The Black Psalm (WIP) + [LASC 2021]

[Ryltar Thamior]

as applies the markings you've applied - one thing you can try, if it turns out that the point of the brush or pen you're using isn't *quite* fine enough for precision in making the marking ...

... is working a bit in reverse. 

That is to say - once the marking is laid down, and in places is a bit thick or the detail hasn't gone as planned, you 'carve into it' or 'whittle it down' via re-applications of the main colour of the surrounding *to* the marking. 

[Zebulon]

as applies the markings you've applied - one thing you can try, if it turns out that the point of the brush or pen you're using isn't *quite* fine enough for precision in making the marking ...

 

... is working a bit in reverse.

 

That is to say - once the marking is laid down, and in places is a bit thick or the detail hasn't gone as planned, you 'carve into it' or 'whittle it down' via re-applications of the main colour of the surrounding *to* the marking.

That’s a really good idea and I will be giving that a go :tu:

[Zebulon]

“Render unto me thy powers, and I shall work to spread the glory of thy Name!”

 

This is the Faustian pact made by so many of the Black Psalm’s followers, both human cultist and post-human marine. They are drawn to their fate by a love of power, a desire for advantage which is stirred and directed through the rhetoric of Barukh. He is an arch-manipulator of those who are malleable, but even he could not mould a mind that was impervious, unwilling to let itself be turned towards the objectives of the dark gods.

 

“The lapdogs of the False Emperor, the so-called Ecclesiarchy, they will tell you to eschew your desires, and to slay his enemies without passion. But what do we call a man who kills without passion? A psychopath! Our murder has meaning, a higher purpose! We slay in the names of those who personify our passions! In the name of hatred! In the name of change! In the name of corruption! In the name of desire itself, we cast down those who would suppress our freedom!”

 

-Extract from the speeches of Barukh; ”Why then, must the Imperium be destroyed?”

Edited December 26, 2020 by Zebulon

[Zebulon]

”Do you not see, my brothers?

 

We have kept faith and served the so-called Ruinous Powers, for all of our adult lives! Ever since we awoke and were reborn in this transhuman form, we have worked to spread their message, albeit once we believed that we served the wretched Corpse-Emperor!

 

Each world that we put to the sword and bolt, the more Lord Khorne looked approvingly upon us; each time we proudly declared a mission complete, the Prince of Excess winked at our growing pride in arms. Each time we tore down the cities of men and beasts, and sowed the seeds for disease and decay to spread, Grandfather Nurgle smiled benignly down at us. Whenever we have acted as agents of change in this galaxy, Tzeentch has been there, guiding our hands and spinning our fates.

 

These “Dark Gods” are not so very dark to us. They simply represent the intractable facts of our life, they are our constant companions, our guides and our light! They frame and give purpose to our mortal existence!

 

True, we may have been created by the agents of the Corpse-Emperor, but it is through these Gods that our lives have meaning!”

 

-Extract from the speeches of Barukh; “Understanding the Gods, and their plan for Us”

 

(Feedback welcome)

Edited January 1, 2021 by Zebulon

[Zebulon]

A Cultist’s Tale

 

In any age of man, escapism can be good for the mind. To break the bonds of a dreary reality, to flee from fear and want. There have always been those who dare to dream. But beware - for what may come in those dreams may be yet more dread-filled and fearful than the reality they replace; the nightmare may become flesh, and then you shall know and tremble at its power!

 

I am one such mortal, who has trod the path of madness, who has passed beyond the veil, has supped from the fountain of gore and the river of forgetfulness; who has been granted the arcane knowledge for the price of my soul. I am Burke! Cultist of Khorne.

 

I recall nothing of my wretched life, before that day that They came for me. His Messengers! Clad in darkest bronze, their visage as black as the message they brought. They found me scrabbling amongst the filth and the dirt, they picked me up like a twig, and held me close to their glowing, baleful eyes!

 

“WHAT IS YOUR NAME?”

The marine demanded just this of me, but his voice, amplified by his panoply and his great size, this alone made me shiver and shrink.

“B-B-B-Burke!”

I barely managed to rasp out the word.

“BURKE!” The Angel of Death repeated. He betrayed no emotion, but I sensed a fragment of mirth, mixed with contempt in his response.

“THE BLACK PSALM HAS COME, BURKE!” He boomed, louder still than before, my ears ringing and my mind overwhelmed.

