Warhammer The Iron Empire (Warhammer 40k)

[The Whispering Monk]

I wonder if subzero temperatures of Kiamara might slow him enough for Tristan to target him with fire from orbital defense system. It would be logical to Tristan, the bigger artillery, the better.

Combine that with all the artillery that the city nodes can shove out.

 

[Thunderscourge]

I wonder if subzero temperatures of Kiamara might slow him enough for Tristan to target him with fire from orbital defense system. It would be logical to Tristan, the bigger artillery, the better.

Combine that with all the artillery that the city nodes can shove out.

You are correct that such a method is entirely logical for Tristan, for this is someone who rather than deal with a relatively backwards species of Xenos threatening his forces wiped them out from orbit just to be certain no Iron Warriors would be harmed. He really doesn't care about fighting fair or honorably, just what achieves the results he is looking for, and those tend to be maximum damage at minimal cost.

While I cannot speak directly on future conflicts, I can perhaps show another story's way of showing that all the regeneration and durability in the world means little in the face of overwhelming firepower.



If you can't stop it, and it won't end, there is nothing keeping them from blowing you away until it sticks. The absolute counter to Palamedes is a bloodless battle, and artillery fire and orbital bombardment both can meet that criteria.



Of course if Palamedes has a blood ritual prepared to teleport out of the bombardment he'd be safe, along with many other possible outs, so it's not particularly easy to catch him out under such circumstances: the Silver Scorpions after all had artillery and lost due to being unwilling to fire upon their own forces who could keep him pinned, and if nobody is keeping Palamedes in place eradicating his entire being would be difficult.

In regards to the artillery upon Kimara, each Fortress City has enough firepower to wipe out a Chapter of Astartes from miles away before they could reach it (using rough calculations from the tabletop, but it feels about right) and they are set up on a hexagram grid so that they can cover one another from attacks. Someone in range of all 6 being bombarded by hundreds of Earthshaker cannons and regional variants of them would have little chance of survival, which was the point of the grid system because why give your enemies the means to actually get a foothold upon your world? Isolde permanently reshaped a mountain range with one city's bombardment, so more would be total obliteration.

 

[PsihoKekec]

Makes me wonder, how well would that fleet of hundred ships fare against the brand new battleship that Tristan is captaining.

Of course if Palamedes has a blood ritual prepared to teleport out of the bombardment he'd be safe,

It would be all too bad if that blood ritual was tied to his flagship, that would be by that point destroyed by either orbital defences or Iron Empire fleet, making it do or die fight.

(using rough calculations from the tabletop, but it feels about right)

To be fair Space Marines are rather nerfed on the tabletop, compared to canon fiction, but hundred Earthshaker guns working on the grid square [soviet anthem intensifies] you are in, is situation that even Orkz would feel uncomfortable about. Hell, hundred Earthshakers working on neighbouring grid square (hex) would be very effective cure for constipation.

 

[ATP]

So,best option for Iron Warriors would be use TRistan alone with lots of automatons,and keep attacking Palomedes with kind of loitering ammo with plasma warheads.
If Tristan manage to keep distance,it should eventually kill demon.

P.S How to keep distance? gave him Tau hoover tank with Ion schield and drones.Palomedes would try to gain on him only to be pulverized by more and more plasma suicide drones.

 

[Thunderscourge]

Makes me wonder, how well would that fleet of hundred ships fare against the brand new battleship that Tristan is captaining.

Well, you might have your answer in the upcoming "Bishop's Boundary" update given that is the name of said ship and it will be focused on it. Whether they end up as a part of its testing and whatnot we will have to see, but there's a fair chance that a naval conflict between the Iron Warriors and Word Bearers will involve both if/when such a thing occurs.

Bishop's Boundary is a rough translation of the name Bismarck, taken from the German leader in the 1800's and the ship named after him that took 400+ shots without sinking (notably they sunk their own ship in the end to prevent it being taken) while fighting a large portion of the British Navy on its own. In-universe its name will be a result of the Iron Legion's anti-belief and anti-Imperium of Mankind mindset, so it works both in and out of universe for different purposes.

Also the captain of the Bismarck notably refused to Nazi salute Hitler before departing on the ship, so a vessel inspired by it belonging to a renegade faction feels right.

It would be all too bad if that blood ritual was tied to his flagship, that would be by that point destroyed by either orbital defences or Iron Empire fleet, making it do or die fight.

