Civilian Squad?

After trawling the internet for god knows how long in the last few days I've been obsessed with alot of non-military looking models (though still sporting guns) and have been seriously considering trying to create a squad for Death Squads using them.

The back story behind them is a bit of a stumbling block for them, though I have a few ideas, and I thought I put up my favourite for peoples opinions on fitting with fluff, and just being a good idea in general.

I'll start with the few models that I'm currently in love with:

Girl 1	Girl 2
Guy 1	Guy 2

(If anyone finds any cool non-military looking models, could they point me in their direction?)

Then my idea for their background:

Basically a penal squad, all convicts, they've been given a chance at redemption by the inclusion in a 'Death Squad' commanded by an IG Captain and his Lieutenants (These may be modeled as military units or civilians, I'm not sure). The sergeants however would also be convicts though (an incentive for the convicts to behave is the promotion).

I'd love the Forgeworld Inquisitor Solomon Lok model as my captain I think, with a little converting to have a rifle resting on his shoulder instead of the sword (if i can bring myself to attempt using my awful modeling skills on him).


I might have to include some actual IG in the squad too (through modeling considerations, aka adding in flamers), though background-wise they would probably be convicts too, but out of the ranks of the IG, and their special weapons training has been put to good use after a court marshall or whatever happens in the IG which doesn't warrant execution (my fluff knowledge isn't amazing).

I had other ideas, but they all seem to have vanished from my mind, I'll add them later as I think of them/remember them.

So yeah, any insights, advice, criticism, throw it my way please.

Thanks

You could build an Imperial Renegades Squad... no mutations or blatant chaos. It would be a great fit!

Cool, I'll have a look through the Imperial Renegades section and see how I can fit stuff in.

I hadn't actually considered them, which is probably lacking on my part, but I'll see what I can come up with after I've had a browse for mutants as well as civilians.

Thanks

EDIT:

Alrighty, I've been reading through the rules, and I'm pretty sure that I won't want mutations within my squad (mainly for modelling reasons), I'm pretty sure I don't have to have any unless I choose to, is that right? Or have I misread something? (and are the only units that can become mutants, sergeants?)

Something I've noticed in respect to mutations is in regard to rolling the 'Lad's Got Talent' skill and becoming an officer. Do these new officers still have the rule 'Will not work for chaos'? Or have they overcome this fear on their journey to officer-hood? And if so, do they gain the 'rewarded by the dark gods' rule or not? Just in case I decide having mutants would be a good idea later.

I've also noticed to inconsistencies in TLRB (I think), firstly that the mutation 'huge' is referred to in the core rules, but it's called 'unnatural enhancement' in the squad section. Then in the imperial renegades section, it says in the choice of units bit that you can have up to 5 workers, but in the workeres section it says you can have 2 workers per militiamen with no upper limit besides that of the total squad size. It may have already been pointed out somewhere, but I just thought I'd mention it

Thanks

Okie dokie, here goes some actual background, rather than just ideas:


The Real Revolutionaries (RR):

Lead by Commander Van Panden, the RR is a group of like-minded individuals fighting against the corrupt bureaucracy that is poisoning the imperium and any xenos scum that gets in their way, or thats what most of its members and outsiders are meant to believe. Drafted from the underside of society on a variety of worlds, and having no distinguishing marks or mannerisms, it is hard to distinguish the 'revolutionaries' from any other ganger or citizen inhabiting the imperium.

Originating from several different worlds, there is not much in the way of cultural similarities between them. All that matters is their hatred for the government, aVan Panden's 'officers' have transferred their individual hatreds into one common goal, subtly changing all the time to suit his will. Male or female, neither is prohibited from the RR as Van Panden welcomes all into his group.

As time progressed from it's formation, the actions of the group became more and more violent. Van Panden began to acquire weaponry and equipment beyond what was casually available to citizens and his 'revolution' began to take shape. Sculpted into a fighting force without realising it, they had become a terrorist organisation, and maybe had a more specific role beyond mere terrorism, none had any idea what Van Panden's Chaos inspired goals were, not even those who knew what the RR really was.


