vizn3r/warhammer40k-lore huggingface dataset:
Black Crusade - Dedicating the Crusade: Much like a Compact, a Black Crusade can be dedicated to one of the four Chaos Gods. However, the Dark Gods are jealously protective of the work of their champions. As such, a Black Crusade can only be dedicated to the Chaos God to which the Warmaster (if it has one leader) or the majority of the heretics (if they share leadership) are aligned. If the Warmaster is unaligned or the heretics do not have a common alignment across the majority of their group, then the Black Crusade cannot be dedicated to a specific god. A Black Crusade need not be dedicated to one god in particular, but an aligned Warmaster risks slighting his dark patron by failing to glorify it through his dread works:Tide of Blood (Khorne) - A Black Crusade dedicated to Khorne is a brutal campaign of slaughter across countless worlds, leaving little behind but gore-soaked soil and mountains of piled skulls.Campaign of Subversion (Slaanesh) - A Black Crusade dedicated to Slaanesh barely resembles a traditional war at all. Although planets fall before the invading presence of the Warmaster’s hosts, they do so thanks to the subversive influence of cultist networks and the allure of witch-spoken words rather than marching armies and fired bombardments.Advance the Inevitable (Tzeentch) - A Black Crusade dedicated to Tzeentch appears to pick its targets at random, as the Architect of Fate allows his champions to strike not only at current strongholds of his enemies, but at their futures as well. Seemingly insignificant targets become lynchpins in a battle plan spanning time as well as space.Triumph of Decay (Nurgle) - A Black Crusade dedicated to Nurgle fights not only with weapons and armies, but with one of the most basic principles of the universe -- entropy. The vanguard of such a war effort is not soldiers or ships, but plague, despair, and decay. The warhosts of Nurgle play the long game in battle, knowing that all things crumble in time. With a little help from plagueships, and some judicious sabotage, the enemies of the Fly Lord starve in their fortresses as they find their supply lines become a vector for new corruption.
Black Crusade - The Dread Host Gathers: Although the favour of the gods is important to a Black Crusade, no Warmaster can hope to do battle in the material realm without armies and fleets. The heretics might have been able to assemble such resources over the campaign, or they might need to call in debts and leverage their reputations to gather them. Even if the Warmaster already commands armies and fleets thanks to the heretics’ previous adventures, it is possible to bolster his Black Crusade further before its onset. Forces for a Black Crusade are handled abstractly. For example, planetary battles are won using hosts, which can represent anything from warbands of Traitor Legionnaires or regiments of renegade Imperial Guard to teeming hordes of barbarians from a world such as Xurunt in the Screaming Vortex. Guidelines on acquiring these abstracted forces (collectively referred to as Crusade Forces) are presented below, whether in terms of representing existing assets or acquiring them through aggressive recruitment for the Black Crusade:Fleets and Landing Fleets - Fleets are used for one of two purposes -- to wage Naval Conflicts and to deploy forces to new territories. Existing naval assets controlled by the heretics can potentially grant them fleets at the start of a Black Crusade. A fleet typically consists of at least one powerful capital ship and a small number of frigates or destroyers to escort it. Landing Fleets have fewer warships and may lack capital ships entirely, but require bulk transport vessels to ferry troops and munitions.Hosts - The meat and drink of a Black Crusade are the mighty warrior-hosts used to wage planetary war. They may be elite forces of Chaos Space Marines or ravening barbarian tribes, but they all share an appetite for blood and destruction. Existing military assets controlled by the heretics can potentially grant them Hosts at the start of a Black Crusade. Some particularly powerful assets may count as multiple Hosts. In general, a Host can be a few veteran squads of Traitor Legionnaires, several hundred disciplined and well-equipped soldiers such as renegade Guardsmen, or a thousands-strong rabble armed only with improvised weapons and unholy zeal. A small group of armoured fighting vehicles or even Daemon Engines could also count as a Host .Cults - Cults within the Imperium can be used to weaken the defenders through sabotage and corruption. They prey on supply lines and weaken the resolve of planetary populations.Cabals - The strength at arms of a Warmaster’s forces may be supplemented by the powers of the Warp if he has access to Cabals with which to call them down. Cabals are groups of sorcerers, wyrds, and ritualists who wield the power of Chaos to assist the battles of the Warmaster’s Hosts.Lieutenants - While the Warmaster’s will binds his forces together with a common goal, he cannot inspire, terrorise, and maintain discipline across every battlefield. For that, the Warmaster requires Lieutenants. Lieutenants are subordinate champions of Chaos who have sworn service to the Warmaster in exchange for a share of the plunder and the glory of his Black Crusade.
Black Crusade - Letting The Galaxy Burn: Even the greatest Warmasters cannot assault the whole of the Imperium at once. The crumbling edifices of the Corpse-Emperor sprawl across the entire galaxy, protected against total destruction as much by the vastness of space as by any efforts of their deluded guardians. Most Black Crusades begin as assaults against a single sector -- even the infamous wars launched by Abaddon the Despoiler typically started by besieging the region of space known as the Cadian Gate.
