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Aeldari - Asuryan, King of the Gods: Sometimes known as the Phoenix King, Asuryan was the king of the pantheon of Aeldari gods.While the mythic cycles seem to indicate that he held sway over all the others, he was nevertheless consumed by Slaanesh in the Warp. He is often depicted in relation to fire and light, his chief symbols.The Asuryani believe that it is Asuryan who taught them how to use the Asuryani Path to prevent their darker natures from overwhelming them and is the reason they named themselves the Asuryani, the "Children of Asuryan." |
Aeldari - Isha, Goddess of the Harvest: The Great Mother of the Aeldari race, Isha is treated as a fertility goddess by the Aeldari in many respects. She was imprisoned by Khaine for a period of time, until Vaul paid her ransom.She is often depicted crying, and her symbol is a teared eye, symbolic of her sorrow in being separated from her mortal children. Her tears are said to have solidified to form the Spirit Stones which keep the Asuryani safe from Slaanesh after their death.It is rumoured among the Asuryani that Isha has not been consumed by Slaanesh like most of the other Aeldari gods, for the Chaos God Nurgle, the Plague Lord, coveted the Aeldari fertility goddess, and rescued her from consumption by Slaanesh only to imprison her in his decaying mansion that lies within his foul realm in the Warp.These stories claim that Nurgle "cares" for Isha by keeping her within a cage and feeding her the various diseases he concocts, only for her to whisper the cures for each one to mortals in realspace when his back is turned. |
Aeldari - Vaul, God of the Forges: The artificer and smith of the Aeldari gods, Vaul is one of the central deities of the Aeldari Pantheon, and an eternal enemy to Khaine.In order to purchase the freedom of his fellow gods Kurnous and Isha after they had been imprisoned by the war god for violating Asuryan's law against the gods remaining separate from their mortal children, Khaine demanded one hundred blades from the Smith God as payment for their freedom.Vaul was unable to finish the last divinely-crafted blade in time, and so hid a mortal-forged blade amid the others of divine craftsmanship. This fooled Khaine long enough to get Isha and Kurnous to freedom, but when the Blood-Handed God realised he had been tricked, he cried out for vengeance.Vaul finished the final divine blade, Anaris the Dawnlight, and took it to do battle with Khaine. Though it was the greatest of all swords, Khaine was the better warrior and crippled Vaul. The Smith God is often shown chained to his anvil, the punishment that Khaine set upon him for his deception. |
Aeldari - Morai-Heg, Goddess of Fate: The Crone Goddess Morai-Heg is also the consort of Khaine and the third in a trinity of female Aeldari goddesses including Lileath and Isha, who together represent Maiden, Mother and Crone. Morai-Heg appears as an ancient and withered creature who holds the fate of mortals inside a rune pouch made of Aeldari skin.In Aeldari myth she sought to partake of the eternal wisdom contained in her divine blood. She manipulated her husband, the war god Khaela Mensha Khaine, to cut off her hand so that she might drink deep of her own vitae.With this deed Morai-Heg gained the knowledge that she sought, and in return, Khaine gained the aspect of the banshee. Her severed fingers each became one of the Aeldari artefacts known as the Croneswords now sought by the Ynnari to fully awaken Ynnead, the god of the dead.The original homeworlds of the Aeldari that were lost to the Eye of Terror after the Fall of the Aeldari became known as Crone Worlds, a reference to the Crone Goddess.The inhabitants of Craftworld Iybraesil are noted for being devoted followers of Morai-Heg. |
Aeldari - Ynnead, God of the Dead: Ynnead, the Whispering God, is a dream, the embodiment of a possibility that has yet to be fully realized. Some Asuryani Seers long believed that when the last Asuryani dies during the Rhana Dandra (the Final Battle with Chaos), Ynnead will be born from the Warp with the strength of all the Asuryani souls stored in the Infinity Circuits of the craftworlds and the World Spirits of the Exodites.Ynnead will then have the power to destroy Slaanesh forever in a final battle, thus correcting the mistakes which led to the Fall of the Aeldari and allowing the race to be reincarnated into a universe free of the taint of Chaos.Or at least that is what the Asuryani believed would happen for almost ten thousand standard years. Then, in 999.M41, during the Battle of Port Demesnus on the moon of Coheria, the High Farseer Eldrad Ulthran partially completed a ritual intended to awaken Ynnead using the power of the souls found in the Infinity Circuits of every craftworld in the galaxy.While the intervention of the Imperial Deathwatch interrupted the ritual before it could be completed, the god of the dead was partially awakened, and sought out a champion and prophet to complete his rise in the form of Yvraine, the Daughter of Shades. Yvraine founded a new Aeldari faction dedicated to the Whispering God's resurrection known as the Ynnari.The Ynnari, with members drawn from the Craftworld Aeldari, the Harlequins, the Asuryani Outcasts and the Drukhari of Commorragh, seek the restoration of the ancient Aeldari race by collecting the artefacts known as the Croneswords from across the galaxy.Their combined ritualistic use at a single focused point in realspace will allow Ynnead to fully manifest his power in the Warp, where he will combat Slaanesh, hopefully destroying the Prince of Chaos and freeing the Aeldari from the soul-devouring curse of She Who Thirsts forever.Only then will the Eldar people, restored to the unity of the ancient Aeldari, seek to rebuild a new and better interstellar empire. |
Aeldari - Other Gods: Kurnous, God of the Hunt - Kurnous was the father of the Aeldari race and the companion and consort of Isha. He is often shown in conjunction with hounds, hawks, and other trappings of the hunt. Along with his wife Isha, the goddess of the harvest, he too was imprisoned by Khaine for violating Asuryan's edict against communion between the gods and mortals, an act which helped to unleash the mythical War in Heaven and the battle between Khaine and the smith god Vaul.Gea - Gea was a minor goddess who existed within the ancient Aeldari Pantheon. She is notable for being the consort of the twin deities Khaine the Bloody Handed God and Asuryan the Phoenix King.Hoec - Revered amongst the near-invisible assassins known as Pathfinders, the mysterious wandering Aeldari divinity named Hoec is said to be one with the Webway, and has walked the paths between planets since the stars themselves were young.Lileath, Goddess of Dreams (also known as Lilcarth) - Lileath the Maiden was the goddess of dreams and fortune in the Aeldari Pantheon.The Cosmic Serpent - In Aeldari myth, the Serpent is the only creature believed to exist in both the material and the psychic universes at the same time. Hence, the Serpent is said to know all secrets past and present. Saim-Hann means "Quest for Enlightenment," for the Aeldari Lexicon word for snake and secret knowledge is identical: "Saim." The Asuryani of Craftworld Saim-Hann bear the world-rune that represents the Serpent as their heraldry, emblazoning it on the cowlings of their jetbikes, grav-tanks and air support.Cobra-God - The Cobra-God is an animistic creature of destruction who does not care who is caught in his wake; he is venerated by the Exodites.Scorpion-God - The Scorpion-God is an animistic spirit of defence, brother of Cobra; he is also an animistic spirit deity venerated by the Exodites.Serpent-God - The Serpent-God is an animistic creature of secrets and wisdom who knows all there is to know in the universe; he is the third major spirit deity venerated by the Exodites. |
Aeldari - Dark Muses: As far as the Drukhari are concerned, the Aeldari gods died in the Fall of the Aeldari and they despise them for it.That the gods had become so weak that they could be consumed by the ascendancy of Slaanesh indicates that they never deserved to exist in the first place.The exceptions are Khaela Mensha Khaine, the Aeldari god of war who is still held in high regard in Commorragh and the lesser powers known as the "Dark Muses" who are the embodiments of selfish vice and whose clandestine worship by the ancient Aeldari pleasure cults contributed to the demise of the Aeldari Empire.While the Drukhari thus do not really worship anyone apart from themselves, they do pay homage to those they respect. Vaunted warriors or dark artists may become revered amongst their own kind; not to honour their skill, but purely in order to learn more of their power.In this way truly mighty Drukhari from ages past have become almost folkloric figures. Many epitomise a particular form of vice, whose clandestine worship led to the weakening of the ancient Aeldari gods and, indirectly, the Fall of the Aeldari. These Dark Muses are figures of terrible power.Favoured by assassins and murderers is Shaimesh, Lord of Poisons, the treacherous brother of Saim-Hann the Cosmic Serpent. The courtesan elite of the Cult of Lhamaea pay homage to Lhilitu, Consort of the Void, whereas powerful Archons are more likely to follow the tenets of Vileth, a figure synonymous with immense arrogance.On the eve of battle many traditionalist Wych Cults invoke the Red Crone Hekatii, or make sacrifices to Qa'leh, Mistress of Blades.Though many Drukhari suspected Asdrubael Vect, the supreme overlord of Commorragh, would join the ranks of the Dark Muses upon his death, none foresaw thathe would claim the title for himself while still alive when he slew all of the Archons who had opposed him -- and many who had supported him -- in spectacularly sadistic fashion in the wake of the birth of the Dathedian. |
Aeldari - Shaimesh, the Lord of Poisons: The Lord of Poisons is the treacherous brother of Saim-Hann the Cosmic Serpent, for whom the Craftworld Saim-Hann was named.Sahaimesh is the patron of all Drukhari assassins and murderers.The Haemonculi Covens of Commorragh consider themselves the practicioners of the Black Arts of Shaimesh. |
Aeldari - Lhilitu, Consort of the Void: The Consort of the Void's worshippers comprise a mysterious sisterhood who are desired by powerful Archons to serve as courtesans in their courts.These Lhamaeans are renowned in Commorragh for being both imaginative lovers and exceptional poisoners.They descend from the Cult of Llamaea, whose courtesan elite also worshipped Lhilitu, and gained their knowledge of poisons from Shaimesh. |
Aeldari - Vileth: Vileth is a being synonymous with the immense arrogance so often displayed by the Drukhari, and is particularly popular as an ideal to which many Drukhari Archons aspire.The "Scions of Vileth" are also known as the best aerial hunters of the Drukhari, piloting aircraft such as Razorwing jetfighters and Voidraven bombers.These Drukhari pilots will sometimes form mercenary aerial squadrons that will work for Kabals, Wych Cults, and the Haemonculi of the Dark City. |
Aeldari - Hekatii, the Red Crone: Many traditionalist Wych Cults always invoke the favour of this legendary Wych before they enter any battle. |
Aeldari - Qa'leh, the Mistress of Blades: Traditionalist Wych Cults also often seek the ritual favour of the Mistress of Blades with a sacrifice for good fortune before combat. |
Aeldari - Ynesth: Ynesth is known to be a Dark Muse particularly revered by the Kabal of the Onyx Scar.It searches for her ashes in the Warp rift known as the Screaming Vortex in the Segmentum Obscurus, where they are rumoured held in a chalice on the pirate-held world of Sacgrave. |
Aeldari - Unique Aeldari Technology: Asuryani WargearDrukhari WargearInfinity Circuit - An Infinity Circuit is a crystalline psychoactive matrix contained at the core of all Asuryani craftworlds, and is essentially composed of the wraithbone skeleton of the craftworld itself. Within this matrix, the souls of all the craftworld's dead reside in a form of group consciousness, providing both a well of psychic power for the worldship and a massive ancestral mind to advise and guide the living. With the birth of Slaanesh, "She Who Thirsts," the Infinity Circuit is the closest thing that the Asuryani now have to an afterlife; for if their souls are not captured at death in a Spirit Stone and integrated into the Infinity Circuit, they will be lost into the Warp and their soul energy devoured by Slaanesh. For this reason the Asuryani will defend their craftworlds with a fury and tenacity that is almost unrivaled amongst sentient species; they risk losing not only their home but the souls of their ancestors as well. Once it is part of the circuit, an Aeldari soul continues to exist forever, safe from the predations of the Warp, their individual consciousness remaining as a potential within the circuit. The Infinity Circuit is therefore far more than a source of energy for the craftworld; it is a place of refuge and eternal rest, from where the dead watch over the living.Spirit Stone - An Asuryani Spirit Stone, also known as a "Waystone," "Dreamstone" and a "Tear of Isha," is a small, seemingly precious gem carried in a variety of different aesthetically-pleasing settings on a Craftworld Aeldari's chest, used to save their souls from consumption after death within the Immaterium by Slaanesh. Every Asuryani of the craftworlds wears a shinning gem or polished stone upon their breast. This psycho-receptive Waystone is attuned solely to the mind of its owner. At the moment of the Asuryani's death the stone acts like a "psychic trap" absorbing their psychic self -- their soul -- and preventing it from entering the Warp and being consumed by She Who Thirsts. As such psychic energies carry with them a large part of an Aeldari's sense of identity, personality, and memories, it is quite correct to think of them as souls. The Waystone can then be brought back to the Asuryani's own craftworld and embedded into its wraithbone core, where it will grow into a larger Spirit Stone. Once the stone is implanted, the individual Aeldari soul it contains can travel freely through the psychically-reactive wraithbone, mingling with other Aeldari souls and forming part of the communal spirit of the craftworld itself. All the souls within a craftworld collectively exist within the Infinity Circuit. In times of dire need, the Asuryani are also able to retrieve the Spirit Stones of long-dead Asuryani heroes and place them into the artificial bodies of Wraithguard and Wraithlord constructs. These wraithbone constructs are then piloted by the Asuryani soul, which experiences reality in this form as a dream. This process is considered little better than necromancy in Aeldari culture and is only done as a last resort. Spirit Stones can also be placed within certain Asuryani vehicles like gravity tanks and Eldar Titans where the stone allows the captive Aeldari's spirit to control the vehicle in case its living pilots are incapacitated, similar to the way the artificially intelligent Machine Spirits found in certain Imperial vehicles like Land Raiders can take over control of the vehicle even when it is unmanned.Webway - The Webway was created by the ancient species called the Old Ones as a means of intragalactic travel. Via the Webway, the armies of these advanced beings could appear from hidden gateways in reality to strike at their foes without warning. Furthermore, this sprawling network allowed the Old Ones to voyage between the worlds of their dominion without risking the fickle tides of the Warp. Known by some as the "labyrinth dimension," the Webway has been envisioned by mortal minds in myriad ways. Some describe it as a galactic tapestry of shimmering strands, others a maze of glowing tunnels, or the veins of some vast living entity. All such accounts fall short of the truth, for the Webway defies neat categorisation. It is an elegantly crafted extradimensional realm located between realspace and the Immaterium, analogous to the surface of a still, dark pool, or a fine silk veil drawn across something foul. In the wake of their disappearance or destruction during the War in Heaven against the Necrons and their C'tan masters, the Old Ones left the care and use of the Webway to their Aeldari creations, who used it for millennia to tie together their great empire. The Webway once spanned the galaxy, even stretching out into the empty void beyond. Those days are long gone. Ravaged by war and catastrophe, many of its tunnels have been torn open or amputated entirely, and a great number of its entrances have been sealed by the Aeldari themselves as a desperate measure to deny their foes access. Despite its degradation, the Aeldari of every sub-culture still rely upon the Webway for swift travel, and none more so than the nomadic Harlequins. It is said that Cegorach is the only being in existence who knows every single path through the Webway. This might explain how his disciples possess such an intimate knowledge of its twists and turns, for the Harlequins walk the Webway without fear, appearing and disappearing at will. The Harlequins utilise their knowledge of the Webway's hidden paths to outmanoeuvre their foes and strike from unexpected quarters. In this way, entire masques of Harlequins can position themselves in ambush, guaranteeing the element of surprise. Of course, such a system is not perfect, for the Webway has become a broken and dangerous realm. The manifestation of the Great Rift at the start of the Era Indomitus tore at the Webway, ripping away spars already weakened by the passage of millennia and unravelling others, laying them open to the Warp. Gates long sealed burst open to admit a legion of nightmares, and malefic Chaos worshippers found themselves at liberty to strike at the labyrinth dimension like never before. So well-versed are they in the Webway's secret routes that many other Aeldari have credited the servants of the Laughing God with supernatural powers. It is the Harlequins who watch over the Black Library alongside its dark Guardians, and use its secrets to gain the upper hand in their war against Chaos. They utilise their knowledge of the Webway's hidden paths to outmanoeuvre their foes and strike from unexpected quarters. In this way, whole masques of Harlequins can position themselves in ambush, guaranteeing themselves the element of surprise. Of course, such a system is not perfect, for the Webway has become a broken and dangerous realm. Still, this is little help to the general who suddenly discovers his armies overrun from within, slaughtered by a host of Harlequins before he even realises that battle is joined.Wraithbone - Wraithbone is the primary construction material used by the Asuryani, the Craftworld Aeldari, and the staple of their psycho-technical engineering. It is a form of crystallised psychic energy that can exist as a solid in realspace brought forth from the Warp and shaped by an Aeldari concentrating their thoughts and intent upon it. All Aeldari are able to psychically influence and control wraithbone to a certain extent; for instance, most Aeldari walking the Path of the Artisan will use wraithbone in order to create the pieces of art, musical instruments or any other tools they desire. However, truly complex constructions (such as functional weapons or whole voidships) can only be brought into existence by the Aeldari Bonesingers; specialised craftsmen who focus on understanding and mastering the intricacies of creating, growing and shaping the Wraithbone through the application of their innate psychic power. It is a psychic conductor and thus provides not only the structure and armour for the things built of it, but also the power distribution and communications systems since wraithbone carries psychic energy the way a wire or fiber optic cable carries electricity or photons. Wraithbone is a psycho-plastic material that is highly resilient to damage, and capable of limited self-repair. It, and the other building materials of the Aeldari, will grow and react more like living tissue than the building materials of other intelligent species, save for the Tyranids' bio-constructs and necrodermis, the Necron living metal that is the basis of a majority of the Necron's technology. |