This is true, though of course the exact circumstances have yet to be revealed. If possible though the Iron Empire would want to defeat as much of the Word Bearer fleet as they can despite it massively outnumbering them, the balancing factor of course being the presence of the upcoming Bishop's Boundary that they have been investing resources in for some time now.

To be fair Space Marines are rather nerfed on the tabletop, compared to canon fiction, but hundred Earthshaker guns working on the grid square [soviet anthem intensifies] you are in, is situation that even Orkz would feel uncomfortable about. Hell, hundred Earthshakers working on neighbouring grid square (hex) would be very effective cure for constipation.

Given that it's a hex-grid if you only take that one hex into account it's a total of 600 Earthshakers or Earthshaker-variants, then all of their anti-air artillery that can be repurposed for ground duty if necessary (Hydras), and then all of their orbital defenses that could hypothetically be redirected given that the Fortress Cities were developed to allow their weapons to fire in any direction.

It would take some calculation, but by concentrating such firepower all in one spot there is basically nothing in the setting that could survive which makes the past battle of Kimara vs Imperial Fists make a lot of sense in retrospect and also why records about it would be sealed: it was likely a brutal affair that wasn't pretty at all, since while they were only sieging one Fortress City the hex-grid was already being established and even a small force put in each of the same hex's cities could make use of a lot of the firepower they hold.

Once those side-Fortresses get rushed and taken the last one will fall much easier, but still it would leave quite the bloody nose for someone attempting an invasion. DORNLIED indeed, as the box revealed beneath the ruins of that battle.

Whereas Imperial Fist defenses tend to focus on being difficult to take, Iron Warriors ones on average are built to make taking them simply not worth it by how much they will bleed you to get them. Combine both philosophies and you are just not going to have a good time attacking such fortifications, dying by the thousands while not leaving a scratch on your opponent.

 

[PsihoKekec]

It would take some calculation

If Iron Empire only had someone who is good at that kind of thing...

 

[Thunderscourge]

If Iron Empire only had someone who is good at that kind of thing...

If only!

 

[ATP]

If only!

That explain all,with such commanders Iron Warriors arleady win.
Jokes aside - in space you could use missiles with X-ray warkeads from Honor Harrington,for supporting from orbit rods from God.

 

[Thunderscourge]

I wanted to thank you guys for actually engaging with the content I put out despite there only being a few of you. I work hard on it, but it isn't Isekai, Worm, Crossover, or SI so SB doesn't flock to it like a moth to a flame. They'd claim otherwise, but the fact that a certain type of story had to be quarantined to its own section away from everything else should say a lot...but here I can post and people actually discuss the story. It's a novel thing, and I am thankful even if I do not know you all very well.

And yes, I am even thankful to you as well ATP, even though I fully admit I have no idea what you're saying half the time. You at least put thought and effort into your posts which I appreciate, even if I do not agree with them all, because I can see that you care.

Thank you all again, as you actually make the story feel appreciated in some way and that is a valuable thing to me.

 

[The Whispering Monk]

And thank you for the effort you're putting into this story.

It's making me think of actually playing a non-Space Wolf marine force!

 

[Paladin Wulfen]

I wanted to thank you guys for actually engaging with the content I put out despite there only being a few of you. I work hard on it, but it isn't Isekai, Worm, Crossover, or SI so SB doesn't flock to it like a moth to a flame. They'd claim otherwise, but the fact that a certain type of story had to be quarantined to its own section away from everything else should say a lot...but here I can post and people actually discuss the story. It's a novel thing, and I am thankful even if I do not know you all very well.

And yes, I am even thankful to you as well ATP, even though I fully admit I have no idea what you're saying half the time. You at least put thought and effort into your posts which I appreciate, even if I do not agree with them all, because I can see that you care.

Thank you all again, as you actually make the story feel appreciated in some way and that is a valuable thing to me.

If I can I hug you Thunder only for this masterpiece.
I am a very affectionate person who can't avoid give love.

 

[PsihoKekec]

The curse of being good. You did a great work at world building, making distinct, well defined characters and an interesting story, but I guess it lacks something that would attract more casual readers. You don't have established cannon characters turned bad/good, you don't have teen angst, instead you set out to make a story that could stand on it's own merits and while you succeeded, it is not what attracts people these days.
I guess if you had Tristan fall in with big titted eldar gf the readers would come in droves, but I kind of stand with Salamanders on this matter.