Black Crusade - Shadow War: The Calixis Sector: To the eyes of many among the Screaming Vortex’s most ambitious leaders, the Calixis Sector is a fruit ripe for plucking. Its military resources are tied up between a distant war in the Jericho Reach and a civil war in the region now known as the Spinward Front. The Sector is the birthplace of an Imperial Saint, but has far fewer able defenders than its status might otherwise provide due its remote location and difficult current situation. However, the most canny warlords are also aware of two assets available to the Imperium in this region that could tip the balance of any conflict -- the Calixian Conclave of Inquisitors and the Storm Wardens Chapter of the Adeptus Astartes. Neither force is suited to protracted warfare, especially with much of the Storm Wardens’ strength on Crusade in the Jericho Reach. However, Inquisitorial or Space Marine strike forces are capable of precisely targeted raids with devastating effects.
Black Crusade - The Dark Beyond: The Koronus Expanse: Those who pass for ambitious among the followers of the Corpse-Emperor see the Koronus Expanse as a priceless gem, but its value is considerably less to the followers of the Dark Gods. Where Rogue Traders and missionaries see the region’s untapped worlds as a great bounty, most warlords in the Screaming Vortex are more interested in toppling empires and seizing plunder than claiming an uncontested prize. Still, thwarting the Imperium’s expansion is a worthy goal, and the Expanse also hosts many xenos species known to provide excellent sport or whose death pleases the Ruinous Powers. Between Rogue Traders, Orks, Eldar, and the mysteries of the galactic halo, there are enough challenges in the Koronus Expanse to temper even a Black Crusade.
Black Crusade - A Clash of Crusades: The Jericho Reach: By passing through the twisting passages of Warp-scarred space, it is possible to travel from the Screaming Vortex to the distant Jericho Reach and emerge in the Chaotic vortex of the Hadex Anomaly. Here, countless lives are lost attempting to reclaim the fallen might of the once-great Jericho Sector. The Imperium has deployed the mighty Achilus Crusade to retake the region, which some Warmasters might take as a challenge to match with a crusade of their own. Kill-teams of Deathwatch Space Marines, Tau colonists, and a swarming Tyranid Hive Fleet combine with the teeming ranks of the Imperial Guard and elite detachments from the Adeptus Astartes to make the Jericho Reach an almost impossible target—but the followers of Chaos know that the greater the opposition, the greater the glory there is to be had in conquest.
Black Crusaders - Black Crusaders: The Black Crusaders is a little-known Loyalist Space Marine Chapter of unknown Founding and genetic origin.The Black Crusaders were known to have been involved in an Imperial campaign in which they attacked an Ork enclave on the planet of Guilus II, and they were the first Space Marines to encounter the Grot Bomm Launcha.
Black Crusaders - Notable Campaigns: Battle of Grot Town (Unknown Date.M41) - Led by Brother-Captain Marcus Heilbron of the Black Crusaders, Imperial forces first encountered Grot Bomm Launchas at the Battle of Grot Town during the lamentable campaign against an Ork enclave on the planet of Guilus II. The enclave had an unusually high ratio of Gretchin to Orks in the local Greenskin population (hence the name). The Orkoid defenders were no match for the attacking Space Marines and Imperial Guard forces, but under the direction of their Mekboyz, the Gretchin came up with several devilishly fiendish defences. The Space Marines were attacked by swarms of Gretchin suicide bombers, each one strapped with as much dynamite as he could carry. Booby traps using primitive but effective blunderbuss-style shotguns attached to tripwire and pitfalls full of starving Squigs were all nasty surprises for the attackers. At the height of the battle the Grot Bomm Launchas were fired at the Space Marines' armoured column as it moved to attack. Heilbron's Land Raider, leading the way, was hit and destroyed by the first salvo of bombs. Heilbron himself was killed in the attack. Since the battle the idea of using Grot Bomm Launchas has proliferated throughout Ork Kultur.
Black Crusaders - Notable Black Crusaders: Captain Marcus Heilbron - Heilbron was the Force Commander of the Imperial attack on Grot Town by Black Crusaders and Astra Militarum forces, the first to encounter the Grot Bomm Launcha. Killed in battle by the same Grot Bomm Launcha salvo that destroyed his Land Raider.
Black Crusaders - Chapter Colours: The Black Crusaders' Chapter colours are not listed in current Imperial records.
Black Crusaders - Chapter Badge: The Black Crusaders' Chapter badge is not listed in current Imperial records.
Black Cube - Black Cube: The Black Cubes are five ancient weapons of mass destruction created millions of Terran years ago to serve as weapons between several of the first sentient species to inhabit the Milky Way Galaxy. Only five of these weapons were created or have been encountered so far by Imperial forces.Whatever their original origin, the Black Cubes were Chaos artefacts whose powers could only be activated through the use of a blood ritual. Once initiated, the weapons' activation phase typically took a standard Terran day to complete and the device could not be deactivated due to the dangerous build-up of potent Warp energies.A Black Cube possessed the power to completely transform a target world's climate, transmuting its atmosphere into toxic fumes that were inimical to all forms of life, unleashing horrific cyclonic winds that could rip apart any solid structure above ground or increasing the ambient heat to the point that all of a planet's oceans would boil.In short, a Black Cube was a weapon of pure planetary destruction that could scour all life from a target world. During the Great Crusade, during the Imperial Compliance of the world of Nurth, the Chaos-tainted human rebel group known as the Echvehnurth, who were holding off the elite Imperial Army forces of Lord Commander Teng Namatjira, possessed a single Black Cube and chose to unleash its powers in a final, suicidal attack.They felt they had no other choice as the Imperial forces were bolstered by the addition of the powerful Astartes of the Alpha Legion, who quickly moved the world towards Imperial Compliance. Unwilling to be conquered, the Nurthene rebels unleashed the power of a Black Cube during their final offensive against the Imperials and used their own deaths as the sacrifice required to activate the weapon. The resulting destruction transformed Nurth into a Dead World uninhabitable to either its inhabitants or the Imperium.
