Ravenfeld

Alive and well my friend - simply drifted away from 40k for the time being. Between work and life I've really been on the go - and with the time I do have I've been focusing on my Fantasy army :P

Clan Bracchus! I had to hop on to post here, despite my prolonged absence. Most of the needed info is in my IA Article - but here is a synopsis: CLAN COMPANY BRACCHUS Symbol: Stylized white/black sun inside of a black/white cog (Varies from standard clan symbol to black sun clan symbol). Nickname: The Sunbringers Leadership: Primus Godric “The Pillar of Iron”, Iron Father Garro Rega “Keeper of the Spire & Herald of Might”, Epistolary Luther Volomont “Keeper of the Keys & Master of Ways”, Lord Varros “Keeper of the Gate & Master of the Forge”, Lord Kardis “Keeper of the Gauntlet & Lord of the Black Sun” Headquarters: Land Behemoth Golgoth; secondary headquarters maintained on Chapter Strike Cruiser Solarian. Tactical Specialty: Energy and Plasma-based weaponry with a focus on orbital drop pod assaults and ship to ship boarding actions and fleet battles. Large armory of Dreadnaughts. Organizational Quirks: An unnatural reverence for the honor of a embarking on a drop pod, a staggeringly large armory of dreadnaught and contemptor dreadnaught chassis and honored ancients to pilot them and a strong reliance on automated machinery through artificial intelligence and servitors. Equipment Quirks: All Clan fighting vehicles are controlled by an artificial intelligence cortex that is tied into a central hub monitored and piloted by Clan techmarines – this includes everything from tanks and transports to bikes and landspeeders. The clan also has a unnaturally large amount of energy based weapons with a heavy lean towards plasma weapons. Doctrinal Deviations: The Bracchian Creed: - The Cosmos shape survival on a harsh world. The Creed was developed around the notion that the Bracchian people are descended from beings that used to roam the heavens. It originally revolved around the worship of the astral bodies as deity figures, each star representing an honored ancestor, with the sun being the apex of the pantheon. The grounds of the religion focused on a strong sense of unity and community, a familial bond that transcended blood and distance, something that was as timeless as the stars themselves. The main principles were:Honor the ancients - for it is their wisdom and sacrifice that has allowed us to live. Praise the sun - for it is the giver of life and the beacon to our future. Strength in unity - for together we rise, and together we fall. Defend what you have - for the weak and the lost will attempt to take what is yours. Knowledge is the key - for it unlocks the path to truth. The Disciples of the Sun: - Devout of the Bracchian Creed The traditionalists within Clan Bracchus, the Disciples represent an amalgamation of the old school of religious views merged with the principles of the Imperial Truth. They represent the weapon that was forged from the mortals of Bracchus when the first people of Medusa were gifted with ascension to the ranks of the Great Crusade. However, the Imperial Truth denounces religion completely, and because of this the Disciples have long since altered the Creed to be "principles of conduct" rather than actual religious doctrines. Many of the principles are applied to the Astartes' way of war to both honor their ancestors and stay true to their heritage while still fulfilling their function as weapons of the Imperium.The Dark Sun: - Sworn to avenge the fall of Manus & the Emperor After the tragedies of the Horus Heresy many of the Iron Hands within Clan Bracchus became deeply embittered and consumed by a hatred and rage that transcended that of any normal astartes. They went on a crusade that lasted for centuries keeping only loose contact with the bulk of their clan and the Iron Hands at large. The majority of these crusaders were wiped out before the end of the Heresy, but those that did survive eventually returned to the clan to spread their belief to the future generations. Being so divergent from the rest of the clan, the Dark Sun almost became its own second founding chapter. However, the Keepers decided that they needed to maintain unity and so brokered an agreement with the divergent cell. The traditions and beliefs of the Dark Sun would be integrated into the Clan and a small fraction of volunteers would be allowed to bolster their ranks from each group of new recruits in the generations to come. To this day the Dark Sun undertakes the most dangerous missions and in consistently employed as the vanguard of Clan Bracchus' engagements in the galaxy at large. They are imbued with hatred, instilled with venomous loathing for the heretic and the traitor, and they will not stop until the Imperium is purged of all taint and corruption. Notable Engagements: Herald of Krastus Campaign; Culling of Waagh Grimgob; Purging of Contqual; Gondar Rebellion; Siege of Gratticus Prime; Battle of Medusa (13th Black Crusade) Heroes of the Clan: WIP

http://i710.photobucket.com/albums/ww107/Ravenfeld/Frem-TheSunbringer_zps3e1e4b3b.jpg Iron Ancient Frem - The Sunbringer (He doesn't have his Cyclone on - but he has one).

