Imperium Asunder

>Sky Serpents
Pre-Heresy: Sorcery is really gay bruh, you should be less gay. Still, a learned warrior is a better warrior.
M42: Die well, brothers.

>Warp Raiders
Pre-Heresy: Sorcery is gay, but archeology is a worthy pursuit fitting of a man.
M42: They knew something. What did they know? Why won't they pick up the phone? fffff-

>Arms of Asura
Pre-Heresy: Unfortunate, but hey, it's not just looks that count, right?
M42: What the fuck are you even on about?

>Undying Scions
Pre-Heresy: Dreadbros are best bros.
M42: Dreadbros are best foes.

>Oathsworn
Pre-Heresy: They do good work.
M42: Die well, brothers.

>Second Sons
Pre-Heresy: Dependable soldiers. Sort of curt and solemn and stuff, but nobody's perfect.
M42: The Second Sons are long dead.

>Iron Hearts
Pre-Heresy: I don't get it, they seem cool. What's the problem?
M42: A friend in need is a friend indeed.

Sky Serpents focus on arts and the like as a way of sublimating a deeper violent nature, much like the Blood Angels.
Without Xun, they'd be way more Luna Wolves-ish. That's why they can't do the whole Angels of Light thing and why Graha'Nak sees them as kindred souls in denial.
Yes or no?

The Heralds of Hadrianus were a successor chapter of the Undying Scions formed to watch over the Vigil world of Hadrianus, which long ago suffered a daemonic incursion near the end of the Second Crusade. For millennia they stood guard, watching for any signs of the forces of chaos that they might purge the neverborn once again. When at last a threat emerged, however, it did not come from any servant of the dark gods. From the webway emerged a warband of the Negators legion, seeking to find glory in hunting the Heralds' dreadnoughts.

>tbc

Prompt: What was your Primarch's Gloriana Class Legion Flagship called? What special equipment was it modified with (i.e. the Conqueror of the World Eaters had the Ursus Claws, allowing easier boarding actions).

What the Negators found, however, was a prepared force. Somehow, the Heralds of Hadrianus had been forewarned of the attack and had fortified their positions against the invaders months ahead of time. Not ones to let such a setback get in the way of their glory, the Negators pushed ahead into the Heralds' position. It was only after they suffered tremendous casualties that the Negators called a retreat back into the webway.

To a man, the Heralds of Hadrianus pursued the sons of Aodhán into the webway. If they could follow them back to their lair, the threat of the Negators would be ended once and for all. The Heralds' knowledge of the webway was lacking, however, and they soon became lost in that labyrinthine dimension. Drifting aimlessly, they eventually found themselves in a corner of the webway that had not been touched by Eldar or Human for millions of years. A shrine to a forgotten god stood atop a pillar of frozen flame, and when High Councilor Fahrenheit touched it, he and his chapter were forever changed...

Behemoth Guard:
Ex Profundis?
Call of Thuban?
Massive forge with enhanced orbit to surface armament.
Hmm...

>Aodhán's face when

Trying to think of a good name...

Alexios' flagship is called the Brightest Star. It has specially redesigned arrays of drop pod launching tubes which allow it to drop many more marines at once than the average ship.

Balthasar's flagship is called the Executioner. Its auspex arrays are unparralleled throughout the galaxy, able to detect the movement of discrete individuals from high orbit.

Oramar's flagship is called the Webwalker, and its teleportarium arrays are vast and numerous.

Colossus? Leviathan?

Just throwing out big monster names here, since BEHEMOTH Guard.

I imagine that the Fists of Mars Gloriana is actually more like a fuckoff huge Ark Mechanicus. The Ares? The Child of Fire? The Red Star? The Hammer of Mars?

>faggots, you fucking faggots fuck you, fuhfhhggadg fuck gsgs gsgfgdsh

I don't usually expect that level of eloquence from you, Aodhan. I'm so proud that you've finally decided to follow my example and take up oratory.

>chaos infighting intensifies

Sounds about right.

Detect individual movement from orbit...
>Riiiiiiiiiiight

Have you noticed you occassionally go way overboard in your fluff. Its mostly good but every now and again.

Kek

Would Aodhan even know?

it pleases me that this is still alive

The hawk gloriana is stormsword or brightroar. Fitted for "goes fast" and its main armaments are bay upon bay upon bay of lance batteries and hangers.

The amount of lances it carries is beyond ridiculous. Uniquely however it is not the primarchs flagship, or at least not his personal vessel. Captained instead by Lord-Commander of the 3rd division. Known as the "lightning lord".

>wait until he sees what we did with Enoch

Probably not.

He may have eventually heard about the failed assault but even that he wouldn't care about in the least.

I can imagine some Negators guy being all "LORD PRIMARCH please grant me a greater force, I will not fail again, I will bring glory and etc etc etc" and Aodhán stopped listening like fifteen minutes ago, he's nursing a terrible hangover and his coffee is cold, the only thing keeping him around is all the space cocaine he's snorting off Lelith's ass. Eventually he realizes this wack dude has been droning at him for the better part of an hour and he just tells him to do whatever he wants.

