BCTheEntity

Warhammer 40k: It's A Wonderful Life! An Imperial Guard (40K) RP

Alright, I think 415633-983223-17-Zhatka is completed, @Jb. Feel free to check him out as you like.

Warhammer 40k: It's A Wonderful Life! An Imperial Guard (40K) RP

Any objections to a Krieger being forcefully committed to this platoon? Probably seeking to die over it? Maybe even with a big gun that he considers infinitely more important than himself?

Chronicles of the Grim Crusade - Warhammer 30000 RP Side Thread

Timeline of The Grim Crusade

• 798.M30 - The Grim Crusade begins.
• 819.M30 -
• 822.M30 - Elimination of House Cruciatu, rulers of the Kirk System, and the Dark Eldar allied with them. Subsequent rediscovery of Micholi Vakrain on The Reserve, a.k.a Kirk’s Curiosity, in the Kirk System.
• 826.M30 - After four years of trialing and discussion between Micholi and the Emperor, the Edict of Tolerance is codified in its final form, and officially decreed by the Emperor, allowing xeno races to be inducted into the Imperium as potential subjects of its rule provided they remain second to humanity on all fronts.
• 832.M30 - Rediscovery of Prometheus the Light-Bringer on the Hive World of Amn.
• 838.M30 - Rediscovery of Eiohsa izva Bronakavh on the Hive World of Kayaamat. Subsequent incorporation of the Saravata System into the Imperium, an expanse of 777 worlds.
• 844.M30 - Rediscovery of Sarghaul Tartareus on the Ocean World of Carcinus.
• ca. 844-855.M30 - Rediscovery of Kaelianos on the Industrial World of Rasena. Subsequent incorporation of Latruria into the Imperium, an expanse of 300 worlds.
• 857.M30 - Rediscovery of Augor Astren on the Mechanicus-held Forge World of Last Light in the Duodeculi System.
• 858.M30 - Rediscovery of Gabriel Argenti on the Feudal World of Chalice. Subsequent purge of religious cults on Chalice.
• ca. 860s.M30 - Rediscovery of Usriel Andredth on the Mechanicus-held Forge World of Vion 5.
• ca. Late 860s.M30 - Beginning of the Rangdan Xenocides, as the Rangdan Cerabvores and Osseovores, as well as the Slaugth Murder-Minds, attack the Imperium from the galactic East and North. The Rangdan Xenocides will continue throughout the next six decades.
• 5.159-5.202.873.M30 - The Battle of Atis, colloquially known as the Butcher of Steel, an ambush upon the Steel Sentinels and Usriel Andredth by the Dark Eldar, resulting in substantial Astartes casualties. Ultimately ended with planetary bombardment and the destruction of Atis' atmosphere.
• 5.752.911.M30 - The Castigation of Pyotrskov, a successful disciplinary action performed by the Abyssal Lurkers, opposed by a garrison of Daughters of Iron.
• 922.M30 - Rediscovery of Narcarro Salazar on the Civilised World of Merendosa.
• ca. 930s.M30 - The Third Rangdan Xenocide concludes with hard-fought victory for the Imperium of Man. A series of bio-pogroms are performed over the next decade to ensure the Rangdan Cerabvores and Osseovores are completely wiped from the galaxy.
• 981.M30 - Rediscovery of Nelchitl Cuamani on the Feral World of Ixhun.
• 000.M31 - The Ullanor Crusade is launched against the planets of the Ork-held Ullanor System, ultimately concluding with Warboss Urlakk Urg’s defeat on Ullanor Prime.
• 001.M31 - The Triumph of Ullanor takes place, to celebrate the greatest achievement of the Grim Crusade to date. A Warmaster is also selected from the Primarchs present, to take the place of the Emperor in leading the Grim Crusade whilst he retires to Terra to work on new projects.
• 001.M31 - The Council of Nikaea takes place, to discuss matters such as the Edict of Tolerance prior to the Emperor's official retirement from the Grim Crusade.

