Heart Rippers

Heart Ripper armorial with Chapter iconography.

A Heart Ripper Tactical Marine

### **Specialty**

Terror-campaigns, close quarters combat, scorched earth actions, information gathering

### **Battle cry**

"Salvation through destruction! All else is temporary, only Terra is eternal!"

### **Colours**

Deep Red Backpack, Pauldrons, Hands and Lower Helmet, Gunmetal Grey Upper Helmet, Torso, Arms, Legs

### Successor Chapter(s)

None

"*Bound in blood and ash, we come for you.*"
— Parakash, the Heart Rippers' Exalted Herald of Sanguinius
A strange and unnerving Chapter, the **Heart Rippers** represent some of the darker aspects of the Sanguine Brotherhood. Born during the 21st 'Cursed Founding' and descended from the Blood Angels, the Heart Rippers are Astartes bathed in blood, doomed to live blighted by suspicion. Hailing from the world of Bhairava, the Heart Rippers are violent, bloodthirsty warriors, masters of terror and devastation these ominous Marines are devoutly loyal to the God-Emperor of Mankind.

Amongst the descendants of Sanguinius, the Devourers of Bhairava will never truly be accepted, their aberrant beliefs, disturbing methods and unsettling serenity making them live as eternal outcasts.

## Chapter History

When combing the histories of the Imperium of Man, as with most spawn of the 21st Founding, it is difficult to pin down the first mention the ominous, disturbing warriors of Bhairava. Before the 7th Black Crusade, there was no concrete reference to the Heart Rippers, simply disturbing, sinister and more poetic references to 'flesh-hungry angel-monsters' and 'Charnel Feasts in the flames' which, given the ever-growing effect of the Red Thirst upon the children of Sanguinius, could mean any number of Blood Angels successors. During the Ghost War however, when the servants of Chaos raged across the Imperium yet again, in the histories of Mankind's empire, the Heart Rippers are directly spoken of.

As the forces of Chaos slipped throughout the Imperium, playing a brutal game of cat-and-mouse with the Emperor's warriors uprisings and rebellions followed, more and more, the lost and damned, the subversive dregs, twisted by Chaos rose up. As the Ghost War raged, unrest fostered by vile cults to the Dark Gods boiled over. On the world of Tiegr, a massive cult, calling itself the Bleeding Visionaries rose up, a carnage-worshipping sect of rebels arose, devastating the feral world with weaponry far beyond the expected level, believed to be supplied to them by treasonous Lord-Generals of the local regiments. As their centres of governance were overthrown, those few loyal to the Imperium begged for aid. The Heart Rippers obliged. What the feral cultists believed to be battle, war, was nothing. The Heart Rippers swept through the damned cultists like a terrible wind, leaving only a trail of mutilated carnage in their wake. There were few survivors of their brutal purges. When the full relief forces arrived on these worlds, they were greeted by terrified loyalists, shivering in fear. As for the Bleeding Visionaries, those blood-hungry revolutionaries that ravaged Tiegr, virtually all were killed, their corpses burned, devoured and broken, only the leaders, those charismatic insurgents were left alive, gabbling dementedly in terror about the wrath of Bhairava's Devourers.

