Vampire Counts in 40k: Part IV

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>>54650111
Quick summary the prior threads' re-imagining of the VC bloodlines:

>Lahmians
Descendants of Nerata, a radical tech priestess who discovered an ancient artificial intelligence (possibly a shard of the Void Dragon) calling itself Mekash while investigating ruins beneath the Martian deserts. It helped her adapt Necron nanotechnology to bond to human flesh, transforming her into the first cyber-vampyre. Eventually her heresy was discovered and she was forced to flee along with her followers, settling on the hive world of Lahmia IV in the Transylv'an Sector on the fringes of Imperial space near the Halo Stars. She quickly subverted the planet's government and has used it as a base to begin spreading the influence of biomechanical undeath across the sector.

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>>54651499
>Von Carstein
Descendants of Inquisitor Vandersten, and Imperial nobleman and founding member of the Ordo Necros tasked with ridding the Imperium of the undead menace. Tempted by what he discovered in his investigations, he struck a pact with Nerata to cover up her activities in exchange for immortality. Though he lacks Nerata's expertise in cybernetic necromancy, his heresy has remained hidden thus far, allowing him and his bloodline to wield far greater political power beyond the Transylv'an sector without attracting the attention of the Inquisition.

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>>54651543
>Blood Dragons
Members of a renegade Space Marine warband, remnants of the Bloody Tears chapter who were excommunicated by the Imperium when it was discovered that their chapter was created from the tainted gene-seed of the Night Lords. Rejecting the Chaos gods, they jouneyed to the Transylv'an sector, settling on a feudal world as a sort of knightly aristocracy until being tracked down by an Imperial expeditionary force. Desperately seeking an advantage in battle, they accepted the gift of undeath offered to them by Nerata. With incomparable martial prowess and discipline, they are now the most dangerous and visible of the cyber-vampyre bloodlines.

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>>54651569
>Strigoi
A sample of Nerata's modified Necron nanomachines fell into the hands of a mad Jokaero scientist who used it to fuel reckless bio-engineering experiments and rebuild hismself as hulking biomechanical monster. Unleashing his nano-virus weapon on a force of Orks, he transformed them into ghoulish, bestial horrors bound to his will. Though not generally aligned with the rest of the cyber-vampyres, this ravaging horde remains a persistent threat to poorly defended remote Imperial worlds.

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>>54651606
>Necrarch
Remnants of an Eldar colony visited by an envoy of Mekash, these individuals sought out undeath as an escape from the grip of Slaanesh, no matter the cost. However, the Necron nanotechnology could not bind as seamlessly with their Eldar physiology as it did with humans, leaving them perpetually whithered and corpse-like creatures. Presumably they're chilling on desolate worlds in wizard towers being all ancient and wise and shit, but the previous threads didn't go into much detail on these guys.

>>54650111
Needs more waifuism, OP.

/tg/ projects only attract attention in proportion to the number of qt3.14s.

>>54652069
Be the change you want to see in the world.

>>54652069
back to /cyoag/ with you

tossing some other Strains in here for bumps

>Nosferatu
Failed experiments that Mekash traded with the Dark Kin. its unknown if this strain are made of Deldar or Human stock, but the Haemonculus considered this version to be "fixed" Compared to the first stock they received

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>>54655342

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>Wagingo

like >>54651606 mentioned, They come from the Strigoi Strain. but for some unknown reason a few have broke out of the control of there ape lords and continue there perpetual path of destruction through out the Galaxy.

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>Nanomancers

Not really a strain per sa, but there still important to Vampyr society as a whole. being Mechanicus priests who have modified themselves to be walking Nanodermis dispensers they forge many of the Refined Corps Constructs the Vampyrs use.

>>54650111
I always wanted C'tan to have their vampire-ness played up more. There should have been C'tan covens and stuff like that.

Anyway...

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>>54650111
YAY I've been waiting for this for like a week.

I really think that the unoriginal names are hurting you here. A radical techpriestess cyber-vampyre who settled on any world *other* than Lhamia would be cooler.

