I'm looking for some plot-ideas for how a well-connected Magos of the Adeptus Mechanicus (with ties to the Inquistion as well) would react to the following situation...

Being wrongly accused (as part of political intrigue) by a noble-house on Malfi for:

a. Being a Heretek and/or renegade Tech Adept.

b. Being associated with Xenos

c. Being targeted for assasination by said noble-house and barely surviving the attacks.

Thoughts:

Is revenge a human and illogical response, and not something a Magos would concern himself with?
If not - what would be a suitable type of revenge for the above crimes?
How much resources would such a Magos (or the Mechanicu)s justify using on things like this?

That depends!

In Einsenhorn, we find out that Mechanicus support is necessary when it comes to political games because without the mechanicus approval, candidates rarely get elected into leadership positions.

So, a particularly vocal magos that's firmly against a particular family's candidate could very well find himself in trouble on several levels. How would he retaliate? Now that's a million dollar question right there!

Two things:

1) Is there proof or evidence as to the noble family's involvement or not?

2) During the attack, did any particular rare or valuable piece of technology get damaged, or was any tech-heretical device used by, and then recovered, from the Assassin?

Because two people can play at the "Witch Hunt Game". You can find several examples of quotes in the Inquisitor's handbook [The secutor entry for example] shows you its quite possible for the Mechanicus to retaliate by sending out an entire squad to purge the household suspected of Tech-heresy.

If you'd rather he stay "on the down low", then using the inquisition's resources to investigate becomes more likely- perhaps having them plant some evidence that ties them to heresy [Or arranging to plant the evidence himself before the investigation.] The mechanicus assassins are often equipped with the best technology can offer, much like the Inquisition, so it would be quite in the realm of possibility of the former sneaking into any mansion or manor to commit any number of dark deeds.

Edit- Also, Hello all.

I may be wrong, but my reading of the Mechanicus is that, while they aspire to being unemotional beings of pure, machine-like logic, they almost never succeed. More often, they try to contrive a logical-sounding rationale for their emotions. So, in the case of a Magos framed for crimes, the Magos may desire revenge, but would try to spin it as 'defending the honour of the Omnisiah' by exposing the people who framed him as the true criminals and arranging for them to meet a grim end via Imperial justice, thus granting him 'revenge' without directly dirtying his own hands and, thus, having to admit to being motivated by emotion.

I could see a magos using his political power to support the noble houses other enemies with higher grade items, better social positions and just being rather helpful. This could drive them out of business or make them outcasts in high society.

For something more direct, why would a magos be above using regular assassins? with his paygrade he could even get a competent one! or as others have mentioned try to frame the nobles for tech heresy of some kind, he could even ask his inquisitor friends to do his dirty work.

Even if a Magos is above revenge, rationality would say it is prudent to eliminate enemies if they are out to get you.

He could send in swarms of spy-flies etc to get the evidence he needs and then ruin them politically. Or he could brew up some nano-machines (with the Noble house's symbol stamped all over them - heh) and set them about eating the Noble House's Mansion/Estate. Nothing that would harm living beings, but very embarrassing for the Nobles.

If you want me to stay the smeg out of your threads, mosern, just mark'em "no Smeg zone" or something

Until then I'll happily aid your endeavours to find interesting ways to get us all killed

1st a little background info. I lifted the setting information from Necromunda, and dumped it on Malfi. The Noble house is one of the 6 houses that control pretty much everything that goes on, and so are not just some petty noble family, but a world-power in it's own right.

The assassination was a legally sanctioned contract, performed by an independent assassin. The reason for the contract was a perceived slight to the House's Honour, real enough as the Magos in question has no knowledge of (or interest in) the social niceties of Malfian society.

The Magos in question has little official authority on Malfi, and as a high-ranking member of the Mechanicus he was perceived as a threat/rival by the "local" Magos in charge of the area. This has changed somewhat into a more friendly relationship, but he is still somewhat apart from the entrenched players in the game of power on Malfi, and no matter what he does, he is sure to piss off SOMEONE

Now, some constructive ideas.

The Magos in question is coming to the realization that in the pursuit of knowledge it is unfortunately necessary to engage in the illogical and resource-consuming game of power. This is because without influence and power, your quest for knowledge will be hindered by those with conflicting interests, and even worse you risk ending up as an unwitting pawn of someone else, or just a victim of collateral damage as those with power compete for the position at the top.

Better to be in a position where you can defend yourself, use your influence to get what you want without spending endless hours banging your head against the obstacles thrown in your way.

So a motivation beyond mere revenge might be to entrench his position as one of importance, preferably within or related to the Mechanicus organization(s) on Malfi. Perhaps he can convince the senior Magos on Malfi, Magos General Miltiades, that the assassination attempt was an offence against the Mechanicus as a whole, and that action must be taken to ensure no further transgressions against the servants of the Omnissiah take place in the future?

And while no essential machinery was damaged in the attack, there was an explosion in an inhabited part of the Hive and the personal shrine of the Magos (what traveling Magos would go around without his own personal shrine of worship?) was destroyed. This is symbolically an attack on the Holy Machine, and must be punished, no?

The Assassin was just a tool. Like a gun. The responsible party is the one that issued the contract. They must be taught the error of their ways, for they have sinned in the eyes of the Omnissiah. For the destruction of Holy Icons of the Machine God, for the attack on His chosen servants, for the affrontery of crossing the Mechanicus, etc etc.

As for what would be an appropriate "punishment"? Well, in the style of 40K: That could be anything. A response might include Assassination of some specific person in the Offending House, as a reprisal, a message, etc. A more convoluted story might involve the Mechanicus officially performing some sort of review of all their maintainance compacts with the house, effectively limiting their productive output for a long time (thus hurting their profits, and by extension power and influence). While this is in effect, the house might probably try to source unofficial means of technical assistance, something that may be the target of an investigation/destruction mission for the vengeful Magos.

If the nobles have any servitors than rampaging servitors with a proper reprograming is a given and the same goes if the nobles have much technology in their estate. It won't be much fun for them when the machine spirit(s) of their homes marks them for death.

mosern said:

a+b) A well connected Magos would either not care at all what a petty noble from Malfi would call him or could even react with withdrawing all technological assets from the noble house. There is even a planet in the Calixis Sector (don't recall the name), where the Adeptus Mechanicus took away all their involvement (don't recall the reason), so that the planet de-evolved into a pre-blackpowder Feudal World.

Besides, a noble accusing a Magos of tech heresy or of consorting with xenos could become a little precarious for the noble himself, as one (or the ties to the Inquisition) could ask how he knows about such forbidden thing in the first place.

c) The same as for a+b), though the Magos could also involve the Adeptus Arbites. Attacks on an Adeptus is considered a high crime by the Lex Imperiales. Transfer to a penal legion could then be the fate of said noble...