Star Krakens

Star Krakens
TBD, probably something with squids/a lighthouse
Battle Cry	Low, voiceless chanting
Founding	Recent, M39 or M40
Successors of	Raven Guard
Successor Chapters	None
Primarch	Corvus Corax
Homeworld	Fleet-based (Mobius/ The Lighthouse)
Strength	1500+
Allegiance	Imperium

So far the BEST /tg/ custom Chapter, the Star Krakens are a Raven Guard successor chapter with a heavy emphasis on deep sea mythology, viking influence (but not THAT Viking mythology) and ship-to-ship combat. They inhabit a region of space featuring the Deep, a dark nebula which obfuscates almost all attempts at scanning it.

Synopsis

Spawning from the Raven Guard in the late 39th or early 40th millennium, this young chapter was originally tasked with cleansing several worlds on the far fringe of the Segmentum Ultima of a minor xenos threat known as the Grendel. The Grendel, a space-faring race, had been raiding nearby Imperial worlds for human slaves, often disappearing into an uncharted nebula to escape from the retaliatory Imperial Navy strikes. The campaign to purge these worlds was hard fought, a toll which began to way heavily on Chapter Master Ahiab. After the last of the alien cities was burned he turned the remnants of his fleet onto the nebula the Grendel so liked to skirt, convinced that remnants of the species still lurked somewhere within its depths, and bent on avenging his many fallen brothers. Plunging deep into its heart the fleet became desperately lost, surpassing the meager depths the cowardly aliens had skimmed and instead reaching deep into its core. There they found Mobius, an abandoned asteroid onto which was built an archeotech facility, which became the first Lighthouse. Using this as their base the Star Krakens began to expand outwards, discovering other vessels sunken within the nebula, as well as the only relics this young chapter would ever lay claim to: Huginn, a vast scanning array and Muninn, an ancient depository of hidden knowledge.

Using these tools the chapter found their way back to the edge of the nebula - now referred to as the Deep - and bid their Imperial allies farewell. For Chapter Master Ahiab had yet to taste his vengeance, and the Kraken's would remain in the Deep until he felt his thirst quenched. For a time they searched, and occasionally emerged from their dark nebula, launching lightning raids on any enemy of man who dared stray too closely to their new home. They began to excel in ship-to-ship actions, making full use of a cache of ancient Breacher Shields, as well as cleverly modifying their weapons so as to best adapt them for clearing actions.

Over time the eleven strike cruisers of the Krakens began to develop unique identities, and as the strain of maintaining codex regularity weighed on the chapter they began to deviate, arming each of their vessels as their Captain saw fit, breaking each company down into more useful tactical formations for their unique environments. They became the masters of the Spinward Deep, resuppyling at Mobius, recruiting from the fringe worlds they had saved centuries earlier, growing strong once more. But no Captain dared venture further, into the trenches and gulleys of the Tailing Deep, and it was here that Chapter Master Ahiab became convinced the Grendel were hiding. He drew together his finest soldiers, taking for himself the best of the chapters equipment, and disappeared into the Deep. He left behind only a scarce few units of Terminator armour, and ten Captains to squabble amongst themselves over who would next lead the Star Kraken.

Writefaggotry!

Teuthys Addresses the Drowned

They stood in almost complete darkness, silent save for the subtle rustling and shifting of their armour plate and mechadendrites. The vast launch bay was almost totally unlit save for the eerie glow of the Chaplain's armour, it's bioluminescent engravings wavering and shifting like moonlight through seawater.

"Remember!", Chaplain Teuthys whispered, his voice rippling through the silence.

"Remember Ahab. Remember his sins. He was weak. He succumbed to obsession. He succumbed to the desire for vengeance. He succumbed to warlust, and his passion weighed him down like a great stone.

Ahah drowned himself! Ahab nearly drowned his chapter with his hubris. But we, the pure... We do not drown. Our lungs are full of saltwater and our eyes stare into the dark. We do not down. WE RISE."

The air reverberated with the slow moaning rumble of the Dreadnoughts as they sang the Hymn to the Deep.

The Freyrsvero

An ancient Dominator-class cruiser, the Freyrsvero was found adrift in the nebula, nonfunctional and with no crew, living or dead, onboard. Years were spent repairing the ship to add to the Kraken's fleet. However, the machine spirits that inhabited the vessel had gone mad and the ship attempted to attack any vessel or facility within range regardless of commands given. The ship was mothballed and the techmarines and bonded techpriests of the Star Krakens spent three centuries attempting to appease the spirits without avail. The ship sat unpowered and unmanned until the renegade fleet of Admiral Zyou Gunthrop, declared Excommunicate Traitoris for her iconoclasm, approached the nebula intent on capturing Huginn and Muninn. Outnumbered three to one in ships, the Krakens crewed and rearmed the Freyrsvero and set it in the path of the oncoming fleet. Backed by the Star Kraken fleet and their death song on their lips, the Freyrsvero roared to life. With the Lighthouse beacon disabling approaching enemy vessels, the Freyrsvero wreaked havoc upon the escort vessels of the Iconoclast fleet before plunging at Gunthrop's flagship, Judgment's Contempt.

The flagship's guns shattered the Freyrsvero's void shields and it's lances burned gouges deep within it's armor. As the rest of the Kraken's fleet watched helplessly, entangled in combat with the enemy forces, as the Freyrsvero was slowly blown apart; it's weapon decks ripped open by macrocannon fire as its crew burned alive in the wash of plasma flames. Deep within the dying systems the machine spirits let loose one last scream of hatred and fury and plunged the Freyrsvero into the Judgment's Contempt. Her armored prow split open the armor of the Judgment's Contempt like an axe upon bare flesh. As she shuddered to a stop the remaining Nova Cannon shells in her magazines were detonated, vaporizing a full quarter of the Judgment's Contempt's mass and knocking it out of the fight.