The Liber Cluster

[Aegnor]

Gather round brothers and here the sorry tale of how the genetic legacy of the Angels Exultant was intended to be their salvation, but instead became the cause of their downfall.

 

Angels Exultant

 

Geneseed

Under the curse of the Black Rage, even moderated as it was, the Angels Exultant never appeared to follow the traditional behaviour of Adeptus Astartes, even for sons of Sanguinius. And indeed they were never intended to. As has been speculated, the unusual characteristics of their geneseed and resulting curses did represent an attempt to alter the legacy of the Sanguinius lineage. But unlike the theorised attempt to cure the curse in the case of the Lamenters, in the case of the Angels the unknown parties behind the chapter’s creation sought to more efficiently weaponise the Black Rage.

 

The Black Rage is the result of the psychic legacy of Sanguinius’s death, interacting with genetic markers in the Blood Angel geneseed. The designers of the Angels Exultant sought to harness the extra strength, speed and aggression that comes upon a son of Sanguinius with the Black Rage, by moderating the biggest drawbacks associated with the condition – namely that the ferocious rage is so intense that the marine becomes incapable of following battlefield direction, and that the condition is usually permanent and an afflicted marine extremely impractical outside of actual combat. If those two drawbacks could be addressed, then the resulting chapter would be an unstoppable force.

 

Like so many of the attempts made during the 21^st Founding to alter geneseed, the attempt was not entirely successful. The careful modifications to the geneseed originally did not appear to have produced any change to the way the Black Rage manifested itself. It was when the architects considered the impact of the psychic imprint of the primarch’s death that they found the missing piece of their puzzle.

 

Observers have noticed that unlike many other sons of Sanguinius, the Angels Exultant did not appear to make use of a librarius department. So far as anyone outside the chapter knew, they had never seen any of battle-psykers amongst the ferocious chanting hordes. The reality was much more unusual. Like all of Sanguinius’s get, psychic potential runs strongly through the Angels, but has been deliberately and uniquely repurposed.

 

The Angel Exultant geneseed enhances psychic potential, but also bends those powers in a very specific way. All marines successfully implanted gain a slight increase in their psychic strength, but most develop a specific form of psychic vampirism, where they draw psychic power from those around them. A few become much more powerful and in another chapter would become the librarians of the force. In the Angels however, they undergo unusual and highly specialised training. All of their psychic potential is trained to act as beacons of influence over their brothers. It was discovered that by projecting a psychic aura of fanatical devotion to the Emperor and the current mission, they were able to interfere with the psychic imprint that normally triggers the Black Rage and make afflicted marines more pliable. More importantly, it was also found that by producing an aura of calm and control, they could assist their brothers to regain their lucidity.

It was, of course, not that simple. The ability to influence their brothers only worked effectively if the psychic receptiveness of the regular marines was further enhanced. It was discovered that the most effective way for this to occur was for a marine to “slave” themselves to one of the more powerful psykers by drinking some of their blood directly from the psyker’s veins. With their “master’s” blood resonating in their veins, they became much more receptive to the controlling aura he produced.

 

This came at a cost. Ingesting the blood was found to almost always trigger the Black Rage immediately. After this occurred, the Black Rage would never leave the affected marine, effectively suppressed out of battle by the psyker’s aura, combined with focusing chants and willpower, but ready to reassert itself the moment these factors were removed. The marines’ psychic receptiveness meant that the chanting and willpower became more effective when done en masse.

The other major cost was that the specialised training in influencing their peers constrained and limited the power and flexibility of the Angels psykers. If they ceased projecting, their chapter would fall to pieces around them. As their minds became adjusted to projecting either the enraging aura or the calming aura at all times, their psychic gifts twisted until that was the only way they could manifest their powers.