One of the reason why people don't involve themselves in your story has nothing to do with your writing though. The last few years drained people, with netizens constantly arguing about kung-flu, politics and whatever the current thing the media is pushing, they don't have energy to do anything else but passively consume entertainment. Writers and stories which established themselves before this low energy era still get considerable involvement, but the new stories get very little, I have seen multiple stories with great potential on various forums get next to no attention despite good writing, so I reckon if the story started a few years earlier you could have built a much larger loyal following that by itself would attract more readers and more involvement.

 

[ATP]

I wanted to thank you guys for actually engaging with the content I put out despite there only being a few of you. I work hard on it, but it isn't Isekai, Worm, Crossover, or SI so SB doesn't flock to it like a moth to a flame. They'd claim otherwise, but the fact that a certain type of story had to be quarantined to its own section away from everything else should say a lot...but here I can post and people actually discuss the story. It's a novel thing, and I am thankful even if I do not know you all very well.

And yes, I am even thankful to you as well ATP, even though I fully admit I have no idea what you're saying half the time. You at least put thought and effort into your posts which I appreciate, even if I do not agree with them all, because I can see that you care.

Thank you all again, as you actually make the story feel appreciated in some way and that is a valuable thing to me.

Sorry for being unclear.
You made good story which explain logically why nobody destroyed Iron Warriors yet - and no matter if they survive or not,it still would be good story.
Now,i do not care if Tristan survive and have babies with Isold,or if they die fighting valiantly,as long as you continue delivering good chapters.

Palamedes /Tristan fight - Palamedes must try to get in melee with him and as many as possible other humans/Astartes.
Tristan must evade melee ,use firepower and automatons to keep Palamedes in one place without letting Palamedes fight anybody alive.

So...maybe Palamedes,just to get more blood,attack random cyvilians/slaneeshi cultists/techpriests first? blood is blood,after all.

The curse of being good. You did a great work at world building, making distinct, well defined characters and an interesting story, but I guess it lacks something that would attract more casual readers. You don't have established cannon characters turned bad/good, you don't have teen angst, instead you set out to make a story that could stand on it's own merits and while you succeeded, it is not what attracts people these days.
I guess if you had Tristan fall in with big titted eldar gf the readers would come in droves, but I kind of stand with Salamanders on this matter.

One of the reason why people don't involve themselves in your story has nothing to do with your writing though. The last few years drained people, with netizens constantly arguing about kung-flu, politics and whatever the current thing the media is pushing, they don't have energy to do anything else but passively consume entertainment. Writers and stories which established themselves before this low energy era still get considerable involvement, but the new stories get very little, I have seen multiple stories with great potential on various forums get next to no attention despite good writing, so I reckon if the story started a few years earlier you could have built a much larger loyal following that by itself would attract more readers and more involvement.

True.Especially about Dark elves.Only masochists would want them.
Could you deliver lists of best new stories?

 

[Thunderscourge]

Before I respond individually, I want to say thank you all again for your support. I was having a few very rough days and your comments and support have helped, so know that I appreciate it sincerely and am thankful.

And thank you for the effort you're putting into this story.

It's making me think of actually playing a non-Space Wolf marine force!

FUCK YOU LEMAN YOU FURRY FUCK

Sorry, my inner Thousand Son appreciator/Magnus spoke out there for a moment. I actually remember Space Wolves from my first experience playing 40k since at the time of my introduction they were the meta army in my local meta, and so after getting curbstomped by veteran players they suggested proxying my marines as them...and then I won. 😁

My hope with the codex is that when it is completed it can inspire people to do their own unique armies and whatnot with spins on Iron Warriors and other such forces, and I am compiling proxy models for various characters and units that would be included in the codex so that if someone wants to do an Iron Empire themed army they can do so. To prevent spoilers I haven't released the full ruleset yet, but I am thinking people will enjoy the translation of the characters from page to play.

One hint at what is to come however is Earthshaker variants available in different force slots, such as an Elite version and a Fast Attack slot one as is only right for Iron Warriors who are obviously going to be based on an artillery-heavy world. As for who lives and dies and thus makes it into the Codex's main or Legends segments...well we'll see.

If I can I hug you Thunder only for this masterpiece.
I am a very affectionate person who can't avoid give love.

Thank you, I appreciate it. Have internet candy.

The curse of being good. You did a great work at world building, making distinct, well defined characters and an interesting story, but I guess it lacks something that would attract more casual readers. You don't have established cannon characters turned bad/good, you don't have teen angst, instead you set out to make a story that could stand on it's own merits and while you succeeded, it is not what attracts people these days.

