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Alaster Karo was just an OrdinaryHighSchoolStudent until he challenged a member of the Storm Ravens Space Marine Chapter to a fight in the school gym. Little did he know that this was but the first step on a rip-roaring adventure full of chitinous horrors, daemonic plots, interplanetary intrigue [[ArsonMurderAndJaywalking and exploding waiters]].
to:
Alaster Karo was just an OrdinaryHighSchoolStudent until he challenged a member of the Storm Ravens Space Marine Chapter to a fight in the school gym. [[LittleDidIKnow Little did he know know]] that this was but the first step on a rip-roaring adventure full of chitinous horrors, daemonic plots, interplanetary intrigue [[ArsonMurderAndJaywalking and exploding waiters]].
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Whoops, legit forgot I decided not to add this at the time. Commented out because still not sure how well it fits.
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* AwesomeMomentOfCrowning:
to:
%% * AwesomeMomentOfCrowning: When Section Karo is found to have earned their geneseed, and presented to their company. Also, their oath-taking ceremony.
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** Alaster Karo before he gets geneseed, starting the story going toe-to-toe with a fully augmented Space Marine in armor, then proving his mettle against [[{{Cult}} Originists]], [[AlwaysChaoticEvil Dark Eldar]], and [[BugWar Tyranids]] all before finally earning his geneseed.
to:
** Alaster Karo before he gets geneseed, starting the story going toe-to-toe with a fully augmented Space Marine in armor, then proving his mettle against [[{{Cult}} Originists]], [[AlwaysChaoticEvil Dark Eldar]], and [[BugWar Tyranids]] all before finally earning his geneseed. The rest of Section Karo, being Patreus and Nasty, also take near equal part in the latter three fights, and so also qualify.
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* AwesomeMomentOfCrowning:
Changed line(s) 20 (click to see context) from:
** The [[BugWar Tyranids]], who just want to [[HordeOfAlienLocusts eat everything]], and are never portrayed positively or sympathetically in any way. Their HiveMind is shown as having a cold, ruthless, cunning and calculating intelligence (and occasional experimentative bent), but is nonetheless ultimately frequently outmaneuvered by the Space Marines in individual engagements. They're ultimately portrayed as a ruthless, implacable, terrifying and utterly inhuman force, and [[GuiltFreeExterminationWar no quarter is ever asked or given]].
to:
** The [[BugWar Tyranids]], who just want to [[HordeOfAlienLocusts eat everything]], and are never portrayed positively or sympathetically in any way. Their HiveMind is shown as having a cold, ruthless, cunning and calculating intelligence (and occasional experimentative bent), but is nonetheless ultimately frequently outmaneuvered by the Space Marines in individual engagements. They're The 'nids are ultimately portrayed as a ruthless, implacable, terrifying and utterly inhuman force, and [[GuiltFreeExterminationWar no quarter is ever asked or given]].
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* SpaceMarine: Natch, the story is about how Alaster, Nasty and Patreus become, then serve as these. Plenty of others also feature, both Storm Ravens and other Chapters.
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* TenMinuteRetirement: An involuntary version when [[spoiler: Alastor, Nasty and Patreus are failed from their training and busted down to Chapter Serfs due to starting a brawl. Of course, then the [[BugWar Tyranids]] show up, and [[SmallNameBigEgo Sarok]] shows his [[DirtyCoward true colors]] and his pals do nothing to stop him, leaving the Chapter even shorter on recruits...]]
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** Alaster Karo before he gets geneseed, starting the story going toe-to-toe with a fully augmented Space Marine in armor, then proving his mettle against [[{{Cult}} Originists]], [[AlwaysChaoticEvil Dark Eldar]], and [[BugWar Tyranids]] all before finally earning his geneseed.
* BlackAndGreyMorality: Karo and co., and the portrayed Storm Ravens in general, openly hold xenophobic beliefs, are disgusted by aliens and mutants ''just'' for being aliens and mutants, and end up doing quite the number of morally questionable things over the course of the story, despite having their own individual struggles and qualms about what they're doing. They are opposed by:
** The [[BugWar Tyranids]], who just want to [[HordeOfAlienLocusts eat everything]], and are never portrayed positively or sympathetically in any way. Their HiveMind is shown as having a cold, ruthless, cunning and calculating intelligence (and occasional experimentative bent), but is nonetheless ultimately frequently outmaneuvered by the Space Marines in individual engagements. They're ultimately portrayed as a ruthless, implacable, terrifying and utterly inhuman force, and [[GuiltFreeExterminationWar no quarter is ever asked or given]].
