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Sons of Corvane - A Chapter Under Development

Started by Chris, June 03, 2014, 11:21:03 AM

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Chris

Hey all.
As you've probably all seen, I'm working on a chapter of Space Marines, I figured, rather than have lots of scattered threads here there and everywhere, I should condense it into one thread... So, here goes!

The Sons of Corvane
Spoiler

Founding:
The Sons of Corvane are an Adeptus Astartes Chapter founded during the nineteenth founding following Hive Fleet Anak's arrival in the Ghoul Stars.
The Planet of Tarsish Prime was a backwater and near feral world on the fringe of the Imperium, cast out and forgotten by the empire of man, the native tribesmen found themselves alone as they faced an enemy which they had no chance of defeating. Knowledge of the Emperor had long since been forgotten amongst the tribes people and many had turned back to the worship of their old Gods.
With the arrival of the Tyranids, the God of blood and war was ascendant and all other Gods paid fealty to him. Those devout worshippers prayed for a champion to lead them against the new foe and readied ever more war bands to face the numberless enemy, none of whom returned save for one young boy. Born under the star of Tauros, it was taken to be a sign that he was the champion the tribesmen had been praying for. He was Meshiah.
For what seemed like years, the young boy led war bands against the Tyranids. In reality it had only been days, and despite his best efforts, the Tyranids were forcing the tribespeople back to their final refuge of Land Fall. This holy site was a place of pilgrimage which only the most devout of worshippers would take. Legend had it that this was the site where the first men had landed on Tarsish and where God like beings had fought alongside man to tame the world. Of course, this had all faded to mere legend. But legend has a funny way of coming back to memory when most needed. Legend had it that these Giants were called Nephilim, the product of the Gods breeding with mankind, they were the defenders of Tarsish and would fight when they were needed most. It was the vague memory of a children's story which had led the young boy to lead the tribespeople to Land Fall. 
Upon arrival, the young boy set about establishing a workable defence against the enemy. Naturally they were horrifically out matched and it was at the last moment when the final one hundred Warriors were forced to make their last stand in the inner sanctuary of Land Fall that legend met reality. Materialising out of thin air. Giants appeared at the side of the young boy's forces. Fire leapt from their hands and their armour glistened as they engaged the foe in a grisly melee.
Afforded a break in the fight, the young boy looked out the vast alcove which overlooked the plains below, millions upon millions of bodies moved and writhed, like an ocean, the enemy was drawn to Land Fall, and like an ocean, they were breaking upon the fire and armour of the Nephilim Giants. The Young Boy looked up to the skies, what had previously been a beautiful veranda was stained with inky clouds like a toxic fluid spreading throughout lake. His eyes were drawn towards the sun, where normally he might have seen birds flying, he saw steel wings and jet thrusters. Legend had become real, and the young boy simply knew. Salvation had come. 

The young boy had suffered three restless weeks following the encounter with the Nephilim at Land Fall. The giants had forced the enemy into a retreat and were reportedly pursuing them mercilessly killing them where ever they found them and liberating small pockets of resistance
which had taken to hiding up in the mountains. Slowly but surely, more and more survivors were making their way to Land Fall and were setting up vigils and worshipping the Nephilim as saviours. A select few had even suggested that the young boy was the God of War himself and Giants were his minions. 'Meshiah' they had called him, meaning saviour, the people revered him as much as they did the giants. It was during one of the worship ceremonies led by the tribal shamans that the Nephilim returned again.
They bought news of whole new worlds out amongst the skies of some 'God-Emperor of Mankind'. One of the giants had addressed the gathered people. He called himself Samuel, he spoke with such power and authority that he was oddly appealing, despite the helmet fashioned in the likeness of a skull which he wore. It was made clear to the people that the Nephilim where here as guardians, and this time, they were here to stay. 
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
And so the founding of the Sons of Corvane began. Originally founded out of the young warriors who fought in the defence of Land Fall, the young boy was named Aquillion Tauros. One name given by the Nephilim giants, the other name after God whose star he was born under. His battle prowess and intrinsically strategic mind led him to be placed in command of what would come to be the First Company. Aquilion saw fit to take upon the name of the commander of the Raven Guard who had come to their rescue on Tarsish, naming his new warband the Children of Corvane. However, once the transformation of boy into man and man into Space Marine began, it was clear that only the males were acceptable. Therefore the name was changed to 'Sons of Corvane'.
The Sons of Corvane, like all other inhabitants of Tarsish Prime, became fully convinced of the message of the Imperium. Utterly faithful to the Emperor, many young children who did not seek to join the Sons of Corvane joined the Ecclesiarchy and served the Chapter as Priests and as supplicants to the Chaplains.