>>54655834
I was actually thinking about the same thing and wrote some fluff between the threads
>C'tan has smuggled its programing in Nanodermis.
>each strain is in some way connected with the C'tan
>such as the Flayer influencing some of the infection found in the Jian'gshi strain or the Deceiver influencing and aiding the Von Carsteins Mascaraed

>>54656210
well thats really more of the systems name, but i get what you mean.

>>54656210
As I recal, the majority of them DID have original names, and OP greentexted their WHFB inspiration.

The Lahmians inspired the Daughters of Nerata
The Von Carstiens inspired the Vandersten
The Strogoi inspired BOTH the Wendigo AND the Strogoi
The Nechrarchs inspired the Necromonucli, who as I recal, often lived in the Dark City itself, or other corners of the webway, acting as a dark last-resort alternative to Heamonculi who will consort with any branch of Eldar, or even non-eldar, as long as they pay the price.

The Jade Courts inspired the Jiangshi, take over planets on the border of Tau space, using border-skirmishes to fuel their body-suply, while secretly working with the etherials (who many of them used to be... the Jiangshi is actually a result of the differing effect the virus has on Etherials) to serve as a buffer-zone between the worst fighting and the more peaceful Tau planets.

>>54655834
>>54656284
Why even stop there? Why not just makes vampires miniature shards of a C'Tan?

A C'Tan who was attacked by the Necrontyr and presumed destroyed, but whose essence survived by infecting biological races through a necrodermis virus, consuming their souls and replacing them with its own essence. The more souls they consume the more aspects of the original C'Tan they assume. It is said that if a vampire consumes enough souls, it could morph into a reborn star vampire that would cut a bloody swath across the stars and reignite the War in Heaven anew.

Naturally the Eldar, Chaos, and especially Necrons are loosing their shit over this, considering the vampires the ultimate insult to their ancient struggle and would be more than happy to see them annihilated.

>>54656496
>>54656284
>>54655834
When I originally wrote the character, I tried to make it heavily implied that Mekash had SOMEHTHING to do with the C'Tan, while not hammering down exactly what he was into a single iteration. Perhaps I was too subtle/understated, but I tried to leave hints that he might be:
>The Void Dragon
>A shard of the Void Dragon
>The Deceiver, fucking with humanity
>The Cryptech who first embodied the Ctan, and was thus imprisoned along with them
>A rogue AI who merged with a a C'Tan shard sleeping on Mars

Either way, I tried to at-least make it clear that The Necrodermis virus/technology was indeed corrupted/touched by the C'Tan in one way or another, as it was Mekash himself who created it.

It is because of this that the virus, no matter its manifestation in any given species, always has two distinguishing features
>1: total anathema to Chaos, it both "cures" chaos corruption, and makes one immune to it... though the cost is often considered not worth it
>2: The technology requires souls in one form or another as fuel. This is often done symbolically through blood, but the Necromonculi are known for being more direct.

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>>54655435
>fallen AdMech raising the dead
Fuck yeah. The world needs more shambling hordes of mechanically animated zombies.

>>54656552
I generally agree that keeping things a bit mysterious suits the setting, particularly since the nature of the Void Dragon isn't even entirely known in canon 40k.

So to summarize, your idea is that the "vampires" of 40k are ex-humans (and a handful of ex-orks and ex-eldar) using stolen Necron tech?

>>54658839
That's what I'm gathering from the prior threads. The 40k vamps were created with stolen Necron tech like the Fantasy vamps were created with stolen Tomb Kings magic.

>>54656950
So it's basically a means of autocreating servitors?

Checks out.

>>54656390
How about the Harkon for space pirates?

>>54656210
The names in OP's summary are mostly just placeholders from the first thread. Feel free to suggest replacements.

>>54656496
>Why not just makes vampires miniature shards of a C'Tan?
Seems to me that would make them way too powerful and remove the appeal of humans serving them for a chance at immortality.

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>>54661057
Revenants.

they are a Strain made by Ghost Ships. old ships of the Dark Age infested with Nanodermis. the Vampyr Courts sell them to Rogue Traders to subtly spread there influence across the galaxy

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>>54664234
>dat Harlock ship
I enjoy classic anime as much as the next shitposter, but the version from the remake really fits the 40k aesthetic better.