Chronicles of the Grim Crusade - Warhammer 30000 RP Side Thread

Introduction

Hello, ladies and gentlemen! If you're reading this, there's a good chance you've come here from The Grim Crusade, a game I'm currently GMing where the galaxy of Warhammer 30000 has changed greatly from canon, to the point of replacing all the Primarchs in the setting with new, player-created Primarchs. However, there's a lot more going on in the galaxy than just what the Primarchs are doing, and likely a lot that the game's timeline won't cover. This thread is intended as a place for the players to log the actions of their Legion beyond their Primarch's sight, and to a lesser extent the activities of their Legion's homeworld and, if GM-approved, other people and places within the Imperium and the wider galaxy. This won't just be events occurring at the same time as the game, however: flashbacks to the earlier days of the Crusade are also perfectly acceptable, and indeed encouraged, to expand the lore of both the setting in general and of your Legion's personal interactions with others in the Imperium.

---

Rules

These rules are not quite identical to those in the main game thread, so please read them before making your posts.

• All forum rules apply. Most pressingly out of these, if I've decided on something happening a certain way, then my decision is final unless I'm given good reason to change my mind.
• Do not godmod. That is to say, don't control other player's characters for them without their permission. If you want to make a combined post between two or more players, or have decided between yourselves to allow a certain interaction to occur in a certain way, that's perfectly fine, but don't do stuff to other people's characters without their say-so.
• As with the main game thread, I'm not too concerned about activity levels, so don't feel overly pressured to post as often as possible. However, if you're going to create a flashback or other event that does not involve the Primarchs and/or is not set in the present day of the main game, put it in this thread, not the main thread.
• This is an Advanced roleplay. Please write to the appropriate level of quality - two or three significant paragraphs per post with good SPAG should be fine as a minimum, but try to come up with more if you can.
• You do not need to stick to just one character per post. However, whilst I don't expect you to perfectly and uniquely characterise every individual in an Astartes Legion, I would suggest forming a reasonable personality for the characters whose perspectives you actually write from, especially if they’re one of your Legion’s major characters.
• We need to know where and when any given event occurs, as well as who's involved in it. See below for the formatting template for that post.

---

Formatting Template

I'm not too fussed about how people write, as long as they adhere to the rules as mentioned above. However, we do need to know when and where any given event takes place, as well as who's involved with it. To that end, please place the following template at the beginning of every IC post, preferably retaining bolded headers, and fill it in accordingly.

The Template

Event Name: [The name of the event, either an official designation or an unofficial reference. This is mostly so I know how to describe it in the timeline.]
Location: [Where in the galaxy this takes place. The order of precedence when listing location should be the planet, voidship, void station, or other location the event took place upon or within; the star system the aforementioned location was contained in; the sector containing that system; and the segmentum containing that sector.]
Date: [The full date the event occurred or started upon, as described by the Imperial Dating System - check number, year fraction, year, millenium. As stated in the latter link, one Year Fraction is roughly 8 hours and 45 minutes on Terra.]
Parties Involved: [Who was involved in the event, be it Primarchs, Legions, Adeptus Terra officials, or good old Imperial citizenry. Note that the present day events any given Primarch is involved in should be portrayed within the main game thread, and that for anyone other than the Primarchs and the Legions, you will need express permission from one of the GMs to write from their perspective; also, it stands to reason that if you intend to include a Legion or Primarch other than your own in the post, you should collaborate on the post with the owner of said Legion or Primarch.]

---

Q&A

What is this?
Side-stories, essentially - the stuff the people not in-focus are doing in the Imperium and the wider galaxy in general, as well as flashbacks to events set before The Grim Crusade's most current events. They exist for world-building purposes, specifically when it doesn't pertain to the Primarchs in the present day.

Which people are these?
For the most part, the Legions of the Primarchs created for The Grim Crusade. However, it can also be posts made from the perspectives of those on your Primarch's homeworld, or- with my or a Co-GM’s permission- the perspective of somebody outside the main scope of the Legions, such as a member of the Cult Mechanicum working on some significant project, a Custodian doing their thing, or even just a humble Imperial Armsman doing his or her duty for the Emperor of Mankind, to give a few examples. There's plenty of options, and plenty of possibilities.

What was that about flashbacks?
The events of The Grim Crusade take place across a comparatively linear timeline, starting off at the climax of the Battle of Ullanor in 000.M30 and progressing forward from there. By contrast, a Chronicle may end up taking place at various points in time before then, right up to the time the Emperor first produced the Space Marine regiments that would grow to become the Legions; additionally, the galaxy is a big place, and whilst the Primarchs can't be everywhere at once, events will nevertheless progress concurrently with main game events in locations other than those the Primarchs are present for. Provided above is a template to cover timings and locations, as well as who was present for particular events in the past, amongst other things.

