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Warhammer 40k: The Primarch Heresy

Lone Courier

Lone Courier

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Hey guys! This is a discussion about if the Loyalists and Traitors switched places, like for example what Primarch would follow which Chaos God and what the New!Loyalists have to do. Like what would happen during the Heresy that inevitably takes place because of this, and how would our New!Loyalists deal with it due to their personalities. I have some idea on which Primarch follows which Chaos God and which ones are the first to fall in battle, I think this would be an awesome discussion to look at, and it puts some great speculation on this alternate universe.

Now onto the discussion, we'll start with Slaanesh.

Slaanesh is about serving and bettering yourself, pretty much about life's little pleasures. This is a toss up between Blood Angels and Ultramarines, mainly because the Blood Angels are cultured badasses. As for the Ultramarines, they're a bit harder to explain but hear me out. They are described as prideful, even before they had their Primarch, the XIII Legion was one that was filled with pride, even stoking the fires of rivalries with Legions that had their own Primarch. This pride would soon become their downfall, at least in this universe. When Roboute comes back this pride is even more inflated, and when it's heard that they have to obey a hierarchy they learn that they must be above all those who are below them.

As for the Blood Angels, well they are seekers of knowledge, art, and many more, but the Red Thirst makes them more of a Khornate Chapter. Though this could work depending on how you look at it, as those who seek knowledge and culture are associated with Slaanesh. (Or Tzeentch)

I think Roboute Guilliman would fit this right, or Sanguinius, depends on what you think.

Now for Nurgle, the Plague God.

Honestly, Nurgle is one of Plague and Despair, but also one of Resilience. (Dead weight and all) I'm thinking Ferrus Manus or Rogal Dorn, both of them were resilient and hard to kill bastards, but they did have their own problems that would make them perfect for Papa Nurlge. Ferrus had his iron hands that he sought to get rid of, and in this Universe Nurgle could have given him a corrupting disease that in a sense, it did remove them.

For Rogal, he was all about pain as a sense of meditation, and he did pass the Despair Event Horizon after the Iron Cage incident, so maybe in this universe something similar happened earlier on during the Great Crusade. Though I think Ferrus works better due to the whole corruption motif with his Iron Hands, and I just don't see Rogal as a Nurgle, more of an Undivided.

Next up is Khorne, God Of Bloodshed and Martial Honor. This is another tossup, but it's between Space Wolves, Salamanders, and the Blood Angels. Space Wolves first, I think Leman Russ would take to Khorne's bloodshed like a fish to water. He's already a brutal fighter, and his legion has the nickname the 'Emperor's Executioners. They also have a code of honor, and the Wulfen, Khorne would have a field day if he had those on his side.

As for Salamanders they have the fire motif going on, and they hold honor close to them. I think Khorne would love to set fire to his enemies, as long as they spill the blood of their enemies as well to keep his favor.

The Blood Angels, oh dear lord the Blood Angels would be Khorne's Blood Filled Dream, as their Primarch has a history of dealing with Khorne Daemons. So if they embraced the Red Thirst, they would eventually become servants of the Blood God. But Sanguinius seems to be more leaning towards curing it rather than making a deal with Khorne and embracing it, though who knows? He might've embraced the Red Thirst and become a Khornate Champion.

It's a tough call, but I'm going to have to give this one to the Space Wolves. An army of Blood Wulfen is a terrifying thought, but an awesome one.

Now for the prick we all know and hate, Tzeentch. Tzeentch is the God of Ambition and Hope. Now the ones I chose are the Dark Angels and Raven Guard, as both have a history of underhanded tactics and...Unsavory dealings like the Fallen Angels and Corvus Corax's Abominations to bolster his legion's strength. But I think the Dark Angels have this one, since their Primarch had a history of being called into question. Frankly he'd be a perfect fit since his Legion prefers to keep themselves quiet, and their secrecy and ambition is going to draw a lot of attention from Tzeentch. (Bear in mind that my knowledge of lore is a bit rusty, so don't be afraid to call me out if I get something wrong.)

But who is the Warmaster? It's simple, Sanguinius, he's beloved by his peers and has both the charisma and strength to keep his armies in check. He's also a perfect representation of Chaos Undivided, let's list them.