I just seek to write character driven stories that build from the start of a protagonist's journey to an end (even if its not the end), and that works for some and doesn't for others. I don't give them everything from the outset, they work towards it and earn what they get, and so they undergo the sort of Hero's journey in a more realistic sense than a condensed movie-like story that just is a highlight reel of events. Just look at how popular various manga/manhwa are that have protagonists start out completely busted and overpowered, it's in-vogue so to speak and fulfills various power fantasies that slower grinds don't tend to...but a slow grind to a near inevitable conclusion is how the Iron Warriors operate and so I feel it is the type of storytelling they should receive.

I also write each chapter as a sort of standalone short-story comprised of sections that each individually would be a chapter in another work, but because they fall under the same umbrella and would be the same section in a codex I release them together. In the same way I write events in a semi-historical manner like the narration in Legend of the Galactic Heroes because it is a story being conveyed after the fact, so it's a bit different from normal stories in that regard. I am writing a codex, and part of that is conveying a vast history of factions and characters that span hundreds if not thousands of years so that the reader understands the specific slice they fit into in such a developed and complex setting.

In that way a more general audience isn't expected, but it is always disappointing when even the niche audience you have cultivated says nothing since without hearing what people enjoy and what they don't you can't improve the story or your skills.

I guess if you had Tristan fall in with big titted eldar gf the readers would come in droves, but I kind of stand with Salamanders on this matter.

The Eldar will actually have some presence in events as the Drukhari update showed, with their technology coming up again in The Iron Lich via the Iron Phylactery that now rests in Tristan's chest to replace his lost secondary heart.

I can firmly promise that none of our cast have big tit Eldar in their romantic future...but I did introduce an Incubi who was raised by a Human ultimately and so his tastes may be a bit 'different' compared to his other depraved kin. After all it wouldn't be Drukhari if they didn't have their own disturbed interests and desires, that just comes with the territory.

One of the reason why people don't involve themselves in your story has nothing to do with your writing though. The last few years drained people, with netizens constantly arguing about kung-flu, politics and whatever the current thing the media is pushing, they don't have energy to do anything else but passively consume entertainment. Writers and stories which established themselves before this low energy era still get considerable involvement, but the new stories get very little, I have seen multiple stories with great potential on various forums get next to no attention despite good writing, so I reckon if the story started a few years earlier you could have built a much larger loyal following that by itself would attract more readers and more involvement.

The unfortunate side-effect of timing and phenomena outside of any individual's control, but since I can't change the past or present I can only keep planning and writing for the future. I don't really gear my work to mass consumption anyways, especially since I am fine with an active yet niche community since there you can form better relationships and it's less creator/follower and more peer to peer.

Sorry for being unclear.

English isn't everyone's first language so it isn't your fault.

You made good story which explain logically why nobody destroyed Iron Warriors yet - and no matter if they survive or not,it still would be good story.

Careful planning and hard work brought together allow for them to continue their operations as well as other situational assistance such as the presence of the Word Bearers who have a vested interest in personally wiping them out (not the Imperium) covering up the Iron Warrior's tracks and their own when possible.

Now,i do not care if Tristan survive and have babies with Isold,or if they die fighting valiantly,as long as you continue delivering good chapters.

Valiant deaths are on the horizon, but we'll see just whose lives are to be lost as future updates unfold! As for Tristan and Isolde on the subject of hypothetical children:



Of course the character talking is more like Levente, but "great big monsters that will conquer the world" about sums up what the giant Isolde and colossal Tristan could produce. After all, Tristan is what happens when someone who would naturally be a giant taller than 99.9999999% of Humans gets super soldier augmentation to become a mighty warrior. Given that excessive bone growth is a flaw in the Iron Warriors that was seemingly remedied by Ossus (given what was seen in the I Am Alpharius update) it's possible Tristan is benefitting from the fact Iron Warriors just happen to have excessive growth as a trait now without the downside thanks to a skilled Apothecary (who may have had help from Fabius Bile).

Palamedes /Tristan fight - Palamedes must try to get in melee with him and as many as possible other humans/Astartes.
Tristan must evade melee ,use firepower and automatons to keep Palamedes in one place without letting Palamedes fight anybody alive.

So...maybe Palamedes,just to get more blood,attack random cyvilians/slaneeshi cultists/techpriests first? blood is blood,after all.

You are correct, and ultimately Palamedes would want to strike at a moment where fighting is already occurring: if he strikes at an ongoing battle and joins in on the frenzy his foes won't be able to readily disengage or avoid him or his forces, allowing him to get the blood train going and for him to snowball the battle in his own favor.

