Dusk Vultures

Dusk Vultures armorial with Chapter iconography.

Dusk Vultures Battle-Brother of the 4th Company (as indicated by the colour of his right shoulder pauldron trim), unknown Battleline Squad.

## Space Marine Chapter

### **Successor of**

Raptors
(Corvus Corax lineage);

### **Specialty**

Hostile Environment Operations,
Siegebreaker Operations,
Regime Changes,
Drop Pod Assault,
Rescue & Recovery

### **Battle cry**

"By blade and fury!";
sometimes followed by "Lay low the tyrants!" or "Protect the defenseless!"

### Successor Chapter(s)

None

"*We are no angels, but the fury of untold bilions crying for help and the terror of their oppressors*"
—Coran Niyol, Chapter Master of the Dusk Vultures
The **Dusk Vultures** is a semi-*Codex*-compliant Loyalist Space Marine Chapter, formed during the 26th Founding, and trace their genetic lineage back to the Raven Lord Corvus Corax via the Raptors Chapter. They mostly act in the Ultima Segmentum and have fought multiple times against what was later identified as the Hive Fleet Kraken. After having suffered major losses during the Second and Third Tyrannic War and the opening of the Cicatrix Maledictum, the chapter has received the help of Lord Guilliman's Ultima Founding, bolstering its ranks with fresh-from-training Primaris Astartes.

## Chapter History

The chapter was founded by the High Lords of Terra as a way to contain non-compliant planetary governors in the Ultima Segmentum. Their mission statement is officially still the same, though their interpretation of it has become looser over time.

Led by their late Chapter Master Corag Askasii, they originally followed their given directives, but as time went on and their defiant characters became more and more prominent, they started hunting down targets that weren't exactly what the high lords had in mind, subversing governors they thought too oppressive for the good of their planet's general populace. At first, this tipped off some of the more puritanical inquisitors, but this unrest was quickly dispersed as the worlds they liberated kept their allegiance to the Imperium and most times kept their tithes consistent, if not improving them.

As soon as the First Tyrannic War broke out, the chapter joined the fight, helping out where possible but accumulating many casualties.

This is where the chapter first encountered the Tyranid Hivemind, becoming a recurrent foe of the Vultures in several following campaigns. during this time is also where the chapter's habit of recovering and repurposing equipment found on the battlefield began: a major part of the Vultures' Fourth Company had been stranded on a dying world and thought lost by the rest of the chapter, but through their sheer determination and ingenuity, they managed to send a signal to their other battle-brothers and get extracted.

Against the Great Devourer is where Captain Coran Niyol of the Fifth Company proved his skills as a leader and started the journey along the path to becoming chapter master by successfully leading a surgical strike against a Hive Tyrant commanding a minor splinter fleet of Kraken during the latter part of the Second Tyrannic war. During the conflict, Chapter Master Askasii met his end at the hand of the Hive Mind and, hailed by his other battle-brothers, Coran took upon himself the duty of following in his predecessor's footsteps.

After the breaking of Cadia and the opening of the Cicatrix Maledictum at the hands of Abbadon's 13th Black Crusade, the Chapter accumulated a seemingly irreplaceable amount of losses: Imperial records denote their number of combat-ready Astartes as being less than that needed to be considered even half-strength. With the coming of the Era Indomitus, however, reinforcements in the form of Primaris Space Marines bolstered their ranks, which these Sons of Corax eagerly accepted as full-fledged brothers-in-arms.

## Notable Campaigns

### The First Hunt (739-741.M41)

Receiving their task by the High Lords, the Chapter departed for the Bakkar sector, their target lying in four points of interest: an agri-world, two mining colonies and +++CLASSIFIED UNDER ASTARTES CHAPTER MASTER AUTHORITY+++, marked as non-compliant. The targets 1 through 3 had their planetary governor and their staff removed and substituted by hand-picked individuals, resolving the incident. Site 4 led to the almost complete loss of the Dusk Vultures' Fourth Company and Chapter Master Askasii recommended the assigned inquisitor of the Ordo Hereticus for Exterminatus on +++CLASSIFIED UNDER ASTARTES CHAPTER MASTER AUTHORITY+++.

