++The Blighted Reef+++ An Endworlds Chronicle

[Xin Ceithan]

[ +++ DATA REPOSITORY - REF#X*******-Q.V.-"SCATTERED-EDGE-REEF-FRAGMENTS-./.-THEUS-TESTIMONIES"+++++]

[+++ CAVE: ACCESS RESTRICTED - BY ORDER OF THE ///Redacted////- ++++ ]

[+++ VERIFYING....RETINAL ACCESS.... ACCEPTED....VOICE VERIFICATION.. ACCEPTED ...INITIALIZING ... .ACCESS...GRANTED.....HAPTIC LOCKS.....PASSED...+++]
[+++ ACCESSING RESTRICTED DATALOOMS +++]

[+++...SPOOLING....+++]

[+++ BEGIN INLOAD +++]

[+++ AUDIO...ENGAGED....+++]

>>>... have proven inconclusive. Given recent rumors of entire settlements being subjected to xenos tyranny along the [REDACTED] I can see that the our focus will probably be tied up elsewhere for the time being.

With your permission though, I shall attempt to further our investigations regarding this so-called "Cold Forge", even if it must progress at a much slower pace.


From the few remaining data looms and heritage charts made available to us, I have attempted to cross reference these with what little information your ancestors could coerce from their sources from the Phall Triplet and now believe to have narrowed the region in which the "cold forge" might have been located down to an area which is even further along the edge and quite above the galactic disc.

Pre-crusade chartist archives refer to this area as the "Diaspartoi Y'phaloe " or "Scattered Edge Reefs", presumably a reference to the lumen ruber shift and sensoric drift when observing the area from the Terran trajectory. Mainly consisting of a loose collection of star clusters and stellar floatsam trailing the galactic drift, those ancient references believed the area to encompass a rather large amount of nebulae, stellar phenomena and contains navigational warnings to the possible trajectory of several extrastellar roque objects. These apparently made traveling and mapping the area quite challenging from the beginning. Aside from [DATA RECOVERY...INCOMPLETE.//.. RECOVERY PROTOCOL.... FAILED.../..3.5 MEGAPULSES LOST..]..

....your family's copy of Thapparelliv's "Sull'oro del Vuoto" also hints at the presence of several minor xenos enclaves in the area as well. We have seen evidence of some subspecies of the blasted Xa' Xuajing having fought the Gatebreakers at [REDACTED] and further outwards. There are also a few comments that seem to remark about a higher frequency of Empyrean fluctuations in that region as opposed to the more prevalent calm of the Empyrean around the ""Endworlds"...

Of course, Thapparelliv's work must have been considered a fringe publication - if you'll excuse the pun - even back in it's day and it is a small wonder that your family not only acquired bits and pieces over the years from it but could keep even some f of these accessible over all this time...

We must also consider that the entire region is located above and beyond the confluant singularity object marked in more recent charts as the "Maw of Gha' jhirra" makes reaching and navigating the area even more complicated. There are rings of stellar fragments, planetary debris and ionized gas which must have provided a haven to raiders and pirates even back then. I wonder what else might be hidden there hidden beyond cold flares of radiation?

Our contemporaries label these the "Fields of the Hungry" (which is perplexing close to to the ancient "scilicet pascere esurientem" to make me wonder if...[DATA RETRIEVAL....PENDING...]...when considering possible positions suited for establishing the Aegis extra galactica....

[DATA RETRIEVAL...INCOMPLETE]...

...which might explain how the stellar clusters beyond are now more colloquially referred to as "Kōhai:cussa sangoshō" or "the blighted Reefs" among our local void faring comrades. Indeed, if they mention it at all. Most consider even the merest mention of it a bad omen and will offer scripts of banishment and signs of warding in addition to prayers to our Emperor lest they might attract "the attention of the Eye" and it's voracious and barbarian denizens.

Chief among these "hungry ghost" are the so called "Maw tribes", which are apparently mostly of abhuman origins, often belonging to the ogrynus phenotype. Not only do they apparently benefit from an inherent advantage in regions of higher gravity and irradiation but the storys consistently describe them as also having been subjected to extensive augmentation...some of which appear at this point more ritualistic than functional. Reminders of a past in service to the Martian creed perhaps?