## Notable Campaigns

* **Cryptus Campaign (998.M41) -** A Heart Rippers detachment under Kshatriya-Rajan Karna Aariv served during the Cryptus Campaign, whilst the majority joined with their fellow successors on Baal. It was during this engagement against the oncoming horde of Hive Fleet Leviathan, that Karna Aariv would be driven to near permanent insanity. In an effort to gain even the slightest insight into the Hive Fleet's plans Karna and a coven of psykers hunted down a Tyranid Neurothrope. Given the nature of these synapse beasts as living beacons of the Hive Mind, Karna hoped that through devouring it, the hyper-active omophagea of the Heart Rippers would allow him to acquire insight for their moments. Instead, after fully devouring the psychic beast, the weight and horror of the visions thrust into his mind drove Karna into a frenzied insanity. He was forced into a coma, to allow the accompanying Acharya to perform mental surgery on him, to attempt to remove the horrific memories acquired from the neurothrope and rebuild his psyche. Such was the weight and strength of the experiences, that countless servitors in the Halls of Memory were destroyed by the implanted memories. During this time, Parakash of the Rajanya was but in command of the Heart Rippers.
* **Devastation of Baal (999.M41) -** During the Devastation of Baal, the Heart Rippers took astounding losses, their numbers being reduced to a mere twenty percent of their full-strength, with only three of the Nine-Headed Destroyer squadrons surviving. As the situation on their Primarch's homeworld became more and more dire, the Chapter's acting leader; Parakash, Exalted Herald of Sanguinius for the Heart Rippers, before his death, ordered that Karna Aariv be prematurely awoken from the coma he had been placed in by the Chapter's librarians in an effort to restore his fractured mind after he had devoured a neurothrope. When he was awoken, the Tiger-Skinned was almost akin to one fallen to the Black Rage; utterly insensate and unconcerned for their own well-being, so consumed with insane rage was he. Eventually, after salvation from Roboute Guilliman and, most ominously of all Ka'Bandha, Karna was discovered, unconscious, atop a mountain of Tyranid corpses, clutching the heart of the dead Hive Tyrant he had collapsed from. Since that battle, the memory and mental surgery necessary to restore him to sanity was completed by the Chapter's psykers and, in an effort to stave of the after-effects of such a horrific experience, the Tiger-Skinned crossed the Rubicon Primaris.
* **Battle of Maayah (170.M42) -** During the Era Indomitus, after being reinforced with Primaris Marines, the Heart Rippers were assaulted by their oldest and most persistent foes; Harlequins of the Masque of Many and None. During their return to Bhairava, Karna and a company's worth of Heart Rippers aboard the Annihilator, were greeted by a bizarre arrival; in one of the loading bays, there was an ancient, wizened Librarian, gabbling insanely to himself. When Karna and the Rajanya, freshly renewed after their destruction during the Devastation of Baal left the bridge to investigate, they were stunned, this mad stowaway was Hari, a long exiled Librarian, who sought to harness the psychic abilities of the hated Eldar by crafting a psychic hood out of their crystallised bones. Whilst distracted by this baffling new arrival, serfs and servitors on the Annihilators bridge shifted, about oddly, in an instant, they were revealed to be harlequins, infiltrators from the Masque of the Many and None, led by a shadowseer. As they took the bridge, the harlequin psyker cast a glamour over the ship's navigator, making them believe all was well. Through the manipulations of the shadowseer, the Annihilator was launched into the warp, eventually exiting in the further reaches of the foul Eye of Terror, a long lost area, avoided even by the servants of the Ruinous Powers. As they orbited above some warp-ravaged crone world, Karna and the Rajanya penetrated the bridge of the ancient vessel, dragging along their gabbling former battle-brother. Immediately, before a single bolt was fired, none other than their ancient foe, the High Avatar known as Raktabīja spoke, through body of Hari. threatening to disengage the gellar field unless he was allowed to speak, killing all aboard. Forced to relent Karna assented. The High Avatar revealed his insane purpose; at the urging of one of the terrifying harlequin solitaires, Raktabīja investigated the new, horrid, sickly presence emanating from the centre of the Great Rift, where the Eye of Terror had once been and, as their most persistent foes, the High Avatar had chosen the Heart Rippers to serve alongside them, for he could trust their abilities and, with their lives in his hands, their compliance. As he spoke, hordes of serfs seemed to go into a daze, all seemingly drawn towards the wasted planet the Annihilator orbited, which Raktabīja called Maayah, rumoured to have once been a resting place of a weapon capable of tipping the balance of the great war against Chaos, the High Avatar claimed he believed it contained the wraith-constructs of Vaul, which beat back the mightiest C'tan of all; Mag'ladroth the Void-Dragon, though to Karna's ears, these claims seemed desperate, as though Raktabīja knew otherwise and hoped beyond hope it did. After restraining the serfs from the siren-song of Maayah, the Heart Rippers deployed en-masse at Raktabīja's urging. Met by a small troupe of the Masque, the unlikely duo discovered this world, riddled with porous pits that led into its vile depths and covered in the crumbling remains of the ancient Eldar empire, was formed from the sticky, decayed remains of strange angular corpses, darkly fused together. As they made this horrifying realisation, beings began pouring forth from the pits of the world and the solitaire's reasons for investigating this world became apparent; the Eldar of Maayah had not died, a far worse fate had befallen them. In the depths of the Immaterium, cast out by his fellow gods of the warp, lurks a vile, parasitic entity, the renegade god known as Malice. When Slaanesh was born and swallowed the entire Eldar empire, Hiur-Yriu had, before the Dark Prince could gorge upon their souls, instead been taken and submitted themselves to that leeching warp-being. Sickly in bearing, their psychic powers untamed and volatile, and their weapons crude, their attacks that of a starving wretch over food, these Malice-twisted Eldar were a truly nightmarish sight. To the eyes of the Masque of Many and None, such a sight was beyond sanity, two clawed out their eyes, most vomited in revulsion, whilst their leader, the High Avatar Raktabīja, laughed deliriously, his eyes swimming with tears of fury and disgust, each Harlequin sickened to their core by this debasement of their race. Despite their contempt for the Eldar as a whole, even the Heart Rippers understood the perversity of what they were witnessing, As the vile, wretched parodies of the Eldar swarmed them, the unlikely allies unleashed their full, untrammelled fury upon the horde, their mere existence driving them apoplectic with bloody rage, both Karna and Raktabīja knew, that strange psychic signal, which called hungrily to all, at the centre of Maayah, was the key to destroying these abominations. In order to allow the troupe to penetrate to the core of the world, the Heart Rippers struck at the fleshy, tumour-like 'nest-sites', burning and purging everything they come across, searing away all life on the vile world. Like the elegant blades they wielded, the starweavers of the Masque of Many and None, with the murderous aid of the Heart Rippers, pierced into the abyss of Maayah, finding the source of that hateful siren call. Like the world around it, it was a nightmarish fusion; thousands upon thousands of Malice-corrupted Eldar perversely merged into a single, gestalt being, its mind acting like hateful parody of the Astronomicon, calling fresh victims for Malice's wasted servants. underneath this hellish being, was the crumbling ruins of the once great city and, most terrifyingly of all, a webway gate, half repaired by Malice's parasitic being, the parasitic god's intent was clear, to spread his nightmarish Eldar-beings across existence like a leprous pestilence. Again, such a sight was beyond the pale for the Eldar and humans, it was disgusting in the extreme and now, finally, Raktabīja truly understood the solitaire's purpose, there was no laughter, no tears, a fury, a hatred he had not known in long centuries filled the High Avatar. With all of their might, the strikeforce attacked again and again. With a Ear-shredding, skin-crawling shriek and squelch of movement, the Malice-Eldar gestalt being responded, hammering its attackers with great waves of psychic force and tearing off chunks of nauseating which served as horrid golems in its defence, shielding itself with a psychic barrier. Though countless Eldar and Astartes died almost immediately from this disgusting assault, those around Karna, seemed to emerge unscathed, as though Rakta's Destroyer, so anathema to anything spawned by the Eldar, turned aside all the gestalt-thing's attacks. Before any could react, Raktabīja doused the great gleaming trident with the most vicious brew concocted by the death jesters, setting it alight. The Kshatriya-Rajan needed no answer. Charging forwards, a bellow of hatred on their lips, Karna Aariv the Tiger-Skinned and Raktabīja, plunged the flame-wreathed trident into the abomination's heart. The effect was immediate. All across the world, that acidic fire Rakta's Destroyer had been doused with, seemed to suddenly engulf the Malice-Eldar. As the wretched foetus-parasite being is engulfed by the flame, Maayah began to crumble, apparently dying along with the monstrosity. Frantically, the two forces flee the collapsing planet, the Annihilator having been restored to the Heart Rippers, with the harlequins aboard it melting into the shadows and escaping to re-join their Masque. As the Heart Rippers scoured the depths of the ship, there was only one single sign of their passing; Hari's corpse, with a message scrawled in his own blood across him 'You played your part well Bhairavan, you are a true performer. That hateful trident has served its purpose, no more will the Laughing God spare you the rod you have built'