Black Dragons - Black Dragons: The Black Dragons are a Loyalist Space Marine Chapter created during the "Cursed" 21st Founding from Salamanders gene-seed.The Chapter was censured by the Inquisition due to the mutation of the Black Dragons' gene-seed, which causes certain Astartes of the Chapter to develop blade-like outgrowths of bone on the head and forearms.Some Black Dragons afflicted in this way sharpened these bone growths and sheathed them in adamantium for use in close melee combat.These Black Dragons are then grouped together into specialist Jump Pack-equipped Assault Marine squads known as "Dragon Claws" within the Chapter.
Black Dragons - Chapter History: Little is known of the Black Dragons in official Imperial records but they have been noted in several classified resources as belonging to the 21st Founding (the so-called "Cursed Founding") of the 36th Millennium.The Chapter was founded just prior to the Age of Apostasy, a time of internecine warfare and bloodshed on a galactic scale, the like of which had not been seen since the dark days of the Horus Heresy. The Imperium was nearly destroyed during this time by the whims of the insane and renegade High Lord Goge Vandire.During the 21st Founding, the Tech-priests of the Adeptus Mechanicus sought to "improve" the character of Astartes gene-seed by perfecting and removing the existing, identified deficiencies through various methods of bioengineering. The result was the Founding of a series of Astartes Chapters who have a long history of being plagued with rampant mutation and Chaos corruption.None can tell the number of Cursed Founding Chapters that are in existence, as all records of their creation have been expunged from Imperial archives. It did not take long before the flaws inherent in the Black Dragons' altered gene-seed manifested themselves.While their parent Chapter has not been confirmed, the Magos Biologis of the Adeptus Mechanicus believe that the Black Dragons' gene-seed originated from the Salamanders Chapter. Those that have been witnessed in battle appear to possess distinct abilities and mutations.The Black Dragons were censured by the Inquisition due to the mutation of the Chapter's gene-seed, which causes certain Astartes of the Chapter to develop blade-like outgrowths of bone on the head and forearms and to grow long, poisonous fangs.These obvious physical mutations make long-term cooperation with other (less tolerant) Imperial bodies impossible. The Black Dragons is a Chapter which pushes the Inquisition to the limits of tolerance.Although they have fought alongside Imperial forces in conflicts as recent as the Third War for Armageddon, they rarely remain part of a standing force for long.Only the turmoil that swept the Imperium in the wake of the birth of the Great Rift and the start of the Noctis Aeterna after 999.M41 has halted the latest Inquisition investigation of the Black Dragons.
Black Dragons - Notable Campaigns: Bone Curse (232.M40) - The Haemonculi of the Hex Coven learned of the aberrant Cursed 21st Founding of the Adeptus Astartes, and were taken by one Chapter in particular -- the Black Dragons, whose corrupted gene-seed forced sharp protrusions of bone to grow out from its warriors' skeletons. Striking a bargain with the piratical Duke Sliscus, the Hex attacked the Chapter as it was purging the Donorian System of the monsters that had spilled into Imperial space. A vicious hit-and-run war erupted across the space lanes, fought within the Adeptus Astartes warships and without. Though the resultant war cost Sliscus several of his prized starships, the Covenites that boarded the cavernous Imperial flagship captured a dozen of the most mutated Black Dragons in the Chapter and bore them back to Commorragh. Over the course of an agonising three-Terran-year period -- during which no fewer than eight breakout attempts were thwarted -- the Hex's Haemonculi took turns to experiment upon the slab-bound Space Marines. Soon enough they had isolated and synthesised the curse lurking in the Black Dragons' genetic patterns. The resultant osseovirus was distilled, weaponised and -- in one particularly memorable experiment -- reintroduced to its host in a concentrated form. The twisted bone "dragon" that hatched from the unlucky donor's flesh was hung above the Coven's Chamber of Whispers.Cleansing of Cable (Unknown Date.M41) - The Black Dragons, under the command of Captain Zartath, were responsible for purging the minor world of Cable from the Chaos Cultists known as the Reincarnated Supplicants. Captain Zartath's Astartes herded the cultists along a fiery crevasse, known as the Leap of Destiny, before giving them the choice to face them in battle or to jump to their own death. All the traitors chose to jump rather than face the Black Dragons.Death of Antagonis (Unknown Date.M41) - When the Curse of Unbelief broke out on the planet of Antagonis, the Black Dragons answered a plea for help from Inquisitor Werner Lettinger, to combat the plague of undeath that threatened to engulf the planet. Despite their presence and the assistance of an Order Militant of the Adepta Sororitas, the planet had to ultimately be declared Perdita and evacuated, before being scoured of Nurgle's taint by an Exterminatus order.Third War for Armageddon (998.M41) - When the infamous Ork Warlord Ghazghkull Mag Uruk Thraka led the largest Ork WAAAGH! against the Hive World of Armageddon, he began the massive conflict known as the Third War for Armageddon between the Greenskins and the forces of the Imperium. The Black Dragons committed 9 out of their 10 Companies to the Imperial efforts to repel the massive Ork invasion.Indomitus Crusade (ca. 999.M41 - ca. 111.M42) - The 4th Company of the Black Dragons under the command of Captain Jorn Tanna was assigned to the Indomitus Crusade Fleet Tertius' Battlegroup Haephestus.
