Liber Challenge V - Bloodsteam Warmongers

[Doctor Perils]

Just the beginning of my Index Daemonicus for the Liber Challenge V. Hope there are some supporters of Hashût out there ^^

 

ID - Bloodsteam Warmongers

"It seems that, since the appearance of the Sons of Hashût, their titular deity has gained a great deal of power. Very little is known about this Chaos God, apart from the fact that he is the master of the Forges of Hell, and that he presides over industry, technology and the art of warmongering.
"Some speculate that he was once a Daemon of Khorne, representing the aspect of mortals' invention and creation of new forms of weaponry and warfare, that had rebelled against his erstwhile master; but, as with all things pertaining to the Powers of the Empyrion, there can be no certainty.
"What is sure is that the Imperium's first records of Daemons bearing the mark of Hashût date from a few years prior to the Ashen Crusade, from a time when a young techpriest of Sarment-delta was on a pilgrimage (on this matter, see the section dedicated to Ferromancer Talahk)."

 

- From A History of the Sarment Sector, Boromeanites Triptych, Tome I:Dolchschild and the Ashen Crusade, Introduction,

by Archivist Ved Quill, Ordo Scriptus

 
This Index Daemonicus (Also known as ID) deals with the Bloodsteam Ironmongers, a warhost of Hashûtian daemons.
To fully comprehend their story, we must first explore some of the kinds of Daemons that Hashût creates, for very few people are even aware of the God's existence, let alone his Daemons'.
The Following article is an excerpt from a document of the Inquisition, written by Inquisitor Silas Ketch of the Ordo Malleus, who was one of the first agents of the Imperium to encounter them.

 

=][=THIS DOCUMENT IS FOR INQUISITORS' EYES ONLY. =][=
So ruled by the Ordo Malleus of the Most Holy Inquisition.
Any person or persons contravening this rule, or conspiring to contravene this rule, shall be exsanguinated 'til death ensues, and shall have their eternal soul denied the mercy of the All-Mighty God-Emperor's Light.
=][=

 
This study is meant to enlighten Inquisitors as to the appearance, capacities, and ways to deal with, the Daemons of Hashût.
The most common varieties are known as Forgeguards and Hellmets, yet more dangerous ones are the Abyssal Mortarers. Daemonic beasts known as Infernoxen are used to pull special kinds of chariots and flying contraptions. The worst creatures of their kind are the Heralds , and the Gorerochs are monsters nigh as tall as a Bloodthirster, yet twice as massive.


Lesser Daemons: Steamtroopers
The Steamtroopers are the Lesser Daemons of Hashut. In the material realm, they resemble small armoured imps, that fuse flesh and mechanical elements to form an aberration, offending the sensibilities of even the most deranged followers of the Omnissiah.
Instead of feet, they sport special wheels with metallic bars – called Dreadnaught Wheels – that are designed to spread the weight of heavy machineries. As the Steamtroopers are barely taller than a human – even though they are far more massive – this design feature does more to hinder the movements of these Daemons rather than anything else, showing the madness of their master’s mind. Their heads resemble great helmets, though their eyes are actually attached on the outside of the helmet. Protruding from their backs are funnels that vent hellish steam.
 Note to self: Must discover if this could prove to be a weakness. Shall study the effects of blocking this funnel. Do NOT, under any circumstance, block this element: the resulting explosion scorches human flesh to cinders, but does little to harm the Steamtroopers around the first one.
Finally, they wield dual axes, that have integrated living firearms and have their own senses, meaning that should a loyal servant of the imperium lop off the creatures’ helm – and therefore head – the Daemon may continue to attack. This effect is extremely dangerous for those who are not aware of their capacities, for it can mean the death of a brave but unwitting soldier of Mankind. Hereafter, we shall dub these weapons “axe-locks”.
Like other daemonkind, the Steamtroopers have their own nightmarish parodies of musicians, standard bearers and champions. The Musicians replace one of their axelocks for a drum and stick, and the Champions  take a poleaxe that integrates an arquebus – a larger firearm in other terms.


