A Non-Bonkers Crazy Khorne Warband

[Crystal Geyser]

As a follower of Chaos, I've noticed a disappointingly high propensity for Khrone warbands to follow the same patterns - blood-crazed, minndless berserkers. In so, I have written fluff for a Khornate renegade chapter that breaks from this trend a little - who knows, I may develop it into an army. C&C would be helpful, any suggestions of tings you'd like to see can be ncluded, including differnet characters, units, tactics, and a color shceme - please someone give me a color scheme for these kids!

 

Here it goes:

 

 

WENDIGOS CHAPTER, CURSED OF KHORNE

http://images.dakkadakka.com/gallery/2012/6/12/376818_md-.jpg

HISTORY

 

Originally a proud successor Chapter of the White Scars, the Wendigos were characterized by their unusual proficiency for stealth tactics and patience, in contrast to the lightning assaults and bike-supported raiding tactics preference shared by their brethren. The Wendigos hypothesized that through patience and cunning, any hunt could be successfully achieved. Their battle record in this manor was no deterrent, as they had claimed many proud victories over the millennia through their operations. One notable example that would have lived forever in the annals of the Imperium should the Wendigos had not fallen from grace was the assault on the fortress of Goreripper, the self-named daemonic leader of a Khornate warband. The Wendigos, called to the planet in aid by their predecessor White Scars, began a short distraction campaign that consisted of carefully misdirecting Goreripper’s forces. Troupes of traitor Space Marines were led away from their fellows and brutally cut down, their defiled corpses left on display in strategically selected zones. Over a few weeks Goreripper was convinced that the new element was stationed in the ruins of a destroyed city, the corpses of Khorne’s favored hanging as testament. Goreripper led the charge into the ruins, and was dismayed when his blood-crazed berserkers met not the rapidly approaching bike squadrons of the White Scars, but the heavy artillery of the Wendigos. While Goreripper watched his warband torn to shreds by devastator squads and predator tanks, he received a distress call from his first captain, Boraz. As he flew to aid Boraz, his own platoon already lost, his first sight was of the Wendigos Chief Librarian, eyes alight with witchfire, animating the severed head of Boraz like a puppeteer and mimicking his voice over the vox-leads. A drop pod containing a Thunderfire cannon descended into Goreripper’s path and annihilated the daemon prince before he had even time to precess his mistake. As he lay dying, Goreripper prayed to Khorne to damn these deceitful heathen, who cowered from their foes behind a line of gunfire and used witchery t deceive and squander the honor of their foes. And Khorne answered.

 

Months later, the Wendigos began experiencing strange mutations. Spikes of bone, horns, and teeth erupted from their flesh, and the Wendigos were stricken with an unquenchable appetite. Seeking meat, some Wendigos were driven to devour the flesh of their brethren, and realized it was the only substance that would provide sustenance. The howling, gibbering cannibals took to the field of battle, but many fell as a result of sudden failure of their enhanced physiology. Apothecarion studies on the cadavers revealed that the Chapter’s gene-seed was degrading at an alarming rate, to the degree where eventually the extra organs would rupture in the heat of battle. Upon examination, however, the corpses of those who had the chance to feed on the flesh of their foes were seemingly in good condition. There was only one conclusion – for the Chapter to remain proficient, the only option was to feed. Thus began the horrific practice of mid-battle feasting, as the Wendigos adapted their tactics so that they could safely feed on their kills in the heat of battle, ensuring victory. And the Blood God looked down at his punished children, and let out a fiery cackle in contentedness.

 

In the 41st Millennium, the Wendigos have been declared outcasts from the Imperium, earning themselves the title of Excommunicate Traitoris. A wandering fleet of ghost ships, the Wendigos are driven by one desire – to horde and devour corpses to entertain their further combats. To do this, they will fight anyone – followers of the Emperor, xenos, and even the forces of Chaos . They are reluctant to form alliances, but will do so if no other alternative arises. These alliances usually consist of the formidable combat prowess of the Wendigos, in return for the corpses of the slain – enemies and allies alike. The Wendigos possess a taboo against devouring their own, however – the augmentations and gene-seed of a Space Marine are rare, and it is easy for them to become lost should a blood-crazed battle borther fall upon their remains.

 

TACTICS

 

Prior to their split from the Imperium, the Wendigos employed a mixture of long-ranged and stealth tactics. This has carried over to their current state, and the Wendigos maintain a loosely organized structure of three companies – the Claws, the Teeth, and the Shroud. Each company is overseen by a division of the Chapter Headquarters. Combat squads of the Teeth make daily prayers to Khorne in return for improved prowess in the following battle. These brothers are the ones afflicted with the strongest bloodlust.

 

The second subdivision of the Chapter are the Claws. Claw squadrons are made up of long-rage devastators and vehicle accompaniments. The Claw is overseen by the Wendigos’ Techmarines, who take only the least crazed battle brothers into their ranks. Originally the Claw was overseen by Chapter Librarians, but Khorne hates psykers and so his new subjects butchered all of the chapter's witches. Techmarines work in tandem with the Claw, modifying suits of hallowed Terminator armor to wield more ranged weapons and essentially serve the roles of walking artillery units. It is a great punishment to be inducted into the ranks of the Claw, as it is a symbol of cowardice in the eyes of Khorne. Such warriors are nervous to ever take to the field of close combat again, for fear that Khorne will strike them down for their impunity. The role of havocs in the Claw is to provide covering fire for the Teeth assault contingents in battle, as a heavy fusillade is screening fire is necessary so that the Teeth can feats upon their kills, if only taking a few gory mouthfuls for a few seconds before it is time for the Claws to reload.

