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The Long Founding (Warhammer 40k)

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do a easy request that does not require spending points on traits and stuff and use the extra points gained for next turn for a truly epic chapter for the white scars?
 
sxeron10 said:
AN: This entire Omake stemmed from that joke comment: What if the Long Founding founded a group to watch over the cantankerous Genetor.
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I want this cannonized for the laughs XD

undead frog said:
[ ] Rites of Blood: You still remember your time aiding the Blood Angels, before the Heresy tore the galaxy asunder… perhaps you can give them a hand, for old time's sakes.
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I would like to help the blood angels, or placing a chapter near fenris.
Or if @undead frog allows, a chapter specialized in recovering the artifacts stolen by the bloody magpies.
I think Grimm would do that :p
 
[]plan:steel over flesh!
-[ ] Inedibility: A recent battle against a hive minded species with a rapid adaption rate capable of devouring other living things in order to rabidly add their biomass to a growing horde has led to some 'concern' of a similar even happening. Thus you have been tasked with creating a chapter based around a homeworld that such a species would find 'displeasing' to try and actually take as a precaution.
-[ ] Traitor Legion Geneseed: Traitor Legion Geneseed: If you wish, you could gain access to the gene-seed of the traitor legions, each will have its benefits and costs, but all of them will have their gene-fathers concealed for practical reasons - little point creating a Chapter only for them to be wiped out by some overly paranoid fool. Write in a traitor legion. 10 Points for each time this is taken.(death guard)
-[ ] Potent Gene-Seed Charge: Some samples of a chapter's gene-seed are more likely to retain their stronger traits, and you have isolated such samples. 5 Points for each charge. Burn a charge to make the chapter roll for two traits from their parent legion.
-[ ] Extra Dreadnaughts: The Chapter has more Dreadnought hulls than normal, letting it field more of the venerable ancients… if it has enough wounded veterans to pilot them, of course. 5 Points.
-[ ] Crusher Pattern Dreadnought: A strange take on the traditional Dreadnought concept, where the lower half of the body has been replaced with treads. This makes the chassis incapable of fighting in doors (for one thing, it can be defeated by a single set of stairs), but in turn the upper half is even more heavily armored, possess greatly enhanced weapons packages for its limbs, and even has a pair of massive heavy weapons mounted on each shoulder.
-[ ] Rover Pattern Dreadnaught: A Dreadnought model on wheels, the Rover Class is far faster than just about any other dreadnaught type, without being much more expensive than the standard Castraferrum Pattern dreadnought chassis. It does suffer in difficult terrain in comparison to the basic or Crusher dreadnaughts, however.
 
[ ] Rites of Blood:

I really feel like we should be helping these guys out, so I'll prbly be voting for one of the [ ] Plan Sanguine v2 variations
 
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I like these
[ ] Plan: Brothers All
[] Redeemers
[]Plan:Scottish Cyclops Wizards V2
[ ] Plan: Rise of Scottish Drake Lords

Slayer 10321 said:
I suggest doing this and making the Chapter go through political training to handle the gross hit that thr Nobles keep spewing.

The rebellions are happening because the Imperial nobility are being assholes to their subjects. Let's avoid that shit by creating experts to handle the matter.
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[] Plan: An once of prevention
-[ ] Rebellion Crushing: An odd number of rebellions have been spreading throughout the Imperium. Many among the Imperiums upper crust want a chapter dedicated to crushing these revolts before they are forced to commit massive amounts of guardsmen to take back a single willful planet.
Goal: Create an anti rebellion chapter.
-[ ] Secondary Gene-Seed (Insert Legion Name): The key component for creating Chimeric Gene-Seed. You're honestly surprised Guiliman approved of this one - then again, you did hear him grumbling about some idiots who were suggesting mixing Night Lord and World Eater templates, so maybe he just wanted to make the concept your problem before somebody did something completely moronic. 25 Points for one charge, choose 1 legion to be the donor for the secondary Gene-Seed. Burn 1 charge and traits from the donor chapter are added for a roll, or a separate charge of potent gene-seed can be spent for a separate roll on the donor legion's trait list as well as an acquisition of the secondary legions 'base' traits.
--[ ] Salamanders
-[ ] Extra Trainers: With some extra effort and yelling at a few more bureaucrats, you ought to be able to arrange things so the new Chapter is able to get in some extra specialised training before proper deployment. 5 Points. Burn 1 charge to get an extra training option.
-[ ] Potent Gene-Seed Charge: Some samples of a chapter's gene-seed are more likely to retain their stronger traits, and you have isolated such samples. 5 Points for each charge. Burn a charge to make the chapter roll for two traits from their parent legion.