“CHOOSE NOW - SWIFT DEATH, OR SERVITUDE!”

As he put me down and raised his chainaxe, I immediately bowed the knee.

 

Along with all the men and women who had seen the sense in acquiescence, I found myself corralled in an enormous warehouse. It was dimly lit, and at the far end was a small stage. There stood Barukh, Prophet of Khorne, Choirmaster of the Black Psalm.

 

As he spoke to us, I found myself enraptured. His tales were dark, of the corruption in the galaxy, the treachery of the Imperium, and of the many ways that the machinations of men we had never met were the reasons for our impoverishment and degeneration.

 

But, there was a way to repent for our failings, and to take revenge on those who denied us our birthright! All we had to do was slay our neighbours in the hall, in the coldest of blood, and we would be given the Mark of Khorne, and enter infernal service in his name!

 

Without hesitation, I grabbed a dagger from my belt, and opened the bellies of the man on my left and the woman on my right. As they screamed, I then wheeled around and slit the throat of the man standing behind me, and after a brief struggle, also slew the man standing to my front. All around the hall, similar acts of crazed, wanton violence were occurring. When each survivor had slain at least eight others, the earth beneath our feet shook, and we all kneeled as a daemonic vision appeared to all of us.

 

“You have slain the eight! You have joined the eightfold path! You have enacted the foul ritual, gloried in your wretched initiation, bathed in blood, and gifted your fetid souls to Chaos!”

Thus Barukh roared, as the daemon stared at us all, leering an unwholesome grin. Then, as we all continued to kneel, we felt a searing heat at the back of our heads, as though an important part of our selves was drawn like a thread, out and away, to be locked into tiny boxes and kept in a dungeon in the warp, forever. This, we dimly realised, was the draining of our souls. But what came next made it worthwhile!

 

One by one, we all found our bodies levitating, our arms outstretched and our backs arching, our heads lolling backwards on our necks. The daemon gave us something to replace our souls. Fire, fury and strength!

 

We may now be automata, we may now be Legion, but we are His Army, and we are His Sword! We are nothing, but we are everything! I am Burke. DEATH TO THE FALSE EMPEROR!

[Zebulon]

On The Cultists

 

It has been said that the cultists who follow the Black Psalm warband are weak and foolish. Such is the arrogance so typical of the Imperium. Whilst they are indeed all too mortal, and their failings redolent of men who think little beyond their petty concerns for power and plunder, they are as tough and sinewy a fighting force as any well-drilled regiment of guard. Indeed, they are all the better for they are no mere pressed men, but instead they willingly embrace the cause of their dark masters; they yearn to sacrifice their lives for the glory of Chaos!

- Barukh Kleontos, personal journal fragment, recovered by [Redacted], Imperial Inquisition.

 

A number of the Black Psalm’s Cultists were recruited from the planet of Akhiyawa, which the warband visited quite frequently for supplies. The planet benefited from a good supply of water, and due to there being many islands and relatively little land, it bred tough and skilled sailors, who were well used to boarding actions, to fighting one another, and to fighting the various diabolical sea creatures who periodically attacked from the deep.

 

Here on Akhiyawa, an interesting ancestor cult was noted by the leaders of the Black Psalm. The people had found on certain islands remains belonging to men they claimed ancestry from, men who were buried with strange, unsettling death masks wrought of precious metals and set with gleaming gems for eyes. Certain amongst the tribal leaders had taken these artefacts as badges of personal office and hegemony.

 

The long-dead ancestors, the Akhiyawan elders maintained, had been godlike warriors of their time; heroes who were called upon in times of strife and whose unquiet spirits could be roused once again if the occasion required their aid.

 

Seeing this reverence for the objects, Maï Q’ura and Barukh both had an idea. These primitive superstitions could be used to the warband’s advantage! They arranged for one of the more sympathetic tribal leaders to put on a tournament, whereby the winners would gain deathmasks which the marine artificers had wrought for them.

 

The intention was that the people would believe that the deathmasks wrought by the marines would give them special powers. The reality was more simple: the masks once fitted released combat stimulants, increasing the wearer’s skills far beyond their human limitations. They could fight harder, longer and with greater skill; yes there were certain downsides but that was nothing for these mortals to concern themselves with...

