The Jackals of Abyssine: Redux

[skrob]

Origins: Abyssine is a frontier world along the eastern fringe of Imperial space. The population, a hearty and robust people strongly resembling the nothern tribes of ancient, and long forgotten if ever known, Africa. Mointain ranges dominate more than seventy percent of available land, the rest being given over to pasture and enclosed lakes, some big enough to be grudgingly called an ocean by off-worlders. As the planet is feudal and of no great tactical importance, off-word visitors are few and discreet. The peoples of Abyssine are as devout an Imperial can be without actively knowing of the Imperium itself. They are given to practicing a form of ancestor worship with the Emperor, or "All Father", as the central figure, the Primogenitor of all life on Abyssine. Imperial records, o lack there of in most cases, date the transfer of the world to a newly created chapter of the Adeptus Astartes during the 3rd Founding known then as the Cerulean Brotherhood, a successor of the Ultramarines.

 

No one knows exactly when it happened, but rather than the peoples of Abyssine bending to the will and teachings of the Brotherhood, it was they, it seemed, who were, made to change. As years went on, reports of increasing occurances of ancestor worship and veneration of fallen bretheren and deceased veterans and commanders reached the ears of the inquisition. At the tme there was no cause for alarm, no reason to investigate at all really. It was merely filed as yet another curiosity of the ever eccentric legions of the Astartes.

 

According to the quasi-Imperial cult of the Abyssineans there are those touched with the glory of the All-Father. Namely, psykers. These tribal chiefs and medicine men attempt to commune with the spirits to bestow the wisdom of their ancestors upon their people. It is also believed that these shamans are able to instill the warriors of Abyssine with the strength of fallen heroes before a battle. Weapons and items previously owned by such great mean are greedily cherrished as items of great power and prestige within the tribes.

 

The Brothers were not unaffected by this. Over time, more and more members of the brotherhood would seek out the Chapter Librarians for guidance and blessings, espescially before a great battle. As time went by the role of Chaplain was almost completly phased out, the Librarians taking over the role of preacher, teacher, and keeper of knowledge. Soon they were leading more engagements than non-psyker veterans. Eventually a Psyker was at the head of every major combat situation. In a surprising turn of events, the role of chapter master was eventually reserved exclusively for a Psyker.

 

By then the chapter was almost indiscernable from the human stock from which they gathered their recruits. Both in looks and beliefs. It's though this took hundreds, if not a few thousand years to come to pass, considering the gene-seed stock of the Cerulean Brotherhood. Namely the Ultramarines. The brotherhood were not ignorant of this as well, and as their final act of convergeance they would take a new symbol, name and colours to match their philosophy.

 

The alpine Jackal of Abyssine is featured heavily within the ancestor-religion as the shephards of the dead. They who lead the recently passed to the land of the dead. It is thought that like the shamans of Abyssine, the Jackals are also able to commune with the dead. As such, Jackal-bone fetishes are regularly used during religious ceremony to further cement the connection to the netherworld that the shaman/librarian attempts to create.

 

Their armour, rust red and bone. Their symbol to the jackal. The Cerulean Brotherhood was reborn. They were now and forevermore, the Jackals of Abyssine.

 

 

 

Home world: Abyssine

 

 

 

Combat Doctrine: still working on it

 

 

 

Organisation: As Abyssine is a planet infested with mountain-ranges the practicality of tanks and the coveted tactical dreadnought armour is small to none. As such, the few tanks and terminator armour the Chapter once possessed were cannibalized beyond use for parts over the many years of the Chapter's history. The Jackals also shun the use of dreadnoguhts as it conflicts with their religious beliefs that the dead must remain so, to further strengthen the Chapter from the side of the Emperor, the "All-Father." The result of this is a higher than usual amount of tactical squads, scout squads and, to a lesser extent, assault marines. As a result of this and coupled with their training, the Jackals are best suited to hard-to-navigate landscapes such as mountains and sprawling urban centers.