### Ontiac Campaign (833-843.M41)

The Ontiac Campaign, a successful retribution against the Ork Empire, saw the combined efforts of numerous Space Marine chapters united in heroic endeavours: the Aasvogels, Calthen Justitians, Dusk Vultures, Optimus Legion, Redemptors, Sanguine Knights, Saurians, and Silver Flames. Heroic battles and acts of valour marked this period, highlighting the martial genius and cooperation of the Emperor's servants. However, the Silver Flames' triumph was overshadowed by the arrival of the Aasvogels, who discovered the chimeric nature of their allies' gene-seed. Without hesitation, the Aasvogels deemed the blending of Primarch DNA corruption and swiftly executed their former allies. Their fleet departed swiftly, leaving no survivors for the Saurians and Optimus Legion who arrived later. The Aasvogels' commitment to eradicating the threat of chimeric Astartes remained unwavering, forever altering the fate of both chapters.

### Defense of Eòs III (991-993.M41)

After having been hailed by the governor of the Eòs system seeking help against a suspected Genestealer uprising on the mining colony of Eòs III, the Chapter found themselves stuck between hammer and anvil as a splinter of Hive Fleet Kraken made its way to the planet, descending on the Astartes below. During this assault, the Second and Fifth Companies managed to repel the local portion of the Genestealer threat just enough to get them to retreat, but suffered massive casualties, amongst them 2nd Captain ++REDACTED++. The remaining forces under 5th Captain Niyol launched an all-out attack on the Tyranids and, after spotting the splinter fleet's Hive Tyrant, managed to bring it down. On the other side of the planet, the 1st, 3rd and 4th Companies, all led by Chapter Master Corag Askasii led a final strike against the Genestealer force, managing to fell the Broodlord at its head at the sacrifice of Askasii himself.

## Chapter Recruitment

Not having a homeworld, the chapter tends to recruit from the worlds they assist in. While other chapters may look for killer instinct or feral behaviour, the Vultures recruit only amongst those who fought the hardest against their oppressors and have proved themselves on the fields of battle.

From there, the acolytes are briefly brought to the Spire of Defiance, where they have to go through months-long simulations to test their abilities to work in unison and survive with the bare minimum. The ones that finish the trials successfully are then offered the chance to join the Vultures, while those that fail are returned to their home planets; failed recruits that still showed particular skills are also recommended for PDF recruitment directly by the chapter.

The newly inducted neophytes are then assigned to the Scout Company, where they are first trained for combat and then brought to a death world with just their basic equipment and no comms and must survive for an extended period without contact. After this "probatory" period, they are trained as scouts and are deployed in combat alongside other battle-companies.

### Fortress-Monastery

The **Spire of Defiance** is a *Nemesis*-Class Fleet Carrier the chapter had recovered during one of their campaigns. It doesn't have many modifications beyond it being outfitted with simulation and training quarters alongside some of its rooms being retrofitted for chapter purposes, like an Apothecarium, Reclusium, Librarium and Teleportarium Chambers.

## Chapter Organisation

The chapter follows the *Codex Astartes* partially, but do ignore quite a few of its tenets where they feel necessary. Firstly, the role of Chaplain is replaced by the Judicator, which is functionally identical apart from the way they act: Judicators do keep their battle-brothers in line and help keep morale high, but do so not by preaching the Imperial Truth, but by reminding them of who they fight for; along these normal duties, they are the ones that carry out sentences for both chapter members or third parties.

Secondly, even though they are currently composed solely of Primaris marines, they are known to make use of equipment from before the Era Indomitus, having Devastator squads that closely resemble any found in firstborn chapters or any form of older Dreadnought pattern, such as the Leviathan and Deredeo patterns.

### Officer Ranks

* **Chapter Master**
* **Captain**
* **Lieutenant**

### Specialist Ranks

* **Chief Librarian** - Senior Librarian, Keeper of Lore
* **Librarian**
* **Grand Iudex** - Senior Judicator, Master of the Reclusium
* **Judicator**
* **Master of the Forge** - Senior Techmarine, Master of the Armoury
* **Techmarine**
* **Chief Apothecary** - Senior Apothecary, Master of the Apothecarion
* **Apothecary**
* **Chapter Ancient**
* **Company Ancient**
* **Chapter Champion**
* **Company Champion**

### Line Ranks

* **Veteran Sergeant**
* **Veteran Battle-Brother**
* **Sergeant**
* **Battle-Brother**
* **Scout Marine**
* **Neophyte**
* **Aspirant**