Huberticus - Those are fair points and in that regard I can agree with you - but I think we all have come to expect a level of favoritism towards the boys in blue that transcends everything else. The fact is that the Ultras have BEEN Codex Space marines for a few editions, and in that time their fluff has swelled drastically. This is the first iteration of the IH in a long time and - I'm sure - it was also a means of GW to test the waters on their reception. The popularity of the supplement will also influence how our chapter evolves in future editions as well - but we will never be a stand alone dex and thus we will never receive the sort of depth from GW I think a great many of us desire. I think the rumor about all the HQ's getting Blessing at standard levels will help mesh the Chaplain and Iron Father roles nicely, as you'd have a chappy with the ability to repair. Toss in a servo-harness and you're even better off. Anyway, Stronos is what he is and maybe they didn't provide more names because they wanted the fans to be able to keep their own Clan leaders and fluff, maybe they actually considered the fact that the whole of the IH fan base pre-C:SM release were diehards, many of which had written their own fluff and the like. Perhaps they wanted to ease us into their version of the Iron Hands? I could be giving them too much credit, but if that is the case I personally am grateful to not have my clan completely disregarded because they wrote up all 10 clans with the leaders in clear as day terms. One super leader is preferable to Primus Godric, Pillar of Strength, Master of Clan Bracchus becoming a fancy that could not exist within the confines of the fluff, just my opinion of course.

It all comes down to interpretation, as it is with any text anywhere at any time. I think the issue is people saw that quote, took it to mean he hated bionics, got that concept in a death grip and have used it as fuel to gripe about things they don't like in the book. It allows them what they perceive as a solid foundation from which to attack the changes and alterations that have been made the our chapter by GW. I personally, and I think I've made this very clear by now, think that the whole section is rock solid. I like everything about it including Stronos wanting to prevent the Iron Hands from becoming little more than soulless machines bent on genocide - Astartes might be made for war, but part of their appeal is that they still have personalities and character quirks and I can relate to Stronos in not wanting to see the IH become Necron Light. That is how I interpreted the quote, his views on the Necron threat and the parrallels he can draw between his own chapter and those of his most hated enemy surely struck a cord. It is also a good way to get away from the whole "The Iron Hands are secretly Necron worshippers" angle I've seen bandied around in a few circles. We are some of the most loyalist loyalists damnit and it best stay that way. Over-all I am looking forward to the supplement itself, not the backlash that is likely to happen when it lands though.

Godric, Pillar of Strength, Primus of Clan Bracchus of the Iron Hands! http://i710.photobucket.com/albums/ww107/Ravenfeld/b07a81da-2b39-43e9-b484-971448d5fe5d_zps2633d92f.jpg Counts as Bjorn!

Primus Godric, Pillar of Strength, Primus of Clan Bracchus of the Iron Hands! http://i710.photobucket.com/albums/ww107/Ravenfeld/b07a81da-2b39-43e9-b484-971448d5fe5d_zps2633d92f.jpg Counts As Bjorn!

I disagree with the above. The "stark" shoulder pads are solid, especially if you're slapping the chapter badge / squad markings in there as a dark colour (black or dark green) because that will off-set the large plains of grey. I actually prefer the above scheme (probably because it brings more metal to the mix, haha!)

If you were going with C:SM it would be Sternguard yeah, and the TDA would have to be a captain yeah.

I actually think you can vow to the forum you want, but you have to use the point costs and units from a specific codex. So while you are using the SW Dex, you can vow with the Liber because, well your chapter is a Liber chapter. Just make sure all the point costs are from your selected Codex. That's my understanding anyway.

No I agree with the green being present, that's why I suggested the inversion of his current motif! But frankly the current scheme is starting to grow on me, especially when you consider that the painter doesn't have all the charms, talismans, and other details included to add some more character.

