vizn3r/warhammer40k-lore huggingface dataset:
13th Black Crusade - Vengeance and Death: After they brought their fallen brethren under control and determined the wider strategic situation in the system, the Blood Angels wasted no time in launching their attack. They could not do so quickly enough, for already it seemed as though the enemy's plans were well advanced. Crimson Slaughter warbands were present at all the primary Adeptus Mechanicus hubs. Enemy forces were heavily investing the north and south hemispheres of the world of Amethal as expected, concentrated around multiple dig sites. At Hub Beta-Secundus, the Death Company dropped in two waves. Chaplain Daenor and his brothers came down well within the Mechanicus complex, landing between the advance elements of the Crimson Slaughter and their prize. The Crimson Slaughter had struck at the five major concentrations of Mechanicum forces on the planet. The five zones were given separate War Zone designations by the Crimson Slaughter: Carnage, Cruelty, Hatred, Malice and Perdition. Chaos Lord Kranon the Relentless himself led the Chaos advance in War Zone Carnage. Meanwhile, Astorath and Lemartes led the main force of the Death Company against the outer edge of the dig site's defences, seeking to encircle them in a constricting ring of carnage. The Crimson Slaughter soon found themselves trapped against the defence lines they had so recently overrun.The devastation wrought by the Death Company was breathtaking. The Crimson Slaughter were pushed back on every front, forced to huddle amongst the wrecked defences on Beta-Secundus' outskirts. Many of the Traitors were becoming slow and clumsy, burdened by uncontrollable mutation or shuddering with Warp energies that were causing them to literally burst into flames. The Crimson Slaughter attack had lost all momentum. It was fragmenting by the solar second, caught from both sides by Death Company and Mechanicus forces. Daenor proudly noted that his Death Company warriors had fought with magnificent strength and courage, despite their terrible affliction. Though the enemy had thrown everything at them, from brass-sinewed Daemon Engines to disgusting Warpcraft, still Daenor's warriors had prevailed. The Blood Angels continued to press their attack, intent on killing every last Traitor present on Amethal.
13th Black Crusade - Defence of Amethal: Leading elements consisting of the 1st, 2nd and the afflicted 5th Companies, Astrorath the Grim and Lemartes put the Traitor forces to flight. The arrival of the Blood Angels had changed the tides of war upon Amethal, and made possible a concerted counteroffensive on every front. Moreover, the attack by the Death Company upon Hub Beta-Secundus had seen Kranon the Relentless and his elite guard hurled back in disarray. For a time, it looked as though the war was turning resoundingly in the Imperium's favour. When the Chaos response came, however, it proved unexpectedly devastating. The true architect behind the Traitors' attack, the Chaos Sorcerer Lord Xorphas of the Black Legion, had planned for this inevitable outcome. As he continued enacting a dark ritual, a large World Eaters' murderfleet arrived in-system, led by the infamous Berzerker Khârn the Betrayer. This conglomeration of World Eaters warbands was a Khornate force of prodigious size, known as the Butcherhorde, led by the indomitable might of The Betrayer himself.Khârn's forces, led by the Berzerker Lords Korbadash and Vrakha, launched an immediate Dreadclaw Drop Pod assault on Amethal. Soon, Khârn himself appeared at the vanguard of the murderous horde, slaying Imperial forces with unimaginable brutality. But the Butcherhorde faced fierce resistance as the might of the Death Company met the World Eaters head on. The favoured of Khorne duelled Death Company Chaplain Daenor, but was led into an ambush by an Imperial Reaver-class Titan of the Legio Metalica. This attack marked the beginning of a counteroffensive by that Loyalist Titan Legion, which decimated the Traitor forces. But this merely forestalled the Traitors' advance, as their sheer numbers soon began to overwhelm the Blood Angels' forces.Yet the expert leadership of Astorath and Death Company Chaplain Daenor restored some order to the afflicted brothers' ranks. Spearheaded by the furious Chaplain Lemartes, the Death Company then counter-charged their enemies, dictating the shape of the battle rather than waiting to be overwhelmed. It was a daring move, and one that slowed the Khornate advance. Yet soon enough the massively outnumbered Blood Angels sustained appalling casualties. Over ninety percent of the Death Company were slain by the time multiple God-engines of the Legio Metalica were able to reach the engagement area. The thunderous advance of the Titans drove the Khornate forces back and fractured their cohesion, providing time for Astorath and Lemartes to extract the last remnants of their forces. Chaplain Daenor was born from the battlefield by Astorath himself, hacked and mangled by Khârn the Betrayer. The loss of the Death Company brothers was acceptable, for it had always been their destiny to perish in selfless battle, and they had sold themselves as dearly as they could. Astorath would not allow Daenor to perish, however, for the Death Company Chaplain was amongst the most accomplished of his order.
13th Black Crusade - Hex Infernium: In the wake of the Titans' attack, the surviving Khornate warbands scattered away from Hub Beta-Secundus, marauding at will across the rest of the world in search of blood and skulls. The surviving Legio Metalica God-engines also disengaged, the Titans' strength needed elsewhere to defend against the fresh waves of Daemon Engines being flown in from Ioline. Nor was this danger restricted to Hub Beta-Secundus. As the war raged across the surface of Amethal, Imperial counterattacks were being driven back or ground down by huge packs of newly-forged Daemon Engines. The Traitors were receiving a steady stream of powerful reinforcements. The Imperial forces were not. By the inescapable arithmetic of war, it could only be a matter of time before the Forces of Chaos were victorious.Just as the Blood Angels' attack on the Daemon Engine factories of Ioline seemed doomed to costly failure, there came the manifestation of a mysterious power that has long aided Sanguinius' sons in their darkest hours. Blazing with golden light, the Sanguinor dropped from the storm-lashed heavens and rallied the Blood Angels. With the help of their avenging angel, the Blood Angels successfully destroyed the Hex Infernium, denying the Traitors any further reinforcements of Daemon Engines. As the Crimson Slaughter continued to bleed against the might of the valiant Blood Angels, the Chaos Lord Xorphas rejoiced as his machinations finally came to fruition. The Sorcerer planned to use the slaughter and carnage on Amethal to help power the Chaotic artefact known as the Banshee Stone to create a vast Warp rift that would drown the Diamor System in a veritable tidal wave of daemons. The resulting destruction wreaked by the Neverborn would extend Abaddon the Despoiler's Crimson Path from Cadia to Diamor, and hopefully, one day, Terra itself.
