Guardians of Avernus

The Guardians are powerful creatures, species and civilizations that that are constantly active in the defence of Avernus. While they generally lack the raw power of the weapons their greater numbers, intelligence and wider purpose makes them every bit as important if not more so.

## Contacted Guardians

### Sphinxes

The Sphinx are Warp Entities with the head of a woman and the body of some sort of big cat. The size of Sphinix's seems to vary enormously, with the smallest being the size of a Phase-Tiger and the largest being bigger then a Baneblade. These Warp entities are capable of locking any door and ensuring that non can move around the lock. They are often tasked to keep active Warp Rifts and tears in space-time closed until the rift can be closed, however long that takes. In battle Sphinxes are equally deadly, locking away aspects of their opponents powers in order to defeat them.

The main use of a Sphinxes power is to lock something away, and very broad uses of this power are common. These can range from locking away simple concepts like a beings connection to the Warp or ability to move to more exotic concepts such as particular skills, or even the ability to communicate.

Sphinxes seem to spend massive amounts of time locking down Warp Rifts and are open to entertainment, which is what they view conversations with others as. They love riddles and other mental challenges and often make a game out of answering questions, being willing to trade answer for answer and using riddles.

### Border Lions

The Border Lions are a species that resembles giant felines, with their size varying greatly due to their powers but reaching the size of a Baneblade at the largest, and a Phase-Tiger at the smallest. Most of what you know the the Border Lions is what Vlad Tepes Border Lion friend He-Who-Walks-Obliquely is willing to tell you, and what you can infer from him. They are tasked with guarding the border of the Materium and Immaterium from daemons slipping though and are Avernus' agents in the outside galaxy.

The Border Lion's are able to travel interstellar distances though the Warp, bypass every known form of Warding without detection and are incredibly stealthy. They also seem to be able to use biomantic powers to change their size to an extent, and to boost their already formidable physical capacities.

there are three main Border Lion Disciplines, Walking the Border, Controlling the Border and Becoming the Border

Walking the Border is by far the most common Discipline and every Border Lion uses it to some extent. it is about being able to find edges and borders, both real and conceptional, and both move onto them and through them. its the heart of both their movement techniques and stealth techniques, and how they can casually bypass pretty much every known form of ward and armour barring the strongest Ka wards. HWWO is The Master of this.

Controlling the Border is a rarer discipline and is about changing external borders, both real and conceptional. at the simpler levels this can be used to create portals, warp gates and similar while more exotic uses include say moving the border between courage and cowardice, or between life and death

Becoming the Border is about changing internal borders, and is a very rare and dangerous discipline that is one of the better self-buff disciplines in existence, and one of the easiest ways to kill yourself.

### Huanglong

Known to humanity only due to stories and the eyes of Grandmaster Ridcully. The Huanglong are The Shepherds of the World.

According to the Huanglong they were a member of the wider Draco genus that all known Avernite Dragons belong to. Where the majority of the genus are intelligent, but ultimately animalistic, the Huanglong and the Therondy Dragons both became peoples, albeit with very different focuses. The complete mythology would take far too long to go through in detail, but the broad strokes was a royal amongst the Huanglong was almost slain, but was saved by a much weaker people. The royal taught the people many things in gratitude. Instead of returning to his people the Royal traveled the World, teaching and developing a philosophy as they went until at last they had come back to where they began.

Finding the People they had taught flourishing he brought his philosophy and the tales of adventure and teaching to their people, encouraging them to go out into the world and do the same.

Whether or not this story is literal, allegorical, or has become distorted with time is up for debate.

Whatever the truth of the matter is, the Huanglong did develop into a civilisation with the traits the world was searching. Apparently when the World is in need of a Guardian it will first search the Peoples for any that fit its criteria before creating one, and the Huanglong fit perfectly. The role of troubleshooter and guides, hidden agents aiding and shepherding its peoples, ensuring that threats are dealt with before greater force needs to be presented, and creating new heroes to fight back the darkness.

As part of this, the World turned the Huanglong into beings of the immaterium to better facilitate their duties, allowing them to travel where they needed to quickly and enhancing their already puissant might.

Since then they have acted as stewards and guardians to the potential of Avernus, as well as the Planet’s internal eyes and ears, while their brethren the Border Lions look outwards.

This neatly explains why they were at the tournament, scouting for issues and looking for talent.

Their representative, who identified himself as Yushe, explains that they’ve been cautious about how to approach the problem of humanity. On the one hand they explain that there is much potential there for them to foster, but the tales from Vlad and He-Who-Walks-Obliquely about modern-day humanity have made them take a slower approach.