What's with the timeline?
Basically, it's there to give a brief listing of events through the course of the Grim Crusade, primarily in the form of posts made by players both in the main thread and in this one. It may or may not end up becoming quite large, so I'll likely put down extra posts to contain it if one somehow proves itself too small.

Can I join this? It says "Apply"!
Well, yes and no. This isn't specifically intended for new players to join, and the Characters tab will contain a post reinforcing this point, but if you'd like to join The Grim Crusade and build an appropriate Primarch and Legion to play as, then you'll be allowed to create posts in this thread as well, given that it follows the above mentioned rules. [url=http://(main game link)]Here's a link to the game; please read through the first post to get an idea of what we're aiming for.[/url]

Other questions will be answered as they arise.

The Grim Crusade - A Warhammer 30000 RP

@ReedeThe23rd Right, so first off, whilst I like Wolfram's CS and the unique take on his being far more strategic than directly combative, I would note that as a Primarch, he is nonetheless one of the most effective combatants in the galaxy, if not on par with most of his siblings in that regard. I also somewhat feel that his Meeting, whilst the emotion comes through well, nonetheless feels like a reiteration of the events in his biography rather than seeing things from his perspective, most notably the lack of actual speech between the two. I'd like to see how he talks in the moment, any particular considerations he makes whilst interacting with people and specifically the Emperor, that sort of thing.
Regarding the Legion CS, it looks pretty good, especially the discussion that's gone into about the General Staff. I will note, however, that it's very unlikely Bethar could be uplifted to become a Space Marine if he were already an adult, though having him be modified Luther-style to keep up with Space Marines physically would be reasonable. I might also ask for a little more elaboration on their ideology, such as cultural practices and whatnot, and whilst I'm not necessarily opposed to the standard Astartes in the Imperial Star League being nine feet tall on average, I'd like a more in-depth explanation of why this is when other Astartes are, by default, eight feet in height.
On the whole, it all seems reasonable, save the changes mentioned above and maybe a few SPAG tweaks that you mentioned wanting to make earlier. I'll look it over again when those are all made.

@Lady Selune Iniephor is an interesting chap. I do like, in particular, how he has horns on his head, since so far few other Primarchs have had any physical mutations like that; his dislike of power armour in general is quite a rare thing, too, and perhaps something to be expanded upon, e.g. trusting in his psychic power to protect him in a fight moreso than any physical armour. The Meeting is very well-worded, and certainly has a good deal of information surrounding it, though I'd suggest extending it a little further than it has been so far, just to get to the point where Iniephor agrees to join the Imperium proper.
Legion-wise, I like the concept of the Lantern Bearers, especially the warcries. I might clarify that not *all* of their Marines are psykers, but otherwise, it's looking to be a good start to things.
Knowing that you have more stuff to add, I'm looking forward to seeing how Primarch and Legion both develop.

The Grim Crusade - A Warhammer 30000 RP

@CleanBreeze I think it needs to be clarified that the two forgotten Legions are a thing in canon partially as space fillers, and partially as intentional blind spots to build up mystery about what happened to them. It's also made clear in more recent lore that they were erased during the Great Crusade, rather than as a consequence of the Heresy, and that the Primarchs themselves were removed even from the minds of their brothers, at least to the extent that exactly why they were purged is unknown, whilst their Legionaries were mindwiped and likely distributed to other Legions.

The ultimate point to make, I think, is that you shouldn't plan on getting your Legion intentionally expunged like that, because I don't plan to perform such an act on any PC Primarchs or Legions. If the story happens to progress in the corresponding direction, then it could be fun to see it develop, but it'd need to make sense in story terms; if it's part of a civil war or secession, then it's difficult to suggest the events could be forgotten so easily.