## Chapter Homeworld

Bhairava is a hot, humid, feral world. Comprised of two main continents and numerous smaller landmasses, life on Bhairava is a grisly, brutal one. Criss-crossed by countless massive rivers and swamps, the mangroves of the Heart Rippers' are host to countless beasts. Generally, settlements on Bhairava are usually only villages, there has yet to be a uniter with the vision to bring these disparate groups together.

Bhairava is a world of extremes, it is nature writ large. Whereas worlds like Ce Acatl are perhaps nature at its most violent and baffling, Bhairava straddles a strange middle ground. Whilst brimming with vicious, brutal creatures like the massive Bhairavan Tiger or the cold-blooded, bone-snapping crocodilian beasts known as the Makarans, Bhairava also has slow, dull-witted, near suicidally placid creatures like the Nasum Bos Cornu, a rather bizarre fusion of bovine and rhinoceroid creatures. The climate as well, whilst always blisteringly hot and humid, can suffer long, painful periods of drought, as the sun sears away any water. Only then to followed by thunderous, month-long downpours, flooding the world with water so long denied to it. Bhairava is truly a mercurial world.

### Fortress-Monastery

Placed at the source of the Maha, the River of Corpses is a grim citadel. All those bodies sent down the the Maha, end up at the River of Corpses, sacrifices for the 'Devouring Angels' (as the Heart Rippers are known as on the world) It is truly an immense and macabre fortress, carved into the very walls are skeletons of the bodies of those sacrificed to them, coated thin layers of ceramite, they are used as ghastly proxies to display the mythology of the Heart Rippers. As with all Chapter Fortress-Monasteries, the River of Corpses is virtually unassailable, only the most ardent foe can hope to overcome it. Perhaps the most disturbing aspect of the River of Corpses, is tied into the grisly gene-flaw Inculaba imbued the Chapter with, and their disturbing use of it; the immense Halls of Memory, where is stored rank upon rank of dead-eyed, pallid memory servitors; brain-dead, vat-grown drones, used by the Heart Rippers to store the countless memories of those the Chapter has devoured. When entering the halls of memory, one is greeted by countless, glassy-eyed stares, occasionally, these drones will act out the memories they are implanted by the Chapter's Librarians, silently, unnaturally twitching and miming actions of the long dead in this ominous, macabre archive.

## Chapter Organisation

Like all Chapters of the Blood, the Heart Rippers generally follow the edicts laid down by the Codex Astartes. However, as with all children of Sanguinius, the Heart Rippers maintain a Death Company, which, given how much the Red Thirst flourishes within the Chapter, is rather extensive. After the Chapter's Primaris reinforcements, those from the Unnumbered Sons were kept generally separate. Not out of distrust or dislike, as was the case with the Flesh Tearers and other Chapters, because of their creation by Cawl, those Greyshields given to the Heart Rippers were leery of the strange beliefs of their new Chapter. Since then, as the original Primaris Marines were slowly worn away, those created by the Heart Rippers themselves began to replace them.

