"Salvage Mission?" Topic

I was thinking about ways to fit a Necron Monolith into my upcoming Grey Knights vs Chaos Marines campaign.

Let me run some ideas past all of youse.

So we've got some remote Imperial mining colony. Necrons assault/wake up and a battle of mutual destruction ensues. Or maybe the Imperials barely win, and evacuate. Somehow – **need some ideas here** – there's a Necron Monolith left on this world, salvageable.

Chaos Marines somehow **suggestions?** discover this Monolith, and are in the process of preparing to remove it back to their base.

Grey Knights, who are always monitoring Chaos, learn that something is going on. They send an investigating team to the abandoned mining colony.

That sets up the mini-campaign.

If the Grey Knights win the campaign, they end up with a Monolith to mess around with. Giving me crazy thoughts of installing Imperial hardware on a Monolith!

Note: From the Codex, it seems like Grey Knights are focused against Demonic Chaos, and not so much against Chaos Marines. That seems an overlook to me.

The monolith was left behind salvageable because the (very green) senior surviving Imperial officer didn't realize it was salvageable. It was only when (Grey Knight?) technicians looked over the report later that they realized it could be repaired. [Possibly it could only be repaired because they had a part or two?]

Chaos Marines find out about the Monolith because there are agents of Chaos everywhere. Haven't the inquisitors explained this to everyone?

Stay alert! Trust no one! Keep your laser handy!

Sorry. Wrong campaign. But the rest should work. And since your campaign is not about plugging leaks in Imperial security, you never needed to know how either side found out about the situation.

There could be a colony of unsuspecting mining settlers topside. But they get a little too ambitious in their prospecting and dig a little too deep, and wake up something they should have left alone.

Suddenly a huge obelisk bursts up through to the surface and begins relaying a beacon signal, which your guys interpret to be benign at first.

Or the crypts are set on a timelock, while they hibernate below.

Dan

Sounds more like a single-battle idea rather than a campaign idea.

Grey Knights would have no interest in capturing or adapting anything xenos-built. Goes against the Imperial Code of only approved blah human-made blah templates blah manufactured vehicles being authorized.

My opinion – They'd nuke it from orbit if somehow they lost the first engagement rather than invest more Grey Knights into obtaining something they consider heretical to begin with.

You need something with more "umph."

Say… the stranded monolith houses a necon-discovered chaotic or holy icon or device or weapon that both Chaos and Grey Knights want to recover.

Now you have options… Inquisitors dictate destroying from orbit is not an option and deploy force after force escalating the attempt to recover this prized/unholy item.

This could also set the stage for the entry of allied armies. I do not know if it is still legal under the newer version of 40k, but one of my favorite armies to play for a while was a Grey-Knight/IG combined force under one force org. Very flavorful.

…the stranded monolith houses a necon-discovered chaotic or holy icon or device or weapon…

Hmmm… maybe the Grey Knights fought here once before, someone died assaulting the Monolith, body (and artifact) left behind?

That would be a more "fluff-accurate" reason for trying to reach/uncover/enter the monolith than "because it is there."

I envision Orcs trying to reach it for looting purposes, or Eldar to deny ANYONE getting to the monolith because "Eldar haughty wisdom," the options for other forces to pile on increase.

I'd like to keep the Grey Knights uncertain about what's actually going on, as that gives them reason to explore and discover (i.e., multiple scenarios) before the Big Climax.

The other option for the Grey Knights to recover the monolith is that they were acting on behalf of an Inquisitor. It could be a less than absolutely orthodox inquisitor and he is interested in it for the xenos tech he can study and turn against the enemy.

Perhaps he calls on the Grey Knights as the forces of chaos are on this planet and he knows they will be willing to fight them, daemons might be there after all. Then you use a small contingent for the Inquisitor who are trying to recover the wrecked monolith.

It is also possible that it is a human mining colony where the necrons did not yet wake up. The colonists have been corrupted by Chaos, they are discovered by the inquisition, the first inquisitor is killed by Chaos marines and maybe a daemon who he banishes in the fight.

Then the other inquisitior who is his buddy or sister or something shows up with the Grey Knights to purge the daemons/chaos and also recover the monolith that was uncovered during the initial fighting.

Maybe keep the Grey Knights to fight a Chaos incursion and a team of Deathwatch for the recovery ops? That's their raisson d'etre, after all- combating the alien.

1. No one has ever captured a Necron Monolith intact they all seem to self destruct, teleport away or end up getting vaporized in battle.

2. On this planet there is one Necron Monolith left after an engagement from eons ago. Its like a ghost ship and keeps teleporting around the planet appearing for a time in random locations then disappearing. The teleports are not short range they are continent hopping teleports. The theory is this is some kind of special Necron Monolith of a powerful Necron Lord.

3. The Adeptus Mechanicus has requested the help of the Inquisition in securing the Necron Monolith for further study. In return the Adeptus Mechanicus has offered all kinds of technical artifacts as compensation.(The Inquisition is making this a AHEM Black OP along the style of Mission Impossible)

4. The forces of Chaos want it for its destructive power. A member of the Dark Mechanicus is leading a chaos war band with the goal of capturing the Necron Monolith.

5. Each side must fight each other in a series of battles and at the same time knock down the Necron Monoliths force fields (SHOULD TAKE MULTPILE GAMES)Once the Necron Monoliths force fields are down an EMP device can disable the teleport ability but it must be placed directly on the Monolith. The side that controls the battlefield at that point wins the campaign.

6. The Necron Monolith might be an inert teleporting rock or have limited AI and fire at the closest target in self defense…