Daemon Minions: Hellmets
The punishment of any of Hashut’s servants when incurring the god’s wrath, is to be turned into a Hellmet. To create a Hellmet, Hashut simply plucks the helm of the Daemon in question – even if it is a Greater Daemon – melds two little arms and legs to it, and gives it a little tool (often a hammer or wrench). Hellmets are the menial labourers in the forges of Hell, crafting the less important pieces of Daemon engines, and they are adept at repairing them on the battlefield. When needed, they can also be formed into large units – for there are always many Daemons that displease Hashut – that can be quite surprising on the battlefield: not only are they numerous, they are also resistant. It is fortunate that they are not dangerous in and of themselves, though they often latch onto our devoted warriors, slowing them down, and preventing them from firing, allowing their daemonic kin to manoeuvre at their own pace.
Of interesting note is that Hellmets in the shape of Astartes Helms or Imperial Guardsmen helmets have been seen on several battlefields, leading us to wonder if Hellmets gather the helms of killed foes to create new Daemons, but this is pure speculation.


Beasts of Hashût
Were one to describe a beast of Hashût in two words, those would have to be "Feral Cannon". These creatures take the form of antique cannons, but have brutish gorilla arms, and the hind legs of a bull.
Their shots are absolutely devastating, but their close combat attacks must by no means be taken lightly, as their swiping fists have been known to kill several glorious warriors of the God-Emperor at a time. Worse yet, these monsters roam the battlefield in groups of three, often accompanied by several Steamtroopers.


Steeds: Infernoxen
Infernoxen are the Daemonic steeds used by the servants of Hashut. Unlike the steeds of other gods, one cannot mount an Infernox, one must instead use special hell-forged chariots, or air-borne vessels called Hellwains.
Infernoxen themselves resemble large brazen bulls, who have fire or steam weeping from diverse orifices, and who have Dreadnaught Wheels in place of their feet. Atop their backs, one finds flywheels, that can be hooked up to cursed machineries.


Oxcarts
Oxcarts are generally pulled by two Infernoxen, rest on a set of bladed skids, and carry two Steamwardens – one pilot and one weapons specialist. There are two main versions of Oxcarts: the first presents a set of gruesome rotating blades, that can be deadly even to fully armoured members of the most holy Adeptus Astartes; the second presents a large gatling-cannon, with its rotation power – and therefore its rate of fire – provided by the flywheels of the Infernoxen, apparently.
On the battlefield, Oxcarts are a relatively frequent sight. They fight in packs of up to three, mixing both varieties of Oxcart.


Hellwains
Hellwains are an altogether rarer sight. These contraptions fly thanks to sets of mechanical wings, powered once again by the flywheel of an Infernox. The only rider has access to a small calibre canon, but more particularly a special kind of bomb, created by welding many Hellmets together. When this bomb lands, shards of broken Hellmets can wound nearby units, but any surviving Hellmets can then attack the units they find themselves near to.


Heralds of Hashût
Heralds of Hashût largely look like Steamtroopers, but are larger, have two heads and wield unusual weapons. Their left arm wields a "Tarch", an armoured gauntlet with a slightly curved sword extending from the hand section, that goes through a round shield at the height of the shoulder, as well as a pole-weapon with rotating blades powered by a chain that runs through the Herald's body.
Though Heralds do not have firearms, they do present some small psychic powers. With their weapons, they are formidable combatants both on the offence and the defence.

Greater Daemons: Gorerochs
Gorerochs are the greatest Daemons of Hashût. Being as tall as a Bloodthirster, but twice as long and strong, Gorerochs are absolutely massive beings of nightmarish imagination.
They have a centauroid form, with mechanical wings, with the legs and horns of a bull. In guise of a head, it has a helmet of truly epic proportions.
It has only one weapon, a gigantic gatling cannon equipped with a lethal Bayonet. Though this bayonet is mainly useful against large enemies, the gatling cannon is deadly against both monstrous creatures and masses of its foes.

