vizn3r/warhammer40k-lore huggingface dataset:
Chalnath Expanse Campaign - Arrival of the T'au: The T'au Empire's Fourth Sphere Expansion unexpectedly emerged into realspace after the disastrous activation of their fleet's anti-matter-powered AL-38 Slipstream Modules created the Warp vortex known as the Startide Nexus, a stable, interdimensional pathway or "wormhole" between the region of the northern Segmentum Ultima the T'au named the Nem'yar Atoll and the primary territories of the T'au Empire to the galactic south in the Eastern Fringe near the Damocles Gulf.Once the T'au Empire confirmed the survival of the Fourth Sphere Expansion's fleet, Commander Shadowsun was given command of the Fifth Sphere Expansion and led it into the Startide Nexus. Once the Fifth Sphere Expansion fleet emerged into the Nem'yar Atoll, Shadowsun integrated the survivors of the Fourth Sphere Expansion fleet into her command and began expanding the size of the T'au Empire's new domain.Since its discovery by the T'au, the Nem'yar Atoll has become a cluster of Sept Worlds, stellar fortresses and orbital habitation spheres and cities that surround the Startide Nexus, but is also under almost-constant assault from raiders, hostile xenos and other, darker threats such as the forces of Chaos. As such, the military resources allocated to the defence of this key region by the T'au are now considerable, and ultimately led to conflict with the many Imperial worlds located in the same region, which the servants of the Emperor named the Chalnath Expanse.Commander Shadowsun soon attacked the Cardinal World of Astorgius while the Ctesiphus and Arrajian Systems were the site of major Genestealer Cult uprisings. On the Mining World of Haephos, the Imperial defenders engaged in a bitter guerrilla war against the Genestealer cultists and T'au infiltrators. The Riatov System became a cauldron of constant war between the T'au forces, the Astra Militarum, and the Genestealer Cultists.The Hive World of Vorotheion seemed immune to the violence for a time before becoming embroiled in a T'au invasion. The T'au wooed disenfranchised and discontented Human populations to the Greater Good, establishing insurrectionist cells and proxies to battle the Imperials alongside their conventional forces. The effects of the Psychic Awakening soon made themselves known on the Humans, with Ecclesiarchy priests performing "miracles" and even Gue'vesa being struck by bouts of emergent psyker-induced insanity.The disturbances on these worlds caused the Adepta Sororitas' Order Militant, the Order of the Sacred Rose, to respond, saving those who remained true to the Emperor while purging all Heretics and xenos they encountered. Warriors of the T'au Fire Caste put up formidable resistance, but the battle-sisters discovered that the greatest threat to the Emperor's rule in the region were the Ethereals accompanying the T'au forces, whose propaganda concerning the Greater Good was able to claim countless Human souls to their cause.
Chalnath Expanse Campaign - Imperial Investigation: For the servants of the Emperor, each new contact with beleaguered regions in the Imperium Nihilus brought fresh news of falling or fallen worlds, continuing to far outweigh any tales of heroic resistance. In the blighted Chalnath Expanse of the northern Ultima Segmentum, scores of Imperial star systems were in the throes of uprisings and civil wars, scourged by fear-mongering prophets. Into these fractures, more than one xenos ideology seeped. Since the emergence of the Cicatrix Maledictum, the nearby watch fortress of Mortguard and its surrounding watch stations had weathered not only the ferocious Warp storms that had afflicted the surrounding sectors, but surges of xenos as well. Though many aliens had been wiped out by the birth of the Great Rift, many more were driven to invading new territories after losing their own, or were scattered into the path of weakened Human worlds by raging empyric tempests. Such threatening occurrences seemed to have afflicted the Chalnath Expanse.From its own network of astroduct splicing, comm shunts and informants, Mortguard identified a growing alien influence on the Imperial systems of the Chalnath Expanse. Its exact nature was revealed by Inquisitor Jazad D'ontor. The elderly Ordo Xenos investigator sent an encrypted missive to Mortguard's watch commander, Agathon. The Inquisitor's transcripts and vid-captures showed the hand of the T'au Empire at work. After worming their way onto poverty-stricken Frontier Worlds, the T'au had openly moved against several recalcitrant systems. On some worlds, D'ontor revealed, Astra Militarum regiments attempted to hold back T'au offensives, but other regiments were embroiled in vast civil uprisings of unknown origin. D'ontor had no answers as to how or why the T'au had appeared so far to the galactic north of their primary territory in the Eastern Fringe, but made clear that this was surely only a prelude to a full-scale invasion.The old investigator had intercepted T'au delegations making for the pivotal expanse worlds of Cestis and Saint's Halt. He had lost a sizable party of Inquisitorial Acolytes in the Arrajian System, too, and believed that all three locations faced being lost. Should they fall, the T'au would spread like a stain, corrupting the Chalnath Expanse from the inside out to threaten the vulnerable worlds at the southern rim of the region. From there, a major Warp route led directly to the Segmentum Fortress at Kar Duniash. The xenos could not be allowed to threaten so vital an Imperial stronghold.In response, Watch Master Agathon led three entire Watch Companies from Mortguard to the worlds of the Chalnath Expanse. D'ontor's evidence gave suggestions of possible T'au disposition, but the Deathwatch had deeper suspicions. The T'au, they believed, were not the only aliens in the expanse. Broken reports of mutants and religious sects, not to mention D'ontor's missing retinues, all reeked to Agathon of Genestealer Cult infections -- a foe the Deathwatch of Mortguard had fought before.