** Briefly, the [[TortureTechnician Dark]] [[KickTheDog Eldar]], who are again framed more as an impersonal force for other factions to manipulate, summon [[MadeOfEvil Warp Beasts]], and are given no sympathetic characterization or treatment.
** [[TranshumanTreachery Phelonas]], who despite all his [[VisionaryVillain frustrations, philosophical musings]], and [[VillainHasAPoint valid criticism]] of the [[FascistButInefficient Imperium]], casually kills people who have [[YouHaveOutlivedYourUsefulness Outlived Their Usefulness]] (or just to feed his [[EvilWeapon Daemon Sword]]), and is perfectly willing to ''gleefully'' kill [[FateWorseThanDeath and condemn]] ''4 billion'' people for no higher cause than his own further transcension.
** The [[{{Cult}} Originists]], who can have sympathetic personal stories or at least traumas, believe in a factually incorrect [[EarthIsYoung Young-Universe]] creation theory centered around the GodEmperor, are manipulated into worse living conditions by their leadership to give them further grievances and keep them dependent, and consider Space Marines mutants and blindly oppose them ''just'' for being Space Marines. They're also [[UnwittingPawn being manipulated]] into their worse actions by [[ManipulativeBastard Phelonas]].
* BlackAndGreyMorality: Karo and co., and the portrayed Storm Ravens in general, openly hold xenophobic beliefs, are disgusted by aliens and mutants ''just'' for being aliens and mutants, and end up doing quite the number of morally questionable things over the course of the story, despite having their own individual struggles and qualms about what they're doing. They are opposed by:
** The [[BugWar Tyranids]], who just want to [[HordeOfAlienLocusts eat everything]], and are never portrayed positively or sympathetically in any way. Their HiveMind is shown as having a cold, ruthless, cunning and calculating intelligence (and occasional experimentative bent), but is nonetheless ultimately frequently outmaneuvered by the Space Marines in individual engagements. They're ultimately portrayed as a ruthless, implacable, terrifying and utterly inhuman force, and [[GuiltFreeExterminationWar no quarter is ever asked or given]].
** Briefly, the [[TortureTechnician Dark]] [[KickTheDog Eldar]], who are again framed more as an impersonal force for other factions to manipulate, summon [[MadeOfEvil Warp Beasts]], and are given no sympathetic characterization or treatment.
** [[TranshumanTreachery Phelonas]], who despite all his [[VisionaryVillain frustrations, philosophical musings]], and [[VillainHasAPoint valid criticism]] of the [[FascistButInefficient Imperium]], casually kills people who have [[YouHaveOutlivedYourUsefulness Outlived Their Usefulness]] (or just to feed his [[EvilWeapon Daemon Sword]]), and is perfectly willing to ''gleefully'' kill [[FateWorseThanDeath and condemn]] ''4 billion'' people for no higher cause than his own further transcension.
** The [[{{Cult}} Originists]], who can have sympathetic personal stories or at least traumas, believe in a factually incorrect [[EarthIsYoung Young-Universe]] creation theory centered around the GodEmperor, are manipulated into worse living conditions by their leadership to give them further grievances and keep them dependent, and consider Space Marines mutants and blindly oppose them ''just'' for being Space Marines. They're also [[UnwittingPawn being manipulated]] into their worse actions by [[ManipulativeBastard Phelonas]].
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Does it, though? Does it really? I'm not seeing it...
* CombatPragmatist: Alaster repeatedly shows this as one of his core strengths, finding ways to exploit the environment (and/or the enemies' own weapons) to win otherwise stacked fights. [[spoiler: Up to and including drowning an entire Tyranid army. By using Tyranid explosives to blow a dam. As they'd planned to do to Imperial forces earlier.]]
** More generally, Storm Ravens doctrine encourages this, believing honor comes through victory and that anything which increases the odds thereof is worth pursuing. They also get in on it in practice, rolling boulders onto Tyranids and the like.
** Kodos comes to dislike the Tyranid Hive Mind for also showing a propensity towards it.
** The narration and characters also discuss at some points how seeming traditions of "honor", such as the Space Wolves' fondness for melee weapons and combat, may actually have pragmatic, situational, or secular reasoning behind it.