Aeldari Empire - Aeldari Empire: Aeldari Empire Head of State:UnknownCapital:Crone Worlds now in the Eye of TerrorOfficial languages:Aeldari LexiconGoverning body:Unknown; included the first HaemonculiState Religions:Aeldari MythologyMajor Species:AeldariMilitary ForcesUnknownThe Aeldari Empire, also sometimes anachronistically called the Eldar Empire, was the great interstellar empire of the Aeldari species. The Aeldari Empire was the dominant power of the Milky Way Galaxy in the years after the end of the War in Heaven until the Fall of the Aeldari in the 30th Millennium A.D.The Aeldari Empire held almost complete control over the galaxy, even during Mankind's Age of Technology, and was characterised by both its own highly advanced technology and the increasingly cruel and hedonistic excesses of its people in its final years.It was this excess that ultimately brought about the empire's destruction when its people's psychic resonance in the Immaterium birthed "She Who Thirsts," the Chaos God of amoral pleasure, Slaanesh. Slaanesh's birth was a catastrophic event that consumed the heart of the Aeldari Empire's homeworlds within the newborn Warp rift called the Eye of Terror, as the Prince of Pleasure sought to absorb every Aeldari soul.Some Aeldari survivors of the catastrophe fled the empire's core worlds in their massive, continent-sized voidcraft called craftworlds, creating the Infinity Circuits and pursuing the Asuryani Path to safeguard their life essence from Slaanesh's thirst -- even after death. They named themselves the Asuryani, the followers of the Aeldari god Asuryan, though they became known to outsiders as the "Eldar."Other survivors, the hedonistic adherents of the Aeldari pleasure cults who had been protected from She Who Thirsts by settling within the interdimensional framework of the Webway, became the Drukhari or "Dark Eldar" of Commorragh. Among this group of survivors were many members of the empire's leadership, who would become the first of the Haemonculi.Other Aeldari survivors included the Harlequins, the servants of Cegorach, the Laughing God, who roamed the far reaches of the Webway and moved between Commorragh and the Craftworlds at will.The final group were the Exodites, Aeldari who, like their Craftworld brethren, had fled the excesses of the empire's heart, surrendered much of their advanced technology and lived peaceful, largely pastoral lives on the Maiden Worlds. All of these survivors surrendered the term "Aeldari" as a name for their species, casting it off as a reminder of their lost glory. Instead, until the late 41st Millennium when the term began to become common once more, they became known as the Eldar. Their empire is now little more than a forgotten dream. |
Aeldari Empire - History: Millions of Terran years ago, as the galaxy emerged from the defeat of the Necrons in the War in Heaven and the disappearance or extinction of the Old Ones, their creations, the Aeldari, emerged as the new masters of the galaxy. The technological prowess of the Aeldari soon eclipsed that of all the other civilisations of the galaxy, and they pushed the existing menaces of the time, such as the Orks, to the far fringes of their realm.The Aeldari became increasingly arrogant and condescending towards other intelligent species. Their empire spread across the galaxy, eventually encompassing at least 10,000 star systems and thousands more colonised planets, many concentrated in the region of the galaxy that would one day become the Eye of Terror. At this time, when an Aeldari died, his soul peacefully became one with the Warp, later to be reborn once more and begin the cycle anew. The Immaterium had not yet become the hostile place it is now, and some of its most powerful denizens were the Gods of the Aeldari. |
Aeldari Empire - Golden Age: Over a million standard years ago, the Aeldari alone ruled the stars as the undisputed masters of their own destiny. Such a position was their right, they thought, and their preeminence was beyond doubt. In many ways, the Aeldari had good reason for such hubris, for no other sentient race of the galaxy had posed a serious threat to their wealth and stability for time immemorial after the fall of the Necrons. They were convinced that they no longer had anything to fear from the galaxy at large, and they may have been right, but the real danger came from within.The doom of the Aeldari, when it came, took a form far more subtle and dangerous than that of alien invasion. At that point in Aeldari history, nothing was beyond their reach and nothing was forbidden. The ancient race continued their glorious existence unaware or unwilling to acknowledge the dark fate that awaited them. They plied the stars at will, experiencing the wonders of the galaxy and immersing themselves completely in the endless sensations that it offered them. Such was the technological mastery of the Eldar that worlds were created specifically for their pleasure, and stars lived or died at their whim.On hundreds of idyllic planets seeded across the stars, the Aeldari pursued their inclinations as they willed, indulging every dream and investigating every curiosity. They mastered the Labyrinth Dimension of the Webway, expanded their realms into the furthest corners of reality and learned much about the universe that has since been forgotten. They moved whole stars into the Webway, creating vast new cities hidden within the seams behind reality. Commorragh was originally the greatest of these Webway portal-cities before the Fall and was intended to be used to transport a fleet to any of the homeworlds of the Aeldari Empire. Because of the access it could grant to even the most far-flung corners of the galaxy in realspace, Commorragh was held by the ancient Aeldari to be the most important location within the entire Webway.As a result of this intrinsic strategic value, it was not controlled by any of the dominant factions within the Aeldari Empire. Precisely because of its autonomy from the jurisdiction of the great Aeldari councils that governed the empire, the city-port soon became a magnet for all those inhabitants of the Aeldari civilisation who wished to hide from prying eyes. The realm of Commorragh rapidly expanded as all the wealth and influence of the great Aeldari Empire and its allies flowed into its coffers. It spread outward into the Webway's void, consuming the other port-cities, private estates and satellite realms of the Labyrinthine Dimension, growing ever larger and even more impressive off the plunder of ten thousand worlds.When Aeldari spirits eventually left their mortal bodies they dissolved peacefully back into the aether to be reborn again, for the Warp did not thirst for Aeldari souls then as it does today. There were, of course, many wars. Even when the galaxy was young there were upstart races seeking to gouge out petty star empires of their own, and the Aeldari waged wars that ravaged dozens of star systems and cost trillions of lives.Most of these conflicts, though, were so short-lived that the ease of their victory left the Aeldari ever more sure of their ascendancy. Even the greatest of all their own conflicts, known in the mythic cycles of the Craftworlds as the War in Heaven, did not humble them. In their hearts the Aeldari reigned supreme, and no other power could end their dominance. |
Aeldari Empire - Descent into Decadence: To understand the reasons for what savants name the Fall of the Aeldari, it is necessary to know something of the Aeldari mind and soul. An Aeldari's mind is incredibly complex. Their senses are extremely sharp, able to perceive incredible levels of detail. Their emotions can be so strong that a human's are merely pale shadows by comparison. They are extremely intelligent; their thought processes are much faster than a human's. All of this means that an Aeldari experiences the universe and all its sensations to a greatly heightened degree compared to a human.Similarly, an Aeldari's soul is much brighter in the Warp than those of "lesser" sentients like humans who do not possess such potent psychic abilities. Aeldari are able to affect the nether-realm of the Warp much more than most other intelligent races. Every Aeldari is a latent psychic and has the ability to become a very powerful psyker with training. It is the psychic strength of the Aeldari's souls that was one of the primary causes of their downfall.The catalyst that brought about the Aeldari race's fall came from the very depths of the Aeldari's collective psyche, the innate need to fuel their passions and indulge in every extreme. The Aeldari had long outgrown the need for labour or manual agriculture. Society provided all that was required without individual effort, leaving long Terran centuries for the Aeldari to spend sating their every desire. Life on the Aeldari homeworlds was idyllic, with fantastically sophisticated machines that took care of all the labour and manufacturing required to keep an advanced society functioning, leaving the Aeldari free to indulge in other, more aesthetic pursuits.With all menial work taken care of for them, the Aeldari became indolent and decadent. Fuelled by an inexhaustible curiosity, many gave way to their most hedonistic impulses. Exotic cults sprang up across the Aeldari domains that eclipsed the noble pursuits of old, each dedicated to esoteric knowledge or sensual excess. The core of the Aeldari race began to look inwards, inexorably seeking new ways to explore the full range of emotion and sensation. With no need to perform substantial work or labour, the Aeldari began to pursue their curiosities and desires with all the dedication that only their species could muster. This descent into decadence spanned many Terran millennia.Tradition and order disintegrated as the Aeldari pursued the limits of the pursuit of pleasure. In the later days of Aeldari civilisation, Pleasure Cults devoted to exotic knowledge, physical pleasures, and ever-more outrageous forms of entertainment sprang up. It did not take long for many of the Aeldari to pursue a darker path to achieve instant fulfillment as they came to revel in unbridled hedonism and violence. Such behaviour was perilously decadent and, in the end, corrosive to the soul of the race. The pursuit of excess gradually became a blight upon the whole society.Many of the Aeldari grew uneasy with the actions of their comrades, and the wisest of the Seers warned that this path could lead only to evil and suffering for the entire species. As the cults gained a tighter hold over their society, the Aeldari became increasingly divided. Those who saw the foulness that corrupted their people for what it was became known as Exodites, fleeing to found colony worlds -- the Maiden Worlds -- on the fringes of the Aeldari Empire. As the civilisation slid further into anarchy, others repented of their ways and left the central worlds of their empire to settle in the outlying regions of the galaxy, where they built great worldships called Craftworlds. Other Aeldari stayed on the homeworlds to try and alter the path their race had taken. Most continued to glut themselves on the pursuits of the depraved.Among the pleasure-seekers and the interminably curious of the Aeldari were those whose pursuit of excess became ever more extreme. These included a great proportion of the aristocracy of ancient Aeldari society, who possessed the wealth and time to truly explore the meanings of decadence -- and would one day become the monstrous fleshshapers called the Haemonculi. One by one, the leaders of the Pleasure Cults that were becoming the centrepiece of Aeldari society became obsessed with their own power. They relocated their headquarters to the Labyrinth Dimension of the Webway, for so great was their political influence that they could command the construction of entire extradimensional sub-realms just for themselves.Unseen, these Pleasure Cult lords continued to grow in power and influence, initiating more and more of the ancient Aeldari population into their strange and shadowy creeds of decadence. The Aeldari are the most psychically gifted of all sentient beings in the galaxy and as the corruption gradually seduced them, the echoes of their ecstasy and agony began to ripple through time and space.In the parallel dimension of the Immaterium, the Warp, the reflections of these intense experiences began to coalesce, as the shifting tides of the chaotic Empyrean can take form around the raw emotions emitted by the sentient beings of the material universe and attract even more of such similar psychic energies to themselves. The constant stream of individual selfishness and indulgence pouring into the Warp from the Aeldari Empire slowly and silently nourished and empowered that which lay within -- a nascent god of pleasure and pain, content to wait and to grow.The heartfelt sorrow of those left who mourned the loss of innocence eventually turned to bitterness and spite. In time, brother fought brother, and sadistic killers stalked the shadows in search of victims for their vile lusts. No life was spared in the pursuit of pleasures both murderous and perverse. A sickness of vice overtook the Aeldari race, and blood flowed through the streets amidst the bestial roar of the crowd. Their hidden realms within the Webway such as Commorragh became sprawling palaces of avarice and sadism, and entire worlds were bent to the pursuit of the darkest of sensations.As their society collapsed into civilisation-wide insanity, these Aeldari recoiled in horror from what they were becoming. Realising that they stood upon the brink of destruction, they bent their considerable resources to the construction of the massive Craftworlds, the graceful spaceborne cities that were the size of small moons. The Aeldari of the Craftworlds retreated into asceticism and spiritual introspection, preserving what they could of their ancient ways and culture before the time of the Pleasure Cults. They left the core worlds of the Aeldari Empire behind for the dubious safety of deep space, to the laughter and contempt of those who remained behind. Some even managed to flee far enough to escape the terrible destruction of the coming Fall. |
Aeldari Empire - Birth of a Dark God: The torture cults eroded the future of the Aeldari as a viable galactic empire. This process lasted for thousands of Terran years, corresponding to the historical era that was Mankind's Dark Age of Technology, although when Slaanesh finally came into being the results within the material universe were apocalyptic and sudden. As depravity riddled every aspect of Aeldari society, the Pleasure Cults sought ever more violent thrills. Before long the streets of Aeldari cities ran with their blood. The elegant architecture of their palaces became battlegrounds as the Aeldari preyed upon each other, revelling in the cruelest of crimes.While this debauchery would have been destructive within any society, it was even more damaging for the Aeldari because of their powerful psychic abilities. Within the parallel dimensional realm of the Warp, the psychic emanations of these perverse activities began to gather, strengthened by the souls of departed Aeldari hedonists and cultists. As the Aeldari's vices grew, this dark mass of negative psychic energy did as well, producing the terrible Warp Storms that defined humanity's Age of Strife and made all interstellar travel and communication impossible for the human colonies of this period. What an unimaginably foul and sickening thing it was that the Aeldari unknowingly raised in the Warp; it was a dire shadow of themselves, of what they had become, of nobility and pride brought low by perversity and shamelessness. Worlds burned as the Aeldari slew and laughed and feasted upon the corpses of the dead.Slowly, the Great Enemy stirred towards wakefulness. Too late, the Aeldari realised that they had created a new god in their own image, a god grown immense and potent by suckling upon the dark fodder of the Aeldari spirit. Eventually, this growing mass of negative psychic energy came into a life of its own and came to consciousness over ten thousand standard years ago at the end of the Age of Strife in the early 30th Millennium as the newborn Chaos God Slaanesh, the Devourer of Souls and the doom of the Aeldari -- and their Eldar successors.When Slaanesh finally burst into divine consciousness, there was not one Aeldari alive who did not feel its claws in his or her soul. With a howl of raw power, Slaanesh roared into supernatural life. A psychic implosion tore at the universe. The psychic scream of Slaanesh's birth tore the souls from all the Aeldari within a thousand light years of it, sparing only those sheltered in the Wraithbone hulls of the Craftworlds. Countless billions of Aeldari screamed aloud and fell dead.In a heartbeat, the shining Aeldari civilisation that had lasted for aeons had its heart ripped out, leaving a pulsing afterbirth of pure chaos in its place. The spirits of the Aeldari were drawn from within them and consumed as their blasphemous creation took its first infernal breath. Intoxicated with this draught, Slaanesh laughed and looked upon a universe ripe for the taking. |
