Legion XVIII: The Crimson Hussars
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| Numeration | XVIII |
| Primogenitor | Alighieri |
| Cognomen | Sanguis Clibanarii |
| Observed Strategic Tendencies | Aggression combined with rapid unpredictable movement. |
| Noteworthy Domains | Risa |
| Allegiance | Fedelitas Constantus |
| Colours | Crimson and Gold |
| “They are an Adamantium Fist in a Silk Glove. They do not talk first because they are weak but because they are strong." -Attributed to the Emperor Following the Compliance Of The Stellar Empire | |
The Crimson and gold of the XVIII legion is associated with daring & dashing behaviour on the battlefield paired with boisterous but charming behaviour off the battlefield. The legion makes extensive use of bikes, jetpacks, jet bikes and anything else they can acquire that goes fast.
Contents
History
Sanguis Clibanarii
The XVIII legion earned the name Sanguis Clibanarii (blood cavalry) during the wars of Unification on Terra. It stems not from a single incident but from the Legion tendency to rush into the thickest parts of battle to support the hardest pressed. Be they Astarte or Imperial Guardsmen. There tendency to move to support others in battle lead to greater mobility - which in turn lead to an ever increasingly fluid style of battle - which in turn lead to greater mobility and so the cycle developed.
As the Great Crusade left Sol the Legion adopted Crimson as their main colour but with black detailing. With the treaty of Mars was signed they approached the Adeptus Mechanicus for ever greater numbers of Assault Bikes, Jump packs and Jump packs in return they have been punctilious in handing over technology that has come there way.
During the early portion of the Crusade Commander Jean-Armand gained a reputation for a willingness to reach peaceful resolutions where Human worlds were involved and a tendency towards swift action when confronting anything Xenos related.
Overall there compliances were slower then many other Legions which at first brought complaints from the bureaucracy. These complaints dried up when statistical analysis demonstrated that they brought in comparable resources to the other Legions due to the better condition of the planets they conquered and there methods had a lower rate of Recidivism.
Part 2 Name
Second Part of History
Legion Organisation
Organisational structure is generally determined on an ad hoc basis - units are combined into a 'strike group' and these groups have been known to break and form mid battle. To outsiders this seems like a recipe for chaos but for the legion it all seems to come together. A strike group can be made up of any mix of the different cliques that make up the XVIII Legion. Command is given to the highest ranked individual present in a strike group - irrespective of there clique.
Inside the legion there are four clique of Marines and a fifth classification which exists across the groups. The four cliques are Dragoon, Wheels, Wings, and 'the galloping death' - while the cross clique classification is Grease Monkey. Wheels and wings are involved in a heavy 'friendly' rivalry as to which group is the senior.
A Grease Monkey would be more commonly known as a Tech Marine and given the Legions heavy use of machinery they held in high social esteem whatever group they belong to.
Dragoons are the standard marine - they deploy into battle upon some form of shared transport (often a rhino) and dismount to fight. They can deploy a wide range of hand held weaponry but lack heavy support.
Wheels are the marines equipped with some form of ground based fighting machine - most often assault bikes but the few land raiders the legion uses can also be found here.
Wings are the marines equipped with some form of aerial fighting unit - most often jetpacks but the legions Stormhawks interceptors also belong to this group.
The Galloping Death are the marines equipped with jet bikes - and are the accepted elite of the Legion.
It is equally normal for a strike group to consists of a mix of all four clique or just one depending on circumstances.
Interaction between rank and clique is very unclear to outsiders but broadly rank is important for anything on the battlefield. But clique appears to be important for off the battlefield interactions. To further highlight the oddness of the system commander Jean-Armand is classified as a Dragoon due to his use of a command vehicle- while Alighieri is Galloping Death due to use of his jet bike.
Unique Formations
Galloping Death
The Legions love of speed and manoeuvrability comes to it's zenith in their elite Jet bike units - summed up by their motto 'Admissos Mortem' or 'Galloping Death'.
The Galloping Death will make use of any template of jet bike, equipped with any weaponry they can acquire. They even have a number of the highly sought after Dawneagle Jetbikes which are believed to have been 'acquired' by Alighieri through some unknown means from the Adeptus Custodes.
Combat Doctrine
The Crimson Hussars place an emphasis on speed and manoeuvre on the battlefield - utilising large numbers of assault bikes, jet packs, and Jet Bikes (or indeed anything that goes fast). Even there standard foot troops use large numbers of Rhinos to increase there mobility.