 

The final division of the Wendigos was codified as the Shroud but has been disbanded on account of their cowardly tactics. Every so often a corpse of a former Shroud member, now inducted into another company, will turn up impaled upon a spike in battle or will find his own fellows tearing into his flesh, should the Shroud brother attempt any other tactic than the ones involving a chainaxe.

 

NOTABLE INDIVIDUALS

 

Father Achak – The impromptu commander and spiritual leader of the Chapter, Father Achak is the foremost Blood Cleric and personal overseer of the chapter’s Teeth company. Clad in his antlered skull helmet he looks out on his legions of bloodstained maddened soldiers and cannot help but feel emboldened by the ruin his chapter has fallen to. He leads them through prayers and sermons laden with skulls, chants, sacrifices and dark idols, Achak fully gives his heart to Khorne and is constantly feasting on the flesh of his former brothers, the Space Marines of the Emperor.

 

Forge-Master Atunowhiho – nicknamed “the one who lives below” due to his fondness for his secluded forge, Forge-Master Atunowhiho is the head techmarine of the Claw company. Responsible for the maintenance of the Chapter’s many suits of armor and vehicles, Atunowhiho is infamous for his radical genius and deviousness when it comes to the matters of the machine. Having fathered numerous new and heretical patterns of cornerstone APCs such as the Rhino and Razorback, his most effective creation is the destructive Annihilator armor, a suit of terminator armor modified to carry a payload of cannons, melta weapons, and flamers. Atunowhiho himself goes into battle clad in Annihilator armor, his spider-like servo-harness bristling with plasma cannons, melta-cutters and heavy flamers.

 

Apothecary Qaletaqa – Operating alongside Father Achak in his hopes to find a cure, Qaletaqa’s studies revolve around finding the perfect meat, a substance that he feels will heighten the chapter's performance like no other. Qalteqa’s insistence on the discovery of such flesh was almost lost – in his dedication to the Blood God, he digested all manner of poisonous alien meats that were even too much for his enhanced physiology to cope with. Having been stricken ill by the constant tampering off his own genome and body, he was entombed within a dreadnought sarcophagus. This break from White Scars tradition is viewed as a necessary evil - if the Chapter is to survive, Qualetaqa's continued existence is necessary. Unlike most Chaos Dreadnoughts he does not lament his unloving condition – moreover, he celebrates it, with his sarcophagus cogitators modified to serve as an extensive databank of his medical research. In combat he is able to instantly log and organize data from his latest experiments, as willing Space Marines serving as test subject are analyzed in the heat of battle. He is a killing machine, his twin ceramite chainfists constantly drenched in blood.

 

Sergeant Megedagik – Megedagik revels as a true worshipper of Khorne, viewing the Brazen Lord as a liberator giving Megedagik free reign to practice his most favored art – death. A bloodstained champion killing, Megedagik is a tornado of destruction in battle, carving his way through foe after foe. No longer seen as a true member of the Chapter due to his habit for hunting own and butchering members of Claw while not in battle or bored, Achak has surrendered Megedagik to the whimsy of the apothecary dreadnought Qaletala, who feels free of conscience to experiment as he pleases on the former soldier. By some whimsy of the blood god, these experiments only increase Megedagik’s prowess – his mutations become more and more powerful and his adrenaline increased, always returning with larger and larger clusters of skulls for the Skull Throne. Sadly, the same substances never have the same effects on others, often poisoning or causing failure of the enhanced organs.

[Redemption2994]

Love it. Absolutely love it. It's extremely original and I could definitely believe something like this. I would love to see some models for this in the future. There's so much that could be done, from bases to poses, to gear. Huge thumbs up sir!

 

I am curious though, wouldn't it be kind of hard to feed such a large chapter? It would make a little more sense to me if they were a warband, or if there were groups who went on hunting parties to feed themselves while others waited for their turn in the meantime. The bartering for flesh and bodies is a pretty good solution as well. I believe the claw would probably be the hunters types.

 

Being that they are not a run of the mill Chapter of Khorne, and they are going to be prone to using weapons other than CQC things, I would find a way to apply a healthy amount of Bayonets to the squads to make up for this. Khorne cares not from whence the blood flows, merely that it does. I don't think he'd complain if they were slashing throats and lodging blades deep into Loyalist flesh and opening fire.

 

Seems like you've got an excellent start here, definitely post more if you have any new ideas. Please don't scrap this, this is excellent material!

 

P.S. I really like your writing style =)

[Killax]

Really cool! Continue!

[Azekai]

I like the annihilator armor concept- these are going to your equivalent of oblitorators, correct?

Minor editing issues aside, the Wendigos sound like a very fun warband- keep it up Crystal Geyser!

[Onejackshort]

WOW my two fav Legions/Gods combined to make an awesome new chapter.

 

Well Done.

[Lepaca]

I really like your story!

One question though:

 

How did the chapter come to revere Khorne as their patron god?

Wouldn't they hate him for what he did to them?