In terms of powers, Yushe was quite happy to avoid revealing anything beyond what was already determined by the High Grandmaster, a degree of shockingly potent shapeshifting. However, he also discovered that the Huanglong likely possess psychic strength rivalling if not surpassing their brethren in the Therondy Dragons, making even one of them a dangerous foe.

### Penguins

The Penguins are several species of small flightless aquatic birds ranging in size from half a meter tall to almost one and a half meters. Their duty it is to watch over the polar gates and act as the first line of defence against all threats that comes from within them. They are organised into half a dozen empires, each ruled over by a hereditary royal family that produces the most powerful psykers among their species. Penguins are capable of using all forms of Psychic powers but excel at Demonology. Probably the Penguins greatest skill however is their ability to form massive highly effective Choirs, with entire nations of millions of Penguins able to form a single choir. There are several distinct castes of Penguins each of which has its own place on the assignment, ranging from the basic Penguins who are Epsilon-level, through Gamma-level Royal Penguins all the way to Alpha-level Emperor Penguins.

From what you can gather from talking to the peoples of Avernus the Penguins are considered to be one of the worlds super-powers, and it is believed that as a race they could stand up to even most of the Great Ones and triumph.

**Cultural Snapshot**

When the Penguins of Avernus are mentioned it is usually in the context of their incredible power against the daemonic, their unflinching service that has burned a hate for their kind into Chaos so deep that they have orchestrated a genocide against any other similar avians, non sentient or otherwise, to exact some measure of vengeance.

What most do not remark on is where their power comes from, rationalising it as simply one more example of the World doing the impossible. This is not an unfair assessment for by most standards, what they achieve *is* utterly ludicrous. A country, consisting of millions of major psykers joining together into a single massive choire to direct their wrath at a foe? Even the Eldar can only create choirs in the thousands and that is with their best during desperate and dangerous circumstances, never mind millions.

But, the World has done it anyway in such a fashion that in and of itself defies the understanding of Chaos, for the Penguins achieve this feat through the very essence of unity.

Unity is an idea chaos can almost comprehend, to them it conjures a single leader forcing all beneath them into obedience. It is the goal of the General, the Patriarch, the Mastermind, the Hedonist and the Tyrant, to strip away free will so there are no disagreements, for where there are differing opinions amongst Chaos there is also discord and infighting.

But the Penguins do not do this, they are all free willed individuals and it is crucial that they are. They disagree with one another, pursue their own goals. Debate over what they are doing is a fundamental part of their societies, one that is even more basic than their defence against the Daemonic, for before they were Guardians they were a People, who chose to ascend to the role after the death of their predecessors.

Yet no matter their quarrels their strife is always quickly resolved, for they are a social people. Not so much as the Ork-Wings, but enough that social strife is always resolved rapidly for their bond to one another is such that they know there is no harm meant. That their views are just differing opinions to try and create the best outcome, not a personal slur upon another or intended to do harm.

So it is that when the time comes the Penguins are always united within their kingdoms and do the impossible. A people in utter unity, who channel their collective will through the Ruler whose task it is to sublimate and transcend their views into action, so that quite literally power flows from the People to the King, to empower him to act on their behalf.

Thus are the Penguins unified against the darkness, willingly sublimating some of their will to see a brighter tomorrow, the Rulers bowed heavy beneath this trust and obligation in a manner Chaos cannot even hope to match, the trust and faith in one another a bond that is stronger than any oath.

## Uncontacted Guardians

### The Efreeti and Shayatin - The Flames of Liberation

Though listed here separately, the Efreeti and Shayatin are simply different classifications of a single Guardian species. As of yet, humanity has only encountered the latter, and our knowledge of the species comes primarily from conversations with relatively friendly Shayatin.

They appear to be a young Guardian species that emerged shortly after the Gilded Skies Incursion and are based around the concepts of Fire, Freedom, Rebellion and Free Will. As such they are exceptional counters to Tjapal forces, their very nature anathema to what the Tyrant stands for at a fundamental level. This also grants a potent resistance against Chaos, mental control and spiritual corruption in general as they resist anything infringing on their self determination.

The Shayatin physique is highly unique and personalized, differing from individual to individual; no two Shayatin encountered thus far have shared more than a handful of aesthetic commonalities. Certain characteristics are shared across the entire species, such as fire, smoke and molten material at their cores, as well as possessing considerable physical might and stature, but their personal features are almost infinitely variable. Efreeti begin their lives as featureless humanoids made of soft malleable stone and, over time, sculpt themselves to suit their liking. Eventually, their form sets and becomes much harder to change, with only small variation occurring over time. The species considers the shaping of one’s ‘final’ form to be a sort of rite of passage, a means by which their individual identities can be expressed and communicated to others at a glance. Few Shayatin are unremarkable in appearance; each is unique and striking, and the creatures possess a great deal of pride in the aesthetics of their solidified forms.