Chalnath Expanse Campaign - Assault on Arrajian IV: After losing assets sent to scour the trade guilds of the Arrajian System, Inquisitor D'ontor had set watchers at the system's perimeter, sure that a T'au fleet was poised to attack. The Deathwatch, however, believed the canker of a Genestealer Cult was already there. Shrouded rapid strike vessels from Mortguard stalked the system, monitoring vox-traffic and analysing astropathic signals sent to other systems in the Chalnath Expanse.The Deathwatch discovered that the entire system was on a war footing. The trade guilds were pouring funds into raising Astra Militarum defence regiments as well as private paramilitaries, from the glacial algae seas on Arrajian II to the mag-trawlers skimming the atmosphere of the gas giant Arrajian IX. Everything pointed to preparation for a system-wide conflict, a laudable precaution given T'au aggression against other systems of the expanse.With a precise teleport strike, a single Proteus Kill-team led by Watch Lieutenant Alvor manifested in the servo-ducts beneath the guildhouse on Arrajian IV. Their aim was to uncover the true reason for the Inquisitor's missing assets. Within solar minutes of their arrival, the kill-team came under attack from "work gangs" of Genestealer hybrids and degenerate Aberrants. Kill-team Alvor pushed through one duct after another, seeking some source to the infection.For two solar days, the kill-team fought higher into the guildhouse's foundation, losing more and more of their number. All the while their signals back to orbit were blocked by psychosqualls of xenos static. By the third solar day, the kill-team had slain dozens of xenos-corrupted guilders, but only Brother Tyvus survived to pull himself to the surface and activate his teleport homer, taking into orbit a tale of widespread alien infection and twisted experimentation.Within solar months the system had fallen to the Genestealer Cult, but Mortguard now knew the truth and would return.
Chalnath Expanse Campaign - Battle of Cestis: On the mountainous and barren world of Cestis, in the south-east quadrant of the Chalnath Expanse, T'au pioneers of the Fifth Sphere Expansion had already gained a foothold. Their Earth Caste engineers had erected a research station, while their Water Caste envoys bribed Human black marketeers to keep its presence hidden. Watch Captain Seraphus, who had overseen the interrogation of one such pirate, knew from his Ordo Xenos data-inloads that these sites were the T'au's common means of eventual invasion. Either built piecemeal inside such stations by a veritable army of the aliens' robotic drones, or snuck in under a stealth field projected by its domed surface, these structures could amass huge military presences under a charade of "scientific research."Attacking with all haste, the Deathwatch deployed air superiority squadrons and heavy ground forces supported by Land Raider armoured transports. The tanks advanced through valley floors, converging along routes established by a preceding Spectrus Kill-team. Drone-controlled turrets bearing T'au heavy weaponry studded the valley walls firing towards the Imperial force as swarms of drones poured from hidden boreholes. The Deathwatch's snipers felled dozens of the skimming drones, while heavier fire carved into the turrets that lined the scree.Portals opened in the research station's curved surfaces and T'au Battlesuits jetted out. Their weapons immobilised one Land Raider, blocking the route for those behind. In response, Deathwatch armoured battle groups joined sniper fire squads and set up lethal kill zones.What should have been a single hammer blow would drag on in a battle of attrition, spreading across the mountains of Cestis as both sides continued to pour larger forces into it.
Chalnath Expanse Campaign - Battle of Saint's Halt: The Chalnath Expanse Shrine World of Saint's Halt was home to billions of people. They crowded into cramped coastal cities that were squeezed between acidic seas and inland plateaux dominated by continental reliquary palaces. The Deathwatch strike cruiser Void Sentinel, upon translation into the system, found the world already under siege by the forces of the T'au Empire. Native Planetary Defence Force infantry regiments of the Saint's Tidecasters fought alongside the battle-sisters of the Order of the Blue Robe, and Astra Militarum forces from the Riatov and Pennutsk Systems that had breached the T'au orbital blockade to reach the surface.From Void Sentinel's command throne, Watch Master Agathon conducted Mortguard's global campaign against both T'au cadres and Genestealer Cult uprisings. Hive Tor Saev burned, illuminating the southern pole. At Hive Delina, the Absolutis Arch was hung with bloody Loyalist corpses as their Genestealer Cultist murderers defended the city from T'au bombardment. Vast battle lines had opened up around every major hive city; Agathon concentrated his strikes against three.At Leonis Hive, the watch master directed kill-teams to sabotage a Shield Generator protecting the T'au flank from Riatov artillery companies. To Gedronis, he dispatched waves of Storm Speeders to cut off the xenos grav-tanks attacking the Gate of the Emperor's Vengeance, hoping to allow the Adepta Sororitas trapped there to break out. Mortguard's Watch Company Quintus in its entirety smashed into the T'au offensive outside the planetary capital city, Boran Prime. In a storm of special-issue bolter ammunition, cleaving blades and psychic scourges, the T'au buckled. The Deathwatch drove them back into the claws of xenophile cultists who declared themselves to be the Hivewyrm, forcing the two breeds of xenos to turn on each other.In orbit, Deathwatch reserves awaited the ambushes Agathon knew both faithless xenos species were capable of initiating. When the next one struck, he would be ready, as the war for the Chalnath Expanse ground on.
