[WIP] Raven Guard Successor: The Duskwatch – Ritual Shadow Chapter (Feedback Welcome)

[Noble1992]

Greetings, brothers.

I’m in the early-to-mid stages of developing a custom Raven Guard successor Chapter called The Duskwatch, and I’d like to present a working draft of their command structure and core identity for feedback, critique, and refinement.

This is part of a much larger Codex-style homebrew project I’ve been building, which includes unique traditions, specialized units, stealth-adapted Dreadnoughts, and more. I’m aiming to remain lore-consistent, grounded in the universe, and fully within the spirit of the Adeptus Astartes.

 

 The Duskwatch – Summary

    Firstborn-only Chapter

    Operates in deep secrecy, rarely fighting alongside others, but still loyal to the Imperium

    Specializes in targeted eliminations of synapse creatures, chaos warlords, psykers, and strategic targets (e.g., supply convoys, void-nodes)

    Inspired thematically by the Raven Guard, Carcharodons, and Salamanders (though they rarely show themselves)

    They leave behind aid — food, gear, data — for Imperial citizens and forces, but never reveal their presence if avoidable

 

Ritual & Identity

    Recruits take the Umbral Vow — a vow of silence until their first sanctioned kill

    They then undergo The Unconcealment, a rite where their old name is erased and they are given a codename tied to their first true act of service

    Names like “Veilcarve,” “Ash-Walker,” or “Stillblood” are examples — not titles, but identities earned

 

Dreadnoughts – The Stillwatch

    The Chapter has a small, sacred cadre of stealth-adapted Dreadnoughts known as The Stillwatch

    Deployed only when no other option remains

    Custom-modified for silent war — ghost-melta, suppressive claw-blades, null-infusion, etc.

    Each Dreadnought is a known legend within the Chapter, bound by rituals and memory codes

The Key Point I Need Feedback On: Leadership Structure

Rather than a traditional Chapter Master, I’m exploring a Triadic Command System:

 

Role                     Title                                             Function
Supreme    Commande Ghostmark    Oversees all field ops and kill-orders
Lorekeeper     Voice of Ash                 Maintains legacy, spiritual rituals, morale
Relicmaster     Forge-Cryptic              Oversees relics, Apothecarion, and Dreadnought communion

 

Would this system be considered too divergent from the Codex Astartes to be tolerated by the wider Imperium?

Are there examples of shared leadership (like the Mortifactors or Exorcists) I could reference?

 

Notes

    Everything here is temporary canon, part of an in-progress Codex project

    All feedback welcome: lore concerns, structure suggestions, precedent examples, etc.

    Will post full heraldry, squad structure, and codified ranks in future updates

 

Thanks in advance, and may your bolters speak true.

— Noble1992

[Brother Tyler]

The proposition of a Chapter that consists only of Firstborn is interesting, and may be problematic depending upon who you talk to. The implication at this point [during the Era Indomitus] is that (just about?) every Chapter has incorporated Primaris within its ranks, whether through an infusion of Primaris from the Unnumbered Sons or as a result of the Torchbearers. The impression I got, perhaps mistakenly, is that no refusal was allowed and all Chapters now include some percentage of Primaris. Of course, a Chapter that refused to incorporate Primaris might pose an interesting case study. Alternately, it would be very easy to portray a Chapter prior to the introduction of the Primaris, whether during the period in which the Primaris were still being sent to/shared with the Chapters or some earlier point in time prior to the existence of the Primaris being divulged.

 

As for leadership structure, do the roles you listed have analogs in the Codex Astartes? It is not uncommon for Chapters to utilize special titles and, sometimes, roles for certain offices. The functions you listed appear to be comparable with the several of the "Master of ~" titles that the various Captains hold within a Codex Chapter, as well as roles that are performed by some of the specialist officers. For example, the senior apothecary within a Chapter, occasionally called the "Master Apothecary" or "Master of the Apothecarion," typically holds leadership over the Apothecarion (and in the Red Scorpions Chapter, the Master of the Apothecarion is second-in-command of the Chapter). Your Lorekeeper sounds similar to the Reclusiarch or Master of Sanctity combined with the Master of the Rites (one of those "Master" offices that one of the captains holds) within a Codex Chapter.