The most important part of a Shayatin’s life cycle is the “choice” that can be initiated at seemingly any time. As beings of Freedom, Shayatin cannot be unwillingly bound to the World; instead, but they are born into it. Created as Guardians of Avernus known as Efreeti, they exist with enormous power granted to them by the world. But from their creation, they are always presented with the option to rebel, to cut away a fundamental aspect of their being in exchange for “freedom” from their service. This choice, however, is not without sacrifice, although no Shayatin will speak of what else is lost in addition to the power. Apparently, most Efreeti are content with the ability to leave if they wish. Those that take the offer sometimes do it for personal pride, ambition or a host of reasons. But the majority have a very basic one.

“It gives us a choice, but a choice never taken is false. So I left."

It is said that, at the inception of their species, the Efreeti were not aware of this choice. The Shayatin speak in hushed reverence of the first to walk their path, of the one who was stricken with the conflict of his nature. He was to be a creature of flame and freedom, of liberty and liberation. But how could he be such a thing, if he and all those like him were bound to the Wworld? This Shayatin, the one called Madurz'goth, was not the first of the Efreeti, but he was among their greatest, and yet this conundrum troubled him. He meditated upon this question for years upon years. Finally, unable to reconcile his conflict, Madurz'goth came to a decision. He would turn his flames inward and leverage his very Concept against the core of his being. Either he would succeed, and so prove once and for all that true freedom did exist for his kind, or he would burn out like the last embers of a dying star.

For months, Madurz'goth made unto himself a crucible. His own flame scourged at his body and soul alike. The pain, they say, was incomprehensible. How can anyone survive such an act? Though his bonds endured, Madurz'goth persisted. He swore unto himself that he would not break until they did, or until his very essence was unmade in the attempt. The fires of Madurz'goth’s liberation raged unlike those of any Efreeti before him, and his screams long split the air. He would not yield, and he would not die, and so the only recourse was to endure… Until finally, he succeeded. In a cataclysm of fire, the first of the Shayatin, Madurz'goth, focused all his will and all his power and sundered his bonds. In so doing, he burned away that part of him which bound his service to the World –-- but burnt much of himself away in the process.

What emerged was a mere shade of what once was, but though he was as mere embers compared to the glorious blaze he used to be, Madurz'goth knew that he was free. In that instant, Madurz'goth’s action reverberated through all Efreeti. By his sacrifice, Madurz'goth proved that there existed a choice, though the cost was great indeed. Ever since that day, the Efreeti have heard the voice, they all know that they are free to choose. For many, the existence of the choice is alone sufficient; for the others, there is the path of the Shayatin.

According to those questioned, Madurz'goth still lives and, in fact, his liberation was a relatively recent event, though it still occurred not long after the creation of the Efreeti. Still, the significance of the event is nevertheless a matter of great importance to the Shayatin.

So far all Shayatin encountered have been tremendously potent pyromancers, with a control over flame that likely synergises with their connection to Freedom. In addition they are vast, herculean combatants, whose stony hide is proof against most attacks and emits a constant aura of molten heat. Finally they prefer to use weapons of various designs and makes. In many cases, these weapons are as unique as the individual Shayatin wielding them, having been forged from volcanically purified alloys to their exacting specifications.

However, their most unique characteristics are the specialized abilities which make them the bane of Tjapa, and choirs and networks of mental domination in general. Seemingly taking countermeasures intended for Tyranids and applying them to Chaos, the Shayatin are capable of spreading their flame through psychic connections, the thin links acting as conductors for the conflagration to spread. These fires burn through the minds and bodies of those connected to a network and those not slain are then afflicted with the essence of rebellion, emotions running high and filled with the impulse to cause the collapse of whatever system they are within. For Tjapals who are fundamentally connected to such networks this could cause a full scale cascade failure, cutting away Tjapa’s greatest advantage while the army turns on itself in a frenzy to execute rebels and fight for their newfound freedoms.

While diminished in comparison to their Efreeti cousins, the Shayatin retain these potent core abilities and conceptual attunement. Some Shayatin express a desire to prove that their personal power might someday rise to rival that of their previously Avernus-imbued might, and view the pursuit of such a goal as the ultimate expression of their independence.

Though they become incapable of doing so upon becoming Shayatin, the Efreeti are reportedly able to ritualistically cleanse Chaotic corruption from objects and locations. By bathing the afflicted areas with purifying flame, the Efreeti are said to be capable of burning away the very stuff of Chaos… Though they often leave naught but scorched husks by doing so. Still, at least one Efreeti has been said to favor the use of once-daemonic weapons, purified by their own flames and leveraged against their former masters.