I wonder if these are descendants of a workforce that once belonged to our lost Forge? Their void craft have been also been described as both subject to deviation from sanctioned imperial patterns as well as relying on the jury rigging salvage from the Maw area and raiding the fringe of the current imperial area of interdiction. There are rumors that they have been apparentlly providing support to bands of [REDACTED], hinting at some organized form of maintenance and support capacity even as crude as it seems to be. There are also consistent reports of the tribes having access to some form of gravitonical manipulation, used both for offense as well as propulsion, that..

..[DATA RETRIEVAL....COMPROMISED...///...RETRIEVAL.....FAILED....///...DATA...LOST..4.5 MP].. consistent elements point to towards the observation and use of gravitonical and even more esoteric phenomena having been the focus of our evasive forge site.

Actually, while probably highly inaccurate and inevitably over the top, the tribes featured as a recurring group of villains in a series of local hololithic lantern dramae popular during the early M39 which flowery title translates into something like "Beholding the Throne Eternal". And, may the Emperor forgive me, I must admit to have taken quite a liking to this and have squandered my meager income and spare time on tracking down more holocaches. These have been hard to come by but I suspect that elements of these have been blurred and incorporated into local customs an as a result, local legend has the tribes paying tribute to everything from ancient machine spirits mistaken for the guiding voices of long gone ancestors to worshipping the very heart of the singularity. And, of course, outright support for the Ruinous Powers.

The tribes reported disdain and even outright hostility to those they believe to be in service to what they blasphemously deride as "the Slaver' s Throne" certainly has not endeared them to the local populace either.

Thus, these "Maw tribes" have thus become a common regional bogeyman, surpassing at times even the reputation of "the Diyu" and the [REDACTED. // ..INITIALIZING PURGE PROTOCOL..//...PURGE....COMPLETE. // 17.5 MEGAPULSES PURGED]...

...[RESPOOLING DATA LOOM ]..

...My travels have also revealed that several local customs and sites seem to stem from the presence off several factions aligned to elements that would later be incorporated into the Imperium as parts of the Adeptus Mechanicus, which further leads me to belief in the presence of several pre-unity mechanical elements in the area.

While our access to the Tri'Phall fragments is frustratingly incomplete, we know that they were keenly interested in tracking those who spread across the stars as part of the Martian Diaspora during the Long Night and [iNLOAD INTERRUPTED.../...]...the Shield Worlds Initiative....[.INLOAD.INCOMPLETE...\..PENDING... ]...uncovered several references the so-called "Houses of the Basilisk" which were assumed to be active across the Reefs.

Sadly, our fragments do not relay if or when the Triplex forges attempted to verify these speculations, however. I tried to make some discreet inquiries about this among our host, but these also have been... inconclusive, to say the least.

Likewise , there is not enough information regarding the progress of the Great Crusade or the composition of elements sent into the area. As I have already stated elsewhere, the idea of establishing the Parma Galactica was probably more theoretical at the time of their recording and the 'looms have not stood the test of time well.

Actually, we should not even assume that the forces of the Great Crusade actually reached the reef stars in significant force. since all do the data repositories we have been able to acquire are mostly secondhand reports of chartists expeditions or at best may hint at the presence of Astartes advance elements, apparently of the [DATA LOSS ESTABLISHED AT 7.5 MP] ... can again find testimonies to the presence off several minor xenos factions scattered across the reef star clusters, but I have not been able to establish if or when significant military action was taken in bringing worlds to compliance.

I did manage to link some of the references to the actions of a body of knight engines near the center of the reef stars fighting under a serpentine coat of arms, however. The "Houses of the Basilisk"?

As information on the situation of reef stars in the present .day, well...they are likewise quite elusive.

Given our hosts quite enthusiastic use of a rather ...prosaic...approach to record keeping, I am at a loss to say if this more due to the Gatebreakers' loss of their fortress monastery and the related data repositories or if their Adepts have simply wandered off to far into their own flowery oral history. Of course, they may have simply decided that is not our business and feel it would be to "impolite" to just tell us that outright.