Aeldari Empire - Death of an Empire: The epicentre of the psychic apocalypse lay within the gilded heart of the Aeldari realms. All Aeldari within thousands of light years were reduced to lifeless husks, their souls forever claimed. Even those who had foreseen the catastrophe and fled upon the Craftworlds were overwhelmed, with only those furthest from the devastation surviving. The remote Exodite worlds remained largely untouched, but within the space of a single moment, the Aeldari had become a doomed people. Their nemesis was born and would hunt them for the rest of eternity. Though the psychic shockwave focused upon the Aeldari, billions of humans, Orks and creatures from other races were obliterated as well.Warpspace convulsed as a cosmic hurricane raged across the galaxy. The fabric of reality was torn apart and the Warp spilled from the newborn dimensional rift into the material universe, turning hope into despair and paradise into hell. Psykers of all races howled with pain as their people died in storms of blood and madness. The roiling wound in realspace spread outward until it completely encompassed the Aeldari realms of old. This gaping lesion would come to be known as the Eye of Terror; the largest area in the galaxy where the Warp and the material universe overlap until the birth of the Great Rift in 999.M41. Within its reaches Daemons bathe in the raw energy of the Warp, whilst Daemon Princes and the worshippers of Chaos rule over Aeldari planets turned into nightmare worlds of fire and darkness.For ten thousand long Terran years before the Fall, the Warp had been riven with storm and tempest, making it almost impossible for the vessels of the lesser races to travel between the stars. With the birth of Slaanesh, the Warp was becalmed, its rage temporarily spent. A new equilibrium was reached as Slaanesh joined the ranks of the Chaos Gods. With the Warp Storms around ancient Terra dispersed, the Emperor of Mankind was able to launch his Great Crusade. A new power took its place in the galaxy as isolated human worlds from across the stars were united under the same banner. In this way, the Fall of the Eldar heralded the rise of the Imperium, and Mankind inherited the stars. |
Aeldari Empire - Fight For Survival: In the aftermath of the Fall, the Aeldari, now calling themselves Eldar to mark their change from the greatness of old, regardless of faction, have faced a long and painful decline. On far-flung planets teeming with natural life, the Exodites have carved themselves a survivalist niche. Savage, primal places where everyday life was hard, these realms helped the Exodites to remain focussed on the ascetic lifestyle they had chosen. At first, many of their number fought and died against dangerous aliens such as the greenskinned Orks and even the soldiers of the nascent Imperium, but many others survived, reaching equilibrium and living in harmony with their adopted worlds.In the darkness of space, the remnants of the Aeldari Empire cling onto what was left of their once-mighty culture, preserving the art and architecture of their people within the Craftworlds and passing their ancient history from generation to generation via song, dance and the recital of myths and parables. Aboard their continent-sized vessels, these fragments of the Eldar race sail the sea of stars, always seeking to stay one step ahead of She Who Thirsts and to somehow survive in a galaxy more hostile than ever.The change that was wrought upon those Aeldari sealed within the labyrinthine protections of the Webway was far more subtle. Rather than having their psychic essences, their souls, consumed in one great draught by Slaanesh, their souls slowly drained away into the Warp, taken over time by She Who Thirsts. The Aeldari hate and fear Slaanesh above all other things, for she was given life by their actions and yet she waits hungrily to claim each and every one of them, now or later.Where the Aeldari of the Craftworlds learned to deny Slaanesh's hold upon them by using the mystical Spirit Stones, the Infinity Circuits and the philosophies of the Asuryani Path to safeguard their souls from consumption by She Who Thirsts, the Drukhari of the Webway became exceptionally good at ensuring that other beings suffered in their place. As long as they steeped themselves in the most evil and savagely decadent acts, the Aeldari of the Webway found that the curse of Slaanesh upon their race could be avoided. The agony of others nourished their diminished souls and kept them vital and strong, filling their spare frames with unnaturally robust energies.Assuming that they could feed regularly enough upon the miseries of other intelligent beings, the Aeldari of the Webway became psychically immune to the passage of time. So it was that the Drukhari were born, a race of sadistic murderers and torturers who feed upon the suffering of others in order to prevent the slow death of their own immortal souls. Ten thousand standard years later, in the 41st Millennium of Mankind, Slaanesh's Thirst consumes them still. There truly is no escape, for the Drukhari have only exchanged a horrible but quick death for an eternity of infernal hunger and the infinite emptiness wrought by self-absorption.Cloistered deep within the hidden city-realms of the Webway, those survivors who concealed themselves in their palaces of depravity still revel in the debauched lifestyle that led to the Fall. In that twilight realm between the material universe and the Warp, the Drukhari mock and jeer those ravaged by the downfall of their race. Even though they would never admit it, they know in their hearts that, try as they might to allay their fate, Slaanesh will claim them in the end.The slow decline into powerlessness is what the Drukhari fear most of all, for in birthing Slaanesh from the endless tides of the Warp, the Aeldari have created their greatest enemy. Slaanesh, in its dire awakening, has developed a taste for the souls of its Aeldari creators. Where before, when an Aeldari died, they would pass peacefully into the Warp in order to be reborn, now they face eternal torment, for Slaanesh has a perverse and twisted appetite that can never be sated.Unless extraordinary measures have been taken to prevent it, whenever an Aeldari dies, Slaanesh will be waiting on the other side to consume him. She Who Thirsts will not rest until it has claimed every Aeldari soul in the galaxy. The Aeldari were doomed, and they know it well.Only now, in the wake of the awakening of Ynnead, the Aeldari God of the Dead in 999.M41, is there hope. Ynnead has chosen Yvraine, the Daughter of Shades, a child of both the Craftworlds and Commorragh, to be his prophet, the herald of a new dawn for the Aeldari race. Calling themselves the Ynnari, the "Reborn," for the first time since the Fall, Aeldari of all the known factions have begun to band together. Reliant upon the power of Ynnead to protect their souls from She Who Thirsts, the Ynnari have spoken of the restoration of the lost empire, and even dare to name themselves "Aeldari" once more... |
Aeldari Lexicon - Aeldari Lexicon: The Aeldari Lexicon, also sometimes called the Eldar Lexicon, is the name given by Imperial scholars to the spoken and written language of the Aeldari species.Unfortunately, it is almost impossible for an outsider, particularly Humans, to understand anything but the most basic formulations of the Aeldari Lexicon, as many of its references are metaphors that draw directly upon the collective Aeldari psyche, incorporating mythical peoples and places and long-lost times and events in its basic structure.The Aeldari also communicate with poses and gestures because their senses are far more finely attuned to others' emotional and mental states as a result of their intensely psychic natures than the average Human; it is possible for two Aeldari to have an entire conversation using only their body language.The Aeldari written language is equally complex. Each written symbol, whether it is a rune, script or a hierogram, is not simply the letter of an alphabet like the written High or Low Gothic language used in the Imperium of Man. Instead, each Aeldari symbol represents an entire concept.Furthermore, even more difficult to comprehend from the Human perspective is that many of these symbolic concepts can have a subtly different meaning when committed to usage in Aeldari script, another when employed in the rune-casting prognostications of the Farseers and yet another when incorporated into the hierograms of the Aeldari houses and design schools.Ultimately, the language of the Aeldari is an ancient and complex dialect built upon and refined over many millions of Terran years. Compared to the crude, blunt sounds of High or Low Gothic, its words flow from one to the next, each sentence a complete idea as much as a collection of letters or numbers. Humans can imitate Aeldari speech to a certain degree, with sufficient training, but compared to a native speaker they are slow and halting at best.This is largely because, as noted above, the Aeldari language is not actually comprised of words alone like Human languages, but also accompanied by a detailed set of poses and gestures. The way an Aeldari stands, the cast of his features or how he moves his hands can all change the meaning of words, sometimes dramatically.Further complicating matters is that each Aeldari word or symbol is as much a concept as it is a name for something. Thus while the Aeldari word for "rock" might mean rock, it might also be used to convey permanence or stability, or in a different context lack of life or thought.To a Human, words gain meaning from their context and the words around them, while to an Aeldari the words themselves already possess infinite meaning, manipulated by a crooked finger or slight inflection when speaking.The Aeldari Lexicon is used by all of the different Aeldari kindreds, including the Asuryani, the Exodites, the Ynnari, the Harlequins and the Drukhari, though each faction may have different dialects or particular usages that differ from the others.The Aeldari Lexicon can differ from craftworld to craftworld, and most Aeldari can tell the origin of another member of their species simply by the differences in both their speech and body language. |
Aeldari Lexicon - Sentences: Aeldari Lexicon SentenceLow Gothic TranslationNotesShea nudh Asuryanish ereintha Asuryanat.May the blessings of Asuryan protect the children of Asuryan from abomination.Most potent and dire of all Aeldari prayers.Da gceilfi an fhirinne, b'flieidir go neosfai breag-If the truth were hidden, perhaps a lie would be told-This sentence may be incomplete.Bhi se chomh dorcha gur cheapamair go raibh an oichie tagtha.It was so dark that we thought night had come.Bionn an fear ciallmar ina thost muai ná bîonn pioc le rá aige.One shows good sense in silence when one has nothing to say.Elthir corannir rhiantha en.The Aeldari maiden who weeps tears for the warrior-folk in the starlight of Rhidhol during the winter.A more basic translation renders this entire phrase as "mourner" or "widow", though this term represents a much deeper meaning for grief and loss in the Aeldari Lexicon. |
Aeldari Lexicon - Terminology: Aeldari Lexicon TermLow Gothic Literal TranslationCommon TranslationAeldariThe ancient name for the species the Imperium long knew simply as the Eldar.AgaithFalse faceRefers to the face masks worn by Harlequins.AlaiOf the Alaitoc CraftworldAmon HarakhtEagle PilotAsuryani fighter pilotArebennianHarlequin SolitairesAthairUnknownHarlequin Troupe MasterAtherakhiaDestructionBecharethSpirit on the windUsed to refer to Asuryani Aeldari who died without a Spirit StoneBeithirThunderbolt/striking serpentAmbiguous word; usually applied to Aeldari Support Weapon BatteriesBrathu-angauKiss of doomWeapon known as the Harlequin's KissBuannaReaperShuriken Cannon / Shrieker CannonCeiba-ny-shakLiteral translation unknownAeldari curseCeifulgaithannWind riderAn Eldar JetbikeCreidannBelief-makerAeldari Mini-grenade launcher that fires Hallucinogen GrenadesDakiilithyliUnknownJetbikeDannanDeathSee Mael dannan below.DathediBetween coloursHolo-SuitDistaurUnknownHarlequin MimeDrethuchiiThe Shattering of HarmonySymbol of the Drukhari Kabal of the Broken SigilDruchiiDark OnesOne of several terms for the Drukhari.DrukhariDark OnesOne of several terms for the Dark Eldar; this one has come into more popular use among the Aeldari in recent days.Eladrith YnneasUnknownAnother of several terms meaning Drukhari; this one was first used openly by the Kabal of the Black Heart.EsdainnUnknownHarlequin ShadowseerEshairrUnknownFourth of the five words for an outcast; it is the only term meaning above the level of a true outcast; it is considered a deadly insult among the Aeldari.Fhaisorr'koUnknownA decisive point in the future for which the Aeldari Seers cannot predict the outcome.Fian DialcamanUnknownDire AvengersFian SiispeiraighUnknownSwooping HawksFir CaurifelUnknownEldar Titan ClansGeirgilathUnknownA Harlequin Flip BeltHaranshemash World of Blood and TearsPresent name of the Exodite World "Haran".IlmaeaBlack sunsThe dying stars held in sub-realms of Commorragh that provide energy to the Dark City.Kaelis RaThe Destroyer of LightThe C'tan known as the Nightbringer.KilithikadyaNear-future-to-comeThe near-future.Lann CaiheWater BringerAn executive officer who is the second-in-command of an Aeldari starship. It his duty to "bring water" to "quench the fire" of his superior and relieve him or her of command if necessary. Extremely rare, such an act is a disgrace to the captain in question who has no choice but to leave his or her Craftworld afterwards, becoming an Outcast.Mael dannanTotal and merciless exterminationNo quarter for the enemy.MarathagFace of deathThe term for the fear-inducing Rictus Masks worn by Harlequin Troupe Masters.Margorach UnknownHarlequin Death Jesters (means "death fool" in real-world Scottish Gaelic)MarsgrechScreaming deathBio-explosive shuriken ammunitionMaugan RaThe Harvester of SoulsName and title of the Phoenix Lord Maugan RaMaugetarHarvesterThe weapon of the Phoenix Lord Maugan Ra.Menshad KorumHunters in pursuit of themselvesAeldari lost on the Path of the Warrior, means Exarchs of two or more Warrior Aspects.Mile'ionahdWarrior of wonder; warrior of surpriseAeldari name used by the Callidus Assassin Meh'Lindi.Mon-keighUnknownAny species deemed inferior to the Aeldari; it is most often applied at present to Humans. The term is derived from the legendary cannibalistic misshapen monstrosities that invaded and subjugated ancient Aeldari lands until they were cleansed from the galaxy by the hero Elronhir.MurehkSting of the waspShuriken PistolRhana DandraUnknownThe cataclysmic battle where the entire Aeldari race will face Chaos for the final time; essentially the Aeldari Apocalypse or Ragnarok.SaedathUnknownAllegorical strategic plan for a battle, taken from the mythic play of a Harlequin masque.Sai'lanthreshShe Who ThirstsSlaanesh, a Chaos God born from the excesses of the Aeldari that feeds on their souls.SaimSnake; secret knowledgeThis word has a double meaning -- in Aeldari culture the snake is the creature who is supposed to know all the secrets of the universe.SeachmallUnknownIllusion.SeachranUnknownA delusion.Sha'eilThe place where daemons are found; hellThe Immaterium.ShelweSongWhen used as a suffix for Aeldari names, the meaning is "Song of [name here]"Shlaereen UnknownA silent death.SierbahnUnknownA Scatter Laser.SlavhreenurSalvationSame meaning in Low Gothic.Suin DaellaeThe doom that wailsThe weapon wielded by the Avatar of Khaine, regardless of its actual form.TranglamUnknownThe "Doctrine of Tranglam" seems to equate to the Aeldari term for the branch of mathematics Human savants call Chaos TheoryTueleanUnknownA Shuriken Catapult.UigebealachLit. "Fabric way"The term for the Aeldari theory of interdimensional or hyperdimensional physics that describes the functioning of the Webway.Yngir UnknownThe term refers to giant, demigod-like beings; it is usually used to refer more specifically to the C'tan.YnnealidhThe necropolis below.A direct reference to Low Commorragh and the other slumlike regions around it; it is a specifically Drukhari pejorative used to express contempt for their fellow citizens of the Dark City by those in High Commorragh. |
Aeldari Lexicon - Trivia: In keeping with the fey-inspired theme of the Aeldari as "space elves," the structure and pronunciation of the Aeldari Lexicon is heavily inspired by real-world Celtic tongues from the British Isles, particularly Welsh, Irish Gaelic and Scottish Gaelic. |
Aeldari Mythology - Aeldari Mythology: Aeldari Mythology, also called the Aeldari Myth Cycles, is an ancient cultural force of myths and legends which binds the surviving members of the Aeldari species together and forms a basis for much of their thinking about their ancient past.There were several gods that composed the pantheon of Aeldari myth, yet all but three -- Cegorach, Isha and Khaela Mensha Khaine -- were destroyed in the Fall of the Aeldari and the birth of the Chaos God Slaanesh, absorbed like so many other Aeldari souls into the psychic mass of She Who Thirsts.A new Aeldari god, Ynnead, who is not part of the original mythology, is said to be forming from the souls of the Asuryani dead within the Infinity Circuits of the craftworlds and to have recently partially awoken during the Battle of Port Demesnus in ca. 999.M41, giving rise to the new Aeldari kindred known as the Ynnari. |
Aeldari Mythology - Genesis of the Aeldari: The mythology of the Aeldari teaches that they are the children of Isha, the goddess of fertility and the harvest and Kurnous, the god of the hunt. In the early days of the Aeldari race's existence, there was no barrier between the gods and mortals -- no boundary between the Materium and the Immaterium -- and the deities walked among the early Aeldari, teaching them and leading them in a golden age of peace and prosperity. |
Aeldari Mythology - Isha's Tears: Yet one day, Lileath the Maiden, the Aeldari goddess of dreams, dreamed that the Aeldari would cause the destruction of Khaela Mensha Khaine, the god of war. As Lileath was well-known for the power of her prophetic dreams among the gods of the pantheon, Khaine took the warning very seriously and resolved to wipe out the Aeldari race rather than let them destroy him. The ensuing slaughter was of such proportions that Isha, goddess of the earth, petitioned Asuryan, the Phoenix King and leader of the Aeldari pantheon, to stop it.Asuryan did so, and created a barrier between the Aeldari and their gods, forever separating the two, and decreed that no god was to intervene or communicate with the Aeldari ever again, thus creating the barrier that separates the physical universe from the Immaterium. So, Khaine's war on the Aeldari was stopped, for a time.This was too much for Isha, though, and her consort Kurnous, god of the hunt. Isha and Kurnous loved their children the Aeldari and could not bear to be separated from them. They approached Vaul, the smith god, with their woes, and the kindly Vaul agreed to help them. With Vaul's aid, they forged Spirit Stones through which mortal Aeldari could communicate with the gods.With these stones, Isha and Kurnous continued to teach and mentor their mortal children in secrecy. Peace was not to last, though, as one day Khaine stumbled upon the two as they communicated with the Aeldari, and took the information of their violation of his edict straight to Asuryan.Though Asuryan was sympathetic with Isha and Kurnous, they had broken his own laws and he reluctantly decreed that the two gods be given to Khaine, to do with as he wished. |