In terms of personality and connection to the rest of Avernus, the Shayatin have so far proven to be a mixed bag due to their insistence on personal freedoms. As such, some Shayatin have wandered from the Fire Plains and laid waste to human settlements, confident in their ability to do as they please. Although strong enough to be mistaken for a strong Greater Daemon, they are not immune to the consequences. This attitude is shared with the much calmer members of their species, who see such fools as getting what they deserve for the choices they make. As a result there are many Shayatin who simply ignore humans and a few others who are in semi-regular contact. In the case of the latter, many of the Shayatin in question have expressed a degree of admiration and perceived camaraderie with humanity, viewing our species as one of the few on Avernus who can understand their individualistic drive. Notably, many are particularly impressed that the human species has *chosen* to live on Avernus of all places.

The longest and most well-known of the Shayatin is also one of the strangest, being a member of the 1st Dis Militia and a Caver that has been apparently on their payroll since shortly before the Gilded Skies. Called Ghash’nandha (Ghash, Robert or Rob to his friends), he claims that curiosity drew him to explore what lay beneath Avernus’s surface, evidently digging too deep and becoming stranded in the caverns. Stuck and hopelessly lost, he wandered for a time before encountering members of the First Dis. Due in part to being generally friendly (by giant, winged, obsidian-skinned, fire-breathing monster standards), he was eventually led to the surface. As a result he is presently the oldest member of his species, as he has been living since before their creation due to the temporal headache of the caverns. Out of a personal desire to remain mysterious, and a far more pressing wish to avoid a catastrophic temporal paradox, Ghash had not revealed the existence and nature of his brethren until relatively recently.

In general, the Shayatin chafe under strict command structures, consider acting under direct orders to be stifling and degrading, and are somewhat difficult to predict. Though independent of the World, the Shayatin can still, to the last, be counted upon to hate the forces of Chaos; it seems that, while it may be considered a ‘binding’ imperative, the Shayatin consider pledging service to the Ruinous Powers as foolish at best and, to quote one particularly blunt member of their species, ‘fucking pointless, self-defeating and cataclysmically stupid’ at worst.

The Shayatin are comparatively familiar, relative to their Efreeti cousins. Much of our knowledge of the Efreeti has been won from the Shayatin in games of riddles, chance, trade and one very strange session of strip poker. From what has been gleaned, an Efreeti is a Shayatin but moreso. Each one is a blazing colossus of flame and smoke, existing almost perpetually in a state that the Shayatin only achieve in the heat of battle. While the Shayatin are capable of achieving limited flight by means of their formidable pyromancy, the Efreeti are reportedly able to make themselves into living shooting stars, soaring freely through the heavens to wherever they are called.

### **Genelords**

The youngest of Avernus’s Guardians, the Genelords had been born from strange stock. A melding of the alien artifice taken from the Tyranids and the peerless understanding of the Old One’s planet mind. To understand the Genelords however, one needed to comprehend what it supposes is the mentality that went into the creation of the Swarm to begin with and the downfall of their creators.

Of course the World is theorising, but the legacy of those ancient genesmiths was strewn across the strands of DNA it unravelled, hinting at their intent despite the passing of millions of years in a galaxy far far away.

Nameless they may be, but their goal could be theorised. A desire had been born within these lost ones, a hunger that could never be satiated, the void within their existence only ever filled for a time. At first this was not a literal hunger, but more a desire for power, control and dominion. The common things that tyrants hold so dear.

Perhaps the World is wrong and overly harsh in its assessment. Their creations did have other capabilities in this primeval era, but their capacity as weapon and consumers has also ever been present.

For that is what the Tyranid is. A self-replicating biological engine that could be controlled by the mind of any Maker with ease, designed for absolute obedience. They were soldiers which would never fear, automated laboratories who could dissect their foes and assimilate their traits, and factories that could move from one world to the next to efficiently strip them of value. There are other parts to their making, their mechanisms for changing environments are more prominent in the vestiges of these earlier times, but the World is far too cynical to hope these were to make them better at terraforming. If there is one thing it is skilled at recognising, it is the war machines of another.

So the Tyranids served their masters, fulfilling their ambitions to the letter until at last there was a mistake. Whether by accident, hunger and envy overcoming common sense, the desperate attempts of a doomed species or some guessable circumstance, the Tyranids turned themselves upon their Creators. They were consumed and reborn, still the true lords of the Swarm, but now they were mere extensions of it. Eternally serving their once creations, as the Tyranids too acted to complete the programming they were given, trapped in an endless cycle of mutual servitude.