They do not attempt to control the battlefield directly - instead they concentrate on controlling the tempo and the location of conflict upon the battlefield. Many an opponent has seized control of a vital location only to realise that the XVIII legion have decided that today they will go elsewhere and destroy there enemies weaker forces. Technically there opponents have won the battle - but as there commander said
"If they can win a few more victorious like that - they'll be finished". Commander Jean-Armand.
They are unpredictable on the battlefield due to each element being given extraordinary freedom of action depending on the particular circumstances they find themselves in. This does allow the exploitation of enemy mistakes with extraordinary speed but has been known to lead to some extraordinary disasters as well. The XVII legion has been known to cheer a truly glorious failure as much as great success. While they love to win - they despise playing it safe.
"I have heard it said that commanding a battle is like being a conductor of a great and terrible orchestra. With the XVIII legion it is closer to being the singer for a Free Form Jazz Band - I just try and fit in around what they feel is best......." Commander Jean-Armand.
While they are very capable of fighting on the defensive they are terrible at defending any particular location. It is for this reason they enjoy fighting alongside the Imperial Guard since they can order large numbers of them to "Stand here and look after this".
Legion Homeworld
Main Article Risa
Since he lacked any claim to the world there Primarch grew up - the XVIII legion was free to pick any unclaimed world as it's home. The criteria chosen for the selection of Risa is not fully understood, however it is not based on industry, resources or strategic location since Risa has none of these.
A heavily terraformed "vacation" planet during the Age of Technology it consists of innumerable small islands each one beautiful and unique get away spot. Once the age of strife began the stranded vacationers devolved into a primitive stone age society that was saved from descent into a decadent idleness due to the cultural importance of sailing and travel.
The XVIII Legion has set up it's base on the four moons that surrounded Risa. This has left the culture generally untouched. There is some contact between the two groups - not least because members of the legion have been known to travel down to the surface for 'shore leave'. This has lead the legion to start some recruiting from the planet below; the most daring and bold sailors volunteer to be taken "on the longest journey".
In terms of industry what is present came with the Legion itself. Upon learning the history of the Alighieri the Adeptus Mechanicus gifted the legion with a small number of mobile refineries and factories to accompany them to where ever they made there home. These are currently based in the sole asteroid belt the system posses.
Primarch
Main Article: Alighieri
Summary of Primarch in relation to Legion ESSENTIAL
Culture and Beliefs
In addition to rank and operational structure - the XVIII legion is split into four cliques of varying levels of social status. Specialist Marines sit slightly outside of the structure - for example Tech Marines (Or Grease Monkeys as they are called in the Legion) are respected no matter what clique they belong to. Given the Legions heavy use of war machines this is to be expected.
The four cliques are Dragoons, Wheels, Wings and Flyboys. Dragoons are the lowest status, Flyboys are the highest, and Wheels and Wings appear to be roughly equal but they have a 'friendly' rivalry around which is higher social status.
Dragoons are the template marine being deployed into battle on some form of shared transport (often a rhino) before dismounting to fight. They deploy with a wide range of hand held weaponry but lack heavy support units. Oddly pilots of Stormravens are included as Dragoons since they primarily deploy troops into battles.
Wheels are the marines equipped with some form of ground based fighting machine - most often assault bikes but the few land raiders the legion uses are also in this group.
Wings are the marines equipped with some form of aerial fighting unit - most often jetpacks but pilots of Stormhawk Interceptors and Stormtalons also belong to this group.
The are the marines equipped with jet bikes - and are the accepted elite of the Legion.
It is equally normal for a strike group to consists of a mix of all four clique or just one depending on circumstances.
Interaction between rank and clique is very unclear to outsiders but broadly rank is important for anything on the battlefield. But clique appears to be important for off the battlefield interactions. To further highlight the oddness of the system commander Jean-Armand is classified as a Dragoon due to his use of a command vehicle- while Alighieri is Galloping Death due to use of his jet bike
Info Cultural Practices, Philosophies, Cults and stuff go here. ESSENTIAL
The XVIII legion interest in drinking has lead to the tradition called "rough housing". A small group of off duty marines find a rough looking bar and then one of them starts a brawl with everybody else there. The other Marines watch and ensure nobody takes things to far - and draws a gun.