### Specialist Units & Formations

* **The Rising Talon** - Coran Niyol's Honour Guard, ten of the best veterans of the chapter, all armed with lightning claws and plasma pistols. They swoop in onto unsuspecting enemies thanks to their jump packs and leave just as fast after dispatching their target.
* **Scavenger Squads** - Specialised squads of vanguard marines whose sole focus is to recover material from the battlefield for analysis and repurposing. A Scavenger Squad is formed by a Scavenger Sergeant, two Scavenger Marines, a Biologis-Adept Marine and a Tech-Adept Marine. The latter two members of the squad function in a similar way to Helix Adepts in Infiltrator Squads, only in this case receiving training by Apothecaries Biologi and Techmarines respectively.

### Order of Battle

#### Headquarters

**The Rising Talon** *(Honour Guard)*
**Chapter Equerries**
**Yona Viian, *Master of the Forge***
**Techmarines**
**Servitors**
**Battle Tanks**
**Transports**
**Atahk Gryv, *Grand Iudex***
**Judicators**
**Giwan Phasm, *Chief Librarian***
**Epistolaries**
**Codiciers**
**Lexicaniums**
**Hikan Sarkorai, *Chief Apothecary***

## Combat Doctrine

The Dusk Vultures' combat doctrine closely resembles their parent chapter's, the Raptors. They make extensive use of ranged combat and surgical strikes but also employ a fair amount of close-quarters engagements when needed.

They value adaptability and quick reaction above all and are trained to work in almost any environment, dangerous as it may be. Scouts and other Vanguard troops are greatly valued, as intel of enemy operations and positions are of major importance in the hostile environments the chapter is trained and almost always asked to work within.

They also utilize Terminators, Jump Packs and other means of "rapid delivery" to get troops where they need to be as fast as possible, ambushes aambushesdrawn-out engagements when engaging opponents in opconfronting and precise strikes aimed at sabotage and incapacitation during sieges.

Similarly to their distant cousins, the Charcaradons, the Dusk Vultures fight with their outward comms disabled while not working with other Astartes or imperial forces.

### The Fourth Company

Led by ex-Deathwatch Veteran Paahat Varonai, the Dusk Vultures' Fourth Company often deploys mixed weapons kill teams, using a Swiss army knife approach to their missions. Having different battle brothers specialise in a specific task gives the various squads an advantage in situations where a single team is required versus the all-out assault approach of other companies; in such cases, multiple teams can handle different areas of the battlefield at the same time,

## Chapter Culture & Beliefs

"*Suffer not the tyrant, spare not the oppressor*"
—Writing engraved onto the Spire of Defiance's command deck
The Dusk Vultures are a peculiar chapter in their beliefs alone, many of them inherited via their gene-seed from **Corax** himself. Outwardly, they are loyal to the Imperium to a fault, but their mission lies with humanity and humanity alone. They, as **Corax** did, believe that ''justice without force is powerless'' and ''force without justice is tyranny''. For this reason, they don't impose their presence on a single world claiming it as their home, but roam the galaxy instead.

Still, they are more than happy to work with other chapters that share a similar sense of humility and humanity, especially those amongst the sons of Corax and Vulkan, as they don't have to worry about internal conflicts.

Another unique trait the chapter is known for is their habit of recovering and restoring imperial technology from the planets they find themselves on for their use. This is born from their more survivalist style of engagement and their specialisation in hostile environments. This has led to the chapter making use of non-Ultima Founding weaponry and equipment, and the chapter is known to possess a few *heresy*-era Dreadnought chassis, alongside bringing some loose ties to the Priesthood of Mars.

## Chapter Gene-Seed

The chapter's gene-seed is almost identical to the Raptors', it is very stable and durable, but with a few key differences: a Dusk Vultures Astartes' Betcher's Gland is completely absent, while their Mucranoid is greatly enhanced, helping in the chapter's resilience in inhospitable battlefields; their Melanochrome is also altered, making each battle-brother's skin pale, but not deathly pale as their progenitors, instead tending towards a muted sand-beige hue.

Instead of the Raptors' grim approach to every facet of their life, the Vultures have a personality not too dissimilar to the Salamanders', one of the reasons for their repeated collaborations.

## Deathwatch Service

The Vultures have a very limited number of members in service of the Watch, as any puritanical inquisitor has mixed feelings about the chapter and their unorthodox ways. Still, they are known for their prowess against the Great Devourer, so they are a great asset for the Ordo Xenos' armed branch.