13th Black Crusade - Amistel Majoris: Seven of the eight companies despatched by the Howling Griffons became engaged in a gruelling trench-war on Amistel Majoris. Having broken through the Death Guard Plague Fleet blockading the world, the 2nd to 8th Companies arrived in time to bolster the regiments of the Astra Militarum's Drookian Fen Guard, who were suffering horrific losses to the hell-spawned epidemics unleashed by the Traitor forces arrayed against them. Within solar days, the Howling Griffons and the Legio Astorum's Titans were the only force able to man the extensive defences constructed by the Drookians. Any warrior caught in the open and not protected by Power Armour when the plague winds hit was ensured an excruciating death, and an eternity of servitude as a Plague Zombie in Nurgle's legions of undead.The 1st Company of the Howling Griffons, including Chapter Master Alvaro, was at the time based on the Chapter Battle Barge Force of Destiny, and was engaged in the persecution of a particularly vicious company of Night Lords Chaos Space Marines known as the Chosen, commanded by the infamous Daemon Prince Periclitor. It was widely known that the Howling Griffons harboured a particularly deep hatred of this Daemon Prince. While that hatred served the greater needs of the Imperium's defence against the Forces of Chaos, no other authority sought to question Alvaro's actions.The Iron Knights Chapter had been engaged upon a self-imposed penitent Crusade for a number of solar decades when Abaddon's 13th Black Crusade smashed into the defenders of the Cadian Gate, and they were amongst the first of the Chapters in the region to respond. The Chapter's elite 1st Company soon became mired in the defence of Amistel Majoris, bolstering the flagging defences of the Howling Griffons Chapter as they fought a gruelling trench war against the unremitting assaults of the Plague Marines of the Death Guard Traitor Legion. The warzone soon became a plague-ridden quagmire, the decomposing bodies of the Plague God's victims forming putrid, sucking swamps through which the defenders were forced to wade in order to bring battle to their foes.A sickly patina of filth soon marred the Iron Knights' gleaming blue-grey armour, and the company's Chaplains were forced to perform daily rites of purification in order to keep the virulent plague at bay. Recent sermons by these Chaplains had linked the Chapter's continuing presence in the warzone with their eventual redemption in the eyes of the Emperor, vowing that the world would only fall at the cost of the entire Chapter. By the third solar week of the Black Crusade, Amistel Majoris was considered sufficiently secure that a portion of its Space Marine defenders could be spared to reinforce the Cadian System, which, in the days following the destruction of Saint Josmane's Hope, was in desperate need of aid.
13th Black Crusade - Bellis Corona: Upon arriving at the Cadian Gate, the Doom Eagles Chapter despatched forces to a number of warzones, notably areas that had already suffered terribly at the hands of the Forces of Chaos. The largest of these detachments, under the command of Captain Luctus of the 3rd Company, was involved in operations within the Belis Corona Sub-sector of the Belis Corona Sector, where the notoriously pious Chapter battled those who had fallen to the Curse of Unbelief. Only those without the strength of faith to resist were afflicted by the Zombie Plague, and it has been noted that not a single Doom Eagles Battle-Brother was affected by its blight. The Doom Eagles proved effective in combating the Plague Zombies infesting many worlds of the sub-sector, though, typically for this aloof Chapter, they had refused all offers of support in consolidating these successes.
13th Black Crusade - Lortox Evacuations: When Abaddon's fleet was seen approaching the Agri-world of Lortox, the Ultramarines Honour Company distinguished itself with a bold, spaceborne counter-assault against Abaddon's fleet as the Planet Killer closed with that Imperial world on the outskirts of the Agripinaa Sector. The action bought Lortox's Planetary Defence Forces time to evacuate a significant proportion of the population before the world was destroyed by the Despoiler's horrific weapon of planetary destruction. The Ultramarines Honour Company managed to succeed in crippling the Planet Killer, but the massive warship still had enough power to limp away. In the aftermath of the Lortox Evacuations, the Honour Company redeployed to Cadia and the surrounding star systems, launching a series of operations to hinder Abaddon's forces as they assaulted the Imperial positions. These attacks included a series of highly successful boarding actions against the lumbering Space Hulks being used to transport vast hordes of enemy troops to reinforce Abaddon's siege of Cadia.
13th Black Crusade - Thracian Primaris: Upon their arrival in the Segmentum Obscurus, the Black Templars Chapter's first action was the relief of Thracian Primaris, which had sustained heavy assaults by the Forces of Chaos for some solar weeks. The bulk of the force consisted of Brethren previously embarked upon the hunt for Ghazghkull Mag Uruk Thraka, the infamous Ork Warlord who had unleashed such devastation upon the Imperial Hive World of Armageddon, and their participation in the action on Thracian Primaris left the pursuing Black Templars Crusades severely understrength. The Black Templars scattered the poorly led and deployed Chaos warfleet in short order, breaking through the blockade to make an uncontested planetfall at the Departmento Munitorum Logistical Support Centre at Hive Demeter. The Brethren were welcomed as liberators by the beleaguered populace, but chose not to remain on the Hive World for long, moving on to drive the Forces of Chaos across the Scarus Sector back towards the Eye of Terror.