1. He has the Red Thirst and Honorable Code, making him a good representative of Khorne.
2. He's a brilliant strategist, and his wings make him a prime candidate for Tzeentch.
3. He's got the beauty and knowledge of culture to be a Slaanesh Champion.
4. Nurgle's a bit harder for him to represent, but if you look at it his Red Thirst could be seen as a representation of Nurgle.

Now what do you guys think?
 
Lone Courier said:
Most likely, though what about what would happen between the New!Loyalists and the New! Traitors? I'm thinking of how a few scenarios could be avoided, but I'm stumped on them.
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Gulliman could be the Warmaster for the Chaos faction. Sanguinus has the potential to be Emperor-lite of the Chaos faction.

Leman Russ would be even worse than canon.

Magnus would still find himself in the Chaos faction because he is an idiot. But if he doesn't, the Imperium would be in a much better position because the Emperor can be removed from the Golden Toilet and healed. Magnus can take the place of the Emperor on the throne.
 
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godofsmallthings said:
Gulliman could be the Warmaster for the Chaos faction. Sanguinus has the potential to be Emperor-lite of the Chaos faction.

Leman Russ would be even worse than canon.

Magnus would still find himself in the Chaos faction because he is an idiot. But if he doesn't, the Imperium would be in a much better position because the Emperor can be removed from the Golden Toilet and healed. Magnus can take the place of the Emperor on the throne.
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Hmm, a Strategist and a False Emperor? That actually sounds pretty possible, as for Magnus...Yeah, he's a bit of a coo-coo head, but he means well. The Emperor would actually be much more active if Magnus was on the Golden Throne, possibly ending the Sanguinian Heresy earlier or with less losses.
 
I have an idea. In the lore it is mentioned that ultramar is basically the best place to live in the imperium, relatively speaking of course. What if the ultramarines took that too far and became seduced by slaanesh in their quest to build a utopian realm where their subjects could live in endless pleasure?
 
Twiggierjet said:
I have an idea. In the lore it is mentioned that ultramar is basically the best place to live in the imperium, relatively speaking of course. What if the ultramarines took that too far and became seduced by slaanesh in their quest to build a utopian realm where their subjects could live in endless pleasure?
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That actually sounds like a good reason for them to fall to Chaos, and I was also thinking of making up a few successor chapters for our New!Loyalists.

But that is a good idea, very good.
 
Personally I would split the blood angels between kornate and Slannesh With them ultimately serving undivided. They'd also be the. First to fall and the long knives inner purge.

I'd love the Ultramarines as the Slannesh representatives. Pursuing the perfect Imperium helps start the war in overdrive.

Make Ferris fall to Tzeentch for irony. The man who wished to stop his chapter from casting aside their flesh leads a chapter that mutates and or goes through the Rubric(also I like the idea of a clearly non psyker For the servant of change).

Raven Guard are mysterious 'who the hell knows' probably working for themselves Faction.

Dark Angels martyr complex gets twisted by Nurgle. Always second best so why even try? If hope always dissapoints give up on it. Motivated by spite and anger the disfavored sons turned against heir brothers. Probably have them be the first chapter that goes heavy on betraying the others.

Make Salamanders the token 'no gods only men' faction with the goal of bettering the imperium.

I'd actually have the White Scars being the Khornates if only because their faction is liable to go 'screw ranged. Speed in for melee'.

Also, why does Russ fall? Because he sees the Imperium has unworthy. They crowned Horus warmaster, the emperor abandoned his sons. The paragon has fallen and so will he.

Why primarchs stay loyal is interesting. Moderation could have seen Magnus vindicate himself by saving his legion. Curz would be fun to make him revere the emperor has a god and his craziness actually helps found some of the imperial institutions, and in death he once again earns vindication as an imperial saint.
 
That is a good point @Dream Logic, and I was thinking of adding this.

What would the New!Loyalists' Succession Chapters look like? I was thinking of it last night, it'd be fun speculation.
 
Ya' know, there's actually a few fanfics on this;

The Dornian Heresy:-
Don't recall that much about this one, but is essentially about the Warhammer 40K timeline if Rogal Dorn was the on to lead the rebellion, due to his growing bitterness over not having as much glory as his siblings.