Aeldari Mythology - War in Heaven: Khaine tortured Isha and Kurnous, utilising every cruel art he knew. Many of the Aeldari gods thought Khaine was going too far and secretly supported Isha and Kurnous, but only one was willing to stand up for them in public. The smith god Vaul petitioned for their release, and eventually he and Khaine came to an agreement. In one year's time, Khaine would release Isha and Kurnous in exchange for one hundred divinely-crafted swords. Vaul was such a master smith that a single blade of his was of incalculable value -- indeed, a single mortal armed with such a Sword of Vaul could stand against a thousand warriors armed with mundane weapons.Vaul immediately set to work, rejoicing. Unfortunately though, when the year was up, he had only completed ninety-nine swords, rendering the bargain void. He took an ordinary mortal blade and mixed it in with the others, hoping that Khaine would not notice. Upon delivery, Khaine was so pleased with the weapons that he released Isha and Kurnous forthwith, delighting in the craftsmanship that had gone into the swords. It was only when Isha and Kurnous were long gone that Khaine discovered the one mortal sword.Khaine roared in anger, calling Vaul a cheat, a liar, and a thief. He immediately set off to track Vaul down and make him pay. The conflicts that followed, remembered as the "War in Heaven," polarised the Aeldari gods, as Khaine's faction and Vaul's engaged in bloody warfare for an eternity. Gods changed sides, great deeds of heroism and of craven evil were performed by both factions, and the war was mirrored in a struggle between the Aeldari in the mortal realm. Asuryan himself never took a side, watching the carnage impassively, slowly coming to regret his impetuosity in sentencing Isha and Kurnous.This is not the only version of the Aeldari myth of the hundred Swords of Vaul; another consists of the Aeldari and Khaine going to war with the Necrons and failing because of the one "mortal" sword, thus encapsulating in Aeldari mythology more of the truth of their species -- that they were created as a psychic warrior race by the Old Ones to help defeat their enemies the Necrons and the C'tan. |
Aeldari Mythology - Anaris, the Light of the Dawn: As the conflict between the Aeldari gods escalated, Vaul reforged the final sword that had been meant for Khaine, and it proved to be the greatest of all. Vaul called it Anaris, "the Light of the Dawn." Armed with this weapon, Vaul strode forth to do battle with Khaine. It was a long, hard-fought struggle, but even with Anaris, Vaul was no match for the war god. Khaine cast down Vaul, maiming the smith, and bound Vaul to his own anvil.However, the falcon Faolchú, consort of the Great Hawk Asuryan, who had fought for Vaul, took the sword Anaris and delivered it straight to Eldanesh, the greatest of the mortal Aeldari heroes. With Anaris in hand, Eldanesh of the Red Moon took up the fight and faced Khaine in single combat. Eldanesh fought well, but in the end he, too, was defeated by Khaine, his body crushed by the god of war.As Khaine slew Eldanesh his hands began to drip with red blood. Forever after, he was to become known as "Khaela Mensha Khaine," which means "Khaine the Bloody-Handed" in the Aeldari Lexicon. Asuryan had seen enough of the slaughter and proclaimed the War in Heaven over. Khaine had attained his vengeance and left the field satisfied. |
Aeldari Mythology - Fall of the Aeldari Gods: Millions of Terran years later in the 29th Millennium of the Imperial Calendar, after the Aeldari race had travelled to the stars and forged a great empire through the creation of their Webway in the Immaterium, they grew decadent and indulgent. Their thoughts and emotions coalesced in the Warp into a new and deadly God of Chaos -- Slaanesh, the Prince of Pleasure. The birth of Slaanesh and the Fall of the Aeldari heralded the end of the Aeldari pantheon.Slaanesh slew the Aeldari gods viciously -- Lileath, Asuryan, even the old, blind Morai-Heg, the goddess of fate, all were murdered by Slaanesh. Khaine, the mightiest warrior of the gods, did battle with Slaanesh and was cast down and eventually shattered into a million pieces which became the Avatars of Khaine that now belong within the Infinity Circuit of every Asuryani craftworld. Thus did Lileath's ancient prophecy come true, for the Aeldari were the cause of Khaine's destruction -- even as he battled to save them.Though this is certainly the most well-known of their myths, Aeldari mythology contains many stories, and each Aeldari is expected to know at least all of the major ones. The effect of these myths upon the Aeldari language is profound as it is said to be amazingly complex and almost incomprehensible to Human ears, mainly due to the constant and intricate references to these myths. For example, the Aeldari word Faolchú, which commonly refers to the Aeldari gravitic tank known as the Falcon among Mankind, also refers to the legendary bird and its actions during the Aeldari myths, lending the word connotations beyond the immediate meaning.Near the end of the Aeldari's version of the War in Heaven, it is believed by one craftworld that when Slaanesh claimed Isha as his own, Nurgle the Plague Lord heard her cries for help and came to her aid. Nurgle took Isha from the jaws of Slaneesh and now she is caged within his cauldron chamber in the Realm of the Plague Lord in the Warp, making her taste all of the poisons and poxes that he designs. If the results please him, he empties the contents into a bottomless drain, making it rain upon the mortal worlds. If it does not please him, he swallows the concoction, vomits it back into his cauldron and starts afresh. It is said that while Nurgle is busy with his plagues, Isha whispers to mortals, seeking to tell them the cures for the poxes she has tasted.Note that the "War in Heaven" is also a term occasionally used to describe the [[War in Heaven (Necron)|war between the Necrontyr and the Old Ones sixty million Terran years ago]] in the days when the galaxy was young. This war is not the same as that conflict of the same name described in the Aeldari myths -- it merely shares the same name, though some Imperial and even Aeldari scholars contend that the one is based upon the other. It is also important to remember that the War in Heaven may be a myth, not actual history -- the Aeldari believe it happened, but believe it as a religious myth or metaphor rather than as an actual sequence of events.However, it should be noted that "gods" do exist in the Warhammer 40,000 universe, often as the psychic manifestation in the Immaterium of the collective unconsciousness of a large group of sentient beings built up over time. Slaanesh was created in this way, just as the new Aeldari god Ynnead is forming even now within the protected Immaterium of the craftworlds' Infinity Circuits. The C'tan (also called "Star Gods"; in fact, C'tan is said to translate from the ancient Necrontyr tongue as "Star God") are incredibly powerful, god-like entities which feed on the energy provided by stars and mortal life energies, though their energies exist solely within the material universe, which is why they are so vulnerable to psychic abilities. |
Aeldari Mythology - Gods of the Aeldari: The Aeldari pantheon is considered to have been destroyed by the creation of Slaanesh during the Fall of the Aeldari. While the Aeldari still revere all the gods and preserve their stories within the mythic cycles, they do not call on them for aid or hope for their intervention any longer.Asuryan - Sometimes known as the "Phoenix King," Asuryan was the king of the pantheon of Aeldari gods. While the mythic cycles seem to indicate that he held sway over all the others, he was nevertheless consumed by Slaanesh. He is often depicted in relation to fire and light, his chief symbols.Gea or Gia - A divine consort of both Khaine and Asuryan.Hoec - Hoec's role within the Aeldari pantheon is unknown. Little is known of Hoec in the fragments of Aeldari mythology available to the savants of the Imperium of Man, save that he is a mysterious wanderer who is said to be one with the Webway and has walked the paths between worlds since the stars themselves were young. Some amongst the greatest of the Aeldari Rangers who walk the Path of the Outcast, the Pathfinders, revere Hoec as their divine exemplar and patron. This is especially true for Pathfinders from Craftworld Alaitoc.Cegorach (or the Laughing God) - The patron god of the Harlequins is the other surviving god of the Aeldari Pantheon after Isha. The Laughing God was the trickster and artist of the Aeldari pantheon. When all the other Aeldari gods were destroyed, Cegorach fled before Slaanesh until Khaine rose to do battle with it. The Laughing God took this chance to escape into the realm of the Webway, as only he is said to know all the secrets of its passages. The master of the Harlequins, Cegorach is the only Aeldari god that still remains in his original form.Isha - Isha is the goddess of the harvest, fertility and healing and the mother of the Aeldari race. Isha is always represented as a fertility goddess by the Aeldari in many respects. She was imprisoned by Khaine for a period of time, until Vaul paid her ransom with the hundred Swords of Vaul. She is often depicted crying, and her symbol is a teared eye, symbolic of her sorrow in being separated from her mortal children by the barrier between the Materium and the Immaterium. Her tears are said to have been formed into the Aeldari Lexicon's runes by the smith god Vaul so that she could communicate with her children. It is also whispered the Isha was taken from the jaws of Slaanesh by Nurgle and she currently remains his prisoner in the Land of the Plaguelord in the Realm of Chaos.Kaela Mensha Khaine - The god of war, whose Avatars can still be summoned into the material universe to protect the Aeldari from its place in each craftworld's Infinity Circuit, as long as a powerful Aeldari Phoenix Lord sacrifices their life to serve as a vessel for the possessing god.Kurnous - Kurnous is the god of the hunt, the father of the Aeldari race, and the consort of Isha. He is often shown in conjunction with hounds, hawks, and other trappings of the hunt.Lileath (also known as Lilcarth) - Lileath is the Maiden, the goddess of dreams and fortune and the daughter of Isha.Morai-Heg - Morai-Heg is the Crone, the goddess of fate and the soul.Vaul - Vaul is the Artificer, the god of smiths and craft. Vaul is one of the central gods of the pantheon, and an enemy to Khaine. In order to purchase the freedom of Kurnous and Isha, Khaine demanded one hundred potent divine blades from the smith god. Vaul was unable to finish the last blade in time, and so hid a mortal blade amid the others. This fooled Khaine long enough to get Isha and Kurnous to freedom, but when he realised the trick he cried out for vengeance. Vaul finished the final blade, Anaris the Dawnlight, and took it to do battle with Khaine. Though it was the greatest of all swords, Khaine was the better warrior and crippled Vaul. The smith is often shown chained to his anvil, the punishment that Khaine set upon him.Ynnead - Ynnead is the still-forming god of the dead. Ynnead is a potential god formed of the souls of the dead Aeldari contained in the Infinity Circuits of the Asuryani craftworlds. Ynnead represents the last, faint hope of the Aeldari that they will overthrow Slaanesh and free themselves of his curse. The Aeldari believe the Aeldari souls contained within the Infinity Circuits of all the craftworlds are collectively forming a new god which will have the power to destroy Slaanesh, freeing their species' soul from destruction and consumption by the Prince of Chaos. As yet the souls contained in the Infinity Circuits can muster only a tiny amount of power compared to Slaanesh -- the Aeldari believe that only once every last Aeldari has died and their souls combined into what they call Ynnead, will it have the power to finally confront and destroy Slaanesh -- and the Aeldari race can then be reborn. |
Aeldari Pantheon - Aeldari Pantheon: The Aeldari Pantheon, known in earlier sources as the Eldar Pantheon, are a collection of ancient gods of the alien Aeldari, most of whom were consumed by the creation of the Chaos God Slaanesh at the moment of its birth during the Fall of the Aeldari.The Aeldari still revere all the gods of the pantheon and preserve their stories within the Aeldari mythic cycles and epics which bind the entire Aeldari species together and forms a basis for much of their way of thinking when it comes to their ancient past.Yet the Aeldari of the present do not call upon their gods for aid or hope for their intervention any longer. Sadly, all but three of the Aeldari Pantheon -- Khaine, Cegorach and Isha -- were destroyed during the Fall of the Aeldari.However, a new god, Ynnead, the Aeldari god of the dead, who is not a part of the old myth cycles, was long said to be forming from the souls of the Aeldari dead within the Infinity Circuits of the Asuryani craftworlds. Ynnead's awakening was dramatically accelerated during the Battle of Port Demesnus in 999.M41 by a ritual undertaken by the Farseer Eldrad Ulthran.Partially awakened within the Immaterium, Ynnead reached out across the galaxy and chose the former Aeldari Corsair and Commorrite arena gladiator Yvraine, the "Daughter of Shades," to serve as his prophet and high priestess on what became known as the "Night of Revelations." She founded a new Aeldari religious group, the Ynnari, who in the Era Indomitus seek to unite all the Aeldari factions across the galaxy to destroy Slaanesh and restore the Aeldari's lost glory. |
Aeldari Pantheon - Kaela Mensha Khaine, God of War: Kaela Mensha Khaine is one of the only two surviving gods of the Aeldari before the recent awakening of Ynnead. In the old Aeldari Pantheon, he was second only to his twin brother Asuryan, the Phoenix King, in power, and was often shown as the enemy of Vaul. He is also the most violent and reckless of the gods.Asuryan was so appalled by his murder of Eldanesh, a mortal Aeldari, that he cursed Khaine and made his hands drip eternally with the blood of Eldanesh so that everyone would remember what he had done.The Aeldari say that when Slaanesh awoke, She Who Thirsts consumed each of the other Aeldari gods in the Immaterium in turn. While his counterparts were all devoured, Khaine took up his great sword and did battle with Slaanesh instead.Khaine was not strong enough to destroy Slaanesh, but he was too powerful to be defeated. Instead his psychic signature in the Warp was broken, and scattered into fragments. These fragments were driven from the Warp where they had done battle and came to rest in the heart of the Infinity Circuit of each Asuryani craftworld.These fragments of the god became the Avatars of Kaela Mensha Khaine. In times of war the Asuryani can awaken one of these Avatars to lead them into battle. But the price is the sacrifice of an Exarch's life, for the Avatar needs to possess a physical body to enter the material universe.The Avatars of Khaine are towering monsters with skin of iron and molten cores, hands permanently dripping with blood as Khaine's did. |
Aeldari Pantheon - Cegorach, God of Tricksters: The only other god of the Aeldari Pantheon to survive the birth of Slaanesh, Cegorach, also known as the "Laughing God," the "Great Harlequin," the "Great Fool" and the "First Fool," was a consummate trickster and the artist of the Aeldari gods.While most of the Aeldari gods were consumed by Slaanesh during the Fall of the Aeldari, according to legend this deity survived because his mocking nature distanced him from the collective psychic corruption and amoral decadence of the ancient Aeldari Empire that birthed the Chaos God. Other legends tell that when all the other gods were destroyed, Cegorach fled before Slaanesh until Khaine rose to do battle with her.It is said that during the fight between Slaanesh and Khaine the Laughing God hid behind Khaine for protection, and in the aftermath of the struggle Cegorach fled into the Webway where Slaanesh could not find him. He still resides there, and is the only being in the universe who knows exactly where every door and tunnel in the Webway leads.As the master and patron god of the mysterious Harlequins, Cegorach is the only Aeldari god that still remains in his original form. The Harlequins are protected from Slaanesh in a different way from their Craftworld Aeldari brethren.While Craftworld Aeldari wear Spirit Stones which absorb their souls when they die to prevent them from being devoured by Slaanesh in the Warp, the Aeldari Harlequins are directly protected by their faith in their god's power and spiritual resonance with his nature, becoming one with his Warp emanation upon their death. The only exception to this are the Harlequin Solitaires whose souls must be won from Slaanesh after their deaths by the Laughing God. |
Aeldari Pantheon - Isha, Goddess of the Harvest and Fertility: The Great Mother of the Aeldari race, Isha is a fertility goddess in many respects. She was imprisoned by Khaine for a period of time, until Vaul paid her ransom. She is often depicted crying, and her symbol is a teared eye, symbolic of her sorrow in being separated from her mortal children. Her tears are said to have solidified to form the Spirit Stones which keep the Asuryani safe from Slaanesh after their death.It is rumoured that the Chaos God Nurgle coveted the Aeldari fertility goddess, and rescued her from consumption by Slaanesh only to imprison her in his decaying mansion that lies within his foul realm in the Warp. Nurgle "cares" for Isha by feeding her the various diseases he concocts, only for her to whisper the cures for each one to mortals in realspace when his back is turned. |
Aeldari Pantheon - Ynnead, God of the Dead: Ynnead, called the "Whispering God," is a dream, the embodiment of a possibility that has yet to be fully realized. Some Aeldari Seers long believed that when the last Aeldari died during the Rhana Dandra, the Final Battle with Chaos, Ynnead would be born from the Immaterium with the strength of all the Aeldari souls stored in the Infinity Circuits of the craftworlds and the World Spirits of the Exodites.Ynnead would then have the power to destroy Slaanesh forever in a final battle, thus correcting the mistakes which led to the Fall of the Aeldari and allowing the Aeldari species to be reincarnated from the Warp as of old into a universe free of the taint of Chaos.Or at least that is what the Aeldari believed would happen for almost ten thousand standard years. Then, in 999.M41, during the Battle of Port Demesnus on the moon of Coheria, the High Farseer Eldrad Ulthran partially completed a ritual intended to awaken Ynnead using the power of the souls found in the Infinity Circuits of every craftworld in the galaxy.While the intervention of the Imperial Deathwatch interrupted the ritual before it could be completed, the god of the dead was partially awakened, and sought out a champion to complete his rise in the form of Yvraine, the "Daughter of Shades," during the Night of Revelation in Commorragh. Yvraine founded a new Aeldari faction dedicated to the Whispering God's full awakening known as the Ynnari.The Ynnari, with members drawn from the Asuryani, the Harlequins, and the Drukhari of Commorragh, seek the restoration of the ancient Aeldari race by collecting the artefacts known as the Croneswords from across the galaxy.Their combined ritualistic use at a single focused point in realspace will allow Ynnead to fully manifest his power in the Warp, where he will combat Slaanesh, hopefully destroying the Prince of Chaos and freeing the Aeldari from the soul-devouring curse of She Who Thirsts forever.Only then will the Aeldari people, restored to the unity of the ancient Aeldari, seek to rebuild a new and better interstellar empire. |