Chalnath Expanse Campaign - Ork Invasion: Drawn by the raging, three-sided conflict in the Chalnath Expanse, massive Ork forces soon arrived in the region. They poured from the Ful'na Nebulae in ragtag invasion fleets. With the Thaxaril, Riatov, and Barolyr Systems barely pacified, the conflict continued to rage on half a dozen other fronts.Commander Shadowsun proved unwilling to allow this new menace to destabilise the precarious expansion of the Nem'yar Atoll into Imperial space. Deploying her forces in a complex web of interlocking positions throughout the Vy'las, Mets'ah, and Aso'da Systems, she began a Kauyon-style campaign on an interstellar scale. She planned to use this strategy to blunt the Greenskins' momentum and crush the threat they posed to the continuance of the Fifth Sphere Expansion.
Chamber Militant - Chamber Militant: A Chamber Militant is the formal name given by the Adeptus Terra to the military arm of each of the three major branches or "ordos" of the Imperial Inquisition, the secret police and intelligence division of the Imperium of Man.The Ordo Xenos (Alien Hunters) is served by the Deathwatch Space Marines, the Ordo Malleus (Daemonhunters) by the elite  and highly secret Grey Knights Chapter of Astartes and the Ordo Hereticus (Witchhunters) by the Orders Militant of the Adepta Sororitas, better known as the Sisters of Battle.Usually, these organisations are only called upon by their respective ordo in cases of dire need, when all other options to deal with a given situation have been exhausted.For example, the Grey Knights are called upon only when a daemonic infestation has grown to the point that the efforts of a lone Inquisitor and their chosen Acolytes and other agents can no longer contain it.Inquisitors also often make use of specially-trained units of elite Storm Troopers, known as Inquisitorial Storm Troopers.Some regional Inquisitorial conclaves in various sectors of Imperial space also appear to have their own unique, dedicated military forces to draw upon, such as the the Stormwatchers Space Marine Chapter who are the "sanctioned blades" of the Caligari Conclave.
Chamber of the Astronomican - Chamber of the Astronomican: The Chamber of the Astronomican lies at the heart of the Forbidden Fortress in the Himalazian (Himalayan) Mountains on Terra that serves as the headquarters of the Adeptus Astronomica and is the seat of the Astronomican beacon itself.It is filled by 10,000 psykers specially chosen to power the Astronomican with their life forces,  all known as "the Chosen," so that the Emperor of Mankind can calibrate and direct it across the galaxy to serve as a pole star for long-distance FTL travel through the Warp by the Imperium's starship Navigators.The chamber itself is a massive sphere located within a single peak often referred to as the "Hollow Mountain." The peak has been resculpted into a great dome to form the upper half of the sphere which comprised the chamber.Its entire inner surface is covered with ten thousand seats, with each seat facing the centre, where a great ball of psychic energy blazes in the air. The ball is created by the Chosen as they release their vital strength to power the Astronomican.This energy is then directed by the mind of the Emperor as a "psychic light," reaching across the vast stretches of the void for approximately 70,000 light years in a sphere around Holy Terra.Up to a thousand of the Chosen die every day to feed the Emperor's insatiable and growing hunger for psychic power. When they die, there are always more psykers ready to assume the honour.
Champion - Champion: A Company Champion is a consummate Space Marine warrior who is charged with defending the honour of his company, his Chapter and the Emperor of Mankind Himself.Usually the company's finest swordsman, a Company Champion engages the warlords and champions of the foe in single combat, leaving the company Captain free to conduct the wider battle, rather than engage in a series of personal combats.Company Champions serve key roles in the rituals and ceremonies of their Chapter, representing their Battle-Brothers in rites, rituals and mysterie just as they do in war.A Chapter Champion is the most skilled fighter of an Adeptus Astartes Chapter's Honour Guard. Wielding an energised blade in each hand, this superlative duellist is ready to challenge any enemy leader to single combat in his commander's stead, and all his training is bent to this goal.Such a singular display of martial superiority and devotion has been the salvation of more than one Chapter Master's life and turned the tide of countless battles.
Champion - History: It is believed that the first Company Champions were to be found in the ranks of the Space Marine Legions as they fought in the Emperor's Great Crusade during the late 30th Millennium. Although most records from this time were lost during the dark days of the Horus Heresy and the strife that followed, there are fragmentary reports of heroes armed with shining blades and clad in the mightiest suits of power armour who protected their liege lords, the primarchs and praetors of the Legions, on the field of battle.What is known is that when the Ultramarines primarch and Imperial Regent, Roboute Guilliman, came to break up the Legions and wrote the Codex Astartes in the early 31st Millennium –- the tenets of which still guide the organisation of the Adeptus Astartes ten millennia later – Company Champions were firmly established as part of every Chapter's structure.It is likely, given the great emphasis placed on personal honour within the Realm of Ultramar, that the concept of champions who protect the Masters of the Chapter originated within the XIII Legion, though none now can say for sure.
