I'm starting to play around with the idea of having a small Space Marine presence in my game, and I'm wondering which chapters have been known to be active in the Koronus Expanse.

I could always make up my own, or just pick one based on reading up on them, but I'd really rather stick with "canon" for who is active there. Yeah, I know about WH40k and canon, but it's a quirk of mine.

Any thoughts?

Thanks!

Well, the Storm Wardens are in the neighbouring Calixis Sector, so there's those guys. But there's always a possibility that a crusading Black Templar fleet is around.

Copied from http://warhammer40k.wikia.com/wiki/Koronus_Expanse

"Space Marines in the Koronus Expanse (517.M41) - Two Adeptus Astartes Strike Cruisers and several Escort ships of unknown Chapter and origin and sporting no heraldry appear over Footfall demanding tribute in supplies andinformation on pain of planetary assault if their demands are not met. The Liege promptly and wisely acquiesces to their requests and the Space Marines depart again to an unknown destination."

Though I do remember this being mentioned in one of the books. I also know some Deathwatch Space Marines were mentioned (though you really can't call them a Chapter per say, more a collage of other Chapters).

As mentioned earlier, the only known ones close to the Koronus Expanse are the Space Marine Chapters in the Calixis Sector, which are: Storm Wardens and the Black Templars. The Iron Hands are mentioned in assisting the conquest of the Calixis Sector, but that's it.

I believe that since the Koronus Expanse isn't an Imperial Sector, and the Jericho Reach is nearby, there probably aren't many - if any - Space Marine chapters there because the Imperium has enough glory that there's not much to crusade against in there. if there were Chaos Space Marines based in the Expanse though, that would probably draw a Space Marine chapter.

According to the Epoch Koronus, in 517.M41 a force of Space Marines with no heraldry demanded tribute from Footfall, then vanished. Not even sure from a fluff knowledge what "loyal" Chapter wouldn't use heraldry except maybe the Grey Knights.

The Jericho Reach is not technically nearby. There's just a warp gate that leads there.

The Jericho Reach is not technically nearby. There's just a warp gate that leads there.

Shhhh... That's a secret.

Thank you for the ideas!

Edit - are the Storm Wardens an invention for Deathwatch? I'm only finding references to various Deathwatch books.

The Jericho Reach is not technically nearby. There's just a warp gate that leads there.

"Hey Battlefleet guys, how come you're all secretive about where this Warp Route from The Maw leads? Can I go investigate?"

Seriously, people don't know that. The uppity captains get sent on Long Patrols and also probably don't know about it.

Thank you for the ideas!

Edit - are the Storm Wardens an invention for Deathwatch? I'm only finding references to various Deathwatch books.

Yes, they were invented only for Deathwatch. I don't think their name was in the Index Astartes, so unlike the Blood Ravens they may have been invented completely wholesale for Deathwatch.

I think one way you could do it if you wanted to incorporate them into a campaign would be to have a Deathwatch Squad or one of the two canon Calixis Sector chapters investigating the Rak'Gol in order to assess the threat.

I think one way you could do it if you wanted to incorporate them into a campaign would be to have a Deathwatch Squad or one of the two canon Calixis Sector chapters investigating the Rak'Gol in order to assess the threat.

"- two canon Calixis Sector chapters-"? Are you counting the Calixian Deathwatch as a 'chapter', in addition to the Storm Wardens?

If so, yes, the Deathwatch doing a 'threat assessment' on the approaching Rak'Gol would make perfect sense. My Deathwatch campaign is set in the Calixis Sector rather than the Jericho Reach, and I'm working on an upcoming storyline involving exactly that.

Well, the Rak'Gol, and those Orks at Undred-Undred Teef. That's a Waagh a brewin' for sure.

It depends on the Space Marine Chapter involved though. The last time the Orks Waaaagh'd their way out of the Koronus Expanse it took awhile for the Imperial Navy to push them back and reclaim Port Wander, however the Calixis Sector has the protection of The Maw, making large-scale invasions somewhat predictable because they have to come through that narrow corridor, exactly like how the Eye of Terror is so easily contained.

The reason I emphasize this is that since the Koronus Expanse is not part of the Imperium, any Space Marine Chapter proactive enough to curb threats to mankind before they become apparent are probably busy in actual places in the Imperium, and those after great wars would wait for the problems to spill over into the Calixis Sector before intervening, especially since then they can open the saga of their victory with a few lines about how the Rogue Traders stirred up all the trouble.