The Roboutian Heresy:-
This was inspired by the DH, but much different. It is, in essence, a complete rewrite of the timeline and giving each of the canon!traitors reasons to be loyalists (I.e. Angron not being attacked in this timeline, thus not getting caught by slavers and having the butcher's nails being surgically implanted into his skull), and each of the canon!loyalists reasons to be traitors (I.e. Vulcan being raised by a salamander ever since he crashed into its nest, instead of people).

The Imperial Heresy:-
This is unique in that it uses the phrase "If you can't beat them, join them" with a bit of literalness. As in, the God-Emperor of Mankind starts to lust for literal godhood, endangering humankind as a whole.
 
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Lone Courier said:
What would the New!Loyalists' Succession Chapters look like? I was thinking of it last night, it'd be fun speculation.
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This is a fun little exercise. First and foremost, there's no real reason why the Legions should be disbanded, as the Codex Astartes was written by Guilliman, which would in this timeline be a traitor. But if you want to keep that as a constant, then it becomes sorta wonky, and could have either been written by Horus or Fulgrim. The Fate of the Legions and their fragmentation and reformation into Successor Chapters depends entirely on the fate of their Primarchs.

The Sons of Horus are practically defined by Horus himself. They have almost since their inception been alongside him, and he had lead them for almost the entirety of the Great Crusade. His death might mean the actual fragmentation of the Legion simply as the various chapter commanders feels that the loss of what unified them, Horus, is the fault of the chapters that were with him at the time for failing to protect him, leading to a deep animosity and pseudo cold war aspect between successor chapters with either two sides (those who were with Horus when he died and those who weren't) or three (those that feel that the conflict is meaningless and don't align with either faction but somehow managed to antagonise them). On the other hand, should Horus remain alive and not head off for some reason into the Eye of Terror, then it's likely that the Sons of Horus would be a Legion in all but name, akin to the normal Ultramarines, with each chapter placing their loyalty to Horus first, then the Imperium, although both would have become so intertwined that a fallout between those would be unimaginable to the chapters.

The Thousand Sons would likely split between the various aspects (the Five Cults) that were within the Legion in the first place, and even if Magnus would be active (aka not dead or on the Golden Throne), I doubt they would work closely. It is likely that minor rivalries between the aspects would develop over the course of the Great Crusade, which would only worsen during the Heresy. This would mean that the Legion would originally be separated into six understrength or almost extinct chapters after the Heresy. The only part of the Thousand Sons that wouldn't be amongst those various aspects would be the Thousand Sons chapter itself, likely acting as a repository of knowledge for all of the Successor Chapters, and making the refounding of lost chapters and aspects possible should any die out. It should also be noted that the Thousand Sons only had Nine Fellowships (chapters) that formed them, making them the least numerous Legion. The reason for this was that they only recruited from Prospero, but should Leman Russ have torched it, they might have chosen to take more planets as recruiting worlds, each with a likely high amount of psykers. This might result in a rapid rise of the Thousand Sons successor chapters, as they would have likely had spare gene-seed from centuries of the Great Crusade. These successor chapters outside of the Five would likely be dedicated to specific branches of knowledge, or might pursue more esoteric aspects of the Five.

I'll be going out on a limb for many of the normally Traitor Legions, and the Death Guard is one of such less informed guesses. We know that before the Heresy, they had really oversized Great Companies, seven in total, for the 95,000 Death Guard Astartes. This means that the Great Companies had around 13k~ Astartes in each. Considering the stupid size of each of those Great Companies, it is unlikely that any of them would be lost during the Heresy, and that they would instead form the core of the successor chapters for the Death Guard. Six successors to the original, with likely different traditions. As always, the presence of Mortarion would be the core of their unity, and his lack of presence would likely result in the various Great Companies to distance each other from their brothers. While it's likely that the successors would consider the Death Guard chapter as their origin, the fact that the oversized Great Companies existed likely meant that each had their own traditions. This could mean that further successor chapters would contain a weird sort of allegiance hierarchy depending on which Great Company's gene-seed originated from, or it could be that after the initial split, the Great Companies of the Death Guard would have no successors, and instead work sorta like the Space Wolves and just continue to expand their numbers.