 

Recognising that much of this would be considered suspect, the leadership of the Angels Exultant rearranged their chapter to allow them to function without arousing suspicion. The psykers were formed into a form of chaplaincy, rather than the traditional librarius. Their function was, after all, now much closer to that of a chaplain, managing the Black Rage in their chapter. It was found that surrounding themselves with human psykers, similarly trained and conditioned, made their projections much more effective again, and this became common practice. To conceal the unsavoury nature of their activities, their efforts were always portrayed as raising zealotry and burning faith, rather than psychic control. Indeed, as the practice became established and mired in greater tradition and doctrine, it’s possible that even the chaplains themselves no longer fully understood how they controlled their brothers – simply that the trained patterns of “thought” in which they were instructed worked to make their brothers functional and deadly in the Emperor’s name. Certainly, by the time they arrived and established themselves in the Liber Cluster, no-one in the Cluster suspected the true nature of the Angel’s chaplains and their ministry to their chapter.

 

It is not known whether the traitors who engineered the downfall of the Angels knew of this potential weakness, and that was why they targeted the chaplains. Equally, it could be that the daemons of Khorne who appeared to have been involved in the downfall could detect the hated aura of psykers and directed the sources of it be exterminated. But when all of the chaplains of the chapter were executed, the Black Rage immediately reasserted itself over the vast majority of the chapter. Combined with the heightened suggestibility brought about by their geneseed and psychic imprinting, it was no wonder that they swiftly fell under the sway of the Blood God.

 

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Hope you all like it. Certainly have a much greater appreciated for a point that ADB has made a few times about it being nerve-wracking taking a character/chapter/legion that someone else has created and trying to expand their story and in the process change them. The fear that you'll miss the mark is much more of a thing than when you're playing with something purely of your own.

[Aegnor]

Sorry Double Post

[Machine God]

@1000heathens - Who commands The Jackals as you have them commanded by both Tala the Heartless and Yitzchaq the Laughing?

[Conn Eremon]

I think Yitzchaq was meant to lead the Hyenas, considering his placement in the article, and the image.

[Machine God]

That is what I thought aswell.  The problem is that the image is of a mortal it is too small for a transhuman.

[Conn Eremon]

They Hyenas are mortal. Only the Pride are transhuman.

[Hyaenidae]

Indeed,  Yitzchaq is the very mortal (but heavily augmented) lieutenant commanding the Hyenas. Altered the post to reflect this, sorry about that. :sweat: 

[Dizzyeye01]

Alright here's the new Scarlet Sentinels' banner with hopefully the right motto now:

http://i.imgur.com/6ACBl6j.jpg

 

I'll update those that are needing updates then I'll move onto the new. Perhaps then I can get onto writing the actual background for my piece, no preasure 

 

Edit: Hopefully the font for the Eagles is better to see now:

 

http://i.imgur.com/jJn7rRD.jpg

[Wade Garrett]

The way the Angels Exultant were using their Librarians sounds almost like the Blood Bond from Vampire: The Masquerade.

[Captain Juan Juarez]

The passion of you people is astonishing sometimes 

[Teetengee]

The way the Angels Exultant were using their Librarians sounds almost like the Blood Bond from Vampire: The Masquerade.

I saw that too and think that is an awesome way of dealing with the psychic legacy of sanguinius. Not that you need it Aegnor, but I wholeheartedly approve. But now we have to ask, why does the undying choir seem to work as well (as mentioned in the relations section)? Are the Aereth Blades putting somehow channeling a psychic process through it, and to what end?

 

 

How are the Lions's relations with other renegade and mercenary factions?

 

Well, the Lion's just loan sharked and Italian Mafia-ed (I breaka you legs!) their way into the ownership of an entire sub-sector, every trade route within it, and forced servitude of every pirate group, Knight Household, criminal organization, anarchist cell, and even xenos mercenary groups in the immediate area, plus the capture of a Grand Cruiser, AND are still hungry for more power...

 

so, you tell me how they "cooperate" with other renegades and mercenaries?  

Poorly I imagine. Although I wonder whether in areas of the cluster not close by to where they control whether they tend to use and abuse the local renegades and mercs or just wipe them out. I.e. if they attacked a world that was being rampaged over by the Angels Exultant, would they let the Angels go through and kill first/ try to work out a deal with their mysterious leaders, or would they land immediately and destroy the Angels alongside whatever else was in the way to their target?