### Specialist Ranks

* ***Rajanya*** - The Rajanya are the Sanguinary Guard of the Heart Rippers. Whilst in most Chapters, it is from the Captains of the Chapter that the next ruler is chosen. In the Heart Rippers, it is the Exalted Herald of Sanguinius, not the 1st Captain, that is the chosen successor. Where the rest of the Heart Rippers’ forces are akin to a grisly mutation of their progenitor, the Rajanya remain as golden symbols of the Ninth’s majesty, a connection back their primarch. When they go to war, armed with viciously barbed Devourer rounds, the Rajanya are allowed access to the Chapter’s small store of phosphex grenades, alongside their ruler; golden angels of death striding through the pale, horrid flames unleashed by those dark weapons.
* **Krodha** - The Krodha are the Heart Rippers' Death Company. Given the flaws in the Chapter's gene-seed, the Death Company is rather extensive, especially given the Red Thirst enflaming flesh eating habits of the Heart Rippers. Those inducted into the Krodha are marked with a blindfolded skull, symbolising the genetic madness which has prevented then from ever seeing the truth of existence.
* **Nine-Headed Destroyers** - These veteran squads are the peak of the Heart Ripper's gruesome method of war. Echoing the horrid destroyer squads of the Space Marine Legions with their brutality, the Nine-Headed Destroyers of the Devourers of Bhairava are rarely deployed and, rarely survived. Masked in disturbing helmets that show nine-faces each showing a different emotion and armed with the horrific Devourer rounds, the Nine-Headed Destroyers are symbols of terror and carnage. Where they walk, they leave a trail of broken bodies, their victims painfully torn to shreds as their hooked and barbed bolt rounds rip through and gouge out their flesh. As well, the firearms of the Nine-Headed Destroyers have an underslung harpoon launcher, often used to cripple and capture their target. Those who aren’t killed are usually partially consumed, their memories gathered in the mapping of the Heart Rippers’ plan, their corpses left hung with a noose, the phrase ‘As trapped in death as you were in life. Lies will forever blind you.’ written in blood across their partially devoured bodies, the noose itself has razor-blades on the inside, digging into the neck-flesh of their victims, any attempt to move the corpse inevitably results in the head and spinal column being torn away, a grisly display of the Heart Ripper's brutality and a terrifying symbol of just what their foes face. As an institution, the Nine-Headed Destroyers are led by a champion known as the Shivan, the rank itself serves as something of a specialised Commander, chosen by a council made up of the Kshatriya-Rajan, Rajanya and the Destroyers themselves.

### Line Ranks

* **Tactical Marines** - Whilst like all other Chapters, the Tactical Marines of the Heart Rippers serve as the all-round flexible squads, the Devourers of Bhairava are still masters of destruction and terror. Often armed with inferno grenades and flamers (modified in the Agni pattern used by the Heart Rippers for their flame weaponry)

### Order of Battle

#### Headquarters

* **Kshatriya-Rajan** - Chapter Master equivalent. The Kshatriya-Rajan are ominous, tranquil warriors, they are believed to be the furthest down to the Path to Truth of the Heart Rippers. A secondary duty of the Kshatriya-Rajan is, to finally kill Raktabīja. Chosen from the ranks of the Rajanya, the leader of the Heart Rippers are always sinister foes, devoted to shattering the illusion of existence and returning to the soul of Terra (The God-Emperor of Mankind) Those of the Kshatriya are said to be blessed directly by the Emperor himself, said to have been granted a vision of the truth, to be carried onwards, giving the warriors the fiery-blood their name speaks of. When the Kshatriya-Rajan goes to war, he does so, armed with ancient trident known as Rakta’s Destroyer, an Eldar slaying weapon soaked in the xenos’ blood, and equipped with a number of the Chapter’s small store of phosphex grenades.
* **Purohit** - The Purohit are the Chaplains of the Heart Rippers. Like their kin in the other Blood Angel's successors spiritual matters are largely left to the Sanguinary Priests (known as the Vaidya). To the Purohit falls the dark, saddening task of shepherding those who have fallen to the gene-flaws of the Ninth Legion. The Purohit are bastions of unnerving serenity, given the genetic manipulations of the 21st Founding, the Death Company is largely made up of those corrupted into blood-maddened beasts by the Red Thirst, once one falls to the Red Thirst, the Black Rage is often not far behind. The Purohit are tasked with leading their fallen brethren to their well earned rest, before they become so insensate that they must be executed.
* **Vaidya** - The Sanguinary Priests of the Heart Rippers. As well tending to both the medical and spiritual needs of the Chapter, to the Vaidya falls the task of dealing with the more unsavoury side of the Chapter's flaw. As the devouring of flesh and the acquisition of memories enflames the Red Thirst and is an addictive process, there are, certain portions of the Heart Rippers, those weaker-willed members, who have come to enjoy the experience, and seek to repeat it, beyond information gathering in the field of battle. The Vaidya work to imbue their brethren with the mental fortitude to avoid such urges and expunge the practice when some falter.
* ***Acharya*** - Ominous wielders of the warp, the Heart Ripper's Librarians (known as Acharya) are terrifying to behold. Masters of both illusion and destruction, they go to war wreathed in cleansing fire, shimmering phantasms of death to the Chapter's foes. To the Acharya of the Heart Rippers, as well as the usual duties of maintaining the archives of the Chapter, falls the bizarre task of performing mental surgery on their brethren, removing memories gained via their vicious information gathering techniques and storing them in the vat-grown 'memory servitors' to be removed and examined when needed, and to preserve the sanity and purity of their brethren in particular.

##### Psychic Powers

The Acharya of the Heart Rippers have learned to harness the warp is several unique ways. Despite what their devastating and bloody methods would suggest, the Heart Ripper's Librarians have focused on terrifying illusions and mental devastation:

* **One Falls, Two Shall Arise** - The Acharya casts a glamour around himself, with each drop of blood shed around him, another Marine appears to spring from the ground, soon their enemies will believe they are besieged by a horde of blood-spawned Astartes.
* **Sanguine Bond** - The A*charya* tears out an enemy’s heart. Channelling the power of the warp through it, their foes are filled with with echoes of their fallen ally’s last moments.
* **Vision of the Truth** - Forming a communion, a A*charya* coven summons forth a massive psychic avatar, in the form of the Bhairavan representation of the Emperor, a multi-armed multi-headed construct of the immaterium. This devastating metaphysical colossus is a terrifying sight, bolstering the will of the Heart Rippers and shattering both the morale and bodies of their enemies.