>Have you noticed you occassionally go way overboard in your fluff.
It's 40k, isn't that the point? Exaggeration to the point of absurdity?

There's nothing wrong with having big Hugo Boss coats.

Fine disregard the notion you could be anything less than perfect.

user's got a point though. All movement on the ground is a bit much. There are limits, this isn't Star Trek.
But don't be salty like a pretzel, user.

Buuuut, you can track individual IR movements with modern satellites. So that's a thing.

The Paladins' Gloriana is the Warrior's Gauntlet. The ship is specially equipped for massive orbital bombardment, able to penetrate deep into a planet's crust in order to destroy bunkers, subterranean hives, and later even Necron Tombs.

Beast of Rhleyh?

Fists of Mars
>Thunderchild

Sky Serpents
>Smoke Jaguar
>Wrath of Heaven
>Oroboros
>Prometheus

Tooting my own prompt.

Aodhán's flagship is the Gloriana class battleship Answerer, named so for its swift response to declarations of defiance or war against the Imperium. A blunt instrument of colossal size and power, the Answerer was modified to do one thing and one thing only - to battle the greatest and most dangerous of space-faring craft and emerge the victor. Forsaking volume of fire in favour of long-range, high-penetration lance batteries and turrets, the Answerer even sacrificed the majority of its bombardment cannons in order to accommodate additional torpedo launchers. Most prominently, the Answerer was modified with the immense prow-mounted Ryza-pattern Nova Cannon known as the Alexander Cannon. Vastly oversized, the weapon required specialized plasma macro-bombs fitted to its chamber, and was considered grossly inefficient even by most of Aodhán's more eccentric brothers. Its ability to shatter the largest and most threatening of vessels with a single shot, however, was rarely complained of.

The Answerer was heavily damaged in the aftermath of the Heresy, when Raydon Neratos ambushed Aodhán's fleet and committed to a near-suicidal ramming action against the vessel. Though the immense battleship was not destroyed, it would be some time before it was again seen in action, and the Alexander Cannon was damaged beyond repair. The weapon remained inoperable well into M34, though by M37 a sighting of the Answerer confirmed that it had been replaced by a dark matter projector of Commorrite origin boasting similar destructive power.

>Wrath of Heaven

I like this. You could go with Tianlong too.

Or Tlahuizcalpantecuhtli if you want to bring up the other side if their influence.

>Detect individual movement from orbit...
>Riiiiiiiiiiight

We can do this in real life, though, with modern technology.

I can't think of a name right now, but the Imperial (and later Undying) Scions' flagship was equipped with many drop pod bays and boarding torpedoes to better enable its marines to engage their foes in close combat more easily. In addition to these was a specialized teleportarium that bathed its target destination in opaque cybermist that the marines' helmets were programmed to see through perfectly.

How about Greystoke for a name?

Id call the FoM vessel something like Infernus or Ignus.

I thought i posted about the hawk one, but cant seem to find it so in summary.

Is designed for goes fast (as much as a colossal beast like that can be) and lances. Lances. And more lances. Oh and the last thing was lances. Did i mention the extreme amount of lances.

Lances.

My bloodhound story grows, though it's still incomplete.

pastebin.com/9ZaRP90q

I like it.

That's pretty awesome.

Yeah, one of those issues where I don't want everything to be illegible in English, so probably Wrath of Heaven for the flagship and perhaps Tianlong being the name of the ship Hadbaal is given.
That or the Qianlong.

Tangent:
I'm imagining that Sky Serpents ships tend to have upgraded battle cogitators.
The Strategium on the Wrath of Heaven, for example, houses thousands upon thousands of potent data djinn, which can be unleashed through vox transmissions into enemy ships. These djinn can jam enemy communication or sensors, or even disable systems.

Similarly, the Astropathic relay stations are often augmented to allow Legion Librarians to intercept and interfere with Astropathic communication.

Essentially, it's an ECW suite. Xun is the sort to keep his ships pretty balanced in capability, but he's a sucker for information warfare tools. He also upgrades speed, but not to the same extent as the Warhawks. (Even so, races are rumored to have occurred.)

Xun, any comments on Sky Serpent activity at Ullanor?

There's a few distinct possibilities, depending on how people were spread out and what the Warmaster was up to at the time, since he's already plotting the heresy by this point, right?

I can see the Warmaster having Xun by his side, the legions are close, and I imagine the Eyes fight best when they have a hammer to work with, though Enoch might do that better.

The Serpents could also be deployed with the Warhawks, Behemoth Guard, or Warp Raiders. With the Warp Raiders, the Serpents would raise the Storm, and the Warp Raiders would sweep in. I'm thinking against Orkz, in a joint setting where there are other, even faster legions, and Orkz aren't too susceptible to clever ploys, the Serpents are in the odd position of falling back on that core of brutality, their red thirst.

Oramar might use this time to suggest the chaos deal to Xun, as might the Warmaster, but in either case it would be nothing definite.
I don't think Oramar should be off on his own during this campaign, though, since this is a perfect time for people to notice that he's up to some funky things.