Champion - Champions at War: When Company Champions take to the battlefield, it is as part of a Command Squad, assigned to accompany a great hero of the Chapter. Most commonly, the Champion –- along with several other Veteran Battle-Brothers -- will fight alongside his company Captain, but he can also be seconded to the service of his company Chaplain or a member of the Librarius.The champion's role within the Command Squad is threefold. Firstly, and most obviously, he is an avatar of war, bringing death to the foe with blade and bolt. Often, his commander will need to focus on the wider battle, manoeuvring forces to achieve victory, and the Company Champion will be tasked with his protection, ensuring that any enemy who seeks to harm the Captain, Librarian or Chaplain meets their end, spitted on an energy-wreathed sword.The Company Champion also acts as counsellor to his commander. While his focus is on martial skill and strength of arms, the Champion's insight is often invaluable, giving his commander a different perspective on the unfolding events on the battlefield. The Champion's knowledge of martial styles can often inspire interesting tactical options that a Captain or Chaplain may not have considered.The third -- and arguably most important -- role of a Company Champion in war is to act as his commander's second. While they are technically outside the chain of command and outranked by Lieutenants and Sergeants, Company Champions are veterans of hundreds of battles and have often served at the side of their Captain for longer than any other Astartes.Should they fail in their duty to protect their commander, a Company Champion will often be looked to to provide leadership and ensure that the Captain's plan is carried out, his duty completed. This is a great burden, for should the battle be lost, the Champion will have failed twice, both to protect his liege and to fulfil his fallen commander’s duty – dishonouring them both.Few Company Champions have ever failed in this way, and those who have often choose to stand down from their position and take up the role of a penitent in whatever way their Chapter Master sees fit, be it returning to the ranks as a simple Battle-Brother, or embarking upon a dangerous and almost certainly suicidal mission in an attempt to redeem their honour.
Champion - Ceremonial Duties: All Space Marine Chapters have ceremonies and traditions that go back terran centuries or millennia to their Founding. These are often accompanied by rites and rituals in which the Chapter's Chaplains lead the Battle-Brothers.There are as many different such traditions as there are Space Marine Chapters, and they will usually revolve around significant events -- the recruitment of new warriors for the Chapter, movement between companies or promotions to higher ranks. Among the duties of Company Champions is the representation of their own company during such rituals where multiple companies are involved.For example, the Crimson Fists have a ceremonial blooding for any warrior who moves from one company to another, where the Champions of both the Battle-Brother's old and new companies perform a mock combat, with ritual steps that represent an honour-duel that Rogal Dorn is said to have performed with each of the Imperial Fists Legion Captains who left to command new Chapters in the Second Founding.One of the better-known ceremonial duties for Champions from many Imperial Fists Successor Chapters is to represent their brothers at the Feast of Blades, a great ritual combat that takes place at least once a Terran century. Each of the Chapters formed from Dorn's bloodline nominates a champion, usually chosen from amongst the Company Champions, competing for glory and the right to host the next Feast.It is a great honour to be chosen to represent the Chapter, and those who are frequently find that their Chapter Master has an eye on them for promotion in the near future.
Champion - Selection: The Champion of each company is chosen very carefully, for his skill in battle may be the difference between life and death for his Captain, and therefore between victory or defeat in battle. Company Champions are rarely warriors of rank; those with the skill to command their fellow Space Marines in battle are better utilised as squad Sergeants or Captains.Instead, Champions are chosen for their skill at arms. By the strictures laid down in the Codex Astartes, it takes an act of great personal valour for a Space Marine to be considered for the role of Company Champion, as well as a demonstrated record of humility where others strive for personal glory. Such warriors must always keep the safety of their commander uppermost in their mind, even as they match blades with the deadliest of foes.Different Chapters, however, choose their Champions in different ways. The Silver Skulls cleave strongly to the visions of their Prognosticars, who see those marked for greatness and sequester them away to be trained in the arts of duelling until their very body is a weapon, every instinct honed to a razor edge.The Imperial Fists and many of their Successor Chapters hold great tournaments whenever a Company Champion dies, where any warrior of the company may compete to take up the mantle of the fallen hero and represent their Captain. Few sons of Rogal Dorn can resist such an opportunity, and many friendly grudges result from these tournaments, spurring unsuccessful Battle-Brothers on to ever greater feats of valour on the field of battle.It is even whispered that among the Mortifactors, the warrior who hunts and slays the killer of a former Company Champion and takes the foe's skull will be named as the new Champion. It is said that such hunts have taken Battle-Brothers of the Mortifactors as far afield as the hidden city of the piratical Drukhari and into the depths of the Eye of Terror itself.It is true that when the Mortificators march to war, their Captains often go unaccompanied by a Champion, lending credence to such wild-seeming rumours.
