Saga of the Stormblade Great Company

[Vash113]

A while ago I found myself very bored and with nothing else to do so I sat down and wrote up my ideas for the background of my Space Wolves Great Company. I recently stumbled across the file going through backups of my documents and decided to post it up and see what you guys think, check it out:

 

Space Wolves Stormblade Great Company

 

 

The Edge of the Storm

 

The Stormblade Great Company is an oddity in the Chapter organization, technically designated as a “Lost Company” the Company took on the title of the Stormblade when the Company Wolf Guard Champion Silvar Stormblade rose to the position of Wolf Lord after the death of his predecessor at the hands of a Greater Daemon of Khorne in 538.M41. For ninety years the Great Company served with distinction, earning great honor and glory on the field of battle until in 628.M41 the Company embarked as part of the Halosis Crusade fleet campaigning deep in the Halo Stars. Towards the end of the five year Crusade the Strike Cruiser carrying the Company was caught in a turbulent warp current during a routine journey from one reconquered system to another and emerged from the warp to find themselves alone in a system well on its way through reconstruction. Making contact with the system governor the Company realized they had arrived almost three hundred years after they had begun their journey even though for them the journey had lasted mere weeks. Time distortion was common during warp travel and it was not unknown for such things to happen but with the skill of the Chapter's navigators and crew and the quality of their ships it was a rare occurrence. The Company had suffered an unfortunate fluke and what it would mean for their future no-one could be sure.

 

The Company commanders gathered in the Jarl's hall aboard the Strike Cruiser Storm Breaker to discuss their situation. All knew that they had certainly long been replaced in the halls of the Fang and would not easily find a place back amongst their kin, in such situations it was common for the lost company to journey into the wilds at the edges of the Imperium to fight to the last against the enemies of the Emperor. Some argued that they could strike out on their own, recruit from remote feral worlds and continue their service to the Emperor alone. After a week of debate the leaders of the Company were deadlocked and one by one they turned their gaze to their Wolf Lord, who had so far refrained from voicing his thoughts. Slowly the shadowed form of Jarl Silvar roused himself from his contemplation and rose to address his Wolf Guard and Priests. The Company had been reduced to too few warriors to strike out on their own, they would merely be condemning themselves to a slow death of attrition, besides none knew if it was possible to safely recruit from other worlds than Fenris, none wanted a repeat of the Wolf Brothers. Alternately he refused to throw their lives away in a vain last stand on some forgotten backwater away from the Fang and their brothers. Though they could not know their fate should they return to Fenris it was the will of Silvar that they do so, for they could not in good faith abandon their lord and home for fear of the unknown, they were Space Marines and they would never fear to face their fate. This pronouncement was met with roars of agreement from all the officers assembled and with their course finally decided the remnants of the Great Company's small fleet set course for Fenris.

 

Initially the bondsmen manning the system defense ships and installations were shocked when a long lost Strike Cruiser and its escorts emerged at the edge of the system and hailed them but their shock was quickly replaced by joy and anxiety, for they were heartened to see long lost brothers returned but unsure of what this could mean. As the Storm Breaker docked with the upper docks of the Fang and the Stormblade Great Company disembarked they were met by the Great Wolf Logan Grimnar, his Wolf Guard and a contingent of the Chapter's Priests. The surviving members of the Great Company were a tattered sight, their armor and equipment in a poor and patched state after their extended campaign and their numbers much diminished from those who had departed. The Chapter's Priests conducted long and arduous tests of purity on every member of the Great Company and even their bondsmen, navigator and astropaths.

 

After nearly two years of medical, spiritual and mental examination every member of the returned Great Company and their crew were verified as loyal and pure and were accepted back into the Chapter with open arms. Even so there were many questions about how to deal with the Company, for though remnant Lost Companies were not unheard of it was extremely rare for one to return to the halls of the Fang. Some argued that the Stormblade Great Company should be dissolved, assigned as a permanent garrison somewhere, allowed to slowly phase out to attrition or even cast back out to fend for themselves. Eventually the Great Wolf declared that their lost brothers had endured much and acquitted themselves with honor and should be recognized for their bravery and sacrifices and would not be cast aside or disrespected. Still the Great Wolf acknowledged that they could not simply return the Company to the fold as they and their ship had long since been replaced. Instead they would be provided reinforcements, weapons, armor and support and rotated around extended duties and campaigns, returning to the Fang only when other Companies were absent so as not to arouse suspicion, for the Inquisition and Ecclesiarchy were ever watching the Chapter closely for any sign of deviancy. This arrangement was acceptable to Lord Silvar and for the last eighty years the Stormblade Great Company has become well known within the Chapter for their heroic deeds and sacrifices in the most far flung Campaigns and battles, waging war against the Emperor's enemies from one side of the galaxy to the other. The Storm Breaker's returns to the Fang are few and far between but each is celebrated and with each return the size of the Stormblade company grows.

 

As the reputation of the Storm Wolves, as the Company's warriors have come to be known, has grown the Great Wolf Logan Grimnar has finally decreed that when the next Wolf Lord dies the Stormblade Great Company will be absorbed back into the Chapter's official structure and the leaderless Great Company absorbed by it, or should Lord Silvar fall before this happens the Stormblade Great Company will be amalgamated instead. This decree has become a great source of hope for the Company of finally regaining their place of honor but has served also as a burden to Lord Silvar who has become ever more reserved and taciturn as the years drag on. Should Silvar fall before the Company is returned fully to the fold than all they have striven for will be lost. With the End Times almost upon them the hopes of the Stormblade Great Company seem ever more fragile and the mission of Lord Silvar ever more desperate. Yet it is the way of the Space Wolves to forever walk the edge of the blade between glory and doom and the Stormblade Great Company will either return to the Fang triumphant or live on in the sagas of the Lost Companies.

 

Lords of the Storm

 

Wolf Lord Silvar Stormblade – Cry of the Storm, Whirlwinds Edge, Undaunted Blade

The Jarl of the Stormblade Great Company is over three centuries old, a hundred and seventy of those as Lord of the Great Company. A veteran commander by any standards Jarl Silvar is the epitome of an adaptable and fluid commander. Silvar rejects the specialized roles and expertise of many of the other Great Companies in favor of a highly versatile military force. He is considered one of the best swordsmen in the Chapter and bears the dreaded Frost Blade Valten's Fang, a blade he has born since it was gifted to him by the Great Wolf himself upon his rise to the ranks of the Wolf Lords. Some consider him outdated, brooding and aloof, yet despite this the Stormblade Great Company has steadily risen in number since he became Lord to become one of the largest companies in the Chapter, numbering more than a hundred and forty battle-hardened Space Marines. Even so Silvar is getting on in years and has taken to the field less and less over time, instead delegating field command to his three chief lieutenants amongst his Wolf Guard. One would have to be blind to overlook the obvious successor in Brynjar Razorfang, who Silvar has been molding into the very image of a perfect Space Wolves commander since his acceptance to the Wolf Guard. Lord Silvar bears the distinction of being one of the few warriors to have ever crossed blades with Abaddon the Despoiler and not only survived but emerged victorious. During one of the Black Legion's lightning raids into Imperial the Stormblade Great Company met the traitors head on, forewarned by the visions of Rune Priest Mjornal Oath Keeper. The Black Legionaries were initially surprised as the Space Wolves counter-attacked their raiding parties with a vengeance but quickly reformed around Abaddon and his bodyguard who had chosen to lead the raid in person. A dozen Space Wolves were cut down by the dread lord and his bodyguard before Silvar and his Wolf Guard intervened. In a duel recounted to this day in the halls of the Fang Lord Silvar fought Abaddon to a standstill before driving a lucky blow through the Chaos Lord's guard and deep into his thigh. Before the Wolf Lord could deliver a killing stroke Abaddon disappeared in a flash of light, sucked back through the warp to his ship along with his few surviving Terminator bodyguards. Despite the Despoiler's escape the victory was lauded as one of the Company's finest and is still retold by Skald Daelin at every feast. Often told alongside this saga is the tale of Silvar's duel with Sammael, Master of the Dark Angels 2nd Company. During an extended campaign where the Space Wolves and Dark Angels were forced to fight side-by-side the tensions between the two Chapters nearly broke into outright conflict on numerous occasions. Finally at the campaign's conclusion Lord Silvar challenged the Dark Angels to a duel of honor and in his arrogance the Master of the Ravenwing accepted personally. Despite the advantage of his jetbike and its weaponry Lord Silvar dragged the snake from his saddle and pounded him into the dirt. The slight handed to the Dark Angels that day has long been a source of much amusement to the Company.

