Demigryph Knights IN SPACE!
- Location
- Australia
I wanted to write a world that had the Fierce population trait as to my knowledge no one had yet done so. Then I thought what kinds of Guard troops primarily used melee weapons and I thought of rough riders. Then I thought to myself how I could make rough riders as cool as possible and remembered that, well, someone had already done that.
Demigryph Knights IN SPACE!
Segmentum: Pacificus
Recruiting World +2
Very Dangerous fauna -2
Major Ork infestation -4
Dangerous region- there are Orks (-2), Pirates (-1), Chaos (-3), Necrons (-3) in the sector
Military Specialisation (Rough Riders) +2
x2 Ties with the Imperial branch (Adepta Sororitas) +2
x2 Military Tradition +4
Fierce- Large boost to close in combat
++Thought for the Day: Hatred is our surest weapon.++
Alabine is a War World with a large ork infestation whom the population is in constant conflict with. The planet is also home to a large variety of dangerous beasts hostile to human life, ork life, and themselves, though a few breeds have been put to use by orks and humans alike. The pressure of the endless battled between man and ork has resulted in a population fierce and geared for war, and has thus made Alabine a popular planet for both the Imperial Guard and the Adeptus Astartes to recruit from. Typically, the Astartes draws exclusively from the demigryph-riding nobility while the Guard draw from them but also from the foot-marching peasantry.
Demigryphs are large, carnivorous creatures with an appearance of that of a lion and a bird put together. Armour-shredding claws, skull-crushing beaks, terrifying strength, a swift gallop, and undying hatred; these are the qualities that make up the perpetually angry balls of fur, feathers, and rage that are demigryphs. They are hateful towards anything which looks, smells, sounds, or feels bad, which to them is many things, but especially orks, necrons, eldar, and Chaos. Demigryphs give birth to eggs in clutches of 2-3 and it takes 6 years for a demigryph to reach maturity. Orks are their natural enemy and will instinctively attack them, making it impossible for orks to break and utilise them in war. Humans, capable of showing care and affection when the training calls for it, are however.
It is very difficult to corrupt adult demigryphs to Chaos as they have strong wills and instinctively fight its influence with every fibre of their being. It is much easier to corrupt them when they are just born, but most of the time this just results in a perpetually berzerk beast, so violent that they don't stop even to eat or rest and must be carefully maintained to be kept alive. If their master is corrupted, they become incapable of recognising them and their instincts kick in, leading to them turning on their former masters.
Demigryphs are the defining mount of the the elite warrior-nobility of the planet: the Equites Avileones. Known as Demigryph Knights in Low Gothic, these warriors hold bravery, honour, virtue, and ferocity in battle in utmost regard, and uphold a code of chivalry which is central to their version of the Imperial Creed. Demigryph Knights are covered head to toe in heavy carapace armour, granting them outstanding protection. Their mounts are also heavily armoured, their muscles powerful enough to wear it without becoming encumbered.
Demigryph Knights are trained from childhood in their duties as squires under knights. They are taught how to fight, naturally, but they are taught gentler arts such civil administration, law, and culture. At 10 years a squire is given a demigryph egg with which he will form a bond with and to train. Demigryphs are trained not only to work with their master and in combat techniques, but also to act in formation and in general human society (much as they can be, at least.) At 16, the squire is tested and if found competent is knighted.
In ancient times, Alabine was splint into four kingdoms: Iore, Flora, Hueca, and Josamine, each ruled by a king. One day there erupted a great war between all four powers and they fought amongst each other. This meant that there were less forces to fight the orks which gave them time to organise and launch a Waaagh on the kingdoms. All four kings died in the battles, as did most of the heirs, and they were only saved when a full Order of the Sisters of Battle - the Order of the Sacred Fire - arrived and drove back the xenos menace.
In the aftermath, it was decided that they will become one kingdom with one king. It was also arranged that the king would be selected and crowned by a representative of the Order. On their time on Alabine, the Sacred Fire had become enamored by the qualities of the demigryphs, seeing them as ideal companions to serve with them in purging the enemies of man. Another arrangement was made: all of the Order's new recruits will be sent to Alabine and serve there for 20 years, during which time they will bond with a demigryph whom they may take with them when their decades of service are complete.
Though the now united kingdom was stable following the war and their salvation at the hands of the Sacred Fire, it may not always be like that and the candidates for the crown may find themselves warring against each other for it or breaking off into independent kingdoms. To prevent such civil strife from occurring again, the Sacred Fire convinced the newly crowned king to allow members of the Order Famulous to act in their duties on the world. Since then their presence has resulted in a lasting peace between the four former kingdoms and the territories within.