** More generally, Storm Ravens doctrine encourages this, believing honor comes through victory and that anything which increases the odds thereof is worth pursuing. They also get in on it in practice, rolling boulders onto Tyranids and the like.
** Kodos comes to dislike the Tyranid Hive Mind for also showing a propensity towards it.
** The narration and characters also discuss at some points how seeming traditions of "honor", such as the Space Wolves' fondness for melee weapons and combat, may actually have pragmatic, situational, or secular reasoning behind it.
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* HotForTeacher: Alaster's interactions with Magos Kelso, the Techpriestess who handles his enhancements have shades of this.
to:
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* IShallTauntYou: The first version is part of how Alaster defeats Thaddeus in the opening fight, by taunting him into losing his cool, then luring him into an environmental hazard.
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Irrelevant.
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''[[https://www.fanfiction.net/s/4725962/1/The-Misfits The Misfits]]''[[note]]not to be confused with the [[Music/TheMisfits punk band]] or [[FanFic/TheMisfits the weird]] SelfInsert fic about various Creator/{{Toonami}} shows[[/note]] by davidnm2007, is a ''TabletopGame/{{Warhammer 40000}}'' fanfic very much in the style of Creator/SandyMitchell's contributions to the franchise, where the Imperium of Man is less an impossibly hellish and oppressive dictatorship and more an unwieldy, incompetence and corruption-ridden modern bureaucracy on a galactic scale, where ordinary people live ordinary lives while a handful of heroes try their best to make sure it doesn't all come crashing down.
to:
''[[https://www.fanfiction.net/s/4725962/1/The-Misfits The Misfits]]''[[note]]not to be confused with the [[Music/TheMisfits punk band]] or [[FanFic/TheMisfits the weird]] SelfInsert fic about various Creator/{{Toonami}} shows[[/note]] Misfits]]'' is a ''TabletopGame/Warhammer40000'' fanfic by davidnm2007, is a ''TabletopGame/{{Warhammer 40000}}'' fanfic very much in the style of Creator/SandyMitchell's contributions to the franchise, where the Imperium of Man is less an impossibly hellish and oppressive dictatorship and more an unwieldy, incompetence and corruption-ridden modern bureaucracy on a galactic scale, where ordinary people live ordinary lives while a handful of heroes try their best to make sure it doesn't all come crashing down.
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Moving to standard disambig name format.
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->''Bring the Storm!''
Alaster Karo was just an OrdinaryHighSchoolStudent until he challenged a member of the Storm Ravens Space Marine Chapter to a fight in the school gym. Little did he know that this was but the first step on a rip-roaring adventure full of chitinous horrors, daemonic plots, interplanetary intrigue [[ArsonMurderAndJaywalking and exploding waiters]].
''[[https://www.fanfiction.net/s/4725962/1/The-Misfits The Misfits]]''[[note]]not to be confused with the [[Music/TheMisfits punk band]] or [[FanFic/TheMisfits the weird]] SelfInsert fic about various Creator/{{Toonami}} shows[[/note]] by davidnm2007, is a ''TabletopGame/{{Warhammer 40000}}'' fanfic very much in the style of Creator/SandyMitchell's contributions to the franchise, where the Imperium of Man is less an impossibly hellish and oppressive dictatorship and more an unwieldy, incompetence and corruption-ridden modern bureaucracy on a galactic scale, where ordinary people live ordinary lives while a handful of heroes try their best to make sure it doesn't all come crashing down.
The story follows Alaster and his new best friends: religious and soft-spoken Patreus and loutish ex-ganger Nasty, on their journey to become Space Marines and beyond, as they become involved in the complicated politics of the Imperium and a dark conspiracy that could spell the end of the chapter they worked so hard to join...
----
!!Bring the tropes, brothers!:
* AllMonksKnowKungFu: Patreus, despite his unassuming looks, is an excellent fighter thanks to the martial arts training he got at the monastery that raised him.
* AllPlanetsAreEarthlike: A DiscussedTrope. Even though we see several habitable planets, they're all noted to have major differences, some of which can be quite problematic. The Octalian system's lack of potassium and need for imports becomes a major component of the BigBad's plan.
* AristocratsAreEvil: Not so much evil as incompetent. Riothria Minoris' Planetary Governor Sarrack's cutting the defense budget to finance his extravagant lifestyle and other failings of his cronyism-riddled administration causes major problems when the Tyranids attack, up to and including half the planet rebelling against him.
