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This article, Solar Spectres, was written by Dialz90. Please do not edit or 'acquire' this fiction without the writer's permission. |
The Solar Spectres are a mysterious and merciless Space Marine Chapter created during the recent Ultima Founding. Created from the lineage of the wild and untamed White Scars, this Chapter is comprised entirely of newly revealed Primaris Space Marines. Like their progenitors, the Solar Spectres continuously roam the galaxy, stalking the various battlefields across various warzones, delivering swift and brutal death to those that would dare assail the worlds of the Emperor.
Chapter History[]
- "If your gods are so powerful why did they allow us to wreak such devastation upon you? Perhaps this fate is the will of your gods. Else perhaps your gods, like all others are subservient to the Kikosen. In that case are we not simply the deliverers of his will and therfore the will of your vaunted gods?"
- — Rare pict recording of Solar Spectres compliance operations during indomitus crusade
As the Indomitus Crusade spread ever outward vast swathes of territory were returned to the dominion of the Imperium of Man whole sectors were returned to compliance wrested from the dominion of heretics, tyrants and xenos alike.
The Uto Sector on the other hand did not require the bolter and the blade. Due to Admistratum bureaucracy the Imperium had simply forgotten about it existence. Located north of Manticora at the border of the Cicatrix Maledictum at the fringe of the Segmentum Solar, Uto occupies an area of unusually becalmed warp space.
For this reason prior to the Fall of Cadia the region had been avoided by the greater Imperium as it would greatly slow transit times of ships that entered the tepid warp currents around Uto. Due to cataloging mistakes this quickly escalated to the whole region being stricken from imperial records and entry forbidden.
Uto was rediscovered by a contingent of Grey Shields who had been acting as outriders for the greater crusade and needed a reprieve from violent warp storms they had found themselves in.
Rich in resources and containing the forge world Gorix IX it had been tasked in a time long since lost to prepare for the continuation of the great crusade and had spent the better part of the last 10,000 years blindly stockpiling weapons and munitions.
The unusually becalmed warp eddies in the sector also provide a viable but high risk path through the Cicatrix Maledictum. Due to this alongside the vast resources of the sector it serves as a crucial staging point at the edge of imperial space.
During the Ultima founding the newly founded Astartes chapter the Solar Spectres were tasked with protecting Uto and gifted the planet Nakoni to recruit from.
In the centuries following the end of the Indomitus Crusade the culture of the chapter rapidly shifted as fresh recruits from Nakoni were integrated. Able to draw on the vast resources of the Uto sector the chapter is divided into fully autonomous societies loosely analogous to the codex companies. Each society has their own compliment of ships and armour and are able to operate for long periods of time outside imperial space, hunting the enemies on man in the outer dark.
Presenting as noble savages to outsiders the reality is very different the Spectres view humanity as little more than cattle and are more than happy to burn an entire world if their instructions are not obeyed immediately and to the letter.
Whilst some may view their merciless way of war as distasteful is the extreme on the feral world of Nakoni not all is as it seems and to the inhabitants mercy is a liability and stillness is death.
Notable Campaigns[]
- Pacification of Uto (Unknown Date M42) - The core of grey shields that would become the Solar Spectres were quickly separated from the crusade fleet Decimus and were tasked with acting as outriders and scouts. Though this may have been to separate there militarily from other imperial forces as true sons of the Khan. It was a task they thrived on.
Unlike other forces acting in a similar role, most reports back from this force, who were being unofficially called the Dripping Blades by the greater fleet. It was on every planet that they came upon being subject to corruption and needing purging. Growing increasingly suspicious they were tasked with finding a path through the great rift a task that would likely lead to their demise. Whilst caught in a warp storm heavily damaged ignoring all the warnings of their navigators they exited the storm in a becalmed picked that would later be identified as the lost Uto sector.The last stand on Txus was fought during the later years of the Indomitus Crusade and stands as a testament of the courage and determination of the Emperor's Astartes.