As for the World Eaters, Angron's presence would likely be detrimental to the continuation of the Legion unless the brain damage from the Butcher's Nails was either repaired or if the Nails themselves were removed and his nature as a Primarch would slowly heal the damage it has caused. Either seems unlikely. Should Angron continue to live, the World Eaters would likely push themselves into further bloodshed should the loyalist Horus have not tempered their aggression. Considering that the Butcher's Nails were more or less burning away his sanity, that is unlikely. In that case, it's unlikely the World Eaters would have many successors, instead having very few that would constantly throw themselves at the most dangerous battlefields. Should Angron have died or gotten lost in the warp, however, it might have lead to a break within the Legion. It is possible that some of the World Eaters would reject the Butcher's Nails, a symbolism that would divide the Legion, and revert back to the Eaters of Cities they had been previously. This split would be quite a obvious one, with the "Traditional" World Eaters being smaller in number and more aggressive and effective, simply because they would be too stubborn and angry to collapse due to the influence of the Butcher's Nails, in contrast with the "Divergent" World Eaters which would likely have more chapters amongst the successors, and while still feared and aggressive compared to most Astartes, it would pale compared to their brothers.

The Emperor's Children pre-heresy had a very rigid structure, and comprised 110,000 Astartes split into 30 Millennials (chapters) [odd point: the millennials had on average 3,666~ Astartes. Make of that what you want], with the first 10 being led by a Lord Commander, a Astartes skilled enough to have gained the attention of Fulgrim and placed in their positions by the Primarch. The battlefield doctrine was followed to the letter, perfected battle plans and doctrine, and held a very strong opinion towards leadership from example. It is likely that a number of these Millennials would have perished or have lost too many members to continue operating, but the rigid structure would remain, even should Fulgrim have died or become lost. The Millennials would have followed the Codex Astartes to the letter, or might have chosen to improve upon it seeking to perfect it, and that would result in a rigidity even beyond the Ultramarines. Each Millennial would strive to be exactly 1,000 Astartes strong. Each Millennial would perfect the roles for the Astartes within, and would expect the members to uphold those very high standards. While they wouldn't be able to pump out successor chapters like the Ultramarines did in the normal timeline, it's likely they would have become Matt Ward's focus, with Fulgrim becoming the Spiritual Liege of the Emperor's Children.

The Iron Warriors used to be organised in Grand Battalions, which were for all intents and purposes chapters, but enjoyed significantly more armour, artillery, and logistical support. Their rate of attrition saw the numbers within fluctuate, and depleted units were often meshed together and reorganised to return them to active service, and were led by a Warsmith. This rather pragmatic approach to unifying depleted forces means that there were no proper divisions from which Successors could form out of. Instead, it's likely that they would have been reorganised after the Heresy and split after each Grand Battalion having being re-established as a proper fighting force. This somewhat Dornish approach isn't really surprising. Their successors might not even feel that distanced from each other, and it's likely that should one be significantly reduced, they would attempt to join with another Iron Warriors descendant.

As for the Night Lords, well, the article on their organisation in Lexicanum is literally three sentences, but it's enough for me to guess the result from the rest of the article. With Conrad Kurze's death, likely in combat in this timeline, it might result in a implosion of the Legion, since that was what tied the entirety of it together. The Legion would shatter there and then, with chapters emerging from the wreckage. The more... zealous... of them might go on revenge rampages, and the more criminal members might well go rogue. The Night Lords had, after all, destroyed Nostramo on the eve of the Heresy, robbing entire Legion of their homeword. Such a action would have a pretty hefty consequence as to what they should do without the guidance of the Night Haunter, although it is likely the more dutiful of the Legion might persevere and try to re-establish some form of order after this collapse. Should Conrad Kurze live through the Heresy, it is likely that the Night Lords would have been reforged from the conflict, emerging as a ruthless but diligent force, which would be split into more or less classic chapters depending on how Conrad Kurze's mental health either improved, stayed the same, or degraded during the Heresy.

The World Bearers are surprisingly easy to have them turn into successor chapters. The Legion itself was already almost at that stage pre-heresy, each chapter holding a specific name and icon. Lorgar's influence on the outcome is practically negligible, and they would form the successor chapters from the survivors. Although many would have depleted numbers due to the attrition accrued during the Heresy. It is likely that a loyalist version of the Dark Council would have been established amongst the chapters, unifying all of the successors with their origin and placing all of them as more or less equals. In this sense, they might have evolved akin to what the Dark Angels became, except with less hunting after the Fallen. The World Bearers would likely have returned to believe the Emperor as a God should he have been wounded as he was in canon, and interred into the Golden Throne, and might have kickstarted the Ecclesiarchy and become it's unofficial patrons and protectors.