The Grim Crusade - A Warhammer 30000 RP

The Astartes Legions

I - [DATA NOT FOUND]
II - The Night Watch, led by Micholi Vakrain @Bright_Ops
III -
IV - The Imperial Star League, led by Wolfram of Parrisan @ReedeThe23rd
V - The Knights of Awe, led by Prometheus the Light Bringer @Sophrus
VI -
VII -
VIII -
IX - The Abyssal Lurkers, led by Sarghaul Tartareus @Oraculum
X -
XI - [DATA NOT FOUND]
XII - The Stargazers, led by Augor Astren @Terminal
XIII - [DATA NOT FOUND]
XIV - The Doomsayers, led by Daena io Azrael @grimely
XV -
XVI - The Daughters of Iron, led by Eiohsa izva Bronakavh [@Monochromatic Rainbow]
XVII - The Serpents of the Sun, led by Nelchitl Cuamani @FrostedCaramel
XVIII - [DATA NOT FOUND]
XIX - The Steel Sentinels, led by Usriel Andredth @Lauder
XX - The Tears of Dawn, led by Sekhmetara Khafre @Ezekiel

The Grim Crusade - A Warhammer 30000 RP

The God-Emperor has sat upon the Golden Throne for ten thousand years - his body kept on the cusp of life even as his soul eternally fractures into countless agonised shards of knowledge and personality. Yet, non-linear as the Warp is, one such shard has encountered an aspect of the Emperor from long before its own time. Desperate to end its master’s pain and its own, it throws itself into that nascent forge, and so changes the course of fate for the entire galaxy…

---

It is the dawn of the 31st Millennium. The Grim Crusade is in full swing, and vast swathes of the galaxy have fallen under the control of the relatively fresh Imperium of Man, led by the Emperor of Mankind to bring the Imperial Truth to all and sundry. The Imperium, in theory, is a society that denies religion and deity alike, and hates all xeno races with a passion - even as, in practice, many of its elements struggle against these fundamental bases, most notably the infamous Edict of Tolerance and its divisive decrees. Nonetheless, the Emperor's knowledge of the alien and beyond is incalculable, yet sufficient to see them beneath humanity's heel either alive or dead. For him, nothing less than the absolute dominion of humanity is acceptable.

To achieve this goal, the Emperor has used his vast knowledge of genetic engineering and the arcane sciences of forgotten times to craft various superhuman soldiers - the legendary Thunder Warriors, the Legio Custodes, and most recently, the Legiones Astartes, the twenty Legions of Space Marines. Led by sons and daughters of the Emperor known as Primarchs, paragons of humanity’s power even compared to their subordinates, the Legions, along with the Imperial Army and other Imperial forces, have marched toward absolute conquest over the Milky Way for over two centuries in spite of any and all setbacks.

This is where you, the players, come in. You will be playing as one of these twenty Primarchs, once scattered, since brought under the wing of the Emperor and into control of their own Legion. How these Primarchs and their Legions are moulded is entirely up to you; what methods, tactics, philosophy or weapons you choose to employ is your decision, and will influence how your Legion interacts with the rest.

---

RP Rules

• All forum rules apply. Most pressingly out of these, if I've decided on something happening a certain way, then my decision is final unless I'm given good reason to change my mind.
• Do not godmod. That is to say, don't control other player's characters for them without their permission. If you want to make a combined post between two or more players, or have decided between yourselves to allow a certain interaction to occur in a certain way, that's perfectly fine, but don't do stuff to other people's characters without their say-so.
• Please try to post within a reasonable timeframe. Once a week is more than sufficient, but if you have a good reason to be delayed, please tell me before we choose to move on, and your absence will be taken into account. If you're completely inactive for too much time without any warning, then I will reserve the right to hand control of the Legion over to a new player if they ask for it, given that I can't simply kill them off so readily.
• This is an Advanced roleplay. Please write to the appropriate level of quality - two or three significant paragraphs per post with good SPAG (Spelling, Punctuation, And Grammar) should be fine as a minimum, but try to come up with more if you can.
• One Primarch and Legion per player, please. Any one Legion has the power to change the face of the galaxy drastically; respectfully, you do not need to wield two. If you want a situation in your Legion akin to Alpharius Omegon's circumstances, this can be discussed.

---

The Sheets

Primarch Sheet

Name: Your Primarch's name.

Gender: Male or female. This will also reflect the gender of your Legion, as discussed below.

Homeworld: The planet your Primarch was sent to via the Warp. Include its name, the biome or biomes present on it (particularly where the Primarch landed and/or was raised), the degree of hostility the world exhibits, and the sort of challenges the average inhabitant might have to face on the planet.