13th Black Crusade - Battle of Medusa: When the forces of Abaddon the Despoiler spilled forth from the Cadian Gate in 999.M41 to launch his 13th Black Crusade, the Iron Hands Space Marine Chapter knew that their homeworld of Medusa faced imminent invasion due to their close proximity to the Eye of Terror, and so the Chapter scrambled to prepare their defences. Given that Medusa was the only world from which the Iron Hands recruited new brethren, they were forced to defend it above all other considerations. While it is known that two of the Chapter's Clan Companies were deployed elsewhere in the defence of the region, the greater strength of the Chapter was used in the defence of their homeworld.The largest battle in the defence of Medusa came when all 10 of the gargantuan tracked fortresses of the Iron Hands' Clan Companies faced the invading Traitor Guardsmen of the Haradni 13th Heavy Armoured Regiment. The geologically unstable plains of Medusa played host to one of the largest armoured clashes the galaxy has seen since the infamous Battle of Tallarn during the Horus Heresy, when over 10,000 Traitor tanks stormed towards the waiting Iron Hands fortresses. The ensuing battle raged for five solar days and five solar nights, as the Traitors closed within firing range of the Iron Hands' mobile fortresses. When the Iron Hands opened fire, it is said that over a hundred tanks were destroyed in the first volley, for each Clan Company commanded firepower equal to a Centurio Ordinatus of the Adeptus Mechanicus.On the fifth solar day, at the height of the battle, the Traitors broke through the Iron Hands' lines, and an armoured company of Traitors outflanked one of the Chapter's mobile fortresses and fired shell after shell into it at nearly point blank range. The Iron Hands responded by launching a furious counterattack spearheaded by Assault Squads armed with Melta Bombs who leapt from the crenelated towers of the mobile fortress to land atop the enemy tanks. Though many Astartes lost their lives in the attack, shot down by pintle-mounted weapons or ground beneath the enemy vehicles' armoured tracks, their counterattack was successful in disabling or destroying the majority of the Traitor armour and sending the rest into a disorderly retreat. It was then that the Iron Hands launched an armoured assault of their own, as whole formations of Predator Annihilator tanks disgorged from the mobile fortresses to run down and destroy the Heretic tanks with ravening beams of Lascannon fire. The Iron Hands managed to secure Medusa by the midpoint of the larger 13th Black Crusade campaign and were able to deploy several Clan Companies to the defence of the Cadian System, though they arrived too late to save Cadia from its fate, and an Iron Hands naval task force was despatched to reinforce the naval world of Vigilatum.
13th Black Crusade - Battle of Kasr Tyrok: The Dark Angels and the Space Wolves appeared to set aside their ancient vendetta long enough for Supreme Grand Master Azrael and the Great Wolf Logan Grimnar to come to a mutual, but temporary, understanding. The two Chapters took to the field together, intent upon proving to the Archenemy that the combined forces of the Space Wolves and the Dark Angels Chapters were far greater than the sum of their parts. The exact circumstances and details of this arrangement have been kept from all who were not members of either Chapter. Both Chapters took to the field together in the defence of Kasr Tyrok upon the world of Cadia against a substantial force of Chaos mutants. The combined force of Dark Angels and Space Wolves smashed into the rear of the mutant mob, cutting them down without mercy, and each Chapter's Astartes sought to outdo the other in their skill at arms. As the last few mutants were despatched, the Chapter's friendly banter soon turned less comradely, and insults filled the air. Victory had been achieved, but the Sons of the Lion and the Sons of Russ soon parted ways, their long-time rivalry rearing its ugly head once again.
13th Black Crusade - Battle of Kasr Vasan: The lauded Imperial Fists Chapter arrived at the Cadian Gate as part of the massive Adeptus Astartes reinforcement of the region, five companies smashing into the forces of the Archenemy besieging Cadia as soon as contact was made. After an initial space engagement that saw the Chapter's Battle Barges and Strike Cruisers take a fearsome toll on the Chaos warfleet in the Cadian System, three of the companies carried out a combat drop on Cadia itself, while the other two dispersed to bolster the defences in surrounding sectors, including reinforcing the Iron Hands Chapter at their homeworld of Medusa.The 1st, 2nd and elements of the 3rd Companies were instrumental in the defence of key points on Cadia, manning the walls of a number of fortresses with the steadfast resolution for which they are famed throughout the Imperium. In these actions, the 2nd Company was noted for exceptional acts of gallantry, overcoming a horde of mutants from the notorious Stigmatus Covenant numbering almost 10,000 heretical fanatics. At the height of the Chaos assault on the walls of Kasr Vasan, the company commander, Captain Tialo, gave his life holding a breach in the fortifications, repelling a mob of mutants numbering several hundred before succumbing to the terrible wounds inflicted upon him. The Captain's body refused to die, however, and was held in stasis by the Chapter's Techmarines, who hoped to inter it within the mighty form of a Dreadnought so that the renowned warrior might continue to battle the forces of darkness beyond the death of his mortal body.
13th Black Crusade - Death of Macharia: It was a fool's dream to hope the Planet Killer could be found before it was brought to bear upon the Imperial forces. Without warning, it appeared in orbit over the world of Macharia in the Cadian System. Though many could scarcely believe it, the world was destroyed by the massive vessel. It was lost, and with it millions of the Emperor's loyal and faithful subjects, dead at the hands of Abaddon the Despoiler and his most fearsome and despicable weapon. Utter dread now descended upon the Cadian High Command. Despite the many successes won by Imperial forces, many Cadian officers had come to believe that the war might not be won in the short term. Where at first the Imperial forces had fought to repulse the assault of the Despoiler, to deny Abaddon footholds upon their worlds, they now fought to keep the Forces of Chaos from simply overwhelming them entirely. This was a grim paradigm, and one the Imperial forces were not ready to accept. They believed Abaddon dare not destroy Cadia using his Planet Killer or the Blackstone Fortresses, as the Fortress World's ancient xenos-built Pylons were reckoned intrinsic to the continued stability of the Cadian Gate's passage out of the Eye of Terror and deeper into Imperial space. So the Imperium's defenders decided that they would stand and hold at Cadia, no matter the cost.