Today the Sons of Corvane look very different to the early formation of the Chapter. Aquillion Tauros still serves as Chapter Master he has retained the title of Meshiah in his role of leadership as the people of Tarsish Prime still hold that he was sent by the Gods to bring salvation in their time of need. His wisdom has guided the Chapter for three hundred years. He took the holy place of Land Fall to build the Fortress Monastery from where The Sons of Corvane pursue the Tyranid menace of Hive Fleet Anak. Signs of the invasion still mark the planet, whole districts are lifeless and void with pools of digestive fluid occupying marsh like lands. The planet was scarred and bruised, but with each victory, the Sons of Corvane were redeeming their homelands and earning vengeance for the dead.

Much like any Chapter of Adeptus Astartes, the Sons of Corvane adhere to the Codex Astartes. Their organisation is similar to many others with ten companies of one hundred Space Marines, the First Company serves as the veteran company and is affectionately known as the Nephilim in honour of giants of legend, and the tenth serves as the scout company.   

I'll hopefully add to this soon... Showcase coming up!

Chris

Aquillion Tauros, Chapter Master and 'Meshiah' of Tarshish Prime..







Chief Librarian Israel Holstaed







Tactical Squad Navaaro







Master of Sanctity Garviel Landros










Currently I'm working on a unit of Vanguard veterans and a Storm Raven Gunship...
Look forward to your comments!

Sorck

They're looking quite good. :) I like the cream/red contrast. A bit of edge highlighting on the armour wouldn't go amiss as it looks a little 'flat' at the moment.

Which ink/wash/shade/whatever they're called these days did you use on the armour?

I'd personally prefer that the mould lines/joins were smoothed out/filled in. It makes models look much better close up.

Chris

Thanks for the comment, I agree on the mould lines etc... I think I may have just gotten lazy when it came to constructing those tactical marines... It is something I am trying to bring myself round to doing, but I doubt I'd redo this ones...

The wash is simply Agrax Earthshade. I do a single coat of Bestial Brown (or what ever its called these days) and then two coats of Agrax before highlighting with Bestial again... The highlights are there, they're subtle, and look better IRL, but I'll definately work on getting them a bit brighter still...

Small update on the fluff! I'll stick it here and then update the OP too...
Pics of my 'Sky Striker Stormraven' to come perhaps over the weekend too!

Spoiler
One area where the Sons of Corvane differ from other Codex adherent chapters is in the autonomy of individual captains. Once they have been released to execute a campaign, the Captain is given free reign as to how he may achieve that. For example, Captain Manneus Tycho of the Third Tactical Company is thought to be operating in the outer region of the Ghoul Stars. The last communication from him alluded to the notion that he may be working with the xenos Eldar race as they hunt for a relic which is reported to be able to calm warp turbulence. Whilst the cooperation with xenos is vile and abhorrent, there are a rare few occasions in which it can only be deemed necessary. Tycho carries the trust of the chapter in his ordeal and each day the Chaplaincy lifts up extra prayers in support of him throughout this period.

Another example is during the siege of Damask. A forge world came under attack by the forces of the Dark Mechanicum. The Sons of Corvane were able to intervene before the planet fell and immediately began a bloody and costly engagement to wrestle the planet back into Imperial hands. During the engagement, the Sons of Corvane found that their air support was hopelessly outnumbered, in a desperate bid to win the war for the skies of Damask, Master Tauros sanctioned the construction of what is now known as the 'Sky Striker Stormraven'. This class of gunship has forgone much of its transport capacity in favour of greater anti-armour weaponry. Fitted with a second twin-linked Las cannon mounted on a Predators turret, the gunship is afforded a much great fire rate and has proven itself invaluable in the battle of air superiority. 

Chris

Another fluff update...

A little bit on the close ties with the Ecclesiarchy. This is a core theme to the Sons of Corvane and its giving me the opportunity to try lots of cool ideas out! I can't wait to show you my Stormraven, its a bit of a relic itself!

The Sons and the Ecclesiarchy:
The Sons of Corvane maintain an especially strong link with the Ecclesiarchy, at the time of his appointment, Aquillion Tauros led the Sons in prayers for mankind. An entire week was given over to sacrifices and prayer as the thanked the Emperor for delivering them from the Tyranid menace and reconnecting them with the Imperium. The Arch-Deacon of the Segmentum Augustus was present and declared many of the items of wargear used by the surviving native warriors as holy relics and blessed the heads of those who remained in the chapter from the founding days. From this day onwards, the Chapter celebrates an annual festival of prayer and tribute to the Ecclesiarchy. In recognition of their piety, the Ecclesiarchy maintains a priesthood within the ranks of the Sons, these priests serve as serfs to the Chaplaincy and will often fight on the battlefield alongside their Astartes companions.

Whilst the Chaplaincy of the Sons of Corvane act similar to those of other Chapters, they also serve a further role within the Sons. The role of Chaplain is one which sergeants may be elected to fill. If their individual faith is deemed suitable and they so wish, the sergeant may be inducted in to the Chaplaincy. They will maintain the role of Sergeant on the battlefield whilst also being responsible for the spiritual welfare of their squad. It is not uncommon for veteran squads to be led by Chaplain Sergeants in this manner, after all, all that an Astartes witnesses on the battlefield can only boost their faith.