The other option is that the Sky Serpents are deployed alongside a more static or 'heavy' legion, like the Judgement Bringers or the Behemoth Guard, and it's the Sky Serpents doing their usual feints to draw the orkz into a position to be crushed. It really depends on who the Warmaster wants Xun to be talking to.

Also, in the OU I'm seeing 3 primarchs in system for the actual campaign on the Ullanor system, with 14 coming for the triumph.

To be a pain in the ass about precise timing, Nikea was in the works before Ullanor, as indicated by the fact that Moritarion already knew about it.
But I think Ullanor is a perfect time for people to see just how far Oramar has gone and shake up his buddies.

(And of course, as always, assassination and sabotage are the constant tools of the Sky Serpents. But I think it'd be interesting for the campaign to really draw out their suppressed bloodlust. So between Oramar acting all weird, the Emperor going back to Terra, and Ullanor stirring up savage and atavistic behaviors long buried, the Sky Serpents enter M31 deeply shaken. In some ways, it shields their psyche from what is to come, since they're already uncertain, but it also sets them up to really let that rage out and to really delve into the Emperor as deity when the time comes.)

EW, Goes fast, fighter bays, and lances.

PERFECT.

Also, would anyone have any issue with me writing in an Abyss class ship for the Hawks, I was thinking of setting up a mobile "homebase" either in 30k or 40k timeline.

(Which, in part, is why the heresy doesn't break Xun as it does Alexios. The heresy brought focus and forced answers to questions Xun was dealing within the final years of the crusade. But it's also why Xun wants that first crusade and why he founds his empire.)

>EW, Goes faster...
Hmm?

>Abyss Class
Nah, I think it makes sense that an Abyss class analogue was in production, particularly with guys like Raydon. I imagine Graha'Nak would want one too, since the Void God can't be everywhere at once. Seems his style.

Behemoth Guard, too.

Might be that there was a public collaboration and a first wave of ~5 Abyss analogues were produced:
Warhawks
Void Lords
Behemoth Guard
Sky Serpents
Bloodhounds?
And a similar Ark Mechanicum for the Fists of Mars.
Thing is, the loyalist ships are plagued by mechanical difficulties, later corrected, but not in time for critical battles during the heresy due to the machinations of the Warmaster.

New to these threads, but from what i've read so far.

Xun and the sky serpents are masters of mobile warfare (constant feints, encirclement), seem to be pioneers in the fields of psykers, espionage, and electronic warfare. As well as have a tendency to be sneaky with assassination and sabotage BUT ALSO have a brutal efficiency that has been linked multiple times to the Luna Wolves, who were arguably the best canon legion.

So what can't these guys do? They even seem reasonable and like to "debate".

I thought they might be the generalist marines, but im pretty sure the Oathsworn would be that. So it seems like not only do these guys have a finger in every pie, but they are at the forefront.

Am I wrong?

EW = Electronic Warfare.
Not eww as in icky.

>public collaboration
See this was the issue I ran into thinking out it.
It doesnt make sense (to me) to have built lots of them, being so resource intensive.

But at the same time, its hardly fair or reasonable, to be like "I WANT ONE YOU CANT HAVE ONE".

Because even making as you say 5, would be a colossal investment on wartime resources even for the Imperium. And post-heresy they are straight up outside the reach of pretty much everyone.

I figured its probably better for no-one to have them if we can't figure out a good way to write it. Because as you say, the FoM and Void Lords would probably be in the running to recieve the 1 or 2 the Imperium can actually pump out.

When you put it like that they do sound pretty everywhere.

I think though, they are more like jack of all trades master of none in most of those regards. Even as wizardry goes, Xun isn't top dog. He is just the best who stays loyal.

That's a pretty fair question. The connection with the Luna Wolves is in the savagery of the assault, and ideally it's a bit of a flaw, closer in nature to the red thirst of the Blood Angels.
Their sneakiness leads them to be paranoid post heresy, since they see their own plans everywhere.

They have a hard time with sieges and point defense. An example might be the battle of Catachan, where they destroy a fortress by simply doing a massive orbital strike after bringing down the orbital defenses through subterfuge.

Ideally they'd come across as a legion that's pretty damn capable, in part because they're driven to cerebral pursuits by their inner beast.
They're not as fast as the really, really fast legions, they're not as sneaky as the Warmaster, nor are they as tech savvy as the Fists. If they went with their guts, they'd be akin of to the Space Wolves, and the old legion still retains bits of that, but Xun really pushes them to be more, and they're not quite comfortable with the howling inside, so they're constantly driven towards the heights of humanity.
(Also, I figured mobile war goes hand in hand with information warfare.)

But yeah, they're mobile generalists, their main gig is messing with your head, best way to do that is by keeping a few steps ahead. And when they hit, it's with the savagery they try so hard to control. They're bad at sieges and defense.

Hope that helps. That or I've got them doing too much.

Well, in canon, the Imperium makes 3 for Lorgar alone, in secret, so I think 5, or even 10 is reasonable.