 

Wolf Guard Battle Leader Brynjar Razorfang – Champion of the Wolf Guard, Shield of the Jarl

Brynjar Razorfang is the second in command of the Company, even above the venerable Daelin Frostmourn, the previous Champion, or the irascible Half Ironbreaker. A consummate and deadly swordsman Brynjar is the Wolf Lord's preferred method of annihilating enemy commanders, assigning the Champion to command assaults on the most elite and deadly of the enemy forces. Though Brynjar has come close to death on numerous occasions he has somehow managed to avoid death's grip at every turn and emerge battered but victorious. Should he survive long enough he will no doubt succeed Wolf Lord Silvar Stormblade as Jarl of the Great Company. Upon his appointment as Company Champion Brynjar was gifted the Frost Blade Ulfsharde by Jarl Silvar, an ancient blade that has been wielded in war by many heroes of the Chapter for millenia.

 

Wolf Guard Battle Leader Daelin Frostmourn – The White Wolf, Skald, Keeper of the Saga

The redoubtable Daelin Frostmourn is the oldest member of the Stormblade Great Company at more than four and a half centuries old he is also one of the most venerable living members of the Chapter. For nearly a century Daelin served as Company Champion until the young Brynjar rose to challenge him for the position. Recognizing the strength and skill in Brynjar the former Champion chose to instead put aside the mantle of Champion and take on the role of Company Skald, a position that had been vacant since the death of the previous Keeper of the Saga. This choice was by no means unprecedented but it was rare that a Space Wolf would turn down a battle with a challenger, for to do so would be cowardly. None would ever dare accuse Daelin of such, lest they feel the bite of his double bladed Frost Axe Bloodmourne, a weapon Daelin forged himself from the teeth of a mighty Ice Kraken of Fenris. As Skald to the Great Company Daelin has proven his wisdom in council and war many times over, earning great respect in the Chapter for his stirring accounts of the Stormblade's victories and sacrifices, and his somber remembrances of the fallen. Wearing his signature suit of Terminator Armor and Wolf hide cloak Daelin can often be seen overseeing a battle from the rear, holding back with his bodyguard of Wolf Guard Terminators and the Company Long Fangs, ever ready to charge forth and reinforce his brethren wherever the fighting is thickest.

 

Wolf Guard Battle Leader Half Ironbreaker – Guardian of the Mountain, Giantbreaker

The single largest member of the Stormblade Great Company the mighty Half Ironbreaker is known for his strength, endurance, and ability to drink anyone under the table. Half wields the Thunder Hammer Morkai's Fist, a hammer crafted by the Chapter's Iron Priests to the exacting specifications of Half Ironbreaker. As a Battle Leader Half is often given command of Company strike forces or individual battle-zones and despite his exuberant attitude towards feasting he has proven a level headed and competent field commander, complementing the aggressive Brynjar and the reserved Daelin.

 

Wolf Priest Greimund Wolf Totem – Keeper of the Lost, Guardian of the Wolf Spirit

Given the Stormblade Great Company's penchant for extended operations far from the Fang it has become common practice for the Company to retain those brothers who have succumbed to the Curse of the Wulfen within specialized shock assault roles where they would normally be placed in isolation within the vaults of the Fang. These lost wolves are deployed sparingly when away from prying eyes and under the stewardship of Greimund Wolf Totem. It is Greimund's duty to safeguard and control these reckless, lost wolves, and a duty that he has performed for decades. First appointed by the Great Wolf to observe and provide council to Wolf Lord Stormblade as he started to become more withdrawn the Wolf Priest has come to be one of the most valued and respected members of the company. Greimund has learned to appreciate the versatile nature of Silvar's command and to see the wisdom and prudent caution in his decisions. Now Greimund Wolf Totem is amongst the most vocal supporters of Jarl Silvar within the halls of the Fang.

 

Wolf Priest Bradach Doom Caller

One of the fiercest Wolf Priests in the Chapter Bradach can always be found in the middle of the fiercest fighting in any battle, his bare head contorted with rage as he roars litanies of hate and doom at his foe and sings battle songs to stir the hearts of his brethren. Ever fiery of temperment Bradach is ever the voice against the cautioned wisdom of Lord Silvar's leadership, ever eager to get to grips with the foe without delay. A few daring souls have questioned why Wolf Lord Silvar has not requested that the Great Wolf reassign Bradach to another Company more suitable to his mindset, but those with more experience realize that Bradach represents the fierce spirit of the Space Wolves and serves as a counterpoint to the more reserved nature of the Wolf Lord.

 

Rune Priest Mjornal Oath Keeper – Herald of the Storm, Voice of the Wind

Mjornal Oath Keeper is the Company's resident Rune Priest and mystic. Though he has never been amongst the most powerful of the Chapter's Rune Priests he has always been skilled at interpreting the runes and has proven invaluable to the Company, offering wisdom and insight on the eve of battle. All members of the Company heed the council of Mjornal, both in matters of the spirit, and matters of war. In battle Mjornal strides across the field in a suit of mighty Tactical Dreadnaught Armor, his storm bolter spewing explosive shells to accompany the arks of lightning rippling from his glowing eyes and the killing sweeps of his crackling sword while miniature whirlwinds swirl around him, sparks of electricity sweeping over his armored form at random. Mjornal is most lauded for his victory over a Terminator armored Chaos Lord of the Black Legion during the same raid in which Silvar dueled with Abaddon the Despoiler.

 

Venerable Dreadnaught Thorvald Felldawn

The ancient Thorvald has served the Chapter for three thousand years, ever since he was critically injured fighting a warband from the hated Thousand Sons Traitor Legion and was interred within the armored sarcophagus of a Dreadnaught. Thorvald is one of the few ancients of the Chapter who prefers to remain awake and active rather than pass away the centuries in hibernation deep within the vaults of the Fang. In battle Thorvald Felldawn is remarkably reckless, throwing his armored bulk at the foe without much consideration of the danger and has consequently suffered extreme damage on many occasions. Yet each time the Iron Priests recover his shattered bulk only to find the wasted remnant of the Space Wolf inside somehow still alive, months later his armored form rebuilt and repaired Thorvald does it all over again. One of Thorvald's most memorable engagements was a dreadful duel he fought with a Defiler belonging to the Thousand Sons Traitor Legion. Despite the daemonic war machines advantages of added bulk and weaponry the Venerable Felldawn succeeded in tearing the Defiler apart piece by piece, ripping each limb and weapons system off one at a time before ramming his crackling power claws through the torso of the machine and ripping out its innards.

 

Iron Priest Haelfdar Ironhelm

One of the best mechanics the Chapter has seen in years Haelfdar Ironhelm is especially skilled in the area of cybernetic augmentation and the construction of cyborganic weapons systems including emplaced weapons and servitors. Haelfdar has become particularly well known for his Mk. XII Armored Heavy Bolter Combat Servitors, semi-mobile deployable weapons servitors armed with heavy bolters capable of spitting out over a thousand shells without reloading. Haelfdar is always accompanied by a pair of these servitors whose firepower cover their master while he performs battlefield repairs.

 

Iron Priest Gromir Skullsplitter

Gromir Skullsplitter has ever preferred the fire of battle to the fires of the forge. Unlike Haelfdar the taciturn Gromir is not so gifted with mechanical pursuits as the Chapter's other Iron Priests, preferring the crafting of weapons and armor and the use of them in combat to the ritual maintenance and blessing of the Chapter's machines. Accompanied into battle by a pair of gun-servitors armed with deadly Plasma Cannons and wielding his Thunder Hammer the Iron Priest makes for a deadly opponent who leaves a trail of devastation in his wake.