* BadAssBookworm: Phelonas spent 800 years building himself an entire daemon world just so he'd have a quiet place to read, [[ButtMonkey before some Khorne Berserkers took it over and threw all his books out to make room for more trophy skulls]]. He's even a published author!
* BadAssNormal: Despite being an aging priest (albeit an ex-military one), Father Inyre manages to survive multiple encounters with Phelonas, despite the latter being a Chaos Marine with PsychicPowers.
** Leora, despite being an ordinary middle-aged woman, at one point takes down a [[BigRedDevil Bloodletter]]. She did use Phelonas' daemon sword, but that in itself is pretty impressive in light of the fact that a) it was made to be used by a Chaos Space Marine and probably weighs about as much as she does and b) daemon weapons tend to kill anybody they don't have a pact with just as easily no matter which end of the weapon they're on.
* BossArenaIdiocy: How Alaster wins his initial fight with a Space Marine. He knows part of the school gymnasium's floor is dangerously slippery, so he maneuvers the Marine into it in order to trip him up and stab him.
* BugWar: Much of the story revolves around the Tyranid invasion of the Riothria system. Sergeant Kodos also mentions fighting giant nematode worms at one point.
* CorruptChurch: This being 40k, there are a few, most prominent being the Originists, who believe Space Marines are unacceptable mutants, despite the fact that the guy they worship as God was the one responsible for creating them in the first place. The monks who raised Patreus were also real pieces of work who spent all the church donations on HookersAndBlow.
* DeadFic: Unfortunately, it hasn't updated since January 2012.
* DeadpanSnarker: Nasty and Kodos are the real stand outs, but many cast members have their moments.
* DirtyCoward: Cadet Sarok, who tries to cut and run when Snake Outpost is attacked by Tyranids, which only makes things worse for everyone involved.
* DrillSergeantNasty: Kodos is a pretty amusing example.
* DystopiaIsHard: The author makes a decent effort at showing what the Imperium would be like if it were run by real people. The result is decidedly less ''Literature/NineteenEightyFour'' and more ''Series/TheThickOfIt''.
* ExplosiveDecompression: A more realistic example. Nobody actually blows up, but it does cause ruptured blood vessels and a collapsed lung.
* FantasticCasteSystem: Every citizen of Octalia is ranked based on how well they did on their qualifying exams for the Space Marines. Those who just barely missed the mark due to geneseed incompatibility (naturally, this includes all the women, who are presumably tested as a formality) or other factors get the best jobs, more votes in the civilian government's elections, etc. while those too weak to qualify, or who refused to take the tests are pariahs and each citizen is born with the rank of their parents and only have one chance to advance it when The Selection comes around. Alaster's initial motivation for challenging the Space Marine to a fight was to bump up his family's rank, never expecting he'd actually qualify.
* FantasyCounterpartCulture: Octalia strongly resembles modern Britain, though the Originists brand of religious fundamentalism has more of an American flavor.
* FirstBlood: One way of becoming a Storm Raven is to duel one to this.
* FullNameUltimatum: Whenever anybody calls Nasty "Sandy Shepherd" you know they're serious.
* GoodShepherd: Father Inyre, an Originist parish priest, is a kind man who wants the best for his flock and only hates Space Marines because of the horrors he suffered fighting against the Traitor Legions during his time as a Guardsman. [[ScrewThisImOuttaHere And then he finds out who's really running the show]].
* HeroicSacrifice/ RedemptionEqualsDeath: [[spoiler:Governor Sarrack atones for his corruption and incompetence by giving up his spot on the last shuttle off Minoris to three children before the planet is destroyed]].
* HotForTeacher: Alaster's interactions with Magos Kelso, the Techpriestess who handles his enhancements have shades of this.
* ImplausibleFencingPowers: Most Chaos warriors who want a daemon-possessed sword go with a Khornate daemon of war and bloodlust for extra damage. Phelonas knows these people are fools. Just think of how much more damage you can do with a Tzeenchian daemon of luck and probability manipulation making sure you always hit just the right spot.
* JerkAss: Cadet Sarok, who seems to be channeling [[Literature/HarryPotter Draco Malfoy]]. Tobias, one of the heads of the Originist church, whose plans to bring down the Storm Ravens involve running guns to petty criminals and screwing over investors in the stock market. Also, any Ultramarines who appear.
* JerkWithAHeartOfGold: Both Sergeant Kodos and Nasty. Naturally, they butt heads a lot.