Aeldari Pantheon - Asuryan, King of the Aeldari Pantheon: Sometimes known as the "Phoenix King," Asuryan was the king of the pantheon of Aeldari gods. While the ancient Aeldari myth cycles seem to indicate that he held sway over all other gods, Asuryan was nevertheless consumed by the Chaos God Slaanesh.He is often depicted in relation to fire and light, his chief symbols. Asuryan is a key player in many of the legendary cycles of Aeldari Mythology. Asuryan's brother is the god of war, Kaela Mensha Khaine. The goddess Gea is said to have held both Asuryan and Khaine as her twin consorts.Before the Fall of the Aeldari, Asuryan was the third primary contributor of knowledge to the Aeldari, after Kurnous and Isha. Among Asuryan's gifts to the early Aeldari after their creation was wisdom and the ability to manipulate psychic energy.The psychic power bound into the Aeldari by Asuryan brought both boon and bane. Though the Aeldari's lifespan and already potent mastery over psychic energies increased following Asuryan's gift, it also decreased their fertility, leading the species to begin a slow decline. |
Aeldari Pantheon - Vaul, God of the Forges: The artificer and smith of the Aeldari Gods, Vaul is one of the central gods of the Aeldari Pantheon, and an enemy to Khaine. In order to purchase the freedom of Kurnous and Isha, Khaine demanded one hundred blades from the Smith God as a ransom.Vaul was unable to finish the last blade in time, and so hid a simple, mortal-forged blade amid the others of divine craftsmanship. This fooled Khaine long enough to get Isha and Kurnous to freedom, but when the god of war realised he had been tricked, he cried out for vengeance.Vaul finished the final blade, Anaris the Dawnlight, and took it to do battle with Khaine. Though it was the greatest sword ever forged, Khaine was the better warrior and crippled Vaul. The Smith God is often shown chained to his anvil, the punishment that Khaine set upon him for his deception. |
Aeldari Pantheon - Kurnous, God of the Hunt: Kurnous was the Father of the Aeldari race and the companion and consort of Isha, the goddess of fertility and the harvest. He is often shown in conjunction with hounds, hawks, and other trappings of the hunt. Along with Isha, he too was imprisoned by Khaine, initiating the event that marked the start of the Aeldari myth known as the War in Heaven. |
Aeldari Pantheon - Gea: Gea was an Aeldari goddess notable for being the consort of the twin deities Khaine the Bloody Handed God and Asuryan the Phoenix King. |
Aeldari Pantheon - Hoec: Revered amongst the near-invisible assassins known as Aeldari Pathfinders, the mysterious wandering Aeldari divinity known as Hoec is said to be one with the Webway, and has walked the paths between planets since the stars themselves were young. |
Aeldari Pantheon - Lileath the Maiden, Goddess of Dreams and Fortune: Lileath, also known as Lilcarth, was the goddess of dreams and fortune. She is the daughter of Isha and was the youngest of the Aeldari gods in the main pantheon. |
Aeldari Pantheon - Morai-Heg, the Crone, Goddess of Fate and Souls: The Crone-Goddess Morai-Heg is the consort of Khaine and the third in a trinity of female Aeldari goddesses also including Lileath the Maiden and Isha, the Mother of the Aeldari. Morai-Heg appears as an ancient and withered creature who holds the fate of mortals inside a skin rune pouch.In Aeldari myth she sought to partake of the wisdom contained in her divine blood. She manipulated Khaela Mensha Khaine to cut off her hand so that she might drink deep of her own vitae. It was the fingers of this lost hand that were fashioned into the Croneswords that now offer hope of an Aeldari resurgence to the Ynnari.With this deed Morai-Heg gained the knowledge that she sought, and in return, Khaine gained the aspect of the banshee.The original homeworlds of the Aeldari Empire that were lost to the Eye of Terror after the Fall of the Aeldari became known as Crone Worlds, a reference to the Crone Goddess.The inhabitants of Craftworld Iybraesil are noted for being followers of Morai-Heg. |
Aeldari Pantheon - Cobra-God: The Cobra-God is an animistic creature of destruction who does not care who is caught in his wake; he is venerated by the Exodites. |
Aeldari Pantheon - Scorpion-God: The Scorpion-God is an animistic spirit of defence, brother of Cobra; he is also a spirit deity venerated by the Exodites. |
Aeldari Pantheon - Serpent-God: The Serpent-God is an animistic creature of secrets who knows all there is to know in the universe; he is the third major spirit deity venerated by the Exodites. |
Aeldari Pantheon - Trivia: There are many similarities between the mythology surrounding the Aeldari pantheon and aspects of the ancient mythologies of the Greek, Celtic and Norse cultures of the real world. It is assumed that the Warhammer 40,000 writers drew heavily on these existing sources of real world mythology when creating the Aeldari race and the defining mythic stories of their culture. |
Aeldari Titans - Aeldari Titans: Aeldari Titans are great, bipedal combat walkers produced by the Craftworld Aeldari, the Asuryani.Similar to the lumbering Titans that are the greatest war machines of the Imperium of Man, Aeldari Titans combine grace, speed and deadly firepower.These tall, slender war engines are built to be aesthetically pleasing as well as fully functional, like all Aeldari technology, and possess a grace and beauty rarely seen amongst the deadly implements of Mankind.Aeldari Titans move with a smooth agility and grace unachievable by the Imperium's Titans. |
Aeldari Titans - Revenant Scout Titan: The Revenant is the smallest grade of Aeldari Titan, comparable to the Imperial Warhound-class Scout Titan. All Aeldari Titans are agile and graceful constructs, but the Revenant's compact size allows it to move with a swiftness and smoothness quite simply impossible for the massive war machines of the other intelligent races.In addition to their speed and agility, Revenant Titans are also well-armed, making them formidable foes. Their primary armament are a pair of Pulsars, immensely powerful laser weapons, although some are instead armed with Sonic Lances.Secondary armament consists of a shoulder-mounted Revenant Missile Launcher, loaded with plasma warheads for defence against infantry. In place of the heavy armor of lesser races' Titans the Revenant is principally protected by an image-distorting Holo-field projected from the Titan's fins which confuse auspexes of all types.The Revenant also mounts a number of powerful jump jets on its slender frame, turning its movement into a series of drifting leaps, or even gentle floating sweeps over the battlefield.Despite this almost ethereal grace, Revenant Titans are well-armed, powerful adversaries. Their pace, agility and ability to leap difficult terrain allows them to harry the enemy lines in quick scouting raids before disappearing back into cover with the same terrifying speed.Revenant crews are small, guided partially by the spirits contained within their wraithbone core, as is the case with all Aeldari Titans.Where the larger Aeldari Titans are sometimes crewed by Asuryani twins or triplets, the smaller Revenants are often manned by just one member of a pair of siblings, the second of whom will pilot another Revenant, leading to the Titans hunting in packs, psychically linked to one another by the inherent bloodties of their twin pilots.Incredibly versatile, the Revenant is deployed in a variety of ways. When serving alongside the larger Phantom it can operate in a forward scout role. Its jump jets give it the speed to be deployed in support of assault waves of Asuryani armour, or it can act as extra force support for defensive squads of Guardian militia.A noted tactic for the Aeldari is to pair their Titans together. Linked telepathically by the blood-ties of their pilots or "Steersmen," they always fight side-by-side.Paired Aeldari Titans often have joint names. Long and complex by the standards of the Imperium's Titan Legions, these war machines bear elaborate titles which when translated from the Aeldari Lexicon into Low Gothic read as Hearts Armoured for Battle, Eagles Born of Flame, Revenge upon Ancient Wrongs, Guardians of the Gates of Infinity, and Protectors of the Fallen. |
Aeldari Titans - Phantom Titan: Aeldari Titans are very different from the machine-constructs of the other intelligent peoples of the galaxy. They benefit not only from the experience of their crew, who are raised with their Titans from birth, but from the collective consciousness of the Spirit Stones contained within the Titan, housing the souls of numerous dead Asuryani.Phantoms are built around a Wraithbone core which permits the spirits contained within it to flow freely through the whole construct. This gives the Aeldari Titan a consciousness of its own which, combined with its living crew, transforms the Phantom into an unusually deadly fighting machine.Aeldari births are rare, and new generations emerge only every few hundred Terran years, so every child is cherished in a manner the other, younger races, find hard to understand. Most revered of all are the rare occurrences of Aeldari twin, or even triplet births. Such sets of siblings are considered fated for greatness by the Craftworld Aeldari, and invariably find positions of great power within Asuryani society.Many of these twins and triplets form crews for the Aeldari Titans, where the natural emotional bonds between siblings, the Aeldari's latent psychic power and the special relationship between pilot, machine and the spirits of the dead contained within the Titan construct, combine to create a mastery of control few amongst even the Aeldari could hope to achieve.Most sorrowful, yet most skilled of all, are those Craftworld Aeldari who have lost their kin to the depredations of a violent galaxy.These mourning Aeldari often inter the Spirit Stones of their dead brothers and sisters within the wraithbone shell of a Titan and then take to the machine themselves, seldom emerging, preferring instead to remain within the Titan where they can yet commune with their lost siblings.Phantom Titans are similar in most ways to Imperial Battle Titans but show typical Aeldari design attributes. They are slimmer in build and much faster than their Human-built counterparts. Their weaponry is less about raw firepower and more about well-aimed crucial hits. For defence they use a Holo-Field emitter which makes them harder to "see" and thus more difficult to target; the advantage is that they can avoid damage completely.However, Holo-Fields do not actually deflect firepower like Imperial Void Shields and Ork Power Fields. What makes Phantom Titans distinctive from those of the other races is their crew. In addition to the living, the souls and memories of ancient Aeldari warriors are maintained in the wraithbone matrix of the Titan.War machines of such size and power as the Phantom are not deployed for the Aeldari race's usual lightning raids and surgical strikes. These massive war machines are reserved for the heaviest fighting, when a craftworld must engage in a pitched battle, when fast hit-and-run raiding will not suffice and the Asuryani wish to wreak terrible destruction upon their enemies.Only then do the Webway portals open wide and allow the Phantoms to stride forth. Times must be desperate indeed for a craftworld's Farseers to decree the deployment of such engines of war.The Phantom's primary arm mounts can be fitted with some of the Aeldari's largest and deadliest weapons. These include twin Pulsars, Distortion Cannons or a special sword-like Power Glaive known as the Ashuna-Valcry'le. Secondary weapons mounted in its shoulders include Phantom Missile Launchers and either a Pulse Laser or Titan-grade Starcannon. It is also protected by a Titan-grade Holo-Field projected by the large rear wings. |
Aeldari Titans - Warlock Titan: A rarely encountered variant of the Phantom Titan is known as the Warlock Titan. It contains within its wraithbone core the spirits of mighty Asuryani Farseers and Warlocks.As they were powerful psykers in life, so too are they in death. The psychic strength of these dead spirits, focused and amplified by the Titan's Wraithbone structure, is phenomenal, far outstripping the powers of the living.This potent psychic ability combined with the smooth agility of the Aeldari Titans and their sophisticated weaponry, places the Warlock Titan at the very pinnacle of Aeldari achievement in the realm of psychic engineering.Warlock Titans, as a result of the precognitive power of their possessing Seer spirits, possess an insight into the shape of the future or possible future and they act in conjunction with the ebb and flow of the fates, moving with them in perfect synchronisation to assault the enemy at the most propitious time and place.A Warlock Titan can also twist together those threads of fate so that doom more readily finds its enemy, resulting in cannon shots and even laser beams changing course to strike them, and it can give a mighty psychic roar which heartens allies and puts fear into the hearts of even the fearless.The psychic energy crackling through the Warlock Titan's body can ward off blows, instantly destroy Greater Daemons in close combat, and give power to its most feared weapon, a Titan-grade Psychic Lance.The Psychic Lance uses a short burst of psychic energy directed through a crystal mounted in the Warlock Titan's visor. The resonance set up in the crystal acts to wipe out aggressive instincts from the creatures in its area of effect.This weapon was originally used by Exodites to pacify local wildlife, but the effect can be amplified to launch devastating assaults on the minds of sentient enemies, particularly when backed by the full psychic might contained within a Warlock Titan.The Warlock Titan is also armed with twin Missile Launchers and either a Pulsar or Titan-grade Power Fist, and is protected by reinforced wraithbone armour plate and a Holo-Field emitted from projectors mounted on its large rear wings. |
Aeonstave - Aeonstave: An Aeonstave is a Necron weapon used only by Cryptek Chronomancers. Indeed, it can be considered their signature weapon and symbol of office.Taking on the appearance of a simple stave with an ornate head, the sapphire crystalline headpiece of an Aeonstave contains a massive chronal charge that, when unleashed, can trap a foe in a bubble of slow-time for an extended period of time, severely degrading the enemy's physical capabilities and power to defend themself.This is because each blow from an Aeonstave generates a low-level stasis field that encapsulates the foe and moves them outside the flow of the normal space-time continuum. |
Aerion Mersaror - Aerion Mersaror: Aerion Mersaror was a centurion who served as the commander of the Vindicus Squad of the elite 1st Company of the Ultramarines Legion during the Great Crusade and Horus Heresy.He was slain in the wake of the Battle of Calth when he sacrificed himself by using his Cataphractii Pattern Terminator Armour's homing beacon to provide crucial targeting assistance to the Ultramarines' battleship Macragge's Honour which led to the crippling of the Word Bearers' flagship Infidus Imperator, though at the cost of his own life. |
Aerion Mersaror - History: Centurion Aerion Mersaror served as commander of the Ultramarines Legion's 1st Company's Vindicus Squad during the Great Crusade and Horus Heresy. Present during the Battle of Calth initiated by the Word Bearers Legion, Mersaror would defend the Ultramarines flagship -- the Macragge's Honour -- from the Traitor forces. Leading his warriors to victory, Mersaror would accompany his old friend and the second Legion Master of the XIII Legion before its unification with its primarch -- Marius Gage -- in their pursuit of the fleeing Word Bearers fleet led by its first captain -- Kor Phaeron.Following the Infidus Imperator into the Warp, the Macragge's Honour would engage the warship with its broadsides as Mersaror's squad infiltrated its hull. Slaying every Chaos Cultist unlucky enough to cross their path within the Traitor warship, the Cataphractii Pattern Terminator Armour-clad Ultramarines attempted to thwart the Word Bearers' Chaos rituals, yet proved unsuccessful. Unleashing its fell power, the Word Bearers' completed sorcerous ritual would seemingly kill the members of Vindicus Squad and inflict critical damage on the Macragge's Honour.Continuing their traversal through the Immaterium, the Macragge's Honour was again ambushed by Daemonic forces as Kor Phaeron fled from the battle and re-engaged the overwhelmed forces of Marius Gage. However, Mersaror survived the force born from the ritual and activated his homing tracer aboard the Infidus Imperator.Fighting a desperate battle within the bowels of the Word Bearers' flagship, Mersaror beseeched Marius Gage to fire upon his position before being overwhelmed by the Word Bearers Astartes. Targeting the Infidus Imperator, the Macragge's Honour made its attack run and crippled the Traitor voidship with its macrocannons. Slain by the blast of the Macragge's Honour's guns, Mesaror died as a valiant martyr for his Legion. His example of self-sacrifice and honour secured the survival of his Legion's flagship and achieved a modicum of vengeance for the Word Bearers' stunning betrayal of the Imperium at the Battle of Calth. |
Aerion Mersaror - Sources: Macragge's Honour (Graphic Novel) by Dan Abnett; illustrated by Neil Roberts |
Aerius - Aerius: AeriusHive WorldImperiumthstThere had indeed been many strange portents. A great comet had appeared in the skies of Aerius, the baleful star of legend, which appears only once in every two millennia, and whose appearance always presaged doom. Showers of falling stars descended on the world at the moment of its appearance.The plague was connected with the mysterious Black Pyramid, an impenetrable Aeldari psychic construct which was built, unknown to the local human population, to restrain a Greater Daemon of Nurgle named Botchulaz. |