All records from this time have been redacted all that is known is that a portion of the greyshields including Jebe the Broken returned to report the existence of the sector to the master of crusade fleet decimus and therefore back to Terra. Jebe was then tasked with taking this core of greyshields and founding a new chapter with the goal of protecting this newly rediscovered part of the imperium. - (add campaign here) -
Chapter Home World[]
The chapter planet of Nakoni is the centre of power and capitol world of the Uto sector.
The planet itself is surrounded by continental sized orbital plates with their own verdant ecosystems. With environments comparable to any given garden world they are interspersed with glittering city states with the capitol itself a vast fortress built into a vast three peak mountain range located in the centre of largest plate.
Upon the systems rediscovery during the Indomitus Crusade the whole population of the floating continents were exterminated by the grey shields which would form the core of the founding of the Solar Spectre chapter in a military action that has since been redacted from all imperial records.
Uninterested in the minutia of rule an elder council was established on the planet with representatives from each world tasked with governing the sector. Fearing a replication of the assault that ended all life above Nakoni the council rules in constant fear of reprisal from their silent overlords and avoid contact with them at all costs. It is said the spectres prefer this as so long as Gorix IX continues its production they care not for the affairs of the cattle.
The real beating heart of the chapter lies not in the sky but on the face of the planet itself. Unlike the opulent lives lived on the plates above life on the surface is brutal and short. Decimated and heavily irradiated in a conflict long ago the tribes living on the surface face a predatory life contending with the mutated fauna that have evolved and thrived in the inhospitable conditions of the planet.
Living in almost constant night the peoples of Su-Nakoni live lives of constant movement and conflict fighting both the environment and each other for the planets meagre resources. For generations the strongest of these peoples were abducted by the rulers from above and impressed into service in the city states private armies or slave pits. Believing them to have been exalted to serve as aspect warriors of the Sun God in his eternal wars above, the tribal peoples both grieved and celebrated their loss as a necessary sacrifice to an uncaring god. The Spectres saw no need to alter this state of affairs.
Fortress-Monastery[]
The fortress monastery of Tekapwai doesn't exist on Nakoni itself and the Solar Spectres prefer to leave the peoples of the planet mostly to their own devices.
Located in an abandoned research station orbiting close to the systems Sun Tekapwai was fortified and modified for use for the chapter as a gift from the adepts of Gorix IX. Believing the station to be cursed the station was given a wide berth by the peoples of the Uto sector before the occupation of the chapter.
The radiation from the nearby star plays havoc with ship radar and communications equipment as such it requires an incredible level of ability to make it through the debris fields and extensive defences surrounding the station all but closing it off to not only enemies but also the prying eyes of the greater Imperium.
Chapter Organisation[]
A Codex-divergent Chapter the forces of the Solar Spectres are split into eight 'Societies' (Companies) representing the eight aspects of the Emperor as viewed through the Su-Nakoni tribal beliefs. Designed to be able to operate for extended periods of time without support or resupply these societies typically consist of both the standard Codex-adherent 100 marines plus two full veteran squads and an unspecified number of neophytes that are blooded on crusade rather than via the traditional scout companies. These neophytes can then replace losses as needed extending the time a society can operate before returning to Nakoni.
Officer Ranks[]
At the head of each society of the Solar Spectres is a War Chieftain who is the pre-imminent warrior of the society and leads them to war.
Under the War Chief are two Su-Chieftains the primary function of whom is field leadership of the societies warriors and to act as naysayers to the War Chief.
The nominal leader of the chapter is Chapter Master Jebe the Broken however he has not been seen in over 100 terran years. The Solar Spectres maintain he is on crusade outside of imperial space and has authorised the chapter to be ruled in his absence by a council of the War Chiefs until he returns.
Specialist Ranks[]
- "Kisosen has given us dominion over all that walks, flies and swims. I was given dominion over the solar winds themselves and with them at our backs no foe can escape our wrath."
- — Many Eyes, Shaman of the Crow Society.