 

The Bloodsteam Warmongers are the first Daemon Warband of Hashut recorded in the data-vaults of the Ordo Malleus. Their initial appearance happened on the world of Xirrus, during at the height of the Seventh Phryx War. From there, they formed an alliance with the army known as the Sons of Hashut and have taken part in many battles of the Ashen Crusade ever since.

They are known by this name, as the steam leaving their back-funnels is bright crimson, leading some to believe that they function by boiling the blood of fallen foes. Though the science behind this observation is shaky at best, anything is possible in the nightmarish realm of the Warp...

 

Their favoured tactic relies on many Hellwains, dropping Hellmets upon the enemy, giving the time for the slower Steamtroopers to maneuver into position and devastate their targets through volleys of pistol fire, followed by their charge, axe-locks to the fore. During this time, Oxcarts harry the enemy's flanks, ensuring they do not maintain any cohesive formation, meaning an even more crushing defeat under the axe-locks of the Steamtroopers.

 

Warband Leader - Scrapejack Reapash

Though some may believe that Scrapejack is a "mere" herald of Hashut, one must not forget that he was the first and, until further notice, the only. A formidable fighter from the back of his great Oxcart, and a dastardly duellist, his Tarch and axe-saw have tasted the blood and sacred oils of many foes.

Scrapejack has been known to set whole worlds alight, just for the pleasure of seeing them burn, yet his primary objective remains the continuation of the Ashen Crusade, for the greater glory of his Lord Hashut.

He also seems to hold a great grudge against members of the Adeptus Mechanicus, as he seizes every opportunity to attack any of its members, even should this course of action lead to overall defeat of the warband.

Notable members of Warband

 

Bael'Ashorn

The Greater Daemon Bael'Ashorn was the original leader of the Bloodsteam Warmongers, and the first leader of the Ashen Crusade. Yet, as a Daemon, he was not prepared for the creativity of the human minds leading the defense of the Ashen Crusade. His physical, living-metal body was utterly destroyed by Natheel Dolcschild's denizens, and his "soul" was sent screaming back to Hashut's uncompromising feet.

The Greater Daemon has never again been seen, yet many have since confessed to seeing a massive Hellmet, with a copper daemonic death mask, when they have fought the Bloodsteam Warmongers.

 

Bradszhaa the Devout

Bradszhaa was once a Phryx High Priest of the "Machine-god's" evil face - which has been surmised by scholars of the Ordos Xenos and Malleus to be Hashut. Never a fighter, always a preacher, Bradszhaa lead the Phryx counter-attack on the STC-temple of Xirrus, allowing his soldiers to be the first mass sacrifice in the name of his god. For this great service - as it allowed Hashut to make his presence widely known in the material realm for the first time - Bradszhaa was granted Daemonhood, rising as a Daemon Prince of Hashut.

Bradszhaa has kept his two pairs of arms, and wields two massive axe-locks. He also bears the banner of the Bloodsteam Warmongers, as well as the Phryx's oldest relic of Hashut.

{NB: I still have to think of what this relic is, any help would be greatly appreciated}

Notable battles or conflicts joined

 

Battle of Xirrus

Xirrus had recently been discovered to harbour a small cache of STC templates, that had been lost for many Millenia, and the armies of the Imperium and the Phryx Republic clashed in a great battle. To break the Stalemate, the Lord General of the theatre called for reinforcements from the Glorious Adeptus Astartes, and the Space Marines responded to his call: more than a demi-company of the venerable Iron Hands used the dreaded "drop-pod assault" beloved of the Emperor's Angels of Death to secure the STC fragments. Soon, they were joined by Skitarii elements of Explorator Fleet RB-491.D, under the command of Magos Nemed Fomor, by Inquisitor Dolchschild of the Ordo Machinum, and a Penal Legion of the Imperial Guard.

