World Eaters - First War for Armageddon: The conflict later known as the First War for Armageddon began within the Eye of Terror. The forces within, being devoted to the service of Chaos and the Ruinous Powers, usually fought against each other as was their fractious nature, but occasionally and inexplicably they put aside their rivalries to launch an assault on their common enemy, the Imperium of Man.In this case, the unity of the Ruinous Powers was triggered by the arrival of the space hulk Devourer of Stars around a Daemon World within the Eye of Terror that was controlled by Angron and his World Eaters. Angron had spent much of the 10 millennia following the Horus Heresy attempting to restore some level of unity amongst the divided warbands of what had once been his XIIth Legion of Space Marines.The World Eaters' dedication to the Blood God Khorne during the Horus Heresy had reduced them for much of that time into a fractious force of Khornate Berserkers just as likely to kill each other as their true foes. The emergence of the Devourer of Stars into orbit around Angron's Daemon World provided just the opportunity he had been looking for to recreate some semblance of common purpose for his scattered Legion.The space hulk proved sufficiently large enough to carry large numbers of Chaos troops but only on an erratic course into realspace. This is how the forces of Chaos unexpectedly emerged from the Warp aboard the space hulk in the Armageddon System in 444.M41.The arrival of Angron at Armageddon probably had nothing to do with Angron's own desires, rather the location was determined by the chaotic currents of the Warp which sent his space hulk to that Hive World in the Segmentum Solar, possibly at the whim of one of the Chaos Gods, if there was any intent behind the Devourer of Stars' course at all.Meanwhile, on Armageddon, a series of strange events culminated in an armed rebellion breaking out in half a dozen of the world's large hive cities against the Imperium's authority at the same time that massive Warp Storms cut off the world from Imperial communications and commerce.The revolts, largely initiated by Chaos Cultists taking advantage of food shortages caused by the Warp Storms to stir up trouble, were quickly put down in the eastern region of the world's southern sub-continent of Armageddon Secundus, but amongst the more widely scattered hives of the western region of the northern sub-continent of Armageddon Prime the rebels proved more difficult to eradicate.As Armageddon's Planetary Defence Forces (PDF) and the few regiments of the Astra Militarum's Armageddon Steel Legion present on the world seemed capable of dealing with the revolt, no additional units were sent by the Imperium to handle the problem once the Warp Storms cleared. Armageddon was a very long way from the Eye of Terror in the galaxy's Segmentum Obscurus, and no one in the Imperium suspected any more sinister cause for the revolts than simple civil unrest.Busy containing the rebellion, the Imperial forces were caught by surprise when the Devourer of Stars suddenly emerged from the Warp in the Armageddon System. On board the Devourer of Stars was an enormous Chaos army led by the Daemon Primarch Angron, including millions of Chaos Cultists called the Children of Sanguinary Unholiness and the Twelve -- the Cruor Praetoria, the twelve strongest daemons of Khorne whose lives and deeds most pleased their wretched Blood God.Chaos Space Marines from the World Eaters Legion and hordes of other daemonic creatures dedicated to the Blood God also poured from the space hulk onto the surface of Armageddon and swept across the land.The insidious effects of Chaos were quickly felt as nearly half the Planetary Defence Force of Armageddon unexpectedly went over to the invaders, declaring their loyalty to the Ruinous Powers of Chaos. The few remaining Loyalist defenders were quickly routed from the sub-continent of Armageddon Prime.Falling back through the equatorial jungles in the south, the survivors joined up with the Armageddon PDF units that had been left on the sub-continent of Armageddon Secundus and prepared to make a last ditch defence along the banks of the Rivers Styx and Chaeron.But the expected Chaos attack did not manifest itself. The Warp Storm that had carried the Devourer of Stars to Armageddon had started dying out, cutting off the vital supply of Warp energy that allowed Angron and the other daemons to remain in the Materium.Angron had reluctantly halted his advance on Armageddon Secundus and ordered his forces to build monuments to the Blood God in the equatorial jungles separating both continents. The Chaos army spent the following solar weeks erecting