 

The Jarl's Guard

 

Wolf Guard Pack Riekard – Bearers of the Banner

Wolf Guard Pack Leader Riekard

Wolf Guard Askr – Bearer of the Great Company Standard

Wolf Guard Lugaid

Wolf Guard Baldr

Wolf Guard Oengus

 

Wolf Guard Pack Hromund – The Kingslayers

Wolf Guard Pack Leader Hromund

Wolf Guard Eogan

Wolf Guard Gunnar

Wolf Guard Raghnall

Wolf Guard Cernunnos

 

Wolf Guard Terminator Pack Talgrim – The Iron Guard

Wolf Guard Terminator Pack Leader Talgrim

Wolf Guard Terminator Fionn

Wolf Guard Terminator Myrddin

Wolf Guard Terminator Eber

Wolf Guard Terminator Lughaidh

Wolf Guard Haelvarn – Assigned as Wolf Scout Pack Leader

Wolf Guard Freyald – Assigned as Grey Hunter Pack Leader

Wolf Guard Reikald – Assigned as Grey Hunter Pack Leader

Wolf Guard Haegar – Assigned as Blood Claw Pack Leader

Wolf Guard Elysan – Assigned as Blood Claw Pack Leader

The Storm Wolves

 

Wolf Scout Pack Haelvarn – Shadow Stalkers

Wolf Guard Pack Leader Haelvarn

Wolf Scout Nuada

Wolf Scout Orvar

Wolf Scout Lugh

Wolf Scout Owain

Wolf Scout Alvis

 

Grey Hunter Pack Freyald – The Honorkeepers

Wolf Guard Pack Leader Freyald

Grey Hunter Fedelmid

Grey Hunter Llew

Grey Hunter Conchur

Grey Hunter Tristan

Grey Hunter Conor

Grey Hunter Lug – Honored to bear a fearsome Meltagun

Grey Hunter Fearghas

Grey Hunter Conall

Grey Hunter Freyr

 

Grey Hunter Pack Reikald – Renegade's Bane

Wolf Guard Pack Leader Reikald

Grey Hunter Gareth

Grey Hunter Aedan

Grey Hunter Diarmaid

Grey Hunter Yvain – Honored to bear a fearsome Meltagun

Grey Hunter Connla

Grey Hunter Conlaoch

Grey Hunter Alf

Grey Hunter Ywain

Grey Hunter Finn

 

Grey Hunter Pack Svjorning – Armor Slayers

Grey Hunter Pack Leader Svjorning – Gifted a mighty Power Fist from the Lord's Armory

Grey Hunter Tyr

Grey Hunter Yngvi

Grey Hunter Eibhear – Honored to bear a fearsome Meltagun

Grey Hunter Njall

Grey Hunter Fedlimid

Grey Hunter Llyr – Honored to bear a fearsome Meltagun

Grey Hunter Dwyn

Grey Hunter Aed

Grey Hunter Sigurd

 

Grey Hunter Pack Eijon – Blaze of the Fire Wolf

Grey Hunter Pack Leader Eijon – Gifted a mighty Power Fist from the Lord's Armory

Grey Hunter Govannon

Grey Hunter Sindri

Grey Hunter Fachtna

Grey Hunter Arawn

Grey Hunter Lleu – Bearer of a deadly Plasma Gun, relic of the Chapter

Grey Hunter Culhwch

Grey Hunter Gunnarr

Grey Hunter Aonghus – Bearer of a deadly Plasma Gun, relic of the Chapter

Grey Hunter Bedwyr

 

Grey Hunter Pack Bulwye – Forlorn Spear

Grey Hunter Pack Leader Bulwye – Gifted a mighty Power Fist from the Lord's Armory

Grey Hunter Aodhan

Grey Hunter Dagda – Honored to bear a fearsome Meltagun

Grey Hunter Cuchulainn

Grey Hunter Alf

Grey Hunter Taranis

Grey Hunter Fiachra

Grey Hunter Volundr – Honored to bear a fearsome Meltagun

Grey Hunter Cai

Grey Hunter Belanus

 

Grey Hunter Pack Kell – Retribution's Edge

Grey Hunter Pack Leader Kell – Gifted a mighty Power Fist from the Lord's Armory

Grey Hunter Peredur

Grey Hunter Raclaw

Grey Hunter Aeron

Grey Hunter Angus

Grey Hunter Njord – Bearer of a deadly Plasma Gun, relic of the Chapter

Grey Hunter Mjor

Grey Hunter Frey – Bearer of a deadly Plasma Gun, relic of the Chapter

Grey Hunter Oisin

Grey Hunter Rolf

 

Blood Claw Pack Haegar – Savage Storm

Wolf Guard Pack Leader Haegar

Blood Claw Bran – Gifted a deadly Power Sword from the Lord's Armory

Blood Claw Gan

Blood Claw Cian – Wields the fury of a Flamer against the Chapter's foes

Blood Claw Vidar

Blood Claw Gahariet

Blood Claw Thalan

Blood Claw Mabon

Blood Claw Daire – Wields the fury of a Flamer against the Chapter's foes

Blood Claw Medraut

Blood Claw Belenus

Blood Claw Arthur

Blood Claw Cael

Blood Claw Lir

Blood Claw Ask

Blood Claw Porr

 

Blood Claw Pack Elysan – Blades of Russ

Wolf Guard Pack Leader Elysan

Blood Claw Belenos – Gifted a savage Power Axe from the Lord's Armory

Blood Claw Loeg

Blood Claw Goibniu

Blood Claw Ailill

Blood Claw Nudd

Blood Claw Hjod – Wields the fury of a Flamer against the Chapter's foes

Blood Claw Oden

Blood Claw Alfr

Blood Claw Njoror

Blood Claw Beli

Blood Claw Nuadha

Blood Claw Oscar – Wields the fury of a Flamer against the Chapter's foes

Blood Claw Fjor

Blood Claw Urien

Blood Claw Skeld

 

Skyclaw Pack Caerwyn – Wrath of the Skies

Skyclaw Pack Leader Caerwyn – Gifted a deadly Power Sword from the Lord's armory

Skyclaw Ivor

Skyclaw Finnbar

Skyclaw Jurek – Marked by the Beast Within

Skyclaw Ingvar

 

Long Fang Pack Aarkmund – Wisdom's Might

Long Fang Pack Leader Aarkmund – Gifted a savage Power Axe from the Lord's armory

Long Fang Stig – Wields the dreaded fury of a Heavy Bolter

Long Fang Eachann – Bears the unbound might of a Lascannon

Long Fang Gallagher – Wields the dreaded fury of a Heavy Bolter

Long Fang Gudmund – Bears the unbound might of a Lascannon

Long Fang Svante – Looses the wrath of a Missile Launcher upon the foe

 

Wulfen Pack Wyrd – Heralds of Doom, Cry of the Lost

Wulfen Lech

Wulfen Farquhar

Wulfen Halvor

Wulfen Asbjorn

Wulfen Kieron

Wulfen Calvagh

Wulfen Millogost

Wulfen Elias

Wulfen Elof

Wulfen Goran

 

Fenresian Wolf Pack Ironfang – Hunters in the Dark

Cyberwolf Ironfang

Razorclaw

Steelmaw

Icepelt

Bloodroar

Death Jaw

Elder Fang

Snowshear

Grizzled Paw

Fellclaw

 

The Company Armor

 

Rhino Pack Runner

Rhino Blood Paw

Rhino Winter Wolf

Rhino Steel Wolf

 

Land Raider Crusader Howling Wolf - Doom of the Devourer, Death of Heretics

The Howling Wolf is the most renowned of the Stormblade Great Company's war machines, having served the Chapter for many long centuries and racked up an impressive number of kills. The Howling Wolf destroyed a Baneblade in service to the Iron Warriors Traitor Legion even after being immobilized by the tainted Super-Heavy Tanks potent armaments. The Howling Wolf has also destroyed a number of traitor Land Raiders and Leman Russ tanks, killed a Winged Tyranid Hive Tyrant and even drove off and severely wounded a creature fitting the description of the feared Doom of Malan'tai.

 

Land Raider Crusader Thunder Stalker

 

Drop Pod Thunder 1

The Stormblade Fleet

 

The Storm Breaker

Strike Cruiser in service to the Great Company long before the rise of Silvar Stormblade to the position of Wolf Lord. The Storm Breaker has served the company faithfully for centuries and even the warp current that threw off the company's journey during the Halosis Crusade has not impinged the ship's reputation. Even so the Strike Cruiser was designed to transport roughly a hundred Space Marines and when the Stormblade Company embarked on the Halosis Crusade the Strike Cruiser was somewhat overfilled. Now that the Company has swelled in size the Strike Cruiser has increasingly proved unable to properly accommodate the increasing number of Marines, forcing Packs to travel from warzone to warzone aboard the Rapid Strike Vessels accompanying the Storm Breaker. With the acquisition of the Harbinger of Ragnarok the Company has finally been able to spread out and now the rowdy Blood Claws and the feral Wulfen are often transported aboard the Mars Class Battlecruiser as reserves to the rest of the Company's forces.