I have honestly no clue how the Alpha Legion would operate, even with or without their Primarchs, should it actually be turned into successor chapters. They might call themselves with different names, but they might just go around and use the name Alpha Chapter for all of them. I honestly don't know. We do know that the success of the team is required for the aspirants to advance, and that they had a quite extensive freedom of expression and focus on personal initiative and intelligence, but how that would reflect in matters of the actual workings of the Legion and subsequent successor chapters I can't tell.
 
Hmm, very impressive assessment there @Archon of Ghosts, considering the passage itself is very well founded and whatnot I believe it presents a (plausible) theory if the New!Loyalists tried to create some chapters.

But now let us get to the reasons why they stayed loyal, I'll be back soon since I'm working on a project right now.
 
Frankly, I'm thinking the problems that plagued them in canon are either more controlled or a minimal problem. Not really an issue unless it was capitalized on by an enemy, or by accident.
 
Lone Courier said:
Hmm, very impressive assessment there @Archon of Ghosts, considering the passage itself is very well founded and whatnot I believe it presents a (plausible) theory if the New!Loyalists tried to create some chapters.

But now let us get to the reasons why they stayed loyal, I'll be back soon since I'm working on a project right now.
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Lone Courier said:
Alright, the project ran a bit long.

But what would be the reasons the New!Loyalists stayed loyal?
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Lone Courier said:
Frankly, I'm thinking the problems that plagued them in canon are either more controlled or a minimal problem. Not really an issue unless it was capitalized on by an enemy, or by accident.
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Lone Courier said:
But if anyone has anything else to add to my post, feel free to.
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Why not take inspiration from those fanfics I pointed out? I was thinking of getting the hyperlink of at least one of them!
 
I think you lot really misunderstand Sanguinius. He could really fit with any of the Chaos Gods.

Tzeentch: The Blood Angels have a lot of psykers. Not as many as the Thousand Sons, but still a lot of them.
Nurgle: Sanguinius was a mutant. Their geneseed is far from pure, too.
Khorne: Self-explanatory.
Slaanesh: They are pretty artistic and are doing their best. Pretty bishonen angel boys in red, sparkly armor.

I'd say that the Blood Angels have the potential to be a Sanguinian Heresy equivalent of the Black Legion with the Ultramarines being the equivalent of the Word Bearers. Codex Astartes? Pfft, please. Roboute is gonna be writing Codex RAPUS-MINDUS.
 
But @Birdsie, I'm thinking of something here. Why don't we create a few succession chapters, just for shits and giggles.

Everyone feeling creative?
 
Alright, I guess I'll start off.

What do you think? Took me a while.

=Blood Hunters
Battle Cry: "Death To The Wolves!""
Progenitor: World Eaters
Reason For Founding: Standing Force Needed
Colors: White/Blue/Gray
Genetics: Mutated (Inner Rage)
Demeanor: Brothers In Battle
Beliefs: Rip & Tear
Emblem: Bloodied Wolf Head
Strength: 3,000 Strong
Organization: Close Combat Oriented
Combat Doctrine: Close Combat
Special Equipment: Lanius Pattern Chain Axes (Two Handed Chain Axes, Think Halberds)
Alliance: World Eaters
Enemy: Space Wolves
Story: After Primarch Angron died at the hands of the traitor Leman Russ, his World Eaters became shattered. With some following Angron's descent into madness with the Butcher's Nails, and the others arguing that they should keep themselves sane by rejecting the damnable machines and harkening back to their Eaters of Cities. This argument split the legion down the middle, and to this day it is an issue. A few millennia passed, and a terrible rage had been found within the World Eaters' Gene Seed. This was the rage Angron felt when Leman betrayed the Imperium, and the sorrow he felt when he was slaughtered on the field of battle. The Gene Seed had turned some of Angron's Sons into madmen who only had one thing on their mind, to kill. No matter who got in their way, they spilled the blood of whoever got in their way. The Blood Hunters simply let them go forth into battle, then they granted those who remained the Emperor's Mercy. They were made up of the strongest and most determined of the initiates they found, but after they pass the initiation they are welcomed with open arms and allowed to join their brothers as full fledged marines. After they become full fledged marines, they are thrown into the field of battle to slay their enemies. Some collect grim trophies from their most worthy foes, decorating their weapons and armor with them.