Aerius - History: There is little official information on the founding of this Imperial world, but it is generally assumed that it was brought into Imperial Compliance during the Great Crusade sometime in the 30th Millennium. What is known (only by the Inquisition, of course) are the events surrounding the imprisonment of the Greater Daemon named Botchulaz.Sometime during the 38th Millennium, Nurgle despatched Botchulaz to spread his pestilence and plagues amongst the crowded hive-populations of the Imperial Hive World of Aerius. Unbeknownst to the daemon lord, he had blundered into a well-executed trap set by the Aeldari. Led by their leader Farseer Kaorelle, the Craftworld Asuryani warriors dropped from the sky and attacked the vile daemon en masse. Kaorelle began the necessary ritual in order to bind Botchulaz, trapping the loathsome creature within the psychic construct known as the "Black Pyramid."Unfortunately, the Aeldari were interrupted when they were attacked by Imperial forces before they could complete the ritual. Aided by the Inquisition, the Space Wolves Space Marines and a detachment of Galt Regiment Astra Militarum troops assaulted the Aeldari. During the ensuing melee, they seized the arcane Talisman of Lykos. As the brutal fighting continued, the talisman was broken into three separate pieces, rendering its powers dormant.At the conclusion of the battle, the commanders of the Imperial forces divided their prize amongst themselves. One piece was taken by Inquisitor Darke of the Inquisition, the second piece by the senior Space Wolves commander and taken back to The Fang, and the remaining piece was given to Commander Byran Powys of the Galt Regiment to be taken back to his homeworld of Galt.Botchulaz remained fettered within the Black Pyramid by multiple layers of arcane ward-pacts, Aeldari spirits and the Farseer's powerful incantations. These intricate patterns only revealed their flaw once every 3,000 Terran years when the comet Balestar became visible in the Aerian sky and Aerius' moons were in the proper alignment. Whilst imprisoned, the Great Unclean One was still able to communicate with his foul servants on a limited basis.During his imprisonment, he eventually discovered the locations of each broken portion of the Talisman of Lykos. The daemon lord schemed to acquire these pieces so that he could free himself from his wretched prison. The return of the comet Balestar in the late 41st Millennium heralded dire portents for Aerius. This coincided with a deadly plague that had struck the Hive World, though this "coincidence" was actually helped along by the subtle manipulations of Botchulaz and his foul agents hidden amongst the masses of Aerian citizens.Heeding the dire warnings of the Oracle of Chaeron, Inquisitor Ivan Sternberg turned to the Space Wolves for help in recovering the pieces of the ancient Talisman of Lykos which could cure the disease-ridden planet and restore order. This was to be the first mission of Ragnar Blackmane of Berek Thunderfist's Great Company as a Blood Claw.Blackmane was assigned to assist the pair of Inquisitors, Ivan Sternberg and Karah Isaan, in recovering the Talisman. The Inquisitors had come to Fenris to request the aid of the Space Wolves in reclaiming the Aeldari artefact. Sternberg suspected that the Black Pyramid, a famous structure of the planet, which had been the site of the great battle of the Space Wolves, the Imperial Guard and the Inquisition against the Aeldari, could restore the planet. One piece of the talisman was kept in the Vault of Victory within The Fang, one was to be found on the planet Galt, and the third was lost in the Warp aboard a derelict Space Hulk.Unknown to Inquisitor Sternberg, one of his servants, Commander Gul of the Inquisition vessel Light of Truth, was a Heretic and a servant of Botchulaz. Acquiring the first piece of the talisman from the Space Wolves, the Inquisitors and the Space Wolves set out for the world of Galt. When they arrived at the planet to recover the second piece of the talisman, they found that an Ork horde had invaded the system and that the Greenskin Warlord Gurg had taken possession of the piece of the talisman found on Galt. Ragnar and his companions infiltrated the Ork horde, and battled against the Greenskin Warlord to reclaim the second piece of the Talisman.Inquisitor Isaan then used her psychic abilities to discover that the last piece of the talisman was aboard a Space Hulk, near the dead sun of Korealis. Ragnar and the Inquisitor successfully recovered the final piece of the talisman after battling the myriad dangers, such as Tyranid Genestealers, found aboard the drifting Hulk.After acquiring the final piece, the Talisman of Lykos was now whole. When the group of Imperials travelled to Aerius to use the talisman, they found nearly the whole planet had already been infected by the plague. Taking the arcane item to the central chamber of the Black Pyramid, before they entered the structure they were warned by what appeared to be an Eldar spirit (in actuality a hologram) not to use the device. The Inquisitors and their Space Wolves escorts ignored the warning.When Inquisitor Sternberg activated the talisman they unwittingly released Botchulaz from his imprisonment, much to the shock of the Imperials. The gloating Great Unclean One recounted his tale of how he came to be imprisoned within the psychic construct, then proceeded to explain that they had been manipulated to do his bidding all along. Calling forth his minion Commander Gul to receive his reward for his faithful servitude, Ragnar Blackmane quickly drew his Bolt Pistol and shot the corrupt officer through the heart, killing him.Inquisitor Isaan then boldly attacked the Greater Daemon with her psychic abilities but Botchulaz mortally wounded her. The daemon lord reanimated Gul's corpse, ordering the revenant to kill the intruders. Tapping into the collected psychic power of the Black Pyramid, Botchulaz began casting a grand spell of archaic power, animating millions of the planet's plague victims as Plague Zombies.Inquisitor Sternberg and the Space Wolves valiantly fought the Greater Daemon, distracting the loathsome creature long enough for Isaan to siphon the power of the Talisman of Lykos in order for her to seal the Black Pyramid, sacrificing herself in the process and trapping Botchulaz within for another 3,000 standard years. |
Aeronautica Imperialis - Aeronautica Imperialis: The Aeronautica Imperialis is the branch of the Imperial Navy that is dedicated to atmospheric combat aviation.The Aeronautica Imperialis usually works in conjunction with the Astra Militarum to provide combat transportation and tactical and strategic air support for its ground forces. |
Aeronautica Imperialis - Role: The might of the Imperial Navy is unimaginably vast, the embodiment of the Imperial Aquila spreading its adamantine shadow across all of the Emperor's realm. If the warships of the Imperial Navy are its titanic wings, the combat aircraft of the Aeronautica Imperialis are its talons, sweeping down to rend and tear the enemies of Mankind.Squadron upon squadron of aircraft darken the skies as the Aeronautica Imperialis goes to war. Armoured fighter craft scream through the upper atmosphere, fighting duels with their Heretic or xenos rivals. Lumbering bombers thunder into whipping tracer fire and billowing smoke, filling the air with the howl of plummeting ordnance.To the rank and file of the Astra Militarum, such aspects of war are distant terrors, which leap into sudden focus when aircraft hurtle down to bust bunkers wide open or riddle infantry with strafing fire.Squadrons of Valkyries, and their sister gunships the Vendettas, operate in much closer cohesion with the Astra Militarum. Possessing sturdy armour, vectored-thrust manoeuvrability and firepower equivalent to a main battle tank, these versatile attack craft are well-loved by the troops on the ground.Wings of Valkyries carry entire platoons of Astra Militarum infantry into battle, or sweep Tempestus Scions swiftly toward their crucial objectives. Whether the battle is fought upon the ragged flanks of a burning promethium refinery or in the carnivorous tangles of a Death World jungle, Valkyrie pilots are trained to get their passengers into position no matter the dangers at hand.Once their human cargo are away, the Valkyrie squadrons typically adopt defensive patterns and remain at low altitude, providing covering fire to the Astra Militarum while staving off enemy aircraft intent on their demise.The ability of Valkyrie squadrons to ferry Imperial soldiers into war zones, or lift them up and bear them away from danger, is not the only strategic use of these impressive craft. The Aeronautica Imperialis can field Valkyries in vast numbers, filling the skies with armoured aircraft and drumming gunfire fit to negate even the superhuman skill and arcane technologies of the Emperor's myriad enemies.Those pilots who make it through such punishing airborne slaughters are soon hailed as veteran aces, promoted to be squadron leaders where their fervent faith and hard-earned hatred of the enemy can best aid their comrades in slaughtering the enemies of the Imperium.Though their aircraft bear armaments blessed and thrice-blessed on the Forge Worlds of the Imperium, courage, determination and unquenchable faith in the Emperor are the true weapons of the heroic Valkyrie and Vendetta crews.Formed up in defence of their wingmen, muttering devotional prayers between barked orders and Vox-exchanges, these brave warriors of the sky battle the worst horrors of the galaxy imaginable and still emerge victorious.The mortality rate amongst Valkyrie and Vendetta squadrons is appalling, craft blown from the air by searing alien energies or crushed in the monstrous claws of winged daemons.It is a testament to sheer human courage that their comrades fight on regardless, holding formation through the deadliest fields of fire and battling their way to victory no matter the terrors inflicted upon them. |
Aeronautica Imperialis - Air War in the 41st Millennium: Air war is a vital element within all of the Imperium of Man's ongoing struggles across the galaxy, for when the skies are dominated, control over the land below soon follows. This is the ancient logic of air war, a truth Humanity knows and holds sacred.Knowledge imparted down long millennia of warfare but, sadly, knowledge often tested and found wanting. Air superiority is often only fleeting, the respite it brings to ground forces all too brief. All too quickly the enemy rallies its strength and the tide of war and fortunes of those fighting changes once more.All across the Emperor's vast interstellar realm, desperate aerial combat is fought; wings of fighters and bombers sally forth from ground bases and void ships in relentless waves, adding their meagre strength to that gone before them, hoping against hope to tip the balance in their favour and gain some miniscule measure of supremacy that might lead to a lasting conquest.From sprawling Hive Worlds to desolate Ocean Worlds, from lush Agri-worlds to lifeless gas giants, valiant pilots seek to conquer war zones that ground forces could never hope to claim – war zones that in most cases ground forces could never even hope to survive.Whole fleets of combat aircraft are committed to the fray. Even as the endless waves of aircraft darken the skies, the wreckage of those that came before them litters the landscape below in an ever increasing detritus of ruined craft, clogging the skies with palls of thick, oily smoke and billowing flame. Casualties are inevitably high. Air war is fast and deadly, the tiniest mistake or miscalculation resulting in a pilot and their armoured steed tumbling to the unforgiving world below in fiery ruin.No amount of training can prepare a rookie pilot for the reality of what is to come. A pilot can fly many sorties and complete numerous missions in hostile skies, but until they are blooded in combat they have no comprehension of what aerial warfare truly means.The sheer, breakneck speed and dizzying assault on the senses is something that cannot be experienced in test conditions. Legends can be born or lives lost as a result of decisions made and actions taken in the briefest of moments. Consequently, the one staple, the one unifying trait shared by pilots of any intelligent race, is that their first experience of action may well be their last.Not all pilots face a swift, fiery end however. For every squadron destined to spin into oblivion, one or two pilots will overcome the dangers and quell their fears. Such natural airborne warriors show an almost preternatural skill, quickly mastering the subtle nuances of their craft, able to jink and dive out of fire arcs and target locks with the grace of a dancer. They develop a sixth sense for danger and a rapacious hunger for the thrill of the kill.With every enemy callously dispatched, the reputation of the aerial killer grows and becomes more fearsome among friend and foe alike, growing until the pilot becomes lauded as an Ace. Many an Ace pilot rises to command of a squadron, their talent, experience and daring inspiring a new wave of pilots to ever greater deeds even as they continue to carve their own personal legend.Rivalries develop between opposing Aces active in the same theatre of war, long games of cat and mouse between them played out in a series of aerial duels and close-run firefights. Some Aces will view their enemies simply as villainous scum to be eradicated. Others develop a grudging respect for a hated foe, even coming to feel a strange relish for each fresh encounter, eager to test their mettle against a worthy opponent once more.Many such vendettas become legends, retold long after those involved have met their inevitable end, stories kept alive amongst the next generation of pilots to carry on the war in the legendary Ace's stead. |
Aeronautica Imperialis - Fighters: ThunderboltLightningLightning Strike FighterAvenger |
Aeronautica Imperialis - Bombers: MarauderMarauder DestroyerMarauder ColossusMarauder Vigilant |
Aeronautica Imperialis - Gunships/Transports: Aquila LanderArvus LighterValkyrieVendettaVultureValkyrie Sky Talon |
Aeronautica Imperialis - Sources: Death from the Skies (7th Edition), pp. 6-7, 24-25Aeronautica Imperialis (2020 Edition), "Rynn's World Air War Campaign Book" (Specialty Game), pp. 3, 63 |
Aetaos'rau'keres - Aetaos'rau'keres: Aetaos'rau'keres, the Slayer of Souls, is a Lord of Change, a Greater Daemon of Tzeentch. He is known by many other names and falsehoods across the galaxy, including: the Lord of Hosts, Distorter of Worlds, The Shadow of All Colours and None, Ashenwing, Render of Veils, and Tzeentch's Mad Satrap. |
Aetaos'rau'keres - History: The true origins of the being known to some as Aetaos'rau'keres has been lost even to the scholars of the arcane in the Imperium, though the Blue Scribes chatter that this daemon lord has hunted down and extinguished every mortal soul or Warp entity that knows the truth of his nature save for his patron lord Tzeentch. Aetaos'rau'keres is a dreaded and feared figure amongst the pantheon of Tzeentch, his name spoken in hushed tones and shrouded ambiguities even by those who worship the Great Conspirator.The extreme power and mastery of the Warp that this loathsome creature possesses allows him to pierce the veil of time and turn the power of other psykers against themselves. Though the daemon lord has been granted great power, Tzeentch has fettered his servant in multiple layers of ward-pacts and riddling incantations, controlling this Lord of Change's ultimate fate. These restrictions on his free will and the determination of his own fate have shattered the Greater Daemon's reason, making him spite-filled and hateful.When he is summoned forth upon the mortal plane, the daemon is forced to appear and vent his wrath. Only the most apocalyptic of Tzeentchian cults would venerate such a hateful creature, seeking to bring forth this daemon lord only when their intent is to murder whole worlds in the name of Tzeentch. |
Aexe Cardinal - Aexe Cardinal: Aexe Cardinal is an Agri-world of the Imperium of Man located in the Sabbat Worlds Sector in the Segmentum Pacificus. The planet was home to a number of different nation-states that varied in culture, though each had a proud heritage of nobility and venerated the Emperor of Mankind with the reverence typical of any loyal Imperial world.Formerly a peaceful world, Aexe-Cardinal was riven by war as part of the Sabbat Worlds Crusade fought between the Imperium and the forces of Chaos. |
Aexe Cardinal - Aexe War: During the fall of the sector to the forces of Chaos, Aexe Cardinal at first managed to remain free of Chaos influence. However, one of its nation-states, the Republic of Shadik, was corrupted by Chaos and launched a great war against the rest of the world, with the objective of conquering it in the name of the Dark Gods. In response, the other nation-states of the Aexe Cardinal formed the "Aexe Alliance," led by the most powerful of the nation-states, Aexegary.The attack by the forces of Shadik caught Aexegary completely by surprise, as the enemy was able to cut across the Upper Naeme Valley. After five Terran years of heavy combat, and the decisive Battle of Diem, the so-called line of fortifications known as the "Meiseq Box" was established to contain the Shadik forces, and the nearly-razed city of Meiseq was rebuilt.The nation of Kottmark was the first to join the Alliance as a senior partner twenty Terran years into the war, and its entry saved Aexegary from conquest by Shadik. Later on, the Principality of Fichua also joined the alliance. The result was forty standard years of stagnation as the conflict degenerated into a bloody war of attrition. The battle lines changed very little if at all over the course of the conflict, and despite the growth of the Aexe Alliance, Shadik was able to hold its own against the combined might of the other nations. Combat on the Northern Front between Aexegary and Shadik was concentrated in three primary regions -- the Meiseq Box, the Peinforq Line, and the Seiberq Pocket. Kottmark was separated from Shadik by its own defensive barrier, the Ostlund Shield Line.The cost of this continual warfare proved devastating in blood and treasure to all the nations of Aexe Cardinal. Casualties were so high during the conflict that the Principality of Fichua, which joined the war on the side of the Alliance in 763.M41, would have had its entire population wiped out nine times over from the combined casualties suffered by the other nations of the Aexe Alliance. |
Aexe Cardinal - Outside Aid: Forty standard years after the start of the war, the Loyalist nations of Aexe Cardinal finally received aid from the forces of the Astra Militarum, which dispatched a task force of infantry and armoured units to aid the Aexe Alliance and achieve a breakthrough that would hopefully end the war in the Imperium's favor. However, at the same time, Shadik received similar reinforcements from the forces of Chaos, in the form of the Chaos warband known as the Blood Pact, which also brought powerful, long-ranged siege guns to the world in an attempt to end the stalemate.The outdated and inefficient methods of the Aexe Alliance's command and control protocols hamstrung the operating capacity of many of the Imperial Guard units. Attempts to prevent Shadik spies from stealing battle plans resulted in many units not learning information vital to efficient combat operations, and constant politicking between high-ranking officers produced bickering and suspicion between the off-world Imperial Guard regimental commanders and the generals of the local Alliance that degraded the ability of the Loyalist forces to coordinate their actions.As a result of this bureaucratic in-fighting and lack of unity on the Loyalist side, a breakthrough was not achieved before the Imperial Guard units were rotated out to other theatres of the war. However, the Tanith First-and-Only Regiment, under the command of Colonel-Commissar Ibram Gaunt, was able to succeed in a mission to destroy the enemy siege guns before they could be fully deployed, thus also preventing the forces of Chaos from gaining an advantage in the continuing stalemate on the world.The outcome of the war remains unknown. |
