Terrance Stamp: Ultramarine.

[Ugolino]

The Blood Ravens are even more disliked than the Ultras, and their fluff is basically 'we love witches' which isn't the best introduction to the setting.

That's odd. I never got that impression. Now Goto's stuff about them, on the other hand...

The fluff has them using librarians and focusing on psykers more than other Chapters. Nothing too extreme, especially compared with the Relictors and Soul Drinkers and the like. Of course, there are hints that they're pulling a Relictors on the Imperium, but they're not at the point where the viewers are going to be confused about which ones are the evil Chaos marines, while not quite as bland as the Ultrasmurfs.

[Brother-Captain Gaius]

Chaos Rising spoilers -
Spoiler

The Blood Ravens are currently embroiled in a quiet civil war. Assuming the 'pure' game ending is the canon one, Captain Angelos and company have been falsely branded as renegades by the heretical Chapter Master, whom the majority of the otherwise-loyal Chapter still follows. Significant portions of the Chapter's higher echelons, including much of the Honor Guard have fallen to Chaos-worship.

[Ugolino]

Awesome.

Can you give a full summary?

[Brother-Captain Gaius]

Spoiler

Planet Aurelia emerges from the Warp after having vanished for millenia. Blood Ravens strike force investigates a Blood Ravens distress call from the planet. Naturally, it's a trap laid by the former governor of Meridian's militia army, who have been twisted by the Black Legion's Eliphas to serve as his vanguard forces in an attempt to free a daemon prince of Nurgle from an ancient binding.

The Black Legion begins raiding the surrounding worlds (Blood Ravens recruiting turf) in preparation to free the daemon prince -- vast numbers of deaths are a required ingredient in the ritual. The Blood Ravens, of course, must put a stop to these dastardly intentions... except Captain Diomedes of the Honor Guard, trusted lieutenant of the Chapter Master, arrives and orders all Blood Ravens to stand down and prepare to retreat in the face of the Black Legion's advances.

Captain Angelos disagrees but is bound by chain of command to obey, but he drags his heels as much as possible and quietly orders the strike force to continue trying to stop Eliphas. Techmarine Martellus, believed KIA during the battle to stop the hive fleet above Typhon a year earlier, resurfaces on the planet and is rescued. Meanwhile, an unidentified traitor is discovered amongst the strike force's ranks, betraying the Blood Ravens' codes, encryptions, doctrine, and other data to the Black Legion.

Space Hulk Judgment of Carrion also appears from the Warp, most auspiciously. Naturally, the strike force must suit up in Terminator armor and deal with the genestealers aboard. The hulk's logic engines are required to crack the sophisticated encryption algorithms used by the traitor's transmissions, however, once on board numerous slain Blood Ravens are discovered with extracted -- but discarded -- progenoid glands lying nearby. The corpses are centuries old, remnants of a previous expedition aboard the hulk. Records indicate many of the slain Marines are currently serving in various positions within the Chapter.

Further investigation reveals that the Apothecary who discarded the fallen Marines' geneseed is also still serving, and that the only other 'true' survivor of the expedition is then-Librarian Kyrah. A daemonic pact was made whilst trapped aboard the hulk, binding a daemonhost within the Apothecary. Kyrah and the Apothecary then return from the expedition, having 'miraculously' survived. Kyrah goes on to eventually become Chapter Master.

Captain Angelos and his company are branded renegades and traitors when he eventually refuses to stand down and continues to fight the Black Legion. The strike force covertly sneaks into Captain Diomedes' headquarters to warn him of the heresy within the Chapter and also slay the tainted Apothecary. Before dying, the Apothecary reveals that many of the Chapter's veterans and Honor Guard are in fact now quietly worshipping Chaos. Diomedes is torn and makes no immediate call one way or the other, instead biding his time and allowing the strike force to leave unharmed.

Angelos, his company, and the strike force prepare for the final battle against the Black Legion. They are restoring the daemon prince from the ancient Chapter keep where it is bound and the Blood Ravens deploy with all haste to stop it. Angelos and his company lead the assault on the Chaos base and keep their forces busy, buying time for the strike force to get to the site of the ritual. Time is running out as the daemon has already partially manifested itself, pitting the strike force against a Great Unclean One.

Eventually it is destroyed, casting it back to its prison for the time being. Angelos promotes the strike force commander to captain Davian Thule's old company, leaving their combined forces the only loyal Blood Ravens against Chapter Master Kyrah and his corrupt command personnel with much of the Chapter under their sway.

[dworkin]

I think it would help the movie if the plot was "National Lampoon's Animal House in the 41st millenium, starring the Space Vikings!"