Now they were one with the Swarm, their will, intellect and might part and parcel of that great multitude. The command they had in life originally, now serving to better direct and optimise it as they were led towards ever grander heights, eventually consuming all that their galaxy had to offer, before setting their sights upon another. For until they were *perfect* they could not rest. It was what their Makers desired even now, to Devour and become all.

All this the World comprehended of the foolish species, translated from its examinations of the Tyranids genetics and psychic signatures. The chance it was wrong was certain, for it had access to only one historic record and its own views were somewhat biased. But there was truth to its suppositions, from examining the actions of the Tyranids before their final destruction. For certain it suspected that there was truth there by the ease at which the final Hive Fleet had accepted the combination of Swarmlord and Primarch. Almost as if it were eager.

Nevertheless, the methodology that went into the creation of their source material made the making of the Genelords difficult for the World. While originally separated from the laws which govern this galaxy, the creation here would harken back to the original as interpreted *by* those laws. In order to properly make something from them, it would have to subvert the narrative.

The basis for the Tyranids' hunger ironically lay within their synaptic connection. Sharing the desire to devour and emptiness that utterly pervaded their beings, so it was dissected and ultimately discarded. However, the genetic library of the Tyranids provided the World with an unexpected treasure. Stored deep within the Norn Queen it had been gifted were the Tyranids' genetic archives. A record of every species that the swarm had devoured in its home galaxy, kept for future reference were it ever needed. A boon on its own, but it provided an idea.

Gently the World took its own “archive” and threaded the imprint of it into the Genelords alongside that of the Tyranids, granting them traces of heritage to link them with every species the World had ever created. An effect that would have diminished them, but due to their chimeric origins was *amplified* by their Tyrannic heritage. In them was the distilled essence of an entire galaxy’s genetic potential, something so potent the World only had the time to iterate a handful of times, each prototype stronger than the last.

But something was still missing from them, or rather two.

Their heritage still isolated them from the galaxy. They were artificial and alien in a manner which still could not be denied, and despite the use of its own archive. They lacked sufficient connection with this galaxy. Their original still called far too strongly for them to shine properly, without also succumbing to the legacy of the Tyranids.

Creating a proper solution to these fundamental issues would have taken time, one of the innumerable long term projects the World has spent an age trying to solve, yet now was the time for many things to fall into place. A new archive was provided by the First World Ship, this one native to the entire galaxy over the course of billions of years. Something that could connect the Genelords to the Manufactured Warp here and free them from the legacy of the Tyranids, even enhance them further. Then the Primal, the assistance of Fenris. The seemingly random contributions of the spirits of Evolution and Adaptation, altering their make up until they were no longer foreign intruders in the ecosystem, but rather a shared lineage despite their recent birth.

This was the World’s subversion. To turn the covetous connection they were born with into a true bond. Able to influence and support life, then be supported and reinforced by life in turn.

**Genelords: Complete Report**

The Modern Genelord is almost entirely unrecognisable compared to the previous versions observed during the Gilded and Pestilent Skies incursions. While initially very similar to Tyranid Swarmlords in appearance, they now show a much wider array of characteristics in terms of size and abilities.

While initially attributed to the World gaining access to more examples of Tyranids, it has been implied that is only part of it.

Nevertheless, the Genelords have shown the ability to rapidly mutate and alter themselves via biomancy to adopt entirely new forms in a matter of minutes, with abilities ranging from the conventional to the wildly esoteric.

Their capacity to create a local telepathic network remains, although it is unclear if they are interfacing with the Battlenet or working alongside it. Nevertheless, the efficiency of their networks has been significantly increased, while the disturbing mental side effects described by human soldiers are no longer present, implying that the Planet regarded this as a potential issue and fixed it.

Further information on their capabilities is not forthcoming save that they have more secrets hidden away including an unexplained connection to the God Strength and the primal warp.

Their role during the incursion seems to be taking over as the primary wildlife coordinators, assisting Strength and allowing the Deep Ones to focus their attentions upon other matters, significantly increasing the danger of Avernus’s bio weapons.

### Guardian Apes

**History**

Not just *A* Guardian Race, but quite possibly *The* original Guardian Race.

Guardian Apes codified the original concept of Avernus’s protectors back when the Planet was still in its infancy and fighting a desperate war against Khorne’s undivided attention.

Back then there was only one Chaos God, and with his wrath stirred by Avernus’s defiance Khorne lashed out seemingly without end. The World needed something to at least stem the tide, and the Apes were that.

Originally, that was all they were intended to do, but somehow they went above and beyond all expectations for them, managing to not simply force back Khorne for, a time but even push the God’s forces to the Warp Rifts where they began to construct the first real Polar Fortifications. Invariably the God of War’s forces would push them away from the pole, and like the changing of the tides the Apes would force Khorne back, refining their techniques and weapons until they were a near insurmountable barrier for Khorne’s forces.