 

Is the triadic command system you describe one of three co-equal "Chapter Masters?" It sounds like something that could be done with a slightly more traditional command structure where there is a Chapter Master (overall authority, operational leadership) with a senior council. It might be interesting to have the Apothecarion under the Forge, in a manner similar to the way the Adeptus Mechanicus combines elements of the mechanical and the biological. Under this construct, the "Lorekeeper" would be your Chapter's equivalent to the Master of Sanctity and your Relicmaster would be your Chapter's equivalent to the Master of the Forge. This would be akin to the way the Iron Fathers of the Iron Hands [and their Successors] combine the roles of Chaplains and Techmarines while the Wolf Priests of the Space Wolves [and their Successors] combine the roles of Chaplains and Apothecaries. I'm not aware of any Chapters that have multiple co-equal Chapter Masters, though it's possible there are some that I haven't heard of (and let's face it, I'm not 100% up on the current lore ). The closest thing I can think of is the Deathwatch, which has a Watch Commander (sort of like a Chapter Master) at each Watch Fortress, but each Watch Fortress is effectively a separate entity and no single Chapter Master controls the Deathwatch. That's not quite like what you're describing, however, so I'm not sure it's a valid comparison.

 

Aside from that, all of the things you have proposed sound interesting and acceptable. They may take a little work to flesh out, but that's part of the fun of DIY development.

[Noble1992]

Thank you for the detailed and thoughtful reply — I really appreciate it. You've raised some great points, and I agree that several of the ideas I'm playing with will need careful attention to stay aligned with the broader lore and Codex structure.

 

Regarding the Firstborn-Only Angle:

You're right — post-Indomitus, Firstborn-only Chapters are rare, and Primaris integration is the norm. My thinking (subject to refinement) is to explore a few possible lore-consistent justifications:

 

Temporal Isolation: The Duskwatch may have disappeared into deep operations before the Indomitus Crusade fully deployed Primaris to them. Their existence is semi-clandestine even to the wider Imperium.

 

Pragmatic Rejection: They may have quietly refused Primaris integration due to doctrinal incompatibility — stealth, surgical strikes, and minimal visibility aren’t strengths of the Primaris form, especially in their current iterations.

 

Unrecorded Operations: They may simply not exist in many records, and thus were never properly "delivered" their Primaris reinforcements in the first place. This opens room for shadowy survival in the margins of Imperial administration.

 

I recognize it’s a tricky space, and I’ll work on justifying it more clearly in-lore.

 

On Leadership Structure:

Really helpful insight here — I love your suggestion of aligning titles like Lorekeeper, Relicmaster, etc., with existing Codex analogues like Master of Sanctity, Master of the Forge, etc. That gives me a solid foundation to stand on without straying too far from structure.

 

I’m still debating whether the Chapter will operate with:

A traditional Chapter Master (perhaps called the Voice of Ash for thematic consistency) supported by a senior command triad,

Or if the Chapter truly shares power among three symbolic leaders, each representing a core doctrine (spiritual, technological, strategic).

The latter has strong symbolic appeal but might risk pushing the “non-Codex” element too far — so your suggestion to align with a Chapter Master + council structure may be the better long-term direction.

 

Merged Roles (Forge-Cryptics, etc.):

Your mention of Iron Fathers and Wolf Priests is exactly the kind of precedent I was looking at. The Duskwatch are extremely self-reliant, and their isolation lends itself to merged functions (e.g., battlefield fieldcraft and battlefield medicine coming from a single operator). I’ll keep fleshing this out with those parallels in mind.

 

Thanks again — I really appreciate you taking the time to engage. As I develop the full codex, I’ll definitely be keeping an eye on how far I can push things without breaking the world they live in.