* LighterAndSofter: Another DiscussedTrope. Delta Octalis is noted as being a much nicer place to live than most of the Imperium, being a rare example of an urbanized Chapter homeworld. It'd still be pretty dystopian by most modern people's standards, though, with state-mandated religious services, draconian eugenics policies and most of the population working for slave wages. Phelonas is wont to comment on how sick the Imperium is that such a place is considered one of it crown jewels.
* LowerClassLout: Nasty was one before he became a Space Marine... and pretty much stays that way.
* MamaBear: Dr. Leora's desire to avenge her dead son is so powerful she's able to stand up to Chaos Champions without flinching, plot the downfall of entire planets and even kill daemons.
* MorallyAmbiguousDoctorate: Phelonas' most trusted confidante on Delta Octalis is Leora, a medicae at a local hospital with a grudge against the Storm Ravens because her son tried out but didn't survive the training.
* MotiveRant: Phelonas tends to do this with anybody who'll listen. Lampshaded by Leora.
* RequiredSecondaryPowers: Phelonas uses some Tzeenchian warp magic to make himself an IntangibleMan. Being a genetically altered, daemonically mutated SuperSoldier in PoweredArmor, he's not too bothered by the fact that he can't breathe or even feel air pressure in this state. When he tries to take a normal person with him, however...
* SpacePirates: How Patreus became an orphan.
* SpannerInTheWorks: The Emperor being a strong adherent of the "works in mysterious ways" school of godhood, Alaster and friends have a habit of stumbling into Phelonas' plans and mucking them up without even realizing they've done it.
* TheSpartanWay: Downplayed. From what we see of it, the Storm Ravens' recruiting methods are pretty sedate by Space Marine standards. Of course, running an obstacle course through a ship's halls 'til you drop is a pretty tall order when said ship is a floating battle-cathedral the size of a small city.
* StealthInSpace: Justified for the 'Nids, who use cryogenic gasses to freeze their spore ships so they can't be detected by infrared scanners. By the time they're close enough to their target's sun to thaw out, it's already too late. They also have little need for engines during interstellar voyages, since they use the psychically manipulated gravity well of their last target planet's sun to catapult themselves toward the next habitable system over.
* SurroundedByIdiots: Poor Phelonas just can't seem to escape this trope. As an avowed rationalist, he originally defected to Chaos because he couldn't abide the Emperor's authoritarianism, only to find himself surrounded by bloodthirsty maniacs who cared more about taking skulls for the skull throne than unveiling the mysteries of the Warp. And then he has to go and hatch a scheme that involves manipulating a bunch of people who are brainless fundies even by Imperium standards.
* TakeThatScrappy: The Ultras get a good kicking here, as they tend to do in 40k fanworks.
* ThoseTwoGuys: Fegust and Sandrer.
* VitriolicBestBuds: Nasty and Patreus. Nasty and anyone he likes, really.
* WeAreStrugglingTogether: The Minorans go and have a civil war right in the middle of a 'Nid invasion. Thanks to the rebels making a big show of worshiping Ultramarines Primarch Roboute Guilliman, they manage to drag them into it, too.
* WickedCultured: Aspiring Champion Phelonas.
* YouHaveOutlivedYourUsefulness: Happens to [[spoiler:Tobias]] when the Originists plans start to backfire.
----
->"If they explode, do we still have to leave a tip?"
----
Alaster Karo was just an OrdinaryHighSchoolStudent until he challenged a member of the Storm Ravens Space Marine Chapter to a fight in the school gym. Little did he know that this was but the first step on a rip-roaring adventure full of chitinous horrors, daemonic plots, interplanetary intrigue [[ArsonMurderAndJaywalking and exploding waiters]].
''[[https://www.fanfiction.net/s/4725962/1/The-Misfits The Misfits]]''[[note]]not to be confused with the [[Music/TheMisfits punk band]] or [[FanFic/TheMisfits the weird]] SelfInsert fic about various Creator/{{Toonami}} shows[[/note]] by davidnm2007, is a ''TabletopGame/{{Warhammer 40000}}'' fanfic very much in the style of Creator/SandyMitchell's contributions to the franchise, where the Imperium of Man is less an impossibly hellish and oppressive dictatorship and more an unwieldy, incompetence and corruption-ridden modern bureaucracy on a galactic scale, where ordinary people live ordinary lives while a handful of heroes try their best to make sure it doesn't all come crashing down.