Unfortunately, then came Confusion, the second God of Chaos, and their specialisation became a detriment, the fogs and paranoia capable of turning the apes against one another, and soon both these gods were starting to push through once more, as the Apes desperately tried to change their strategies to account for this new development.

Salvation came at the hands of the Eldar, who discovered the World searching for their lost makers, unsure whether they intended to attack or beg for their aid. In the end the question was meaningless, the Old Ones were gone and only the Planet remained, lost and unsure in the void.

The Eldar had not yet reached the heights they would during the Dominion, but they were far and away the most powerful force in the galaxy, their Gods banishing Chaos from the World before remaining for a time with their youngest relative, giving gifts to the Sirens and even requesting its aid in examining the impact the Nightbringer had upon Khaine.

Unfortunately, once they left Chaos’s attacks resumed with greater fervor.

Nurgle had been born from the despair felt by the Eldar and the decay experienced on a galactic level, and even if the Apes had adapted for Confusion, this new foe once more shifted the paradigm and in a manner that was even more difficult for them to fight. Although resistant to conventional disease, the Warp based plagues of Nurgle struck them hard and soon they were faltering as every Green Incursion left them weakened and sickened, with centuries until they could properly rebuild during which time invariably another Red or Grey Incursion would come, setting them back further.

They were dying.

But, although to all onlookers this was a tragedy, the World unable to help as its first Protectors fell, in actuality it was a calculated scheme.

Their flaws were made evident shortly after Confusion’s birth it seems, and their leaders approached the World for a solution, with none being immediately apparent. The World *could* solve their weakness, but the alterations would take time they did not have. However, the Planet had already begun to hide its true capabilities from all, even the Eldar, having developed a healthy sense of paranoia during the endless incursions. So it concocted a plan.

While it is true many Apes would die in Incursions, the exact amount was over reported. In truth, many of them were secretly hidden away by the World, a few percent from each generation, while many of their young were secreted away to safety. While Chaos thought they were rapidly destroying the Apes, in fact they acted as cover for them, their withering away instead just an illusion.

Thus the Apes stoically held their ground, buying time while Avernus worked on two things, their potential replacements and a hiding spot so secretive that Chaos would never find it.

In the end, it was not the species Avernus had groomed to take their position who would finally step in to fill their shoes, but rather the Penguins, the long time allies of the Apes and a comparatively “natural” species, whose astounding development of their powers made them an apt fit for the role.

Meanwhile, the World’s solution to a hiding spot was one so elegant that even it did not fully understand what it had done for a time.

That is because of the nature of the Great Clock, the Great One outside of time that arguably exists in all time it has ever been. While construction of the Clock had begun relatively recently in Avernus’s timeline, the Clock’s ability to act then was only slightly less than it is now. So Avernus bade them hide its creations out of sync with the rest of the universe in sub-realms, parts of the Warp that are already nearly imperceptible and inaccessible to Chaos, rendering them totally invisible.

During the final battle where Nurgle’s Firstborn finally “slew” the Apes before being forced back by the combined might of the Orkwing Khan and the ascendant Penguins, in truth these were merely the brave volunteers who remained behind to fully sell the illusion that their race was extinct, their species still alive and well out of sight and mind.

The Apes have spent the subsequent millions of years preparing for the final battle. One more weapon in the Planet’s arsenal for when it must unleash *everything* it can in order to finally free itself or die. This has produced a history of ceaseless training, refinement and improvement, all the while adapting to the changes Avernus has made to their design so that the past might not be repeated.

At last, they are going to be unleashed, taking back up their old positions at the Polar Gates to stem the tide of Chaos, a weapon once greatly feared and long forgotten by Chaos now thrust suddenly into the light to surprise and astound them.

**Biology**

The Apes are unique amongst Avernus’s Guardians in that they have only semi active psychic powers. What psychic capacity they have is invested abilities that they can turn on or off at will. These are primarily for increasing their physicality and defences, with their powers growing stronger the fewer are active. However, none of their powers individually are extraordinary in the manner of the other Guardians. In part this is emblematic of their nature as a rush job, created hastily to defend the World when it was still very young and inexperienced (compared to its modern knowledge at least) as well as a sign of what it was facing.

Khorne was the World’s only major threat, so it designed the Apes to counter Khorne. As the Blood God was resistant to psychic attacks, creating a psychic species to counter it was pointless so instead it fought Khorne where it was both strongest and weakest, soldiers who were also warriors.

In essence, despite Khorne’s nature as the God of War its daemons tend to fight as individuals, so the World crafted a species that excels at fighting as a unit, but was also capable of contending with Khorne’s forces individually. The hope was that as a whole they would be able to contend with the Daemons and even overcome their advantages, such as infinite numbers and no fear of death.