 

This small yet formidable army remained isolated for three years, as the grinding trench warfare stopped any Imperial charge from reaching the tech-temple. During this time, the Iron-father of the Iron Hands and Magos Fomor formed bonds of friendship as they discovered many similarities in their way of thinking. They also heard many stories the Heretek Talahk's defeat and ultimate imprisonment at the hands of Dolchschild, several years previous to the battle, and found that they were both interested in the secrets he may conceal: they therefore both left the battlefield on the Iron-father's personal Stormbird, accompanied the entire retinue of Iron Hands.

 

Of course, this was the moment the Phryx decided to attack, and Dolchschild was forced to resort to the untested technology contained within the STC to save it:the new walker vehicle, that would evermore be known as the Scorpius (though officially called Dolchschild-Scorpius, Xirrus Pattern), allowed the Penal Legion, requisitioned by Dolchschild, to fight off the vile Xenos.

Yet victory was embittered by the next event that would unfold, as Dolchschild discovered that the Phryx' deaths were used as a sacrifice to draw forth the Bloodsteam Warmongers from the Warp, just as the Iron Hands teleported down to the planet once more, after they had obviously been changed by otherworldly influences: they now bore the signs of corruption of the Obliterator Virus, and were determined to use these gifts to wrest the control of the STC from the Imperials for their new god, whose name they chanted "Hashut! Hashut! Hashut!"

 

Dolchschild knew that he could not hope to gain victory, alone against this new foe. He, and the Penal Legion, fled the obective, towards the Phryx lines, hoping to parlay with them.

None shall ever know what transpired at that fateful meeting, but both the Humans and Xenos charged the forces of the Archenemy at dawn the following day. Hashut's fledgling army, still disorganised, were crushed, but were able to escape the battlefield, to fight another day.

 

Following the defeat of the Chaos army, a truce between the humans and the Phryx was called, but the planet stayed in Phryx hands, as the armies of humanity prepared for the coming Ashen Crusade.

[Doctor Perils]

Added the descriptions of what most Daemons of Hashut look like

 

(Sorry for the circumflex accent of the u in Hashut disappearing half the time, I'm alternating between azerty and qwerty keyboards)

 

Any C&C about these daemons of Hashut is welcome. I'll be getting round to describing the Heralds and Greater Daemons shortly, as well as a couple of sketches. Then I'll move on to the actual parts the Liber Challenge calls for.

[Doctor Perils]

Small update for the Herald and Greater Daemon.

[Teetengee]

so, if the hellwains fly, how are they pulled by the infernoxen?

Also, these sound interesting, I may well model some of them if I ever have the time.

[Doctor Perils]

Wow, that would be a great honour :-) For the Hellwains, either the Infernoxen have a separate flying contraption that is linked to the Hellwain itself, or the flying contraption is large enough to have the Infernoxen "in" it.

 

FYI, I had envisioned someting based off the Necrosphinx for the Greater Daemon, or else the Lammasu, the Grand Taurus (like the one you find with Drazhoath of the Forge World Chaos Dwarves. I'll try and get the quick pictures done quickly (probably this afternoon on the plane)

[Doctor Perils]

Update pertaining to the Bloodsteam Warmongers themselves. C&C always appreciated

[Teetengee]

The various factions in the Battle of Xirrus seem too friendly with each other. Otherwise, it is looking pretty good.

[Doctor Perils]

Yeah, on second thoughts your right. Happy you thing they look good otherwise.

 

The thing is, the Battle of Xirrus really marks the beginning of the Sons of Hashut as well, and they have got a lot of subfactions (they aren't all present yet, but there will be : Iron Hands (as obliterators), Iron Warriors, Skitarii, Dark Squat and Chaos Phryx at least) at least in the opening days of the Ashen Crusade, so I get a bit confused with it sometimes. But i'll rewrite this better soon.

[Doctor Perils]

I have scanned the pictures I've got for the moment but they need a lot of cleaning up. Since I've got descriptions of the Daemons, I think I'll count these as complete for the moment.