IIRC Salamanders are among the most compassionate space marines. Pair them up with the Word Bearers, who were very good at propaganda before the heresy. Throw in some political training and we get a group that can defuse rebellions before they get going, or fight their way out if they can't
 
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[]plan: Domo arigato...
-[ ] Inedibility: A recent battle against a hive minded species with a rapid adaption rate capable of devouring other living things in order to rabidly add their biomass to a growing horde has led to some 'concern' of a similar even happening. Thus you have been tasked with creating a chapter based around a homeworld that such a species would find 'displeasing' to try and actually take as a precaution.
-[ ] Traitor Legion Geneseed: Traitor Legion Geneseed: If you wish, you could gain access to the gene-seed of the traitor legions, each will have its benefits and costs, but all of them will have their gene-fathers concealed for practical reasons - little point creating a Chapter only for them to be wiped out by some overly paranoid fool. Write in a traitor legion. 10 Points for each time this is taken.(death guard)
-[ ] Potent Gene-Seed Charge: Some samples of a chapter's gene-seed are more likely to retain their stronger traits, and you have isolated such samples. 5 Points for each charge. Burn a charge to make the chapter roll for two traits from their parent legion.
-[ ] Adaptive Gene-Seed: Some samples of Gene-seed are more capable of adapting to different conditions on different planets. 5 Points each charge. Burn a charge to roll an extra planetary trait.
-[ ] Extra Dreadnaughts: The Chapter has more Dreadnought hulls than normal, letting it field more of the venerable ancients… if it has enough wounded veterans to pilot them, of course. 5 Points.
-[ ] Excelsior Pattern Dreadnaughts: One of the most advanced dreadnought Patterns you've ever seen, though it is only about as strong as the Contemptor Dreadnought the Excelsior is equipped with powerful jets that allow it to rapidly propel itself forward, and a nerve intertwinement mechanic that actually lets the occupant feel physical touch through the dreadnought itself - something usually impossible, even for you. All without putting any additional strain on the pilot. 15 Points.

Use the Iron hands to make a very Dreadnaught heavy chapter to fight against the 'Nids. If we do it right they'll want to go in a dreadnaught, especially the excelsior which will still let them feel things
 
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Altom said:
The thing I dislike the most is that their relation with the Warp. What I mean by that is that just about every other faction in the setting is significantly affected, if not defined, by their retionship with Warp and Chaos. Slaanesh and ways of fending it off are the foundation from which modern Eldar and differences between Eldar factions arise. Necrons bent their mastery of the materium to combat the Warp and when it was not enough they went into the Long Sleep. Imperium was born out of the Emperor's attempts to defeat the Chaos gods, and many, if not most of Imperium's atrocities originate from cosequences and failure of that attempt. Tyranids are literally driven by a Warp Entity, the Hive mind, and Orks with their twin gods and Waagh field are similar.

Tau on the other hand? Nothing. No psykers, no chaos cults, no nothing. And yet somehow, they suffer no negative effects of such lack of Warp connection. Their slower FTL is never an issue, their complete lack of FTL communication never hampers them. They control dozens if not hundreds of human planets with all the untrained psykers that implies and yet there is no evidence of any of those psykers becoming possesed or explodind into demons or even Warp portals, something that was very common for human psykers for as long as they existed. Their lack of Warp/anti Warp weapons and tech never impair their ability to combat Chaos when they actually encounter it.

That is my problem. Tau do not interact with one of the most fundamental parts of the setting and yet receive all the benefits and none of the drawbacks of this lack of interaction. They seem to have Armor of Plot Immunity against Chaos and that kills the faction for me because, Chaos is THE Big Reason why the setting and the factions in it are what they are and how they are.
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Okay, first and foremost, I'm very sorry that I replied so late, but simply, I needed to re-read many sources to ensure I remember everything correctly and then write down the relevant excerpts. Was already halfway through when undead frog posted the update and I'm very sorry for the derail in the thread discussion about our next Chapter but I just didn't want to delete all of this after writing down all this stuff.


About Tau FTL, the problem is that, first and foremost, Tau method of travel was rectonned, at first, Tau traveled by submerging themselves between realspace and Immaterium, explicitly the reason why they did it, wasn't even their own choice but the direct result of them lacking any Psykers, because of that Tau simple couldn't submerge themselves in the Warp and only travel between Materium and Immaterium. In the 8th Edition on the other hand, after the Third Sphere of Expansion, Tau invented FTL which is basically them using anti-matter to shoot their ships like bullets so hard, they pierce real-space and travel through the Warp.

Second, the explicit reason why they were allowed slower FTL and "wasn't an issue" was that, although slower, their FTL was reliable and safe from Warp predations by Immaterial creatures, and as such, while Imperial ships could theoretically travel faster, in practice Tau propably would be first by virtue of nothing having to deal with Warp bullshit at all. Also, FTL is still FTL, Tau in the old canon, might not have been able to traverse as many light years as Imperial vessels bu they still were able to cross interstellar distance and in this version, Tau explicitly started travelling outside their home system, only after inventing FTL, before that, they were trapped within their native solar system.

The Tau Empire has only expanded into space during the last thousand years. Despite this they have made remarkable progress in developing both civilian and military starships, and have now reached a level where their ships can be compared to Imperial designs. The development of the Tau fleet (known as the Kor'vattra in Tau) has been given the highest priority by the Ethereal Caste. Without the Kor'vattra the manifest destiny of the Tau could never be realised and as a species their existence would be at the mercy of celestial phenomena such as meteors or supernova. Once unified by the Ethereal Caste the Tau made incredible technological progress. By M39 they had spread through the T'au system and ringed their homeworld with orbital research and manufacturing facilities. Further expansion required a drive system capable of spanning interstellar distances however and this proved to be a formidable barrier.