>what can't these guys do
This is a good question to bring up, not just in regard to the Sky Serpents, but in regard to all the legions. Understanding something's flaws can go a long way in helping you understand the thing in general.

PROMPT: What CAN'T your Legion do?

The Bloodhounds are not effective peacemakers, both in practice and in temperament. They prefer to exterminate their foes completely rather than enforce surrender. Their extremely cruel tactics leave enemies who are not exactly open to diplomacy either.

The Angels of Light loathe sorcery of most kinds. Those with the psyker gene are given to the Abbeys to serve as astropaths, lexicographers, and occasionally Abbot commanders.

The Warp Raiders made for inconstant allies before their censure, and have no friends in the universe afterward except for occasional short-term alliances. Their tendency to keep to obscure and shifting tactical objectives frustrates most who fight alongside them.

>3 for Lorgar alone,
I thought Horus diverted dark mech to build them in secret. My assumption being that that would have had a significant flowon effect later but "suddenly heresy" so that never gets explored because of more serious things going down. (I also thought there was only 2)

Could be wrong though, as I said it was my assumption.

My concern is that if they exist in any significant number (and from what ive read of them, 5-10 is significant) then they could change the nature of the settings navy conflicts.

Hence why I thought, even 1 was reason enough to vet the idea first.

Happy to be wrong though.

I wrote a bit of an idea about the Warmaster's flagship as a point of comparison with the Void Lord's Space Hulk in >Gaspar watched as the hololithic displays began to render their long range scans. "That can't be right..." Gaspar said, his eyes memorizing every detail. If the scale of the display was correct, the ship entering the system was absolutely massive. On Terra, Gaspar had once seen REDACTED's warship, The All-Seeing-Eye, hang like a jealous brother next to the moon. That ship had been more space station than ship, and even it would be dwarfed in comparison to the Space Hulk entering the system.

I think it'd be more of a central command station than a battleship, with massive cogitation centers where intelligence officers are constantly combing through data, re-education and interrogation chambers for Imperial dissidents and captives, etc. Similar to Rogal Dorn's Phalanx in scale and construction but put to a very different purpose.

Hey waitaminute is this guy being serious

I agree. Very good question.

While I don't have an issue with the Serpents, it might be worth trying to refine their image abit. I only say this because I'd never really considered them generalists until this post.

>What cant they do
1. Hold territory, well of course they can garrison a joint, but they lack the numbers and equipment to conduct static defence operations. This is why they maintain fleets as their base of operations. When they do have to hold ground, its usually airfields.

2. Attack strongpoints. As above, they lack the numbers primarily. They don't utilise much armour, it is considered a Divisional asset, so only the highest commanders in the legion can authorise their deployment. When they DO, they rely on ground attack craft. Like extremely. In the orbat i've written up for them, gunships are their equivalent of rhinos or razorbacks.

3. Sustain logistic lines. Another reason they work out of a fleet, they leave recruitment outposts behind but otherwise the Sabre company fleets are entirely independent and autonomous.
>Sabre companies are approximately 50-60 man strong.

4. Build things. - One of the defining traits of how Raydon views Alexios is that he is almost envious of his ability to build and maintain a kingdom. At the same time, he is content with his lot in life, and actually doesn't think that its an Astartes (or Primarchs) job to rule, so its abit paradoxical. This has a flow on effect to the Legion itself in that they look down on Astartes who don't stick to their purpose.

5. Be personable. Raydon in particular, though it affects the Hawk genetic mentality and culture. They are fiercely loyal to their mates but otherwise indifferent, and outright rude to those who they don't deem respectable. I guess the typical fantasy dwarf would be a good comparison to how I see them acting with others.

6. Religion. They don't buy into any of it, and frown upon those who do.

Theres more but out of room

Almost all of those names are gay.

We've still been talking about the Judgement Bringers a bit so they might have deviated a bit from what you remember. That said I think they've remained fairly true to form.

They've got a WW2 fascist/nazi vibe going, very Hugo Boss aesthetic
They're fiercely loyal to the Emperor, and then to the Warmaster, because of their ideological need for a despotic master. Enoch becomes the Warmaster's right hand after the Heresy.
They prefer to shell the fuck out of the enemy with artillery and long range tanks before mopping up with bolter and chainsword.

Daily reminder pic related is canon

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...

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>What CAN'T your Legion do?

Mind bullets.

For real though, the Negators suck at building things and holding entrenched positions. It's just not part of their modus operandi to hide behind big walls and take potshots. Their Primarch's first war was a guerilla war and this has really impacted how they fight - they strike surgically, with decisive force. Additionally, they just do not like protracted, monotonous battles. Negators enjoy the rush of a fantastic struggle against a great beast or an adept opponent, but they hate cutting through swathes of unworthy dross. It's boring.

The severe lack of techmarines in the Legion is a big part of why so much of their stuff is looted from fallen enemies.

Other faults. More IRT Raydon himself, but much of it flows on to the legion.