Appearance: What your Primarch looks like, both with and without their power armour. This can be described in text, or displayed in an image if you can actually find one that's appropriate for the purpose. Keep in mind that this will, for the most part, be reflected in your Legion. Also note that most Space Marines are a good eight feet or so in height, and Primarchs are almost without fail taller still, though generally proportionate compared to humans where their Legionaries are more akin to slabs of muscle and bone; the consensus seems to be that their average height is eleven feet or so, though significantly taller or shorter is not unreasonable.

Personality: Your Primarch's character traits, their positives and negatives, their highs and lows, where they excel and what their flaws are. Remember: the Primarchs are human, and yet far beyond humanity, capable of far more intensity than any mere mortal in all of their emotions. In other words, they're almost literally larger than life, and should be portrayed as such.

Skills: Does your Primarch possess any particular skills or abilities beyond what is normal for a superhuman warrior of their caliber? Do they excel in a particular field of war - stealth strikes, armoured assaults, siege warfare? Are there any mutations they possess that grant them particular traits, such as enhanced senses even compared to their brethren? You have plenty of options here, though even for the children of the Emperor, there are limits to plausibility, e.g. excessive mutation.

Assignment Grade: All Primarchs have a large presence in the Warp, courtesy of being the Emperor's children, and some can manipulate their power in the form of psychic abilities, to a lesser or greater extent. To that end, please include your Primarch's Assignment level in this section, and some examples of what they can do if anything particular. Sigma-grade and below indicates negative psionic potential, an impossibility for a Primarch given their heritage, and in practice they will likely possess at least an unconscious degree of psychic ability.

Biography: The story of your Primarch's life, both before and after being picked up by the Emperor and his Grim Crusade. What did they do with themselves whilst on their home planet? When did they get picked up by the Crusade? What battles have they lead since then?

The Meeting: For this section, you’ll RP out how your Primarch met up with the Emperor, and the events surrounding that. The Meeting should be written as though it were a proper RP post, and as such at least two or three high-quality paragraphs should be put to paper. Please do not write from the Emperor's perspective at any point - though, given that he presents himself more or less however the beholder wishes to view him, you may retain the freedom to characterise him as you feel is most appropriate for the situation.

Legion Sheet

Legion Name: The Legion's name. This can be its original name as described by the Emperor, or a name given to it by its Primarch after their recovery by the Imperium; if it's the latter, please also mention what its original name was.

Legion Number: The Legion's number, in Roman numerals up to twenty (I, II, III, IV, and so on up to XX). Obviously, only one Legion per number, on a first come first served basis.

Legion Strength: How many members the Legion possesses. This can be anywhere from "merely" several thousand Astartes, to substantially greater than one hundred thousand units, and will determine the overall strength of the Legion in terms of sheer brute force, though how skilled its members are are is another matter entirely.

Armour Appearance: What the rank and file of the Legion wear as their armour. This website or this application may help you form an image of your Legion. To acquire an image from the site, open the completed suit in a new tab, save that image to your computer, then upload it to a hosting site like Imgur, open the result in a new tab, and use the URL from that page as your image; for the application, this guide will serve you well. You may also want to find an appropriate symbol to represent them, but written descriptions are also acceptable. Just keep in mind that this game is based in a time period just before canon's Horus Heresy, and thus only power armour up to Mark IV, Maximus Pattern, is currently in circulation as of the game's beginning; it is likely that your Legion will possess a combination of Mark II Crusade and Mark IV Maximus suits, plus a certain number of Mark III Iron suits for specialised operations, with the renowned Mark I Thunder armour being a rather rare sight for many reasons.

Warcry: What members of the Legion yell when going into battle, e.g. "Courage And Honour!", "Repent! For tomorrow you die!" A Legion may possess more than one warcry.

Dramatis Personae: A list of important figures and groups in the Legion's ranks other than the Primarch, Space Marine or otherwise. Maybe they're high-ranking officers in the Legion, maybe they're close friends the Primarch made before the Emperor rediscovered them, or maybe they're faithful soldiers of the Primarch who continue to serve him graciously.