13th Black Crusade - Battle of Kasr Partox: The valiant Imperial defenders of Cadia made their final stand upon the ramparts of Kasr Partox against the Forces of Chaos arrayed against them. A massive force of the Archenemy stood to assault the valiant Imperial defenders. The fortress city was protected by a scant 23 regiments of the Cadian Shock Troops. Alongside the regiments of Cadia stood a host of units drawn from worlds near and far, such as the Knovians, Gundronites, Mordants, Thracians, Jourans and a thousand more. The Battle-Brothers of the Adeptus Astartes were also counted amongst the Imperial defenders, including the Chapters of the Dark Angels, Space Wolves, Ultramarines, Doom Eagles and many more that are not named in the Imperial records. There were also many other servants of the God-Emperor present, including the Battle-Sisters of the Orders Militant of the Adepta Sororitas, the mighty Grey Knights, scores of Inquisitors, the siege dreadnoughts of the Ordo Reductor, the mighty God-machines of the Collegia Titanica and the Mechanicus' own cybernetic Skitarii warriors. And amongst them all, the Confessors of the Imperial Cult made their way, admonishing each and every man and woman to hold true to the Emperor.But the Imperial defenders' numbers paled in comparison to those arrayed against them. Even from atop the mighty walls of the Kasr's Castellum, it was observed that not a single square metre of ground was not held by the defenders or trodden upon by the enemy. It seemed as if every twisted denizen of the Eye of Terror had converged before the walls of Kastr Partox.In the ensuing slaughter, the Imperials were forced to abandon Kasr Partox and retreat towards the Caducades Sea, where they hoped to make their final stand at Kasr Gallan. With Kasr Partox fallen, the Imperial command and control structure was demolished. The Imperial retreat from Kasr Partox saw the most intense fighting of the 13th Black Crusade, with many thousands of lives given up so that the bulk of the Imperial forces might escape. The Imperial forces managed to make it to the Caducades Sea, leaving behind thousands of dead, their bodies defiled by the blasphemous Chaos horde. The Imperial ground forces fled aboard transport ships across the Caducades Sea, forced to abandon the bulk of their heavy equipment.One of the last groups to leave was the Ecclesiarchal delegation, whose thousands of preachers had attended to the spiritual well-being of the Imperial forces throughout the fighting withdrawal from Partox. Some of these remained in the port, determined to preach the word of the Emperor until the very end, and their sonorous chants at times were said to drown out even the thunderous explosions of enemy artillery. A company of Space Marines from the Subjugators, whose numbers had been so reduced during their participation in the defence of Cadia so as to threaten the very survival of their Chapter, chose to also make a final stand there, vowing to evacuate only when all else was lost. Astra Militarum engineers planted munitions at the heart of the port in order to ensure its destruction.
13th Black Crusade - The Battle of Cadia in Space and A Brief Respite: The Imperial fleet in orbit of Cadia above the valiant Imperial defenders on the ground was also gathered for its final stand. Should they fail, the world of Cadia and all who stood upon it would be scoured away by the power of the Warp. This had been Abaddon's plan all along in launching the 13th Black Crusade; everything had led to this particular moment.Soon the battle in orbit was underway. The toll taken upon the Imperium's defenders was fearsome indeed, but this desperate endeavour was worthy of the greatest of sacrifices, for failure meant that the Cadian Gate would lie open for Abaddon to launch his campaign against Terra and succeed where his master Horus had once failed. The details of the battle in orbit that ultimately saw the Forces of Chaos repulsed are difficult to piece together in the wake of the chaos caused to the Cadian High Command by the Imperial retreat from Kasr Partox. Admiral Quarren, who commanded the Imperial fleet that defended Cadia, reported that the bulk of his fleet was destroyed, many vessels having paid the ultimate price to throw back the servants of the Dark Gods.At the height of this battle, unreliable reports indicate that a fleet of Necron vessels appeared as if from nowhere and assaulted both the Blackstone Fortress and the Chaos warfleet. So confused and incomplete are the Imperial records of this engagement that the Cadian High Command may never piece together the true details of how victory was won in orbit. Regardless of their reasons for doing so, the Necron ships, alongside their unwitting Imperial allies, forced the Blackstone Fortress to disengage from its approach on Cadia, and contact with it was lost soon after as it fled the Cadia System. The remaining Chaos vessels followed it and also withdrew from the system. With the retreat of the Archenemy's orbital support, the Imperial defenders on the surface of Cadia rallied from their defeats to eliminate the Forces of Chaos who stood against them and reclaim the sacred soil of the Fortress World for the Emperor...for a time.
13th Black Crusade - The Cadian Pylons: In a galaxy replete with mysteries, the Cadian Pylons are amongst the most enduring. There are over five thousand such edifices scattered across the surface of Cadia, each one standing some five hundred yards above the surface, and reaching two hundred and fifty yards below. Reports differ, but it is understood that there could be anywhere between two and three thousand more concealed below ground as the result of tectonic movement down the ages.Despite millennia of study, the Adeptus Mechanicus have yet to discover the purpose of the pylons. Servitors sent within invariably cease to function or suffer circuit overload; all attempts to breach the structures' gleaming surfaces have met with failure. Any recovered data is fragmentary at best, and contradictory at worst. Even the identity of the pylons' creators is shrouded in mystery.Some amongst the Cult Mechanicus believe the spires to be the work of the Necrons, or their mortal antecedents the Necrontyr, but then there are those on Mars equally convinced that the pylons were constructed by the Old Ones for the sole purpose of destroying the Necrons and their former C'tan overlords. The one thing all investigators agree upon is that the pylons are responsible for the stable Warp-corridor known as the Cadian Gate. Adepts conjecture that they emit a becalming signal, taming the roiling energies of the Immaterium. Why this should be so, or even to what wider purpose this could be pressed, remained a mystery, though the Cadian Pylons would play an unexpected role in Cadia's final days...