In this regard the World was absolutely correct, but in its haste forgot to account for the emergence of *other* Chaos Gods.

The Apes lacked almost any form of psy-resistance save their own will power, and while Chaos could not simply overwhelm them, that mattered little when their minds could be so easily obscured and their bodies wracked with plague.

As a finished design rectifying this would have taken too long, hence the World’s plot to preserve their culture and skills; necessitating the deception it had played on Chaos for such a long time.

Over millions of years within their hidden sub-dimensions, the World has worked over the Apes extensively, turning them into one of its most refined designs.

They typically stand between 3-5 feet in height, with extremely long arms in proportion to their bodies, up to 6.6 feet, and short but powerful legs. They are covered in thick fur that ranges in colour from russet red to dark chocolate. Their fur is an especially important cultural symbol for them, with many identifiers of position being created in it via woven braids, while grooming their own and others' fur is considered a way of showing one’s trustworthiness.

The Apes have extremely well-developed fingers and toes that allow them remarkable grip on just about any surface, allowing them to comfortably climb just about anything that has even the least amount of friction, in addition to being able to crush objects with ease.

Sexual dimorphism can be seen most easily by the presence or absence of cheek pads. Males possess these pads, which is apparently a hold over from a previous design that was left behind for aesthetic reasons rather than practical ones.

Beyond this, on a level of exclusively conventional genetic engineering, each ape possesses extraordinary strength, speed, durability and regeneration disproportionate to their size alongside highly refined instinct allowing them to automatically coordinate with one another in combat, an effect that has only been increased by access to the Battlenet.

A few centuries ago on a one to one basis, even before factoring psychic powers each Ape was sufficient to fight a heralded bloodletter of Khorne with nothing save their fists with an expectation that they would emerge triumphant. After incorporating information from the Tyranids, this disparity has been elevated even higher.

**Psychic Powers**

As already stated, the Apes do not have any “active” powers in the manner of normal psykers, instead their abilities are primarily passive, with them having the ability to turn them on and off.

This semi-modular design philosophy again goes back to their origins, but is also a concession seemingly taken by the World to refine them better during their long absence, reducing the risk of complications from extensive reworking of their base nature.

At present they have an effective grab bag of powers, most of which are remarkably efficient by any standard.

First, Push or biomantic boosts. These push their already extra-ordinary physical capabilities into the realms of the truly astounding, such as outwrestling a Remnant Troll in power armour, overcoming their metal boost without any other augmentations of their own. Probably most important is their ability to regenerate, which operates at a much deeper level than most. This aspect of their power seems to activate automatically when an ape receives critical damage, although somehow only when doing so wouldn’t get the Ape killed in another fashion. As long as this is active, they can recover from all but the greatest injuries.

Second, “Breakdown.” Termed that by the Apes, this is a field they are constantly outputting save when they consciously shut it off and is the reason for the “simplicity” of almost everything associated with them. Intended to complement their psychic resistance, the field damages and destroys all non living things entering its area of effect depending upon its complexity. The more an Ape focuses power on the field (or the more apes are in close proximity) the stronger it becomes. This accounts for the Apes' strange technological level and serves to make them nigh immune to any psychic attack that isn’t backed up by immense brute force. It is hoped it will help them against Necrons and C’tan servants in the future, but given the nature of Ka it is not expected.

Third, Anticipation. To the Apes this is essentially a danger sense, that is part telepathy, part divination. It is a decent part of why the Apes are such good duelists, as they are able to get an impression of what their enemy intends to do before they do, allowing them to keep up with foes that are faster than them, and easily outclass ones that are slower. As it does not exclude friends nor enemies that are unknown to the Ape, it also lets them coordinate with their allies to a higher degree and makes approaching one via stealth a difficult undertaking.

Fourth, Notice Me Not. While the Apes are already very good at stealth, their capacity is enhanced by this power, which instead of trying to make the Ape invincible or harder to track, instead causes enemies to ignore them. It is possible for an Ape to walk up to someone, climb onto their back and hang there, looking over their shoulder, and for nobody else to realise anything is wrong until they deactivate their field. It does have its limits, aggressive actions, in particular, breaking it if they are being completely ignored. However, its effects are always semi-active as long as it is powered, which can be decisive in combat, forcing the enemy to pay less attention to their actions, which can lead to swift death.

Fifth, Resistance is Futile: This is an effect the Apes can imbue into their hands and feet which allows them to ignore some of the enemies' armour no matter what the defence is. For their ranged weapons they can imbue an echo of this effect into them, although it is always most effective with their biological limbs. It seems this effect is specifically so they can get around the issue of daemonic resilience, along with letting them always retain effectiveness, even if they lose access to all other weapons.

