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Index Astartes The Void Vultures "For the Emperor. For Sanguinius. For every last citizen we spill blood for. Dine upon their flesh! Feast upon their marrow! Let none of them survive! In the name of Sanguinius, death! Death! Let all blood fly!!" ~ Commander Donal, previous Chapter Master of the Void Vultures. The Chapter known as the "Void Vultures" ("Gypaetus Astra" in High Gothic), also known as the "Vultures of Ochim", Void Vermilion, and the Eaters of the Dead are a group of berserk, cannibalistic warriors hailing from a barbaric planet. Origins They were once known as the Vermilion Wings Chapter. One of the 23rd Founding. The High Lords of Terra found one area of space on the Eastern Fringe to be unprotected, within the Oshim system, and under constant threat of being invaded by the Greenskins. A petition had been signed, and the creation was underway. A training cadre was created from the Red Wings Chapter, and Mars had forged them a number of ships, arms and armor to begin with. The Brother-Captain Saon, formerly of the Red Wings, was put in charge of this cadre while a larger force of Red Wings space marines led the fight into the Oshim system. Within they had discovered that the Orks were terrorizing the Imperial planets in the sector. The entire system was in chaos. From the Battle Barge Angel’s Flame, Saon sent his cadre to several worlds, alongside the large force of Red Wings space marines who had come in with their own small fleet, retaking the worlds from the Orks. The final battle against the Orks was upon the planet Callisto, where Saon did battle with the Ork warboss. The warboss was defeated within a massive desert valley in the largest battle of the campaign. Callisto, and the Oshim system had been conquered. Saon was named the first Chapter Master. The system’s local Techpriests began construction on the new Fortress Monastery on Callisto. Whilst the Fortress Monastery was being built, the newly formed Vermilion Wings used the Angel’s Flame as a base of operations. After a Puritan Inquisitor had discovered that the Astartes on Callisto were engaging in cannibalistic rituals they had deemed heretical after investigating the disappearance of several Imperial nobles and governors, along with an Inquisitor, they stormed the Feudal World en-masse with a full detachment of Tempestus Scions and Astra Militarum. After several days of fighting, the Marines made a final retreat from their home, leaving its fate to the Inquisition. The barbarian and medieval inhabitants that made up the Planetary Defense Forces who fought the Inquisitorial forces using guerrilla tactics were made into a penal legion, sent out to various fronts across the galaxy. The Chapter then took on the name Void Vultures. They became renegades, running from the Imperium that they fought for, losing many along the way. They hid within the fleet of a rogue trader of the Everec Dynasty for many decades. They have since reclaimed their homeworld after aiding Baal during the Tyranid incursion and participating in the Indomitus Crusade fighting the Tyranids and the forces of Chaos. Home World Callisto is a temperate Feudal World located in the Ochim Sector. The world is mostly swamps and bogs, snow-capped mountains and gnarled forests in the north and desert wastelands with a few jungles in the south. One vast ocean could be found in the northern hemisphere, inhabited by fishing communities. The ancient fortress monastery of the Void Vultures was built in a wasteland full of Ork and Imperial wrecks leftover from the first engagement in the sector. The Astartes mainly recruited from the various barbarian tribes found throughout the desert region and the various mountainous regions that surrounded it. Fortress Monastery The Fortress Monastery of the Void Vultures is known as The Spire, a vast castle complex within the wasteland where they first battled the Orks on Callisto, still surrounded by wrecks and ruins. The insides are lined with the bones of dead battle-brothers. Organization Each company is made up of one hundred marines each, and led by a brother-captain. The first company is made of veterans and Terminators, the tenth are entirely made of neophytes, and the rest are full of a mixture of assault, devastator and tactical marines. Beliefs They have embraced the fact that, even though that Astartes are by far much longer than the average human citizen, the vast majority of them die in battle. Due to their curse, they all expect to die in battle one day, and sometimes entire forces are wiped out if only to hold the line to the last man. But they pay love and respect for their fallen. Once a battle is finished, they collect their dead, and lay them out in rows, and then devour their flesh. This horrific act will give them the memories of those who have passed on, and will sometimes rarely give them a brief glimpse at the memories of Sanguinius due to their hyper-sensitive Omophagea organ. The only ones allowed to eat the body of a fallen brother are those within his own squad. Before the body is consumed, a servitor sucks out the blood of the marine through a giant needle. This blood is put within the Pool of Remembrance. The Pool of Remembrance is a vast underwater lake within the Angel's Flame full of the blood of every dead battle brother, it is unknown what keeps the blood warm. When an initiate is first taken aboard, they must take a ritual bath for some time within the Pool, so that they may become one with their brothers before entering the chapter in-full. Once a battle is over, and their own dead are separated from the enemy's dead, they cook and consume the flesh of their enemies in a great ritualistic feast. If a battle-brother is caught devouring a Chaos warrior, he is brought to a chaplain, who will put him out of his insane misery. They will also transport the bones of the fallen back to the Angel's Flame, where they would be put within the Fortress Monastery to decorate the corridors lined with bones. They see themselves as servants of the Imperium, but being renegades, they fight battles on their terms, for whatever reasons that they deem worthy. Combat Doctrine The Void Vultures fight with a tendency towards aggressive assault actions using mobile forces, along with guerrilla warfare and surprise attacks. They make a heavy usage of scout squads to do recon after making landfall and use little in the way of vehicles. Recruitment The Void Vultures recruit from the various tribal and feudal societies on their homeworld of Callisto. Those who do not pass the requirements for joining generally help the Chapter as serfs. Gene-seed They have a hypersensitive Omophagea organ. This, mixed with the Red Thirst, makes them bloodthirsty killing machines on the battlefield. They will stop at nothing to get as close to the enemy as possible, and rip their hearts out and, if possible, devour it in front of their enemy. After a battle is done, they will build a camp and cook their enemies, then dine upon their flesh. Usually this is done in secret. This flaw appeared not long after they were created. Even in the earliest days of the Oshim campaign, the newly-made marines were found tearing off their helmets and ripping into grots after a victory and devouring them raw, along with eating anything that died, civilians, battle-brothers, and enemies. This was first thought to have been just the Red Thirst, but Sanguinary Priests of the chapter have discovered otherwise. Within months they had learned to control themselves to an extent. Regardless, whereas the Blood Angels are noble warriors, the Void Vultures are vicious monsters in comparison. Battle-cry ”Let all blood fly!”