Aexe Cardinal - Geography: Most of Aexe Cardinal's geography is unknown, but the terrain of the nation-state of Aexegary was idyllic, with a large number of forests, fields, and rivers in picturesque scenes, dotted with orderly towns and villages. However, near the battle lines, the terrain became muddy and more desolate, the product of forty Terran years of unrelenting war. Blasted trees and great muddy plains covered the area between the Aexe Alliance and Shadik lines, punctuated here and there by a ruined structure that had managed to survive the near-constant shelling.To the southeast, Aexegary had a large stretch of coastline along the Cardinal Ocean, which gave it a lifeline to the sea. Aexegary shared a border with the much smaller nation of Fichua, and across the Kottmark Massif lay the nation of Kottmark. Aexegary and Kottmark both were bordered by Shadik, making them part of the war's front line. The eastern front line was anchored by Frergarten, an Aexe Alliance fortress. |
Aexe Cardinal - Flora and Fauna: The flora and fauna of the world included flowers, along with animals like the behj, a large ursinoid creature that was the alpha predator on the planet, and the struthid, a massive, quadrupedal avian that was heavily muscled, had long claws on its feet and a great, sharp beak.The struthid were used as mounts by the cavalry of Aexegary. Struthid riders bonded with their mounts using cybernetic neural links, which could have horrific consequences if the mounts were killed while their riders were still in neural communion with them. Juvenile struthids were often used as the combatants in "cockfights" put on by bored soldiers. Due to the casualties the war wrought on men and beasts alike, the species' numbers were slowly dwindling. |
Aexe Cardinal - Cultures: The overall cultural and technological level of Aexe Cardinal was similar to that of Terra in the final century of the 2nd Millennium, with elegant cars, trains, and high-ranking military officers drawn from its planetary nobility. Aexegary was the largest and strongest of the seven different nation-states that composed the Aexe Alliance, and was ruled by its High Sezar. Its currency was called the "scuto." The nation had a proud military history, and the High Sezar was guarded by an elite military unit, the Bande Sezari, in his palace of Mons Sezari.The country's capital, Brunsgatte, was a grand city with docks and a commercial district located on the Naeme River. In the ancient days of Aexe Cardinal, generals rode to the Mons Sezari in jeweled palanquins from the city's Fortress Gate. This tradition was still maintained in the city, and it was customary for the palanquin's driver to be paid a scuto in return for his service. At the time of the Imperium's intervention in the war with Shadik, the High Sezar of Aexegary was Leonid Fip Krefuel.Kottmark was a similarly proud nation, which was often reckless in its military efforts as its people tried to showcase to the rest of the Alliance their skill and fortitude. |
Aexe Cardinal - Technology: Much like their culture, the technology of Aexe Cardinal was similar to that of Terra in the late 2nd Millennium, though they did possess more advanced technologies that were closer to the galactic standard for the more advanced worlds of the Imperium. Though the main Aexe armies utilised bolt-action Auto Weapons, rhomboidal tanks with sponson or dorsal-mounted cannons, tri-wing propeller-driven aircraft, and cavalry, they also made use of cybernetic neural links when forging bonds with their cavalry mounts.Energy shield technology was also available to protect command posts from artillery bombardment, though sufficient shelling could ultimately penetrate even this form of defence. Servitors were available to carry out especially hazardous or dangerous tasks and to serve the needs of the planet's nobility.The arrival of the Imperium and the forces of Chaos on ther world brought enormous change, as despite being hamstrung by the primitive military doctrines of the Aexe forces, the greater technology base of the off-world Imperial and Chaos forces was capable of overwhelming the much more primitive militaries of the Shadik and the Aexe Alliance. |
Aexe Cardinal - Aexegary: The largest and strongest of the members of the Aexe Alliance, Aexegary was a nation with a long and illustrious military history that had a long-standing rivalry with the Shadik Republic, having fought and bested them in five separate earlier conflicts. A nation with a great deal of ritual, pomp, and circumstance behind it, Aexegary's nobility were proud and would never admit the possibility of losing a war, as Aexegary had never lost in its history. Aexegary was ruled by its High Sezar, who reigned from the capital city of Brunsgatte. He was protected by the bodyguard force known as the Bande Sezari. The Aexegary currency was called the "scuto."The Aexegary cavalry, which held the premier place within its military forces, rode the quadrupedal avian mounts known as struthids into battle, though the species' dwindling numbers meant they were becoming a rarer and rarer sight on the front lines. Those ridden by frontline cavalry had become thin and haggard, unlike the ones who remained behind safe in Brunsgatte, which remained prime examples of the species. Aexegary's coat of arms was a pair of leaping behj, the local ursinoids that were similar to Terran bears. The High Sezar wore a behj pelt as part of his badge of office, and sometimes the locals used their claws as lucky charms. |
Aexe Cardinal - Kottmark: Kottmark was a large nation-state to the west of Aexegary, divided from its neighbour by the mountainous wall of the Kottmark Massif. Kottmark was the other senior nation of the Aexe Alliance. Its people were proud and brave, and it fought Shadik with as much fury as Aexegary. |
Aexe Cardinal - Fichua: The Principality of Fichua was a more recent addition to the Aexe Alliance, having joined in 763.M41. It was a fairly small nation, located to the east of Aexegary and nestled between it and the Kottmark Massif. Its primary route to the Cardinal Ocean lay to the south, in a large bay that lent the country a crook shape. |
Aexe Cardinal - Shadik: The Republic of Shadik was the primary enemy of all the other nation-states of Aexe Cardinal, who had formed the Aexe Alliance to combat its ambitions to rule the whole world. In ancient times it had lost five different wars against Aexegary. This history of humiliation had made it a ripe target for the machinations of Chaos, which had suborned the nation's rulers and given them the power needed to make a sixth and final attempt to defeat their ancient foes.After forty standard years of warfare, Shadik had managed to successfully hold the seven other nations of Aexe Cardinal at bay, and was supported in the endeavours by the off-world Chaos warband known as the Blood Pact even as the regiments of the Astra Militarum arrived to reinforce the Loyalists of the Aexe Alliance.Unlike the forces of the Aexe Alliance, the Shadik Republic began to fight a more modern kind of war, often raiding trenches and using more advanced technology and different tactics, which made the situation more and more desperate for the Alliance. Shadik soldiers wore gas masks and chain-veil helmets, with khaki and brown fatigues. Old pattern Autorifles, pistols, and curved daggers were also used, and Shadik trench raiders carried makeshift shields of flakboard. |
After Desh'ea (Anthology Short Story) - After Desh'ea (Anthology Short Story): After Desh'ea is an anthology short story published in The Horus Heresy series that was originally part of an anthology novel. After Desh'ea was first published as part of the Tales of Heresy main series anthology in April 2009. The cover image used is that of the unabridged audiobook version After Desh'ea which was released in November 2015. |
After Desh'ea (Anthology Short Story) - Synopsis: With the discovery of the lost Primarch Angron came violence and confusion, and what should have been the defining moment of the War Hounds Legion instead became a humbling embarrassment. As their senior officers fall one by one to the rage of the newly freed gladiator-king, it seems that they are doomed -- perhaps their last chance for redemption comes in the form of the Eighth Captain, Khârn. Will this calm and level-headed warrior be able to lead his father into the Emperor's light, or will he join the rest of his Legion in death? |
Ag'Ni - Ag'Ni: Ag'NiDeath WorldVelk'HanSeptT'au EmpireJericho ReachSegmentum Ultima |
Ag'Ni - History: The T'au discovered Ag'Ni very soon after they arrived in the Reach, long range sensor scans suggesting the world would prove ideal for early settlement. In fact, the world appeared so ideally suited for colonisation that a Water Caste contact cadre was assembled in order to bring the word of the Greater Good to whatever natives lived there.The T'au envoys were greatly surprised to discover that the world was entirely untouched by intelligent life, though its continents and island chains teemed with plant and animal life.It was only when the first of the Water Caste envoys removed the helmet of his sealed environmental suit and took a deep breath of the seemingly pristine air that the T'au discovered why no higher life forms had settled Ag'Ni.The instant the envoy breathed the air, his system was flooded with airborne microbes so voracious that he was dead before his body hit the ground.Within seconds, his horrified companions bore witness to his body being broken down before their very eyes by the most aggressive microbial life forms the T'au had ever encountered.Contact doctrine dictated that the surviving members of the envoy team should be quarantined on Ag'Ni, and supplies were dropped to them from orbit. Yet, within a solar day the remainder of the team was dead, the microbes having breached their suits and overrun their systems.The leadership of the Velk'Han Sept has since declared that Ag'Ni should be purged of all life so that it can be reseeded by Earth Caste geo-engineering cadres. This process is still underway, and the planet has come to be used as a weapons testing ground by the Fire Caste, who have been given free reign to test the most destructive of devices without fear of unleashing unwanted levels of destruction.Every form of weapons technology has been tested on Ag'Ni, from planetary defoliant to ionospheric inversion. Mass yield pulse plasma warheads have levelled entire mountain ranges and the detonation of a seismic discontinuity charge brought about the creation of an entire chain of super-volcanoes at the world's southern pole.Despite the destruction wrought upon Ag'Ni, the voracious microbial predators continue to exist. In fact, even in regions subjected to high levels of radiation the microbes persist, recolonising the blasted wastes within solar days.The proud Fire Caste has begun to take the eradication of the microbes as a matter of honour, and the world has taken on the character of a warzone in which a bitter campaign is being fought against a totally invisible enemy.The Earth Caste geo-engineering cadres have been side-lined by the Fire Caste and there appears to be no end in sight to what has long since escalated into a bitter war of conquest against an enemy that, it appears, cannot be beaten by even the most unconventional means. |
Agaith - Agaith: An Agaith, which means "false face" in the Aeldari Lexicon, is one of the iconic masks worn by the enigmatic Aeldari Harlequins. These small holographic devices project daemonic visages and scenes of death onto the mask and has a short-range psychic amplifier which increases enemies' sensitivity to fear and despair.Other versions of the Agaith include the Rictus Mask worn by Death Jesters, which projects an aura of death in the general vicinity of the wearer, or the Dread Mask, which senses an enemy's worst fears and displays them on the mask, and uses a more potent psychic amplifier like the ones used on the Mask of Fear.In battle, a Harlequin's mask projects terrifying images of his victims' worst nightmares. Physically, however, the mask will usually be crafted in the likeness of whichever character the Harlequin is playing. Different roles are indicated by all manner of flourishes, be they opposing halves of black and white, such as in the case of the Dawnsinger or the Blinded Princess, patches of checks or diamonds like those displayed by the leering Scion of Cults, or soft gradients and subtle strokes, like the stylised tear of Isha's Sorrow.Most Harlequin masks project whatever appearance the wearer wishes, yet a Shadowseer's mask shows only a twisted reflection of those who stare into its depths.Unlike their fellow Players, Troupe Masters wear grotesque masks that mock the sinister, ugly face of war. Their ever-shifting features flicker between nightmarish horror and leering, sardonic humour at the mortal plight of their foes.The Solitaire's mask is cruel and unsettling, reflecting the exaggerated androgynous features of the Chaos God Slaanesh in all their daemonic grandeur. |
Agaith - Sources: Codex: Eldar (2nd Edition), pg. 51Codex: Eldar (4th Edition), pg. 48Codex: Eldar (6th Edition), pg. 46Codex: Harlequins (7th Edition), (Digital Edition), pp. 12, 21, 30, 50, 82-83, 85, 100, 106, 165Warhammer 40,000: Compendium (2nd Edition), "Harlequins," pg. 191White Dwarf Weekly Magazine Issue #53 (31 Jan 2015), "Harlequin Troup," pg. 7 |
Agamatus Jetbike Squad - Agamatus Jetbike Squad: An Agamatus Jetbike Squadron was an airborne formation of the ancient Legio Custodes, who utilised the powerful Gyrfalcon Pattern Jetbike as a rapid response and elite air cavalry force during the Great Crusade and Horus Heresy eras.Squadrons of Agamatus Custodians are still deployed by the Adeptus Custodes of the 41st Millennium. |
Agamatus Jetbike Squad - Role: The Agamatus Squadrons were specialised in the use of the heavy duty, plasma motor-boosted Gyrfalcon Pattern Jetbike as their steeds in battle. The increased power of the design supported not only the heavily-armoured Custodian Guard, but also allowed it to mount a powerful Iliastus Accelerator Cannon as its on-board armament.The Agamatus Squadrons exploited these war machines to operate both as a rapid response and suppression unit in the field. In this they operated much in the manner of the elite cavalry forces of ancient times, screening the main Legio Custodes force from potential encirclement, reacting quickly to blunt enemy attacks, and hunting down mercilessly any foe which broke and fled before the might of the Custodes, ensuring the utter extermination of the foe. |
Agamatus Jetbike Squad - Unit Composition: 3-6 Agamatus Custodians on Gyrfalcon Pattern Jetbikes |
Agamatus Jetbike Squad - Wargear: Custodian ArmourPower LanceMisericordiaPlasma Grenades (Horus Heresy era only)Krak Grenades (Horus Heresy era only)Refractor Field (Horus Heresy era only)Iliastus Accelerator Cannon (On Gyrfalcon Pattern Jetbike) |
Agamatus Jetbike Squad - Optional Wargear: Melta Bombs (Horus Heresy era only)Any member of a Legio Custodes Agamatus Jetbike Squadron may upgrade his jetbike's Iliastus Accelerator Cannon with one of the following options:Adrathic DestructorTwin-linked Corvae Las-Pulser |
Agamatus Jetbike Squad - Gyrfalcon Pattern Jetbike: More powerful even than the Scimitar Pattern Jetbike associated with the Legiones Astartes, the Gyrfalcon is a heavy design more akin to an armoured, one-man speeder than a true Jetbike. In addition, it augments its grav-repellor systems with a plasma-thrust motor for huge temporary bursts of speed. A Gyrfalcon Jetbike is armed with an Iliastus Accelerator Cannon. |
Agathean Domain - Agathean Domain: The Agathean Domain, also known in some sources as the Agathon Domain, is an alliance of several interlinked Imperial star systems in the northern Segmentum Obscurus dominated by the Hive World of Agathon.The Domain is not truly big enough to be warranted true sub-sector status. It is the outermost and final anchor point of the Imperium of Man before the dark frontier of the galactic north.At its centre lies the thriving world of Agathon, an Imperial Hive World that bears strong resemblance to such famous Hive Worlds as Necromunda or Khur, despite the fact that these worlds are thousands of light years away from Agathon's border.The system rightly counts as one of the most isolated of the Imperial realm, being surrounded on three sides by the inter-galactic void and only accessible through the tenuous Warp routes of Numinal which link it with the other worlds of the Coronid Reach and the Manachean Commonwealth. |
Agathean Domain - Origins: The history of Agathon has always been forged by war. As such, Agathon and the entire Agathean Domain has always been intricately bound to the history of the former 60th Expeditionary Fleet of the Great Crusade and the MaSade family.The Agathean Domain is located in the outer region of the Segmentum Obscurus where it borders the Ultima Segmentum. This region of space is one of the oldest centres of Human habitation, and the initial Human colonisation of Agathon may well lie back as far as the early Age of Technology. Not all the worlds of the Agathon System had been bereft of intelligent life, as a highly substantial population of Ogryns was discovered on the Feral World of Othion.Surviving both the horrors of Old Night and the lurking dangers of the Age of Strife relatively unscathed, Agathon's surface has always been dominated by the three spires that constitute its principal hive cities. But integration into the Imperium was not swift, nor was it without bloodshed, as Agathon resisted for nearly fifteen standard years against Rogue Trader Militant fleets and smaller expeditionary fleets.Imperial Compliance was only achieved through the mobilisation of a far-larger force, the 60th Expeditionary Fleet which had already achieved several successful Compliances but was now severely depleted. At its core stood the 1522nd Solar Auxilia Cohort, also known as "The Lord Marshal's Own," under the command of the famed Lord Marshal Ireton MaSade.This tactically-brilliant general would lead the 60th Expeditionary Fleet in a successful, if bloody, Imperial Compliance action that would see the purge of the cultic aristocracy that ruled Agathon and its domains added to the Imperium of Man.In reward for this final victory and a lifetime of service, MaSade and his officers were awarded the right of conquest over Agathon and became the new ruler of its five billion inhabitants. The 60th Expeditionary Fleet was disbanded and most of its vessels entered the Agathon System Defence Forces whilst its troopers became the world's new ruling elite.These loyal subjects of the Emperor who had fought countless wars in His name would see that Agathon became one of the most productive and organised worlds of the Segmentum Obscurus Orient; for the descendants of the 1522nd Cohort would guarantee that their world would ever be ready to fight for itself. |