Often the Sons of Corvane will be tasked with the recovery of Holy Relics and artefacts in the name of the Emperor. To this end, Manneus Tycho is hunting the Ghoul Stars for relics from previous campaigns. This duty does not come without its demands, often the Sons are sent on missions which would be deemed far too risky, even for Astartes, however, and time and again the Sons have proven themselves. They have become the masters of lightning quick strikes, inserting, retrieving and extracting their quarry before the enemy can even understand what it happening.   

Sorck

Quote from: Chris on June 06, 2014, 01:42:52 PM
Thanks for the comment, I agree on the mould lines etc... I think I may have just gotten lazy when it came to constructing those tactical marines... It is something I am trying to bring myself round to doing, but I doubt I'd redo this ones...
I noticed that I'd missed doing anything about mould lines over an entire IG squad which was rather annoying, especially as I'd already done most of their painting, so I just left them... hoping nobody else would notice. :P

Quote from: Chris on June 06, 2014, 01:42:52 PM
The wash is simply Agrax Earthshade. I do a single coat of Bestial Brown (or what ever its called these days) and then two coats of Agrax before highlighting with Bestial again... The highlights are there, they're subtle, and look better IRL, but I'll definately work on getting them a bit brighter still...
I've not had any darkish brown washes for a long time which has limited my effects. I've got an old Ogryn Flesh but that's fairly light and seems to have a little bit of a red effect as well as being brown. I suppose that's good for flesh but it's not that good for clothes and the like which are more yellowy than red.

Chris

Quote from: Sorck on June 11, 2014, 05:49:10 PM
I've not had any darkish brown washes for a long time which has limited my effects. I've got an old Ogryn Flesh but that's fairly light and seems to have a little bit of a red effect as well as being brown. I suppose that's good for flesh but it's not that good for clothes and the like which are more yellowy than red.

I practically live off of the Washes... My painting has improved vastly since I started using them...

Here are some pics of my first Sky Striker Stormraven... See the House Rules section for the basic concept.
They trade the capacity to transport a dreadnought for an additional TL Las Cannon with a 360 arc of fire...
I think I prefer the slightly lower profile afforded by not using the turret provided in the kit... I may need to invest in trying to figure out different builds for the SR!









Hope you like!

Chris

I just found out that GW now have a Mournfang Brown Spray! This has made me far happier than it should... Will make painting much faster if I can prime with the primary colour!

Hopefully I'll pick some up this weekend and crack on with my vanguard vets. Also working on some Centurian Alternatives...

Any thoughts on the recent fluff upset about the chaplaincy?

Narric

OK, thats looks like a really cool Stormraven. Extra 30pts should be alright for a Front Arc only weapon system. Opponents consent of course ;)

I may need to re-read everything but the fluff was pretty good in my book for your chapter ;)

Chris

Sorry, just noticed your reply @Narric
Thanks, as I say, I much prefer the lower turret, it looks less like a flying brick and more like a baby thunderhawk. I want to try it with a razorback turret too, thAt may be next on my list.

Sorry about lack of pics recently, my laptop is still under the weather, meaning pictures are out of the question. I've sprayed the vanguard and some terminator I found knocking around the place, working on these at the moment, next for construction is a unit of bikes (need to be altered a bit as they're the ones from DV, and I want to give one a grab gun).

Next to purchase are:
3 thunderbird cannons ( I only really want the tracked carriages...)
3 grav cannons and amps
A unit of cataracti terminators from FW
A relic Contemptor dread from FW.
Not all in one pop, but I'd like to owns these to add to my to do pile by the end of play in September...

See you all soon!

Narric

#10
I guessed you'd missed my reply :P

Hope you can recover/replace your laptop soon :)

"Thunderbird Cannons"
Best typo I've seen on the forum recently :P

Chris

Damon kindle auto correct is worse than IOS ...

Laptop should be going to hospital this weekend... it's been a case of prioritising income recently...

Chris

I have my laptop back! which means..... PICTURES  8o 8o 8o

So I've nearly finished my first Centurian. If you're on the facebook page, you'll have probably already seen it, but here it is on the forum now... I'll try and give a parts breakdown to go with it too... Any thoughts you have and fancy sharing would be sweet too!









So, to my knowledge, the parts are as follows:
Thunderfire Cannon tracked carriage
Top Turret from Storm Raven along with servitor pilot (will also be a windscreen once painted)
Centurian Grav Cannon and Amp
Dreadnought shin guards and gun housing
A few Landspeeder parts dotted around for good measure too.

Fairly expensive, but now I know roughly what Im looking for, the other two should be relatively easy to source individual parts...

Again, working on the Vanguards, hopefully will have pics of those soon, also got 2 bike squads and a bike captain and Master of the Forge on bike undercoated and ready for washing.. Pics of those soon too!