 

[Pic-Capture: Black Psalm Cultist-Elites; the so-called

“Ne-ki-ro-po-sa” or “Faces of Death” in action](to be added soon)

Edited January 17, 2021 by Zebulon

[Ryltar Thamior]

> Akhiyawa 

Ah yes, I see where this is going :D 

Nice incorporation, especially using the Anatolian form and its less familiar sound. 

[Zebulon]

> Akhiyawa

 

Ah yes, I see where this is going :D

 

Nice incorporation, especially using the Anatolian form and its less familiar sound.

:D

 

If in doubt, go with what you know and love.

 

Though I suspect you may know more than I do, so I will do my best to amalgamate bits of other cultures so as to throw you a curveball or two!

[Zebulon]

The Nasyatin

 

Another of the specialist formations employed by the Black Psalm are the Nasyatin. These men, to whom in earlier times might have been given the designation, “Destroyers” are charged with handling the vilest weaponry of the warband’s arsenal.

 

Their pleasure, once the foe has been vanquished, is to remove any trace of their enemy’s presence, to cleanse the battlefield through fire, chemical and pestilence, so that none may perceive what has been done in that place, save to say that it Was Not Good.

 

As they stalk the torn and bloodied battlefield, going about their grim and noxious task, their chanting can be heard; a chilling signal of their satisfaction in these chores:

 

”All hail, great Nurgle the devourer! He lays us all down to rest// In these darkened fields, we toil and pray// In the vale of the shadow of death.”

 

The men of the Nasyatin are followers of Nurgle, they praise him as the Lord of Decay, for they know that through his gifts the bones are picked clean, reduced to ash and ultimately, immateriality.

 

[i don’t have or especially want any Plague Marines, so I haven’t yet decided how I want to portray these troops on the tabletop. However, I feel that they should be a part of the Black Psalm Warband as it is meant to be an undivided warband, and this concept has come to me which I do like, albeit I am not interested in the oozing pus and necrotic flesh aspects of Nurgle’s faithful]

[Zebulon]

The Rhythm Section

 

Rhythm is at the core of ritual. A significant part of the intoxicating ecstasy of the rites comes from dancing to the beat; religious and military fervour are stirred by the relentless beating of the drums. So it is that the Havocs of the Black Psalm perform a key role in framing the beat before and during battle; autocannon (ti-ma-pa-ni) and chain-cannon (za-i-se-te-ri) providing bass drums and snare; missile launchers providing crash-cymbals (ka-ro-ta-li).

 

These percussive “instruments” are considered to be particularly imbued with shamanistic power by Slaanesh; thus by influencing and transforming consciousness through excess they therefore transform reality for cultist and marine alike.

 

Percussion plays a key role in the profane mystery rites of the Black Psalm and enables the initiate to psychologically descend into the underworld, experience a symbolic death, and return reborn to the living, ready to die again for real, for the glory of the Dark Gods.

[Ryltar Thamior]

I recognize the Mycenaean style syllabic-character renderings for the names of instruments etc; although I'm a bit puzzled by 'Nasyatin'. It looks rather like a certain prominent Sanskrit theonym [that also turns up in , in demonized form, Avestan etc; and in proper reference as divinities in Mitanni] - although the meaning would be .. almost diametrically the opposite [there's an array of Ancient Greek 'Nes-' sounding terms that have come from the same PIE root, including 'Naos' [as in Temple], 'Nostos' . 

There's *also*, perhaps curiously, *another* Sanskrit 'Nas' that does indeed pertain to destroying or disappearing [it's from the same root as 'Necro'] - and has as a verb-alized form, 'Nasyati' .. ?

[Zebulon]

 

You do not disappoint, Su-na-ge-ne (Kinsman, Brethren)... the latter Sanskrit verbalised ‘Nas’ is indeed whence I drew the inspiration for that snippet. The verb made into a Noun sounded good to my ear, and fit the bill.

 

Thank you for your pondering on alternative roots however as those will doubtless add value for me. Temple and Return... perhaps my Nasyatin should also have a role in guarding shrines and relics of the cult. They also perform a role in literally returning their mortal foes to a state of immateriality. Which in turn fits neatly with the entropic nature of a Chaos cult, seeking to undo order and to return life, the galaxy and everything to its primordial state... yes... yes that’s good.

[Ryltar Thamior]

This may be of interest - note the 'healing' dimension to the term. 