The Rak'Gol are almost certainly the signs of a major threat brewing, but as they are they're not actually that terrifying. Their ships are not particularly strong and I've never had a battle involving them (in the void anyway) actually threaten the PCs. Physically they're intimidating, but that's why you throw wave after wave of your own troops at them, and unlike Tyranids they won't eat the dead to make more. I think as a race they're great, and they're perfect for the setting, but I think presenting the data would make most Space Marines scoff at the idea of them being a threat.

Any fleet-based chapter could plausibly show up. Besides the Black Templars, I'll mention the Charcharadons, as they explicitly patrol beyond the Imperium's boundaries.

As for Calixis, there's this little bit of official fluff, shamelessly stolen from the Dark Heresy back-story:

322.M39 The Angevin Crusade Begins: Preator Golgenna Angevin, a powerful noble from the Terran Court is raised to the rank of Lord Militant and granted a writ from the High Lords to persecute a crusade to liberate and dominate the area of space designated as the Calyx Expanse. His crusade forces drawn principally from the Segmentum Solar numbering over seventeen million levied troops divided into four battle groups and a strategic reserve, re-enforced by elements of the Legios Venator and Magna, as well as the Black Templars, Tigers Argent, Sons of Medusa and Charnel Guard Chapters of Adeptus Astartes...

(The Iron Hands showed up later, after most of the other chapters had left.)

Cheers,

- V.

Well until Dawn of War 3 comes out and depending on what ending you like to take away from Dawn of War 2 you could always create your own storyline where the Blood Ravens now having lost their recruiting worlds and territory to orks/tyranids/chaos head out into the Expanse to settle a chunk of real estate in Winterscale's realm and then demand tribute from Caligos.

It's a stretch but it could develop into an interesting story where there's tension between Winterscale and the Blood Ravens and you get caught in the middle and then maybe Chorda stirs up some **** because that's exactly the kind of thing she'd do.

The Rak'Gol are almost certainly the signs of a major threat brewing, but as they are they're not actually that terrifying. Their ships are not particularly strong and I've never had a battle involving them (in the void anyway) actually threaten the PCs. Physically they're intimidating, but that's why you throw wave after wave of your own troops at them, and unlike Tyranids they won't eat the dead to make more. I think as a race they're great, and they're perfect for the setting, but I think presenting the data would make most Space Marines scoff at the idea of them being a threat.

Well considering their stats, with unnatural T and S, Fear 1+, carapace like armour, weapons with high damage and pen, wounds twice as much as a regular armsmen, etc etc, their +Bonus to boarding, hit and run, etc should be along the lines of +50 or so. And you use the Rak'Gol 'Abomination' Fel for Command tests on pg 89 KB. I mean, it does state on pg 75, EotB, that all Rak'Gol vessels get a +20, and then you get to add Barracks (or Broad-Warrens) components if utilized. And a Barracks adds what, another +30. So it could be a +50 to Command (or +30 if you go with the Broad-Warren bonus ), with a skill of 30+. Not to shabby, once you combine the rules over all the books.

If you really wanted to go by the rules though, you could have the PC's roll a WP check for the Armsmen before they faced the creatures. That's really what you are supposed to do before a PC faces a Rak'Gol one on one anyways, unless their insanity is 20+. Obviously there are no mass rules for it, so GM's and PC's must come to an agreement on the outcome of the results.

I believe that since the Koronus Expanse isn't an Imperial Sector, and the Jericho Reach is nearby, there probably aren't many - if any - Space Marine chapters there because the Imperium has enough glory that there's not much to crusade against in there. if there were Chaos Space Marines based in the Expanse though, that would probably draw a Space Marine chapter.

According to the Epoch Koronus, in 517.M41 a force of Space Marines with no heraldry demanded tribute from Footfall, then vanished. Not even sure from a fluff knowledge what "loyal" Chapter wouldn't use heraldry except maybe the Grey Knights.

Two comments on that - we don't know if they didn't have heraldry, do we? Because just because they're unknown doesn't mean that they weren't decked out in heraldry and insignias. It just means that they didn't identify themselves and that no-one could identify them.

To most, the Adeptus Astartes are the God-Emperor's Angels of Death. They don't know jack squat about their chapters or what they are called, and most probably don't even realize that there *are* different chapters at all.

Nevermind, I'm blind and derped out. They expressly didn't carry heraldry.

To the second point I was going to make, however, we don't know for a fact that they were loyalists, and I can imagine any number of chapters on secret missions, loyalists or renegades both.