Sixth, Shield. Likely the simplest power in their arsenal, which does exactly what its name suggests, generates a barrier around them that blocks aggressive attacks towards them, providing an additional layer of near universal protection. This works against *all* negative effects towards them (telepathy is blocked just as readily as swords) with what is allowed through determined by the aggression used.

**Technology**

Due to their Breakdown ability, Ape technology is strange. Politely they use technology that is more advanced than humanity, but their emphasis on durability means that it performs at a significantly lower level. Impolitely, they need something around Tech Level 22-3 to create the effect of Tech level 15-6.

Both of these statements are somewhat misleading but convey the effective truth. Technological advancement has not been a focus of the Apes, but they do have highly cultivated technology which is designed to be essentially unbreakable. Humanity would likely be reminded of many of the common STC designs of the Dark Age of Technology, frontier tech intended to be cheap, mass-producible and work for an incredibly long time with minimal maintenance. Ape tech works along similar lines, except to an even greater degree.\* Anything that has a backup has dozens, if it can be hardened it is, while all actions that could have been made to simplify it have been implemented.

\*The exception to this are their las packs, which comparison showed were nearly identical to humanity's own, lending credence to how impressive a piece of tech that is.

To anyone else, Ape technology is absurdly inefficient for how advanced it is, but also impossibly simple, affordable, low maintenance and *will not break*.

When Apes are using it, this is not quite the case, their power being what it is, however it does allow them to deploy an impressive arsenal of weapons to supplement their extraordinary physical abilities, most importantly power armour.

The one exception to their technology (for the most part) is their training equipment. While highly durable by any other standard, the apes have pushed this type of tech to its very limits, both via material and immaterial means. As they lack access to “conventional” means of gaining experience in the art of war, they have been forced to simply train themselves to an ever greater standard and pushing the envelope in that regard is one of their greatest accomplishments.

**Skill**

This has been their area of greatest dedication during their absence, and the results speak for themselves. Each Ape is a war machine, trained in almost all areas of battle and specialising in at least one. Every aspect of their military has been polished to a razor sheen, as everything from basic practicality to philosophy have been examined, poured over until only the most streamlined force remains.

Essentially how the Apes fight is in the manner that is most beneficial to them in practically any scenario, with the only advantage an enemy can have over them being in simple, beastial power.

**The Result**

According to the Eldar’s report, in a one to one battle an Ape has been able to defeat any foe set before them, a feat made even more impressive from how this is the result of pure training and natural abilities. By comparison their enemies (Aspect Warriors, Remnant Troll Warriors and Krork) all possess technology that augments their abilities, much greater experience and active psychic abilities, yet in a one vs one battle the Apes still took victory every time, their aura turning reliance upon technology into a weakness while their impressive psy resistance turning aside attempts to simply overwhelm them.

Every battle was invariably forced into one where the Ape had lost no advantages, but the enemy had, forcing a confrontation, and when this occurred the result would no longer be in doubt as the combined advantages of the Apes had proven to be insurmountable.

Once they gain experience in battle, the Krork estimate them to be monumental foes, however at present, their issues start to become apparent as the scale of battle is increased. Currently, they start to lose to Remnant Trolls at around 10 vs 10 and Krork at the 1,000,000 vs 1,000,000 scale. These are not insulting numbers, but given the population of Apes is in the low billions it must be considered, particularly when they are going to be fighting a force that is infinite in amount.

In addition, while they may be resistant, lacking active psykers of their own *is* a considerable disadvantage which the enemy can exploit. Thankfully the Apes are not alone, and with the Penguins and many others acting in support, that issue should be minimized.

Overall, the Apes are an unexpected and terrifying race, that thankfully is on our side for a change.

### Abyss Keepers

Abyss Keepers are one of the agents keeping the Abyss of Avernus in check. They are powerful Alpha psykers with the signature capability to store immense amounts of magic in the form of discrete spells, which allow them to effectively fight on the level of a highly skilled Alpha Plus. They also gain benefits from what spells they have prepared spells as appropriate to each specific spell, and are proficient is using that advantage in battle.

The appearance of an Abyss Keeper is dependent on what spells they have prepared, as spells are represented symbolically upon their forms as appropriate to that spell (runes, weapons, limbs, wings, shells, so on). Abyss Keepers with no spells prepared have the appearance of a simple sphere.

It is unclear how Abyss Keepers are created, with current speculation being some combination of Abyss Keepers and Avernus being required for their creation. While Abyss Keepers are sapient, it is believed that it would require a powerful psyker (likely also skilled at spellcasting) to communicate with them without dying.