Black Dragons - Chapter Mutation: One of the many gene-seed zygotes Black Dragon neophytes are implanted with is the Ossmodula. This small organ has a complex function within the body of a Space Marine.It monitors and secretes hormones affecting epiphiseal fusion and ossification of the skeleton while engineered hormones encourage the forming bones to absorb ceramic-based chemicals administered in the Astartes' diet.Two Terran years following implantation, the neophyte's long bones will have strengthened considerably and there will have been a general increase in the overall size of the recipient's skeleton.Extreme ossification of the chest cavity caused by growth of ribs forming a solid mass of interlaced bone plates provides a Space Marine with an armoured layer to protect his secondary heart and lungs.But the Ossmodula zygote of the Black Dragons functions in an abnormal way as the result of a mutation of its DNA, causing the growth of bony crests on the head, and blade-like protuberances from the forearm and elbow.Like the Death Company of the Blood Angels, Black Dragon warriors afflicted with such mutations are formed into a separate fighting unit within the Chapter.Known as the "Dragon Claws," they sharpen these additional protrusions to a killing edge, and sheath them in adamantium to turn them into deadly close-combat melee weapons. The mandible bone and teeth of a Black Dragon Astartes are also unusual, as their canines grow overlong and become pronounced like fangs.Their mouths, both inside and lips, are usually black in colouration. So too, their tongues, which taper to a sharp point like a dagger.This level of mutation in an Astartes Chapter strains the tolerance of the Inquisition and there are many recorded instances of other Space Marines Chapters (notably the Dark Angels and Marines Malevolent) refusing to fight alongside the Black Dragons.Some Chapters, such as the Marines Malevolent, would hunt down and execute what they regarded as deviations from the Emperor's genetic design, a template that had regrettably been diluted over the millennia since its initial perfecting.None now existed who could restore it, and so there were those amongst the Adeptus Astartes regarded as "cursed", although some Chapters did not ostensibly count themselves amongst these puritans, there were still some for whom the presence of such an obvious mutant element amongst their ranks was not only distasteful, but was also dangerous.
Black Dragons - Heretical Practices: It has been rumoured that the Black Dragons' Apothecaries deliberately encourage the mutation which results in rampant ossification growth, going so far as to knowingly implant genetically aberrant gene-seed zygotes into some Neophytes.This is exceptionally dangerous, and the practice is strictly forbidden by Imperial edict, but old traditions die hard as the sheer ferocity of the Dragon Claws is much valued by the Black Dragons' Chapter Masters.
Black Dragons - Genetic Tithing: Every Chapter of the Adeptus Astartes is required to send 5% of its gene-seed's genetic material to the Adeptus Mechanicus on Mars. This "tithe" serves two purposes: enabling the Adeptus Mechanicus to monitor the genetic health of each Space Marine Chapter, and storing Adeptus Astartes gene-seed with a view to founding new Chapters as needed by the Imperium.The Adeptus Mechanicus has on several occasions threatened the Black Dragons with military action unless it complies with this decree and even when the Chapter has submitted genetic data, its veracity has often been considered suspect as each sample provided has passed the most stringent genetic purity checks without fail.Without being able to prove anything, many Mechanicus adepts believe that the Black Dragons submit genetic material culled from other, more pure, sources.How this can be possible is unknown and the Adeptus Mechanicus is eager to fully investigate the medical practices within the Black Dragons Chapter.
Black Dragons - Chapter Fleet: Fist of Kraedor (Hunter-class Destroyer) - The Fist of Kraedor was the small Escort-craft upon which the surviving members of the "Wrath" Command Squad went searching for their missing Captain Zartath. It is unclear how long this search truly lasted as time flows differently within the Warp -- of which the Webway is a part--- and reality. By the time the Fist of Kraedor was found adrift and investigated by the crew of the Salamanders' Frigate Forge Hammer, the vessel had been drifting in the void for quite some time, the surviving members of the "Wrath" having been placed in cryogenic sleep for an extended period of time. Little better than a floating wreck, the Fist of Kraedor was swiftly abandoned by the Black Dragons, who sought to take control of the Forge Hammer instead. It is however unclear if the Fist of Kraedor originally belonged to the Black Dragons' Chapter Fleet or was indeed taken by force by the "Wrath". As random as their encounter with the Forge Hammer might seem, the Fist of Kraedor was precisely angled to close with the Salamanders-vessel undetected, Sergeant Urgaresh having somehow gained the information that Captain Zartath had been retrieved by the Salamanders and being held captive on the Forge Hammer.Argent Blade (Strike Cruiser) - The Argent Blade fought in the Indomitus Crusade. Under the command of Captain Jorn Tanna, it took part in the Drennox Cleansing as part of that crusade's Fleet Tertius' Battlegroup Haephestus.
Black Dragons - Chapter Appearance: Black Dragons battle-brothers are known to display a variety of tattoos and scars on their arms, which hint at the less than salubrious backgrounds these warriors may have had before their indoctrination into the Adeptus Astartes.The terrifying mutations that their enhancement have wracked on their bodies have become almost a badge of honour for these Space Marines, and they now modify their armour to allow them to use these retractable blades in combat.