Tau vessels already used a form of gravitic drive. This projected a sheath of gravitic energy ahead of and around the vessel which was continually re-projected further ahead, drawing the ship behind it rather like an archaic sail. For two hundred tau'cyr the Water Caste grappled with the problem only for the breakthrough to be handed to them. On the inner most of T'au seven's moons aroutine geological survey discovered the remains of an alien vessel. The significance of the find did not disrupt Tau society as much as might have been expected. Tau theorists had long reasoned that other life forms existed and the verification helped confirm the belief that there was a greater destiny awaiting them. No Tau commented on the sheer good fortune of finding the technology that they so desperately needed on their doorstep just when they needed it.

The Tau were able to duplicate the warp drive of the alien ship but the initial test flights were disastrous. Achieving transition to the Warp required more than technology, it required psychically attuned minds and the Tau race boasted no psykers. Without them to guide the transition no amount of power could breach the dimensional barriers. The best the Tau could do was make a partial transition, forcing themselves into the void that separated Warpspace and real space before they were hurled out again like a ball held under water then released.

Data gathered at great cost during the test flights was studied closely. The Water caste scientists made the observation that the boundary between real space and warp space was not a neat line. It was closer to being a turbulent ocean fomented by the tempestuous warp tides below. By carefully angling their descent toward the Warp and extending the field generated by the gravitic drive into a wing, shaped to hold the vessel down a Tau vessel could extend the duration of the dive considerably. The speeds achieved in the ascent back to real space were staggering and this coupled with the effect of the Warp on time and space ensured that the real distance covered by the dive was immense.

Early tests lost several drone ships because they inadvertently passed far beyond the sensor range of their recovery vessels.The details were soon resolved. There was still a major constraint, only the most powerful (and bulky) drives could sustain the gravitic wing throughout the dive and the power drain meant that considerable recharge time was needed between dives. Also by comparison to actually navigating the warp the pace was still very slow. Taking typical Imperial Warp speeds the Tau drive was slower by a factor of five.

The speed was consistent though, did not expose the Tau to the perils of the Warp and enabled the Tau to expand beyond their home star for the first time.

But as I said, it was rectonned, and according to both 8th edition and 6th Edition, Tau first built their Empire and then started advancing in the field of interstellar travel but to be honest, again, both codices explicitly claim that Tau have problems due to lacking proper interstellar travel with the first three Spheres of Expansion ending with issues of crossing their overstretched Empire and beginning with new inventions in the field of faster and better drives, allowing Tau to somehow cross their domain in less that single or multiple lifetimes.

The second reason the First Sphere Expansion came to a halt was simply due to the vast distances between systems. After colonising the many dense clusters near T'au, the expanses between worlds became greater. At that time, it was already impossible to travel the span of the empire in a single lifetime, and crossing the black gulfs that surrounded their star systems would take many, many generations. The T'au clearly needed to innovate new methods of space travel if they were to bring word of the Greater Good to the wider galaxy.

Only the Earth caste had failed to reach their prescribed goal. With engineering centres in every sept working diligently, the Earth caste provided innumerable innovations, but the invention demanded by the Ethereals-faster propulsion technology to drive spacecraft-eluded them. At last, the quantum leap came from Fal'shia Sept, where they finalised development of the ZFR Horizon accelerator engine. An ingenious design, this powerful new mechanism allowed ships to attain near-light speed. It was this device that would usher in the next phase of progress.

And of course, I disagree that Tau have no problems with the Warp, as demonstrated by the whole debacle of Fourth Sphere of Expansion, Tau absolutely do have issues with the Warp and serious one at that.

As the T'au Empire recovered from the brutality of the war for Mu'gulath Bay, the expansionist power was faced with a dilemma. The T'au found their space lanes cut off on all sides, with no obvious route towards new conquests.

At this time of great tension, a further cataclysm unfolded across the empire and beyond. The galaxy-scarring phenomenon of the Great Rift-known as the Mont'yhe'va, or 'Devourer of Hope'- marked the skies of the T'au Empire, and heralded a succesion of vicious stellar storms that tore across several vital colony worlds. Millions of lives were lost. Many high-ranking T'au strategists feared that if these ructions were to continue, even the shining Sept worlds themselves would be at risk.

Upon the world of T'au, at the heart of the empire, the Ethereal High Council debated the issue behind closed doors. A small faction suggested negotiating passage through territory belonging to the Imperium of Mankind, but the humans were judged too mercurial and hostile for such diplomatic approach. Others proposed the construction of vast cryo-ships, which would be hurled out into the void to colonise new worlds, even if this took hundreds of years. Yet such slow and unreliable profileration was not the way of the T'au. The process of bringing enlightenment to the lesser races could not be delayed any longer, for with every passing day, more of the galaxy was lost to their thoughtless squabbling.

So it was that the Ethereal caste chose a far more dangerous path, but one that might solve their problems entirely. Ever since the T'au's first brutal encounters with Mankind, Earth caste science divisions had been assigned to study the primitive technology of the Imperium, assessing the means by which the humans made their far-reaching jumps through the vast expanse of space.

