Bloodborn Wolves

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Bloodborn Wolves Armorial with corrupted iconography.

A Bloodborn Heretic Astartes of the faction known as "The Bloodied". Note: Ultramarines greave and sabaton taken as a trophy.

## Chaos Warband

### **Allegiance**

Chaos
(*Excommunicate Traitoris*)

### **Specialty**

Shock Assault, Planet-kill and Extermination Operations, Close-Quarters Actions, 'Forlorn Hope' Objective Assaults

### **Warband Size**

Around 500 Heretic Astartes and 3,000 Chaos Cultists and Helot-Slaves

### **Battle Cry**

Usually, the only thing the Bloodborn Wolves' opponents hear before the attack is the berserk, ravening howl of their berserker packs, but on occasions where the whole force fights out in the open, "For the Wolves, for skulls, for Khorne!" is frequently used as a battlecry by the Wolf Lord.

## Pre-Heresy

### **Colours**

Stormcloud Grey, Black & Brass

"*It matters not how high your walls soar,
It matters not how many will answer your call,
It matters not how keen your blade glimmers,
Nor how bright burns your hearth fire,
The wolf waits,
The wolf waits in darkness for us all.*"
— From the 'Lay of Grimnr Cold-Tongue', *The Fenrisian Sagas*
The **Bloodborn Wolves** are an infamous Chaos Warband comprised of former Space Wolves Astartes that fell to the worship of the Chaos Blood God, Khorne. Renaming themselves the Bloodborn Wolves, these Heretic Astartes have given themselves over to the beast within, revelling in bloodletting and bestial fury. Now, as Khorne's chosen, they have turned on the Emperor, whom they see as the 'Arch-Sorcerer'. They slaughter all in their path, taking skulls and trophies from their fallen opponents for the glory of the Blood God.

The Bloodborn Wolves are divided into two major sections. They perfectly represent Khorne's dual nature, with some of the group, known simply as "The Bloodborn" - representing martial prowess and honour - while the other side, known as "The Bloodied" - represents corruption, anger and bloodshed.

## Warband History

The Bloodied Wolves have 2 very distinct sections, each with their own sagas, but they each start at the same time. They were a group of Space Wolves, sent into the fringes of a warp storm to search for a cabal of Thousand Sons sorcerers, not long after the end of the Horus Heresy and the introduction of the *Codex Astartes*. When they were there, the warp denied them again, hiding their hated foe right as they believed their trek was complete. In the end, a small group of the force, around 350 marines, believed they had been betrayed by their chapter, and indeed, the Imperium of Man. This group of traitors included the Wolf Lord Olaf Asmundsen, later known as Olaf the Foolish. The soon-to-be heretics ambushed the loyalist forces, taking out a much larger force fuelled by their rage and with the advantage of superior tactics. Less than 300 of over 800 loyal marines were left alive, as by some miracle they were allowed to flee. These traitors fell into the worship of Khorne, becoming perfect embodiments of his more noble side. This is where their story splits.

### The Bloodborn

The Bloodborn were the original traitors, and still revelling in their huge victory, they worked on setting up a following within realspace, turning cults and Imperial Guard regiments to worship of them, and indirectly, Khorne. The Bloodborn see physical corruption as a weakness, and so many of them are almost untouched over the millennia, bar from a few notable exceptions and the frenzied removal of all symbols of allegiance.

#### The Anarchy of the Bloodborn

After three millennia of rule by Olaf Asmundsen, and many victories in his name, he was gifted daemonhood and turned into a Daemon Prince, the ultimate sign of being unworthy in the eyes of his men. He was given the nickname "the Foolish" for having accepted the gifts of the Gods instead of using them and was cast out, left as an outcast and a cheat. A huge power vacuum was left, with three contenders for the privilege of leading the group. These were the Terminator Sergeant Balder Redcoat, the Wolf Priest Eerik the Insane and the ex-Moritat Sven Bloodfisted. Eerik was the first to die, as he and his weak-minded followers were driven mad by the Blood God's wrath, and hunted by daemons for their usage of cowardly warp magics. Balder was next to go, as his followers were brutally murdered by Sven, and as Balder bent his knee to his new lord, his head was blown off by a plasma blast. With that Sven Bloodfisted had taken control of the warband and led them to many a great victory.

#### The Battle for the Hogar

The Bloodborn were present on *The Hogar* before the Stormbreakers, and fought for control of the monstrous ship. They were eventually beaten by the Sons of Dorn, but were able to take out the Chief Librarian, Marcus Tilux, and sabotaged large portions of the ship and weapons, making them lost to the sands of time.

### The Bloodied

The Bloodied ran away from the Bloodborn during their original battle in the Eye, and remained loyal for a while, before returning to the Eye. They returned as fanatic, crazy-eyed worshippers of Khorne, any semblance of sanity replaced by a lust for blood.