Tristan meanwhile benefits from an isolated battlefield where they would be dueling, as he's already shown himself able to tank Palamedes before making direct preparations to fight him even when blindsided and caught off guard by the Daemon Prince (their first meeting) and it took Palamedes using his skills in a way outside Tristan's knowledge to severely wound him (their second meeting). Now Tristan knows what Palamedes can do, so a third battle where Tristan is ready for him actually isn't a hopeless boss fight like for an average Astarte. Tristan's been prepping to avenge his family and world since he was a child, and so if any mere mortal has got a shot it'll be him.

This isn't to say it would be easy: a single severe slip up that lets Palamedes draw blood would begin to spiral the fight out of Tristan's control, so ironically a fast foe who can outpace the fast Palamedes would be a better counter since Palamedes couldn't hope to draw blood then if he's missing every hit...Tristan cannot ultimately be a speed-based tank because he is simply too large and weighs too much to move quickly, so he's doubled down on raw defense. It's not the perfect counter to Palamedes so it can still fail, but he at least will be able to give it a shot.

Essentially the perfect counter to Palamedes would be a Necron who is wickedly fast, a Psyker who can manipulate the blood in his body against him, or a incredibly skilled and supernaturally fast duelist of another species who could grind his massive HP to nothing while Palamedes just misses again and again...Tristan is none of these things, but he's determined to win anyways so is stacking what cards he can in his deck to still win.

 

[PsihoKekec]

Oh now I remembered one media character that is similar to Tristan, the Goblin Slayer, they both have this monomaniac obsession to do their utmost to stack the deck in their favor, so they won't need to rely on the roll of dice in the pursuit of their goals, while being essentially decent people who are totally out of their depths when it comes to human interaction, obsessed with learning, improving, preparing and overcoming.

I can firmly promise that none of our cast have big tit Eldar in their romantic future

My inner Black Templar is relived

but it is always disappointing when even the niche audience you have cultivated says nothing since without hearing what people enjoy and what they don't you can't improve the story or your skills.

It's just the general malaise, I mean most of people were passive consumers before, but now ratio is even worse, but I can understand how this can be demoralizing, with all the work you put into this story.

Of course the character talking is more like Levente, but "great big monsters that will conquer the world" about sums up what the giant Isolde and colossal Tristan could produce.

Someone as socially awkward as Tristan getting in with Isolde (who is no social butterfly herself, but still far ahead of Tristan) should cause a lot of hilarity, it should contrast all the bloodshed, destruction and general bleakness of life on Kimara quite nicely.

 

[Thunderscourge]

Oh now I remembered one media character that is similar to Tristan, the Goblin Slayer, they both have this monomaniac obsession to do their utmost to stack the deck in their favor, so they won't need to rely on the roll of dice in the pursuit of their goals, while being essentially decent people who are totally out of their depths when it comes to human interaction, obsessed with learning, improving, preparing and overcoming.

That is a very apt comparison, especially since both are essentially in universes with actual gods who can dictate the tides of fate yet they refuse to leave their outcomes up to such capricious beings.

Tristan learns of a prophecy that has him and Palamedes fighting to the death on an icy world? He literally avoids them as best as he can directly afterward, because he knows his foe believes in such things and he can delay confrontation by just not stepping into whatever game is being played. He knows that his foe is a monster in combat who can slaughter even Astartes? He reinforces the Logos, armor that can deter a Daemon Primarch, with every single effective defensive tool he is able to get his hands on. His foe specializes in large scale battles? Prepare in advance to have your forces leave the battlefield before he can actually ramp up his powers.

A particular weakness of Tristan's however is that he is so obsessed with controlling battle to his favor that he falls victim to the raw data of it like Perturabo once did, and so he's a step behind where he should be. Back when the tabletop game had Initiative scores Tristan would be a firm 1 as compared to the extremely high scores fighters like Palamedes and Levente would possess, as he's always reacting rather than taking the initiative. The perfect is the enemy of the good, and by trying too hard to do things precisely in the chaos of battle it has led to him sustaining grievous injuries he may have not otherwise received (being run through by a Beastman as a Neophyte, Palamedes ripping him apart in their first meeting, being pushed back by Palamedes' subordinates and then blindsided by a Demolisher cannon, etc). In this way it's a blessing and a curse of a personality trait, as the same obsessive drive to control things also means he tries too hard to do so at times when it might be better to let some things go.