After decades of examination and alteration-during which Imperial technology was combined with the wreckage of Kroot Warspheres recovered in secret from battle sites of earlier expansions-a breakthrough had been made. The AL-38 Slipstream module was a prototype device that could be fitted to the propulsion system of any deep-space craft, forming a powerful bubble of anti-matter around the vessel and propelling it at such speed that it could pierce the fabric of reality itself.

In this manner, huge tracts of realspace could be circumvented and journey times significantly reduced. Initial tests of the module were incredibly successfull. T'au ships fitted with the Slipstream prototype were able to cross the entire expanse of the empire in only a few days, a journey that would have taken many months with previous propulsion designs.

Surestrike's armada gathered at Numenar Point, in the northern outskirts of the T'au Empire. Earth caste scientist Fio'vre Ka'buto , the genius behind The AL-38 Slipstream prototype, expressed great concern at the sheer size of the venture. The AL-38 had previously only been utilised for single-vessel faster-than-light travel, he argued, and there had been little research into the potential ramifications of multiple breaches in the fabric of space-time occurring simultaneously and in such great concentration. The Ethereal High Council dismissed his fears calmly, pointing to the near-total success rate of the prototype's trials. The Fourth Sphere Expansion would proceed as planned.

Facing towards the fires of Damocles Gulf, the fleets of the Fourth Sphere Expansion made ready to jump, preparing to usher in a new age of exploration and expansion. At Commander Surestrike's mark, each vessel routed power to its Slipstream module. It was at this moment that the galaxy tore open.

The combined disruption of hundreds of anti-matter fields activating at once acted like a trans-dimensional pulse bomb, blasting apart the veil between realities. A ragged wound in realspace yawned open before the fleet of the Fourth Sphere Expansion, vomiting forth unnatural colours and roiling half-formed shapes. The horrified T'au looked on helplessly as the breach, growing wider with every moment, raced towards their vessels. Reverse-thruster fusion-jets kicked in as Air caste commanders attempted to escape the onrushing doom, but they were as helpless as shimmerhawks in a hurricane. The storms of unreality swept over the Fourth Sphere Expansion and devoured it whole, leaving nothing but a vortex of sickening colours behind.

Commander Shadowsun emerged from her ship's docking pod into the largest of the space-borne arcologies, accompanied by several high-ranking Ethereals. Commander Surestrike himself greeted her. He looked to have aged several decades since the two had last met. Even in the presence of the Ethereals, the veteran Fire caste warrior seemed to find no spiritual contentment, and his eyes were flecks of cold steel. The Ethereal delegates debriefed the Commander over the course of several weeks.

The content of these conversations was severely restricted, and vessels from the Edification Corps were a common sight around The Fourth Sphere Gate, as the T'au's political officers cross-examined the survivors of the ill-fated expedition. Nevertheless, disturbing rumours swiftly began to circulate. Something had assailed the ships of the Fourth Sphere Expansion as they drifted, lost in the sub-realm's roiling tides. Nearly three quarters of the expedition's ships were cracked and torn apart, their occupants dragged into the screaming maelstrom. Bizzare, unnatural forms manifested within the depths of merchant starships and Kir'Qath frigates, alien creatures that obeyed no known laws of physics or nature.

Many vessels were gutted from inside out, their crew and occupants slaughtered and devoured. One by one, the ravenous creatures of the sub-realm were picking off their prey. It seemed almost as if they were prolonging the game, feeding upon the T'au's rapidly increasing sense of terror and agony.

No survivor of the Fourth Sphere Expansion could say how long they endured this torment. Nor would they speak of what had saved them from oblivion, beyond the revelation that something possessing a hideous sentience had dragged them free of that nightmare realm, tearing a great furrow through the fabric of unreality in the process-the very wormhole through which the Fifth Sphere Expansion had travelled. The primal horror in the eyes of those who spoke of their salvation chilled the hearts of all who saw it. Whatever it was that they had witnessed had irrevocably changed these unfortunate souls. They spoke little, and could hardly meet the eyes of those who had not shared their experiences.

Yet it was in the presence of non-T'au species that they seemed most discomforted. It was only with firm insistence from the Ethereal caste that Surestrike allowed alien auxiliaries and support staff to board the gate. Even then, his warriors had pulse rifles trained upon any non-T'au that entered their territory. What had become of the Fourth Sphere's own auxiliaries was a mystery, though dark whispers spoke of forced exiles and even mass liquidation. Some theorised that the Fourth Sphere T'au had witnessed something pure being corrupted beyond countenance during their traumatic odyssey, and now placed the blame at the door of those alien races inducted into the Tau'va.