Black Dragons - Chapter Colours: The Black Dragons primarily wear black power armour. The Imperialis or Aquila on the chest guard (often substituted with a dragon variant) is white.The white squad specialty symbol -- battleline, close support, fire support, Veteran or command -- located on the right shoulder pauldron designates a battle-brother's assigned combat role.A white High Gothic numeral stenciled on the right knee plate indicates squad number.The colour of the left knee plate indicates company number in accordance with the Codex Astartes -- i.e. white (1st Company), yellow (2nd Company), red (3rd Company), green (4th Company), etc.
Black Dragons - Chapter Badge: The Black Dragons' Chapter badge is a profile of a white stylised dragon head facing forwards, centred on a field of black.
Black Dragons - Sources: Adeptus Astartes: Successor Chapters (Limited Release Booklet), pg. 16Codex Adeptus Astartes - Space Marines (8th Edition), pg. 58Codex Armageddon (3rd Edition), pg. 32Codex: Space Marines (8th Edition) (Revised Codex), pg. 58Haemonculus Covens - A Codex: Dark Eldar Supplement (7th Edition) (Digital Edition), "The Chronicle of Endless Woe"Chapter Approved: The Fourth Book of the Astronomican, "The Cursed Founding" by Andy Hoare, Graham McNeill and Phil Kelly, pp. 4-9White Dwarf 260 (UK), "Index Astartes: The Cursed Founding"Firedrake (Novel) by Nick Kyme, Chs. 11, 12, 14, 18Nocturne (Novel) by Nick KymeRebirth (Novel) by Nick Kyme, Chs. 6, 10Death of Antagonis (Novel) by David AnnandaleThe Tribute of Flesh (Short Story) by David AnnandaleThird War for Armageddon Worldwide Campaign - Forces Disposition, Imperial Forces: Black DragonsBlack Library Blog: The Art of AntagonisWhite Dwarf 35 (July 2019), "Indomitus Crusade Fleets," pg. 45Warhammer Community - When is a Dragon Not a Dragon? More Often Than You’d Think…
Black Feast - Black Feast: The Black Feast is a warband of Chaos Space Marines that splintered from the World Eaters Traitor Legion. The Black Feast are a cannibalistic sub-sect of the World Eaters who devour the bodies of the fallen after battle as a final mark of disrespect for their weakness. Most recently, during the 13th Black Crusade, this warband fought alongside the monstrous Butcherhorde, a conglomeration of multiple World Eaters warbands led by the infamous Khârn the Betrayer, who led them in the slaughter of the Imperial world of Amethal in the Diamor System against the valiant defence of the Blood Angels Space Marine Chapter.
Black Feast - Notable Campaigns: Diamor Campaign (999.M41) - The Diamor Campaign took place during Abaddon the Despoiler's 13th Black Crusade within the Diamor System. Initially led by the Chaos Lord Kranon the Relentless, his Renegade Chapter, known as the Crimson Slaughter, spearheaded the attack on the Imperial world of Amethal on behalf of Abaddon in order to obtain something the Despoiler desired. Due to the madness and unpredictability of Kranon, the execution of the invasion instead fell upon the Black Legion's Chaos Lord Xorphas. The Black Feast would later join the monstrous Butcherhorde alliance, comprised of a coalition of multiple World Eaters warbands and led by the infamous Khârn the Betrayer. This Khornate host descended upon Amethal with but a single goal -- to take the heads of the most worthy and mightiest of the heroes of the defending Blood Angels. The resultant slaughter weakened the barrier between the Immaterium and the material realm to such an extent that the Blood Angels were forced to call for aid from the daemon-hunting Grey Knights Chapter.
Black Feast - Warband Colours: The Black Feast warband wears the usual blood-red colour on their battle-plate, typical of most Khorne Berzerkers, which denotes their allegiance to the Blood God Khorne. They edge their armour with black trim, while their icons, gauntlets and weapon casings are also black.
Black Feast - Warband Badge: The Black Feast warband's icon is reminiscent of their original Legion icon -- a world being devoured by a monstrous black-coloured maw, centred on a field of blood red.
Black Guard - Black Guard: Black GuardLoyalistSpace MarineChapterRaven GuardSecond FoundingOverkill or half-measures are not concepts which the Black Guard understand, and they are known to leave vast, cratered ruins in the wake of their many victories.Much of this Chapter's history has been lost to the passage of time.