13th Black Crusade - Aftermath: At the culmination of Abaddon's 13th Black Crusade, the newborn Cicatrix Maledictum had all but consumed Cadia. With the great pylons toppled by Abaddon's conquering hordes and the colossal Warp Storm of the Eye of Terror no longer held at bay, the dread powers of Chaos ravaged the planet beyond recovery. And still the neighbouring worlds and star systems were defiant.Had Cadia not been famous for holding so long against the odds, it is likely the other planets in the system would have capitulated or given up almost immediately.No normal world could stand in the face of the horrendous, sanity-devouring armies that descended upon the Cadian Gate in such terrifying measure. However, the wider systems of Cadia, Belis Corona, and Agripinaa stood fast.Perhaps, just as a veteran can lead lesser men to deeds of great heroism, Cadia had inspired those worlds around it to defend every nation and city to the last bullet. Perhaps Cadia's surviving soldiery lent strength through their hunger for retribution.Perhaps those battered by the storm simply fought for survival. Whatever the reason, the defenders of the Cadian Gate resolved to uphold the virtues of its lost lynchpin world come what may.In the confusion of outright war, the hordes of Chaos began to turn upon themselves. Though they were ascendant, their ultimate conquest had yet to be clinched. Rival warlords, both mortal and daemonic, clashed over the spoils of victories not yet won.The Imperial defenders were quick to capitalise on each strategic misstep, for many were veterans of the wars upon Cadia, and they knew how to goad a fractious enemy into overextending its reach. From dissolution came destruction. Solar day by solar day the Imperial armies clawed back a semblance of control.Soon the war zone was in contention once more, the dread stranglehold of Chaos loosened by the sheer determination of the Astra Militarum and the vengeful fury of the Space Marines. Each new dawn was greeted by a scattering of ships from the Great Exodus, those fortunate souls who had braved the Empyrean tempests and lived to tell of it.Again and again the fighting escalated, the fires of war that had burned Cadia to cinders roaring to life anew upon the other worlds of the Cadian System, as well as those of the Belis Corona and Agripinaa Systems. Though Chaos had scored a great victory, and the entire galaxy now stood once step closer to damnation, the Imperium and its newfound allies among the Aeldari stood ready to continue the neverending battle against the Dark Gods.
13th Black Crusade - Canon Conflict: The 13th Black Crusade was the background to the original 2003 worldwide Eye of Terror Campaign whose result was a stalemate between the Imperium and the Forces of Chaos after Abaddon managed to gain a foothold on Cadia itself while failing to maintain space superiority in the Cadia System.For fourteen years, Games Workshop chose not to advance the timeline of the Warhammer 40,000 universe beyond this point in the fictional timeline. In January 2017, Games Workshop released the first in a new series of supplements designed to once more advance the Warhammer 40,000 timeline -- Gathering Storm - Part One - Fall of Cadia -- which retconned a great deal of the lore of the 13th Black Crusade and dramatically changed the outcome of Abaddon's assault on Cadia.In this new timeline, Abaddon destroyed the world of Cadia, seized complete control of the Cadian Gate, and began the Forces of Chaos' long-awaited second drive on Terra. For more on the outcome of the original version of the campaign, please see 13th Black Crusade (Original).
13th Black Crusade - Chapters of the Adeptus Astartes: Angels of Absolution - 10 CompaniesAngels of Vigilance - 5 CompaniesAngels Sanguine - 7 CompaniesBlood Angels - 4 CompaniesBrazen Claws - 10 CompaniesDark Angels - 10 CompaniesDeath Spectres - 6 CompaniesDoom Eagles - 5 CompaniesExcoriators - 8 CompaniesExorcists - 10 CompaniesHarbingers - 8 CompaniesHowling Griffons - 8 CompaniesImperial Fists - 5 CompaniesIron Hands - 10 ClansIron Knights - 1 CompanyIron Snakes - 5 CompaniesMarines Exemplar - 9 CompaniesNight Watch - 11 CompaniesNovamarines - 6 CompaniesRelictors - Declared Excommunicate Traitoris by the Inquisition during the 13th Black CrusadeRevilersSpace Wolves - 12 Great CompaniesStorm Warriors - 10 CompaniesSubjugators - 3 CompaniesUltramarines - 1 Honour CompanyWhite Consuls - 10 CompaniesWhite Scars - 10 Companies
13th Black Crusade - Companies: Space Wolves 13th Company
13th Black Crusade - Orders Majoris: Order of the Bloody Rose - 6 PreceptoriesOrder of the Ebon Chalice - 4 PreceptoriesOrder of Our Martyred Lady - 5 Preceptories
13th Black Crusade - Orders Minoris: Order of the Divine LamentationOrder of the Ermine Mantle - 3 MissionsOrder of the Maurdlin Countenance Order of the Silver LilyOrder of the Sublime AdorationOrder of the Wounded Heart - 1 Commandery
13th Black Crusade - Notable Regiments: Agripinaa Home GuardAvellorn Field RegimentsAvellornian Gunners - 32 SquadronsBar-El Penal Legions - 4 LegionsBlitzen Heavy ArmouredCadian Shock Troops - 612 RegimentsCadian Youth Army - 36 Regional CommandsCadian Kasrkin - 486 CompaniesCatachan Jungle FightersCthonian Armoured CavalryDeath Korps of KriegDhonovar Heavy Armour - 5 CompaniesDrookian Fenguard - 16 CompaniesFinreht Highlanders - 3 RegimentsGudrunite Rifles - 47 RegimentsJouran Dragoons - 7 RegimentsKellersburg Irregulars - 3 RegimentsKnovian Gharkas - 14 RegimentsMordian Iron GuardNecromundan 8th, "The Spiders" - 1 RegimentNarmenian Tank BrigadesNarsine Yeomanry - 32 Battle GroupsPraetorian GuardThracian Guard - 35 RegimentsValhallan Ice WarriorsVan De'Man's World, "Redbacks" - 5 RegimentsZenonian Free Companies - 9 Companies