#### Companies

The companies of the Heart Rippers are organised in the same way as the Codex Astartes stipulates. However, given the strength with which the Red Thirst, the companies are rarely at full strength. After taking part in the Cryptus Campaign and Devastation of Baal the Heart Rippers were left decimated, reduced to a mere two-hundred Marines, after the arrival of the Indomitus Crusade, the Heart Rippers were reinforced, now mostly made up of Primaris Marines.

## Chapter Recruitment

During the sweltering springs of Bhairava, when the mating season begins and life on the world is at its most violent and unpredictable, a time of life and death, the Heart Rippers begin recruiting. Though there are countless tribes with countless smaller cultures across the planet, all know that the Ashen Angels watch them and that they demand more souls to nourish their numbers. Those chosen are taken to the banks of the immense River Maha, which runs through the massive continent of Chanda, they are provided with a raft and told to reach the River of Corpses within thirty-three days. Throughout this perilous time, on the most dangerous continent of the harsh world, the aspirants are watched, weighed and measured, their actions during this hellish odyssey will decide their fate, be it death, acceptance and exile, unbeknownst to them, their very existence is now in their hands.

During this violent season, all manner of dangerous beasts are roused, the great crocodiles, massive elephants and the terrifying and fearsome, Bhairavan Tiger. Such a violent journey however, will not suffice for the Heart Rippers however, mere survival is simply the first of a terrifying process. During the time that they were being transported to the mouth of the river Maha, the aspirants usually begin to form friendships, mutual bonds of support, promises to aid each other through their journey to become warriors of the God-Emperor. These relationships are, like all things on Bhairava, seen by the Heart Rippers. After their arrival at the River of Corpses, the aspirants are given time to rest, to recuperate, to once again, interact with their potential battle-brothers. Then, they are separated into groups. Those who became close, are forced to fight to the death. Friend must kill friend. The aspirants are told, unequivocally that one must stand, and one must fall. Such a fight to the death between new companions, is a gruelling, horrid affair. After one aspirant triumphs, they are ordered to tear out their down dead companion's heart then burn it. After it is naught but ash, the Heart Rippers watching the battle, apply the ashes to the aspirant's body.

To those outside the Heart Rippers, these trials seem needlessly barbaric and vicious. To the Devourers of Bhairava however, there is a clear, cold purpose, to see the truth of existence. The first, the journey to the River of Corpses, during the violent and feral mating season of Bhairava shows, that from death, comes life, and from life, comes death. The second, a heart-breaking fight to the death against a newly gained friend, the most brutal lesson; all else is secondary compared to Terra and the Chapter. Even the applying of ashes has meaning; even in death, you can serve the God-Emperor.

## Chapter Beliefs

"*As I consume your body, so too do I consume your sins. Rejoice son of traitors, for through me, you are redeemed. Your illusions are temporary, but Terra’s Truth is eternal.*"
—Rite of Absolution spoken during the ritual of Gaddar Moksha by the Heart Rippers
As well as the mutations in their gene-seed, the unnerving and esoteric nature of the Heart Ripper’s beliefs, is one of the primary reasons they have been repeatedly investigated, and cleared, of heresy by the Inquisition, as well as why relations with the Chapter in general, are so strained.

To the Heart Rippers, reality, beyond the the Emperor of Mankind, is an illusion. Whilst not literal in the sense of refusing to believe reality, to the Heart Rippers, what they believe to the primal state of existence; the God-Emperor, is the perfect form of reality. Beyond him, and the Primarchs, who they believe are the incarnated aspects of the the Master of Mankind all else is ephemeral. Regarding the Primarchs, as Astorath the Grim stated in his defence of Gabriel Seth and the Flesh Tearers, each successor represents an aspect of their progenitor. Though he was speaking metaphorically, the Heart Rippers believe it to be the literal truth. Each successor is a part of their Primarch and their Primarch is a link to the divine state of existence that is the Emperor. The Heart Rippers for their part, see themselves as Sanguinius' acceptance of death. In order to achieve the primal, perfect state of existence that they believe in, the Heart Rippers believe that a brutal, bloody path must be walked; all save the Imperium of Man must be exterminated, in a pure galaxy, an existence where the Master of Mankind's can true enlightenment be acquired and all will be returned to that primordial state.

Amongst the strange and sinister traditions of the Heart Rippers, none is more despised and reviled to those who hate and distrust the Devourers of Bhairava than the ritual of Gaddar Moksha. Where other Chapters born from the lineage of Sanguinius, loathe the servants of the Despoiler, for the part the Black Legion's Primarch played in the death of the beloved Angel. The Heart Rippers however, feel only pity for the former Sons of Horus, those who have not been utterly corrupted by the Dark Gods (blinded by lies as the Heart Rippers say) are believed to have a chance at redemption. Said chance however, is simply a more horrific and brutal death. Those captured by the Chapter are burned alive and their flesh is devoured. The Heart Rippers believe that by doing so, they are also consuming their victim's soul and taking on their sins, which their actions redeem. This ritual in particular has earned the horror and scrutiny of the Ordo Astartes and Hereticus. Though neither have discovered corruption through these macabre rituals continue to repulse the Imperium.