Inquisitor Vernon: "Greg, what is the worst chapter in the Astartes?"
Custodes Marmalard: "Well that would be hard to say, sir. They're each outstanding in their own way"
Vernon: "Cut the horseshit, son. I've got the disciplinary files right here. Who dropped a whole truckload of nurglings into the schola swimming pool? Who delivered the cadavers to the Soritas dinner? Every Emperor's Birthday, the trees are filled with underwear. Every spring, the toilets explode."
Marmalard: "You're talking about the Space Wolves"
Vernon: "Of course I'm talking about Space Wolves, you twerp!"

But is it grimdark enough?

[Sidewinder]

I think it would help the movie if the plot was "National Lampoon's Animal House in the 41st millenium, starring the Space Vikings!"

But is it grimdark enough?

My concern is putting a leash on the grimdark, so viewers unfamiliar with the fluff (potential gamers) will NOT assume the series is all "Emo, whine, cry, no hope, why bother fighting, just lie down and die," instead of "Life's not fair unless you MAKE IT fair, preferrably with a chainsword up its ass, so grab a weapon and fight for your rights- to PAAAARTY!"

[Ugolino]

Hang on... why don't Angelos and company contact the Inquisition? They have a warp-capable ship, after-all and presumably a few astropaths ...

Either way, looks like the chapter's not exactly suited for a movie in the 40k "present".

[dworkin]

My concern is putting a leash on the grimdark, so viewers unfamiliar with the fluff (potential gamers) will NOT assume the series is all "Emo, whine, cry, no hope, why bother fighting, just lie down and die," instead of "Life's not fair unless you MAKE IT fair, preferrably with a chainsword up its ass, so grab a weapon and fight for your rights- to PAAAARTY!"

But it's a happy, smiley universe with a grillion places to go and a bazillion enemies to fight. There's no end to the enemies. Some live on planets, some live in space ships. Occasionally a portal opens up and more enemies come out. It's all laid on! This is paradise!

Or are you not talking about the orks?

[Stark]

My concern is putting a leash on the grimdark, so viewers unfamiliar with the fluff (potential gamers) will NOT assume the series is all "Emo, whine, cry, no hope, why bother fighting, just lie down and die," instead of "Life's not fair unless you MAKE IT fair, preferrably with a chainsword up its ass, so grab a weapon and fight for your rights- to PAAAARTY!"

The 'grimdark' in 40k is very much a GW thing, not really the setting. If it's a movie about a bunch of guys in power armour punching monsters and blowing them up with giant guns, nobody is going to think that's 'grimdark'. At worst it'll be 'oh noes cut off must hold out against ridiculous odds for relief we are all prepared to die for the Emperor' which is pretty common action-movie fare.

It's not like they're going to have a guy sit there and stare into a camera and talk about the DANGERS OF TEH WARPZ or whatever.

[Brother-Captain Gaius]

Hang on... why don't Angelos and company contact the Inquisition? They have a warp-capable ship, after-all and presumably a few astropaths ...

Either way, looks like the chapter's not exactly suited for a movie in the 40k "present".

The last thing a Space Marine Chapter wants, ever, is to have the Inquisition sniffing around what they perceive to be their own internal affairs.

More practically, however, if the Inquisition caught one whiff of what was going on within the Blood Ravens, the entire Chapter and every planet they have holdings on would be annihilated faster than you can say "Emperor's blood".

[Ugolino]

Well, given that Angelos didn't have any problems with Cyrene...

Anyway, were there any hints about the BR ancestry? They seem to have a different one each game. First it was Thousand Sons, then Word Bearers...is it Black Legion?

[PainRack]

The last thing a Space Marine Chapter wants, ever, is to have the Inquisition sniffing around what they perceive to be their own internal affairs.

More practically, however, if the Inquisition caught one whiff of what was going on within the Blood Ravens, the entire Chapter and every planet they have holdings on would be annihilated faster than you can say "Emperor's blood".

Doesn't DoW space Marine ending have the Inquisition poking into the BR affairs?

[OmegaChief]

The Dark Crusade ending yea, it also mentions somhing about that just being before the 'Darkest time in teh chapters hisory" too.

[Dartzap]

On the subject on the origins of the Blood Ravens....
Spoiler

In the new HH book, A Thousand Sons, there is the most ominous hint that the Blood Ravens are the spawn of Magnus, a Remembrancer with the ability to see the future is tortured by the TS so they know what is going to happen, and says the following...

"Its too late.....The Wolf is at the door and it hungers for blood. Oh, Throne...no, the blood! The Ravens, I see them too. The lost sons and a Raven of blood. They cry for salvation and knowledge, but it is denied! A brother betrayed, a brother murdered. The worst mistake for the noblest reason! It cannot happen, but it must!"

So, uh, ooh err missus?

As for the film, I think that GW are throwing a fair chunk of change at it so that it atleats looks half decent compared to some of the previous attempts. Should be a decent hour or so