Favored Tactics/Battlefield Role: The favoured tactics, strategies, and position of the Legion - how they prefer to engage their foes, essentially. Does your Legion charge head-on into the fray? Does it hang back and lure opponents toward their positions? Do its members prefer to sneak round an enemies flanks to crush them in a pincer motion? Similarly, are they most comfortable in melee, close range, or long range? Do they utilise vehicles or orbital bombardment heavily?

Legion Characteristics/Ideology: The manner in which the Legion acts outside of battle, as imposed upon them by the Imperium itself, the geneseed of their Primarch, and their Primarch's direct actions and directives. Maybe they're a highly progressive group, or maybe they're extremely traditional. Do they take any cues or inspiration from animals, or from real-world civilisations such as the Romans or Vikings? Do they act like the angels they're often mistaken for, or are they of a more devilish attitude?

Relationships: How does the Legion interact with other groups in the galaxy, such as other arms of the Imperium and fellow Astartes Legions? Are they on good terms with the Imperial Army, or perhaps they have a rivalry with another Legion, friendly or otherwise? Have any particular xeno races drawn their ire previously? To wit, the only major xeno races presently in the galaxy are the Orks and the splintered groups of Eldar, though countless other civilisations exist that pose just as much threat to the Imperium as these more well-known aliens. The Legion may also be aware of Warp-spawned threats, though if you’d like to have some connection to them, I’d recommend discussing it with a GM first.

---

Other Info

The only crucial factor that differentiates this game from the canonical Warhammer 30000 setting is the nature of Space Marines and their physical sex - where they were purely male in canon, a female Legion is very plausible in this game, though any given Legion’s members must share a gender with their Primarch, and for a female Legion, the Primarch alone is likely to be obviously feminine beyond facial features given the massive physiological changes that go into the process of becoming a Space Marine. Major events beyond 999.M30, such as the selection of a Warmaster to lead in the Emperor’s absence and any equivalent to the Council of Nikaea, will be played out in-story, and indeed much of the game’s story will be determined by player interaction.

Otherwise, most of the information you will need is available on the Warhammer 40000 wiki and the Lexicanum encyclopedia. To a lesser extent, 1d4chan also fulfils this role, but be aware that the website is not necessarily safe for work, nor is the information available necessarily unbiased. You're always free to ask your fellow players for assistance too, of course!

We also have a Discord channel! Feel free to chat as much as you want whilst you're here.

---

Chronicles of the Grim Crusade

A side-thread for historical or non-PoV content in the setting. Did your Legion do anything awesome before your Primarch's rediscovery? Does your Legion do anything awesome as part of the story, sans your Primarch's presence? What about inter-Legion interactions, or even the reactions of a lowly Armsman to your superhuman war machines? Any and all of these can be displayed in the Chronicles thread, and depending on circumstances may even have an impact on the main story too.

Monster Girl Mecha Academy

A.L.M.A. Unit "Roxanne"

Ah. An interruption. That was unfortunate, but sometimes, pilots were required for multiple missions in a row. Evidently, this was one such event - though it was unusual for the smaller droid to actively profess a mission in lieu of Doctor Rei or herself.

'Pardon me, Lilliana,' she excused herself, 'I have to attend to the new mission with Simmons. If you wish to participate, then do come along, and we can continue our conversation there.' With that uttered, Roxanne left her chassis behind, once more adopting the lenses and microphones of the station as a whole.

Whilst the Jury chassis was ferried toward the hangar by claw and mechanical subsystems, Roxanne focused her attentions on the hangar proper. Or at least dedicated a more substantial portion of her processing toward that matter than she usually would. She had already established that Simmons headlining a mission was unusual, of course. Within the hangar, her voice rang out loudly: 'Might I ask what situation you need to bring to our attention, Simmons?' she queried, her voice as level as ever and ever so slightly tinny coming from the station's speakers. In the back of her mind, she made a note to suggest to the good Doctor that an upgrade was due for them any time soon; they ought to be producing clear noise, as though she were present in a chassis proper.

Warhammer 40k: Kill-Team Epsilon, a Death=][=Watch RP - Currently Open!

Aodh was quiet for much of the trip to Jorval. Certainly, he addressed those who addressed him, keeping his tone reasonable and light, but he did not then go out of his way to seek those who he would likely not see again in future, or even his fellow Battle-Brothers who had been seconded for their vigil. In truth, his interactions were perfunctory - his mind caught somewhat on the events leading to his secondment, and whether or not this represented rightful honouring of his deeds, or subtle punishment for a breach of honour.

