I was thinking that in some chapters, service in the Deathwatch might actually be required for those brethren who want to be ever considered for advancement.

Think about it, due to the nature of Space Marine opperations, Sergeants and Captains are often the most senior members of their chapter present at any warzone. This means that they have to learn to be able to work hand in hand with other imperial agencies and Space Marine Chapters. So it stands to reason that some chapters may have official or unoffical policies of requiring this service for promotion, outside of battlefield promotions. The anti-xenos training they receive is also a nice bonus.

Good call.

It would also give them some experience of interacting with marines from other chapters on a one to one basis. If you're a chapter master with a promising young sergeant, send him to the Deathwatch for 50 years: by the time he comes back, he'll be a seasoned veteran ready to assume the rank of captain.

In fact, the Deathwatch could actually act as effectively a training college for marine officers who are candidates for the role of chapter master. They'd learn how to deal with the egos and genetic flaws of other chapters, which would put them in good stead dealing with larger scale joint operations, too.

I have a question, When deathwatch service is being done, Are the PC's allowed to contatct thier chapter. I assumed "no" but one of my guys was trying to get a hold of his chapter due to some secretive stuff he found. The novels have no mention and I cant find any thing else.

Tunnelhckrat said:

I think they return their chapters but may not spek about what they witnessed, except general stuff, of course. And even that may be out of question with a number of chapters.

Alex

Tunnelhckrat said:

I guess it depends upon the details of their oath...I can't imagine the Deathwatch is too keen on marines sending postcards to their original chapter on a regular basis. The only way they could reliably get word back in any reasonable timeframe would be by astropathic communication, and one imagines that the Deathwatch astropaths are closely monitored and restricted to Deathwatch-only comms.

That said, Marines may WANT to speak to their parent chapter. Rites of Battle contains an example of a Dark Angels marine seconded to the Deathwatch who's trying to track down one of the Fallen. The Deathwatch aren't likely to let him use their own astropaths for that purpose, so he'll have to find some other way to get in touch with them.

I suppose marines COULD send less important messages the same way people used to in the old days: by letters, perhaps in code, passed from ship to ship, with the sender and recipient hoping that the leters weren't lost in the warp with the ship, or intercepted.

For a group such as the Unforgiven, I could see them planting pet astropaths and agents (without knowledge of the Unforgiven's purpose of course) in the Crusade fleet for precisely this purpose. If a Deathwatch Unforgiven spots something of interest, they would have a memorised list of who in the Reach can be contacted with a ciphered message. Ciphered messages in dead drops are quite handy for this sort of thing.

Tunnelhckrat said:

I think it is reasonable to assume that every brother serving in the Deathwatch gets to send a message back to his parent chapter every so often, if for no other reason than accountability.

Baradiel said:

That plus it lets the Chapter know he's still out there serving instead of just sending off SMs and waiting until either their mission is over or someone brings back the dead SM's gene seed. I'm sure such communications are monitored to ensure nothing is said that should be kept secret, but it just seems to me that at least some communication is sensible.

Baradiel said:

but such invidual moved to DW can also be risk to parent chapter after he returns, he could catch some radical ideas from other DW members with different beliefs. He is also withouth proper screaning from chapter librarians, chaplains and apothecaries. He may also dont want to return.

Still 1000 or so chapters, for few more tied to DW or Ordo Xenos, such "trip" could be needed to rise in chapter ranks.

Brand said:

I can't bring myself to imagine a Space Marine sending his Chapter Master a message to say the trip was OK or how miserable he feels in the Deathwatch...

I'd see something more along the line of the Deathwatch reporting every now and then, like:

FROM: Deathwatch, +++CLASSIFIED+++ Sector
TO: Ultramarines Chapter, Ultima Segmentum, Ultramar Subsector, first to the right, second to the left and you're there

OBJECT: +++Scheduled Annual Activity Report+++

DATE: +++CLASSIFIED+++.123.456.M41

Brothers serving duty in the Deathwatch: 325
Brothers MIA since last report: 10

Arrivals: Brother Roboute, Brother Fulgrim, Brother Caius The Great.

+++END OF TRANSMISSION+++

See?

I expect the DW may very well send such messages, but I wasn't referring to SMs making social calls to see what the weather is like back on Macragge. It just seems sensible, for example, that they check in occasionally and let the Chapter know when they might be expected to return, even if they can't tell the Chapter what it is they're doing.

Though, I may have to allow it if I ever have a Space Wolf want to send a request back home for some more Fenrisian ale...

Brand said:

Whereas I think an organization that secretive does not permit such contact and that all contact with home chapters is run by the Watch Commander (not even the Watch Captain). No personal contact by rank&file Deathwatchers at all. Fits the monk-aspect of the setting too.

I will concede that this will largely depend on the Watch Commander though. Dark Angel? Tough luck. A rare Space Wolf? Chances might be significantly better (unless he's the lone wolf type), given their pack instincts.

Alex

Keep in mind that it's hard to say anything definitively since there are so many possible postings. There is no set "mission" that everyone undertakes. One SM might be based with others out of a fortress and undertake numerous missions to achieve some ultimate goal. Another might be sent to a far-flung Watch Station where he'll spend a few years monitoring for any possible activity from an ancient alien relic. There might not even be any opportunities to pass messages to the home Chapter. For those that can, though, I don't see why they shouldn't be able to communicate, assuming that any such communications are monitored to prevent certain information slipping out.