Chapter Master Vladimir, The Wolf Slayer
History: Vladimir was originally from a Hive World, one that is now gone and abandoned. But he doesn't know the name of it anymore, as time interred within his Dreadnought has shaken his mind. What he does know, is memories of times long past and unknown. He knows of the Iron Men, the Sanguinian Heresy, and much more that has been lost to history. Sometimes his Chapter wakes him, for they are in awe of how he delivers the stories. He tells of how he walked with Angron, giving the initiates and younger members tales of him and his rage. He tells of his friendship with members of the Traitor Legions, and how he feels that he could've done something to prevent their betrayal. But he is not just a man of information, he is a monster on the battlefield. Dealing death with his Power Claws, he leaves nothing but bloodshed in his wake. Should you find yourself on the opposing side, do not beg for mercy. For he will show you none, to ensure you have a painless death you must challenge him to honorable combat. If you put up a good fight, he will take a piece of your armor as a trophy. If you are weak, then he will make sure you will suffer for your sins.
 
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Lone Courier said:
Alright, I guess I'll start off.

What do you think? Took me a while.

=Blood Hunters
Battle Cry: "Death To The Wolves!""
Progenitor: World Eaters
Reason For Founding: Standing Force Needed
Colors: White/Blue/Gray
Genetics: Mutated (Inner Rage)
Demeanor: Brothers In Battle
Beliefs: Rip & Tear
Emblem: Bloodied Wolf Head
Strength: 3,000 Strong
Organization: Close Combat Oriented
Combat Doctrine: Close Combat
Special Equipment: Lanius Pattern Chain Axes (Two Handed Chain Axes, Think Halberds)
Alliance: World Eaters
Enemy: Space Wolves
Story: After Primarch Angron died at the hands of the traitor Leman Russ, his World Eaters became shattered. With some following Angron's descent into madness with the Butcher's Nails, and the others arguing that they should keep themselves sane by rejecting the damnable machines and harkening back to their Eaters of Cities. This argument split the legion down the middle, and to this day it is an issue. A few millennia passed, and a terrible rage had been found within the World Eaters' Gene Seed. This was the rage Angron felt when Leman betrayed the Imperium, and the sorrow he felt when he was slaughtered on the field of battle. The Gene Seed had turned some of Angron's Sons into madmen who only had one thing on their mind, to kill. No matter who got in their way, they spilled the blood of whoever got in their way. The Blood Hunters simply let them go forth into battle, then they granted those who remained the Emperor's Mercy. They were made up of the strongest and most determined of the initiates they found, but after they pass the initiation they are welcomed with open arms and allowed to join their brothers as full fledged marines. After they become full fledged marines, they are thrown into the field of battle to slay their enemies. Some collect grim trophies from their most worthy foes, decorating their weapons and armor with them.

Chapter Master Vladimir, The Wolf Slayer
History: Vladimir was originally from a Hive World, one that is now gone and abandoned. But he doesn't know the name of it anymore, as time interred within his Dreadnought has shaken his mind. What he does know, is memories of times long past and unknown. He knows of the Iron Men, the Sanguinian Heresy, and much more that has been lost to history. Sometimes his Chapter wakes him, for they are in awe of how he delivers the stories. He tells of how he walked with Angron, giving the initiates and younger members tales of him and his rage. He tells of his friendship with members of the Traitor Legions, and how he feels that he could've done something to prevent their betrayal. But he is not just a man of information, he is a monster on the battlefield. Dealing death with his Power Claws, he leaves nothing but bloodshed in his wake. Should you find yourself on the opposing side, do not beg for mercy. For he will show you none, to ensure you have a painless death you must challenge him to honorable combat. If you put up a good fight, he will take a piece of your armor as a trophy. If you are weak, then he will make sure you will suffer for your sins.
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Very interesting. Mind if I used this to try and create my own legion?

Lone Courier said:
Good idea, but it's taking me a while to read them. I have a few contracts (forge projects) that need done, so my work keeps me from reading that much.
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Well, when you've finished them, particularly the Roboutian Hersy, let me know what you think.