Champion - Power Weapons: Company Champions must always be prepared to engage their foes in single combat, and so are typically equipped with some of the finest arms and Power Armour to be found in the Chapter vaults.The primary close combat weapon for many Company Champions is a master-crafted Power Sword, accompanied by a Bolt Pistol for ranged combat and Frag and Krak Grenades, though this is by no means universal.The Champions of the Stone Hearts Chapter, for example, are known to have a preference for heavy maces or mauls, reflecting the culture of their homeworld, where such weapons, crafted from stone and hardened wood, are used in ritual combats to decide the hierarchy of local clans. When these bludgeons are recreated in adamantium and equipped with energy fields, they are vicious weapons, capable of knocking an enemy’s head from his shoulders or crashing through armour plate.The Clan-Champions of the Storm Lords, on the other hand, have been seen to emulate their progenitors in the White Scars Chapter by making use of long, diamond-tipped lances wreathed in shimmering energy fields, preferring to destroy their target with a single decisive strike, though these warriors keep powered tulwars as secondary weapons for the rare occasions when an enemy survives their initial attack.Even amongst those Champions who make use of swords, there is near-infinite variety. From nimble duelling rapiers to heavy-bladed claymores, there is no type of blade wielded by human hands that has not been used by a Company Champion somewhere in the Imperium. Each Champion strives to completely master his chosen fighting style, training with his blade and shield to the exclusion of all else, the better to defend his Captain and uphold the honour of his Chapter.When different Chapters come together in a theatre of war, it is common for Company Champions from the forces involved to come together to fight duels and learn from each others' fighting styles and preferences.Many weapons and combat styles that originate from one world have spread across the Imperium in this way, and it is not uncommon for Chapters that have never fought alongside one another before to find that their Company Champions have surprisingly similar methods of waging war.
Champion - Combat Shields: Regardless of their preferred weaponry, Company Champions are trained duellists and make use of many techniques handed down by skilled combatants since time immemorial, and codified in Roboute Guilliman's great work. Their role as defender of their Captain, as well as a hunter-killer, means that they often carry a Combat Shield to accompany their blade.Small bucklers that are typically affixed to the forearm, Combat Shields are equipped with a less powerful version of the energy field found in the Storm Shields of Terminators, and Company Champions train tirelessly to make best use of this extra defence.The Codex Astartes outlines three main uses for a Combat Shield in a duel: Firstly, the shield can be used to deflect blows. The Combat Shield's small size and energy field make its primary purpose to intercept and parry an enemy's strike, allowing the Company Champion to deliver a riposte.Second, the shield can hide and protect the sword hand. By angling his Combat Shield correctly, the Company Champion can both protect his sword hand from enemy blows and hide it from their view, allowing him the element of surprise as the foe struggles to anticipate his next strike.Whilst a few Chapters -- typically those whose view of war is more brutal and straightforward -- eschew this style of fighting, seeing it as dishonourable, most Company Champions are happy to have this technique in their arsenal.Finally, the Combat Shield can be used by the Astartes to direct attacks. While not nearly as effective as a blade or a Bolter, a strong strike with a Combat Shield at the right moment can knock an opponent off-balance, or even more if the power field makes contact with bare flesh. Many an overeager enemy has found themselves at the mercy of a Company Champion after being felled by an unexpected jolt of energy from a Combat Shield.Many other techniques have been developed over the ages by particularly inventive or daring Champions. Whilst many of these remain in use within just one Chapter, handed down from weapons-master to warrior across generations, many have spread across Chapters that have fought in the same war zones, and some have even made it back to Macragge, there to be enshrined in the addenda to the Codex Astartes, held within the Library of Ptolemy.
Champion - Company Champion: A Company Champion wields the following wargear as standard:Curadh Pattern Artificer ArmourBolt PistolMaster-Crafted Power SwordCombat ShieldFrag GrenadesKrak Grenades
Champion - Chapter Champion: A Chapter Champion wields the following wargear as standard:Artificer ArmourChampion's BladePower SwordFrag GrenadesKrak Grenades
Champion - Armour: While many suits of Space Marine Power Armour are as old as the Imperium itself, handed down from Battle-Brother to Battle-Brother, repaired and refitted a hundred times or more, Company Champions are given a unique honour. Upon ascension to the role, a newly-appointed Champion has a bespoke suit of armour crafted for them.When a Champion eventually falls, should his body and armour be recovered, it is preserved and displayed with great honour in the Chapter reliquaries, every plate of the armour etched in remembrance of the hero's many victories. Thus are the deeds of each and every Company Champion commemorated for all time.The standard pattern of Champion armour -- known informally as Curadh Pattern variant armour, after a title for heroes in ancient Terran -- is laid down in the Codex Astartes. Based loosely upon the design of the Mark VII Aquila Pattern battle-plate, the Curadh Pattern variant comes with additional reinforcement upon the shoulder guards, designed both to display the many badges of honour a Company Champion is entitled to wear and to provide greater protection.A similarly reinforced breastplate is often emblazoned with a winged shield. Uniquely amongst his Battle-Brothers, a Company Champion is entitled to bear personal heraldry. Many choose not to, but some commemorate particularly notable feats of valour by adding them to the shield upon their chests. Amongst the Ultramarines, it is also common for Champions of noble Ultramarran birth to display all or part of their family heraldry on their chest plate.The helms worn by Company Champions are often designed to echo knightly helms of old, as seen in fragments of ancient tapestries and the tattered remnants of illuminated manuscripts. While little is remembered from these long-lost times, it is known that medieval knights from Terra's ancient past were chivalrous individuals dedicated to the defence of the innocent -- ideals that Company Champions are seen to represent.