 

The Harbinger of Ragnarok

A Mars Class Battlecruiser the Harbinger of Ragnarok was formerly known as the Spectre of Bakka, a long range patrol vessel in service to Battlefleet Tempestus. The Stormblade Great Company encountered the derelict vessel and it's nearly destroyed sister ship the Justicar of Orion lifeless and drifting in the Heracles system while on extended campaign. Determining that the ships had been attacked and crippled by Dark Eldar raiders and the crew captured the Space Wolves salvaged the largely intact Spectre of Bakka and claimed it for the Chapter. With their prize now outfitted with a skeleton crew of bondsmen and space marines the Stormblade fleet tracked the Dark Eldar raiders progress to the Beleghost system and routed them, destroying three of the five vessels and severely damaging the other two before they fled to their dark sanctuaries within the webway. Though Battlefleet Tempestus petitioned for their ship's return the Space Wolves refused. Upon the Company's return to the Fang the ship was refitted by the Chapter's artificers and now the vessel serves as support to the Storm Breaker, supply ship and if necessary a replacement for the Company's Strike Cruiser should it be lost or crippled. The Maruaders, Lightnings and Thunderbolts that had filled the Spectre of Bakka's launch bays were destroyed to the last, but a couple of Arvus Lighters and a handful of larger heavy transports were discovered in functional states and the Space Wolves also managed to salvage a couple heavy landers from the wrecked Justicar of Orion to add to the Battlecruisers complement of transports.

 

Hunter Squadron

A squadron of five Cobra Class Destroyers in service to the Chapter as Rapid Strike Vessels first assigned to the Company as escorts during their deployment as part of the Halosis Crusade. On the extended campaigns the Stormblade Great Company now finds itself engaged in Hunter Squadron has proven invaluable for rapidly transporting strike teams to smaller warzones along the Company's course of travel and acting as supply ships carrying vital war material for the company on campaign and retrieving supplies from nearby systems as needed. Without enough Thunderhawks available to equip the Destroyers of Hunter Squadron the Stormblade Company has instead requisitioned suitable transports from wherever they can find them. Mostly Arvus Lighters but recently the Company has acquired a couple of Aquila Landers. These small capacity civilian vessels serve as reserve transports for the Company packs and shift material from vessel to vessel within the Chapter fleet.

 

Stormbird Terra's Wrath

A vessel in service to the Chapter since the height of the Great Crusade the Terra's Wrath has spent centuries in the armories of the Fang, maintained as part of the Chapter's reserves and nothing more. The return of the Stormblade Great Company saw a number of such relics returned to service to replace combat losses by the Stormblade Great Company without sidetracking equipment destined for other Chapter forces. Since its attachment to the Stormblade Great Company the Terra's Wrath has become the personal transport of Wolf Lord Silvar and his Wolf Guard, who find the added size, transport capacity and armor of the Stormbird invaluable during their extended campaigns far from Fenris.

 

Thunderhawk Fenresian Fury

One of only three Thunderhawks to survive the Halosis Crusade the Fenresian Fury was the previous command vehicle used by Lord Silvar and bears unique modifications crafted by Iron Priest Haelfdar Ironhelm, enhanced sensors, targeting computers and four twin-linked Lascannons in place of the normal Heavy Bolters along with a dorsal Turbolaser makes the Fenresian Fury a superlative tank hunter. The Fenresian Fury served as a ground support craft for the Company's packs in addition to its role as the command vehicle of Lord Silvar during the later battles of the Halosis Crusade when the Company had largely run out of still functioning armored support. Now that the Terra's Wrath has supplanted its role as a mobile command center and transport for Lord Silvar and his Wolf Guard the Fenresian Fury has become solely a support vessel, kept in reserve to provide anti-armor and anti-aircraft support to the Company's ground forces.

 

Thunderhawk Sky Wolf

The second of the Company's Thunderhawks to have survived the Halosis Crusade the Sky Wolf is one of the older vessels in the Company's arsenal, at over six thousand years old the Sky Wolf's machine spirit has become temperamental and stubborn, making for a difficult craft to pilot. Even so the Chapter's bondsmen are ever eager for an assignment to the Sky Wolf for its systems are more sophisticated and robust than newer models of Thunderhawks and the privilege of flying this venerable vessel into combat far outweighs the challenges of its quirky machine spirit.

 

Thunderhawk Vengeance of Russ

The third of the Stormblade Company's Thunderhawks to make it through the Halosis Crusade the Vengeance of Russ was actually non-functioning during the final months of the Crusade after it was shot down by infiltrators from the Alpha Legion. Iron Priest Haelfdar Ironhelm managed to bring the craft back to reasonable functionality by scrapping the wrecks of several other of the Company's Thunderhawks and retro-fitting his own repairs along with salvaged components. Upon the Company's return to the Fang the Chapter's Iron Priests performed more permanent fix's to bring the Vengeance of Russ back to service and since then the craft has performed admirably, even if it requires slightly more maintenance than some of the Company's other vessels.

 

Thunderhawk Ancient Winter

A relatively new vessel the Ancient Winter was actually manufactured on the world of Garm just thirty seven years before it was assigned to the Stormblade Great Company upon their return to the Fang. Many of the Ancient Winter's systems are inferior to the Chapter's more venerable craft but it has performed well enough in combat and has proven itself in battle many times.

 

Thunderhawk Wind Sheer

The Wind Sheer was manufactured and delivered to Fenris along with the Ancient Winter and half a dozen other Thunderhawks from the forges of Garm just under four decades before the return of the Stormblade Great Company. Serving the Chapter as a routine transport based in the Fang for those first four decades the Wind Sheer saw little in the way of combat. Since its assignment to the Stormblade Company the Wind Sheer has earned many combat honors and is even credited with destroying a Chaos Warhound Titan in service to the Iron Warriors Traitor Legion.

 

Thunderhawk Transporter Frost Fall

All of the Stormblade Company's Thunderhawk Transporters were destroyed during the Halosis Crusade, along with most of the Company's armor. The Frost Fall was one of three vessels given to the Company upon its return to the Fang to replace it's battlefield losses. A heavily retrofitted craft the Frost Fall had been in service to a group of renegade Space Marines run down and annihilated by the Space Wolves in mid M39. Purified and returned to service with the Space Wolves the craft was not well trusted by most and quickly became relegated to a reserve roll, stored in one of the ancillary hangars on the flanks of the Fang. The Stormblade Great Company has taken whatever equipment they can get their hands on regardless of history or reputation and since their return have used the Frost Fall with great success, its many glorious combat deployments going a long way towards redeeming the craft in the eyes of the Chapter.

 

Thunderhawk Transporter Geri's Pride

Geri's Pride was undergoing repairs when the Stormblade Great Company returned, having already been replaced by an active craft the Geri's Pride was currently unassigned and wound up as part of the material assigned to the Stormblade Great Company.

 

Thunderhawk Transporter Chariot of Lorkhan

The Chariot of Lorkhan is actually named after Magos Lorkhan Septimus who used the Thunderhawk to transport his lab modules to various research sites around the Imperium. In 993.M41 the Stormblade Great Company encountered the Magos performing heretical research on xenos artifacts near the Damocles Gulf and rewarded his treachery with a swift death, and those of his acolytes who would not surrender peacefully, which was basically all of them. The equipment that survived the fighting was seized by the Space Wolves as spoils of war, including the Chariot of Lorkhan.

 

Stormraven Gunship Tempest Incarnate

Normally seen only in the service of the Blood Angels Chapter, and rumored to be employed by the secretive Gray Knight's as well, the Stormraven Gunship is not fielded by any other Chapter. Thus the presence of the Tempest Incarnate in the fleet of the Stormblade Great Company is highly unusual and a source of some conflict between the Space Wolves and the Blood Angels. The Tempest Incarnate was claimed by right of plunder when the Stormblade Great Company recovered the wrecked gunship from the possession of an Ork warband. The Blood Angels had lost the gunship in conflict with the Orks decades previously, when they learned of the vessel's recovery envoys from the Sons of Sanguinius demanded its return but were refused outright. If they had really wanted it back the Wolves argued, they should have gone and get it. This response was not to the Blood Angels liking and relations with them have been somewhat strained of late. Even so it took the Stormblade Great Company's Iron Priests years to return the gunship to operation and it has only entered service with the Company very recently. Iron Priests Haelfdar and Gromir work tirelessly whenever time allows to reverse engineer the means to manufacture the Stormraven design for manufacture, as yet they have been unsuccessful and are hard pressed simply producing replacement parts to keep the vessel operational, and neither the Blood Angels nor the Grey Knights are likely to provide any assistance.

 

Arvus Lighter Savior of Agriphon

This vessel was seized by the Stormblade Great Company from the mining world of Agriphon during the later months of the Halosis Crusade. Running out of Thunderhawks the Space Wolves took to requisitioning transports wherever they could, regardless of the desires of their previous owners. In particular the Savior of Agriphon had formerly been the personal transport of the planetary governor who had fled the system when it was invaded by Orks ten years previously. Lord Silvar decided that the Governor's effects were therefore forfeit and seized the Governor's Arvus Lighter along with anything else the Space Wolves found useful including the contents of the Governor's private armory and vault. What they couldn't use or didn't want the Stormblade Company gave to the people of Agriphon, earning them the admiration of the civilian populace and the outrage of the system's leaders.