Archon of Ghosts said:
This is a fun little exercise. First and foremost, there's no real reason why the Legions should be disbanded, as the Codex Astartes was written by Guilliman, which would in this timeline be a traitor. But if you want to keep that as a constant, then it becomes sorta wonky, and could have either been written by Horus or Fulgrim. The Fate of the Legions and their fragmentation and reformation into Successor Chapters depends entirely on the fate of their Primarchs.

The Sons of Horus are practically defined by Horus himself. They have almost since their inception been alongside him, and he had lead them for almost the entirety of the Great Crusade. His death might mean the actual fragmentation of the Legion simply as the various chapter commanders feels that the loss of what unified them, Horus, is the fault of the chapters that were with him at the time for failing to protect him, leading to a deep animosity and pseudo cold war aspect between successor chapters with either two sides (those who were with Horus when he died and those who weren't) or three (those that feel that the conflict is meaningless and don't align with either faction but somehow managed to antagonise them). On the other hand, should Horus remain alive and not head off for some reason into the Eye of Terror, then it's likely that the Sons of Horus would be a Legion in all but name, akin to the normal Ultramarines, with each chapter placing their loyalty to Horus first, then the Imperium, although both would have become so intertwined that a fallout between those would be unimaginable to the chapters.

The Thousand Sons would likely split between the various aspects (the Five Cults) that were within the Legion in the first place, and even if Magnus would be active (aka not dead or on the Golden Throne), I doubt they would work closely. It is likely that minor rivalries between the aspects would develop over the course of the Great Crusade, which would only worsen during the Heresy. This would mean that the Legion would originally be separated into six understrength or almost extinct chapters after the Heresy. The only part of the Thousand Sons that wouldn't be amongst those various aspects would be the Thousand Sons chapter itself, likely acting as a repository of knowledge for all of the Successor Chapters, and making the refounding of lost chapters and aspects possible should any die out. It should also be noted that the Thousand Sons only had Nine Fellowships (chapters) that formed them, making them the least numerous Legion. The reason for this was that they only recruited from Prospero, but should Leman Russ have torched it, they might have chosen to take more planets as recruiting worlds, each with a likely high amount of psykers. This might result in a rapid rise of the Thousand Sons successor chapters, as they would have likely had spare gene-seed from centuries of the Great Crusade. These successor chapters outside of the Five would likely be dedicated to specific branches of knowledge, or might pursue more esoteric aspects of the Five.

I'll be going out on a limb for many of the normally Traitor Legions, and the Death Guard is one of such less informed guesses. We know that before the Heresy, they had really oversized Great Companies, seven in total, for the 95,000 Death Guard Astartes. This means that the Great Companies had around 13k~ Astartes in each. Considering the stupid size of each of those Great Companies, it is unlikely that any of them would be lost during the Heresy, and that they would instead form the core of the successor chapters for the Death Guard. Six successors to the original, with likely different traditions. As always, the presence of Mortarion would be the core of their unity, and his lack of presence would likely result in the various Great Companies to distance each other from their brothers. While it's likely that the successors would consider the Death Guard chapter as their origin, the fact that the oversized Great Companies existed likely meant that each had their own traditions. This could mean that further successor chapters would contain a weird sort of allegiance hierarchy depending on which Great Company's gene-seed originated from, or it could be that after the initial split, the Great Companies of the Death Guard would have no successors, and instead work sorta like the Space Wolves and just continue to expand their numbers.

As for the World Eaters, Angron's presence would likely be detrimental to the continuation of the Legion unless the brain damage from the Butcher's Nails was either repaired or if the Nails themselves were removed and his nature as a Primarch would slowly heal the damage it has caused. Either seems unlikely. Should Angron continue to live, the World Eaters would likely push themselves into further bloodshed should the loyalist Horus have not tempered their aggression. Considering that the Butcher's Nails were more or less burning away his sanity, that is unlikely. In that case, it's unlikely the World Eaters would have many successors, instead having very few that would constantly throw themselves at the most dangerous battlefields. Should Angron have died or gotten lost in the warp, however, it might have lead to a break within the Legion. It is possible that some of the World Eaters would reject the Butcher's Nails, a symbolism that would divide the Legion, and revert back to the Eaters of Cities they had been previously. This split would be quite a obvious one, with the "Traditional" World Eaters being smaller in number and more aggressive and effective, simply because they would be too stubborn and angry to collapse due to the influence of the Butcher's Nails, in contrast with the "Divergent" World Eaters which would likely have more chapters amongst the successors, and while still feared and aggressive compared to most Astartes, it would pale compared to their brothers.