## Chapter Gene-Seed

In a similar vein to the Flesh Eaters, the Heart Rippers suffer from a hyper-active omophagea. The hunger for flesh is very prevalent amongst the Devourers of Bhairava. Unlike their counterparts however, more than just an aggressive desire for flesh, the mutant omophagea of the Heart Rippers has altered the actual experience of 'learning by eating'. More than just added memories, warriors of Bhairava will, rather often, experience visceral visions and insights. Almost as though they were lucidly dreaming. As with all who bear the blood of the Ninth, the Heart Rippers are affected by the twin defects, of the Red Thirst and Black Rage, the Thirst in particular, has taken a toll on the Chapter.

### Genetic Flaws

Given the viscerally intense experience felt by the Heart Rippers when they eat flesh, the after-effects can, in many cases be rather sanity-fraying depending on strength of visions and experiences felt. Because of this, larger operations are undertaken under the supervision of a Sanguinary Priest. Given the strength of such things, the experience can be corruptive, so consuming the flesh of those corrupted by the Dark Gods is watched with intense scrutiny, often with the Chaplaincy and Sanguinary Priests effectively testing a brother for infection by Chaos. As well as the severity of the visions, given that it essentially feeds the Red Thirst, the sensation can be addictive and difficult to control.

## Combat Doctrine

"*As trapped in death as you were in life. Lies will forever blind you.*"
— The warning left on the partially devoured victims of the Nine-Headed Destroyers
The Devourers of Bhairava are a vicious, terrifying force. Masters of terror campaigns and scorched earth actions. When they are deployed, their opponents begin to find scouting go missing, outposts might suddenly go silent. Eventually, when investigated, those missing scouts, those silent camps will be discovered, destroyed, burned, maimed beyond all recognition, their killers utterly absent, save for devoured bodies, picked clean to the bone, their skeletons broken and battered. More and more, these terrifying slash and burn assaults mount, fear and paranoia mount, until, the Heart Rippers truly arrive. Like a piercing blade, they deploy en-masse, to those most critical of locations, gleaned from their brutal initial attacks, preying on their foes terror, these angels, stride through the devastation they wreak, their foes screaming in agony as fire consumes them, as they are crippled by specialised bolt rounds or simply torn apart by the blood-mad Heart Rippers.

As a Chapter, the Heart Rippers are particularly well-armed for the devastating manner with which they wage wars; with an extensive armoury of flame-weaponry (including a truly huge store of inferno grenades) modified with acidic chemicals from Bhairava, increasing its painful searing and adhesive capabilities (this modification is known as the Agni Pattern), Their specialised squads, known as the Nine-Headed Destroyers make use of a modified bolt round; Devourers, perfect for ripping, tearing and gouging flesh. As well, their Chapter Master and Sanguinary Guard are allowed access to the Heart Ripper's small store of phosphex grenades, such brutal weapons, perfect for both terror and campaigns of annihilation.

## Deathwatch Service

Despite their skill information gathering; a key component of many Deathwatch missions, the Heart Rippers are not generally welcome or desired in Kill-Teams. Given their beliefs, which has seen them investigated by both other Chapters of the Blood and the Inquisition as a whole due to their disturbing tenets, this is rather obvious. The Heart Rippers for their part, still send Marines to various Watch-Forts. Despite their willingness to serve the Long Watch, the Heart Rippers usually only find a place in the most isolated and undermanned holds.

The Heart Rippers of the Deathwatch are valued greatly during missions against the treacherous Eldar, due to their oldest, most despised enemy being of that fey race. Their skill is detecting the deceptions of the Harlequins are well-honed and valuable, especially given recent confrontations against those bizarre and unpredictable opponents. After Karna's devouring of the neurothrope drove him to insanity, the Heart Rippers seconded to the Deathwatch have usually been involved when missions regarding the monitoring of Hive Fleet Tiamet.