Black Guard - Origins: The Black Guard's origins lay in the dark days of the Horus Heresy with Gherith Arendi, the commander of the Raven Guard Primarch Corvus Corax's honour guard, the Shadow Wardens. Arendi was believed slain during the Drop Site Massacre on Isstvan V, but ultimately rejoined the XIXth Legion after the liberation of Scarato.Unaware of the events that had transpired back on Kiavahr and in the Ravendelve, Arendi was met with much distrust and scrutiny that he was a Traitor, but was eventually cleared of all suspicion. But Arendi kept a dark secret to himself until confronted by Corax -- that he had callously used other Loyalist survivors of the Salamanders and Iron Hands Legions as bait to seize a shuttle and escape the surface of Isstvan V.Through rumours he had heard and suspicions he harboured, Arendi led the Raven Guard to the prison world of Carandiru, a campaign which would become known as the "Day of Vengeance." Disobeying his initial orders, Arendi decided to divert his complement of Astartes to rush to Corax's aid, who had been captured by the Traitors' new secret weapons, the genetically-altered Legionaries known as the "New Men," who were created by the Emperor's Children Chief Apothecary Fabius.Arendi's timely arrival probably saved his primarch's life, a favour the Ravenlord immediately returned when he spared Arendi the pain of being crushed to death by the last survivor of the "New Men." Having fought side-by-side in battle and saved each other's lives, a new relationship of trust was established between the primarch and his former bodyguard.To show his favour, Corax named Gherith Arendi as the commander of the newly-commissioned "Black Guard," a Raven Guard Veteran unit which was formed from the Shadow Wardens, and Arendi commanded those forces during the Battle of Yarant.Following the end of the Horus Heresy, the Raven Guard Primarch Corvus Corax welcomed the decision to split the Space Marine Legions into individual Chapters, for he knew that the Ultramarines Primarch Roboute Guilliman's vision for protecting the future of the Imperium was necessary.It was a future the Raven Guard would face alone, however, for Corax later disappeared into the Eye of Terror, consumed by guilt for the tragic deeds he had committed to save his Legion during the Horus Heresy. When the Raven Guard Legion was partitioned at the end of the Heresy, three new Chapters were created.These were the Black Guard, the Revilers and the Raptors. Gherith Arendi was the natural choice to lead the newly-formed Black Guard Chapter created from his unit as its first Chapter Master following the Second Founding in 021.M31.
Black Guard - Degeneration: A handful of centuries after Corax's disappearance, the gene-seed of the Raven Guard began to deteriorate, perhaps a side effect of accelerated gene-harvesting techniques employed in ages past. Several organs unique to Space Marines no longer functioned as they should, and the Apothecaries' endeavours to compensate for the genetic damage met only with failure, a degeneration affected the Astartes of the Black Guard.
Black Guard - Notable Campaigns: Doom Gorge (990.M41) - The Black Guard's 3rd Company defended the world of Doom Gorge against a splinter fleet of the Tyranid Hive Fleet Kraken. The Tyranids were wiped out by the massed battery of the Chapter's Thunderfire Cannons, under the command of the Black Guard's Master of the Forge Germanicus. Under his expert control the battery annihilated three successive waves of Tyranid bio-creatures as they attempted to force their way through the narrow gorge. Once the Tyranid attack had been broken, the battery provided supporting fire for the Black Guard's counterattack, leading to the complete destruction of the Tyranid battle force. Black Guard casualties were minimal.13th Black Crusade (ca. 999.M41) - During the 13th Black Crusade elements of the Black Guard aided the unsuccessful defence of Cadia from the forces of Chaos.Charadon Campaign - Chromyd Front - Dryoch's Reach (Unknown Date.M42) - The Death Guard Traitor Legion invaded the Chromyd System as part of their larger campaign in the Charadon war zone. On the planet of Dryoch's Reach, Strike Force Krenzig of the Black Guard and Strike Force Vorgha of the White Scars conducted a guerrilla war among the hab-block-sized termite mounts and steep-sided ravines of the Dereen Canyon. They were able to frustrate the advance of multiple Death Guard vectoriums, which allowed the nearby hive city to withstand horde attacks from Nurglite Chaos Cultists. Ultimately, however, the world of Dryoch's Reach fell to the Chaos forces.
Black Guard - Chapter Combat Doctrine: Master of the careful ambush, the Black Guard deploys massed batteries of Thunderfire Cannons and Vindicators to annihilate its enemies in an instant.
Black Guard - Notable Black Guards: Chapter Master Gherith Arendi - Commander of the Raven Guard Primarch Corvus Corax's honour guard, the Shadow Wardens, during the Horus Heresy, Gherith Arendi was ultimately rewarded for his service by Corax with command of his own Veteran unit, the "Black Guard," drawn from the Shadow Wardens. Later, during the Second Founding, the Black Guard was chosen as the core of one of the Raven Guard's Successor Chapters of the same name, and Arendi was the natural choice to serve as the Chapter's first master.Master of the Forge Germanicus - Germanicus is the Black Guard's Master of the Forge who led the successful defence of the world of Doom Gorge from an attack by a splinter fleet of Hive Fleet Kraken in 990.M41.
Black Guard - Chapter Colours: The Black Guard primarily wears white power armour. The helm, shoulder pauldrons, greaves and gauntlets are black.The Aquila or Imperialis worn on the chest guard is red.A red squad tactical symbol -- battleline, close support, fire support, Veteran or command -- on the right shoulder pauldron designates the Astartes' tactical specialty.A white Low Gothic numeral is stenciled on the centre of the squad specialty symbol which indicates squad number.The colour of the right knee plate indicates which company an individual battle-brother belongs to, in accordance with the dictates of the Codex Astartes -- i.e., White (1st Company), Yellow (2nd Company), Red (3rd Company), Green (4th Company), etc.
Black Guard - Chapter Badge: The Black Guard's Chapter badge is a white circlet outlining a red roundlet which is bisected diagonally by a white lightning bolt. This is centred on a field of black.