 

 

 

Beliefs: As stated earlier, the Jackals are obsessed with ancestor worship and as such shun the use of dreadnoughts as an abomination to the right of honorable death. They've also no use for chaplains as their librarians now serve that role well enough, displaying the same righteous zeal and fervor as their cousins in black. The librarian, and most importantly the Chapter Master, are thought to be able to commune with the dead souls of fallen brothers. They are thought to be able to channel the power of the deceased for the betterment of the Chapter. The chapter Master is also accompanied by an Abyssinean jackal at all times. The beasts remain great symbols of power and distinction within the chapter to this day. Many is the staff of a librarian that is topped with a Jackal's skull.

 

 

 

Armour: A deep rust red and bone. The patterning is similar to that of the Mortifactors.

 

 

 

Gene-seed: Ultramarine

 

 

 

Battle-cry: We see. We know.

 

Typically before a battle, whoever is leading will utter the first half of the cry while the assembled brothers will reply with the second.

[Commissar Molotov]

Well, I see you've made some changes to Abyssine.

 

You make reference to the pirates as being of 'the Wolf Pack'. 'Wolf Packs' tend to be the name the Imperial Navy uses to refer to pirate raids. That would be like saying 'They were raided by THE Humans'. Perhaps you could give this particular band of scoundrels a particular name?

 

You refer to this 'Kalak' as being a 'young man'. I have my reservations. It seems you've overlooked the fact that to be recruited into a marine chapter, initiates have to be twelve or younger; this is a key part of marine fluff. So, if you want him to be an influential figure in your chapter's history, he needs to be some sort of child prodigy.

 

I'm also unsure why he needs the psychic powers. You seem to imply that he goes on to become the chapter master - Librarians don't normally do that, especially not in Ultramarine successors. Perhaps he's rather more normal and then gets recruited into some UM successor chapter. Then one day he gets selected to command his own chapter - and leads them back to Abyssine. That would seem to be to be a little bit more believeable.

 

Does Kalak need to be a marine? Perhaps he's simply an extraordinary figure who goes on to be venerated later? Or an Ecclesiarchal saint or the like. Perhaps some see him as invested with some of the Emperor's power (Thorian doctrine?) Because that raises the possibility that perhaps Abyssine's saving could be a bit earlier in the past, and your chapter simply reveres an ancient character.

 

Just raising ideas for you to do what you want. :)

[skrob]

I was actually under the impression that there was a specific fleet called the Wolf Pack. I was sure there were mentioned in Executiuon Hour...I may be wrong.

 

I was also under the impression that it was far more desireable for a recruit to be young when implanted, but could infact be as old as 20 to receive implantation.

 

I do like the idea of Kalak being an ancient hero, as that would tie in nicely with the ancestor worship. Though I still would prefer to have a Librarian leading the chapter as well. If not Ultramarine, is there another chapter they could be a successor from that would fit better? All I can think of is the Thousand sons. The only way I could rationalize that is if, perhaps, prior to the heresy a company of the sons were lost in a warpstorm and have only recently reappeared...they could have been mindwiped and given a new home. Actually that could even tie into an egyptian/jackal theme.

 

hmmm...

[Commissar Molotov]

Well, Librarians leading the chapter is not codex. Hence why if Kalek was inducted as a Librarian, he wouldn't become chapter master unless he performed some sort of coup or all the captains died. However, if your chapter is older they'll have had time to deviate from the codex and their Ultramarine ancestry.

 

If a neophyte is too old, many of the organs won't work. Back in the heresy it was possible for anyone of any age to be given the organs necessary to become a marine. Nowadays the process is rather different. Some of the earlier organs require a neopyhte to be between the ages of 10 and 12.

 

Please avoid the 'good traitors' thing like the plague. Just stick to an Ultramarines successor and you'll be fine. :)

 

Edit: As to the 'Wolf Pack', Leoten Semper and the Macharius are in Segmentum Obscuras, I believe, so the Wolf Pack would have a way to travel. It's probably better that you don't involve a group like the Wolf Pack in your own fluff, it causes problems. And my belief that the 'Wolf Pack' has been used for other pirate groups stems from an old article on BFG that GW put out, but I don't know.

[skrob]

Sounds like this might all work better if the founding was much earlier, cuz if nothing else i want a librarian to be chapter master.

 

And yeah, the good traitor is just too...not good.

[skrob]

re-wrote the history...again. ^_^