The Emperor's Children pre-heresy had a very rigid structure, and comprised 110,000 Astartes split into 30 Millennials (chapters) [odd point: the millennials had on average 3,666~ Astartes. Make of that what you want], with the first 10 being led by a Lord Commander, a Astartes skilled enough to have gained the attention of Fulgrim and placed in their positions by the Primarch. The battlefield doctrine was followed to the letter, perfected battle plans and doctrine, and held a very strong opinion towards leadership from example. It is likely that a number of these Millennials would have perished or have lost too many members to continue operating, but the rigid structure would remain, even should Fulgrim have died or become lost. The Millennials would have followed the Codex Astartes to the letter, or might have chosen to improve upon it seeking to perfect it, and that would result in a rigidity even beyond the Ultramarines. Each Millennial would strive to be exactly 1,000 Astartes strong. Each Millennial would perfect the roles for the Astartes within, and would expect the members to uphold those very high standards. While they wouldn't be able to pump out successor chapters like the Ultramarines did in the normal timeline, it's likely they would have become Matt Ward's focus, with Fulgrim becoming the Spiritual Liege of the Emperor's Children.

The Iron Warriors used to be organised in Grand Battalions, which were for all intents and purposes chapters, but enjoyed significantly more armour, artillery, and logistical support. Their rate of attrition saw the numbers within fluctuate, and depleted units were often meshed together and reorganised to return them to active service, and were led by a Warsmith. This rather pragmatic approach to unifying depleted forces means that there were no proper divisions from which Successors could form out of. Instead, it's likely that they would have been reorganised after the Heresy and split after each Grand Battalion having being re-established as a proper fighting force. This somewhat Dornish approach isn't really surprising. Their successors might not even feel that distanced from each other, and it's likely that should one be significantly reduced, they would attempt to join with another Iron Warriors descendant.

As for the Night Lords, well, the article on their organisation in Lexicanum is literally three sentences, but it's enough for me to guess the result from the rest of the article. With Conrad Kurze's death, likely in combat in this timeline, it might result in a implosion of the Legion, since that was what tied the entirety of it together. The Legion would shatter there and then, with chapters emerging from the wreckage. The more... zealous... of them might go on revenge rampages, and the more criminal members might well go rogue. The Night Lords had, after all, destroyed Nostramo on the eve of the Heresy, robbing entire Legion of their homeword. Such a action would have a pretty hefty consequence as to what they should do without the guidance of the Night Haunter, although it is likely the more dutiful of the Legion might persevere and try to re-establish some form of order after this collapse. Should Conrad Kurze live through the Heresy, it is likely that the Night Lords would have been reforged from the conflict, emerging as a ruthless but diligent force, which would be split into more or less classic chapters depending on how Conrad Kurze's mental health either improved, stayed the same, or degraded during the Heresy.

The World Bearers are surprisingly easy to have them turn into successor chapters. The Legion itself was already almost at that stage pre-heresy, each chapter holding a specific name and icon. Lorgar's influence on the outcome is practically negligible, and they would form the successor chapters from the survivors. Although many would have depleted numbers due to the attrition accrued during the Heresy. It is likely that a loyalist version of the Dark Council would have been established amongst the chapters, unifying all of the successors with their origin and placing all of them as more or less equals. In this sense, they might have evolved akin to what the Dark Angels became, except with less hunting after the Fallen. The World Bearers would likely have returned to believe the Emperor as a God should he have been wounded as he was in canon, and interred into the Golden Throne, and might have kickstarted the Ecclesiarchy and become it's unofficial patrons and protectors.

I have honestly no clue how the Alpha Legion would operate, even with or without their Primarchs, should it actually be turned into successor chapters. They might call themselves with different names, but they might just go around and use the name Alpha Chapter for all of them. I honestly don't know. We do know that the success of the team is required for the aspirants to advance, and that they had a quite extensive freedom of expression and focus on personal initiative and intelligence, but how that would reflect in matters of the actual workings of the Legion and subsequent successor chapters I can't tell.
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