Black Guard - Sources: Adeptus Astartes: Successor Chapters (Limited Release Booklet), pg. 16Codex Adeptus Astartes - Space Marines (8th Edition), pg. 53Codex: Space Marines (3rd Edition), pg. 47Codex: Space Marines (5th Edition), pg. 8Codex: Space Marines (6th Edition), pp. 8, 149Codex: Space Marines (7th Edition) (Digital Edition), pg. 138Codex: Space Marines (8th Edition) (Revised Codex), pg. 46Codex: Space Marines (9th Edition), pg. 69Codex: Tyranids (5th Edition), pg. 22Codex: Ultramarines (2nd Edition), pg. 9Codex Supplement - Raven Guard (8th Edition), pg. 47 (Image)The Gathering Storm - Book One - Fall of Cadia (7th Edition), pg. 99Imperial Armour Eight - Raid on Kastorel-Novem, pg. 104Liber Apocalyptica: Forces of the Space Marines (PDF), pg. 40Ravenlord (Novella) by Gav ThorpeCorax (Anthology), "Weregeld," by Gav ThorpeWhite Dwarf 460 (January 2021), "Flashpoint: Charadon," pp. 16-20Games Workshop Liber Apocalyptica - Forces of the Space Marines (Article) (Dead Link)
Black Inculpators - Black Inculpators: The Black Inculpators is a Codex Astartes-compliant Loyalist Space Marine Chapter of unknown Founding and origin. Almost nothing is known about this Chapter in Imperial records.
Black Inculpators - Chapter History: The Black Inculpators were created at some point after the Second Founding. In 2455.757.M40 they were one of the twenty Chapters contacted by the Adeptus Ministorum envoy Balthazar van Heppel, who wanted to write a report on the Space Marines' religious beliefs for the ecclesiarch.
Black Inculpators - Chapter Colours: The Black Inculpators primarily wear black power armour. The Aquila or Imperialis on the chest guard is silver.A white, open-faced squad tactical specialty symbol on the right shoulder pauldron designates squad type -- battleline, close support, fire support, Veteran or command.The white High Gothic numeral centred on the squad specialty symbol designates squad number. The colour of the shoulder plate trim indicates company number in accordance with the dictates of the Codex Astartes -- i.e. white (1st Company), yellow (2nd Company), red (3rd Company), green (4th Company), etc.
Black Inculpators - Chapter Badge: The Black Inculpators' Chapter badge is a stylised white sword centred on a field of black with the tip pointed downwards. A five pointed star caps the sword's pommel at the top.
Black Iron Core - Black Iron Core: A Black Iron Core is proscribed Imperial technology that was once used exclusively amongst the Battle Titans of the Legio Xestobiax that allow a Titan's crew to use the spirits of the dead to help pilot and animate their god-engine, much like Craftworld Aeldari Ghost Warriors and Titans.This technology allows a Titan to be effectively piloted with a smaller crew and to respond more rapidly and efficiently to the course of events on the battlefield, though at the cost of sometimes bizarre and unexplained phenomenon.Developed on the distant and isolationist Forge World of Zhao-Arkhad, the use and development of Black Iron Cores directly violates the Crimson Accord of Mars and has been declared heretek by the wider Adeptus Mechanicus.During the Great Scouring of the early 31st Millennium, the Metalican Mechanicum Assay Teams officially purged both Zhao-Arkhad and its Legio Xestobiax of this practice. Despite this action, surviving examples of Xestobiax Titans bearing Black Iron Cores would be rediscovered upon Zhao-Arkhad in the late 41st Millennium.It is unknown if this technology is still used by the Dark Mechanicum or other Renegade factions of the Adeptus Mechanicus.
Black Knight - Black Knight: A Black Knight or Ravenwing Black Knight is a member of the Dark Angels Space Marine Chapter's elite 2nd Company, known as the "Ravenwing," who serve with others of their elite ilk as a heavily armed shock cavalry force. Mounted on powerful, heavily customised Mark IV Raven Pattern Assault Bikes, they bring swift death to their foes. They have managed to survive in the Ravenwing long enough to learn to take the doctrines of mobile warfare to the next level of mastery.The Ravenwing Black Knights are the 2nd Company's greatest warriors, elite fighters who style themselves after the monster-hunting knights of old Caliban. They speed towards the foe, swinging their deadly Corvus Hammers with such force that the spiked end can puncture even the thickest armour.Whether deployed on their own, or forming a Veteran core in the centre of a larger Ravenwing spearhead, the Black Knights are the ultimate weapon of the Grand Master of the Ravenwing. Although Dark Angels rarely recount battle deeds or heroic tales unless doing so addresses some special need, the Black Knights' Ravenwing brethren often cannot hold their tongues as they speak in wonder about the fighting prowess of their company's elite Battle-Brothers.
Black Knight - History: If a Battle-Brother has served long enough in the Ravenwing and can pass the Seven Rites of the Raven -- brutal ceremonies that test not only his skill, but also the extremes of Chapter loyalty -- he will be inducted into the esteemed ranks of the Black Knights, the Inner Circle of the 2nd Company. There, after taking part in the long and solemn ritual that culminates in the Vow of the Beastslayer, they will learn the real reason behind their hunt for Heretics and the truth about their Chapter's history.Ravenwing Black Knights ride to battle atop Mark IV Raven Pattern Space Marine Assault Bikes, powerful machines outfitted with deadly Plasma Talons. To signify their exalted status, Black Knights carry Corvus Hammers, which are patterned after an ancient Calibanite weapon used to hunt the Great Beasts. The Black Knights' riding skills are supreme, and they can drive at top speed through almost any impediments to close on their foes.During this approach, their Plasma Talons tear gaping holes in the enemy lines before they literally ride over their prey, cracking armour and sundering flesh with their Corvus Hammers as they go. Against more formidable opponents, those Black Knights trained in the use of the Ravenwing Grenade Launcher fire a salvo of specialised Rad and Stasis Shells, which can make even the most potent of enemies more vulnerable to a sustained assault.A Ravenwing Black Knight is a vengeful killer who will not rest until he has run his prey to ground. If his Plasma Talons do not kill the foe, the razor-sharp bill of his Corvus Hammer surely will. Ravenwing Black Knight Squads are often led into battle by a Veteran Astartes and longtime member of the Black Knights known as a Ravenwing Huntmaster who bears an ancient Power Weapon that is drawn from the armouries of The Rock.