The story follows Alaster and his new best friends: religious and soft-spoken Patreus and loutish ex-ganger Nasty, on their journey to become Space Marines and beyond, as they become involved in the complicated politics of the Imperium and a dark conspiracy that could spell the end of the chapter they worked so hard to join...
----
!!Bring the tropes, brothers!:
* AllMonksKnowKungFu: Patreus, despite his unassuming looks, is an excellent fighter thanks to the martial arts training he got at the monastery that raised him.
* AllPlanetsAreEarthlike: A DiscussedTrope. Even though we see several habitable planets, they're all noted to have major differences, some of which can be quite problematic. The Octalian system's lack of potassium and need for imports becomes a major component of the BigBad's plan.
* AristocratsAreEvil: Not so much evil as incompetent. Riothria Minoris' Planetary Governor Sarrack's cutting the defense budget to finance his extravagant lifestyle and other failings of his cronyism-riddled administration causes major problems when the Tyranids attack, up to and including half the planet rebelling against him.
* BadAssBookworm: Phelonas spent 800 years building himself an entire daemon world just so he'd have a quiet place to read, [[ButtMonkey before some Khorne Berserkers took it over and threw all his books out to make room for more trophy skulls]]. He's even a published author!
* BadAssNormal: Despite being an aging priest (albeit an ex-military one), Father Inyre manages to survive multiple encounters with Phelonas, despite the latter being a Chaos Marine with PsychicPowers.
** Leora, despite being an ordinary middle-aged woman, at one point takes down a [[BigRedDevil Bloodletter]]. She did use Phelonas' daemon sword, but that in itself is pretty impressive in light of the fact that a) it was made to be used by a Chaos Space Marine and probably weighs about as much as she does and b) daemon weapons tend to kill anybody they don't have a pact with just as easily no matter which end of the weapon they're on.
* BossArenaIdiocy: How Alaster wins his initial fight with a Space Marine. He knows part of the school gymnasium's floor is dangerously slippery, so he maneuvers the Marine into it in order to trip him up and stab him.
* BugWar: Much of the story revolves around the Tyranid invasion of the Riothria system. Sergeant Kodos also mentions fighting giant nematode worms at one point.
* CorruptChurch: This being 40k, there are a few, most prominent being the Originists, who believe Space Marines are unacceptable mutants, despite the fact that the guy they worship as God was the one responsible for creating them in the first place. The monks who raised Patreus were also real pieces of work who spent all the church donations on HookersAndBlow.
* DeadFic: Unfortunately, it hasn't updated since January 2012.
* DeadpanSnarker: Nasty and Kodos are the real stand outs, but many cast members have their moments.
* DirtyCoward: Cadet Sarok, who tries to cut and run when Snake Outpost is attacked by Tyranids, which only makes things worse for everyone involved.
* DrillSergeantNasty: Kodos is a pretty amusing example.
* DystopiaIsHard: The author makes a decent effort at showing what the Imperium would be like if it were run by real people. The result is decidedly less ''Literature/NineteenEightyFour'' and more ''Series/TheThickOfIt''.
* ExplosiveDecompression: A more realistic example. Nobody actually blows up, but it does cause ruptured blood vessels and a collapsed lung.
* FantasticCasteSystem: Every citizen of Octalia is ranked based on how well they did on their qualifying exams for the Space Marines. Those who just barely missed the mark due to geneseed incompatibility (naturally, this includes all the women, who are presumably tested as a formality) or other factors get the best jobs, more votes in the civilian government's elections, etc. while those too weak to qualify, or who refused to take the tests are pariahs and each citizen is born with the rank of their parents and only have one chance to advance it when The Selection comes around. Alaster's initial motivation for challenging the Space Marine to a fight was to bump up his family's rank, never expecting he'd actually qualify.
* FantasyCounterpartCulture: Octalia strongly resembles modern Britain, though the Originists brand of religious fundamentalism has more of an American flavor.
* FirstBlood: One way of becoming a Storm Raven is to duel one to this.
* FullNameUltimatum: Whenever anybody calls Nasty "Sandy Shepherd" you know they're serious.
* GoodShepherd: Father Inyre, an Originist parish priest, is a kind man who wants the best for his flock and only hates Space Marines because of the horrors he suffered fighting against the Traitor Legions during his time as a Guardsman. [[ScrewThisImOuttaHere And then he finds out who's really running the show]].