The warriors of the Fourth Sphere Expansion partook in these purges with unrestrained eagerness, to the astonished disapproval of their kin. They displayed a ruthlessness quite unheard of amongst adherents of the Code of Fire, slaughtering prisoners with fusillades of pulse fire, and disregarding-even intentionally maximizing-any loss of non-T'au life. Such dark events as the Massacre of the Dul'un Lakes and the Eight Days of Infamy caused great consternation to Commander Shadowsun and the Ethereal High Council. Several T'au Commanders of the Fourth Sphere were subjected to the ritual punishment know as Malk'la for their callous actions and unnecessary brutality, before being returned to the ranks or sent back to empire for re-assimilation.
Also, I wanted to also point out this " T'au ships fitted with the Slipstream prototype were able to cross the entire expanse of the empire in only a few days, a journey that would have taken many months with previous propulsion designs." and this fragment "At last, the quantum leap came from Fal'shia Sept, where they finalised development of the ZFR Horizon accelerator engine. An ingenious design, this powerful new mechanism allowed ships to attain near-light speed."

Why? Because according to this, Tau pre-Slipstream, drives, which were only near-light speed, were comparable in speed to average journey through the Warp by Imperial vessels, both taking months to cross interstellar distances between star systems.

The space between starsis so huge that any claim of control is laughable, and so the majority of the Imperium remains safe, huddled around the fires of their stars. However, it is through these uncharted depths that mankind's ships must travel. Even with the help of warp drives—and the immaterium is a fickle ally at best—travel between star systems can take as long as months, or even years. Beyond the bounds of the Imperium, where the fires of civilisation are even farther apart, the journeys could even take decades. Generally, a starship stocks at least six month's food and supplies in its lockers—although some vessels may cram an extra month's supplies on board if they anticipate a long journey.
Is this dumb? Yes, in my opinion Tau should have stayed with their original FTL and only then start forming their Empire, but this is the reading I'm getting based on official codices and rulebooks. That Tau, even before inventing their FTL, were possessing real-space drives which speed was comparable with that of Warp travel of Imperial vessels.

About, Tau lacking FTL communication, that's not true or at least I assume it's not true. Again, we are propably talking about the case of rectons and incosistency but per the 6th edition codex, Tau were circumventing the communication issue by creating hundreds of different relay stations and by sheer density and number being able to relay messages across the Empire within months.

Tau communications can only travel so far before their signals fade, so relay station are positioned to form chains capable of crossing the gulf of space. It is an effective means of passing information but each holo-vid can take months to cross interstellar distances and the quality can vary based on the number of relay- and the amount of interference, such as dust clouds and solar winds.
Again, the idea seemed to be that, Tau compensated the theoreticall distance Astropathic messages can cross, with practicality and reliability of their communication network.

However, in more recent sources, like short story "Redemption on Dal'yth" we can see Tau utilising real-time interstellar communication.

'Honoured Sha'ko'vash. Have we communion?'

It was the voice of the Traitor, unmistakeable despite the timbre of age. Whether it came from a recording, some remote link, or perhaps even from beyond the grave, was not clear.

'O'Shovah,' he whispered back. 'You cannot be here. You were found to be a rebel, and denounced.'

'You called for me on a wavelength I have not used since the Dal'ythan campaign. So do I respond. Listen well, for I am not as far away as you might think. Events on Prefectia came to a head. Thanks to O'Vesa, I can reach you on a tight-beam relay via the muster complex itself.'

'You and your commanders forsook the Greater Good,' he said, ameasure of his old bitterness spilling into his tone. 'I knew you would.'

'I forsook the sept worlds, old friend. Not the T'au'va. And if there is blame to be had, it belongs at my door.'

'The Dal'ythan campaign still burns.'

'Then the earth caste found a way to free you?'

'No. But I am free nonetheless. As is the target you sent me to kill.'

'Durian? The Chapter Master of the Scar Lords?'

'He has escaped the prison of his making, and is raging as we speak.'

'Then put him down! He is the last of his kind. A ghost.'

'It is not so easy,' replied Sha'kanthas through gritted teeth. He punched in the ident codes for the command suite as its autoset software scanned his eyes for retinal link. 'He is too resilient. All engagements have proven fatal.'

'Have you at least identified a weakness? Is there a distraction you could use? These are things you taught me to look for, long ago.'
For context, Sha'kanthas was trapped in stasis field with Chapter Master of Scar Lords, Chapter which lost 90% of their numbers fighting Tau including their entire leadership, for around 300 years. So it's possible that this example of real-time, cleary interstellar communication is supposed to be a new invention of Tau that replaced old relay stations or it's a recton and we are supposed to believe that Tau always had this technology.

Anyway, regardless, Tau in "Redemption on Dal'yth" seem to use relay stations that utilize quantum entanglement, explaining Farsight talking with Sha'kanthas in real time, unless of course we take his words of "not being as far away" literally and Farsight due to coincidence was in the same system hiding in the bushes from Ethereals just in time to have a chit-chat with his old buddy.

It's perfecly possible, and would solve any issues of Tau communication, after all Necrons themselves utilize quantum entanglement, although of course, Necron version is more advanced and allowed them to even travel across the galaxy.


'Can you scan the area?' asked Guilliman.

'I have done so, but I will again,' Prayto replied. 'There is no psychic trace here. The passive monitors would have triggered long before I arrived.'

'But you hear the music, Titus?'

'I do, my lord.'

Guilliman reached out his hand. Prayto, without hesitation, drew his boltgun and slapped it into his primarch's waiting palm. Guilliman checked its readiness quickly and turned towards the gallery door. The weapon was a little too small for his hand. It looked like a pistol.