Champion - Chapter Variant Titles for Company Champion: ChapterVariant TitlesExcoriatorsCompany ScourgeGrey KnightsBrotherhood ChampionIron HandsClan ChampionSpace WolvesGreat Company Champion
Champion Consul - Champion Consul: A Champion Consul served as the Champion of the Legiones Astartes during the Great Crusade and Horus Heresy. The bygone Legion rank of Consul was often granted to a Centurion and collectively they were referred to as the Legiones Consularis in High Gothic, although this covered many different ranks and specialties.Consuls served as both officers of the line and specialists in every conceivable doctrine of war. A Champion Consul's sworn task was to hunt down and slay the commanders and heroes of an enemy force in single combat. Armed with the finest weapons available, these deadly warriors embodied the honour of their Legion.
Champion Consul - History: The origins of the position of Champion Consul are believed to harken back to the early years of the Emperor's Great Crusade during the late 30th Millennium. Although most records from this time were lost during the dark days of the Horus Heresy and the strife that followed, there are fragmentary reports of heroes armed with shining blades and clad in the mightiest suits of power armour who protected their liege lords, the primarchs and praetors of the Legions, on the field of battle.A Legion Champion's sworn task was to hunt down and slay the commanders and heroes of an enemy force in single combat. Armed with the finest weapons available to his Legion, these deadly warriors embodied the honour of their Legion. During the Horus Heresy, the following were the most common types of Champion Consuls encountered on the battlefield:Loyalist Champion Consul - Chosen from the best blades of their Legion, a Champion Consul bore the honour of their chapter or company in battle, and was armed and armoured in the finest panoply of war. Their sworn task was to seek out the foe's mightiest warriors, and slay them in glorious single combat. Such victories were a crushing blow to enemy morale, and an object lesson in their Legion's superiority. A Loyalist Champion Consul was a skilled duelist -- armed with a massive two-handed Paragon Blade, with a Combi-melta at their side. Their finely-wrought Artificer Armour often featured a flowing tabard, as well as a knightly gorget to guard against return blows. Medallions and decorative chains proclaimed the Consul Champion's many victories, marking him as a foe worthy of any challenger.Traitor Champion Consul - Those Champion Consuls pledged to the Traitor Legions served the same function as their counterparts in the Loyalist Legions but took great pleasure in cutting down any Loyalist lapdogs foolish enough to stand in their way. A Traitor Champion Consuls was a paragon of martial expertise and an expert in the art of dealing death to the followers of the False Emperor. They were armed with a deadly Paragon Blade for parrying blows and lopping off Loyalist heads while wielding a Volkite Serpenta to melt through enemy armour at range. The bulky and tough Artificer Armour worn by a Traitor Consul Champion was multi-layered, given even more protection, and was often adorned with the icon of the Eye of Horus, so there was no mistaking as to whose cause they fought for.
Champion Consul - Unit Composition: 1 Consul Champion
Champion Consul - Wargear: Artificer ArmourIron HaloParagon BladeBolt PistolMelta BombFrag GrenadesKrak Grenades
Champion Consul - Optional Wargear: Cataphractii Pattern Terminator ArmourAssorted Close Combat Weapon (Any type) (As replacement for a Paragon Blade)Combi-bolter (As replacement for Bolt Pistol)Volkite Serpenta (As replacement for Bolt Pistol)
Champion Consul - Notable Champion Consuls: Corswain - Champion of the Dark Angels, Corswain's name is one that echoes down through the ages. Exemplifying the qualities of stalwart determination and mastery of the blade, Corswain was the rising star amongst his brothers in the annals of the Great Crusade. His was the righteous path of the Paladin and being born of Caliban but not an ingrained scion of The Order, Corswain was uniquely placed to bridge the divisions within the Legion in its formative years under its primarch; a position recognised and put to good use by Lion El'Jonson. Under the Lion, Corswain would be groomed to serve not any one Host or Order within the I Legion, but to command the respect and knowledge of all. Even as the dust of the Age of Darkness settled, Corswain was remembered in such hallowed company as Raldoron, Chapter Master of the Blood Angels, for his level-headed and disciplined authority as a commander, and alongside Sigismund of the Imperial Fists for his relentlessness in the heat of battle.Sigismund - Sigismund was a name that echoed through the Great Crusade even before the darkness of the Horus Heresy made him the stuff of legends. Born on Terra and raised to the Legiones Astartes as the Great Crusade was at its height, he ascended in rank and renown thanks to a simple fact: he was a warrior of unparalleled lethality and ability. Beneath the primarchs, there has, perhaps, never been a more skilled warrior in combat. Across the battlefields of hundreds of worlds and the duelling floors of every Legion, he was never defeated. The fire of the crusader always burned brightly in him, and if one warrior could embody the Great Crusade's spirit of noble conquest it was Sigismund. Those who faced him in the circle of blades, or stood beside him in battle, speak of a fury shackled by an iron will and an inherent genius for dealing death that bordered on the supernatural. It was this skill and fire that brought Sigismund to command the Templars of the Imperial Fists' 1st Company, and the most exalted position in the Imperial Fists beneath Rogal Dorn himself.