Tristan like the Goblin Slayer is a good person at heart, but he can be cold and calculating just like Goblin Slayer as well: he'll wipe a species from existence with an orbital strike rather than risk his men fighting it if there's nothing objectively gained by direct battle, but if he's right beside an innocent civilian who is about to be crushed alongside their child in a burning building he will protect them as best he can. He grew up first as the son of a noble knight, and so his loyalties and convictions are set in stone from when he first swore himself to Jarn's cause.

Tristan will do what he believes in right, but sometimes what is 'right' from a rational perspective will be monstrous from a purely empathetic one. His usually muted (externally at least) emotions shine through when he has opportunity to be noble, such as his interactions with the Centaurs and the Imperial citizens he attempted to save. His pride of his heritage perhaps amplified by his childhood trauma regarding his background means that, at the end of the day, he considers himself heir to his father's noble nature and tries to live up to it even if it clashes with his other traits.

The childhood trauma is a big similarity between Tristan and Goblin Slayer, as they both reacted similarly to it by dedicating their entire existence to eradicating the cause of said trauma: for GS, it was Goblins of course, but for Tristan it was the 'beasts' that he came to know as the servants of Chaos. To that end he dedicated himself to a cause that is diametrically opposed to them that saved him, and he has spent every moment since to both serve his saviors and also to prepare himself to one day wipe out every single Chaos cultist, Astarte, and Daemon he comes across. He's obsessive, to an unhealthy degree, and it's why he's the loner he is that eschews the dining hall to instead spend weeks at his workstation just to further his designs.

Even so, like with Goblin Slayer one can understand why: in the place of GS's sister Tristan witnessed the brutal massacre of his family, only surviving by barricading himself inside his home without access to food for what was seemingly weeks. Starving, surrounded by death, and no doubt able to hear the horrors happening outside all along as his town was purged bit by bit resulted in the village's local aspergers kid dedicating his sheer concentrated and weaponized autism into killing all responsible for the tragedy with whatever he could make with his own two hands.

Whereas before he would have ended up being some quiet blacksmith who had the mind to invent but no creativity, someone who wouldn't rock the boat perhaps unless something lit a spark in his mind, he's been shaped into someone who could actually deliver setbacks to the minions of Chaos. They (and Jarn who noticed the opportunity presented when he found a Medieval boy capable of semi-replicating tech he saw) turned him from some nobody into a monster of their own creation. Like Goblin Slayer he shouldn't have become anyone of importance, he shouldn't influence the greater stage of things, but through determination and a will to just not die Tristan has risen far above his original potential.

My inner Black Templar is relived

Speaking of the Black Templar I have some plans for a few of their members being shown with the local Sisters of Battle forces given the propensity of Black Templar to crusade.

It's just the general malaise, I mean most of people were passive consumers before, but now ratio is even worse, but I can understand how this can be demoralizing, with all the work you put into this story.

Malaise and apathy can be just as painful as outright scorn and hatred, just in different ways, because it can come from those you would expect to at least be supportive rather than people you don't know just screeching into the void.

Someone as socially awkward as Tristan getting in with Isolde (who is no social butterfly herself, but still far ahead of Tristan) should cause a lot of hilarity, it should contrast all the bloodshed, destruction and general bleakness of life on Kimara quite nicely.

As for possible romance with Isolde I will not say much on the matter except that she canonically already has a crush on him after seeing recordings of his training (suspiciously placed in the Schola of all places by what is likely Asier), and so Tristan has that going for him at least. Tristan's personality is such that he either cares about something intensely or he doesn't care about it almost at all, and so either he would take a deep liking to Isolde the way he has random things he's come across (Basilisks and their models for example, because Iron Warriors are canonically 40k players) or he just wouldn't care.

You are right though, it would be funny to see them interact, and I look forward to such a potential future where they share screentime! Tristan still does not have his own Ixolotl, so if they spend time together then he too could have Bo as a companion (whose lineage likely comes from Jarn's Arien if the truth is that the Commandant is the lost prince of Kimara). Jarn himself likely would push for such a union in this hypothetical, as he is leaning on Tristan succeeding him and tying him into the family bloodline would tie that up in a nice bow.

A point in Isolde's favor would also be that she makes Levente look short with her being just beneath the normal Astarte height and him just barely reaching it. There is only like an inch difference between them after all because she's just that huge for a Human and he's just that much of a manlet for an Astarte, though he's a good foot taller roughly in Terminator armor like how Tristan's even larger armor makes his colossal size even more massive. Humiliating Levente by existing would be a definite win in Tristan's column.

