Hive Fleet Hades

Dark and mutated xenos with horrific corruption throughout their bodies

### **Planet of Origin**

Unknown, although they began their new evolution on the Plagueworld of Moriuntur

### **Strength**

Incredibly resilient and regenerative compared to usual tyranid specimens, even lowly bioforms can heal in combat. Their random mutations often give them strength but inconsistency and their nature makes them slower to produce more complex bioforms. All bioforms are slightly slower and heavier however. Their greatest strength is their ability to use deadly and viral tyranid diseases against their enemies.

### **Unique Traits**

A simple scratch or bite can spread one of many tyranid viruses, such as the Ripper virus, where the host erupts with countless ripper larvae, or the raver virus, which turns enemies mad with rage, paranoia or hallucinations, causing them to attack allies and lose conscious thought.

### **Known Infestations**

Several worlds surrounding the eye of Terror, including a growing infestation on the Space Marine stronghold of Jaggafall.

### **Identification Marks**

Sickliness and dripping diseases they carry that belie their tremendous resilience as well as often mutations such as extra arms or claws. Rippling larvae sacs hang from some beasts, bursting with rippers and other vile parasitic tyranids.

**Hive Fleet Hades** is a notorious and highly evolved Tyranid Hive Fleet. They were originally a splinter hive fleet of Hive Fleet Kronos and were first encountered upon the plague world of Moriuntur in the Segmentum Obscurus. This dire threat is notable for being incredibly resilient and regenerative compared to the average Tyranid bioforms. However, their ability to use deadly and viral tyranid pathogens against their enemies has proven to be their greatest strength.

## **History**

### **Origin**

Their origins are somewhat mysterious, with only rumours to tell about where they came from. What is widely known however, is that they originated from a splinter fleet of Hive Fleet Kronos, splitting from their main fleet after a series of warp storms in the Eye of Terror severely cut the Hive fleet in two, separating them.

After journeying for several years, lost in the deep dark mass of the immaterium, they were desperate for biomass, resorting to eating wildly warped and twisted warp entities for some kind of nourishment. This seems to have affected the Hive Fleet to its very core, as the fleet began to change, becoming more unstable and bloodthirsty in their starvation. Unknown side affects of their chaotic nourishment began to emerge, starting with a simple increase in aggression and boost in resilience but leading to far more malevolent mutations.

The tyranids eventually found a world that seemed high in biomass and ripe for consumption. At this point, the splinter fleet was vastly weakened from journeying alone through the chaos space, having dealt with storms, Warp Entities and other horrors even more unsettling than themselves...

In their desperate hunger, the fleet did not notice that this was no mere Chaos world- it was the Plague world of Moriuntur, The Daemon world, controlled by a powerful daemon prince of Nurgle, was dripping with foul infected biomass. Tides of cultists and chaos space marines garrisoned the world, but worst of all were the foul plaguetide of Nurgle's vast daemon host of monstrosities. Clouds of Plague drones filled the sky, and the poisonous pits across the world were lairs to many plaguebearer herds, roving across the planet like swarms of locusts.

Warrior-beasts wield wicked biomorphs and mutations that are seldom seen in other Hive Fleets.No worlds in Segmentum Obscurus are beyond the tainted reach of Hive Fleet Hades- they have grown stronger amidst the growing chaos plaguing the galaxy.The Hive Fleet has expanded its reach past the Eye of Terror, sending swarms of bioships to hunt and consume numerous Imperial controlled worlds.
However, as the Tyranids approached the madness below, they did not falter nor hesitate. It was almost like they had accepted their own demise, giving into their doomed fate. The depleted but still deadly Hive Fleet descended onto the planet, vomiting hosts of berserk tyranids that rushed across the planet. Luckily, the defenders of the Plague world were slow to react, since they were surprised that some enemy would actually attack them on the most vile of daemon worlds; the mere thought of that would be... insanity.

Somehow the billowing clouds of poison and pus filling the world had no effect on the Tyranids, at least not straight away. They seemed resilient, even more so than their race ought to be. However, this was just the beginning- now the vast defenders of their homeworld came to meet the Tyranids, putting large warbands of cultists, chaos space marines, daemon hosts and even daemon engines on the warpath. The tyranid forces broke into small battle groups, spreading across the planet like wildfire. Violent and bloody close combat fighting ensued abruptly across the world. At first, it seemed that the Tyranids held the advantage of surprise, quickly overwhelming several smaller bands of chaos. Unfortunately this was just the tip of the iceberg, as the Daemon Prince Ranzgar the Corrupter began personally leading larger parties of elite Plague Marines. The tyranids died in droves, falling over and over to horrific new diseases and viruses concocted by Ranzgar and his forces. The planet itself was a melting churning cauldron of sickness, which the Tyranids could no longer bear.

The alien scourge amassed together in one final last ditch assault, hoping to surround the Daemon prince and his entourage; their only chance of victory was to beat the leader of the Chaos forces. Either that or... evolve. The final remaining tyranids forces swarmed Ranzgar and his elite plague marine guards. The Daemonlord had seen this coming and he had many terrible infections ready to inflict upon them. As they drove on, through writhing piles of their dead, smouldering or melting with acidic poison or other Nurgle weaponry, they began to dwindle in number: gradually at first, then more rapidly as the superior firepower and resilience of the Nurglite Legions overwhelmed them. Nonetheless, their tenacity did not falter.

Ranzgar couldn't fault them for that- it was almost impressive to him their perseverance, their resilience to all but his cruellest concoctions. Finally, the last of the alien beasts fell before him, half submerged in the giant lake of pus and other excrements most toxic. The whole area was littered with dead decaying corpses. "How beautiful..." thought the Daemon Prince.

Soon after, the forces of Nurgle disbanded, glad to be rid of this alien menace, but despite that also disappointed that the fighting was over. Little did they know, this was so very far from the truth...

Months went by- nothing. A year or more had passed and the events of the tyranid assault had all but fled from the memories of the chaotic forces on Moriuntur.

Finally, after so long spent growing, merging and multiplying in the darkest corners of the planet, the xenos plague struck. Like wildfire, tens of thousands of smaller tyranid creatures burst from their underground lairs and hidden caves to spread death to the planet. Some of these creatures were said to be unknown to any encountered tyranid hive fleets, having been mutated beyond all recognition. Even worse, the small amount of native creatures on the planet (already corrupted by Nurgle), had been twisted into sick parodies of their former selves. They had become slaves to the swarm of xenos infesting them.

The small percentage of tyranids that escaped the slaughter of their brethren had thrived on the boiling corruption of the planet, feeding on it and using it to evolve their own tyranid DNA to become just as toxic to other life. They were like bacteria that have survived an onslaught of antibiotics, becoming stronger than before and immune to future attacks. Many more tyranids had died than survived the horrific transformations they endured, but even this did not deter them. Several times more infectious than any other tyranid matter, and far more lethal, these small but resilient tyranid organisms massacred tides of Nurgle's followers before they knew what had happened.

Ranzgar instantly knew something was different. These tyranids seemed completely immune to all his previous contagions created thus far. More concerning was their ability to create their own... Reports had come in of terrifying new viruses affecting his men and even some of his chaos space marines. Ranzgar called in the support of his most deviant and deadly warriors to lead armies to exterminate these infestations, but he knew it probably wouldn't be enough. He would need daemons- a lot of them.

Sure enough, the armies Ranzgar had sent did not return.