 

Arvus Lighter Epimedes

The Epimedes was one of a pair of Arvus Lighters acquired by the Space Wolves from the ruined orbital defense platforms around Lycantor VII in 978.M41. Despite the objections of the local Administratum office Lord Silvar cited the right of salvage and politely invited the Administratum Magistrate to mind his own businessmen.

 

Arvus Lighter Vindicator-XVI

This vessel was one of three given to the Stormblade Great Company by the grateful System Defense Fleet of Beleghost II after the Space Wolves drove off a small fleet of Dark Eldar raiders that had been terrorizing the system for months.

 

Arvus Lighter Shield of Lycantor

The Shield of Lycantor was the second Arvus acquired by the Stormblade Great Company from the ruined orbital defense platforms in orbit around Lycantor VII.

 

Arvus Lighter Arctus-CXVIII

This was the second Arvus gifted to the Stormblade Great Company by the System Defense Fleet of Beleghost II.

 

Arvus Lighter Centurion-cv74

This vessel was among the spoils taken from the heretical Mechanicus expedition of Magos Lorkhan Septimus. Although the Mechanicus expedition had more than a dozen Arvus Lighters and several larger drop ships the Space Wolves attack left most of these as burning wrecks, only the Centurion was still flight worthy after the last of the Mechanicus expedition was gunned down.

 

Arvus Lighter Herald of Oberon

A transport in service to the renegade Governor of Oberon IX, the Space Wolves acquired this vessel when they arrived to bring the rebellious governor and his forces to heel. Upon entering Oberon IX's orbit and destroying its orbital defenses and system fleet the Stormblade Great Company delivered an ultimatum to Governor Mandicant the Glorious to surrender to the Emperor's Justice or be annihilated. The Governor's response was to dispatch a dozen Slaaneshi worshiping concubines and his chancellor aboard this shuttle to offer the Stormblade Great Company the chance to join him in exchange for untold pleasures. The Space Wolves gunned down the heretics without even letting the chancellor finish his speech and began the invasion while Iron Priest Haelfdar set about the process of ritually purifying the Arvus for the Chapter's own use.

 

Arvus Lighter Lightning-XII

This is the last of the three Arvus Lighters given to the Stormblade Great Company by the System Defense Fleet of Beleghost II.

 

Arvus Lighter Eagle-III

This Arvus was one of the few still functioning aboard the Battlecruiser the Spectre of Bakka when it was salvaged by the Stormblade Great Company and now serves as one of the two Arvus Lighters carried by the newly dubbed Harbinger of Ragnarok.

 

Arvus Lighter Eagle-V

The second functional Arvus recovered from the hulk of the Spectre of Bakka it has now been returned to service aboard the newly dubbed vessel.

 

Aquila Lander Pride of Septimus

This extravagant shuttle was the last servicable vessel taken by the Space Wolves from the heretical Mechanicus Expedition of Magos Lorkhan Septimus. The Company Iron Priests initially overlooked the Aquila in favor of trying to salvage the Mechanicus Arvus shuttles and heavier transports but after being unsuccessful in retrieving more than one Arvus they took the shuttle as a matter of necessity. Since it's acquisition the Company has found it a useful support transport, though lightly armed with a single autocannon it's heavy armor and intimidating profile makes it an effective transport for small Packs deployed to smaller warzones and skirmishes aboard the Company's Rapid Strike vessels and the Company has since acquired a second Aquila and both see heavy use.

 

Aquila Lander Ambassador of Reichwald

In 995.M41 the Stormblade Great Company responded to reports of a civilian uprising on the planet of Reichwald, a backwater planet in a remote system on the eastern fringe. Returning to Fenris on an extended route around the eastern fringe Wolf Lord Silvar decided to stop and deal with the situation before it could get out of hand. Upon arrival the Space Wolves found a system in a decrepite and run down state. The System Defense Fleet amounted to a single Monitor vessel that turned out to not even have a functional weapon, the Planetary Defense Force were glorified parade show pieces that fell apart the moment the civilians rebelled and the uprising had been caused by rampant starvation and disease afflicting the civilian population while the Governor lounged in extreme excess. Declaring the Governor incompetent Wolf Priest Greimund executed the bloated fop on the spot and subsequently most of his house and the Planetary Defense Force were slaughtered by the angered Space Wolves. The rebel leaders were similarly butchered upon the Company's discovery that they were chaos cultists worshiping Nurgle. Whole cities were wiped out by orbital bombardment and when the Inquisition arrived they found a world devastated but largely free of the taint that had afflicted it. What little could be salvaged from the mess was, including the Governor's private Aquila Lander.

 

Gryphonne Pattern Heavy Transport Heron-IV

This heavy cargo transport was one of three recovered from the Spectre of Bakka and now fills the role of a supply transport for the Stormblade Great Company transporting war material around the Company fleet. Such vessels are becoming increasingly vital to the Company as it continues to operate far from the supply lines of Fenris.

 

Gryphonne Pattern Heavy Transport Heron-IX

The second of the heavy transports found still in functional condition aboard the Spectre of Bakka. The Heron-IX now acts as a supply transport launched from the sizable hangars of the Harbinger of Ragnarok.

 

Gryphonne Pattern Heavy Transport Heron-XII

The third transport salvaged from the Spectre of Bakka the Heron-XII had obviously been used in an attempt to escape the Dark Eldar attackers but had failed to launch and had been brought down by Dark Lance fire on the flight deck. The damage was largely superficial however and was easily repaired and the vessel was quickly returned to active service aboard the Harbinger of Ragnarok.

 

Lucius Pattern Lander Swift-II

Despite the Justicar of Orion's grievous damage, the ship was actually found drifting in three pieces, the Space Wolves did board the surviving sections of the ship in search of anything useful. Not much was left intact but remarkably a pair of Lucius Pattern Landers were still largely operable and after a few jury rigs and minor repairs both were brought aboard the salvaged Spectre of Bakka and have now become standard rear line transports used by the Great Company to deploy heavy equipment from the holds of the Harbinger of Ragnarok.

 

Lucius Pattern Lander Swift-V

The second Lucius Pattern Lander recovered from the remains of the Justicar of Orion, unlike the Swift-II the Swift-V was outfitted for deploying Guardsmen, able to carry roughly a company and their vehicles. This configuration obviously wasn't that useful to the Space Wolves but has found a use transporting bondsmen and war material to the rear lines of a battlefield in support of their Space Marine masters.

 

Famous Battles of the Stormblade Great Company

 

Battle for Justinian's Rest – 545.M41

The Agri-World of Justinian's Rest lies within the regions bordering the Eye of Terror. Unlike many other systems in the vicinity the remote and sparsely populated Justinian's Rest was far enough from the eye to have been of little wroth to raiders and pirates. That was until the Black Legion learned that an ancient relic of chaos from long before the Imperium was founded had been buried on the agri-world. A raiding party of Chaos Marines was dispatched immediately to recover the relic. They would have been successful and virtually unopposed had not Rune Priest Mjornal Oath Keeper learned of the impending raid through a casting of the runes and directed the Stormblade Great Company to the world to lie in wait and ambush the raiders upon their arrival. Not suspecting any resistance greater than farmers with antique lasguns the Chaos Legionaries were thrown into disarray when they found themselves facing an entire Company of Space Wolves. The Stormblade Great Company swiftly lost the advantage as the Despoiler himself took to the field with his bodyguard of elite Chaos Terminators. A dozen Space Wolves fell to the chaos lord in a matter of moments before Lord Silvar and his Wolf Guard counter-attacked. In a furious melee the Wolf Guard cut down the Terminators one by one while Silvar Stormblade and Abaddon the Despoiler dueled across the war-torn battlefield. Despite the experience and skill of Abaddon the chaos lord underestimated the guile of his opponent, feigning weakness Lord Silvar prompted the Despoiler to launch a powerful overhand sweep intending to bisect the Wolf Lord across the torso only to twist aside at the last second and drive the edge of his Frost Blade Valten's Fang into the soft armored joint between Abaddon's thigh and torso armor. The kraken teeth of the Frost Sword bit deep and drew forth a spray of sticky black blood. Before the Wolf Lord could take advantage of the injury to deliver a killing blow the Despoiler and his last two Terminators vanished in a blaze of warp energy. The chaos warship swiftly retreated from the system with the guns of the Space Wolves hounding it the whole way. Lord Silvar's victory over Abaddon the Despoiler in single combat remains one of the most frequently told sagas in the halls of the Fang and never ceases to draw roars of approval from the assembled Sons of Russ at each retelling.