* HeroicSacrifice/ RedemptionEqualsDeath: [[spoiler:Governor Sarrack atones for his corruption and incompetence by giving up his spot on the last shuttle off Minoris to three children before the planet is destroyed]].
* HotForTeacher: Alaster's interactions with Magos Kelso, the Techpriestess who handles his enhancements have shades of this.
* ImplausibleFencingPowers: Most Chaos warriors who want a daemon-possessed sword go with a Khornate daemon of war and bloodlust for extra damage. Phelonas knows these people are fools. Just think of how much more damage you can do with a Tzeenchian daemon of luck and probability manipulation making sure you always hit just the right spot.
* JerkAss: Cadet Sarok, who seems to be channeling [[Literature/HarryPotter Draco Malfoy]]. Tobias, one of the heads of the Originist church, whose plans to bring down the Storm Ravens involve running guns to petty criminals and screwing over investors in the stock market. Also, any Ultramarines who appear.
* JerkWithAHeartOfGold: Both Sergeant Kodos and Nasty. Naturally, they butt heads a lot.
* LighterAndSofter: Another DiscussedTrope. Delta Octalis is noted as being a much nicer place to live than most of the Imperium, being a rare example of an urbanized Chapter homeworld. It'd still be pretty dystopian by most modern people's standards, though, with state-mandated religious services, draconian eugenics policies and most of the population working for slave wages. Phelonas is wont to comment on how sick the Imperium is that such a place is considered one of it crown jewels.
* LowerClassLout: Nasty was one before he became a Space Marine... and pretty much stays that way.
* MamaBear: Dr. Leora's desire to avenge her dead son is so powerful she's able to stand up to Chaos Champions without flinching, plot the downfall of entire planets and even kill daemons.
* MorallyAmbiguousDoctorate: Phelonas' most trusted confidante on Delta Octalis is Leora, a medicae at a local hospital with a grudge against the Storm Ravens because her son tried out but didn't survive the training.
* MotiveRant: Phelonas tends to do this with anybody who'll listen. Lampshaded by Leora.
* RequiredSecondaryPowers: Phelonas uses some Tzeenchian warp magic to make himself an IntangibleMan. Being a genetically altered, daemonically mutated SuperSoldier in PoweredArmor, he's not too bothered by the fact that he can't breathe or even feel air pressure in this state. When he tries to take a normal person with him, however...
* SpacePirates: How Patreus became an orphan.
* SpannerInTheWorks: The Emperor being a strong adherent of the "works in mysterious ways" school of godhood, Alaster and friends have a habit of stumbling into Phelonas' plans and mucking them up without even realizing they've done it.
* TheSpartanWay: Downplayed. From what we see of it, the Storm Ravens' recruiting methods are pretty sedate by Space Marine standards. Of course, running an obstacle course through a ship's halls 'til you drop is a pretty tall order when said ship is a floating battle-cathedral the size of a small city.
* StealthInSpace: Justified for the 'Nids, who use cryogenic gasses to freeze their spore ships so they can't be detected by infrared scanners. By the time they're close enough to their target's sun to thaw out, it's already too late. They also have little need for engines during interstellar voyages, since they use the psychically manipulated gravity well of their last target planet's sun to catapult themselves toward the next habitable system over.
* SurroundedByIdiots: Poor Phelonas just can't seem to escape this trope. As an avowed rationalist, he originally defected to Chaos because he couldn't abide the Emperor's authoritarianism, only to find himself surrounded by bloodthirsty maniacs who cared more about taking skulls for the skull throne than unveiling the mysteries of the Warp. And then he has to go and hatch a scheme that involves manipulating a bunch of people who are brainless fundies even by Imperium standards.
* TakeThatScrappy: The Ultras get a good kicking here, as they tend to do in 40k fanworks.
* ThoseTwoGuys: Fegust and Sandrer.
* VitriolicBestBuds: Nasty and Patreus. Nasty and anyone he likes, really.
* WeAreStrugglingTogether: The Minorans go and have a civil war right in the middle of a 'Nid invasion. Thanks to the rebels making a big show of worshiping Ultramarines Primarch Roboute Guilliman, they manage to drag them into it, too.
* WickedCultured: Aspiring Champion Phelonas.
* YouHaveOutlivedYourUsefulness: Happens to [[spoiler:Tobias]] when the Originists plans start to backfire.
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->"If they explode, do we still have to leave a tip?"
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