Emperor help me, but when I look back to our encounters with the Outriders of the Black Templars fleet at [Redacted], I might actually begin to miss just being told to "sod off " with the wave of a chainsword. But I digress...

My Lord, It is my sincere belief that we should continue to look into this matter.
Even if it might not provide more conclusive leads on the forge itself, the material I have gathered makes me firmly believe that there are significant archeotechnological resources that could be procured there, both to the benefit of your house and the Imperium. It is an undertaking that I believe could not be closer to the core and the spirit of the Rogue Trader Charta as envisioned by HIS divine majesty during the foundation of the Imperium itself.

I have already been able to attach myself to a flotilla assembled to strengthen HIS dominion once more over the worlds beyond the Sambodian Fields. The Imperial Tithe apparently has not been collected there for over half a century, I have been told.
The naval group has therefore been open to include me and my compatriots to bolster their forces and I look forward to do a little more of a Hands on work after being glued to lith reader over this. I also hope this will present me with the opportunity to exchange and collect information from a perspective of our fellow humanitas closer to the notorious blighted Reefs.

I remain your faithful servan and your friend,

Theus Septaro

[NOETIC LINK MARK ENCOUNTERED]...

[DATA RECOVERY.///...ENGAGING LINK ...]...[OPENING NOETIC REFERENCE LINK..]
[ACCESSING ADJOINED DATA LOAD...]
[VERIFYING CLEARANCE....///...VERIFICATION...///...APPROVED.///INLOAD..EXPANSE...COMPLETE...]

: CMD Dolan Omani FREGATE_"GLORIOUS-LEAP"]
: LORD CAPTAIN TAIWO, COMMANDER, Ẹtì Alubarika

>> Lord Captain Taiwo,

Our divine and most high Emperor, beloved by all, has seen fit to lay upon me this saddest of duties. It is thus with the deepest regret that I have to inform you that your trusted seneshall and envoy, the noble Theus Septaro has been lost in action against a force of reef wrack raiders of the maw worshipper tribes.

Our group was ambushed six weeks outside Quin Komak during resupply at the Depot Monastery of HIs Outbound Light . The tithe barges were swarmed by at least four tribal warspheres and several smaller raiding hulls, which apparently used gravitonical mines, which enabled them to isolate and overwhelm three of the tithing barges during the engagement. Despite the efforts of their crew and your associate, not even the valiant intervention of a Rift Team of our Emperor's own Astartes could enable the remaining fleet elements to reach the thus isolated barges in time. Over the course of the action, two of the barges were ultimately destroyed and another remained crippled and open to the void. Of their crews, most could only be recovered death or dying from exposure to hard vacuum. A further 5 % were too wounded to fight on and given the Emperor's Mercy.

Unfortunately, we were unable to recover the body of your esteemed envoy or or his entourage even after a prolonged search. They must therefore be assumed to be lost to the void at best or in the hands of the Maw tribes at worst. From the brief time we were allowed to serve our divine Majesty together, I came to respect their devotion and can attest to their skill at arms , of which you are possible most aware. I can only find solace in thus believing that none of them allowed themselves to be taken alive. While their honour remains intact, we must therefore regrettably assume them to be dead by the time this dispatch reaches you. They shall remain in our prayers. May HIS divine Mercy be upon them and may HE provide shelter for their souls.

Due to this unacceptable outcome, I had the remaining commanding offficers and bridge crew involved tried for incompetence and the resulting loss of a servant to HIS Divine Grace as well as cowardice in the face of the enemy. They were executed by voiding at 8 bells the following day.

Regretfully,


Dolan Omani,
Group Commander,
43th Tithe Group, 15th Trailing Expanse Enforcement Fleet
.....

+++ Embedded PIC CAPTURE....

Un-identified Member of Reef Wreck Raider Boarding Party .... FURTHER DATA ....PENDING...+++

[ +++ DATA RECOVERY....///...PAUSED...+++]

I would like, if I may, to take you on a very strange journey.... C.Gray, Terra, Pre-Unity, c.a. MII

Hello and welcome to the Blighted Reefs!