- Shamans - Members of the chapters librarius have the honorary title of shamans within the brotherhood of the Solar Spectres. Each member of this class seconds to the White Scars to train under the Stormseers and returns with the powerful ability to channel the solar winds to speed their battle brothers to their destination and call down blasts of radiation upon thier foes. Due to the deep supersition that underpins the brutal life on Su-Nakoni the shaman caste wield greater influence than Librarians of other chapters acting as advisors to the War Chiefs.
- Avatars - The chaplains of the chapter are known as Avatars and are responsible for maintaining the rites and rituals of the chapter. To them also falls the great honor of the elevation, an ancient ceremony that predates the return of the imperium where new recruits from Su-Nakoni are taken and brought to Tekapwai for further trails and for some induction to the the ranks of the unshaven.
Each society handles their own recruitment and it falls to the Avatars to find specimens that best suit that societies preferred method of war. This is known to the Su-Nakoni people, a young man wishing to be raised thorough the spirit paths and become a demi god will seek to best emulate the qualities of the aspect he wishes to represent. For example the Bear society values great feats of physical strength so an applicant may hunt a great beast unarmed or attempt to survive unclothed in a hostile environment for an extended period of time to draw the attention of the Bear Spirit.
To aid with this task rather than the traditional skull helm of the chaplaincy the Avatars of the Solar Spectres wear stylised helms in the image of the aspect they represent. When these giants walk they surface of Su-Nakoni garbed as minor gods only the strongest will submit themselves to them and it is from these supplicants the chapter is given new life.
- Medicine Men - Name given to members of the Chapter's Apothecarium.
- Iron Shapers - Honorific given to the Chapter's Techmarines.
Line Ranks[]
- Brave - A Sergeant equivalent, each squad or band consists of 10 warriors lead by a Brave.
- Warrior - Battle-Brother equivalent.
- Unshaven - The Neophytes attached to each society are collectively called the unshaven and are permitted to shave their scalps once they prove themselves enough to become a full fledged warrior and join a band.
Order of Battle[]
Headquarters[]
Chapter Master Jebe (Missing)
Honor Guard of Indomitus Crusaders (Missing)
Companies[]
- First Society (Shield Society) - Experts in void assault they are nominally the society tasked with guarding the Uto system. However due to high amount of imperial traffic using the sector to resupply they are rarely needed and often ply the stars on hunts of their own.
- Second Society (Bear Society) - Tend to Favour fully mechanised assults featuring large armour elements. Currently lead by War-Chief Iron Bear ride to war in their Battle Barge "Kisosen's Claw".
- Third Society (Dog Society) - Featuring many outrider squadrons the dog society enjoy the thrill of chasing down prey, wearing them down to the point of exhaustion then at the right moment striking the killing blow.
- Fourth Society (Owl Society) - Ever the patient hunters the owl society is adept in the use of phobos armoured strike forces and is often tasked with rooting out heresy and sedition.
- Fifth Society (Fox Society) - Known for their use of unconventional tactics and doctrines and as wiley and hard to pin down as the aspect they represent.
- Sixth Society (Crazy Frog Society) - The sons of the Khan are known for laughing as they kill but none perhaps take this as far as the frog society. Favouring the thrill of killing hand to hand they favour the use of drop assualt troops or fast moving assault intercessors and use the vox amplifiers on their warplate to broadcast their mirth to their enemies as they hew them down.
- Seventh Society (Bull Society) - An unsubtle society rather than the traditional terror tactics of the Solar Spectres the Bull society often perform their actions at full society strength. Favouring the a manouver known as the horns they spilt into two demi societies and attack an enemies most heavily fortifed location with the goal of utterly smashing it with overwhelming force. They often act as a supporting force relying on other societies or their large unshaven elements to bring the rest of the rest of the usually utterly broken enemy into compliance.
- Eighth Society (Hawk Society) - Favouring the use of air power the hawk society tends to focus on establishing complete air superiority over a foe then using this to perform quick precision strikes to completey rout the now defenseless foe.
- Crow Society - The chapters Shaman and medicine men belong to the crow society and then are seconded to the other societies and answer primarily to their leader Old Owl. The symbol of the crow society is the all seeing eye.