## Notable Members

* **Coran Niyol, Tyrant-Slayer** - Second and current Chapter Master of the Dusk Vultures and former Captain of the Fifth Company, he leads the chapter from the front lines with lightning strikes and surgical precision.
* **Corag Askasii** - First Chapter Master. Died during the Second Tyrannic War.

## Chapter Relics

For a Chapter that has acted not even 300 years the Dusk Vultures have an above-standard amount of relics. A good portion of these are recovered pieces of old technology, repaired by the chapter's techmarines and gifted to worthy enough individuals, some are hand-crafted masterworks of imperial wonder that have found their way to the Chapter's hands and others are simple weaponry and various pieces of equipment that gained fame through their bearers' actions.

* **Crownsplitter** - Power axe used by Chapter Master Coran Niyol. It has always been in his possession since he joined the 5th Company Assault Squads and has dealt the mortal wound to the Hive Tyrant he slew on Eòs III, earning it the title it is known for nowadays.
* **Uprising** - A master-crafted neo-Volkite Pistol Chapter Coran Niyol received after traversing the Rubicon Primaris.
* **Istvaan's Vengeance** - Two dreadnought chassis, a Deredeo and a Leviathan dreadnought, recovered and repaired by the Chapter's techmarines during the first 150 years of its service of the Imperium. Their employment is reserved only for the most honourable and capable veterans, as the machine spirits housed within the twin suits are restless and thirsty for vengeance against the Arch-Traitor's allies.

## Chapter Appearance

### Chapter Colours

The chapter's livery is a very simple one: Black-grey and purple armour with little to no other decorations besides the chapter's badge, amongst other things. The chapter's ranks are determined by slight alterations in the livery, adding a stripe to the helmet and plastron (chestplate) and painting the left kneepad of a specific colour that pertains to the battle-brother's rank: sergeant is blue, a lieutenant is white and captain is brass-gold.

Similarly to their gene-father's legion, they paint the right pauldron's trim to denote the battle-brother's company but keep the left one purple.

The Dusk Vultures' veterans, also referred to as the "*Bloodied Hands*" by other members, have their entire right arm painted a dark red colour, mimicking the colour of dried-up blood, a symbol of the chapter's determination and dauntlessness.

### Chapter Badge

The chapter's badge is a stilised vulture in the shape of a crescent, the bird being chose

## Notable Quotes

### By Dusk Vultures:

"*My Vultures! It has been a great honour serving amongst all of you. My hour draws near, but I will not falter. I leave my legacy to you, may you travel the stars safely. With blade and fury, LAY LOW THESE ABOMINATIONS!*"
—Former Chapter Master Askasii, last vox message to his chapter at Eòs III, 993.M41

"*You speak with words one would use to talk with a respected colleague, but your eyes betray your real thoughts, Xa'tan. You may think I my brothers is naïve, and maybe we all are, who am I to decide that, but I prefer to believe that change can happen. The Imperium isn't populated solely by ignorance and indoctrination. I have seen it with my own eyes: people whose spirit and will, dare I say, challenge and surpasses some of the bravest amongst us, and not because of their simplicity. And if I can't change your mind, well, at least I know you still will be working for the betterment of Humanity*"
—Raz Esen, 3rd Company Apothecary of the Dusk Vultures, speaking to Xa'tan Leblanc, 1st Company Apothecary of the Saurians
## About the Dusk Vultures

*Feel free to add your own*
"*We may share the likeness of vultures with our brethren from the Raven Guard, but let it be known that our talons are sharper and our hunger for victory unmatched. While they may skulk in shadows, we soar high above, basking in the light of our triumphs. Their tactics may be impressive, but it pales in comparison to the thunderous might of our assault. We respect their combat prowess, for even shadows have their merits, but let it be clear that the Aasvogels are the true lords of the battlefield.*"
— Aazir Cathaar the Purifier, Master of Sanctity of the Aasvogels, disregarding the Dusk Vultures during the Laternax Councils

[Source]

 White Scars Successors
 Space Wolves Successors
 Imperial Fists Successors
 Blood Angels Successors
 Iron Hands Successors
 Ultramarines Successors
 Salamanders Successors
 Raven Guard Successors
 Unknown Lineage

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