Space Marine dilemma

[plasticaddict]

I feel your pain sir, I to have a longstanding Tau force that has been in the field since late 3rd edition. My Tau fought under many O's during the years (including Farsight and Shadowsun). I have finally settled on my back story: My Commander, Shas O' Mont'yr Vash'ya, has been charged with protecting tau interests and settlements in his sector as well as assisting the Por caste with assimilating several Gue'la worlds. Some of the Gue'la settlements have pledged themselves to the Tau'va and even provide Gue'vesa to support the Shas in battle (something they've done since the introduction of Apocalypse).

With the introduction of 6th edition allies I decided to add some space marines to help both my Tau and IG armies. I finally decided to do a renegade chapter, the Savage Swords. The Savages were a chapter of the 21st (cursed) founding, they were raised, equipped and sent to settle on a predetermined home world but they never arrived to their intended destination. Their ships were caught in a warp storm during their transit that destroyed all but one of their ships and deposited them several centuries later far from Imperial space and the light of the Astronomicon. Their original goal of reaching their home world remains however the survivors now form less than a company of marines and they have had to adapt to survive. During their return to Imperial space they have fought against many enemies and have formed alliances with several non-human races, one of these races is the Tau. The Tau offered to help repair and refit the Savage Swords ships, vehicles and equipment and in exchange the Savages agreed to help Tau forces fight against their mutual enemies. Lately Imperial observers have reported seeing Astartes like troops fight alongside combined Tau/human forces on the fringes of the Tau western expansion.

For their part the current commanders of the Savage Swords are in agreement that they still owe a honor debt to the Tau that they must repay before they can return to the Imperium and claim their home world. How long that may take is unknown.