loving the look of the models, reading his copy of the 3.5 ed codex, and basking in the sheer flavor of it.

 

That's not when I started my Chaos. That was just the seed. What drew me to my Word Bearers that I started first was the Horus Heresy Ashen Circle... I got them and some Palatine Blades at the time on a lark, and they became my commanders. I even dived into the heresy with Death Guard... but that wasn't my first choice. My first choice came from way back from reading the 3.5 Codex. From reading the background. From devouring the fluff. And so when the Thousand Sons got their own Codex... I was one of the first to get it.

 

Because I sympathize with a legion of intellectuals and psykers.

[CMDR_Welles]

I am slow, plodding, and constantly sick... 

Luckily Death Guard fits my play style as well. 

[Marshal Rohr]

You know how over time people and their pets start to resemble each other more and more? Same principle ;). 

[Midnight Brotherhood]

I like playing the bad guys, and I like playing bad guys who choose to be bad guys in response to the hypocrisy of the good guys.

 

This is exactly the reason why I play Night Lords. The Imperium are just bad guys in denial! That and I love the sheer terror lore wise that the Night Lords cause, worlds literally surrendering without a shot fired when they hear of their coming.

 

Not sure if I'm getting more edgy playing Night Lords but I definitely feel stronger and stronger hate to the Imperium, I used to love playing Space Marines and Imperial Guard in my younger years but now I can't even bring myself to contemplate doing a side project in them. It would have to be Xenos now, I just love hating the Imperium

 

I kind of went full loop as the very first warhammer miniatures I owned was a box of 5 of the 2nd edition plastic chaos marines. Then I moved over to Dark Angels as my first army (so still technically a traitor), then did Cadians for awhile and then came back to Chaos Marines again.

[Scourged]

Do you think the personality of a traitor legion or renegade Chapter army should match the player? Why or why not?

*glances over at a vast collection of Scourged and Alpha Legion* Well I sure hope not...

 

Should it? Nah. But can it? Does it? Quite often yes. It isn't always a conscious decision, but an organic association that happens over time. I see it all the time with my friends: The Space Wolf player who's a big, lovable pseudo-brute who loves the epic diorama of battle. The Salamanders player who is very slow and methodical in everything he does. The Emperor's Children player who is no stranger to a bit of excess. The Tau player at the shop that everyone hates (I joke, I joke). We see what we like in a Legion/warband, and we're drawn to it whether we want to be or not.

 

For me, there are two archetypes that I'm always drawn towards for compelling stories/characters. I am a sucker for relentless Machiavellianism, and nothing comes with a sweeter satisfaction than Faustian tragedies. Irony is a compelling storyteller. That which we believe turns out to be the opposite. The twist endings, the dramatic reveals. These are the things that pull us into a story. Maybe that's why i'm drawn to the two Chaos warbands that I am - irony. One always lies, and the other always hears them. 

 

Alpha Legion

Hidden Content

It's not just enough to believe that you're better than everyone else, but you have to also know you're better than everyone else. And with every action you take, you'll prove it. Deceptions and manipulations are part and parcel to achieve your goals at any cost. Because all that matters is your own goals. You're right, and nothing will convince you otherwise. When channeled, such wonderful progress can be made. But when unconstrained, it will spell out a vast and spiraling firestorm of misery for everyone it touches. There is so much potential for narrative there. And who does that better than Alpha Legion? Alpharius is/was/used to be the epitomal "little brother" of the Primarchs. Constantly having to prove himself. Not to be equal, though... to be better, superior, to be right. All he did and has done was to prove himself above and beyond Guilliman and Dorn. And nothing, not a single thing, would stop him. Not even Death. 10k have passed since that tragic day on Pluto, and yet his Legion still carries out his will, his desires, his need to be better. So much so that they don his name and mantle posthumously to ensure the galaxy knows it was Alpharius that outwitted, outplanned, and outplayed them all.But at what cost? One of the greatest moments of the Legion has nothing to do with any battle or skirmish. It was a quiet moment, traveling in the void, with two soldiers speaking. In all their pursuits, in all their achievements, amidst all the schemes, the Alpha Legion were better than all the rest. Their tactics supreme, their maneuvers perfect, their machinations undeniable. Yet... the Legion had no soul. There was no sense of Brotherhood, no uniting culture, no comradery between Astartes. They had only the missions, only their tactics... the Alpha Legion was just as hollow and empty as their Primarch. All they had was their Machiavellian scheming, which had consumed them so much that nothing else was left. No victory, no matter how incredible the odds, would ever fill the void. Nothing would ever sate the insatiable desires of the Primarch's ego. The ultimate penalty of hubris. It's the dark, secret tragedy of the Legion, and - to me - it's what makes them so compelling. It's what draws me to them. 