---

Weeks before...

'Congratulations, Brother-Sergeant Aodh.'

There was not much time left before the announced arrival of the Deathwatch's transport shuttle - it would present itself within the next few days, if the call for battle brothers to serve was correct, though even with every precaution taken, travel near the Cicatrix Maledictum remained ever a challenge, inconsistent to a fault as far as timing was concerned. And yet, the tithe of Space Marines owed to the Deathwatch remained ever unfulfilled - every individual who was deemed fit to contribute was a necessity, and according to Brother-Captain Calum, Aodh himself fit the bill.

A normal human would likely have been left reeling by an announcement of this magnitude, presented by Captain, Chaplain, and Apothecary, all at such short notice. They'd need time, maybe more than they had left, to process the situation and respond properly. Aodh merely blinked, then responded 'I am honoured, Brother-Captain,' in a neutral, almost pleased tone. Indeed, to enter the Deathwatch was a great honour, to both Marine and Chapter. 'I never believed I'd be offered the opportunity to fight such vaunted battles... though, you are certain I am worthy?' he asked to clarify. It was almost a redundant statement - he knew his own abilities, and he knew what he was capable of fending off. Indeed, the Captain himself chuckled somewhat as he asked. Really, the only reason he asked was Chulaine's earlier statement about the Tempest Blades eyeing him for, potentially, future recruitment, a thought he had privately been enjoying. Secondment to the Deathwatch would at best delay such progress, and at worst prevent it outright.

'Well, if we must be sure, Brother-Sergeant, let us reconfirm our beliefs.' He gestured for Chaplain Ruaraidh to speak, the old brother-priest stepping forward and solemnly stating 'I have known you since your time as a Neophyte, Brother-Sergeant Aodh. I have seen your very soul, and I know what prowess you have strived toward in spite of what you consider your weaknesses and limitations. The Imperialis you bear on your armour proves your heart is true to the Storm Wardens, and to the Emperor. If there is any who would thrive in the Deathwatch, it is you.' A very heartfelt statement, it seemed.

'I, in turn, have examined your body as thoroughly as possible,' the Apothecary stated. Brother Murchadh had never been one for excessive statements, and his appraisal was correspondingly brief: 'You are genetically pure, and physically as capable as possible for your age. You'll fit right in, Brother-Sergeant.' He concluded with a nod.

'Indeed so,' the Captain continued, smiling blandly. 'And of course, I cannot simply suggest you aren't an incredible warrior, and a great asset when it comes to slaying the xeno threat. Why, when I witnessed your rapid and masterful defeat of the Warboss Dreddnort, even in the face of your own demise, I couldn't help but think your skill would be wasted outside of the Deathwatch. And you have suggested that Brother Edan would be a worthy Sergeant in his own right, have you not?' The moment the Orkish Warboss was mentioned, Aodh felt his features fall just fractionally - a fact Ruaraidh and Murchadh failed to note, but which Chulaine certainly witnessed. He had suspected that might be the case, but...

Captain Chulaine leaned forward just so, smiled that bland smile, and uttered 'You will do brilliantly, I am quite certain.'

'...likewise, Brother-Captain,' Aodh responded, betraying no further emotion than what he'd already shown. It was an honour, after all.

---

He'd thought back to that moment a lot since then, moreso after the Deathwatch came for him and his kin than before. The first oath had been as heartfelt as any - because of course it was, oaths were invaluable, and the pact between Adeptus and Ordo moreso than most - but beyond that, he had largely been left to his own devices. A lot of time was spent in training, and a lot more in focused prayer, meditation, and mixed in with these a sort of internal debate. It had taken him a while to come to any semblance of satisfaction about the matter in his mind, but debate was what Storm Wardens excelled at: he'd created figures in his mind to represent the various sides of the argument - heavily in favour of and opposed to Calum's actions, lightly in favour of and opposed to the same, and a neutral participant chipping in to ensure fair debate - and used them as devices to process his thoughts on the matter as best he could. He'd have much preferred to discuss with another Storm Warden on the ship, of course, but given its sensitivity, that seemed... unreasonable.