7. Strategy and leadership. This is one that governs how the Legion is run. Raydon does not particularly like being a leader, he commands his legion because it is his duty, not out of any love of it. He does however, enjoy leading his sons in battle.

2 major things are derived from this. The first is that, Raydon leads a Sabre Company in the same way that every Hawk commander does. This means that he delegates much of the running of the Legion to various other staff.

Including: A herald (his voice), his Vigilator Primus (his eyes), a Legion High-Coordinator (Host Marshal), Legion 2IC, his own ships XO, as well as a Strike Captain, Master of Descent, and Knight-Protector. Each an expert in a particular field of war. As well as the usual, Apothecary General, Forge Lord, and Chief Librarian.

The other derivative, is that Hawk leaders are typically do'ers, inspiring through action rather than oratory skills or logistical mastery. As always, exceptions exist (and they often find their way into the Primarchs inner circle)

8. Ceremony.
The Legion is not good at being flashy or being on display in general. They don't hand out awards in a traditional sense, instead tattooing themselves with symbols that represent those valiant foes they have slain, and the valiant brothers they fought beside. Most deeds themselves are recounted in great sagas, recounted by the Battle Brothers comrades. (Its poor form to recite a saga of your own).

9. Psykers.
While the Primarch spoke in favour of librarians at Nikaea, and utilised them in the legion, they are not numerous or noteworthy in any particular regard. Because of how the legion is divided, and how small it is. This means that many if not most battle brothers had never even fought beside one of the Legions Librarians.

>The Calixian Crusade

Timeframe: Mid Great Crusade Period.

Imperial Belligerents: The Crimson Warhawks Legion, the Storm Hammers Legion, the Negators Legion, the Second Sons Legion, the Warp Raiders Legion.

Prominent Campaigns: The Perun Campaign, the Sigurd Campaign, the Scintilla Campaign, the Morwen Campaign.

The Calixian Crusade was one of the first campaigns of the Great Crusade to be fought in the furthest reaches of Segmentum Obscurus. The crusade was named as such for its beginnings in the Calixis Sector, though it expanded further into the surrounding regions of space, and was launched in order to wrest control of these sectors from the grasp of a despicable alien alliance known simply as a the Vath. To other species, the area of space was known simply as 'The Eatery', and was famous for exporting human meat for consumption by xenos that considered it a delicacy. The enslaved humans that stocked the Vath's larders and filled most of their armies were for the most part enthralled by thousands of years of brutal indoctrination into thinking of themselves as mere fodder for the sustenance and profit of their masters.

It was at first believed that the Vath were a Slaughth empire, as these foul xenos made up the bulk of the dominion's ruling class, but it soon became clear that the true masters of the realm were a small coven of powerful psychic aliens known simply as the Eaters of Men, who the Slaugth seemed to revere almost as gods.

The Calixian Crusade is notable for being fought primarily in the void, as the xenos overlords of the Vath preferred to rule from orbital emplacements and hidden void-fortresses strewn throughout their domains.

>(tbc)

What kind of numbers are you thinking for each legion to contribute

Redux of last thread: what Primarchs did your legion love and hate, and why?

Not sure, but large amounts. This is a multi-sector endeavor against a xenos threat most foul. The Primarchs of the attendant Legions are there for the majority of the campaign.

I'm thinking the Second Sons do a lot of the work securing and reinforcing these worlds, leading to their concentrated presence in the area that has persisted to this day. The Warhawks, being one of the smaller Legions, might be there in their entirety. The Warp Raiders start off with the smallest attendant force but, as Oramar becomes increasingly interested in all the arcane shit these aliens have lying around, he starts pulling in more and more reinforcements to secure as many worlds as possible, because he's afraid Engerand and Saul are just gonna smash everything.

One thing I was considering is that Raydon and Aodhan's flagships are both separated from the front early on, and they have to wage an isolated insurgency campaign somewhere in the Josian Reach to rally the human populations there and take some of the vital breadbasket worlds of the region. Engerand takes command of the rest of their Legions in the meantime, which is fine with the Negators, especially the Old Legion, who are used to his sort of tactics, but the Warhawks chafe under the Primarch's much more hands-on approach to leadership.

see
I'll do one for Anshul and the Arms of Asura next.

One thing to note with the Hawks is that their efficiency doesn't actually rise dramatically with more of them deployed.

Ill attach the orbat I made up, its an old one so a few changes but its largely correct.

They typically deploy in strike battalions and operate in company size or lower.

For a huge campaign, I guess they might deploy a division or 2, which would be about 9000 troops and the associated fleet & support staff.

I hope that I could contribute, I'm a massive lore fag but I can't write shit in english...

That's some good shit to know. Also a nice chart.

So I guess if I go with the cut off scenario, Raydon would only have the equivalent of one or two companies with him?

Don't worry about it, dude. Just suggest ideas you think are cool.

Any other thoughts on this?

I think the Oathsworn, while pretty generalist, are actually known for their mass-scale deployments and prolific use of biomancy/apothecaries. They have by far the best field medics (which, aside from their super stable geneseed, is probably one of the big factors in their huge Legion numbers) and are the most skilled in the use of viral weaponry.