#### The Crusade of the Wolves

After deserting their traitorous brothers in the Warp, the loyalist Space Wolves cruised through Imperial space, attempting to assist in as many conflicts as possible, eventually gaining a name for themselves as deliverers of the Emperor's justice. Eventually, in early M.33, the Wolves began to feel the effects of age take their toll, and they returned to the Warp, as their bodies weakened and got grey, and turned to Khorne to preserve their youth. They became zealous worshippers and berzerkers, almost all ranged weapons destroyed or deserted in favour of chain and power weapons with which to rend and tear. They rebranded themselves the Bloodied and slaughtered across the galaxy for many centuries, slowly degenerating into the savages known as Wulfen.

### The Bloodborn Wolves

#### The reuniting of the Wolves

In M39, the two forces united into one "coherent" fighting force, their two distinct fighting styles complimenting each other in battle. They often came to odds, with the Bloodborn calling them the "grey-haired" due to their aged appearance. After many civil wars, and in-fighting, the Bloodborn established themselves as the dominant faction, and the Bloodied are now but a fraction of their former glory.

#### The Crimson Crusade

The Bloodborn Wolves have begun moving to the galactic south-west, following the Great Rift, and have had clashes with the Bloodmoon Hunters within the Warp Storm. One such skirmish is the Battle for Lebendstein, which resulted in a loss for the Wolves, but at a great cost for the Bloodmoon Hunters.

## Warband Combat Doctrine

On the field of battle, the Bloodborn Wolves throw themselves madly towards the enemy. In their desire to fight, these young marines, often transform into bestial Wulfen, losing all thought of tactics or stealth. The more mature Astartes use their years of experience to work their way into position, ready to attack the enemy in its vulnerable flanks. The psychological effect of this cannot be overestimated. Even the most disciplined gun-line has faltered and broken on the realisation that they face not only an onrushing tide of claws and teeth but that the enemy is already behind them and slaughtering its way towards them.

While the Bloodborn Wolves do not intentionally summon daemons, such acts being much too akin to sorcery for their liking, the entities are drawn to the sites of their butchery anyway. Lesser daemons have been observed to burst from corpses or exude themselves from pools of freshly spilt blood to aid in the slaughter. After the fight has been won, and befitting their nomadic nature, the legion and its assorted hangers-on descend to pick the battlefield clean. Guided by scent the battle-brothers return to the sites of their kills to take trophies from worthy enemies. In the case of other Astartes, this can include weapons and pieces of armour to replace the damage that inevitably occurs. They rarely repaint it, preferring that it remain as a reminder of their battles, and as a taunting sign to their enemies of their previous defeats.

In their wake come the Choosers of the Slain - the warband's chirurgeons. They stalk the battlefield selecting skulls adjudged to be particularly prized by Khorne. They also claim the gene-seed of fallen Bloodborn Wolves and select those enemies who fought well enough to be saved from the brink of death and forcibly initiated into the legion. Under the direction of the Hell-Priests of Iron (fallen Techmarines), the warband's bondsmen are sent out to scour the area for anything of use. As the Bloodborn Wolves have little manufacturing capacity, and even less interest in settling down to use it, almost everything they have has to be scavenged, ranging from bolt-rounds to entire armoured vehicles. Only when their Chaos-corrupted Fenrisian wolves companions have returned from chasing down and glutting themselves upon enemies that fled in cowardice from the battlefield do the Bloodborn Wolves start their journey to the next battle.

## Warband Gene-Seed

After their fall from grace, the application of the Canis Helix has become even more brutal than before. On the battlefield, this warband slaughters indiscriminately, dedicating their kills to Khorne, their God of Blood and Skulls. Stalking through the carnage like cadaverous wraiths are the Choosers of the Slain. Part apothecary, part acolyte of Khorne, they minister to their fallen brethren, deciding if they are worthy to live on, or to yield up their gene-seed and skulls to their god's throne. The Choosers also select those enemies that have fought with sufficient valour and ferocity, and proved worthy of joining Khorne's legion. They are touched by the will of the Blood God himself, with skills that far exceed the wit of even the most skilled chiurgeon. Under their ministrations, and with the application of the Canis Helix, even a mortal wound may be averted.

Once marked by Khorne in this way, the beast within is released, and the long, agonising process of transforming their bodies and minds into those of the fallen sons of Russ can proceed. While traditional gene-seed implantation processes require that the aspirant be no older than early puberty, it appears that the ministrations of the corrupted Canis Helix can allow this process even in full grown adult candidates. It has even been suggested that it can even be used to forcibly corrupt Astartes of other legions to serve Khorne. Though none of the loyal Adeptus Astartes Chapters of the 'Arch-Sorcerer' have ever admitted this has occurred with any of their brothers, it would certainly bring a new danger to the prospect of fighting against the Bloodborn Wolves; that in doing so they risk a fate worse than death.