13th Black Crusade - Ordo Malleus: Inquisitorial Task Forces - CLASSIFIEDGrey Knights - CLASSIFIEDInquisitorial Storm TroopersNemesis Tesera - estimated 38 CompaniesOcularis Terribus War Zone - CLASSIFIED
13th Black Crusade - Departmento Munitorum: Engineer Corps - 18Siege Auxilia Corps - 28 Counter-siege batteries
13th Black Crusade - Officio Assassinorum: Agents - CLASSIFIED
13th Black Crusade - Templars Psykologis: Disruption Squads - 37Augur Teams - 6
13th Black Crusade - Battlefleets: Battlefleet Cadia - 12 Battleships, 12 Cruiser Squadrons, 21 Escort SquadronsBattlefleet Corona - 7 Battleships, 13 Cruiser Squadrons, 17 Escort SquadronsBattlefleet GothicBattlefleet Scarus - 5 Battleships, 9 Cruiser Squadrons, 13 Escort SquadronsBattlefleet SolarBattlegroup NemesisBattle Group ImperatisBakka Sector Task Force
13th Black Crusade - Notable Vessels: Galathamor (Emperor-class Battleship) - Admiral Quarren's flagship.Honour & Duty (Emperor-class Battleship)Pax Imperialis (Emperor-class Battleship) - The Kingmaker was a Chaos-corrupted Exorcist-class Grand Cruiser thought to have been lost in the late 41st Millennium while on patrol near Agripinaa, but it appeared four Terran years later as part of a Black Legion fleet that destroyed an Imperial convoy between Cadia and Belis Corona. Afterwards, the Pax Imperialis was charged with destroying the Kingmaker and this began a two solar month pursuit that ended in the asteroid belts of the Crinan System. Though normally a grand cruiser would be no match for a battleship, the Kingmaker had been corrupted by the power of Chaos and managed to hold out long enough for reinforcements to arrive. This caused the Pax Imperialis ' commander, Vice Admiral Chanke, to order a retreat. While the battleship was able to escape, it was forced to leave behind its voidcraft that had been launched to deliver the final blow to the Kingmaker. When the 13th Black Crusade began, the Kingmaker was among the Black Fleet's warships that attacked the Imperial forces defending Cadia. It was there that the grand cruiser clashed with the Pax Imperialis once again, but this time it was the Kingmaker that was forced to retreat, after the battleship severely damaged it. However, when Cadia was lost to Chaos, the Imperial forces escaped from the Cadian System and it is not known what became of the Kingamker.Duke Lurstophan (Dauntless-class Light Cruiser)Abridal's Glory (Gothic-class Cruiser)
13th Black Crusade - Estimated Fleet Assets: Front Line Battle Groups - 21Rear Echelon Battle Groups - 36Independent Strike Groups - 4Space Marine Battle-Barges - estimated 21+Space Marine Strike Cruisers - estimated 150+Space Marine Escort Squadrons - estimated 200+
13th Black Crusade - Collegia Titanica: Legio Astorum - Entire LegionLegio Gryphonicus - Entire LegionLegio Ignatum - Entire LegionLegio Metalica - Demi-LegionOrdo Reductor - Demi-LegionOrdo Sinister (Divisio Telepathica Psi-Titans) - CLASSIFIED
13th Black Crusade - Knights: House Arokon - 4 Households of KnightsHouse Krast - 2 Households of KnightsHouse Lakar
13th Black Crusade - Other Mechanicus Assets: Centurio Ordinatus - 4 OrdinatusSkitarii - 87 Regiments
13th Black Crusade - Senior Command: Abaddon the Despoiler - Warmaster of Chaos and overall commander of the Forces of ChaosTyphus - Herald of Nurgle, and Plague Fleet commander.Kossolax the Foresworn - Chaos Lord of the Foresworn Renegade Chaos Space Marines warband and fleet commander.Urkanthos - Urkanthos also sometimes called Urkrathos, was a Chaos Lord of the Black Legion of Chaos Space Marines and the former Lord Purgator of the Chosen of Abaddon. Within the ranks of the Black Legion are those who are bloody-handed servants of Khorne. Though not a single unified warband within the Black Legion, they are collectively known as the Hounds of Abaddon. Urkrathos, the current Lord Purgator and commander of the Legion's Black Fleet, claims all followers of Khorne within the Legion as his own and directs them according to the will of Abaddon the Despoiler, the Warmaster of Chaos and master of the Black Legion. It falls to the Lord Purgator to ensure that every man, woman and child left alive on a world conquered by the Black Legion is dragged in chains into the hold of the Legion's starships, and that no edifice remains undedicated to the Dark Gods. During the final stage of the 13th Black Crusade in 999.M41, Urkrathos achieved daemonhood and became a Daemon Prince after pleasing Khorne with the mass slaughter and loss of life caused by the destruction of three great Imperial warships in the Cadian Gate. The ascension of Urkanthos to daemonhood came as the BlackFleet approached Cadia for its second assault upon the world. Surging in towards the Fortress World, Urkanthos had faced a trio of enemy Battleships whose captains had determined that -- if they could not defeat the oncomingChaos horde -- they would at least slay the ﬂagship of its ﬂeetmaster. Through guile, ferocity and unmatched skill did Urkanthos captain his craft to victory over all three Imperial warships, blasting two to ruin before obliteratingthe final craft as it turned to ﬂee. Such a mighty tally of blood and skulls pleased Khorne greatly, and bought Urkanthos the reward of immortality that he had long sought. So did the master of the Hounds of Abaddon become more fearsome than ever before.
