The Angel Hunters by Robert Wills  
Creator Robert Wills writes, "This themed army idea is motivated by the observation that in 40k there are really no 'good guys.' The Space Marines are only 'good' because they are less nasty than the opposition. The Angels of Light are intended to rectify this, by creating a Chapter which actually encourages goodness.

"Their philosophy is truly good. Not self-righteous, narrow-minded or condemnatory, but loyal, protective of the weak, rejecting Chaos in all its forms. They are often suspicious of other Chapters which hide rumoured dark secrets. They might sometimes even feel a bit suspicious of the Emperor, never disobeying him, but feeling a concern that his mode of preservation smacks a bit of Chaos and hoping fervently that he will not be drawn further along the wrong path."

Background
The origins of the Angels of Light are lost in antiquity, but several contradictory tales have come down to the 41st Millenium and it is possible that only the leaders of the Chapter know to what extent each of them is true.

All accounts agree in naming the Chapter's Primarch as one Gabrion, who certainly lived at about the time of the First Founding. The most likely tale is probably the one that maintains that he was simply one of the original Primarchs, created in the First Founding, and lost to sight shortly afterwards because his Chapter was considered one of the least significant. It has to be said that “goodness” is not of itself an attraction to many, and a Chapter which enshrines this rather than battle prowess, endurance, or courage as its central virtue has been at a disadvantage in making an impact in the galaxy.

Some of the more extravagant tales claim that Gabrion was not simply one of the Primarchs, but actually a physical son of the Emperor himself. The Emperor, it is said, intended the Angels of Light to be his most important creation, but also anticipated that they would take the longest to come to fruition and finally bring peace and justice to the galaxy. If this was indeed his objective, it is certainly still a long way off in the 41st Millenium. According to this account, the Emperor has ever since denied knowledge of his son Gabrion to protect him and the Angels from the forces of Chaos, which would certainly seek them out and destroy them if the truth were known. It is rumoured that Gabrion still lives in suspended time, deep in a hidden vault on Verdan, and that he will emerge to again lead the Angels of Light when the Emperor is reborn.

Still other tales claim that all this is only a cover for the truth. Gabrion was none other than the Emperor himself, working to establish the Angels of Light because he foresaw the Horus Heresy, and chose this as a way of ensuring that there would be a guiding force of righteousness in the galaxy during the First Founding. Supporters of this view point to the fact that, so far as is known, Gabrion and the Angels took no part in the battle for Terra, and that their role at the time of the Horus Heresy is completely unknown. Basically, “Gabrion and the Emperor were never seen together!”

Today the Chapter is based on the insignificant planet of Verdan, although records (at least publicly available ones) only go back a few centuries, and it simply isn’t known how long this has been their home. Verdan itself is a pleasant planet. The populace live in a peacefully settled, agriculturally- based regime. The civil government is not formally subject to the Angels, but they acknowledge a responsibility to support the Chapter materially and it is considered an honour to be chosen as a recruit. It is clear that over the centuries the population have greatly benefited from the presence of the Angels on their world, as the horrors of war have been kept far from them.

The Angels of Light themselves hold a fortress city called Lux in the rocky north of the single continent on Verdan. Their life is slightly withdrawn from that of the general population. Although visitors are welcomed in Lux, they seldom journey there, simply because of the distance. Journeys are usually restricted to a few festivals every year, when food and supplies are brought in; on those occasions most of the visitors are actually those who have been put forward as possible recruits to the Chapter, and a large proportion of them therefore stay.

Philosophy
As already stated, the central idea and value of the Angels of Light is goodness or righteousness. This is actually a difficult concept in a war-torn galaxy, so it possibly needs to be described further. The central tenet of “Do to others as you would have them do to you” is to be worked out by a military force such as the Chapter by, basically, defending the weak from threats which are too great for them. Recruits are taught to reason along the lines, “If we were peasants living in a remote corner of the galaxy, we would wish for Space Marines to defend us from Chaos and Orks. Therefore, this is what we ourselves must do.” Defending the weak remains a responsibility even if they are unable to pay for the service or do not appear truly righteous themselves.

Of course, this involves a complete rejection of all that Chaos stands for. It may also result in the Angels of Light questioning or feeling disquiet over the actions of other loyal Chapters or even the Emperor himself.

The Chapter tend to avoid contact with other alien races, such as Eldar, because of the great difficulties inherent in deciding what constitutes “goodness” in an alien culture.

Although the Angels have been somewhat isolationist over the millennia, (they tend to take no action when the right course is unclear), their philosophy is an optimistic one. They dismiss the claim of Chaos--that it will one day overcome the entire galaxy--believing that it contains the seeds of its own destruction. True, Chaos is powerful now and some say it is growing stronger, but if it ruled the galaxy, what then? Would not the rulers of Chaos fall to fighting among themselves and destroy all they had gained? Does not only goodness truly have the ability to protect and keep that which it has created?

The Angels see their role as one of waiting. They do what they can now to protect their own world and humanity from the forces of darkness and wait for the time when light will have grown strong enough to abolish the present darkness. Hence their banner motto, “Lux in Tenebris Lucet” (Light Shines in the Darkness).