The women of Alabine are trained in the fighting arts, just as the men, but they are given less mandatory hours of training and are meant to act as purely defensive troops in case recent battles had left the number of fighting men too depleted to mount a sufficiently strong defence. That is not to say they are not respected however. On the contrary, they are an important part of life in Alabine as the decreased time they are required to spend training grants them greater opportunity for study, leading to them taking a greater proportion of high-ranking civilian positions. This is also reflected in the nobility where they are trained to act as their husbands' right hands in all ways bar martial. Some time after the arrival of the Adepta Sororitas, it was written into law that girls who show an exceptional talent for the martial arts at a young age may be trained in the ways of a knight. Such lady knights have been rare but their expected prowess on the field of battle has led to acceptance of the practice within the nobility.
Roughly once every 10,000 births, a demigryph will instead of giving birth to a clutch of 2-3 eggs will instead give birth to a single, ornate egg. This is not a demigryph egg, it is a gryphon egg. Gryphons are much, much larger than demigryphs, have large wings which enable them to fly high and fly swiftly, and their larger brains sport a greater intelligence than that of their lesser brethren. They don't have quite the same sheer ferocity in battle as demigryphs, but their cunning and the advanced combat manoeuvres and techniques they're capable of learning more than make up for it. Their rarity and their worth means they fetch a high price for the knight who sells them (assuming they choose to do so), but they are forbidden from selling it to anyone who is not a worthy warrior. Gryphons are generally ridden by high ranking Avileones and Sacred Fire Sisters, and Space Marines who come to the world to find potential recruits. One Space Marine Chapter Master defeated a Bloodthirster on the back of a gryphon, proving their worth against even the vilest of the Great Enemy's servants. They make excellent psychic familiars and as such Librarians have taken to forming bonds with them.
Gryphons are considered the natural enemy of wyverns - large, flying, lizard-like creatures whose temperaments make them impossible to train by humans but make them very popular among orks. A gryphon will usually win in a fight against such creatures, especially if they've been trained for war, but there are more wyverns than there are gryphons so supporting troops are often used when the numbers are uneven.
Unlike demigryphs, gryphons are aware that when their master is corrupted that it is their master, however they do not react differently and attack them as they would any who had fallen. Afterwards they fall into a severe depression that lasts for years. During this time their combat capabilities are significantly lesser and though they eventually recover some of their fighting spirit, they will never reach the same prowess as when they were at their peak.
Demigryph Knights IN SPACE!
Segmentum: Pacificus
Recruiting World +2
Very Dangerous fauna -2
Major Ork infestation -4
Dangerous region- there are Orks (-2), Pirates (-1), Chaos (-3), Necrons (-3) in the sector
Military Specialisation (Rough Riders) +2
x2 Ties with the Imperial branch (Adepta Sororitas) +2
x2 Military Tradition +4
Fierce- Large boost to close in combat
++Thought for the Day: Hatred is our surest weapon.++
Alabine is a War World with a large ork infestation whom the population is in constant conflict with. The planet is also home to a large variety of dangerous beasts hostile to human life, ork life, and themselves, though a few breeds have been put to use by orks and humans alike. The pressure of the endless battled between man and ork has resulted in a population fierce and geared for war, and has thus made Alabine a popular planet for both the Imperial Guard and the Adeptus Astartes to recruit from. Typically, the Astartes draws exclusively from the demigryph-riding nobility while the Guard draw from them but also from the foot-marching peasantry.
Demigryphs are large, carnivorous creatures with an appearance of that of a lion and a bird put together. Armour-shredding claws, skull-crushing beaks, terrifying strength, a swift gallop, and undying hatred; these are the qualities that make up the perpetually angry balls of fur, feathers, and rage that are demigryphs. They are hateful towards anything which looks, smells, sounds, or feels bad, which to them is many things, but especially orks, necrons, eldar, and Chaos. Demigryphs give birth to eggs in clutches of 2-3 and it takes 6 years for a demigryph to reach maturity. Orks are their natural enemy and will instinctively attack them, making it impossible for orks to break and utilise them in war. Humans, capable of showing care and affection when the training calls for it, are however.
It is very difficult to corrupt adult demigryphs to Chaos as they have strong wills and instinctively fight its influence with every fibre of their being. It is much easier to corrupt them when they are just born, but most of the time this just results in a perpetually berzerk beast, so violent that they don't stop even to eat or rest and must be carefully maintained to be kept alive. If their master is corrupted, they become incapable of recognising them and their instincts kick in, leading to them turning on their former masters.