13th Black Crusade - Chaos Space Marine Legions: Alpha Legion - 20+ unconfirmed sightings in all sectorsBlack Legion - Major presence in all sectorsDeath Guard - Major presence in Subiaco DiabloEmperor's Children - Unconfirmed actions against Aeldari reportedIron Warriors - Suspected presence in the Cadian SystemNight Lords - Unconfirmed reports of presence in all sectorsThousand Sons - Active in the Caliban and Prospero SectorsWord Bearers - Active in rear echelon sectorsWorld Eaters - Significant involvement in all sectors
13th Black Crusade - Renegade Chaos Space Marine Warbands: Crimson SlaughterExtinction AngelsThe PyreSons of MaliceViolators - 3 confirmed actions in Cadia SectorWarp Ghosts - Unconfirmed sighting in Agripnaa System
13th Black Crusade - Major Traitor Guard Units: 5th Columnus Regiment - Presence confirmed - Belis Corona666th Regiment of Foot - Confirmed presence - CadiaDiscilan Apostates - UnconfirmedHaradni 13thJenen Ironclads - Major presence - Kromat SystemSentrek FreemenThe Traitor 4th - Significant presence - Kantrael SystemUbridius Light Infantry - Major presence - Cadian SectorVolscani Cataphracts - Active - Cadia
13th Black Crusade - Estimated Mutant Hordes: The Anointed of Aq'si - 6 attacks confirmed - Belisar SystemThe Shyis'slaa - Linked to cult uprisings - Albitern SystemThe Stigmatus Convenant - Significant presence - Mackan SystemThe Unsanctified - Unconfirmed involvement - Bar-el System
13th Black Crusade - Traitor Titan Legions: Death Stalkers - Unconfirmed involvement on CadiaFire Masters - Limited presence in Cadian SectorIron Skulls - Major force sighted on Vorga TorqLegio Mortis - Major presence confirmed on CadiaLegio Vulcanum I - 4 unconfirmed assaults on Belisar and KromatLegio Vulcanum II - Suspected presence on Subiaco Diablo
13th Black Crusade - Battlefleets: The Grand Fleet of Abaddon the Despoiler - 7 Battleships, 13 Heavy Cruisers, est. 23 Cruiser Squadrons, est. 30 Escort SquadronsThe Grand Fleet of Kossolax the Foresworn - 1 Battleship, 3 Cruiser Squadrons, 8 Escort SquadronsThe Plague Fleet of Typhus - Terminus Est, 2 Battleships, 3 Heavy Cruisers, 5 Cruiser Squadrons, est. 12 Escort Squadrons
13th Black Crusade - Notable Vessels: Darkblood (Styx-class Heavy Cruiser) - The Darkblood is a Styx-class heavy cruiser that during the conflict successfully led a group of Chaos warships into the Belis Corona System, where they seeded it with minefields of daemonic origin. Now any ship passing through them risks madness and death; when the mines are activated, they spawn a host of daemonic monstrosities that will drag any nearby ships into the Warp where they will be consumed.Fortress of Agony (Despoiler-class Battleship)Impaler (Hades-class Heavy Cruiser)Kingmaker (Exorcist-class Grand Cruiser) - The Kingmaker once served in Battlefleet Scarus and took part in the Gothic War. However, its proud eight-thousand-year history of service ended when the Kingmaker disappeared while on patrol around Agripinaa in the late 41st Millennium. The Grand Cruiser was thought to have been lost, but it appeared four Terran years later as part of a Black Legion fleet that destroyed an Imperial convoy between Cadia and Belis Corona. Afterwards, the Emperor-class Battleship Pax Imperialis was charged with destroying the Kingmaker and this began a two solar month pursuit that ended in the asteroid belts of the Crinan System. Though normally a grand cruiser would be no match for a battleship, the Kingmaker had been corrupted by the power of Chaos and managed to hold out long enough for reinforcements to arrive. This caused the Pax Imperialis ' commander, Vice Admiral Chanke, to order a retreat. While the battleship was able to escape, it was forced to leave behind its voidcraft that been launched to deliver the final blow to the Kingmaker. When the 13th Black Crusade began, the Kingmaker was among the Black Fleet's warships that attacked the Imperial forces defending Cadia. It was there that the grand cruiser clashed with the Pax Imperialis once again, but this time it was the Kingmaker that was forced to retreat, after the battleship severely damaged it. However, when Cadia was lost to Chaos, the Imperial forces escaped from the Cadian System and it is not known what became of the Kingmaker.Merciless Death (Despoiler-class Battleship)Plagueclaw (Unknown Class Capital Vessel)Planet Killer (Undesignated Class Capital Vessel)
13th Black Crusade - Fleet Assets: Imperial Battlefleets - est. 38Blackstone Fortresses - 2, including Will of Eternity (Destroyed)"Wolf Pack" Squadrons - est. 19
13th Black Crusade - Armies of the Imperium Order of Battle: The final battles of Cadia had prevented the disaster of the 13th Black Crusade from being total. Though Cadia itself was lost, the defence of Kasr Kraf held up Abaddon's final assault, and the mayhem that followed allowed a great number of troops and military assets to reach the Imperial evacuation zone and depart.