To the second point I was going to make, however, we don't know for a fact that they were loyalists, and I can imagine any number of chapters on secret missions, loyalists or renegades both.

That's so funny, because I always thought that.

Thinking about it, it could actually make a really excellent start for a somewhat mid- to high-ranking mission (depending on how you play it) for an Acolyte Cell, the first forays into the Koronus Expanse - investigating just what chapter that was, and what they were doing.

They might've been on a mission by request of the Inquisition, but maybe one hand doesn't know what the other hand is doing, or maybe it's a completely renegade chapter, still serving the Imperium. It *could* even be a chaos chapter, but that would just be boring.

Rogue Traders are involved in the Achilus Crusade though. They open trade routes with still-loyal forces, try to screw over the Tau, and get paid to do scouting. Your RT might be invited by Crusade high command to participate. Pay and salvage are great, just don't expect to come back alive.

It depends on the Space Marine Chapter involved though. The last time the Orks Waaaagh'd their way out of the Koronus Expanse it took awhile for the Imperial Navy to push them back and reclaim Port Wander, however the Calixis Sector has the protection of The Maw, making large-scale invasions somewhat predictable because they have to come through that narrow corridor, exactly like how the Eye of Terror is so easily contained.

The reason I emphasize this is that since the Koronus Expanse is not part of the Imperium, any Space Marine Chapter proactive enough to curb threats to mankind before they become apparent are probably busy in actual places in the Imperium, and those after great wars would wait for the problems to spill over into the Calixis Sector before intervening, especially since then they can open the saga of their victory with a few lines about how the Rogue Traders stirred up all the trouble.

The Rak'Gol are almost certainly the signs of a major threat brewing, but as they are they're not actually that terrifying. Their ships are not particularly strong and I've never had a battle involving them (in the void anyway) actually threaten the PCs. Physically they're intimidating, but that's why you throw wave after wave of your own troops at them, and unlike Tyranids they won't eat the dead to make more. I think as a race they're great, and they're perfect for the setting, but I think presenting the data would make most Space Marines scoff at the idea of them being a threat.

I mostly agree with this, with one big caveat: Space Marines are very touchy about potential threats to their homeworlds, and Sacris, homeworld of the Storm Wardens, is one of the closest Calixian planets to the Maw. I could totally understand them not wanting to leave it entirely up to the Imperial Navy to keep the Rak'Gol out of Calixis.

I mostly agree with this, with one big caveat: Space Marines are very touchy about potential threats to their homeworlds, and Sacris, homeworld of the Storm Wardens, is one of the closest Calixian planets to the Maw. I could totally understand them not wanting to leave it entirely up to the Imperial Navy to keep the Rak'Gol out of Calixis.

This is an excellent point, and potentially a great hook to get Space Marines involved in your campaign if you can sell them on this idea, but my point about their technology is that while the Rak'Gol are threatening, their ships really aren't. I can't see them launching a full-scale incursion on a Space Marine homeworld and making it past the orbital defences as they've been presented.

Of course if they are questing for a Yu'Vath weapon, discovery of one of those could very easily change that.

Not to mention, Since they are so close to the Maw; They would probably be just as interested in the number of Space capable advanced Orcs that exist there. at least enough so to periodically check on the other end of the Maw!

Well you could draw them out into the expanse either way, with the chaptermaster asking one or both of two questions:

"How can we fight the Orks of Undred Undred Teef over there instead of over here?"

"Those Rak'Gol seem like a potential threat and not enough is known about them, perhaps we could locate their home world/homeworlds and remove them?"

Space Marine Chapters are very territorial as a result of being very autonomous and also operating outside the realm of Imperial Norms, for instance they talk about God as if he's their friendly old grandpa and gallivant around demanding everyone give them stuff just because. So if there's no major war going on in the Calixis Sector they'll probably go looking for something to do.

... they'll probably go looking for something to do.

I just love the image of a Rogue Trader busting into a Chapter Fortress and saying "Hey, you guys haven't killed anything in over a year, want to go punch a Rak'Gol in the face?"

And the Chapter Master perking up and going "Sure, why not?"

... they'll probably go looking for something to do.

I just love the image of a Rogue Trader busting into a Chapter Fortress and saying "Hey, you guys haven't killed anything in over a year, want to go punch a Rak'Gol in the face?"

And the Chapter Master perking up and going "Sure, why not?"

What sort of Space Marine hasn't killed anything in a year? Failmarines.

Anyway there's all sorts of problems, but they can all be resolved if these two then immediately brofist with power fists.