ISO: Loremasters, re: Erebus in the current timeline

[Khornestar]

In an effort to get as many eyes/answers as possible, I decided to create a thread here for general discussion (please move it to the appropriate forum if I've done so in error).

 

I'd like to know as much as I can about Erebus in the current timeline beyond what is written on Lexicanum: 

 

 

After the defeat of Horus at the Battle of Terra, Erebus fled into the Eye of Terror with the rest of his Legion. He is currently a member of the Dark Council, the ruling body of Sicarus and is often engaging in power struggles for control of the Legion with Kor Phaeron^[2]. During the 13th Black Crusade of Abaddon the Despoiler, Erebus would appear leading an army of Word Bearers across the Cadian Sector, sacrificing millions of human captives to summon a vast army of Daemons across the Sector^[2].

 

As far as that vast army of daemons, the reference is to the old Eye of Terror campaign, so it seems like the fall of Cadia and the subsequent unleashing of the Cicatrix Maledictum replaced old Erebus's hard work. I don't particularly care one way or another except to ask... is that it? Has he not been referenced or written about other than that? 

 

During the 30k era, Erebus was first chaplain of the legion. Did he have any sort of unit(s) directly under his command? Special cadre of bodyguards or somesuch? I've read Betrayer and First Heretic, but don't own the books and can't really remember anyone other than the Gal Vorbak and I think Ashen Circle being mentioned as specific units in the stories, and even then I don't remember them being buddies with the first chaplain.

 

I realize virtually every aspect of organization can change, or all those warriors could be dead, but I want to paint up a bunch of my unassembled/unpainted 40k CSM forces as Word Bearers under his command. Any insight into lore, imagery, etc. would be appreciated.

[Marshal Loss]

I'm sure Erebus would have some kind of bodyguards under his command, as de facto head of the Dark Council, but from what we've seen, he's actually more of a lone wolf than anything else. His ability to travel across on his own with his magic dagger meant that he had no need for an entourage and a personal fleet (despite having his own flagship, Destiny's Hand). In the HH card game, however, there was a card labelled the 'Harbingers of Death,' who were specifically noted as being Erebus' bodyguards. From memory, the picture showed a mixture of Terminators and normal marines. As First Chaplain of the Legion though, he could basically requisition any forces he wanted.

 

Erebus appears in the Word Bearers trilogy by Anthony Reynolds, where he's manipulating the Legion more to his image and having a Shadow War with Kor Phaeron. It's worth a read. There's also an amusing reference to him in the latest Fabius Bile novel, Clonelord:

 

 

 

Erebus would approve. Efficiency was one of the thirteen virtues, along with self-reliance and ruthlessness. Saqqara glanced at his armour, with its wine-dark hue. There were currently three hundred and forty-seven approved hues for battleplate within the Legion. That number changed, depending on the whims of the Dark Council. Following those whims was considered another virtue.

 

He's name dropped in numerous other novels, on occasion, and appears in a fair few other HH short stories along with his cameo appearances in major novels.

 

Essentially, he and Kor Phaeron rule the Legion in Lorgar's absence, and as the Word Bearers rarely feature in any GW studio lore beyond the occasional name drop, he hasn't appeared to do much as a result. The nature of their rivalry means it's probably rare for one or the other to leave Sicarus lest the other take advantage of it.

[Khornestar]

Thanks for the info, frater!

 

I should finish reading the omnibus. I got halfway through the second book and got distracted by other things.

 

Hilarious, the Dark Council being so concerned with bureaucratic nonsense like approved armor hues. That's perfect. Should the lore ever "advance" past this point, the codex does mention strong/repetitive rumors of Lorgar in realspace once more, his reclusive meditation finally over. But who can say...

 

Good point regarding any of the Dark Council members leaving to fight any of their own battles. Perhaps if their primarch demanded it, they'd both venture forth with their forces to wreak havoc on the Imperium. 

[1000 Sons]

Still waiting for a scene where Erebus runs into a drop pod and hits the eject button, sits down and looks across the pod and Khârn is sitting there and says, 'Have you see Argal Tal lately ?' Scene fades to black with the sound of Gorechild revving up.