Combat Doctrine[]
To the average Imperial subject, even a single Space Marine is a sight of such awe and legend that the merest thought of rebellion is impossible to countenance. Those amongst humanity's enemies capable of rational thought are equally quelled by the sight of the Adeptus Astartes, proudly bearing their colours and marching fearlessly onwards.
Even with such might at their disposal there are still many who refuse the Emperors light or even worse turn from it. To a warrior of the Solar Spectres this heresy is an ultimate affront and they specialise in what can be politely described as compliance operations. The appearance of a Solar Spectres fleet in System is enough to quell naisant rebellions before they even start. Terror is their main weapon even over and above the that which they already invoke.
They view themselves as the emperors demi-gods of judgement wearing the tribal deaths head symbol of the Nakoni as their chapter symbol. They also adorn their armour and vehicles with stylised or actual skulls, and display the skalps taken from fallen enemies openly carried where all their followers may witness their defeat. They also wear pelts and trophies taken from the great irradiated beasts that hide in the dark of Su-Nakoni to convey to their enemies their is no foe human otherwise can hold dominion over them as they are fear itself.
They tend to favour rapid deployment and lightning strikes applying overwhelming force to communications networks and enemy leadership structures leaving enemy forces directionless and terrified as their communications and orders slowly melt away until they are operating alone with nothing but radio static for company.
Chapter Beliefs[]
The beliefs that underpin the way of war of the Solar Spectres seem cruel and arbitary to some but make more sense in context with the incredibly short and brutal life on Su-Nakoni.
In contrast to the life of plenty lived on the vast orbital plates above the radiation scorched earth below. Very little is able to survive and grow on the planet most of the sustenance for the myriad of tribes that inhabit the shattered plains comes from meat from hunting.
Radiation has changed the majority of the beasts beyond recognition whilst they natives may refer to these beasts by familiar names like bear and wolf they are in reality very different and far more dangerous then what may be come to mind. Hunting these beasts requires speed, ferocity, strength and each member of the tribe to do their part in order to survive.
Never able to remain in one place for long the the Su-Nakoni as constantly moving, fighting the environment and each other the meagre resources the planet is able to provide. This breeds a strong warrior people for whom weakness is to be viewed with utmost contempt.
Many unshaven after undergoing the elevation are stuck by the weakness exibited by greater humanity, unable to defend itself relying on large imperial organisations like the Astartes, Imperial Guard and Ecclesiarchy to defend them from the predations of the galaxy.
The Solar Spectres believe in the emperors divinity and view him as a representation of the greater sun god Kisosen from their tribal beliefs. The people of Su-Nakoni belive that Kisosen takes the form of a great eagle whose wings are opened to create the day and closed to bring the night. This is the main reason they remain tethered to the Imperium as they view the emperors remit to bring all the various arms of humanity into compliance under the emperor as divine. As ever it is the task of the strong to rule the weak.
However their distaste for greater humanity has leads them to view the teeming masses of the Imperium as no better than cattle and are more than happy to treat them as such. Particularily any who turn from the emperors light are treated particularily harshly as heresy is weakness and weakness is death.
Chapter Gene-Seed[]
Like other Primaris Space Marines, Solar Spectres gene-seed has only a .001% chance of genetic deviancy from the original baseline with the passage of each generation. This makes it nearly immune to the severe genetic instability suffered by Chapters such as the Blood Angels and Space Wolves over the course of their existence.
How ever like all other Sons of the Khan the genome seems to have also inherited their wild savagery and thirst for war.
All White Scars successors are watchful for this necessary yet insidious savagery, and most belive it is only with great discipline, humble introspection and often the watchfulness of their Battle-Brothers that they can hope to master themselves.
The Solar Spectres however view this savagery as their greatest strength and rather seek to expound and channel leading into atrocities that have put them at odds with most in the imperium.
Notable Members[]
Chapter Master Jebe the Broken
Jebe the Broken is of Terran stock created by Belisarius Cawl as a part of the primaris space marine project. At the forefront of the Indomitus campaign he lead a company greyshields that often ranged ahead of the main fleet harassing and sowing Chaos behind enemy lines.
