Regark

Regark is a verdant jungle world, classified by the Imperium as a death world due to its lethal floral and fauna that is inimical to human life. Located in the Akeldama System within the Segmentum Obscurus, this deadly planet serves as the Adeptus Astartes homeworld of the bellicose and savage Blood Vultures Space Marine Chapter. Despite its lethal environment, Regark serves as a home for large human settlements, which are notable for their strength and self-reliance of their people. These savage and formidable warriors make for excellent candidates to become Astartes, a fact which was the sole reason for the newly created Blood Vultures Chapter to select such a deadly planet as their Chapter homeworld.

Background
Regark is a verdant jungle world which is categorised as a death world, owing to its strange and lethal fauna, it nevertheless has a native and long standing human population descended, it is generally held, from refugees and outlaws who fled to its trackless jungle depths during the reign of some inhuman xenos empire during the dark era known as Old Night. Following surveys conducted by Mechanicum Explorators upon its rediscovery during the Great Crusade, Regark became highly valued for its vast repositories of mineral wealth. But time and again, efforts to manage sections of Regark's verdant jungles to obtain these mineral deposits were often hampered by the dangerous saurian species which inhabit this deadly planet. Regark is a mist-shrouded, largely arboreal world, which is criss-crossed by an extensive network of rivers around which its native population is clustered, and even today, remains still stubbornly a frontier world, without major industrial or economic power having developed there. The feral population, known as the Regarkii, are locked in a perpetual war of tribal conflicts. The hardship of their daily lives just struggling to survive day-to-day, has bred an independent, strong-willed population who chafe at being lorded over by anyone, which frequently leads to civil disobedience and unrest. A perfect breeding ground for potential Astartes Aspirants.

Culture
Due to life on the surface ever being an up-hill struggle, which requires a self-sustaining and tough streak, the scattered communities of its native population have remained largely unchanged by the passage of time. The feral warriors of Regark are shaped by the harsh environment of their savage world as they endure a brutal life of constant inter-tribal bloodshed marked by bloody rituals of sacrifice. Often, headhunting is a common practice amongst the tribes, who take the heads of their fallen enemies as trophies and as proof of their prowess as a warrior. Whenever there is a tribal feud over territory, resources or as revenge for a crime of passion, inevitably, headhunting is always involved. These feral warrior tribes form the primary recruitment stock of the Blood Vultures. Individual tribes are governed in a vaguely democratic way by all the tribes' men. Even women have a respected place, for while they are not soldiers, many wives and mothers have stood in defence of their homes and families. Almost every Regarkii knows how to fight, for their neighbours will just as willingly raid them. It is not unusual for a Regarkii youth to have taken hundreds of heads before being chosen as Neophyte by the Blood Vultures' Wardens and earning the opportunity to continue to slay the enemies of the Emperor.

Despite their feral nature, the Regarkii still possess their racial memory of the Emperor of Mankind from the bygone era of the Horus Heresy. They worship the God-Emperor as the Supreme Warrior - benevolent and compassionate to his children, but very vindictive and bloodthirsty to those who would break faith with Him. He is worshiped by the Regarkii as a great slaughterer of the false god known as the Lord of the Crimson Eye and his followers (believed to be an allegory to the Arch-Traitor Horus and the Traitor Legions). They are also acutely aware of the events of the Siege of Terra, when the Emperor slew Horus and was sorely wounded.

On stone tablets, the Regarkii record prayers to the Supreme Warrior, who they sometimes refer to as the 'Half-Dead One', who sits upon His golden chair and feeds upon His own children in order to derive their power - a necessary sacrifice - in order to maintain His own divine powers to survive the journey between the land of the living and the realm of the dead. These fanciful tales are also believed by Imperial scholars to be an allegory to the Emperor's internment upon the Golden Throne and His need to feed upon hundreds of psykers daily in order to survive. The violet character of the Supreme Warrior makes him a protector amongst the people of Regark, whom they believe will one day rise to lead those found worthy, and to fight the Gods of Darkness, destroying the source of all evil, forever.

The Regarkii continue to practice their ancient tribal customs passed down to them from their forefathers, though Ecclesiarchy Missionaries of the Missionaria Galaxia continue to struggle to curb their worst excesses - many end up as victims, having had their own heads taken as a trophies. It is also known that the Regarkii, when left to themselves, do not bury their dead, but leave them above ground for the vultures to deal with. This has long been the ancient custom of the people of Regark, to lay out the dead to the sun and the stars, where they are promptly, neatly, and openly picked and cleansed; to be made one with nature and become a common component of the landscape.

Flora
All the flora of Regark are considered deadly predators, having evolved potent biological attack and defence mechanisms against other indigenous lifeforms, particularly humans. Every form of plant species on this deadly jungle world are toxic - from secretions of poisonous pollen into the air that can destroy an adult human's lungs in seconds, to the secretion of sticky liquids that can capture passing nearby animals and slowly dissolve them. These deadly plants makes foraging for native food nearly impossible.