 

The Campaign of Vengeance – 558.M41

In the five hundred and eight year of the forty first millennium a number of systems in the eastern rim were the sites of great slaughter perpetrated by a band of renegade Space Marines. Heretics drawn from dozens of Chapters the renegades were hoping to attract the attention and patronage of a larger chaos warband with their atrocities, instead they invited the wrath of the Space Wolves. The Stormblade Great Company ran down the traitors over more than a score of planets, hounding the renegades everywhere they went, refusing them the chance to recuperate or resupply. Eventually they tracked the oath breakers back to their asteroid base deep in the halo belt of the Urqual system. The Space Wolves bombarded the station's defenses from a distance before boarding the asteroid facility en-masse and butchering all they found within. Nearly forty traitor marines and thousands of their cultist fodder troops were cut down within the facility before the Stormblade company planted demolition charges and blasted the facility to atoms.

 

Slaughter on Yargil VII – 567.M41

In 567.M41 the Stormblade Great Company responded to distress signals from Yargil VII to find a strike force of Eldar slaughtering the planet's entire population, claiming that the monkeigh were infesting a maiden world of the Eldar empire. The Space Wolves did not delay in delivering their swift retribution and over the course of five running battles across the planet's eastern continent the Eldar were finally driven back to their webway portals which the Space Wolves promptly destroyed. Despite this victory over eighty percent of the planet's population of seventy million Imperial citizens had been systematically slaughtered. To this day the warriors of the Stormblade Great Company hold a grudge against the Eldar for this atrocity.

 

The First Battle for Corinthus I – 572.M41

The summoning of a Greater Daemon of Khorne on the world of Corinthus I marked a chance for the Stormblade Great Company to avenge the death of the Company's previous Wolf Lord at the hands of such a monster thirty five years ago. The Stormblade Great Company descended to the surface of Corinthus I into the heart of the vicious battle between the heretics and the loyalist PDF forces. The Space Wolves carved a path of destruction through the heretics ranks, laying waste to all before them, ignoring their injuries and losses so intent were they on reaching the Greater Daemon and defeating it. After a vicious battle against a traitor Armored Fist Company the Space Wolves finally reached the daemon and his guard and the fighting reached an all new level of violence and savagery. At the height of the fighting a strike force of Grey Knights teleported into the middle of the battle and engaged the Greater Daemon alongside Wolf Lord Silvar and his Wolf Guard. With their combined might the daemon was overcome swiftly and the heretics morale broken. The disorganized remnants of the traitor army was put to the sword and order re-established on Corinthus I.

 

The Second Battle for Corinthus I – 572.M41

No sooner had the Stormblade Great Company cleaned the blood and gore from their blades than the Grey Knights and their Inquisition allies began to order the civilian populace be interred within work camps and demanded the submission of the Space Wolves to mind-wiping procedures. The Space Wolves promptly refused and with a laugh of triumph Inquisitor Gregorian ordered the Grey Knights and his Inquisitorial Storm Troopers to subdue them. Inquisitor Gregorian greatly underestimated the tenacity and stubbornness of the Space Wolves and in a vicious series of skirmishes and open battles the small strike force of Grey Knights and the companies of Inquisitorial Storm Troopers suffered severe casualties. The Space Wolves had outnumbered the Grey Knights five to one and the Storm Troopers were not able to make up for the disadvantage of numbers. Though many Space Wolves fell the Grey Knights and Inquisitorial forces were eventually forced to relinquish the planet to the Stormblade Great Company. Realizing their victory was temporary the Stormblade Great Company took aboard those of the populace who had fought against the traitors the heardest and earned the Space Wolves respect before rapidly departing for Fenris and the Fang, Wolf Lord Silvar having much to report to the Great Wolf. Though the political ramifications of this defiance were significant all in the Chapter were pleased that the Inquisition's nose had been bloodied and the rescued Corinthusians eventually proved themselves able additions to the Chapter's army of bondsmen and have since long been absorbed into the population of the Fang's human servants.

 

The Keltan Contest – 595.M41

The Keltan system was the site of an Ork invasion in 585.M41. Responding to the distress calls received by the Chapter's astropaths the Stormblade Great Company arrived a month later to find the Orks already routed and a Brotherhood of White Scars mopping up the few remnants. Determined to at least wet their blades the Space Wolves joined in hunting down the last of the Ork invaders through the wilderness of Keltan III and IV. What would otherwise have taken a few days was dragged on into weeks as the two Chapters competed with each other, going far further than running down the last of the invaders the forces of the two Chapters struck into the wildest parts of the planets, tracking down and annihilating the feral Ork population left over from a previous invasion six centuries previously. For three weeks the two Chapters amused themselves slaughtering the Orks wherever they could be found. When at last neither Chapter could locate anymore Greenskins the two commanders decided to engage in a training battle between their two forces, to settle who were the better fighters. Despite the speed and skill of the White Scars bikers the tenacious and adaptable Space Wolves lured their speed addicted brethren too close and caught them in an ambush by packs of Grey Hunters. By the end of the day the Space Wolves emerged victorious and the White Scars, smarting from their defeat, conceded superiority to the Space Wolves. Though Wolf Priest Bradach questioned the point of such an exercise and admonished Lord Silvar for the waste of time the canny Wolf Lord pointed out that they had earned the respect and friendship of their brother Space Marines and represented their Chapter with honor and skill. In future they could call upon that friendship to the benefit of the Chapter and at the very least the mock battle had given the Space Wolves experience fighting their fellow Astartes. Bradach bowed to the greater wisdom of his Wolf Lord and learned to respect, if not entirely agree with, the decisions of his reserved and careful commander.

 

The Battle of the Datarian Plains – 629.M41

A year into the Halosis Crusade the Stormblade Great Company came up against the renegade Iosian 15th Armored Regiment on the world of Necatran. The traitor tankers were experienced and veteran warriors who had initially been part of the Halosis Crusade's Imperial Guard forces until the influence of a Slaaneshi Keeper of Secrets turned the entire regiment to the worship of chaos virtually overnight. The treachery of the Iosian 15th was a devastating blow to the Crusade's forces, the traitors having devastated three other regiments during their betrayal and leveled much of the Capital of Necatran where the Crusade's forces were based. It fell to the Space Wolves to turn things around swiftly before the entire Crusade ground to a halt. For four days the Space Wolves threw themselves against the traitors, losing most of the Company's armor and air support over the course of the battle. Without armor of their own and with few Long Fangs to provide serious firepower the Space Wolves resorted to charging in on foot and clamping explosives to the armored hides of the enemy vehicles, many brave battle-brothers died in the death explosions of the heretic tanks but the Stormblade Great Company was ultimately successful. By the dawn of the fifth day every single tank of the Iosian 15th Armored Regiment was reduced to a burning, smoking hulk of twisted steel and ceramite. The Space Wolves losses had been severe however and nearly two dozen Marines lay dead along with virtually all of the Company's armor and two thirds of the Company's Thunderhawks had been shot down. The Company departed Necatran two months later in a somber mood, there were many battles yet to fight before the Crusade was over but many felt the Company was already nearly spent.

 

The Fall of the Cardinal of Ecatros – 633.M41

The final battle the Stormblade Great Company fought during the Halosis Crusade came to be known as the Fall of the Cardinal of Ecatros. Like most of the worlds the Crusade encountered Ecatros had fallen to heresy and rebellion, but unlike the others Ecatros had fallen to the heretical sermons of its very own Ecclesiarchy. Headed by the chaos worshipping Cardinal Tiberion of Ophelia the armies of Ecatros stood as the last major bastion the Crusade forces would need to overcome. Those worlds and systems remaining beyond Ecatros had held out better than the others and would be much easier to reconquer, Ecatros was the Crusade's last major hurdle and as always the Space Wolves would be the spearhead aimed at the heart of the enemy. In his arrogance Cardinal Tiberion met the Crusade forces on the fields before the capitol city he had renamed Tiberionopolis. Wolf Lord Silvar was initially suspicious, for surely no sane enemy would leave the walls and fortifications of their city to meet the Space Wolves in the open. It was the combined council of the fiery Bradach and the considered Mjornal that swayed the Wolf Lord into a direct attack. After all heretics were certainly not sane. In a battle that lasted a mere three hours the traitorous Guardsmen were slaughtered to a man and the Cardinal was impaled on the steeple of his own Cathedral. Four days later the Space Wolves and a third of the Crusade's forces departed, intent on making further progress while the rest of the Crusade cleaned up on Ecatros. Two weeks later the Storm Breaker and her escorts emerged from the warp to find almost three hundred years had passed and the Space Wolves part in the Crusade came to a sudden and unexpected end.