Well there is my first thoughts to what the squad is going to be like, I'm not sure about any of the names, they're just what I came up with when I was writing. But I'm quite liking the idea of the IR theme so what does anyone else think of it?

Thanks

a few weeks ago they had some cool looking female, mimi's on E-bay Necromuda, they are gone now!!! I can not wait to read more of your story for these guys and also to see more pix! I am working on my own squad! Look at the 40 K forum, Imperial Guard Project I have pix's there! I came up with the name of the squad the 77th Imperial Rifle’s they are led by a boot Lieutenant, Lt Jorgen Hammer! Well that is it so far!

Lots of questions... lots of answers!

The Imperial Renegades (IR) are the very beginning of something. Think of it not as Chaos (evil!) but as people who are desperate, in search for strength for fighting for a better tomorrow. Maybe the Imperial bureaucracy is abusing the population. The 'rebels' do not want to separate from the Imperium, but those who are in power would rather kill them than listen (see current world events in Libya and Syria!) You could start as 'normal' people (read: not corrupt by Chaos) without any mutations. Something may happen in your campaign and you succumbed to the temptation of power and you (the player) decide to get mutations... the seed of Chaos has germinated in you! Welcome to the Dark Side... enjoy the cookies!

Look for Dozer's Battle Report... his IR were very cool! Basically the commanders and those in charge were corrupted by Chaos, but they used real political and socio-economical reasons to attract more people and money to their cause... until the minions decided that the Emperor was a corpse (gasp... the heresy!)

You could start your Squad without mutations... perfectly legal. There are advantages to start without mutations (the 1st mutation is free!). Also there are two kinds of mutations; the Discreet and the Obvious Mutations. You could have Discreet mutants... nobody would notice. Besides, an extra head is not bad... I saw The Emperor once, and he had two head... so I'm... blessed!

Only the Renegade Sergeants can become mutants. Make sure that you referred them by the proper name to avoid confusion. Sergeants belong to the Imperial Guard... VERY different unit!

When a Recruit rolls TLGT and becomes an Officer, it retains ALL of its Special Rules... good and bad. An IR HWS that becomes an Officer does not forget how to operate a Heavy Weapon (for example)... and neither forgets to distrust his superiors (Will Not Work for Chaos)... call it what you will (fluff is up to you) be that he goes crazy by discovering a mutant or that he becomes upset and leaves the Squad to form his own... if your Sgt gains a mutation, he still needs to roll and pass an Ignore Mutation Test.

New Officers do not get Rewarded by the Dark Gods! Only Renegade Sergeants can... no more than 2 mutants per Squad.

Thanks for the heads up on the inconsistency. There was a mutation called Huge, but it was problematic... same with Extra Arm. No big deal... the example was to explain costs, but great catch non-the-less!

On the number of Workers... you need to be a little more specific (read: quote the error). I can't find it. Thanks!


EDIT: Your background is EXCELLENT! Maybe the RR don't turn into Chaos... probably they will!

Thanks for the input, I'll try to be more specific in future about Renegade Sergeants and the like, I get so focused on one thing I forget about the rest

As fr the number of workers thing, I've since seen that someone has mentioned it in the IR section of the forum and so it's probably been fixed already in any new versions.

Thanks for your opinion on the fluff, glad you like it
Think I'm going to leave the fluff as it is for now until I get making the models, though I have found a few other models which I'll probably include:

Guy 3	Girl 3
Guy 4
Guy 5

I think that range of minis by hassle free miniatures is pretty perfect for what i want, anyone have any advice on other minis i could use, and which ones (of the ones iv shown, or new models) would be the offciers, I'm having trouble picking out grunts over officers.
Not sure if I'd actually use the girl, but I reckon it'd give a good sense of Van Panden recruiting virtually anyone and using them.