There is a distinct tendency to favour bars frequented by members of the Imperial Guard - which you might well consider would sour relationships between them but the opposite seems to be true. The Guards seem to consider injuries sustained during a rough housing to be a badge of honour. This in part comes from the marines habit of buying anybody who "showed some spirt" drinks. One persistent rumour is that if you show enough spirit you get taken drinking with them and if they really like you a guardsman might find themselves waking up on a transport heading to Risa destined for a life in the legion. It depends on the teller if this is considered a good or bad fate.....
Geneseed
The XVIII legion has one well documented quirk of their Gene Seed - they drink. While they don't seem to get drunk in a conventional sense - they do seem to enjoy the taste of alcohol and it does seem to provide them with some pleasure.
Persistent rumours abound that they engage in other frivolous and fun activities enjoyed by the general populace of the Imperium. But there is currently little evidence of this behaviour beyond vague tales.
Legion Attributes
Please List the Bandings of your Legion Attributes.
0 Ranks = Incompetent/Terrible
1-4 Ranks = Competent/Average
5-8 Ranks = Specialized/Good
9+ Ranks = Exceptional/Amazing
SUMMARY FOR REFERENCE, DELETE ONCE BELOW COMPLETED.
- Tactics= Tactics indication
- Espionage= Espionage indication
- Aggression= Aggression indication
- Mitigation= Mitigation indication
- Diplomacy= Diplomacy indication
- Geneseed= Geneseed indication
Homeworld Attributes
Please List the Bandings of your Homeworld Attributes.
0 Ranks = Incompetent/Terrible
1-4 Ranks = Competent/Average
5-8 Ranks = Specialized/Good
9+ Ranks = Exceptional/Amazing
SUMMARY FOR REFERENCE, DELETE ONCE BELOW COMPLETED.
- Population= Population indication
- Fabrication= Fabrication indication
- Fortification= Fortification indication
Exemplary Actions
Action One
Main Article: The Fall of the Stellar Federation
The Stellar Federation was a human multi system civilisation encountered early in the crusades. It refused to join what it saw as an upstart Empire. When discovered they were under attack by an Ork Warghggh which many viewed as a golden opportunity.
The XVIII legion instead of attacking assisted the armed forces of the Stellar Federation in driving away the Ork Warghggh. Many considered that each Ork they killed and each Marine they lost was a comparative gain for the Federation. But despite the pressure the Jean-Armand always replied "We fight the enemies of Man - everything else can wait".
At the victory celebrations for the defeat of the Warghggh Jean-Armand demonstrated that the best case scenario for the Federation was to hold out for a year before losing.
"I have a mission to bring these worlds into the Imperium of Man - and now the enemies of man are gone that will happen. By working together you have remained in charge for three times as long as you ever could through forces of arms and you have saved countless lives in doing so. You have seen what we can do - and you know now that to resist is to waste all that you have saved for no gain....... Accept the inevitable - I offer my hand in friendship. It will not be offered again."
With that the Stellar Federation joined the Imperium of man without a shot being exchanged between them.
Action Two
Main Article: The Battle of Felicia
Felicia is a minor agri-world and an unlikely host for a significant conflict between the Imperium of Man and a Dark Elder force lead by a Coursair known as Ourabros.
Escalation lead to a direct confrontation between the Crimson Hussars and a equally powerful group of Dark Elder. This was the first significant conflict of the legion since the arrival of there Primarch and as such the conflict came under a great deal of scrutiny to see what the changes there might be.
The Crimson Hussar used a flexible defence based around strike groups of Bikes and Jetpacks - using movement and manoeuvre to leave the Elder unclear of what they would face. While some Dark Elder attacks would get through untouched, others were heavily harassed and driven off, and some would be wiped out. Any attempt by the Dark Elder to concentrate on a key target would be met with the deployment of the less mobile reserve forces from orbit.
As Dark Elder loses mounted it became clear that this was no longer a conflict worth fighting - however Ourabros pride would not let him be driven off. As such he drew out the legions reserves before launching a strike against the flagship of the Legion intending to kill Alighieri.
They reached the bridge only to discover that Alighieri had slipped past them somehow - leaving the fusion reactor to go critical blasting the flagship and Ourabros to smithereens - ending the threat to Felicia.
It is reported that shortly afterwards Alighieri was asked if this was a victory appropriate to the Honour of a Primarch given the lose of his legions flag ship. His response is recorded as "Honour be Damned!"
Notable Members
Primarch
Alighieri
High Command
Jean-Armand - Commander