 

The Battle for Forghost's World – 924.M41

One of the first battles fought by the Stormblade Great Company following their return to the Fang the Space Wolves responded to a distress call from Forghost's world. The system was halfway across the Imperium from the Company's current position and by the time the Space Wolves reached the beleaguered planet two years and five other battles had passed. The Stormblade Company arrived to find a world under the rule of the xenos Tau. The warriors of the Stormblade Great Company had never faced the Tau before, and those reinforcements the Company had received from the Fang were mostly untested recruits. Without first hand knowledge of the enemy capabilities Lord Silvar favored a cautious approach but when the Space Wolves received word that a high ranking military commander known as a Shas'O was on the planet escorting a member of the Tau leadership caste, the Etherials, it was decided that waiting was not an option and the Stormblade Great Company launched their attack immediately. The Tau forces threw everything at the Space Wolves they could, squads of Kroot Mercenaries ambushing the Space Wolves packs at every turn, while Broadsides delivered punishing volleys of railgun fire from extreme range, Crisis suits dropped from high altitude to strike at the Company armor from all directions, and teams of Firewarriors poured punishing pulse rifle fire on the Space Marines from every building. Despite the skill and cunning of the enemy the Space Wolves of the Stormblade Great Company smashed their way through every ambush, Wolf Scouts slipping behind the enemy to cut down Broadside and Sniper teams, Blood Claws carving apart Kroot warriors in ferocious melee and Skyclaws flushed out Firewarriors from their firing positions. Lord Silvar himself cut down more than one Crisis Battlesuit. After a month and a half of bloody and vicious fighting reinforcements from the Imperial Guard and Imperial Navy translated in system and forced the Tau Empire to withdrew their forces from the planet. The Space Wolves withdrew shortly thereafter, returning to their ships and departing the system quietly for none felt this battle was a victory. If anything they had been evenly matched against their foe at every turn and had come to respect the strength and martial prowess of their foe through blood and sweat. It was with deep contemplation that Lord Silvar considered the small spot on his star charts where the Tau Empire had appeared as the Storm Breaker made for the next warzone and he vowed that the Company's next confrontation with the Tau Empire would go differently.

 

The Ambush at Quintus Delta – 925.M41

Shortly after their battle against the Tau forces on Forghost's World the Stormblade Great Company's fleet was ambushed whilst taking on equipment at the Imperial Navy supply outpost in the remote Quintus Delta system. A force of renegade Chaos Space Marines ambushed the Company fleet shortly after its arrival in system, clearly attempting to seize the Space Wolves vessel and the supplies of the Imperial Navy station in one fell swoop. In a furious and savage battle that flowed from the empty void to the barren rock of a world upon which the supply facility was built the Space Wolves and Chaos Marines fought to the death, neither willing to accede defeat. Eventually through sheer attrition the renegade forces were forced to flee though their escape was short lived as they encountered a patrol fleet from the Imperial Navy just arriving in system as they made for the jump point. Already severely damaged from their fight with the Space Wolves the renegades ships were in no condition for a stand up fight with the Imperial Navy and were quickly destroyed. Once again the Stormblade Great Company had suffered harsh losses for little gain and it was with frustration and anger that the Space Wolves departed the system past the shattered remnants of the chaos fleet.

 

The Ecclesiarchy's Retribution – 925.M41

On their way back to the Fang the Stormblade Great Company stopped by the Forge World of Seption Prime for a resupply. While loading crates of bolt shells, spare parts, food and other supplies the Space Wolves fleet was hailed by a vessel belonging to the Ecclesiarchy's militant Order of the Sacred Rose. The Order accused the Space Wolves of murdering Cardinal Tiberion during the Halosis Crusade. Lord Silvar laughed at this and bluntly informed the sisters that Cardinal Tiberion had been a chaos worshipping heretic and the Wolf Lord had happily impaled his corpse on the spiked steeple of his own tainted Cathedral. Enraged the Sisters launched an immediate assault on the Space Wolves. Lord Silvar's amusement quickly turned to anger and frustration, he had no wish to slay fellow servants of the Emperor but he had no patience for the single minded zeal of the sisters either. The Space Wolves were forced to wage a merciless battle against the sisters in the outer slum districts of the forge complex where they were resupplying. Holding back the sisters assault long enough to load their supplies and depart. Despite their initial confidence the sisters fury turned out to be a potent weapon and saw the deaths of many battle-brothers and relatively few sisters. Though they achieved their primary objective and withdrew with their supplies the battle smarted and was considered at best a tie and at worst a shameful retreat. Lord Silvar needed a solid victory to galvanize his warriors and restore morale before they returned to the Fang for reinforcements.

 

The Battle for Cestus V – 926.M41

The victory Silvar Stormblade needed came in the form of the reconquest of Cestus V. A world conquered by Ork Pirates and Eldar Corsairs, Cestus V was a mining world rich in prometheum and numerous precious metals making it invaluable to the Imperial war efforts of the region. A sizable army of Imperial Guard, Adeptus Astartes and Adeptus Titanicus was cobbled together from available forces in the region and dispatched to reclaim the planet from the Orks. The Stormblade Great Company was one of the first forces to hit the ground, alongside elements from three other Chapters and Drop Troop Regiments the Space Wolves fought bloody battle after bloody battle against the Ork invaders, establishing a foothold for the army's armor and Titans to be deployed. Four days later the Ork Warboss lay dead, the Eldar had been forced to retreat into the webway and the Stormblade Great Company had earned glory and respect on the field of battle. The Battle for Cestus V was a resounding victory, restoring the Company's morale and allowing them to return to the Fang bloodied but victorious.

 

The Raid on Interitus Prime – 935.M41

Although the Raid on Interitus Prime was merely a skirmish, and largely unremarkable compared to the Stormblade Great Company's many other battles, the raid was notable for the plunder recovered from the foul Orks. Normally the distress cries from the out of the way and fringe world of Interitus Prime would not have drawn the attention of a Company of Adeptus Astartes, however intelligence on the planet in the company archives revealed the world as home to an Adeptus Mechanicus weapons research and storage facility, and after consulting the Rune Priest Mjornal Oath-Keeper the lord of the Stormblade Great Company decided to alter course and make for the remote system. The battle against the Orks was short and fierce, their numbers were not as significant as Lord Silvar had anticipated, the majority of their number having fallen to the devastating weapons of the Mechanicus. The Space Wolves arrived too late to save the Adeptus Mechanicus facility however and found themselves simply clearing out a small band of Ork Meks and their attendants. Some in the company declared the entire endeavor a waste of time and encouraged Lord Silvar to order their departure immediately. Still heeding the advice of Rune Priest Mjornal however Silvar decided to investigate further. The Mechanicus facility proved to have been largely stripped out by the Orks, what little remaining after the fighting having been wrecked or stripped apart by the wreckless greenskins, but the downed greenskin ships turned up the largely intact wreck of a Blood Angels Stormraven Gunship the Orks had been in the process of looting and refitting for their own use. The Stormblade Great Company departed the ruins of Interitus Prime with a new weapon added to the Space Wolves arsenal.

 

The Battle for Octavion – 948.M41

One of the largest battles of the Stormblade Great Company, the Battle for Octavion saw the deployment of the Aurora Chapter, the Dark Angels, the Space Wolves, and the Blood Angels, alongside elements of three Imperial Guard Regiments, a convent of Battle Sisters from the Order of the Sacred Rose and even a shadowy strike force of Biel-Tan Eldar, all to repel a massive invasion of chaos forces spilling forth from the Maelstrom to capture vital war material on the Forge World of Octavion. Chaos Marines, Daemons and Renegade Guard Regiments tore across the surface of Octavion only to meet the steadfast guns and blades of the Imperial defenders. For days the allied Imperial forces held fast, repelling the invaders from the capitol until traitors within their midst made their move. Unbeknownst to the Imperial defenders the Aurora Chapter had not dispatched a strike force to defend Octavion, the warriors bearing their colors were Alpha Legion infiltrators who struck just as the Imperial lines were at their weakest, targeting their assassins blades on the forces of the Stormblade Great Company. As the traitors struck, chaos ensued, the Imperial lines fell into confusion, allies turning on each other as suspicion and ancient grudges came to the forefront. The traitors greatly underestimated the tenacity of the Imperial Space Marines however and to the renegades great surprise the Space Wolves, Blood Angels and Dark Angels gathered together into a rolling tide of Imperial vengeance, driving the traitor forces from the capitol and restoring order to the defenders. After another week of fighting the renegades decided to cut their losses and fled back to their lairs within the Maelstrom. With the enemy beaten, only one more task remained, a duel of honor against the Dark Angels. Lord Silvar Stormblade himself took up the challenge and faced off against the legendary Sammael, Master of the Ravenwing. The duel lasted many hours, the speed and firepower of Sammael's jetbike proving a great advantage but slowly Lord Silvar led the Master of the Ravenwing into a tight alleyway where the Wolf Lord ambushed him from above, dragging him from his saddle and crossing blades with him on the ground. With his greatest advantages neutralized the Dark Angels Company Master could not match Lord Silvar in a contest of blades and the duel concluded with Sammael yielding before Silvar's blade.