I think it's a very creative idea to not use military models. Ideas like that are exactly what DS is all about: creating your own story!

Very creative - I look forwards to seeing how the squad works out. Lots of non-military (but weapon carrying models) on heresy (looks like you've already been there though - they have an awesome flamer/ganger) and coolminiornot store has loads!

Infinity has lots of possible models with a less military/paramilitary look.

Cheers Laney

Oh man, I love some of those infinity models, now I have a ton of models to choose from (alot of them expensive) and I don't know what to do :s









There were some other cool ones, but these ones seem to fit pretty well with what I want, thanks for the heads up Laney.

Some more fluff for the Real Revolutionaries:

Van Panden - Little is known about this elusive man, where he is from and where he gained his affiliation with chaos would just be wild speculation. He keeps himself hidden most of the time, but when he is seen he is, suprisingly, extremely charismatic, and seemingly experienced in the art of command. He seems well bred, arrogant with a demeanour that says he is used to authority, though this could just be an act for the recruits and the outside world's benefit.

'Crazy' Eddie - Van Panden's second-in-command, he is a brutal man who spends most of his among the recruits. Like Van Panden and the other officers, little is known about him besides his sudden appearance with the others when they started creating the RR. Seemingly privy to Van Panden's plans, he makes sure the recruits don't know what they're really doing and keeps their minds occupied by the task at hand, and makes himself an object of hate for the recuits.

Maggit - Along with 'Sarge' claims to have served in the PDF, though on which planet they have never revealed, and whether he actually did or not cannot be confirmed. He acts as a leader on missions as well as giving basic training to the recruits. He is extremely hostile in his views towards the imperium though mostly keeps it to himself. After Van Panden, he is the most respected and liked of the 'officers'.

'Sarge' - Has never given out his real name, he has taken up the name and position of sarge(eant). Like Maggit he claims he prevously served in a PDF force, though this too cannot be confirmed. Fulfilling the same role as Maggit in training and leading the recruits, he is disliked by the majority, both for his cruelty and frequently voiced verging on heretical views.

'Golden' George and Archie - These two make up every terrorist organisations seemingly obligatory pyromaniacs, enjoying fire and their flamethrowers a bit too much

'Sliver', Marie and 'Vixen' Rosie - They are the only women in the organisation besides 'baby'. Sliver is an ex-ganger who claims that Sliver is her real name, though in reality it is probably just her nickname from her gang. She is a very active and nimble woman, often causing trouble within the group because of her antics. Marie on the other hand is a very calm and collected individual who keeps herself to herself and is an almost ideal trooper. Then there is Vixen, who is a wild and over the top woman with a temper to go with it.

'Whisper' and 'Slow Down' Rob - They make up the non-pyromaniac men among the recruits, though each still has his peculiarities. Whisper, like Sliver is an ex-ganger, but unlike her, he is very quiet and withdrawn and is the closest thing to a scout among the organisation. 'Slow Down', who's jokey nickname is derived from his already incredibly slow nature, doing everything at his own, usually slow, pace, is rarely seen not smoking, but is mean in a fight.

'Baby' Ella - The youngest in the group by a long way, she is looked down on by everyone else besides Van Panden, and is usually considered an extra by the rest of the group.

Fireman Sam - A hired medic used by the organisation, he is skilled in the art of healing, but lacking in skill in other areas such as combat.

Thats all I can think of for now, but the background seems to be fleshing itself out better in my mind at least a little bit, hope you enjoy, and any criticism is welcome and encouraged, thanks

Cool idea! It's a bit like my Regulars Squad (which really needs an update soon). But I'm going to include some (ex-)military models in it.
Curious to you progress on the squad!

Well my first model (went for the most expensive one first) and a few painting supplies are in the post, so I'll probably be proudly displaying that fairly soon, depending how busy I am after I finally finish exams on friday and go home from uni. Then once things calm down I can get back to working for money, rather than education, and getting more models.