 

The Scourged

Hidden Content

In fifth edition, The Scourged had a single sentence to describe them. They heard the lies of all men. That alone was enough to hook me. But with sixth/seventh, that single line was expanded to a paragraph. Now there was a tragic fall to bring them to their current state. And that only hooked me even further. The Deal with the Devil. There's a reason this idea has been around for centuries, played out in every storytelling medium a thousandfold. It's such a human story - wanting/needing something so badly you'll sacrifice everything to have it, only to realize you the sacrifice was never worth it. We have all literally been there. Granted, not in the same manner of Faust, but we've all done it. That need, that craving that drives someone to a hopeless bargain is such a powerful draw. It can be good, it can be for evil, but it is always the right and just decision in the moment. Where it not for hindsight it would stay that way. So how does one twist the story to make it different, original? Well, Tzeentch is involved, so I think we all know how that goes. You pray at night, seeking absolution, and God answers your prayers... but only after all of the damage is done do you learn it was not God that heard you, but the Devil. You have been played, manipulated, your desires twisted and turned against you. You've been betrayed by powers beyond your understanding and comprehension, playing a part in an unknowing game. Did you ever truly have a choice at all? Was it all predetermined? Can the actions of our villain, then, even be blamed on them? They did not choose this path. They were forced upon it. So can the atrocities of their actions truly be blamed on them? But then it goes even further. All lies are heard. Yes, such a volume of treachery is maddening, but look beyond that. Look at the power that conveys. Knowledge is Power, after all. And The Scourged, in this regard, hold so much power in their minds. They cannot be fooled, cannot be tricked, cannot be deceived. They know your plans before you do, and can counteract them. They will forever be a step ahead of your game. The only way to outwit them is to not outwit them. They see all lies, but that blinds them to the truths that do exist. Such an irony for the former Seekers of Truth.

[Prot]

It's an interesting thought.... Maybe the truth is somewhere in the middle? There's an aspect within us that perhaps draws us towards a certain legion?

 

I've played so much of Chaos and learned to love some aspect of all of it. When this topic first appeared I thought about Black Legion and Thousand Sons. I thought it was ludicrous in theory. I mean I'm not going to come into work one day with a magic staff and a possessed sword, yelling at upper management about thier incompetence and start beheading them, am I?.... 

 

Seriously though I do see what appeals to me about Black Legion. It just doesn't really translate on the tabletop. I definitely feel connected to Thousand Sons on a few levels. 

 

Abaddon I've always struggled with. He's been portrayed so radically different over the years it's hard to pin him down. It's not like he's been able to be explored wholly, and properly like a Guilliman or Mortarion. 

 

It really wasn't until ADB's Black Legion that I started to 'bond' with Abaddon. Before then he felt more 'space thug' than anything else. I never liked Talon of Horus either... it just didn't appeal to me personally. I feel like Abaddon really grabbed me in Black Legion.

 

So what is it? I think it's not the 'ruling by fear' thing. I think he's taking on insurmountable odds. Then there's the ability to deny the thing that can help him the most. He's extremely capable, and his ability to pull all of the fractured and not so fractured pieces of the puzzle together to go after Cadia, etc... that's some interesting stuff. 

 

I always had trouble identifying with World Eaters until the last few years. I used to have conversations with Flint all the time about this. (She loved them.. if anyone remembers Flint). 

 

I think sometimes it's just being the bad guy though. I've said a million times I would be the only true CSM guy at our GW. Now I walk in there, and tons of people are finally trying it. I don't see them sticking to it though.... they don't truly want to drive a dagger into the heart of the Imperium at the end of the day. They're weak. They'll pay for it in the end.  ;)

[Midnightmare]

My reason for playing Black Legion -

http://i.imgur.com/Aj8HTXb.jpg

[Panzer]

I play Slaanesh because we used to be only four in our group and decided each of us does a chaos project for one of the gods. Nobody really wanted Slaanesh and I'm more than fine with the god of sex, drugs and rock&roll (I just hope GW gives us Noise Marines with guitar blaster again or at least some 3rd party offers new bitz since all the current ones are pretty dated by now).

Emperor's Children? That's just the biggest Slaaneshi Legion out there and so it's bound to get all the cool stuff like Noise Marine troops etc so that's why I picked those. Otherwise I probably would've gone with Night Lords instead.

[BrainFireBob]

Loyalists and Iron Warriors.

 

OCD? Yes. Winning not by toughness but by will? Yes. DO I COMMIT AND STICK TO THE PLAN!? IRON WITHIN, IRON WITHO...

 

I mean, yeah, sometimes.

[Lord Asvaldir]

The reasons for picking an army are so varied I don't really think you can narrow it down to just personality to matching a player to a legion/renegade chapter. I've collected night lords and word bearers over the years, two legions with vastly different personalities. 

[Trevak Dal]

World Eaters are the embodiment of "accept any challenge, no matter the odds" and "meet your enemies face to face and break them with your bare hands"

 

Some chapters (...Legions?) Have religious zeal and fervor, being black tabard wearing Word Bearers who can't spit or go into stasis.

 

Some worship by fighting the greatest enemies in the Dark Universe and seeing who comes out on top while screaming praise to a uncaring god who only ever wants more.

 

Some fly loyalist flags, some fly traitor.

 

Neither like psykers too much and could probably bond over killing them too much for the Inquisition's liking.