As has already been mentioned, the Angels of Light have an ambivalent attitude to many other Chapters and even the Emperor himself. This is well shown by the fact that they have two distinct strains of thinking within their chapter, epitomised by the orders of “Grey” and “Brown” Farers. Any Marine may choose to associate himself with one of these two orders, either temporarily for a defined period, or as a lifelong commitment. The two attitudes of the Farers are exemplified by a fragment of an ancient work Dialogue Concerning the Nature of Righteousness, which has come down to us. The author is unknown:

Grey: “Righteousness is Obedience. In our struggles, the measure of our goodness is seen in the faithfulness with which we obey the Emperor’s commands, both spoken and implicit.”

Brown: “Obedience is certainly part of what we must seek, but can it be the whole measure? What if the Emperor commanded something evil, would we then obey? Should we not rather stand aside and hold back from the deed?”

Grey: “The Emperor cannot command evil! It is not in his nature to think of evil.”

Brown: “How do we know this? Can any among us comprehend the Emperor? Has he not founded the Angels of Light to maintain righteousness in the galaxy, even against evils which he himself may not recognise?”

Grey: “Surely this kind of thought was used by Warmaster Horus to justify within himself his great Heresy! It can never lead through perplexity to true goodness.”

The two orders shouldn’t be seen as being in conflict. They agree on the central tenet that, one day, justice and peace will be brought to the galaxy. And the Angels of Light will have a hand in bringing it!

HQ
The Angels of Light are ruled and commanded in battle by two Lord Generals, who may be Space Marine Heroes, Librarians, or Chaplains. This is a deliberate arrangement: an odd number may take arbitrary decisions on majority voting, but two must always discuss an issue fully before they can reach agreement. 

At present the offices of The Two are held by Lord Generals Wenclas and Nicklas. As it happens, Wenclas is also the Master of the order of Brown Farers and Nicklas is Master of the Grey Farers. There is no constitutional requirement for both orders of Farers to be represented in this way, and in fact at other times the Masters of one or both orders have been men of insignificant military rank. The orders naturally tend to elect eminent people as their Masters if they are available within the membership by their own choice though. The two posts of Lord General are filled by appointment when a successor has to be found, but the appointment is made by the Lord General who is not being replaced. In this way, it is ensured that The Two will always be able to work well together, whilst no individual has complete control over the process.

Because of their philosophy, the Grey Farers are often found in positions of command, and Nicklas’ association with this order is entirely typical. The Brown Farers are more likely to avoid such rigid responsibilities and volunteer for work in isolated outposts (for example, living among the people of a remote village in a region where Genestealers are feared to roam). Wenclas’ association with the Brown Farers is therefore somewhat unusual for a Lord General.

It is worth mentioning that the deliberations which Wenclas and Nicklas must go through to decide whether to embark on a particular military campaign. They use a set of criteria first set down by a legendary philosopher of Terra called Augustine, to identify whether the proposed campaign falls within the requirements for a “Just War”:

(1) The Resort to War

• War should only be fought for a just cause, such as in response to violent aggression (which may include aggression against a third party).
• The intention should be to restore a just peace.
• War should only be a last resort.
• The decision to go to war should only be made by a legitimate authority.
• There should be a reasonable hope of success. 

• Non-combatants should never be directly or deliberately attacked. 
• The human, financial and environmental costs of military action should not outweigh the likely gains.

These dilemmas themselves probably account for much of the Angels’ isolation from many of the conflicts of recent centuries. It is often said, “Fools rush in where the Angels carefully tread!” 

Elites
As per Codex: Space Marines. Elite squads can, if desired, be made up of either Grey or Brown Farers. Greys units are likely to be of maximum size and deployed in large battles. Brown units might be of minimal size and found accompanying small raiding forces or defending isolated outposts.  

Troops/Fast Attack/Heavy Support 
As per Codex: Space Marines. 

Modeling and Painting
This area is a bit of a problem. The basic difficulty is that the most obvious colour scheme, all-white armour, is already taken. Dressed like this, they would look just like the Imperial Stormtroopers from Star Wars; hardly the world’s most notable good guys! A solution might be to go slightly off-white, perhaps a very pale blue.

The two orders of Grey and Brown Farers would normally be given permission to use those colours in their armour. One who has made a lifelong commitment to an order will probably have his entire armour in that colour (both colours should be pale, very close in tone to the basic light blue). One who has only associated himself with an order of Farers temporarily is more likely to just paint shoulder pads in the colour. However, Farers should be relatively rare among the Angels of Light. Grey Farers particularly will tend to group together and often be found in positions of command.

The Angels of Light should avoid using any weapons which seem unnecessarily nasty, such as chainswords. Power hammers, ordinary swords etc. would be much more acceptable. The player’s own concept of how “goodness” works itself out in dealing with a violent conflict would be very relevant here: if you think a certain weapon (such as a flamer) is "nasty," then don't use it.

At the risk of being heretical, I’d also say that the Space Marine habit of officers going without helmets seems daft to me. Why wear all those heavy breastplates and shoulder pads if you’re going to leave your head exposed? Therefore, my personal preference would be to model commanders of squads with helmets on, distinguishing them only by their equipment and marks of honour on their shoulders.

General Tactics
There are no real restrictions on the types of action the Angels can be involved in, but even during battle their commanders should bear in mind the “Just War” criteria of Section 2. Playing in character could sometimes be difficult. In any role-playing game, evil is always easier to act than good. Some would say that’s because it’s more fun, but that may be because it’s just less effort. True, 40k isn’t exactly a role-playing game, but if you have a themed army, the role of commander must be an important part of the theme.
 

Related Pages
Other Space Marine Themed Army Ideas
 

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© Copyright Robert Wills, January 2002. Used with permission.
 

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