So let's refine this:
Sky Serpents are indeed meant to be pretty Ultramarine-ish, the big difference between them is the cultural antecedents. And how they fight.

This is mostly due to Xun's influence.
Xun lands on a bronze age world.
So space warring states period space China.
He gets trained by space Confucius and in trying to figure out how to do better astrology, he accidentally stumbles on to physics.
>Holy shit, I can understand the universe! Math is awesome!
So when the Emperor comes, Xun sees him as the embodiment of the will of Heaven and just expands his Bronze Age empire into space.
Space Confucians, if you will.
He also has a million questions about how everything works. That's why he is so strongly behind the Librarius, and why he tinkers. He's a guy who loves systems and finding the simple truth in complex behaviors. On another world, he'd be a warlord like the Lion, but his home world remakes him and he remakes his legion.

The Arms of Asura's social links.

>Fists of Mars
Pre-Heresy: The natural philosophies are an excellent pursuit, and the craftsman's arts a wonderful meditative tool. Never presume that the blacksmith is as thick or inflexible as the skin of his palms.
M42: Their obsession with the material has blinded them to the truth that crouches beyond the lie. We must show them the way.

>Warhawks
Pre-Heresy: The lightest touch can carry the greatest force. They know this well.
M42: Vengeance is the way of fools.

>Judgement Bringers
Pre-Heresy: Suffering for the sake of suffering is a fool's path.
M42: See above.

>Silver Spears
Pre-Heresy: There is art in what they do, but their vanity withholds them from true greatness.
M42: Perhaps they will never learn.

>Eyes of the Warmaster
Pre-Heresy: Caution is a virtue.
M42: If you seek to parlay with the Great Annihilator, only ash awaits you.

>Angels of Light
Pre-Heresy: You will be watching us carefully? Most excellent, we will ensure that your back is covered also.
M42: They have become the living embodiment of the great deception; they have even begun to tell lies of their own. They can no longer be tolerated.

>Bloodhounds
Pre-Heresy: Perhaps your inner beast would not trouble you so if you weren't so quick to indulge it.
M42: As implements of the Great Annihilator they are efficient, if unsavory.

>Legion before Xun
Let's take the 1st Chapter Storm Wolves and the Legion master Baqar Hadbaal
Maneuver warfare. The legion always tries to fight on their terms, using superior mobility to achieve a local advantage and wipe out the enemy, and then leverage this breakthrough into a new advantage.
They're also pretty blood-drenched.
They focus all of their violence on a single point, which is the similarity to the Luna Wolves style, though perhaps Space Wolves are a better analogue.
They circle at the edge of the firelight before a tracking a gap with a primal fury.
That's the only moment that they drop their barrier and allow the red thirst to come to the fore.
They don't lay siege. They come, they kill, they move on to the next world. They don't defend, they withdraw and assault again.

They're already disciplined because they are trying to keep the red thirst under wraps, they're more like Blood Angels, not World Eaters.
Xun just teaches them to be kings and shows them new ways to fight smarter.

>Paladins of Kor
Pre-Heresy: We share the duty of protecting and enlightening the worlds of our Father's Imperium. If only he would give our suggestions some thought...
M42: Thank you for opening your borders to the truth, brother. It is a step forward for us all.

>Knights Exemplar
Pre-Heresy: There are few kinder than Klaus, and few more inspiring than his sons.
M42: Their fate is a great shame.

>Behemoth Guard
Pre-Heresy: Mastery of the body is where mastery of the mind begins. Very good.
M42: Why yes, our libraries are always open.

>Void Lords
Pre-Heresy: There must be a line between man and beast somewhere.
M42: Fear is an illusion, as is any power Graha'nak's sons wield.

>Storm Hammers
Pre-Heresy: The dedication of Engerand and his Legion is an example to us all.
M42: If only their dedication was to a worthy cause.

>Sky Serpents
Pre-Heresy: Sit down, brother, let us discuss these urges that trouble you so. The gardens of Ravana are most agreeable this time of year.
M42: Come now, you know we're right. Just admit it.

>Warp Raiders
Pre-Heresy: Yes, these inscriptions ARE quite fascinating...
M42: We shall never blame you for what is in your nature.

>Negators
Pre-Heresy: A most enjoyable tale, brother, though I can't help but feel that the subject matter is becoming a little repetitive...
M42: Even in exile, you will not acknowledge the truth?

>Undying Scions
Pre-Heresy: The mind is of its own domain. You do not need flesh and blood to be uplifted by wisdom.
M42: All the time in the world and nothing to show for it.

>Oathsworn
Pre-Heresy: A fellow scholar is always welcome in these halls.
M42: It was an unfortunate necessity, brothers.

>Second Sons
Pre-Heresy: Their bodies may waste away, but their minds remain able.
M42: Their devotion to the Great Annihilator is true and pure, but they know nothing of its mysteries.

>Iron Hearts
Pre-Heresy: A pity that I could not have met him.
M42: Strength is found in the mind, not the heart.