Champion Consul - Sources: The Horus Heresy - Book One: Betrayal (Forge World Series), pp. 109, 115, 191, 237The Horus Heresy - Book Three: Extermination (Forge World Series), pg. 270Warhammer: The Horus Heresy Second Edition - Liber Astartes (Specialty Game), pp. 23, 108, 146, 166-167, 236-237, 310Warhammer: The Horus Heresy Second Edition - Liber Hereticus (Specialty Game), pp. 23, 108, 146Warhammer Community - Sunday Preview: Loyalist Champion Consul (20 Aug 23)Warhammer Community - Forge World Pre-orders – This Loyalist Champion is a One-man Praetor-killing Machine (25 Aug 23)Warhammer Community - Heresy Thursday – Put Loyalist Weaklings to the Sword With the Traitor Champion Consul (14 Sept 23)Warhammer Webstore - Loyalist Champion ConsulWarhammer Webstore - Traitor Champion Consul
Champion of Chaos - Champion of Chaos: A Champion of Chaos, also styled as a Chaos Champion, is an individual who has dedicated his or her life to further the cause of a particular patron Chaos God, or Chaos as a whole in the form of Chaos Undivided. He or she is either an extremely powerful warrior, such as a Chaos Space Marine, or a psychic Chaos Sorcerer.Chaos is attractive for the simple reason that it offers enormous power to those willing to turn away from the light of the Emperor and dedicate themselves in body and soul to the Ruinous Powers.For many who walk its dark path, it offers the only hope of betterment in a galaxy ruled by an often oppressive Human Imperium where opportunities for true happiness and advancement are the prerogatives of only a tiny, privileged minority, and where the only escape from literal starvation or persecution by an uncaring bureaucracy lies in the egalitarian favours of Chaos.For unlike the Imperium of Man and so many of the other servants of order in the galaxy, Chaos judges its devotees on merit and skill alone and rewards them for their successes or failures harshly, but fairly.In fact, many of those who champion the Dark Gods would claim that only Chaos offers true justice to the peoples bound into the corrupt and dying realm ruled over by the Corpse Emperor.
Champion of Chaos - The Road to Power: The road to power begins by first offering body and soul to Chaos: either to an individual Chaos God or to Chaos Undivided. Not all who choose to so dedicate themselves are accepted by the Ruinous Powers, who truly only want the elite of mortals in their service as their Champions.Often it takes a spectacular deed of courage to attract the attention of the Ruinous Powers. If the candidate is accepted by a Chaos God or Chaos Undivided, he or she receives a Mark of Chaos from their Chaos patron. This is the patron Chaos God's own Mark or the Mark of Chaos Undivided, and each mark confers some supernatural ability or physical characteristic.Once a Champion receives their Mark they begin to attract followers from the lesser servants of Chaos including mortals and even Daemons if the Champion proves powerful and successful enough. The Chaos Gods use their Champions to further their aims in the material universe. The Champion's life becomes an endless series of battles, raids and quests to serve the interests of the Ruinous Powers.As the Champion serves Chaos they become increasingly physically altered through mutational "gifts" granted by their patron. The road to power ends eventually either in the Champion being reduced to a mindless and formless Chaos Spawn due to persistent failures or ascension to daemonhood as an immortal and powerful Daemon Prince as a reward for success.All Chaos Champions are mortal and can be killed, although this is always a dangerous undertaking as they are exceedingly powerful foes. A Chaos Champion's followers are known as a Chaos warband. Warbands are deadly rivals to each other, often combatting each other to gain the attention of their patron Chaos Gods.Even followers of the same Chaos God are rivals for their patron's fickle favour. Sometimes shaky alliances are formed between the warbands of extremely powerful Champions. The truly successful Champions of Chaos are ultimately rewarded with immortality and are elevated to the rank of Daemon Prince and given control over their own Daemon World within the Warp.
Champion of Chaos - Aspiring Champion: The most common form of Chaos Champion found among Chaos warbands, the Aspiring Champion leads squads of Chaos Space Marines, including the Chosen, Raptors and Havoc Squads, or warbands of Human Heretics and Chaos Cultists, and usually pledges their loyalty to a more powerful Chaos Lord.
Champion of Chaos - Terminator Champion: Terminator Champions are those Aspiring Champions of the Heretic Astartes who have somehow acquired a suit of Tactical Dreadnought Armour, often through killing the previous owner themselves. Terminator Champions are the leaders of the rare Chaos Terminators.
Champion of Chaos - Possessed Champion: Possessed Champions are the leaders of the Possessed, mortal psykers or Heretic Astartes who have been possessed by a Daemon of the Warp. Possessed Champions are often possessed by a powerful Daemon and horribly mutated by the Daemon's presence beyond even the mutational "gifts" granted to their fellow Chaos devotees by the Ruinous Powers.
Champion of Chaos - Plague Champion: Plague Champions serve as the Death Guard Traitor Legion's Plague Marine squad leaders. A Plague Champion is often the most horribly disease-infested individual in the unit as well as the toughest to defeat and the most dedicated to the service of the Plague Lord, Nurgle.
Champion of Chaos - Noise Champion: Noise Champions are the most dedicated Chaos Champions of Slaanesh and the leaders of the Emperor's Children Traitor Legion's Noise Marine squads. Noise Champions commonly brandish rare sonic weaponry unavailable to most other Chaos Space Marines.