'My lord,' Badorum began. 'Should we not go in before you and–'

'As you were, commander,' said Prayto. He did not need to read his master's mind to be sure of the determination of his intent. Guilliman entered the green twilight of the hydroponics gallery. Inside, it was warm and humid. The lights were on some night-cycle pattern. He could hear the gurgle of the water feeding the tanks, and the soft drip of the sluices. There was a pungent scent of grass and leaf mulch. The phantom music was louder inside, and its echo more profound and inexplicable. Prayto followed Guilliman. He had drawn his combat sword.

Badorum followed him, his plasma gun braced at his shoulder in a sweeping aim.

'I don't–' Badorum began.

The shadows parted in front of them and a figure loomed where no figure had been. It seemed to grow out of the darkness as if it had come on stage through some invisible curtain.

'In the name of Terra,' Guilliman breathed.

The figure was no apparition. It was real and solid. More particularly, he recognised it: the iron mask, the unmaintained Mark III plate, the insignia of the IV Legion Astartes. Guilliman knew too well the shuffling, crippled gait that spoke of chronic and unhealing illness. It was worse than when last he had observed it.

'Warsmith Dantioch,' he said.

Dantioch had stood in Primary Location Alpha, and nodded to his escort to withdraw. He had been fairly confident that he understood the function of the Pharos even from the data he had studied before his arrival on Sotha. Guilliman had deduced it too. Primary Location Alpha was, he was sure, the centre of the entire mechanism. Dantioch found himself referring to it in his notes as the 'tuning stage' or the 'sounding board'. It was a vast cave of polished black, with a domed ceiling and an almost flat floor.

Ghosts walked here, images of things light years away, drawn into the Pharos by its quantum processes. They were often fleeting, but always real. It had taken Dantioch two weeks and immense astronomical calculations to tune the Pharos as he wanted it. As he walked onto the tuning floor, Dantioch saw Guilliman appear before him, as if in the flesh. He had finally tuned the xenos device to far distant Macragge.

'It is as you speculated, my lord,' Dantioch said. 'The Pharos is part of an ancient interstellar navigation system. It is both a beacon and a route finder. And, as we just saw, it also permits instantaneous communication across unimaginable distances.'

'You say I speculated, Dantioch,' said Guilliman's image, 'but I never had the slightest clue what manner of technology it was.'

'It is not fully understood by me either, lord,' replied the warsmith. 'It certainly involves a principle of quantum entanglement. But I believe that, unlike our warp technology that uses the immaterium to by-pass realspace, this quantum function once allowed for site-to-site teleportation, perhaps through a network of gateways. I also believe its fundamental function lies not with psychic energy, but with empathic power. It is an empathic system, adjusted to the needs of the user, not the will. I will provide fuller findings later.'

'But it is a navigational beacon?' asked Guilliman.

'In many ways.'

'You said it was part of a network?'Dantioch nodded.

'I believe other stations like the Pharos must exist, or once existed, on other worlds throughout the galaxy.'

Guilliman paused.'So it is not one, single beacon, like the Astronomican?'

'No, lord. In two ways. I believe the Pharos and other stations like it once used to create a network of navigational pathways between stars, as opposed to a single, range-finding point the way the Astronomican does. Or did.'

'There have never been any sign of necrons here!'said Thracian.

'The unlikeliest of places have turned out to be tomb worlds,' said Felix.

'This is my command, should this be the first signs of a tomb world awakening. We will return from the surface. We will destroy Mount Pharos.'

'Just a moment, Decimus,' said Cawl. 'Point the first, this is not a tomb world. Point the second, although this is a necron facility, ultimately it is the work of something older even than they,' said Cawl. 'Although the second point is me being merely pedantic, if I am completely honest.'

Felix lost his temper. 'You speak obtusely all the time, Cawl. You do it to demonstrate your superior intellect. In which case, I say bravo, we are all impressed, but I ask you to stop your games. Speak plainly. The fate of so much hangs on every passing minute.'

'Very well. Here is plain history, plainly delivered.' Cawl crossed some of his arms. His probes retreated back within his armoured torso. 'There was, long ago, a War in Heaven,' he said. 'So the aeldari call it, and though it happened long before mankind evolved, and before the aeldari dominated the stars, it remains prominent in their myths. From what I have pieced together from not-always-willing informants, the necrons won this war, but in doing so their power was broken. They went to sleep. As we are all painfully aware,they are now waking up. This mountain has stood here since their days ofgreatness. Consider its shape. Consider its coating of basalt. Over the aeons, it must have been submerged under water. It must have been part of the seabed, and covered by volcanic eruption. Throughout this world's geological history, it has moved, and shifted with the crawl of tectonic plates, yet it has always been adapting, always working.'

'What is it?'said Felix. 'You should tell us that. Also plainly.'