Demigryphs are the defining mount of the the elite warrior-nobility of the planet: the Equites Avileones. Known as Demigryph Knights in Low Gothic, these warriors hold bravery, honour, virtue, and ferocity in battle in utmost regard, and uphold a code of chivalry which is central to their version of the Imperial Creed. Demigryph Knights are covered head to toe in heavy carapace armour, granting them outstanding protection. Their mounts are also heavily armoured, their muscles powerful enough to wear it without becoming encumbered.
Demigryph Knights are trained from childhood in their duties as squires under knights. They are taught how to fight, naturally, but they are taught gentler arts such civil administration, law, and culture. At 10 years a squire is given a demigryph egg with which he will form a bond with and to train. Demigryphs are trained not only to work with their master and in combat techniques, but also to act in formation and in general human society (much as they can be, at least.) At 16, the squire is tested and if found competent is knighted.
In ancient times, Alabine was splint into four kingdoms: Iore, Flora, Hueca, and Josamine, each ruled by a king. One day there erupted a great war between all four powers and they fought amongst each other. This meant that there were less forces to fight the orks which gave them time to organise and launch a Waaagh on the kingdoms. All four kings died in the battles, as did most of the heirs, and they were only saved when a full Order of the Sisters of Battle - the Order of the Sacred Fire - arrived and drove back the xenos menace.
In the aftermath, it was decided that they will become one kingdom with one king. It was also arranged that the king would be selected and crowned by a representative of the Order. On their time on Alabine, the Sacred Fire had become enamored by the qualities of the demigryphs, seeing them as ideal companions to serve with them in purging the enemies of man. Another arrangement was made: all of the Order's new recruits will be sent to Alabine and serve there for 20 years, during which time they will bond with a demigryph whom they may take with them when their decades of service are complete.
Though the now united kingdom was stable following the war and their salvation at the hands of the Sacred Fire, it may not always be like that and the candidates for the crown may find themselves warring against each other for it or breaking off into independent kingdoms. To prevent such civil strife from occurring again, the Sacred Fire convinced the newly crowned king to allow members of the Order Famulous to act in their duties on the world. Since then their presence has resulted in a lasting peace between the four former kingdoms and the territories within.
The women of Alabine are trained in the fighting arts, just as the men, but they are given less mandatory hours of training and are meant to act as purely defensive troops in case recent battles had left the number of fighting men too depleted to mount a sufficiently strong defence. That is not to say they are not respected however. On the contrary, they are an important part of life in Alabine as the decreased time they are required to spend training grants them greater opportunity for study, leading to them taking a greater proportion of high-ranking civilian positions. This is also reflected in the nobility where they are trained to act as their husbands' right hands in all ways bar martial. Some time after the arrival of the Adepta Sororitas, it was written into law that girls who show an exceptional talent for the martial arts at a young age may be trained in the ways of a knight. Such lady knights have been rare but their expected prowess on the field of battle has led to acceptance of the practice within the nobility.
Roughly once every 10,000 births, a demigryph will instead of giving birth to a clutch of 2-3 eggs will instead give birth to a single, ornate egg. This is not a demigryph egg, it is a gryphon egg. Gryphons are much, much larger than demigryphs, have large wings which enable them to fly high and fly swiftly, and their larger brains sport a greater intelligence than that of their lesser brethren. They don't have quite the same sheer ferocity in battle as demigryphs, but their cunning and the advanced combat manoeuvres and techniques they're capable of learning more than make up for it. Their rarity and their worth means they fetch a high price for the knight who sells them (assuming they choose to do so), but they are forbidden from selling it to anyone who is not a worthy warrior. Gryphons are generally ridden by high ranking Avileones and Sacred Fire Sisters, and Space Marines who come to the world to find potential recruits. One Space Marine Chapter Master defeated a Bloodthirster on the back of a gryphon, proving their worth against even the vilest of the Great Enemy's servants. They make excellent psychic familiars and as such Librarians have taken to forming bonds with them.
Gryphons are considered the natural enemy of wyverns - large, flying, lizard-like creatures whose temperaments make them impossible to train by humans but make them very popular among orks. A gryphon will usually win in a fight against such creatures, especially if they've been trained for war, but there are more wyverns than there are gryphons so supporting troops are often used when the numbers are uneven.
Unlike demigryphs, gryphons are aware that when their master is corrupted that it is their master, however they do not react differently and attack them as they would any who had fallen. Afterwards they fall into a severe depression that lasts for years. During this time their combat capabilities are significantly lesser and though they eventually recover some of their fighting spirit, they will never reach the same prowess as when they were at their peak.
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