[Khornestar]

I like to think the sly devil has contingency plans in place for such possibilities. Getting carved up like a turkey is probably a great learning experience.

[NoLifeKing]

"The holy warrior-brothers of the Grey Knights escort an inquisitor to the Zhadanok prison complex on Orina Septimus. There, surrounded by the acid-oceans of that dying world, resides a prisoner of inestimable value - a prisoner whose knowledge stretches across ten millennia, a prisoner who is a greater threat than everyone else in the complex combined. His name... Erebus."

Is the text at the back cover of a 40k book called "Prisoner" andis available as a ebook from black library. There may be a hint of his current situation. Also, i think he was starring in the last book of the word bearers trilogy, the book Dark Creed.

[Khornestar]

How DARE they imprison him! ;)

 

Reading it now, frater. Thanks for telling me.

[Marshal Loss]

Let's just say that he's no longer a prisoner. There's another short story with Erebus in there, 'Gate of Souls'.

Edited January 21, 2018 by Marshal Loss

[Khornestar]

I’ll have to wait a bit before buying that one, but it’s next on my list. :)

 

The Prisoner wasn’t bad at all, nice little story with a happy ending.

Edited January 21, 2018 by Juggernut

[Warpmiss]

I'm surprised we don't have a 40k model for either Erebus nor Kor (even from 3rd party companies). The 30k ones are nice (as is anything from FW!) but I imagine both of them have probably gone through serious physical changes since the HH, specially considering their legion loves toying with daemons and the Warp.

 

In any case, I'll also be adding those books to my to-read list!

[SchultzChaos]

I don't find either Prisoner nor Gate of Souls. Are they part of a short story-collection or something? 

I would love some spoilers on both of those. 

[Warpmiss]

From what I have found, both seem to be in the anthology Tales of the Dark Millennium http://wh40k.lexicanum.com/wiki/Tales_from_the_Dark_Millennium_(Anthology)

 

 

It's in the Black Library web as an ebook: https://www.blacklibrary.com/warhammer-40000/novels/tales-from-the-dark-millenium-ebook.html

 

Plus I have found they also have the Prisoner story for individual purchase: https://www.blacklibrary.com/all-products/the-prisoner-ebook.html

[Khornestar]

I don't find either Prisoner nor Gate of Souls. Are they part of a short story-collection or something? 

I would love some spoilers on both of those.

 

The Prisoner:

 

Erebus crash lands on a prison planet (survives, obviously :P) and is taken prisoner/incarcerated in what amounts to a maximum security prison that is surrounded by a sea of acid. A former guardsman (Finn) with a talent and penchant for killing is also incarcerated there, one who heard voices in his head telling him to kill people. He’s coincidentally part of a prison gang called the Brothers of the Word.

 

An Inquisitor, his retinue, and four Grey Knights arrive on the planet on learning of Erebus’s capture to take custody ASAP. As the warden leads them deeper into the prison - below acid sea level- to Erebus, Finn and his gang have set in motion a prison break plan that involves deactivating the pumps that keep acid from flooding the prison and causing a prison riot. Erebus is his usual pompous self, but oddly compliant with his captors...

 

Finn’s plan is set into motion, and the ensuing riot and flooding acid are throwing the prison into total chaos (eh? eh? Sorry...) Coincidentally, a Word Bearers ship appears in orbit and begins orbital bombardment of the planet’s main power-generating structure that powers the prison, followed by four Stormbirds/transports dropping off a heap of Word Bearers to rescue their buddy Erebus.

 

Except, are they really there to “rescue” him? Of course not. Erebus played the Inquisitor like a fiddle, knowing the lapdog of the corpse emperor couldn’t resist coming to the prison in person. The architect of the heresy wants the secret lore and knowledge this Inquisitor possesses, and so after the Grey Knights make a heroic stand but are inevitably slaughtered (along with all the humans, save one), the Word Bearers depart with their inquisitorial prisoner rendered unconscious by a mighty pimp slap.

 

The lone human survivor? Our buddy Finn. Those voices in his head? Turns out old Finn is warp-touched, and unknowingly acted as a beacon for the Word Bearers to zero in on the prison. They leave him alive to raise hell for whomever happens to find him.