 

Wolves Salvation – 962.M41

In 962.M41 a small listening outpost of the Space Wolves in the remote Pontis system was caught in the crossfire between an Ork Waaagh and a Tyranid Splinter Fleet. With the outpost's sole rapid strike vessel destroyed attempting to escape the system and bring word to the Chapter the wolves on the small moon orbiting Pontis VII seemed doomed to a hopeless death facing not one, but two massive xenos hordes. Only a few systems away the Stormblade Great Company was attempting to relay an astropathic message through the outpost even as it fell under the warp shadow of the Tyranid splinter fleet. Unable to contact the outpost the Stormblade Company decided to investigate. The Stormblade fleet emerged from the warp into the middle of a massive and chaotic space battle between the Ork and Tyranid fleets. Realizing what had happened Lord Silvar ordered the fleet to break through to the outpost, engaging only those ships in their way, letting the xenos forces kill each other unimpeded as much as possible. Though the Space Wolves ship took a beating they made it to the small outpost on Pontis VII's moon and made planetfall in strength. The wolves garrisoning the outpost had suffered significant casualties holding off the xenos forces, and extracting them cost the Stormblade Company greatly as well, but none would even consider abandoning their fellow Sons of Russ to the claws and blades of the xenos. Holding out only long enough to extract their comrades the Stormblade Company fled the Pontis system with all haste, the Space Wolves reluctant to flee from a battle but knowing without a doubt they could not overcome both xenos forces.

 

The Assault on Henselt's Hope – 973.M41

The remote colony world of Henselt's Hope fell to the forces of the Orks early in M40 and remained in xenos hands until an Imperial task force was assembled to reclaim it in 973.M41. The Stormblade Great Company joined the task force and took part in the massive opening assault on the planet. Scores of Drop Pods and gunships tore through the atmosphere of Henselt's Hope, their objective, to cripple the xenos command structure and resources before the xenos could rally their forces and establish a foothold in the capitol city of Groundfall. Intelligence of the xenos forces was woefully outdated however, the Orks had somehow disturbed a Necron tomb buried in one of the planet's three moons and three seperate Eldar strike forces had already arrived to oppose the Necrons. The Imperials found themselves smashing their way into the midst of a massive three way battle. Undeterred the Stormblade Great Company took on one foe at a time, crushing them before moving on, the other Imperial forces taking the Space Wolves lead. One by one the xenos forces were crushed and the Navy bombarded all three moons to rubble, just to be sure. The new asteroid field orbiting the world, and the massive meteor showers showering its surface made recolonization untenable to say the least. Imperial forces withdrew from the system after a cursory cleanup operation though the Imperial Navy left a small monitoring contingent to watch for any further signs of Necron activity on the orders of the Inquisition.

 

The Storming of Kanjig City – 978.M41

In 978.M41 the Stormblade Great Company joined an Imperial task force to reclaim the capitol city of Jagaal II, known as Kanjig City. Renegades in league with the Tau overthrew the Imperial Governor and were in the midst of fighting a civil war against Imperial loyalists when the relief task force arrived to put the xenos loving renegades down. The Stormblade Great Company were all too happy to lead the charge, overrunning the renegade forces and driving the Tau from the city.

 

The War for Castellox – 984.M41

When warp storms abated around the Castellox system a new, relatively stable, trade route opened in the regions surrounding the Maelstrom. The Imperium was quick to exploit this new route to move men and material from warzone to warzone, driving pirates and raiders back into the Maelstrom. Less than thrilled of this turn of events a rough alliance quickly formed of elements from the Red Corsairs, Freebooter Orks, Dark Eldar, Eldar Corsairs and various other chaos and renegade warbands operating in the regions in and around the Maelstrom. This alliance of reavers and pirates fell upon Castellox with a vengeance, determined to sever the stable trade route in the middle. Unsurprisingly the Imperium responded in force. Along with elements of half a dozen other Chapters, the Imperial Guard and Sororitas the Stormblade Great Company joined the battle to drive off the invaders. Though the chaos and xenos forces put up a vicious fight the stalwart skill and determination of the Space Wolves and the other Imperial forces told out in the end, driving the reaver bands from the system. Defeated and broken many of these pirate bands splintered and turned on each other, ensuring a period of relative safety and stability in some of the systems bordering the Maelstrom.

 

Return to Pontis – 990.M41

Twenty eight years after being driven from the Pontis system Great Wolf Logan Grimnar decreed that the Space Wolves would return to the Pontis system and cleanse it of the xenos infestation. The honor of doing so was granted to the Stormblade Great Company for their efforts to rescue the Space Wolf garrison nearly three decades previously. When the Stormblade fleet arrived in the Pontis system they discovered that the Tyranids and Orks had greatly whittled each other down. With little resources or habitable environments in the system neither force was able to easily recover their losses, what was left after almost three decades of vicious fighting were merely shadows of the forces that had first invaded the system. The Space Wolves set upon the xenos forces with a vengeance, slaughtering them to the last. Within a matter of weeks the system was declared clear of xenos taint and a small force dispatched from the Fang began the process of rebuilding the Chapter listening post on the moon of Pontis VII.

[Wulfebane]

Was about to pass out but auto-alerts drew me to this topic. I'll confess I only skimmed this but...

 

Ultimately, this is the best source of creative SW-potential names I could ever hope to find in one place. I'll be reading the rest when I wake up tomorrow.

[Arez]

Wow thats alot of information,only 1 thing wrong:the wolves dont care what the inquisition thinks :( .Its cool how you named everyone and gave alot of them background information.

[Vash113]

Was about to pass out but auto-alerts drew me to this topic. I'll confess I only skimmed this but...

 

Ultimately, this is the best source of creative SW-potential names I could ever hope to find in one place. I'll be reading the rest when I wake up tomorrow.

 

Well that's fair praise for a skim, do let me know what you think when you have time for a full read. ;)

 

Wow thats alot of information,only 1 thing wrong:the wolves dont care what the inquisition thinks :( .Its cool how you named everyone and gave alot of them background information.

 

The Space Wolves don't care about what the Inquisition thinks "much" but they have to a little... just a little.

 

When I went digging for this in my files it was looking for some of the names I'd noted down when reworking my army-list, I had forgotten how much background I'd put in but overall I'm fairly happy with it even if it is more than a little "cliche." The whole Lost Company lost in the warp gets a bit overdone but I couldn't think of anything better at the time, simple is often the best.

[Kassill]

Wow, skimmed as well. (late and not up to challenging the wall of text ;) ) But from what I read, I like. We have a very, very similar story regarding the Lost Company and it being absorbed/absorbing it self back into the Chapter. I like all the character names and vehicle names. Something I've been struggling with lately. May have to "borrow" a few names here and there. ;)

[Vash113]

Wow, skimmed as well. (late and not up to challenging the wall of text :D ) But from what I read, I like. We have a very, very similar story regarding the Lost Company and it being absorbed/absorbing it self back into the Chapter. I like all the character names and vehicle names. Something I've been struggling with lately. May have to "borrow" a few names here and there. :P

 

Be my guest, I just farmed a variety of lists of names and translators for Swedish, Scandenavian and German names among others.

[hendrik]

wow! what a read!

one thought though, do you have a model for all of these? hell if you do! by the amounts of flyers this makes you forgeworlds nr 1 client i think!

[Vash113]

wow! what a read!

one thought though, do you have a model for all of these? hell if you do! by the amounts of flyers this makes you forgeworlds nr 1 client i think!

 

I have models for all of the infantry, vehicles and most of the warships but the only flyer I actually have is a Stormraven, as there's no way I've spent the what 3,000 pounds it would take to get that many gunships from Forge World? Heck it's 95 pounds for a Caestus and 80 for a Stormeagle... I would like one or two of those but... probably not.

 

My Fenresian Wolves are prolly gonna get replaced soon too with the new models, the old Goblin Woolf Rider models are lookin a bit dated. ;)