Some of you may already be following the Tales of the Endworlds and their estranged protectors, the Gatebreakers.

But as the forces of the Indomitus Crusade are looking to reestablish contact with their long lost brothers and re-assert Imperial dominance on the edge of the Galaxy, there are ...other... things... out there,
Things that are beginning to take notice... Things that were quite fond of staying out of reach...and out of sight...

Edited October 14, 2020 by Xin Ceithan

[BadgersinHills]

Really cool! :) 

[Xin Ceithan]

[+++ REESTABLISHING DATA RECOVERY +++]

[+++ACCESSING MEMETIC COIL...///..ADDING RETINAL LENS FEED..///...ENABLED+++]

> He is breathing hard, the respirator feed echoing through the helmet of his voidrig. They are moving through the maintenance kennels along the starboard hull,running where possible, heads held low, trying to avoid the trunks of tubing and machinery overhead. Emergency lighting is erratic and infrequent. The rig is trying to account for this, but without his retinal lens, he would be practically blind. Vox is close circuit only, all breathing, occasional curses as someone bumps a head into a wall, a knee into a sharp edge. Ship wide vox is useless by now, full of jamming patterns, all white noise and an odd, brassy, ongoing tone beneath it. He can even feel it in his gut when the Vox is down. They all can. A few times it is interrupted shortly by someone screaming. At first, it was mostly Orders. Now, it is mostly composed of pain and cursing. He'd turn it off , but he is not ready to cut all ties to the rest of the ship. Not yet. He has spent his whole life on void ships. If they can reach one of the auxiliary bays, they might guide in reinforcements, maybe form a rallying point. That is what he told the crew members now accompanying him. To himself, he is just hoping to find a way of the barge, hoping to make a way to the Imperial line. His mission is not to protect the tithe. His mission is to report back to the Ẹtì Alubarika...

The raiders have trouble fitting their bulk into the narrow maintenance tunnels. So, they have released hunting beast, weaponized things, all teeth and claw. They are as viscous as their masters. He laughs soundlessly as he remembers their representation on "Throne Eternal"...The real thing is both much more interesting... and much more dangerous. Not that he is surprised. He tightens the grip on the heavy naval shotgun he is now carrying at the thought. He remembers one of the barge's arms men deriding the raiders earlier for their brutish looks, their piece mail armour and apparently make shift equipment. Theus knows better. It is his duty, after all, to know such things. The raiders are clearly experienced boarders and move with purpose, outfitted for fighting at close quarters. They seem instinctively adept at using their bulk to their advantage and many have been further augmented, the servo limps increasing their already fearsome physical might. Some carry boarding shields. Some simply make shields from ripped off doors and sheets of dented metal. All carry grenades. Photon flares and smoke to close the distance. Fragmentation to soften up the resistance, to open up void rigs. The few ranged weapons he has seen are bulky, low velocity, wide spread slug throwers or burst cannons Everything is intended to injure rather than kill, to maim and subdue. Nothing than will damage the hull. Nothing that will damage the prize.

He wonders what has become of Uriz.
He has been separated from his Gatebreaker....Warden? .(....Overseer? Chaperone? ...Companion?.........Friend?..) ... fighting along the main dorsal spine, trying to reach the bridge. That was four hours ago. He has had the dubious privilege of seeing a Space Marine fighting before. They are tough bastards. He still has hope.
He has no illusion about the fate of the derisive naval trooper, though. Theus is now carrying his shotgun, after all. His own hellgun has been out of juice for over two hours. They have to be fast. The barge crew surely can't hold them off much longer. They are more enforcers than real naval fighters. The odds are turning against them. He needs to get of this ship. This isn't the first scrap he has been in. If he can get back to a real ship...

There is screaming on the vox again. It takes a moment for him to realize it is indeed someone trying to get out a message...