I think you’re right that I need to bring out the ideas I had for their personality a bit more. More on this in a second. My pleasure my friend, would love your feed back on my own article if you can find the time! Its in my sig. As for their personality, I am definitely getting the old celtic aspect with things like the hearthguard and the like, but yeah they don't stand on their own two feet at the present. Great potential, just need to be pushed over the top. I have to say I’m fairly happy with the green, and the arm is supposed to be a steel/silver. I really want to distinguish them from Space Wolves/Executioners (like you said) so I need something that is clearly different from grey/steel, hence the dark green. I’ve just got the first squads built though, so I’ve got to try a test mini anyway. I’ll definitely bear this in mind. I can see that stepping towards a different colour might help differentiate the chapter from the norm, but why dark green? You don't think you'll get a lot of "neat dark angels successor" comments? I mean if you like it go for it, I'm sure it'll look solid regardless. Just giving their nature and their chapter icon a stone grey would be what I would go for. Something darker than anything the Space Wolves or Executioners would have with the dark green as a secondary colour. Perhaps an arm and shoulder insets? Eh, just do what you're going to do and ignore my rambling, haha! I want to see some pics when your test mini is up! I’m not honestly sure about this. Question: How many IH Successors have GW fleshed out in any detail? I know the SoM have been given a lot of fluff recently, but are there any others? As to the self loathing and paranoia, I’ve really tried to include this in the idea of their not really trusting anyone, not even their brothers within the Chapter. It’s a twisting of their personality based on the character of the home world, suspicious and cold. Maybe it needs to be focused on more, I’ll try to explain it better in the Beliefs section.You’re completely right about the superstitious nature, it’s not intended to be from Manus, and rather it’s an idea to bring in the home world character again and also separate the MA from the IH and the AdMech itself. "Fleshed out in detail" and Iron Hands in general is not an easy marriage of terms. I mean GW has barely given the Iron Hands the time of day, most of the information we have is from ancient articles or the latest book. I would even argue the Sons of Medusa have more information "written in canon" than their parent chapter does! Maybe I'm just being over dramatic. That being said, the "Machine like advance" and penchant for Bionics is a theme that runs through what lore we have for all of Manus' children, no matter their armor colour. It could even be argued that this genetic disposition to the hatred of the flesh is the true defining factor of what makes the Iron Hands and their successors unique in a galaxy of vampire catholics, werewolf vikings, and the like. The real appeal of the Iron Hands is their personality and the fact that they are cyborgs! It is also noted (somewhere) that the sole reason the high lords don't use IH gene seed for more successors is due to their disposition towards the habits of their parent chapter.. hence why it is believed to be a defect in the gene-seed. There is a clear reason why the UM's and ImpFists have wayyy more successors than the Iron hands do. I think that is what is throwing me off, the fact that they are Iron Hand successors but lack any of the defining features of the Iron Hands or there canon successors. It feels like you are just wanting them to have Manus' genes for the sake of having his genes and therefore not being just another "UM successor" or whatever. Not trying to ruffle any feathers mind you, but as of this moment it feels like making a blood angel successor who happen to lack the red thirst and black rage, wouldn't really work would it? So right now I think you've forged a great narrative based on how they interact with their planet's heritage and culture and how that shapes them as a chapter. I just think their gene-heritage is lacking almost entirely. Simply being untrusting isn't really what it is to be a son of Manus. I mean the only reason the IH don't trust the rest of the Imperium is because of precedent, not because of their genes. The Imperium failed to defeat Horus in time, failed to protect the Emperor, some fell to corruption through weakness, others simply failed to stand up to the challenges of the war. They are bitter and jaded by experiences not because it was part of their Primarch's gene legacy. So again the untrusting and cold aspect I attribute to the politics of your homeworld and the way it is all handled. This of course means that you really haven't touched on how being an IH successor has impacted them at all My pleasure! Again, not trying to come down hard on you. More just trying to get those creative juices flowing! Keep it up. Raven

Firstly, I like the idea of a celtic themed force (I wanted to do something similar in the future, but using either space wolf or fist geneseed). At first I was wary of the fact that you were using Manus' genes, simply because it doesn't get used often due to the chapter's particular quirk. Yet I think it works out fairly nicely, although I am not seeing a whole lot of Ferrus in these guys, more a combination of Dorn and Russ, but that could just be me. I like the idea of recruitment being a "taken by the mists" affair, I also like how the "Wyrds" are their own branch of the chapter more or less. There is a great deal to like and only small snippets that make me raise a partial eyebrow. Yet, when I read this, I can't shake that I am reading about Space Wolf / Executioner style folk, but then again I think that's kind of unavoidable given your theme. What truly sets them apart from other Chapter's like them? I know its hard to come up with a truly unique idea for a Chapter, but you have such good depth with the origins, the planet, the allies, the whole thing is solidly based, but something is missing and I can't quite lay my finger on it. The colour scheme is another thing, I personally don't think green when I imagine these guys. I get gray, maybe steel or iron colourations. A pale grey like their arm plate, maybe if you inverted it and made the arm the green part and come up with some sort of theme for that being the case. You could also make their left arm colour signify their household, to differentiate in that regard. Just a thought. I like the chapter badge, it makes sense and I think you're justification validates it. I guess my only qualms are minor on the whole, I think it needs to speak more like a true scion of Manus though, something is missing. I mean look at all the IH Successors to date and it really paints a vivid picture as to what being a scion of Manus truly entails. The lack of that self-loathing and near paranoia about weakness is something I can't quite come to terms with. I appreciate that you tried to take it into a new angle with them being superstitious, but that to me is more a product of their homeworld and upbringing than it is a product of their geneseed or their primarch. Food for thought, Overall, I really like it! Raven

Very well put Octa, insightful and to the point (I'm reading it in parts, went through criticism so far but felt compelled to pat you on the back, haha) It's extremely thorough, and with that comes a length that isn't easily tackled in a single sitting. But i'll get to it, I am very interested to see what your principles are so I can attempt to apply them to my future works. Thanks for taking the time to transcribe it!