## Notable Members

* **Karna Aariv the Tiger-Skinned** - The current Kshatriya-Rajan (Chapter Master) of the Heart Rippers. Karna’s moniker; Tiger-Skinned, originated during his rite of recruitment. During his travel down the River of Corpses, a Bhairavan tiger attacked his raft. Though he managed to escape the ferocious beast, the Karna was left with a series of vicious scars across his chest, which was joked to resemble the skin of a tiger. Later, upon his ascension to his current position, Aariv returned to the bank where he had been attacked, hunting another Bhairavan tiger. After an intense struggle, he returned, with further stripe-like scars across his face and arms, the creature’s skin now worn as a cape. During the Cryptus Campaign, in an effort to combat the encroaching forces of Hive Fleet Leviathan, Karna devoured an entire neurothrope in order to try to track the Hive Mind's movements on the world. The attempt nearly drove him insane, the sheer size of experiencing the Hive Mind threatened to shatter his own psyche. In response, the Librarians of the Chapter placed him in a temporary coma and suppressed the memories. During the Devastation of Baal his second; Exalted Herald Parakash, led the Heart Ripper, with the Tiger-Skinned remaining in a coma. Unfortunately Parakash fell, his final orders being to awaken Karna and unleash him on the tyranid horde. In the end, the near insane Kshatriya-Rajan was deployed. Screaming with feral rage Karna tore mindlessly through the Leviathan's puppets. This murderous rampage nearly saw the Tiger-Skinned slain by a dimachaeron. Only the sacrifice of the Heart Ripper's remaining Sanguinary Guard saved his life. After Rajanya member Amar Dipak, sacrificed himself to detonate a krak grenade in the great tyranid monster's stomach. Though not killed, it was mortally wounded, allowing the feral Karna to avenge his brethren. Eventually, Karna found himself face-to-face with the hive tyrant that killed Parakash. During the Devastation of Baal, all contact was lost with Karna. After Leviathan was driven away, the unconscious Kshatriya-Rajan was discovered, atop of mountain of corpses, covered in blood, alongside the body of the Hive Tyrant, its heart torn out. After a period of recovery for the Heart Rippers, the librarium, after extensive mental operations, removed the memories of the nuerothrope from their lord's mind and restored his sanity.
* **Exalted Herald of Sanguinis Parakash (KIA)** - The longest serving leader of the Rajanya (Sanguinary Guard), Parakash was one of the Heart Ripper's most celebrated heroes. During the Devastation of Baal, when Karna Aariv was nearly driven insane by the experience of devouring a nuerothrope, it fell to Parakash, the Tiger-Skinned's successor, to lead the Chapter against Hive Fleet Leviathan. During the Devastation of Baal, Parakash cemented his position as a worthy successor to Karna. Tragically however, such an appointment would not come to pass, as, during the defence of their progenitor's homeworld, Parakash was killed. Placed in the front lines of Baal's defence, the Heart Ripper's took the brunt of the Tyranid's horrifying assault. As they were forced to concede ground, the Hive Mind, in its infinite, and vile alien intelligence saw Parakash's organisation of the the Heart Rippers. Singling him out, a Hive Tyrant was deployed to kill the Exalted Herald. In a short, and fearfully vicious fight, Parakash was defeated; his legs torn off and tossed aside by the callous beast, still alive, to be feasted by the tide of rippers that followed it. Even as he lay bleeding out, the disgusting, maggot-like tyranids devouring him alive, Parakash contacted the Librarians who had been charged with repairing the mind of their Kshatriya-Rajan. His last choked words were to reawaken Karn Aariv and loose their feral lord of the tide of the Hive Mind. For his noble sacrifice and for his leadership of the Heart Rippers during Baal, Parakash was immortalised as a Kshatriya-Rajan.
* **Exalted Herald of Sanguinis Vimal Yash** - After the Devastation of Baal, where all the Rajanya were killed, Vimal was chosen as Parakash's successor.
* **Sundar Ravi** - Current Shivan (Champion) of the Nine-Headed Destroyers, Sundar Ravi is an unnerving warrior. Bearing the vicious scars that life as a Destroyer inevitably brings, the Shivan is unnaturally even-tempered and placid, his eyes dead and his voice a dull purr. During a battle against the Masque of Many and None, Sundar was nearly killed by Troupe Master Gihalden, his arm burst by the Harlequin's Kiss and his flesh burned by the boiling blood of the weapon.

## Chapter Fleet

The fleet of the Devourers of Bhairava is a curious thing, dangerous and fast, many of it's larger ships are equipped with suites of sensor arrays, befitting their skill in information gathering and shock assaults. Given their religious nature, the in-ship temples are rather expansive, especially given the bizarre and esoteric nature of their beliefs.

* **Annihilator (Battle-barge)** - True to its name, the Annihilator is a devastating vessel of warfare. Though geared towards absolute destruction, the Annihilator contains an extensive Chapter Chapel, given the Heart Ripper's religious nature, which, contained within is a relic of Sanguinius, a statue of his father, the Master of Mankind, carved beautifully from rubies and other precious stones of Baal.
* **Aspects in Blood (Battle-barge)** - The Aspects in Blood is the Flagship of the Heart Rippers. Both a devastating vessel and a shrine to the legacy of Sanguinius, the ancient battle-barge contains the largest Hall of Memory in the Heart Rippers, save the one contained their Fortress-Monastery; the River of Corpses.

## Chapter Relics

* ***Rakta's Destroyer*** - The ancestral weapon of the Heart Ripper’s Kshatriya-Rajan (Chapter Master) this trident was forged for the sole purpose of killing the being known to the Chapter as Raktabīja, believed to be the High Avatar of the Heart Ripper’s oldest enemy; the Harlequins known as the Masque of Many and None. Though countless Kshatriya-Rajan have claimed kills, Raktabīja always seems to appear again. Though Rakta’s Destroyer drips with the blood of the Laughing God’s servants, curiously if ever captured by them, they always return it, despite their disgust for the weapon. As ominous as its wielders, Rakta's Destroyer is bound in death; echoing with countless deaths and laid to rest in the ashes of serfs who sacrificed themselves to return to the Emperor.
* ***Fearless Panoply*** - The armour of the Kshatriya-Rajan. The Fearless Panoply is exemplary of the Heart Rippers' clad in bones and engraved with the Bhairavan interpretation of Sangiunius' life, the Fearless Panoply is a unnerving bulwark, with its iron halo crackling with energy as this embodiment of Bhairava's deathly culture strides through the weight of fire.