In terms of personality Tristan and Isolde probably will get along because while not the same person, they share a similar direct bluntness. Good example was how Isolde went from 0 to 100 instantly when confronted during a meal, just slamming her nuisance into the table face-first and twisting her arm without batting an eyelash and embodies this kind of energy.

 

[ATP]

That is a very apt comparison, especially since both are essentially in universes with actual gods who can dictate the tides of fate yet they refuse to leave their outcomes up to such capricious beings.

Tristan learns of a prophecy that has him and Palamedes fighting to the death on an icy world? He literally avoids them as best as he can directly afterward, because he knows his foe believes in such things and he can delay confrontation by just not stepping into whatever game is being played. He knows that his foe is a monster in combat who can slaughter even Astartes? He reinforces the Logos, armor that can deter a Daemon Primarch, with every single effective defensive tool he is able to get his hands on. His foe specializes in large scale battles? Prepare in advance to have your forces leave the battlefield before he can actually ramp up his powers.

A particular weakness of Tristan's however is that he is so obsessed with controlling battle to his favor that he falls victim to the raw data of it like Perturabo once did, and so he's a step behind where he should be. Back when the tabletop game had Initiative scores Tristan would be a firm 1 as compared to the extremely high scores fighters like Palamedes and Levente would possess, as he's always reacting rather than taking the initiative. The perfect is the enemy of the good, and by trying too hard to do things precisely in the chaos of battle it has led to him sustaining grievous injuries he may have not otherwise received (being run through by a Beastman as a Neophyte, Palamedes ripping him apart in their first meeting, being pushed back by Palamedes' subordinates and then blindsided by a Demolisher cannon, etc). In this way it's a blessing and a curse of a personality trait, as the same obsessive drive to control things also means he tries too hard to do so at times when it might be better to let some things go.

Tristan like the Goblin Slayer is a good person at heart, but he can be cold and calculating just like Goblin Slayer as well: he'll wipe a species from existence with an orbital strike rather than risk his men fighting it if there's nothing objectively gained by direct battle, but if he's right beside an innocent civilian who is about to be crushed alongside their child in a burning building he will protect them as best he can. He grew up first as the son of a noble knight, and so his loyalties and convictions are set in stone from when he first swore himself to Jarn's cause.

Tristan will do what he believes in right, but sometimes what is 'right' from a rational perspective will be monstrous from a purely empathetic one. His usually muted (externally at least) emotions shine through when he has opportunity to be noble, such as his interactions with the Centaurs and the Imperial citizens he attempted to save. His pride of his heritage perhaps amplified by his childhood trauma regarding his background means that, at the end of the day, he considers himself heir to his father's noble nature and tries to live up to it even if it clashes with his other traits.

The childhood trauma is a big similarity between Tristan and Goblin Slayer, as they both reacted similarly to it by dedicating their entire existence to eradicating the cause of said trauma: for GS, it was Goblins of course, but for Tristan it was the 'beasts' that he came to know as the servants of Chaos. To that end he dedicated himself to a cause that is diametrically opposed to them that saved him, and he has spent every moment since to both serve his saviors and also to prepare himself to one day wipe out every single Chaos cultist, Astarte, and Daemon he comes across. He's obsessive, to an unhealthy degree, and it's why he's the loner he is that eschews the dining hall to instead spend weeks at his workstation just to further his designs.

Even so, like with Goblin Slayer one can understand why: in the place of GS's sister Tristan witnessed the brutal massacre of his family, only surviving by barricading himself inside his home without access to food for what was seemingly weeks. Starving, surrounded by death, and no doubt able to hear the horrors happening outside all along as his town was purged bit by bit resulted in the village's local aspergers kid dedicating his sheer concentrated and weaponized autism into killing all responsible for the tragedy with whatever he could make with his own two hands.

Whereas before he would have ended up being some quiet blacksmith who had the mind to invent but no creativity, someone who wouldn't rock the boat perhaps unless something lit a spark in his mind, he's been shaped into someone who could actually deliver setbacks to the minions of Chaos. They (and Jarn who noticed the opportunity presented when he found a Medieval boy capable of semi-replicating tech he saw) turned him from some nobody into a monster of their own creation. Like Goblin Slayer he shouldn't have become anyone of importance, he shouldn't influence the greater stage of things, but through determination and a will to just not die Tristan has risen far above his original potential.





Speaking of the Black Templar I have some plans for a few of their members being shown with the local Sisters of Battle forces given the propensity of Black Templar to crusade.



