I have been a Sisters fan for a very long time and even though I don't play Warhammer 40k anymore (and haven't for many years), I still collect an army. I find the extreme Gothic aesthetic combined with a monastic/holy order incredibly appealing. This is in part due to the fact that I am very much interested in Monasticism, generally Western Christian, as a whole. The miniature range as produced by Games Workshop is one of the few that I find captures the artwork and spirit of their design incredibly well, arguably the most out of any of the factions.
My Sisters of Battle force is relatively small but that is in part due to the relative difficulty and cost of obtaining a larger one at this time. They are an order of my own creation but as of yet do not have name as I am unable to come with a satisfactory example. The basic idea behind the order is that they are as standard and mundane as possible with little room for what would be considered 'mary suedom' generally exhibited by various Space Marine chapters. It is merely a blank slate on which to create characters and history of an organisation. Along with the continued painting, which due to my methods takes a very long time and is pretty soul destroying, I have been working on a little background. This has included a currently work in progress layout of the Convent/Abbey based off of various Medieval cathedrals and monasteries as well as some general Late Roman architecture (which was already a major influence upon medieval and later architecture). This also has a secondary use of being used in a RPG session that I would like to run in the future based around a murder mystery set within the 40k ecclesiarchy in the nature of Cadfael or In The Name of The Rose.
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| The current work in progress plan of the Imperial Cathedral and Monastery. The area in red needs reworking. The Cathedral/Basilica and Cloister are in a far better state. |
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| Durham Cathedral and Monastery used as reference. Source unknown. |
With the creation of the ground plan it allows for approximation of the orders size and general nature. The core of the mission would be defence of the basilica and relics/shrines contained within. As to the nature of the world, I think it being feudal in nature would be best for stereotypical medieval shenanigans (although these could easily work on any imperial world). The main problem with attempting to fluff a sororitas order is the distinct lack of information into their organisation. There is plenty (and often repeated) about their formation but less about general organisation. This is intentional I believe and based off the older warhammer ideas of creating ones own story with the setting. To this end I imagine using general medieval organisations is perfectly fine and what I intend to do. The problems come when looking to expand this into the Ministorum as whole although I am sure something can be created.
The army currently Consists of:
2x 10 Sisters of Battle
5 Retributors
2x 5 Seraphim
5 Command Celestians
1 Living Saint
1 Cannoness
1 Hospitaller
1 PEnitent Engine
1 Immolator
1 Exorcist
Looking to future expansion would be another Immolator and two Rhinos but these are quite far down the list of priorities. I am overall quite happy with the size of the army and the options that it provides.
Problems arise when looking to use this army for gaming, which I admit was never the real intention of the force. I have no interest in modern Warhammer 40,000, I will not go into why here but it is not going to happen. That leaves older editions, 2nd and 3rd respectively (as both do two rather different things), and other games. It is the 'other games' part which causes some consternation. There seems to be little in the way of games that take a 40kesque theme but do so in a more balanced and interesting manner.
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