So simple answer they can't:
Static battle
Worry about civilian casualties in an active warzone (like really, don't get in their way)
Into honesty, everything is on a need to know basis--information is victory, guard it well

They obsess over the arts and sciences as a way of avoiding and controlling the beast within.
And, to their credit, they're damn good at it, in part because astartes are designed to excell in all things.
They're supposed to feel like Byronic heroes. I suppose they're our Spess vampires.

And gene-craft. I bet they do stuff like Ogryn Charionites, too.

So I was thinking.

>The Annihilator Chorus
Though Anshul's children were much maligned by many of the Primarch's more raucous brothers as glorified architects and peace-loving bohemians, the Legion saw its share of combat against some of the most implacable foes the galaxy had to offer. Defending the Imperium's borders was no simple task, as the ascendance of mankind was a sore omen for the many xeno races of the galaxy. There were those that Anshul was able to fend off through diplomacy, but, more often than not, those that bared their fangs at mankind were creatures of singular cruelty and malice, and they would not be content until humanity was either enslaved beneath their feet or reduced to a mere stain on the face of history.

Barbaric orks were the most prolific race to rail against the growing Imperium, but other, altogether stranger and crueler beings assaulted mankind's worlds, some in such number that the Arms of Asura found their staunch refusal to use weapons of inhuman nature (rad-weapons, phosphex, etc - these arms often obliterated the very worlds the Arms of Asura were tasked with protecting) was costing them dearly.

The make up for this military shortcoming, the Legion turned to the surplus of psykers counted among their number. Being too prolific with their encouragement of psychic talent was frowned upon in those days, and Anshul was aware of the callous eye with which the Emperor watched his misshapen son, but risking such imperilment was deemed a requirement to ensure the safety of the Imperium, and the Legion laid down the foundations for what would become their emblematic Annihilator Choruses.

Almost all Arms of Asura initiates, after the introduction of Anshul's geneseed into their physiology, demonstrated some level of psychic ability, but only a select few could peer deeply into the Warp.

The Annihilator program selected those among the standard level of psyker expertise with talents that seemed focused toward the manipulation of energy, and put these Marines through a rigorous program of mental conditioning, meditative training, and in some cases clandestine surgical modifications. The results were teams of battle psykers with extremely specific, extremely destructive abilities.

Primarily pyromancers and telekinetics, these Marines were referred to as Theurgist Annihilators, and organized into small teams designated as Choruses. Their talents were first applied to great effect during the Charybdis Incursion, where they were used in conjunction with conventional arms to bring cleansing destruction on par with any rad armaments or phosphex bombardments. The Annihilator Choruses were trained to project death both as individuals and to synchronize their psychic voices into a combined effort, unleashing truly spectacular feats of devastating psychic power.

I really like this. I'm imagining them with haloes and mandilions of warp flame, like you see in old Buddhist sculptures.

Actually. In that vein, I think it serves as a good way to differentiate the Serpents and the Asurans. Until after the heresy, when Xun really gets into demonology, the legion's sorcery is of a comparatively limited nature, akin to Chogorian stormseers. Their displays of Fulgurite powers are impressive, they've got some skill with divination, and they've got a fair few utility abilities, but fundamentally, they keep it limited because they're trying to build a systematic understanding using arcane math. It doesn't quite work, as well as they would like, but it does protect them from some things at the cost of the sorts of things the Asura or Warp Raiders are capable of.

Does this, in conjunction with the other limitations sound about right?

Bump while I write something.

This is neat. Who is supreme commander of the theater? Saul Sheridan? Engerand?

What sort of sorcerous arts do the Vath employ that interests Oramar so much?

Can I get some feedback on all this:

It's a good origin story that makes a lot of sense for who Xun becomes.

Maybe tell us more about that bronze age world, which I assume is Tepectitlan? What kind of terrain does it have? Does Xun take part in the warring states nature of the planet is he more like a secluded shaolin monk? If the terrain is like pic related that could go a long way in explaining his tactics.

Any comments on ?

Yeah, it's Tepectitlan. The area where Xun comes down was a fertile limestone plain.carved into wide valleys and more narrow canyons by a few rivers which flood seasonally. (and the typical South East Asian Guanlin/Thailand coast karst topography.) There's also an assload of caves, ala Yucatan cenotes.
So rich alluvial plains, perfect for agriculture.

Xun is very much a part of the politics of the period, He gets tutored in the ways of governance by Tepectitlan's equivalent of Confucius thus is raised in a court setting. One of the kings selects him as a successor, but a few royal cousins get pissy because they're out of the line of succession and they rebel just as Xun takes the throne, teaming up with some of the neighboring kingdoms to do so.

As a result, Xun goes and conquers the region using the terrain to his advantage. He's outnumbered, massively, and so uses the hilly terrain to force engagements on his terms and to maneuver effectively to flank the enemy army.
He also makes use of espionage, to disrupt enemy movement and supply lines.