Malaise and apathy can be just as painful as outright scorn and hatred, just in different ways, because it can come from those you would expect to at least be supportive rather than people you don't know just screeching into the void.



As for possible romance with Isolde I will not say much on the matter except that she canonically already has a crush on him after seeing recordings of his training (suspiciously placed in the Schola of all places by what is likely Asier), and so Tristan has that going for him at least. Tristan's personality is such that he either cares about something intensely or he doesn't care about it almost at all, and so either he would take a deep liking to Isolde the way he has random things he's come across (Basilisks and their models for example, because Iron Warriors are canonically 40k players) or he just wouldn't care.

You are right though, it would be funny to see them interact, and I look forward to such a potential future where they share screentime! Tristan still does not have his own Ixolotl, so if they spend time together then he too could have Bo as a companion (whose lineage likely comes from Jarn's Arien if the truth is that the Commandant is the lost prince of Kimara). Jarn himself likely would push for such a union in this hypothetical, as he is leaning on Tristan succeeding him and tying him into the family bloodline would tie that up in a nice bow.

A point in Isolde's favor would also be that she makes Levente look short with her being just beneath the normal Astarte height and him just barely reaching it. There is only like an inch difference between them after all because she's just that huge for a Human and he's just that much of a manlet for an Astarte, though he's a good foot taller roughly in Terminator armor like how Tristan's even larger armor makes his colossal size even more massive. Humiliating Levente by existing would be a definite win in Tristan's column.

In terms of personality Tristan and Isolde probably will get along because while not the same person, they share a similar direct bluntness. Good example was how Isolde went from 0 to 100 instantly when confronted during a meal, just slamming her nuisance into the table face-first and twisting her arm without batting an eyelash and embodies this kind of energy.

1.And both GS and Tristan try to achieve impossible - becouse wiping out Chaos or goblins is simply impossible in both settlings.But - we like them,becouse they still try.

2.Yes,Black Templars could join fun on Kimara.With more hot sisters !
Dark Eldar girlfiends are stupid idea,with one exception - it would be fun,if Levante ,after surviving fight with Queen of Blades,become her pupil and boyfriend later !


3.Demon of South from old christian teaching - making people to lazy to act.Maybe it come from deserts to internet ourdays?
P.S could you made such demon in your story?

4.It would be fun if Tristan agree initially to date Isolde only becouse she is taller then Levante,and share his love for Basilisks.And...date in Basilisk...you knew,go for it!

Althought their models from History died tragically and united on cementary,so their story probable end not well.
Palomedes have better chances for winning,after all.


Back to Palomedes -

1.First we have engegement is space where Kimerans could be wiped out or saved by Bismarck.

2.Then we have battle for Kimara - whoever win,Emperors children would lost - becouse either Iron Warriors,IoM or Palomedes would wipe them out.I would pity for them if they were not slaneesh cultists.
But - who would win?

Iron Warriors must engege first,so Palomedes would choose when and where to attack,which mean,that he should win.
But - Tristan have his tricks,so there is small chance for victory here.

Palomedes - shoud wait ,and attack to wipe as many as possible - preferable some Kimerian city,so Tristan must engage him there.

Tristan - should use tons of firepower as support and fight with automatons,maybe many suicidal drones with plasma warheadfs attacking Palomedes?
Tau hoovering tanks or few,for him to fire at demon from safe distance would work,too.Maybe even some Dark Eldar stuff?

And,Tau battlesuits could fly - why not made Logos flying,too,in case of all Tristan tanks being destroyed ?

No matter if he survive or not,i wait for next chapter.




3.Demon is Acedia - and it is demon of noon/middday,not South.My mistake,południe mean in polish language both noon/midday and South.

 

[Paladin Wulfen]

We can know what happen with Kalles, that Kimarian girl who go with the Wostyn?

 

[Thunderscourge]

We can know what happen with Kalles, that Kimarian girl who go with the Wostyn?

You can and will, just not yet! Glad you remembered her, but her status is unknown to the cast and she isn't a focal character so her specifics will remain in the dark for a bit.

We will be getting a Clausura bit at some point since she is going to be the focal character for the Sisters of Battle like how Isolde is for Kimara, Tristan is for the IW, and the Drukhari duo are for the Drukhari.

 

[Paladin Wulfen]

You can and will, just not yet! Glad you remembered her, but her status is unknown to the cast and she isn't a focal character so her specifics will remain in the dark for a bit.

I cant avoid imagine his fault like some sexual toy used by the Wostyn in revenge for the "uprising"