[Nomus Sardauk]

Alright here's the new Scarlet Sentinels' banner with hopefully the right motto now:

http://i.imgur.com/6ACBl6j.jpg

 

Fantastic work Brother Dizzyeye! Once the Chapter insignia is added it'll look amazing... :)

[Aegnor]

I did think about why the Aethryic Swords worked a bit, which is why I put in the bit about the rank and file marines being somewhat abnormally psychically receptive. Those instances might be where they've picked up the trace psychic emissions of the Swords marines. That bit felt the most laboured, but wanted to keep the cool bit of the Swords chanting/singing calming them. And it does indeed raise the issue of what is going on along with that singing...

 

Good pick up as to the reference/idea from Vampire the Masquerade. Seemed like a good twist on the Blood Angel vampirism. #teamMalkavian

[Teetengee]

DO they have malknet too????? Also @Dizzy, those banners are really good, thanks for all the effort you have been putting into them.

[Dizzyeye01]

@Dizzy, those banners are really good, thanks for all the effort you have been putting into them.

Thanks a lot, should have the Angels Exultants' banner up next. For the Scarlet Sentinels' banner I'm not too sure on adding the icon as I feel it'll clog it up too much though that's my thoughts on it.

 

Edit: And as if my magic, here it is, enjoy :)

http://i.imgur.com/Ble5H6U.jpg

[Tiberius Cato]

Is it just me, or does the Aquila in the background of the Liber Cluster banner look like it has the badge of the Assassins as it's torso?

[Dizzyeye01]

Pure coincidence actually. I am a fan of the Assassins Creed series but yeah, I see what you mean.

[Ace Debonair]

I did think about why the Aethryic Swords worked a bit, which is why I put in the bit about the rank and file marines being somewhat abnormally psychically receptive. Those instances might be where they've picked up the trace psychic emissions of the Swords marines. That bit felt the most laboured, but wanted to keep the cool bit of the Swords chanting/singing calming them. And it does indeed raise the issue of what is going on along with that singing...

 

I know what I'd have the Aetheric Swords believe about it, if that helps.

 

Namely that it's much more than just a song. It is the unending, focused harnessing of the spirits of hundreds, eventually thousands of Space Marines who lived, fought and ultimately died in dedicated servitude to the Emperor. 

 

To hear the Undying Choir is to be enveloped by the conviction, strength and energy of those in whose footsteps you follow. Mortals who hear it are often dumbstruck or enraptured - who is to say it couldn't have an effect on brother Space Marines?

 

 

Speaking for myself, I have no idea why it might work, but I imagine the Aetheric Swords would just talk mysticism if asked.

[Conn Eremon]

I saw it having a spiritual effect rather than manifesting a physical or psychic effect. Hearing, and being a part of, the Undying Choir has a profound effect on their psyche, spurring them on to further, greater feats. As well as being just downright disconcerting to the foe.

 

Basically it only affects morale, which is something not normally considered for Marine forces. Making something exceptional out of the mundane.

 

But that's how I took it.

[Dizzyeye01]

Now for a little teaser on what I've been working on, I'll most likely update this post with all info on the subject and I have plans for this system 

http://i.imgur.com/Q5zvMqn.jpg

[Conn Eremon]

At first, I thought you meant it literally, because the teaser's size on mobile is very, very, very little. But opening it in another tab made it readable.

[Dizzyeye01]

Looks fine for me though I'll try making a bigger version, think its better or worse?

 

 

Edit: Removed image so there is less to scroll through since its sorted

[Conn Eremon]

Opening the first one in a new tab made it as large as this new version, and the same size as all the others.

 

Just the mobile site shrunk the first one way down for some insane reason.

[Dizzyeye01]

Alright, I'll stay with the first image then

[Nomus Sardauk]

Okay, I have two final concepts for the Scarlet Sentinels' Chapter Insignia, one is the Trident & Shield idea as suggested by Cormac and Olisredan (There's your credit, happy now Olis?) and another concept I thought of today while researching the british royal coat of arms; a white lion rampant holding a Trident (though I will admit I'm a little concerned the Lion Rampant may be a little to Unforgiven-ish).

 

What's your opinions?