## Chapter Appearance

### Chapter Colours

The Heart Ripper’s colour scheme is two-toned. With gunmetal grey for the torso, legs, upper helmet and arms. The pauldrons, fists, backpack and muzzle of the helmet are a deep crimson red. In addition, the Heart Rippers often paint their armour with ash, as well as binding bones to different sections. Both to intimidate and to display their acceptance, and detachment from death. As Marines, they appear very macabre, though underneath, through the ash and bones they bear symbols of their native culture.

### Chapter Badge

The Heart Ripper's badge is, rather appropriately, a heart bleeding profusely, as though freshly torn from a body. This, in the Chapter's belief structure, represents the severed link between the divine (the Emperor through Sanguinius) and themselves. The badge also usually comes with a personalised mandala.

For those fallen to the Black Rage, the symbol of the Heart Rippers is altered slightly; where their brethren have a fully intact (though still bleeding heart) those of the Death Company bear a broken heart upon their pauldron, representing their shattered link to Sanguinius.

## Relations

Given their bizarre and macabre rituals, as well as the generally unsettling rumours that surround the 21st 'Cursed' Founding as a whole, the Heart Ripper's relations with others are generally fraught and never truly stable. Aside from the Chapters of the Blood (and even then not routinely) the Devourers of Bhairava have no true and consistent allies. Despite this, the Heart Rippers themselves hold no true grudges against those within the Imperium that make their distaste for them open. This placid acceptance simply adds to their uncanny and unnerving reputation, yet again winning them no friends.

## Allies

### Chapters of the Blood

Whilst not cast out like others who bear the blood of Sanguinius, such as the Draconian Impalers and Angels Vermillion, the Heart Rippers hold a tenuous position in the Sanguine Brotherhood. Due to their bizarre and esoteric beliefs, they are largely distrusted and disliked. The Children of Seth especially, refuse to serve alongside them, due to the Heart Rippers' belief that the Black Legion, born from the gene-seed of their Primarch's killer, can be redeemed (albeit in a manner that requires their brutal death and devouring). The Devourers of Bhairava however, hold no ill-will towards those who hate and distrust them, it is simply their way, they are aware that, though they may be granted entry into the brotherhood, they are never welcome.

## Enemies

### Masque of Many and None

The most enduring and hated foe of the Heart Rippers, this troupe of Harlequins has, for reasons unknown, plagued the Devourers of Bhairava since their creation. Led by the fearsome High Avatar known to the Heart Rippers as Raktabīja, the Masque of Many and None are, as with any Eldar of the Laughing God, a baffling opponent. Since the opening of the Great Rift however, the more benevolent (relatively speaking) actions of the Masque have vanished, now, rather than amusements, the Harlequins have. since their joint assault on the horrid world of Maayah, acknowledged the Heart Rippers as worthy adversaries, and thus now do everything in their power to destroy these prolific Eldar killers.

## Notable Quotes

### By:

"*No more jests, clown? No more laughter for your kind's perversity?"
"No human. No more laughter. They all die.*"
—Karna Aariv the Tiger-Skinned and Raktabīja upon discovering what lay in the core of Maayah
"*We will not kill you, child of Horus, we are going to save you. Though your body may die, through us you will be restored to the Advaita on Terra, rejoice, for the Soul of Mankind has found you worthy of rejoining him. Prepare him for his journey.”
“You think your words can frighten me child? You think your shiny little tokens are going to make me beg for mercy? How will you ‘redeem’ a son of the true Emperor?”
“We will redeem you. Your sins shall be our burden…we will devour your body, then your soul.*"
— Last words of Rekev, Lord of the Lupercalia, before Captain Arjun of the 1st Company of the Heart Rippers performed the ritual of Gaddar Moksha on him.
"*I see the truth of you, young one. There is a Heart Ripper in you...but it is young, still distracted by lies and falsehoods. But I can still see it...that hunger is behind those eyes. For blood, for knowledge of the truth. Come, to the Halls of Memory newborn. Your journey begins now, with blood on your lips.*"
—Unknown Purohit of the Heart Rippers to a freshly arrived Greyshield
### About:

"*I care nothing of their methods, only their intent. They wish to redeem those murderous bastards when they deserve only death. They are no sons of Sanguinius.*"
— Captain Hei of the Children of Seth regarding the Heart Rippers belief in redeeming the Black Legion
"*Despite the blood of my kind that stains your hands you played your part well Mon'Keigh, a true performer...now, let us leave this place...it sickens me.*"
— Raktabīja to Karna Aariv near the end of the Battle of Maayah
"*Their combat doctrine and their methods, a ghastly display to be certain. However, those who receive it are the ones who completely deserve it. What many overlook from these brutal and fatalistic warriors is a sense of longing and sadness. As if their lives are missing a piece that can never be gained.*"
— Vicar Temujin Sharav of the Lightning Wraiths

[Source]

 White Scars Successors
 Space Wolves Successors
 Imperial Fists Successors
 Blood Angels Successors
 Iron Hands Successors
 Ultramarines Successors
 Salamanders Successors
 Raven Guard Successors
 Unknown Lineage
 Renegades

[Source]

## Gallery

Chapter heraldry of the Heart Rippers.Heart Ripper Intercessor (Former Greyshield).Iconography of the Krodha.Heart Ripper Vanguard Veteran.A member of the Krodha (Heart Ripper Death Company)The Rajanya, Exalted Herald of the Heart Rippers.