Fauna
The native animals are as deadly to humanity as the plant life. Many studies conducted by the Adeptus Mechanicus have determined that the animal life on Regark are some of the most dangerous found on any Imperial world. Some of this predators are so large that they present a threat to human settlements. By far the most deadly apex predator on this planet is the Agron Strigat, a breed of giant avian that inhabits the bleak crags of the Thanza Amon Mountains. These massive birds are rare creatures, eking out a harsh existence in isolation, high in the craggy peaks of the Blood Vultures' homeworld. They prefer to lair in huge nests made from whole trees. These immense birds of prey resembles a large vulture with heads a vivid bright red colour, and covered from head to tail in ebon coloured plumage. Their talons are often covered in the dried blood of their prey. These physical features, coupled with their reputation for carrying off large animals (such as cattle, horses or other large mammals), have earned them their deadly moniker - the 'blood vulture'. These immense creatures measures approximately 90 feet long from beak to tail, and its wingspan is impressive, said to be as wide as 240 feet.

Locals believe that these fell creatures are the malevolent souls of those warriors whose bloody deeds marked them out as worthy servants of the Supreme Warrior, therefore, they were transformed into these giant birds of prey and charged with forever seeking out the servants of the Lord of the Crimson Eye. The echoes of their piercing cries can be heard far away upon the winds of Regark, which is believed by the Regarkii to be a harbinger of war and civil strife to men. Hence, why the Blood Vultures Chapter adopted this deadly avian as their namesake.

Fortress-Monastery
The Blood Vultures' formidable fortress-monastery of Vulturis Nidus (The Vultures' Nest) is built high atop the Thanza Amon Mountains, one of the few places on Regark that is desolate. Few areas are so remote, so dangerous or inaccessible, which is why the Blood Vultures chose these mountains as the perfect location for their mighty citadel. The treacherous mountainside pass leading up to the admantium gates are lined with the severed heads of the Chapter's countless foes. This single approach is deadly, as the pass is quite narrow and one can easily be lost over the side via powerful breezes the Regarkii call the Emperor's Breath - which they believe only allows those who are deemed worthy in His eyes, to safely pass. The pass is also heavily booby-trapped with deadfalls, trip-wires and grav-mine nets to discourage assaults.

If by some miracle, an invading force miraculously managed to reach the entrance to the fortress-monastery, they would still have to contend with a score of deadly automated defences as well as the Blood Vultures sentries themselves. The adamantium-rich peak upon which Vulturis Nidus rests provides a natural defence against conventional attacks, and it is armoured and void-shielded to withstand any siege or bombardment as well as repelling attackers from any avenue of approach (land, air or orbital). The Blood Vultures' fortress-monastery bristles with a vast array of heavy ordnance of every conceivable type, able to repel an aerial assault or even take out an orbiting vessel in space.

Chapter Recruitment
The Blood Vultures prefer to recruit exclusively from their Chapter home world or other similarly harsh worlds within the Akeldama System. Living apart from the people of Regark, the Blood Vultures only descend to the jungles once every decade or so to observe the internecine conflicts that continuously rage between the tribes in order to choose potential Aspirants for the Chapter. Unbeknownst to the people of Regark, the Blood Vultures actively take a hand in fomenting conflict and strife amongst the tribes. They have continuously ensured limiting the technology levels and curtailing access to natural resources. They also have their Chapter Serfs infiltrate the various tribes to spread hate, lies and paranoia. This ensures there is no break in the constant state of warfare that produces potential Space Marine candidates - and possible future Chapter heroes - for the Chapter. Often the Blood Vultures' Wardens watch from afar as the various tribes wipe one another out during their bloody internecine conflicts.

This constant warring ensures only the hardiest and strongest survive, weeding out the weak and helpless, and ensuring a hardy stock of people. Upon induction, the Wardens of the Chapter ensure these Aspirants are separated from their fellow-inductees from the same tribe, and mix them with Aspirants from other tribes. Subjected to intensive physical and hypno-conditioning as well as other harsh procedures during their training to become Neophytes, these methods ensure past loyalties are stripped away and replaced with the will and attitudes of the Blood Vultures and the fraternity of Chapter brotherhood.

Once the Initiate is selected he will undergo extensive training and surgical processes necessary to advance to the next stage of becoming a Space Marine. He is implanted with the genetic material of the Chapter - known as gene-seed - that will radically enhance his strength, reflexes and endurance. Having undergone such radical surgery, the Initiate will then pass a series of tests conducted by his Chapter - physical, mental and spiritual. When an Initiate successfully meets these challenges, he is accepted into the Chapter as a Neophyte. As a Neophyte, he is formally inducted into the Blood Vultures' 10th Scout Company and schooled in the history of the Chapter, the tenets of the Adeptus Astartes, and, of course, will continue to be trained in the arts of making war. In addition, he will undergo further surgeries and modifications, and must willingly leave behind everything of the life he once knew.

Once a Neophyte's training and genetic enhancement is complete he will be accepted as a full-fledged member of the Chapter. In his final test he will be challenged to prove his worthiness, usually through a literal trial by combat. If he succeeds, he will become a 'Blood Brother' (Battle-Brother) of the Chapter, and will continue to endeavour in his progression to one day join the coveted ranks as a 'Vulture' (Assault Marine) or 'Blood Warrior' (Terminator Elite) of the Chapter's elite 1st or 2nd Companies. On this day he will be presented with a bolter, a Blooded Sword and a suit of power armour.