Agathean Domain - Horus Heresy: By the closing days of 006.M31, following the fall of the worlds in the Cyclops Cluster, local Imperial powers were girding for war. Though still distant from the front lines of this new civil war that now ravaged the domains of the Imperium, the leaders of the Agathean Domain knew that they could not stand alone against the might of the Warmaster Horus' Traitor Legions and the forces he had already arrayed behind him. So it was that when Grand Admiral Ospheus LaBray called for a mustering of Loyalist vessels at the Armada Imperialis base at Port Maw, the Agathean Domain sent out a full cruiser squadron bearing the best of the Agathean Domain to reinforce the gathering warfleet.Severely damaged during the Treachery at Port Maw, the surviving Agathean cruiser, the Telemachus, limped back to its homeworld bearing word of Horus' victory and the betrayal of the Emperor by the Cyclothrathine Mechanicum. On board the Telemachus also rested the stasis-held corpse of her former captain, Jocasta MaSade, granddaughter of Ireton MaSade.Despite being mortally wounded, she had valiantly refused to be treated as long as her ship was not yet safe and successfully escaped pursuing elements of the Traitors' fleet before succumbing to her wounds. The arrival of the Telemachus would spark the powder keg of fear and political divisions that had been fermenting on Agathon.Agathon's isolation had protected it from the Warmaster's gaze because as a relatively minor Hive World compared to those of the nearby Manachea System it held little strategic value and had hence been completely bypassed by the Traitors' armed forces. The fear inspired by the fate of such neighbouring worlds as Manachea or Moab grew into civil unrest until even Agathon's Parliament of Electors slipped into open conflict.Debates raged between die-hard Loyalists, those that would cast their lot with Horus in fear of the consequences of not doing so and those who would secede entirely from the Imperium and return Agathon to independence. Blackmail, threats and assassinations were rife as the wheels of the Agathean government became paralysed and the Hive World teetered on the precipice of all-out civil war.Into the warring chamber of the Parliament of Electors came Ireton MaSade, nearly two Terran centuries old and almost a recluse for two solar decades. He had not come alone, for behind him was the body of his granddaughter, carried upon an anti-gravitic, floating stasis bier and flanked by a troop of Solar Auxilia Velitaris armoured in a livery of ice white in deference to Agathon's traditional colour of mourning.Stunned into silence by this most unexpected appearance, the Chamber of Electors was forced to listen as Ireton MaSade spoke, first of grief and sacrifice, then of the dream of the Imperium, of Human unity and the Imperial Truth. As his oratory turned to rage at the moral weakness of his successors, he denounced the Parliament and declared them traitors to the Emperor as the funeral guard turned their Volkites on them and burned the fractious noblemen to ashes.Agathon and the other worlds of the Agathean Domain would be placed under martial law and controlled by the "Old Guard" of the 60th Expeditionary Fleet and their direct descendants. Almost immediately, Agathon's economy and society were put on a war footing not only in order to defend their Domain but to mount an attack on the Traitors. One way or another, Ireton MaSade would have his vengeance, no matter the cost. |
Agathean Domain - 41st Millennium: The martial tradition of the Solar Auxilia lives on in the Agathean regiments of the Astra Militarum which have since then acquired great honour in the service of the Imperium. To this day, Agathon still greatly contributes to the Imperial war effort within the Segmentum Obscurus.More recently in Imperial history, the Agatheans' courage and sense of duty was commended in 932.M41 for their defence of the Agri-world of Jollov in the Ghoul Stars region against the Tyranid menace.Through their valiant efforts at the side of other Imperial Guard regiments as diverse as the Catachan Jungle Fighters, Mordian Iron Guard and regiments drawn from the worlds of Kanak and Molov, the Agatheans ensured the withdrawal of Techno Magus Stannum Vir and the valuable STC fragments he had uncovered on Jollov before being overcome by the chitinous hordes of Hive Fleet Moloch. |
Agathean Domain - Notable Military Campaigns: Agathon Compliance (Unknown Date.M30) - For fifteen solar years Agathon successfully resisted Imperial efforts to subjugate it. Following earlier failures, the Imperium diverted the 60th Expeditionary Fleet under the command of Lord Marshal Ireton MaSade to break the deadlock. The men and women of the 1522nd Solar Auxilia Cohort prosecuted the Imperial Compliance campaign with zeal and are granted Right of Conquest over Agathon for their efforts. Ireton MaSade became the new Imperial Commander of the world of Agathon. This marks the beginning of the Agathean Domain.Treachery at Port Maw (008.M31) - Following the muster call of Grand Admiral LaBray, the Agathean cruiser squadron suffers severely from the betrayal of the Cyclothrathine Mechanicum vessels. Only the Telemachus escapes and returns safely to Agathon. However, her mortally wounded captain, Jocasta MaSade, succumbs en route and is placed in stasis.Battle of Bodt (008.M31) - Having escaped destruction during the Manachean War, elements of the 1522nd Solar Auxilia Cohort -- approximately 12,000 troops and supporting super-heavy tanks detachments under Lord Colonel Vossen -- join together with other Loyalist elements under the command of Autek Mor to assail the World Eaters' recruiting world of Bodt. Deployed as part of an interdiction force in the southern regions of Tredecimmia, the 1522nd held off several waves of robotic Battle-Automata and other battle-engines spawned by the twisted minds of the Sarum Dark Mechanicum Tech-priests to join the main fight. The Agatheans valiantly held the line before staging a bitterly fought withdrawal, mere solar hours before the entire planet was ravaged by the collision of its moon.Liberation of Numinal (009.M31) - Ireton MaSade personally led the Loyalist counter-invasion of the still-contested Agri-world of Numinal against the hated Cyclothrathine Mechanicum. In alliance with the Imperial Knights of House Orhlacc, the Loyalists use the captured vessel of Rogue Trader Charid Udine, the Hammer of the Deep, to covertly approach the star system's astropathic relay on the moon of Quachil. The destruction of the relay marks the beginning of the Liberation of Numinal proper, with thousands of troopers from the Agathean cohorts establishing a first beachhead on the planet and digging in. Expecting the reinforcement of the Agathean cruiser squadrons, the enemy leader of the Dark Mechanicum forces, Archmagos Yelav Draykavac, orders his troops to crush the beachhead before more enemy forces can land. In the ensuing battle, Cyclothrathe's robotic Battle-Automata suffered greatly as Ireton MaSade had taken the precaution to equip his troops with augmented blast-chargers, thus increasing the stopping power of his Tercio's lasrifles. Badly mauled and thrown back by the devastating close-range firepower of the Agatheans, Draykavac's forces retreated. By now secondary incursions and several insurrections where happening all across Numinal. Calculating that victory was still possible, Draykavac mobilised his remaining forces for another assault on the Loyalist landing zones. Exploiting the Loyalists' lack of heavy armour, the second assault would benefit from the support of the Knights of House Atrax and House Ærthegn. Expecting a total victory, Draykavac himself took to the field. It was, however, precisely what Ireton MaSade had intended. In high orbit the Hammer of the Deep launched two brutal-looking drop-ships, ancient Khobol-class Heavy Assault Landers older than the Great Crusade itself. With an eardrum-splitting dirge, the Knights of House Orhlacc and their allies of House Hermetika and the Renegade House Ærthegn Knights announced their presence on the battlefield. As Knight met Knight, the Agathean cohorts surged forward from their defensive positions, putting the pressure on the Cyclothrathine Taghmata. All across Numinal, Draykavac's forces were coming under assault as Loyalist Astartes and Solar Auxilia-led insurrectionists attacked and destroyed the Mechanicum conversion crawlers which had until now been protected by the Cyclothrathine Knights as they sought to convert the planet's entire population into servitors and Adsecularis thralls. Surrounded and in an inferior position Ireton MaSade's intent became clear: to kill Draykavac and thus throw the enemy into confusion. Recognising the danger he had put himself in, the archmagos did not hesitate. He sacrificed his oath-bound Knights of House Atrax and his Taghmata forces to ensure his retreat to his command compound from where he would flee the planet. Numinal once again belonged to the Imperium.Raid on Cerada Secundus (009.M31) - Four solar weeks after the successful Liberation of Numinal, the Agathean fleet attacked the vessels of Forge World Cyclothrathe, supporting the conquest of Cerada Secundus. However, against the massed war arks of the Cyclothrathine Taghmata, the Agathean cruisers would not be victorious. With severe losses, the cruiser squadrons retreated, but their efforts had not been entirely in vain: their presence forced the Taghmata to consolidate its positions, thus opening a new front and forcing the archmagi of Cyclothrathe to retreat from Cerada Secundus.Defence of Jollov (932.M41) - When Techno Magus Stannum Vir discovered valuable fragments of an STC device on the Agri-world of Jollov, before he could reclaim it, he had to first contend with a vanguard tendril of the newly emergent Tyranid Hive Fleet Moloch. The Great Devourer threatened to consume the world before the STC fragment could be discovered. At the Tech-priest's behest a courageous defence of the planet's spaceport ensued. Elements of the Catachan, Mordian, Kanak, Molov and Agathon Astra Militarum regiments die to buy enough time for the Adeptus Mechanicus to flee with the valuable technological relic. |
Agathean Domain - Society: At the time of the Horus Heresy, the culture of Agathon possessed an overriding military aesthetic and the world's military forces, the Agathean cohorts of the Solar Auxilia, boasted a direct lineal descent to the initial Solar Auxilia Cohort of the 60th Expeditionary Fleet.Trained and equipped in the traditions of the elite Solar Auxilia of the Imperial Army, the Agathean cohorts form a sizable and impressive military host with the resources of an entire star system at their disposal. Their reputation for excellence has been well-deserved, as they have successfully defeated alien invasions and would go on to distinguish themselves during the dark days of the Horus Heresy and the Imperium's campaigns. |
Agathean Domain - Worlds of the Agathean Domain: Agathon (Hive World) – Agathon is a spire-type Hive World, its population housed in three distinct hive cities which owe many similarities to those of Necromunda or Khur. The world is highly organised and constitutes the industrial and economic centre of the entire Agathean Domain. It is undoubtedly the capital world of the Agathean Domain, having imposed its name on the system's alliance and protecting the planets within with its military might. Its population consists both of the original, pre-Imperial inhabitants of Agathon and the descendants and survivors of the soldiers of the 60th Expeditionary Fleet who brought it into Imperial Compliance in the 30th Millennium. In particular, the fleet's officer cadre had integrated with the local noble families to such an extent that within a few generations, the lines between them had blurred. However, the further down the social ladder, the more indifference and resentment was encountered in regard to Imperial rule on Agathon. Prior to the events of the Horus Heresy, but after Ireton MaSade's retirement as Imperial Commander, Agathon was ruled by a corps of representatives called the Parliament of Electors which had been dominated by a strong Imperial faction. However, the events of Horus' rebellion would give voice to the underlying resentment of the Imperial conquest and warrant the return of Ireton MaSade as Imperial Commander to maintain loyalty. This change in regime quickly reimposed order and purged the ranks of the Parliament of Electors of its dissidents.Legatus (Mining World) – Originally organised as a penitentiary mining colony for the dissidents of Imperial rule in the aftermath of the Agathon Compliance, by the dawn of the 31st Millennium, Legatus had become the secondary world of the Agathean Domain and its most important Mining World. The landscape of Legatus is dominated by vast tundra plains still locked in the closing stages of a climatic ice age. The planet is immensely rich in high-grade metallic ores that Agathon needs to feed its macro-industry and modest orbital shipping yards. Since 940.M30, Legatus has been subjected to three significant xenos raids; twice by Ork marauders and once by heavily mutated xenos cryptids thought to originate from the extra-galactic void. This led to a sizable military mobilisation. Legatus' standing garrison of Agathean cohorts was greatly augmented and extensive ground defences were constructed. These would prove invaluable in the dark days of the Horus Heresy.NoriciumOthion (Feral World) – Othion is a Feral World of little strategic value were it not for its native Abhuman population. An excessively arid world due to its lack of cloud cover, Othion seemingly consists of limitless silica dune seas continuously exposed to the light of its yellow sun. The world is called home by a sizable population of Ogryns who have undergone severe metabolic alterations from the standard accepted Ogryn types to better accommodate the harsh climatic conditions. This however has led to a severe devolution of the already limited intellect of the Ogryns, resulting in an inherent lack of social cohesion and mental stability. Perhaps most macabre is the pronounced drive to cannibalism of these Abhumans as well as an irrational hunger, which makes them extremely dangerous for Humans. Through extensive cranial surgery and the implementation of a "kill-switch" device to terminate them when needed, these Ogryns did, however, prove a powerful addition to regional Agathean defence forces. During the Horus Heresy, Othion's Ogryn population would constitute a considerable strategic resource which would be ruthlessly exploited by the Agatheans to bolster their standing military in anticipation of a Traitor invasion; transformed into Charonites, these Ogryns could surpass both Traitor Legiones Astartes and the creations of the Dark Mechanicum in terms of brute strength. This resurgence of Charonite squads was fairly common amongst technically advanced Loyalist star systems that had been cut off from other Imperial territories.TurhalWychval - Very little is known about this savage world at the very edge of the Agathean Domain and the known galaxy. During the bleak years of the Horus Heresy, a deal was struck between Ireton MaSade and High Seneschal Valdemar Orhlacc of House Orhlacc: a new world to call home in exchange for the military might of its Knights. This alliance would bear its fruits many times over, most notoriously during the Liberation of Numinal in 009.M31.Zarnov (Industrial World) - Zarnov is an isolated industrialised world that lies to the galactic north of the Coronid Prohibition Zone. This has led the cartographers to attach Zarnov to the Coronid Reach rather than to the Grail Abyss, which features the sole known stable Warp-route leading to the planet. Not truly part of the Agathean Domain due to its peculiar location, Zarnov's battle honour nevertheless is proudly displayed on the Vexillia of the 1522nd Solar Auxilia Cohort. |
Agathean Domain - Forces of the Agathean Domain: Battlefleet Agathon - As something akin to an Imperial sub-sector, the Agathean Domain fields its own squadrons of warships. Agathon's industrial might permits the construction of escort and even cruiser-sized vessels. At the time of the Horus Heresy, Battlefleet Agathon consisted of at least two fully-equipped squadrons of dark-bronze cruisers of different types, all bearing the fiery lantern-sigil of the Agathean Domain.1522nd Solar Auxilia Cohort ("Lord Marshal's Own") - The original 1522nd Cohort participated in the Agathon Compliance campaign and established itself as the ruling elite of this new Imperial world. By the beginning of the Horus Heresy it had grown to become an elite force that formed the heart of the Agathean forces. Thanks to the charismatic figure of its commander, the Lord Marshal Ireton MaSade, his tactical genius and his nigh-bottomless coffers, the newly recreated 1522nd Cohort is a highly mobile and well-equipped force: the entire infantry complement is transported in Dracosan Armoured Carriers and each infantry sub-cohort benefits from its own dedicated armoured support squadron. At High Command level the 1522nd can field a number of dedicated armoured sub-cohorts, three mobile artillery sub-cohorts as well as two dozen Malcador Heavy Tanks that form a heavy armoured assault cadre. |
Agathean Domain - Agathean Domain Regimental Appearance: Descending from a proud military tradition, Agathon has mostly conserved the trappings and emblems of its founders. As such the Equis Astra, the original emblem of the 60th Expeditionary Fleet, can often be found next to the reconstituted sigil of the 1522nd Solar Auxilia Cohort.As its name indicates for those versed in High Gothic, the Equis Astra is a typical horse head-emblem the like of which has been in use by Human military forces for uncounted millennia, with the Agathean variant fielding a white horse head on a green field. At the time of the Horus Heresy, this emblem was commonly worn as a cross-unit badge of unity.The 1522nd Cohort's emblem is an antique crested helmet as worn by the legendary Spartans of Old Earth. It is perhaps in reference to these legendary warriors that the Agatheans' primary colours are noted as dark bronze and green, supplemented by white details where needed. |
Agathean Domain - Notable Vehicles: Telemachus - The Telemachus was a cruiser of unknown pattern of Battlefleet Agathon, the former command of Jocasta MaSade, grandaughter of the famed Ireton MaSade that would distinguish himself during the Horus Heresy. The Telemachus was the sole survivor of the eight Agathean cruisers sent to the great Armada Imperialis muster at Port Maw. Its courageous escape from the trap sprung there and its arduous return would set events in motion that determined the Agathean Domain's participation in the Horus Heresy.Terra's Hammer – Malcador Heavy Battle Tank. Terra's Hammer is an illustrious battle tank, a veteran of the Agathon Compliance campaign that would go on to fight during the wars of the Horus Heresy. |
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