'It is a quantum empathic resonance beacon,' said Cawl. 'The necrons are masters of the physical realm. Their understanding of matter and the nature of the materium is so profound they can accomplish miracles that other races must rely upon the warp to achieve. I have come to believe that their ability to travel faster than light and communicate over interstellar distances must have been dependent on networks of beacons like Mount Pharos. Exactly how, I am not sure, but I suspect at the centre of every one is an entangled super mass of isolated particles perfectly in tune with others of their kind scattered across the galaxy. They are strange, these tangles, and powerful. Not only do they influence each other, allowing instant transmission of data, but they can also alter the sympathetic frequencies of other particles near to them, aligning them with other tangles, with targeted, predictable effects.'

'Explain more clearly,' said Felix.

'This machine exploits the fundamental laws of physics to connect multiple parts of reality together, with no need of the warp. That is the simplest way I can express it,'said Cawl.
About other ways of travel that Tau can utilize, many of their auxiliary species are noted to have the ability to cross interstellar distance but as always things are incosistent, regardless there are mentions, in this case, of the Nicassar and Kroot offering Loxatl transportation services across the galaxy and being noted to be their, Loxatl, preffered choice for such services.

The location of the Loxatl home world remains unknown, as are any higher aspirations of the race beyond profit and bloodshed. They seem to have no ships of their own and rely on other xenos for transportation, specifically the Nicassar, Stryxis and Kroot.

About The Psykers in the Tau Empire I couldn't find any relevant informations myself and I agree that there should be more information given on such important topic, however I think there are some more or less resonable conclusion that one can reach for Tau taking care of the Human Psyker issue in their Empire.

So the first is that Tau are simple lucky and only Human Psykers living in the Empire are of Omicron to Kappa Psy-ratings. Basically Psykers so weak even professional, experienced Inquisitors have problem identifying them and they Psyker powers aren't noticeable and look at best of times like strokes of good luck.

While higher Psy-rating that Inquisition is obliged to either get and send to be sanctioned or execute for safety, are born one in a billion. Add to that Psyker powers, beside being paranatural, are also genetic in nature and it is technically possible for Tau to-for now-had only encountered and assimilated Human populations with very low Psy-rating if very improbable.

The other is Tau, are able to contain Humans Psykers by utilizing their allied Species natural abilities.
For example: the all Psyker Nicassar and mind-controling Nagi.

The Nicassar, a race of psychically attuned ursine creatures, are nomadic explorers who provide the T'au navy with swift scouting and reconnaisance vessels in exchange for the latest and most accurate star charts, and the opportunity to guide the empire's colonisation fleets into uncharted territory.

Many of the T'au's most trusted allies are former foes. The Nagi, for example, are a species of hyper-intelligent worms posessing formidable mind-control powers that were once feared and hated by the T'au after series of violent encounters. Fortunately, efforts by the Water caste led to a lasting peace, and now the Nagi are willing servants of the Greater Good. Some even serve as advisers to high-ranking Ethereals.
Afterall being naturally All-Psyker species, Nicassar would propably be naturally more stable than Human Psykers as well as developed methods to safeguard themselves to greater or lesser extends against dangers of the Immaterium and thus potentialy have methods that would contain Human Psykers.

Nagi on the other hand, with their mind-control powers can prevent Human Psykers from drawin on the Warp in the first place by manipulating them.

If we accept darker interpretations of Tau, it is also possible that Human Psykers "disappear" every time they are detected in the populace, for the Greater Good of all.

And finally, although I understand you're point, I personally don't agree that Tau due to not having "connection with the Warp" don't fit the 40k setting. I like the fact that Tau are different from other factions, and for the same reasons I like Necrons, instead of using Warp and Psykers, both Tau and Necrons have their own ways to do things and I like that, I want to see factions that are cleary different in their worldview, methodology and the general way of doing things, that just by looking at them I can see the differences in their themes and ideas they represent, that I can tell them apart and understood them just at a glance.

I think 40k as a setting is big enough and has plenty of examples to prove that Warp isn't end all be all, perfectly able to accommodate variety of different concepts and forces without one certain background force, for example I don't think that anyone would argue that Blanks don't fit 40k or that they shouldn't exist because "they ignore the Warp/Chaos" yet Rick Priestley himself, very much see them this way.

BIFFORD: Was it you who came up with Untouchables? These are humans born without souls. Their brains push away the Warp from real-space, disrupting psychic phenomena.

PRIESTLEY: Nope - that sounds like a 'get round' to me - it's something that 'gets round' something in the background rather than building on or conforming to it.

Or Webway itself, which was one of the main point of the Emperor plan. He, afterall, wanted to replace Warp travel with Webway, and in the very first edition, Eldar didn't have Webway and used Warp, albeit in different ways, to travel just like Imperium.

Although craft-worlds do have their own spacecraft these are incapable of faster than light travel and are used only for investigating local planetary bodies or inspecting the fabric of the craft's solar sails. Yet the Eldar do travel throughout the galaxy and are frequently encountered as traders and merchants on human worlds. They are able to move from world to world by means of an amazing system of warp-gates. Gates are hyper-spatial tunnels leading directly from one part of the galaxy to another.