[Lysimachus]

I'd say that the third option regarding being Firstborn only makes most sense. I wouldn't have them refuse them, as that would likely cause a fight with the incoming Primaris, or bring judgement from the Imperium.

 

(Unless the Loyal Renegade Chapter is a route you'd like to go down? Y'know: "Today, still wanted by the government Adeptus Terra, they survive as soldiers of fortune. If you have a problem, if no one else can help, and if you can find them, maybe you can hire...")

 

 

Edit: Re the stealth dreadnought bit, I personally find it a bit of an odd concept... but maybe the Invictor warsuit gives you a precedent?  I know you aren't using Primaris stuff, but clearly the tech is available?

 

As to the Triumvirate thing, I like it. Kinda like an extension of 'a Legion is too much power for 1 man to control', it's an extra level of protection against corruption. Interesting you haven't mentioned the Librarians of the Chapter - are they not trusted?

 

Maybe in the same way that the Apothecarion comes under the Forge, perhaps the Librarius comes under the Lorekeeper (which would make sense, as this is part of the Librarius' role in a Codex Chapter). If they aren't fully trusted, then it's a good way for the Master of Sanctity/Chaplains to keep an eye on them?

 

 

 

 

 

 

Edited July 8 by Lysimachus

[Noble1992]

8 hours ago, Lysimachus said:

I'd say that the third option regarding being Firstborn only makes most sense. I wouldn't have them refuse them, as that would likely cause a fight with the incoming Primaris, or bring judgement from the Imperium.

 

(Unless the Loyal Renegade Chapter is a route you'd like to go down? Y'know: "Today, still wanted by the government Adeptus Terra, they survive as soldiers of fortune. If you have a problem, if no one else can help, and if you can find them, maybe you can hire...")

 

 

Edit: Re the stealth dreadnought bit, I personally find it a bit of an odd concept... but maybe the Invictor warsuit gives you a precedent?  I know you aren't using Primaris stuff, but clearly the tech is available?

 

As to the Triumvirate thing, I like it. Kinda like an extension of 'a Legion is too much power for 1 man to control', it's an extra level of protection against corruption. Interesting you haven't mentioned the Librarians of the Chapter - are they not trusted?

 

Maybe in the same way that the Apothecarion comes under the Forge, perhaps the Librarius comes under the Lorekeeper (which would make sense, as this is part of the Librarius' role in a Codex Chapter). If they aren't fully trusted, then it's a good way for the Master of Sanctity/Chaplains to keep an eye on them?

 

 

 

 

 

 

Thanks so much for the thoughtful feedback — this is exactly the kind of discussion I was hoping to generate.

You're spot on about the Firstborn-only decision. The Duskwatch don’t refuse Primaris outright — they’ve simply never been reinforced with them. Their operations are so clandestine and their deployments so scattered (fleet-based, cell-structured) that attempts to reinforce them likely failed or were deprioritized. The Imperium tolerates them because their results speak volumes — and because tracking them down to reprimand them isn’t exactly easy!

The Shadeframe Dreadnoughts are definitely unconventional, and I really appreciate the Invictor reference — that’s the kind of precedent I needed. The Duskwatch don’t field them like traditional dreadnoughts. Instead, they’re deployed for surgical strikes, daemon-hunts, or infiltration-based sabotage — more relic assassin than mobile tank.

The Triumvirate leadership structure is indeed meant to reflect that “no one man should wield the will of a Legion.” Each master governs a core tenet: relics and tools (Relicmaster), memory and doctrine (Lorekeeper), body and blood (Forge-Cryptic). They balance each other, and decisions require consensus.

As for Librarians — excellent catch. They do exist, but are limited (1–2 at most), and they operate under the Lorekeeper’s direct oversight. This acts as both spiritual anchor and check on psychic instability. Their rituals and visions are filtered through doctrine, not instinct.

Thanks again — I’ll bake these thoughts into the developing codex.