Vernox Rising

Perseus stood on the observation deck and stared down at the planet below. In some ways, it resembled Terra. It was a desolate ball of dust, an arid, dry mess. But Terra was at least of great significance to the Imperium. The planet of Aronnax was just one of a million unremarkable worlds, another planet that made up the numbers of the galaxy-spanning empire. Shield-Captain Perseus  Perseus stood resplendent in his armour. He was a Shield-Captain of the Adeptus Custodes, his suit of Auramite armour gleamed in the glow of the planet beneath him. He was a member of The Tetrarchy, an informal collective of himself and three other Shield-Captains;  Maxentius, Ramases and Vespasian,  Perseus smiled to himself, "The Tetrarchy. It had been  uncharacteristically witty of The Captain-General Trajan Valoris". The name was a reference to an almost-forgotten ancient piece of Terran history, a time during the Ancient Romani Empire when four Emperors had ruled ...

The settlement of Conseil was a sleepy gathering of hab blocks, mid-tier Ferrocrete work centres and nothing much else. It was a forgettable place on a forgettable planet: Aronnax. First settled by The Konstruct towards the end of Governor Karros’ reign, Aronnax was established as the Colony looked to expand its production and reach across the Fontannus system. Although not particularly rich in resources, Aronnax still had enough Polonium Ore at a reasonable mining depth to be of interest to the Konstruct. And as the planet was largely arid, this resource was easier to reach. Conseil Soon after colonisation, Aronnax became a prospering planet with a number of bustling settlements and space ports. It was seen as a place for enterprising individuals to forge their own path, and for opportunists to make a name for themselves. But over time the planet faltered. Mines started to dry up, and The Konstruct wouldn't release funds to invest in the equipment needed to reach the de...

Ordo Xenos Classification: Third/Fourth-Generation Genestealer ‘Neophyte’ Mutation Local Designation: ‘Clade of Andalucía’ Estimated Population Size: Unknown When the symbols started appearing on back-alley walls or Metrosphere stations isn’t known. From seemingly nowhere, the image of Tentacles wrapped around something approaching a worm or insect were daubed across the hive cities and worker communes of Vernox. Disregarded as small-time gang markings or teenage graffiti, the symbol was much more. It was a statement of intent, a welcoming beacon to those who knew. It was a sign that the Clade of Andalucía was active in the area, and that those touched by the hand of the Deep weren’t alone. Named after the mining vessel that first found the would-be Patriarch of the entire Coven, The Clade of Andalucía are one of the many circles running in The Cult of the Endless Deep. The Clade contains members in the third or fourth generation of the family, those who have g...

If you’ve been reading along up until this point, you’ll have seen loads of great narrative and story-setting, but not much in the way of explanation of the campaign! So let’s talk about that, shall we? Vernox Rising is a campaign set up by two gamers, Brapscallion and Squid, who both wanted to start new armies whilst still playing a narrative campaign. Inspired by The Champion of Chaos campaign on the fantastic Deployment Zone website, Vernox Rising was started as a fun way to collect armies, whilst also scratching our creative itch to write passable fan fiction and generally just make cool scenarios for our heroes to clash. The campaign is set in the Fontannus system, and notably the planet Vernox. Home to a disillusioned mining colony known as The Konstruct, the population has been slowly and carefully infiltrated by a sinister presence. The Cult of the Endless Deep have been meticulously planning their rise to prominence for years, and are almost set for a system...

Castor Valentius poured another glass of Amsec from the bottle, slowly took a sip and studied the crude label stuck to it. With the words 'Blasting Charge' in big block lettering and an image of a stick of explosive, there could be no doubt as to this drink's potency, or it's roughness. The chemical aftertaste of the stuff was appalling. Like most bars on industrial worlds similar to this one, the locals distilled their Amsec from industrial solvents and did little to attempt to mask the flavour. In places like this, blindness from poorly distilled spirit was commonplace and accepted as just another risk in the life of a Miner. He was sat in The Rich Seam, a dive-bar typical of a backwards Outpost World like this one. The bar was popular with Miners as the booze was cheap and plentiful. They could stop by after their shift to clear their lungs and forget their problems. The most they could expect from their lot would be a short, tough life. With money b...