Champion of Chaos - Skull Champion: Skull Champions are the leaders of the World Eaters Traitor Legion's Khornate Berserker squads and are seen as the members of the unit who are the most bloodthirsty and devoted to the Blood God Khorne, as well as the most skilled berserker in the squad.
Champion of Chaos - Aspiring Sorcerer: Aspiring Sorcerers are apprentice sorcerers still in training to become a full-fledged Chaos Sorcerer; Aspiring Sorcerers are the leaders of the Thousand Sons Traitor Legion's squads of Rubricae and the especial devotees of the Lord of Change, Tzeentch.
Champion of Chaos - Biker Champion: As the name implies, Biker Champions are the leaders of Chaos Space Marine Assault Bike squadrons, and they are usually extremely bloodthirsty and obsessed with speed.
Champion of Chaos - Chaos Lords: The greatest Champions of Chaos are called "Chaos Lords" and these individuals are often aligned with one of the four Chaos Gods and become the mightiest Champions of their chosen deity.Often this status grants them a measure of the power of their patron god, including mutations and greater resilience, enhanced strength and psychic abilities.
Champion of Chaos - Champion of Khorne: The most bloodthirsty and savage fighters in the galaxy, Champions of Khorne lust after the spilling of blood and the roar of battle to satisfy their own murderous cravings and the desires of the Blood God Khorne.They are experts in many melee weapon forms which others could not master, yet Khornate Champions do not fight in a graceful manner, preferring instead to bludgeon their way through a large number of enemies, Chainaxe in hand. Only the greatest battles can sate these Chaos Lords' endless thirst for blood and death.Champions of Khorne scorn all psykers like their patron god and particularly enjoy slaying Chaos Sorcerers.
Champion of Chaos - Champion of Nurgle: Disease and death are the most potent forces in the galaxy and the Champion of Nurgle embodies all of these. These Chaos Lords are swollen and bloated, often little more than moving sacks of pus and infectious diseases. Their bodies have been dulled to pain and as such can endure immense amounts of damage before they die.
Champion of Chaos - Champion of Slaanesh: Desire is a powerful emotion and the Dark Prince Slaanesh is the embodiment of all desire, with his Champions revelling in their pleasures. They take joy from the ending of life on the battlefield, a perverse pleasure for which the desire is constantly increased.The senses of the Champion of Slaanesh are increased beyond Human recognition and their minds are so fast to react that they fight in a blur which many enemies cannot even see, let alone defend against. As a result, Slaaneshi Champions are often the greatest swordsmen in the galaxy.
Champion of Chaos - Champion of Tzeentch: Potent psykers and Chaos Sorcerers make up the ranks of the mortal followers of Tzeentch, and his most potent servants in realspace are his Champions. The enhanced psychic powers Tzeentch grants his Champions allows them to project Warp-based abilities which no loyal follower of the Emperor would dream of unleashing.Champions of Tzeentch often wear charms and pendants to protect themselves from the Daemonic powers of the Immaterium; although the dangers are lessened because of their service to the Lord of Change even Chaos Lords fear the entities of the Warp. Often the Champion is merely a pawn in one of the endless larger schemes of Tzeentch, but useful pawns are often the best protected by the Changer of Ways.
Champion of Chaos - Unit Composition: 1 Exalted Champion
Champion of Chaos - Exalted Champion Wargear: Bolt PistolChainswordFrag GrenadesKrak GrenadesCombi-weapon (Any type, replacement for Bolt Pistol)Plasma Pistol (Replacement for Bolt Pistol or Chainsword)Chainaxe (Replacement for Bolt Pistol or Chainsword)Chainsword (Replacement for Bolt Pistol or Chainsword)Lightning Claw (Replacement for Bolt Pistol or Chainsword)Power Fist (Replacement for Bolt Pistol or Chainsword)Power Maul (Replacement for Bolt Pistol or Chainsword)Power Weapon (Any type, replacement for Bolt Pistol or Chainsword)
Champions of Thanatos - Champions of Thanatos: The Champions of Thanatos is a Loyalist Space Marine Chapter of unknown genetic origins and Founding.
Champions of Thanatos - Chapter Colours: The Champions of Thanatos primarily wear black power armour. The insets of the shoulder pauldrons are bone. The Aquila or Imperialis on the chest is yellow.The black squad tactical specialty symbol -- battleline, close support, fire support, Veteran or command -- is indicated on the right shoulder pauldron. A white High Gothic numeral centred on the squad specialty symbol indicates squad number.The colour of the shoulder pauldron trim indicates company number in accordance with the Codex Astartes -- i.e. white (1st Company), yellow (2nd Company), red (3rd Company), etc.
Champions of Thanatos - Chapter Badge: The Champions of Thanatos' Chapter badge is a large, white skull with stylised, black wings protruding from its sides, centred over a pair of crossed ebon scythes, on a field of bone.
Chancer's Vale - Chancer's Vale: Chancer's ValeImperialThe world's primary export is salt evaporated from the world's seas by its slum-dwelling population. The world's people were so desperate that they became easy targets for the spread of a particularly pernicious Genestealer Cult, the Pauper Princes.Though still formally controlled by the Imperium of Man, Chancer's Vale is now ruled by the Pauper Princes in all but name.