A true son the Khan Jebe was known for being boastful, quick to anger and quick to laugh. Over time however the constant crusading tempered his humors and gave him the ability to keep the more savage predilections of his battle brothers in check.
For this reason he was elevated to Chapter Master and maintaining control over the chapter, due to the nature of the operations conducted by the Solar Spectres this has proven to be an impossible task. The culture of the Nakoni initiates slowing eroding and changing the original structure of the chapter putting him at odds with the majority Nakoni born captains.
He has not been seen in over 100 Terran years the chapter maintains he is on crusade and has left the council of chiefs to rule in his absence.
War-Chieftain Iron Bear (Captain of the Second Company/Bear Society)
One of the first of the new generation of warriors to be inducted into the naisent Solar Spectres his sheer force of will and seeming inability to meet his death secured his quick rise through the ranks of the second company as it was then known. A masterful if somewhat inflexible commander planning each and every campaign to the most minute detail.
Much of his body over the years has been replaced by augmetics surviving blows that would have felled even other Astartes.
Striding to war in a his suit of Gravis Armour his will is iron and the warriors under his command know whilst he leads the battle in person victory is assured as the war chief cannot be killed.
Su-Chieftain Quick Killer (Lieutenant of the Second Company/ Bear Society)
One of the naysayers and field commanders of the second founding his predilection towards always recommending the quickest and most aggressive strategy in any given situation has served the war chief well over the years counterpoint to his counterpart Su-Chieftain Dropped Stone.
An aggressive field commander he is always most likely to lead from the front and goes to war wielding only his bolt pistol and a lightning claw of baroque design. Even amongst his post human brothers Quick Killer is renowned for his preternatural speed and this has lead to the death of many foes but also can leave him getting ahead of his men and in the middle of danger. This resulted most notably losing his left arm to the bite of a Urvak hound which has left him with a permanent distaste for hounds of all stripes.
Su-Chieftain Dropped Stone (Lieutenant of the Second Company/ Bear Society)
As resolute and implacable as the bear itself Su-Chief dropped stone is known as a patient hunter more often taking to taking broad strategic command of a theatre unlike Quick-Killer who is more likely to lead from the front. When he does take the field it is usually at the head of a retinue of blade guard veterans, in combat he is ferocious and got his name from the fate that befalls all who have met him blade to blade. The fate of a stone dropped in water.
Chapter Fleet[]
The vast resources and of the Uto secor have provided the Solar Spectres with a more powerful than average fleet each society having their own battle barge or strike cruiser alongside supporting vessels.
This extra firepower is welcomed however as by both choice and necessity they usually go to war alone.
Chapter Appearance[]
Helmet markings utilised by the Solar Spectres. Line Ranks (Top Row), Officer Cadre (Bottom Row).
Chapter Colours[]
In honor of their genesis as Grey Shields of the Indomitus Crusade the Solar Spectres maintained the plain grey ceremite that catagorised the unnumbered sons. During the Great Crusade Jebe, Ever-Boastful, was known to proclaim that the post humans under his command were so swift they could strike a star and not be burned.
In honour of this when founding the Solar Spectres the only addition to the plain ceremite was a single golden arm to represent the danger of hubris. Jebe was tasked with keeping the more sinister inclinations of the Chapter under control.
Solar Spectres Chapter iconography
Chapter Badge[]
The chapter badge of the Solar Spectres is the tribal deaths head symbol of the Nakoni people and was taken as the iconography of the chapter.
Relations[]
Allies[]
White Scars Chapter and Sucessors.
Ecclesiarchy (Fraught).
Enemies[]
Heretic defectors of the Imperium.
Xenos.
Many within the Imperium.
Notable Quotes[]
By the Solar Spectres[]
- "Stillness is Death."
- — Common saying of the Su-Nakoni
- "Only the beast understands not the path it walks, you walked from the Kisosen's light and have found us waiting in the dark."
- — Final address to the population of Karduk Prime.
About the Solar Spectres[]