Ultimately, a couple of days before he made planetfall, the debate petered out to each arguer's own opinion, cycling back to each statement over and over with no further progress: those in favour proposed that he ought to take the task of the Long Vigil as a challenge, and as suitable penance in the extreme case; the neutral party maintained that even without the Tempest Blades' eye on him, he would earn great honour both personal and for the Chapter through his actions in the Deathwatch, provided he maintained the standards that were expected of him, perhaps even greater than kinship with the Blades could offer; and those against continued to hold that it was absurd for Chulaine to hold them back from the Tempest Blades like this - though the less extreme arguer made it clear, too, that if such an indirect, almost underhanded method was how the Captain chose to avenge his grudges, then really, he was the one who showed a lack of honour, and not Aodh.

Aodh was very tempted to agree with that last argument, but couldn't bring himself to settle as such when he had technically interfered with the Captain's oath first. Instead, he forced himself to at least agree with the neutral participant: he simply needed to be aware of the oaths others in his Kill-team had made, and ensure his spur-of-the-moment vows of slaughter did not override any of those.

Nonetheless, whilst he forced himself to be ready for arrival well prior to reaching the Watch-Fortress, even the relative lack of resolution did not override Aodh's surprise with how utterly dead Jorval was. He'd heard, of course, about the Tyranid splinter fleet that had passed through the area, but he had expected their destination to be a planet or moon that hadn't been devoured wholesale. An inability to support complex life was one thing; a total lack of atmosphere or indeed anything worth saving, especially when it had previously possessed value, was quite another. Not least the lack of an obvious Watch-Fortress, either on the planet's surface or orbiting the world. A small amount of questioning, however, revealed the truth: the planet had been hollowed out by the Tyranids before their destruction, making it more than suitable to become the Watch-Fortress wholesale. It was, he reckoned, an impressive means of protection, ensuring many kilometers of bedrock between a potential threat and even the most rudimentary protections on the fortress proper - not to mention the ease with which weapon systems could be hidden beneath its surface.

---

As anyone who had ever worn power armour in a vacuum knew, their environmental seals ensured that one could wear them indefinitely in the most inhospitable environments, and mag-boots ensured the ability to remain attached to most surfaces. Aodh therefore couldn't claim that he was pleased to be approaching the apparent entrance to the Watch-Fortress in an environmental suit, wearing a rebreather, and tied to the planet's surface by gravitic emitters lest it fling him away. One of Watch-Fortress Jorval's many defensive measures, no doubt - assault would be nigh-impossible if one could not approach to begin with. Nonetheless, his armour and equipment was separated from him, borne by servitors and a cadre of tech-priests, and the idea left him rather discomforted even with understanding of what the Deathwatch's intent was. His blade, after all, was of great value to him; to not have it on his person could mean defeat clutched from the jaws of an otherwise simple victory, even in a battlefield as blasted as this. He doubted any of his fellows did not feel the same, even with the assurance from the Inquisitorial emissary escorting them to their destination- an older scion, maybe twenty decades or more in terms of age- that their equipment would eventually be returned to them "better than new".

The disguise of the lift, in hindsight, was not surprising. The fortress was hidden in the planet, so it was unlikely that the entrance would be simple to find. What did finally raise an eyebrow was the sheer scale of operations within the entranceway alone: dozens of Marines in black armour, hundreds of Mechanicus adepts, maybe over a thousand menials, a small battalion of weapon turrets no doubt operated by a great many machine spirits...

'Welcome to Watch-Fortress Jorval, Storm Wardens,' the emissary announced gravely as the platform neared the end of its descent. 'As of now until the end of your Watch, your former rank is irrelevant. You shall be instilled with the knowledge you are required to know, trained until the Watch sees fit to let you engage the enemy, and fight alongside your cousins as commanded.' It still grated somewhat to be reminded that his fellow Storm Wardens would not be a part of his own team, but the reasoning made sense - flexibility came with variety, of course.

'Your first sessions of hypno-therapy will begin tomorrow. Until then,' the emissary advised, 'you shall be shown to your chambers to await further instruction.' He couldn't help but ponder whether hand-to-hand training would help him much, given his preferred combat style, but better at least to be prepared for a brawl than to fall victim when caught off-guard. With but a final glance at his Brothers, Aodh followed the man requesting his attention away, and into the Watch-Fortress proper.