A warp gate is a point in real space which is linked to another point in real space by a tunnel through warp space. Some warp gates have certainly been artificially enhanced, because their entrances are delineated by mechanical constructions whose exact function can only be guessed at. Other warp gates are mere black holes in space.
Again, and don't think anyone would argue that Webway doesn't fit, because it "gets around" the Warp by offering faster and safer travel in comparison. I just don't see the 40k to be so easily reduced to just Warp and Chaos, they certainly important, but I wouldn't put them into such all encompassing role as to call them forces that ar responsible for defining every aspect of all the factions. Again, Necrons who you given as a example of fitting the "theme" of 40k by interacting with the Warp, fundamentaly defie Immaterium. All their technology is based on Materium, they have examples of communication and faster than light travel that has nothing to do with the Warp, proving that other civilizations in the setting can go the same path of development and create technology just as effective as that of the Imperium in it's functions without needing Astronomican or even any knowledge of the Warp whatsoever.

Or C'tan, one of the most crucial and important elements of Necron history, they are example of powers other than Immaterium, being reality warpers that don't use the Warp. Necrons prove that you can get similar or same results without needing Psykery or Immaterium, so why not the Tau? How, Necrons creating a gun that can ignore Warp nonsense is better than Tau who's guns can ignore Warp nonsense and harm beings utilizing Warp for protection.

"Amenex Soulrend, Exalted Sorcerer of Tzeentch, unleashes his Silvered Sons against the newly founded sept world of Dy'aketh. While his Rubric Marines march through recently constructed conurbations and laboratory-complexes, incinerating all in their path with salvoes of incendiary rounds, Soulrend and his personal retinue head deep underground. Far beneath the planet's crust lies an Earth caste research facility, which has spent several months studying a strange artefact – a sceptre crafted from voridium crystals that thrums with barely suppressed energy. Just as Soulrend nears the priceless relic, he is assailed by experimental battlesuits and Fire Warriors wielding super-charged pulse carbines. These weapons fire searing beams of green-white fire that burn through even the warp-blessed armour of Soulrend's warriors. Battle lines are drawn as sorcery meets cutting-edge technology, and the fires of war consume Dy'aketh."
 
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If the ineddible marine chapter vote wins, I think the QM pointed out that to fill out all the dreadnaught slots you need a chapter with a high reproduction or recruitment pool to fill all those dreadnaughts. Bonus if we can get more techmarines.
 
Hmm... here's my take on what's the next chapter ought to be:

[ ] The Shamed: As things stands there is nothing to do with Marines who have fallen out of favor with their Chapter, nor those who have committed crimes steep enough to bring dishonor, yet not severe enough to warrant death…. Of course, the only thing even remotely fitting to monitor these wayward Marines would be other Marines.

A great way to make a better Deathwatch, I reckon. And to ensure that the Inquisition doesn't abuse these Space Marines much like what happened to Titus at the end of the first game.

[ ] Traitor Legion Geneseed: Traitor Legion Geneseed: If you wish, you could gain access to the gene-seed of the traitor legions, each will have its benefits and costs, but all of them will have their gene-fathers concealed for practical reasons - little point creating a Chapter only for them to be wiped out by some overly paranoid fool. Write in a traitor legion. 10 Points for each time this is taken.

I kinda want them to be the Emperor's Children, mostly because the pre-heresy Emperor's Children knows how to motivate and inspire, which fits those who're wayward. Or you know, just use an Ultramarines gene-seed. Or any gene-seed that excels in diplomacy in general.

[ ] Extra Dreadnaughts: The Chapter has more Dreadnought hulls than normal, letting it field more of the venerable ancients… if it has enough wounded veterans to pilot them, of course. 5 Points.

I feel like this is going to be necessary and I don't know why.

[ ] Potent Gene-Seed Charge: Some samples of a chapter's gene-seed are more likely to retain their stronger traits, and you have isolated such samples. 5 Points for each charge. Burn a charge to make the chapter roll for two traits from their parent legion.

For ensuring the ability to talk to different Space Marines without inciting inter-rivalry with each other.

[ ] Legendary Gene-Seed: The finest Gene-Seed ever recovered from a given legion. 15 Points per charge, Burn a Charge to add a legion's legendary traits to the roll list for that round.

Insurance, mostly. To handle that much differing culture and traditions must be hard on this chapter and thus, necessitate a Legendary trait.

[ ] Extra Trainers: With some extra effort and yelling at a few more bureaucrats, you ought to be able to arrange things so the new Chapter is able to get in some extra specialised training before proper deployment. 5 Points. Burn 1 charge to get an extra training option.

They need to specialization they can diversify with.
 
I think really should do Anti-Nids for our next chapter. They are one of the biggest threats to the galaxy and we have seen them seriously maul one of our deadliest chapters. Having them as our next chapter means that we may be able to reduce the damage the Nids would do when they show up.
 
Red Bovine said:
I think really should do Anti-Nids for our next chapter. They are one of the biggest threats to the galaxy and we have seen them seriously maul one of our deadliest chapters. Having them as our next chapter means that we may be able to reduce the damage the Nids would do when they show up.
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As @Gabriel_TFA explained so many times, there's still time, right now, we need to focus on more immediate issues or issues that will become crisis like the creation of the Deathwatch, preventing Magnus from screwing up the Space Wolves apothecaries, etc
 
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