>karst topography
I have such a geology nerd boner right now

I want to write more fluff for the Scions, but I can't think of what needs to be done. Anyone have any ideas?

The Bloodlands of Xeric-Gobi

Ancient Terra is a world transformed. Washed in the Warp and made the plaything of daemons, gods and transhumans, whole swathes of the planet have been given over to the Gods to remake as they will, and Khorne’s mightiest champion Doombreed, once of Terra itself in the forgotten ages returned home to make a place worthy of his God. His ancestral homelands, the Xeric Grasslands and the Gobi tox-wastes were converted into as great open arena, empty plains where armies can drown the red grass in blood. There, vast armies of Daemons, Space Marines and Traitors endlessly crash in bitter combat, shedding blood for their patron god and hoping to attract the attention of Doombreed Himself. Doombreed only deigns to attend the greatest and most bloody of battles, and for those armies that win these fights he bestows the favour and blessings of Khorne. Any Warrior band who truly wishes to earn the blessings of the Blood God come to Terra, to the Bloodlands and fight on, hoping to earn Khorne’s blessings through Doombreed.

Write more pre-dreadnought stuff for variety.

It sounds better to me as confucion ultramarines than before, so I think its good.

Good suggestions. Both are pretty valid.

Bloodhounds

>Crimson Warhawks
Pre-heresy: Brother! Comrade! Let us hunt together as one pack, and let us feast on the blood of the Emperor's enemies!
Post-Heresy: There is no more worthy prey in the whole of the galaxy. The arrival of one of their hunting packs is a great blessing of the Blood God.

>Fists of Mars
Pre-Heresy: Leave the tinkering to lesser beings, brother. We are warriors! Still, I cannot deny the usefulness of your war marchines.
Post-Heresy: STOP HIDING IN YOUR METAL BAWKSES AND FIGHT ME

>Storm Hammers
Pre-Heresy: Ha! Now these men know how to fight! Clash with the enemy head-on, and beat them with the sheer strength of your swordarm.
Post-Heresy: MAIN! KILL! BURN!

>Void Lords
Pre-Heresy: Our father told us to know no fear, and in this Graha'nak is gloriously defiant. The beast of the void knows fear well, and it is his greatest weapon.
Post-Heresy: Come, brother! See if you can face a foe who does not balk at shadows! I shall make a cloak from your pelts!

>Angels of Light
Pre-Heresy: Coward! I have not seen you raise a weapon in centuries! You shame the honorable warriors who serve beneath you
Post-Heresy: MAIM! KILL! BURN!

>Sky Serpents
Pre-Heresy: The Beast within is our greatest strength, it is the fire which burns in the heart of men! You deny it to the detriment of all mankind, brother! Leave your humanity behind, and join me in howling at the moon!
Post-Heresy: MAIM! KILL! BURN!

>Undying Scions
Pre-Dreadnought: My best and closest friend, my closest confidant, my comrade in battle. Fighting beside you gets my blood flowing.
Post-Dreadnought: The greatest among us is now the least. Get this monstrosity out of my sight before I tear it asunder.
Post-Heresy: MAIM! KILL! BURN!

>Knights Exemplar
Pre-Heresy: My brothers will never look up to me as they look up to Klaus, and this shames me. I strive to follow his example of perfection, but I know I can never reach it. Will you teach me that thing you did with your pommel?
Post-Heresy: I KILLED ONE! I SHALL HANG THIS BLADE IN THE HUNTING LODGE FOR ALL TIME!

>Warp Raiders
Pre-Heresy: Foul witches! They use dark sorceries and consort with foul xenos. They should be purged as the Iron Hearts were. Unleash me, and Azrimuth shall be naught but ash!
Post-Heresy: SLAUGHTER THEM ALL!

>Paladins of Kor
Pre-Heresy: You are too soft, too open to weaknesses of the spirit, and it will be your downfall.
Post-Heresy: Told you so.

>Oathsworn
Pre-Heresy: We cannot trust the maintenance of our genetic destinies to these necromantic madmen! The Warmaster speaks truly, these men cannot be trusted.
Post-Heresy: Bring me the genomancers, I have recovered new slaves for fleshcrop.

>Eyes of the Warmaster
Pre-Heresy: What is thy bidding, my master?
Post-Heresy: What is thy bidding, my master?

>Silver Spears
Pre-Heresy: I invited them to hunt with me and the vainglorious fools ponced around like they were at some sort of ballet. Embarrassing.
Post-Heresy: I bet I can kill more of our brothers than you can, you pompous tit. Loser has to scrub the nurglite pits of sudmerica for a hundred years.

>Judgement Bringers
Pre-Heresy: You're not even fighting them yourselves! What is this artillery bullshit? FACE YOUR ENEMY, YOU COWARD!
Post-Heresy: I serve the Warmaster loyally but this is getting ridiculous, brother. Have a mind of your own.

>Second Sons
Pre-Heresy: Fighting alongside them is to witness glorious destruction. We leave burned husks in our wake, but they leave nothing at all. Saul balks at my cruelty but he is still a close friend.
Post-Heresy: dude tone it down jeez