"\\\\...' gain. All han' .....' for impact!....'astards... really...torpedoed our....Brace!...BRACE!!!...////"

The trooper in front of him attempts to turn towards him, slow in his bulky voidrig. A noise drowns out everything, even, for Throne's sake, the fetching droning, for once. Pain flares in his side...<<

[..///..[MEMORY COIL..DAMAGED.AT MP 5698.99.. ///...DATA RECOVERY...INCOMPLETE. .////...INLOAD....PAUSED]

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Edited October 19, 2020 by Xin Ceithan

[apologist]

Love it! The slightly feral look of the ogryn really sells the slightly off-kilter, unwholesome feel – which in turn is enlivened by your writing.

[Xin Ceithan]

Thank you all forlooking and your encouragement !

I quite like the necromunda ogryns design wise and actually intended to leave the first model unconverted as a sort of test model...

but as I was further developing the Fluff on the Reef Wreck Raiders, i thought it should have a few more savage touches. They are supposed to show some sort mechanicus related heritage, but shouldn`t look as if they were still coming from an assembly line. So i changed the head, which also gives it a slightly deformed silhouette.

The raiders can`t seriously take on enemy voidship crews all by brute force and huge maintenance tools. But support is on the way.

Sculpting cybernetically enhanced limbs is quite the challenge.The more technical look is much more harder than the mpre organic (read. messy) I have so far achieved.

I am also still developing the look of a certain xeno species, as ypu can see on the right.

I`ll leave you with a smile!

[Vazzy]

Dude these Ogryn are absolutely ace! Love the shark head as well! Way out of my skill set hahha!

[Xin Ceithan]

Thanks ! i can honestly say that I am quite proud and still a bit surprised how well my shark guy turned so far. Looks like I am indeed improving on the GS side.

But I am now terrified to ruin during the further sculpting process ;p

Papa Nurgle demanded quite a bit of my attention lately. This delayed my green stuffing and I have not gotten into actually writing down more fluff or stories....it is all logged up in my cranial drive at the moment.

Still I have made some progress on this one and even put some paint on it in the mean time

The Wreck Raiders are getting a bit of an upgrade on the heavy weapon side....

bit of a breacher cannon for opening up armoured targets and throwing some shrapnell around

which obviously requires a larger power source and some aditional augments

I kept the close combat augment (still blue tac all around)

The more feral looking AoS ogryn heads make a nice contrast to the industrial base components IMO

Looking forward to your comments... there is still a lot of room for Improvement !

[BadgersinHills]

Looking good! The colour scheme could use a focal point, all the colour seems to blend together which may be what you are looking for, but adding red eyes or something like that to draw the eye would add some pop, for lack of better term. 

[Xin Ceithan]

While this is early WiP in the colour department ( especially on the cables and such ),  I  very  much have to agree with you. 
I think I have the basic scheme figured out, but it does lack some focus...

 

While I am intending to keep the eyes milky for reasons that are coming up in the narrative, I am open to suggestions here

- maybe some war paint  on the faces or the augments? Maybe turn some hazard signs / striping into the basic of a tribal pattern? 
I toyed with the idea of giving them tattoos in a sort of yakuzza  analog reminiscent  way with a twist into the symbolism of the Mechanicum but I am not sure that I can pull that one off....

 

The Intension behind the Endworlds is to have a bit of an “eastern” vibe to it with a heavy dose of cultural drift over millennia of time and interstellar distances. I am trying to get in some research in between and TBH, the Wreck Raiders are very much intended to be a stepping stone here...something obviously from an Imperium / Mechanicus origin that found a place on the outside of both the local Imperium and the strangeness of the Blighted Reefs further out...

 

Any ideas? 

[Noctus Cornix]

I'm reeeeeeally digging that unhealthy pale, yet colorful skin you have going on. It really adds an almost decaying look to the model and contrasts perfectly with the dark and rusted colors of the metal and clothes. 

 

Can't wait to see more, man! :D

[Xin Ceithan]

Thanks!  It takes ages to blend but  I am quite pleased. All those hours in anatomy seminars and the morgue finally paying off ;)

 A group of beings living near the event horizon of a flaring black hole amid rings of wreckage shouldn‘t look healthy...