colossal piles comprised of the skulls of the fallen defenders, anointing them with the blood of sacrificed prisoners and slaves, as well as their own.The Imperial defenders gained valuable time while Angron raised bloody monuments to the Blood God. Many wondered why the monstrous Primarch halted with victory in his grasp, but in truth, Angron had no choice: without the supply of raw Warp energy generated by the construction of the monuments and the sacrifices, the daemonic components of his army would soon start to dissolve back into the Warp, unable to maintain their presence in the Materium.When his "supply lines" were finally secured, and his army emerged from the equatorial jungles that separated Armageddon Prime from Armageddon Secundus, Angron found the Imperial defenders ready and waiting -- and reinforced by the Space Wolves.Unknown to the forces of Chaos, the Great Company of Space Wolves Astartes led by the Chapter's Great Wolf (Chapter Master) Logan Grimnar had been assigned to the defence of this sector of the Imperium, and they moved quickly to provide aid to the beleaguered defenders as soon as they received the astropathic distress messages from Armageddon describing the Chaos invasion of the Hive World.Huge battles erupted along the entire front. In the east, along the Chaeron River, the Imperial forces held, but towards the west on the Styx River Angron led the way himself. He smashed through the Imperial lines and led his forces towards Hive Infernus and Hive Helsreach.But there Logan Grimnar unleashed his secret weapon. He had called for the assistance of the Grey Knights, the psychic Space Marine Chapter that served the Ordo Malleus of the Inquisition as its Chamber Militant, as soon as he had heard of the daemonic nature of the attacking forces. Only the Grey Knights had the ability to truly defeat a daemonic entity of such malevolent power as Angron.As the very existence of Chaos was one of the most closely guarded secrets of the Imperium of Man, few amongst even the Space Marines knew of the existence of the Grey Knights, the most elite Chapter of Astartes ever formed who were tasked specifically with combat against daemons.But Grimnar had seen them in action on more than one occasion and as the lord of an Astartes Chapter he had never been forced to submit to the Inquisitorial mind-wipe that was required of nearly all witnesses to the Grey Knights in action.Amongst the Grey Knights units deployed for action on Armageddon was Squad Castian, which joined an ad hoc "Ragged Brotherhood" of Grey Knights under the command of Taremar Aurellian, the Brother-Captain of the 3rd Brotherhood.When the call came, the Grey Knights teleported directly into the midst of the advancing Chaos horde, surrounding the gigantic Daemon Primarch. Taking heavy losses from Angron's battle prowess, the Grey Knights inflicted their own punishment, and eventually Squad Castian engaged in melee with the Daemon Primarch.After Angron mangled the squad, the only Grey Knight left standing was the pyrokine (master of psychic flame) Hyperion. Trying to protect a still-surviving squad mate, in a tremendous display of faith, power, and effort, Hyperion used his psyker abilities to shatter the Primarch's daemonic sword, the hideous Khornate relic known as the Black Blade -- while he collapsed into unconsciousness from the sheer effort.Captain Aurellian then confronted the bladeless Daemon Prince of Khorne and managed to banish him back to the Warp, though at the cost of his own life.Hyperion was one of only 13 Grey Knights to survive the battle, out of the 109 Astartes of the 3rd Brotherhood who had been deployed for the campaign. Found alive but in terrible shape by the Space Wolves on the hellish field after the battle, Hyperion soon acquired the honorific "Bladebreaker" for his feat.He had to be put in temporary stasis in order to survive, and underwent surgery that replaced half his face and skull with augmetics. He eventually reported back to duty more than 4 solar months later.The Grey Knights had defeated the Daemon Prince, hurling his spirit back into the Warp from where he could not return for over one hundred Terran years. At the same time as the Grey Knights were teleporting directly into the centre of the daemonic force to launch their attack on the Daemon Primarch, the Space Wolves launched their own massive counter-offensive all along the Imperial lines.The forces of Chaos were routed after they watched their leader defeated and only the World Eaters managed to retreat back to the space hulk and escape into the safety of the Warp. The Imperial victory was complete and overwhelming -- though it had come at a great and terrible cost.