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>>54664234
>the Rogue Trader knew all along that the ship being offered for sale was haunted by the undead
>doesn't care that hundreds of his crew are killed every year by biomechanical horrors, because he got a great deal on an archaeotech cruiser and replacement crew are dirt cheap
>when the cyber-vampyre finally reveals himself the trader asks what took him so long and offers him a job

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As I recall, unlike many factions in 40k, the modus operandi of the Vampire, like the parasites they are, is to infiltrate other factions and create corrupt power-bases to protect themselves.

This isn't to say that there aren't conflicts, but simply that they generally shy away from open warfare: prefering to send a sacrificial force to lose, pretend to be defeated, and rebuild elsewhere. They DO however love the constant warlike humm of border skirmishes and rogue inquisitors/generals/preachers/etc... coming at them, because this provides a constant steady supply of new blood and souls to power the nanodermis.... border skirmishes..... say.... just heated enough to justify..... 1000-2000 pts?

They are pragmatists, and while other factions may have an endgame, the Vampires quite like the current state of the galaxy, and encourage stagnation in all of their host species.

>>54656950
>>54660361
Where does the Imperium draw the line on servitor creation, anyway? Does the victim have to be at least a little alive to avoid the "no thinking machines" tech heresy issue, or are they cool with turning the dead into servitors already? I mean, what about servo skulls? There's no way those things have a living human mind, they're literally skulls.

>>54666491
Fits right in with the Imperium's bureaucratic hypocrisy. The "official" stance is the vamps are the very blackest heresy, to be exterminated on sight. The unofficial stance is that they're a useful buffer against Chaos and xenos incursions along the galactic fringe and their territories are functionally not that different from a loyal Imperial sector in terms of industrial output and military potential.

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>ctrl+f
>"halo device"
>0 of 0
There are literally machines that make vampires in 40k, already.

>>54667589
those are what Gheists are. forgot to mention them.

basically there Vampire Mutants who can live in space thanks to making contact with a Halo Device

>>54667589
If it were up to me, I'd drop the Necron angle and have it be entirely Halo Device based, but the original threads wanted to play up the Necron angle as an homage to the origin of vampires in Fantasy.

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>mfw this thread always shows up during the week, but is missing on the weekends
Fucking hell, I want to writefag for you glorious bastards, but I've got no time when the thread is live. The kikes own my time all week, but keep it going and I'll have some OC this weekend.

>>54667589
God damn, this is metal as fuck. An army based around a wealthy noble with a Halo Device (in various stages of transformation) and an army of thralls, servants, etc. would be awesome.

>>54668340
One could imagine an alternate version of the bloodlines in OP's synopsis corresponding to five different Halo Devices that fell into the hands of power-hungry heretics, giving rise to different strains of vampire.

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>>54667589
>>54667825
A lot of us, especially the writefags, are fans of when 40k was more aware of the fact that it was a joke, and was blatantly "what if WHFB were in space... and also a Judge Dredd inspired satire"

We intentionally made a faction that was
>WHFB inspired
>Not meant to be taken totally seriously
>Capable of being taken seriously if you MUST.
just the way 40k should be.

>>54651499
>>54651543
>>54651569
>>54651606
>>54651647
So, why are these guys vampires and not just transhuman ubermensch types?

Was it ever settled why they need to feed on the living and avoid sunlight and all that shit?

>>54669768
>Was it ever settled why they need to feed on the living and avoid sunlight and all that shit?
It was implied, but never directly stated, that because the nanodermis technology was derived from and corrupted by C'Tan essence, it uses souls to fuel it (hence the blood/soul drinking) and rapidly burns off soul-fuel when exposed directly to stars (because, the C'Tan were the STAR gods.)

TLDR: because C'Tan origin.

OK, so while I do generally prefer 40k when it is inspired by WHFB, what would a nanodermis vampire bloodline look like that was entirely new, and not inspired by any aspect of WHFB?

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>>54650111