Black Knight - Ravenwing Command: Ravenwing Command Squads usually consist of experienced Ravenwing Black Knights who form a swift and highly-mobile bodyguard around a mounted Chapter officer, or execute other specialised missions on their own. These squads usually include several other Chapter specialists -- an Apothecary to tend to the wounded and recover the fallen's gene-seed on far-flung scouting missions, an Ancient, and the Ravenwing Company Champion wielding a deadly blade of Calibanite origin. These may individually join a detachment of Ravenwing or group together to form a bodyguard or command group. All are proven Black Knights, steeped in the secrets of the Chapter.A Ravenwing Apothecary will use his bike to traverse vast distances to quickly tend to the wounded. They are skilled riders as well as medics, and have earned their brethren's utmost trust. Many such Apothecaries have been seen steering their bikes one-handed while they effect emergency surgeries upon a fellow Ravenwing Biker, even while moving at great speeds.The Ravenwing Ancient carries one of the company's sacred standards, and beneath the shadow of that fluttering banner the black-armoured warriors of the Ravenwing bring death to the foe. They also form a rallying point, and can be found at the very forefront of the devastating bike charges.The Ravenwing Company Champion is called upon to defend the 2nd Company's honour during ritual combat, and tasked with cutting down the most formidable of opponents in battle. Like all the Chapter's Champions, the Ravenwing Champion is gifted a deadly Blade of Caliban -- an ancient Power Sword whose heritage can be traced back to the early days of the Chapter.When a Ravenwing Command Squad rides to battle, they form a rallying point for one of the most fearsome fast strike forces in the galaxy. Beneath the fluttering shadow of their standard, the black-armoured Astartes of the Ravenwing bring death to the enemies of the Emperor.
Black Knight - Unit Composition: 2-4 Ravenwing Black Knights1 Ravenwing Huntmaster
Black Knight - Wargear: Power Armour (Any pattern)Mark IV Raven Pattern Assault BikePlasma Talons - Mark IV Raven Pattern Assault Bikes have their twin-linked Bolters replaced with a weapon unique to the Chapters of the Unforgiven, the Plasma Talon. With a range between that of the Plasma Pistol and Plasma Gun, the Plasma Talon gives the Black Knights a significant boost in firepower.Ravenwing Grenade Launcher - Ravenwing Black Knights employ specialised Grenade Launchers adapted to fire even at the high speeds at which they race across the battlefield. These Grenade Launchers fire specialised shells beyond the standard Frag and Krak shells that utilise ancient technologies. The Rad Shell spreads radiation-contaminated fragments across a broad area that have a debilitating effect on a foe, while the Stasis Shell is capable of momentarily freezing the space-time continuum in a localised area, slowing the reaction times of any of the enemy nearby to the Ravenwing's assault.Frag GrenadesKrak GrenadesBlade of Caliban - Blades of Caliban are relics and each has its own honourable heritage. Only the Champions of each company, having performed heroic and faultless duty, earn the right to wield one of these ancient Power Swords in battle.Corvus Hammer - On Caliban the thick forests made tall lances impractical, so the ancient knights of the Dark Angels' lost homeworld developed a unique military pick, which consisted of a hammerhead modified to provide additional power during impact. Its beak-like spike proved ideal for puncturing monster scales and armour alike. The bike-mounted warriors of the original Dark Angels Legion adopted this weapon design and these ancient weapons are still maintained by the Black Knights of the Dark Angels and its Successor Chapters.Power Sword or Power Maul (Optional replacements for Ravenwing Huntmaster's Corvus Hammer)Melta Bombs (Ravenwing Huntmaster only)
Black Legion - Cthonia: The Luna Wolves were the first Space Marine Legion to begin recruiting from another world beyond Terra. In this case, the new pool of aspirants was found amongst the adolescent Human males drawn from the violent hive city gangs inhabiting an ancient former Mining World that had devolved into a Feral World called Cthonia.Cthonia was located in one of Terra's closest neighbouring star systems in the Segmentum Solar and was within reach of voidcraft that could travel at only sublight velocities before the invention of the Warp-Drive. As a result, Cthonia had been colonised, built upon, tunnelled and mined since the dawn of Human interstellar space travel millennia before the beginning of the Dark Age of Technology.Due to this unusually long period of exploitation by Mankind, all of the world's natural resources had been stripped away and used up centuries before, and the ancient mining technology had long since been rediscovered and removed by the Tech-adepts of Mars. The planet that remained was largely useless and abandoned, completely riddled with catacombs, crumbling industrial plant and exhausted mine-workings.