13th Black Crusade - Defence of Kasr Trunch: Cadian Shock Troops - 127 RegimentsCadian Kasrkin - 65 RegimentsCadian Youth Corp - 12 RegimentsTithed Astra Militarum - 18 RegimentsSkitarii - 5 LegionsSiege Auxilia Corps - 528 BatteriesLegio Metalica - A Demi-LegionAdepta Sororitas, Order of the Bloody Rose - 2 PreceptoriesAdeptus AstartesAngels of Absolution - 3 CompaniesBlack Consuls - 4 CompaniesVaried Astartes Chapters - 4 Companies
13th Black Crusade - Kasr Trunch Counterattack: Black Consuls - 6 CompaniesWatchguards - 6 CompaniesVaried Astartes Chapters - 12 CompaniesOfficio Assassinorum - Classified
13th Black Crusade - The Long Retreat: Cadian Shock Troops - 41 RegimentsCadian Kasrkin - 16 RegimentsZenonian Free Companies - 9 CompaniesTithed Astra Militarum - 12 RegimentsDhonovar Heavy Armour - 5 CompaniesLegio Cybernetica - 3 CohortsAdepta Sororitas, Order of the Ebon Chalice - 3 PreceptoriesHallicon Armoured - 5 RegimentsOrdo Reductor - A Demi-LegionLegio Ignatum - Full Legion
13th Black Crusade - High-Orbit Offensive: Adeptus AstartesNovamarines - 4 CompaniesReclaimers - 3 CompaniesExcoriators - 3 CompaniesCerulean Guard - 3 CompaniesIron Hands - 2 CompaniesVaried Astartes Chapters - 7 CompaniesNote: All the Adeptus Astartes assets were stripped from Mos Khazner's defence in an attempt to retake the orbital batteries. Their success allowed the Long Retreat.
13th Black Crusade - The Lord Castellan's Last Stand: Cadian Shock Troops - 99 RegimentsCadian Kasrkin - 6 RegimentsBrazen Claws - 3 CompaniesBlack Consuls - 2 CompaniesCenturio Ordinatus - 4 OrdinatusLegio Gryphonicus - A Demi-LegionFreeblades - UnknownSkitarii - 3 LegionsFort Drokz Penal Legions - 4 LegionsHouse Krast - 2 Knight HouseholdsLegion of the Damned - UnknownRelictors - 2 CompaniesHarlequin Masque of the Hidden Path - 9 TroupesVaried Astartes Chapters - 5 CompaniesNote: The Cadian Gate was guarded by the Astartes Praeses but also by elements of 21 other Chapters deployed across the Cadian Sector.
13th Black Crusade - Forces of Chaos Order of Battle: Abaddon the Despoiler led the final assault force against Cadia in person. With him came the legions of the hellish Eye of Terror, the manifold hosts of the Dark Gods amassed under a single banner. The cause that united them was not just the destruction of the Imperium, but the demise of the material realm itself.
13th Black Crusade - Abaddon's Vanguard: Black Legion - Full Traitor LegionIron Warriors - Full Traitor LegionWorld Eaters - 5 WarbandsEmperor's Children - Hedonistic HostsNight Lords - 3 WarbandsDeath Guard - 3 Plague CompaniesAlpha Legion - UnknownWord Bearers - 5 CompaniesLegio Mortis - A Demi-Legion
13th Black Crusade - Red Legions: Khan'zhar the Red - Exalted Greater Daemon of KhorneBloodguard - 8 Greater Daemons of KhorneRedhost - 8 Daemonic LegionsFellblades - 8 Daemonic LegionsKaghrexx's Destroyers - 8 Daemonic LegionsKhârn the Betrayer - Legendary Chaos LordGorehands - 5 CompaniesBlood Engines (Traitor Astra Militarum) - Armour BattalionSkullcorps (Traitor Astra Militarum) - 18 RegimentsBloodemption - Chaos Cult
13th Black Crusade - Plague Armies: Slogoth Poxbelly - Exalted Greater Daemon of NurgleDrub'sla Plaguehost - 7 Daemonic LegionsThree-Eyed Tolltakers - 7 Daemonic LegionsBlightwalkers - 7 Daemonic LegionsNurgling Tide - UncountableThe Tainted - 7 CompaniesThe Horned - Pestigor LegionThe Risen - Plague ZombiesOgryn Brutepox - 3 CompaniesThe Stigmatus Convent - Entire Chaos CultThe Viscous - Entire Chaos Cult
13th Black Crusade - The Host Iridescent: M'katchnar - Exalted Greater Daemon of TzeentchTriumvirate of Arcanzarr - Daemon CovenScintillating Host - 9 Daemonic LegionsLegions of Shimmerlak - 9 Daemonic LegionsUnkbolt Conflock - 9 Tzaangor WarflocksThe Scourged - 4 CompaniesEagles Iridescent - 3 CompaniesKabal of Umbra - Entire Chaos Cult
13th Black Crusade - The Decadent Horde: Sidroh the Sinuous - Exalted Greater Daemon of SlaaneshThe Writhing Host - 6 Daemonic LegionsThe Undulators - 6 Daemonic LegionsViolators - 5 WarbandsChildren of Torment - 3 WarbandsPain Armoured Brigade - 2 Sonic CompaniesThe Hedonastic - Entire Chaos CultTentacled Behemoth - Warp Monster
13th Black Crusade - The Damned: As befits Abaddon's cruelty and meticulous planning, thirteen massive transports of combat-drugged mutants, wretches, Plague Zombies and Chaos Spawn were crash-landed into the ruined city of Kasr Kharkovan, ensuring that many of the final assaults were performed by the least storied among his armies.