In addition to the bestial nature of the Canis Helix, the Russ gene-line has always exhibited certain quirks, such as their uncannily sharp senses and how their incisors grow long and tusk-like with age. Over the millennia, the warping power of Chaos has bestowed further beneficial changes which boost their already considerable strength and brutality. Under the watchful eyes of the Choosers of the Slain this process has been guided to bring them ever closer to their ideal of the perfect killer.

## Notable Warband Members

* **Sven Bloodfisted**: Sven Bloodfisted is the current leader of the Bloodborn Wolves, a former Moritat for the Space Wolves Legion, taking part in suicidal charges, specialising in taking out the leaders of the foe, he fell to the glory of Khorne to spill the blood of more worthy opponents. He was a major leader during the days of the Anarchy. He killed Balder Redcoat as he bent his knee to him, displaying his true colours.
* **Balder Redcoat (deceased)**: Balder Redcoat was a Terminator Sergeant within the Space Wolves Legion and a force to be reckoned with during the Horus Heresy. He turned to the Chaos Blood God Khorne shortly after the Heresy and helped to form the Bloodborn Wolves. He was the leader of a faction and was later killed during the Anarchy of the Bloodborn Wolves.
* **Ivan Godslayer**: Ivan was a Legion Techmarine, who was originally loyal when the Bloodborn turned from the light of the Emperor, but survived for long enough to become a member of the Bloodied. During his decline into madness, he began to receive "visions from the Blood God". His creations slowly became more and more twisted, before they were mere mockeries of the Imperial designs, but they eventually became Daemon-infused monstrosities. He now works as a major leader for the Bloodied.

## Warband Appearance

### Warband Colours

When these former Space Wolves gave into their bloodlust and fell to the corrupting influence of the Blood God, their gunmetal grey battle-plate and totemic heraldry gave way to blood red and brass, the favoured colours of Khorne, although one can often find some pieces of the Space Wolves' original heraldry in individual pieces of their armour. While most Space Wolves retain their original Legion badge, the Mark of Khorne, as well as other Chaos icons and symbols like the Octed (the eight-pointed Star of Chaos), often supplement it. In battle, the Space Wolves almost exclusively employ chainaxes, chainswords and frostblades to maximise blood spillage, although some of the most powerful warriors of the warband use arcane power or daemonic Khornate weapons infused with the power of a daemon of the Blood God. What was once an example of the most effective shock assault force in the galaxy is now a terrifying collection of savage berserkers and insane, psychotic killing machines that live only to spill blood and take skulls for their master Khorne.

### Warband Badge

The Bloodborn Wolves badge was once a stylised, snarling red wolf's head. After their corruption, many of these fallen Space Wolves Heretic Astartes began incorporating Khorne's stylised skull-rune which is either painted or carved onto their battle-plate. The Bloodborn Wolves Khornate Berserkers are also sometimes seen wearing a variant of their original Legion iconography of a snarling wolf's head superimposed over the eight-pointed Octed (Star of Chaos).

## Relations

### Allies

The Bloodborn Wolves are outcasts by everyone, and rarely, if ever, fight alongside others.

### By: The Bloodborn Wolves

"*They may have bigger guns than us, but in the end, they are cowards, just like the rest of their Khorne-forsaken ilk.*"
—Sven Bloodfisted about the Tau battlesuits
"*My former men... no... my former brothers have left me, labelled me a traitor and a coward, but they don't know. They will never experience the power I have, as Khorne's eternal servant!*"
—Olaf the Foolish
"*Khorne has blessed me with these visions! Ahahahaha! The Daemon fused with the machine, there is nothing finer!*"
—Ivan Godslayer
*Feel free to add your own*
### About: The Bloodborn Wolves

"*Hunted Hunters of undisciplined make, foes thy are worthy in combat but not in war. Vengeance shall be coming Wolves of Blood Born for those born under the Moon of Blood are Hunters and shall make thy pelts and trophies.*"
— Sergeant Sciath Cinniúint of the Bloodmoon Hunters Chapter, 4th Hunt Company ('*The Lunar Prophets*') to the Bloodborn Wolves at the Battle for Lebendstein.

 Renegades

[Source]

 Tzeentch Warbands
 Nurgle Warbands
 Slaanesh Warbands
 Chaos Undivided Warbands
 Malice Warbands
 Minor Chaos God-Aligned Warbands

[Source]

## Gallery

A Chaos-corrupted Varagyr Wolf Guard Terminator elite - The Terminator Sergeant Balder Redcoat. Note: Proliferation of macabre trophies taken from fallen opponents. The armour also displays the changing heraldry of this warband, as the metallic hue of the armour is now covered in places with bloody crimson spray of this Heretic Astartes' victims.A Bloodborn Wolves Deathsworn Khornate Berseker of "The Bloodied". Note: Clad in modified relic Mark III power armour. The helm's distinctive side panels are of unknown function and meaning. It is notable that this Heretic Astartes' armour shows few elements once worn proudly by the old Legion, most of which has been over-painted blood red or simply allowed to degrade - yet another indication of this warband's descent into blood-lust and ill-discipline.