And yeah, good concept viz. the 'return to primordial chaos' sort of thing ; 'primordial annihilator' does have such prominent billing in the HH novels after all. 

Order and civilization - well, Imperial civilization - as a bit o an 'irritant' to it, an imposition upon it; it's something that kinda comes across if memory serves in some daemons indulging in  their Blatant Lies approach to winning over less-critcally-thinking humans and Astartes during the Heresy era , by claiming that the stuff the Emperor et co is getting up to is 'destroying their habitat' or words to that effect. 

There may also be scope for, in 90s Heaven's Gate style cult conduct, human sacrifices of certain clades of cultists being 'homecoming'. If memory serves, some of the conceptry in the FW HH books around cult forces and why they uh .. exist, does have hte particular theology (soteriology or eschatology probably more apt as terms) of some of these cults as being pretty much that - humans that wind up heading back up to 'better' 'prior' forms with their voluntary deaths. 

Now, of course, I am of the opinion that this is probably lies , damned lies, and lies of the damned - and there are almost certainly some daemons or sufficienty malevolent mortals that are growing quite potent off devouring these shrived soul-essences as they are offered up [in perhaps the similar manner to how the C'Tan may interact with AdMech Dragon cultists .. ] ; and what may be being seen in some of these cases is situations of daemonic possession of a vessel wherein the soul has been devoued/consumed by what's going *into* the vessel, only for a greater daemon or something to turn up from it , and this *look* to the sufficiently 'drunk the kool-aid' observers to be the original person, the original soul having attained a 'true form' and 'returned' to what it was. 

Your own perception / level of cynicysm about proceedings may, as ever, vary. 

[Zebulon]

I have read your article; perhaps I could also include a concept that the Nasyatin believe that in vanquishing their foes and reducing the battlefield to ash they are healing the planet, returning it to its natural state. A classic belief in life, death and rebirth perhaps - such as in ancient Egyptian religion (and of course in other ways Buddhism, Christianity etc etc). Also a hint of the “rogue robot” trope whereby the logic dictates the best way to help a sick and diseased Imperium is to destroy it.

 

I have to confess amusement at the apparent idea of Daemons encouraging acts of terrorism among eco-warriors (Defend our Habitat!)

 

I think there may be an implication of human sacrifice, albeit not in a conventionally-ritualistic way, in the driving of the maddened/inspired cultists towards the enemy as a Forlorn Hope/ Meat Shield for the Berserkers charging behind them...

 

Interested in the last bit, but whether I want my leadership to be de facto possessed as opposed to merely out for power and revenge remains moot. I like to think that they are bright enough to know what they are doing; they however aren’t bright enough to know the extent to which they are simply being used by the Dark Gods. Being misled by the Gods fits in very much with my Hellenist background and the plot of nearly every tragic play, after all.

[Ryltar Thamior]

 

I have to confess amusement at the apparent idea of Daemons encouraging acts of terrorism among eco-warriors (Defend our Habitat!)

 

 

Yeah, something that's interested and unsettled me is the potentiality for daemons and chaos in general to manage to take things that may look logical, sensible, even noble, virtuous and principled ... and nudge them in ways that make them arguably something else. It's the fine series of gradiations between "well intentioned" , "well intentioned extremist" ... and then, after awhile and perhaps once certain of the actual motivations have kinda fallen by the wayside due to an increasing emphasis mearly upon the 'means' in question ... well, it's just "extremist". 

 

So, for instance, the "well intentioned" may be the preservation of environment ; the "well intentioned extremist" is where the "eco-terrorism" comes in ; and then the last part is where following suficient daemonic prodding, even targets not actually relevant for an ecological preservation mission are attacked , things escalate into a general "destroy all humans" perhaps, and the actual actions of mayhem and violence become the focal point of what's being engaged in rather than even the pretense of protecting the environment. Daemonic senses of humour being what they are, they may even have the perspective of those hapless sorts under their influnece shifted to the point that what they're doing is actively environmentally *harmful* [and if these mortals were in a right state of mind, they'd be aghast at how what they're now about to do is so diametrically opposed to their own initially stated values and virtues].

 

The path of damnation, well, it *may* begin with a single step ... but it's rarely all accomplished in a single bound or giant leap. Indeed, the imminent trajectory of it may actually seem to the walker to be leading in the diametrically opposite direction to his eventual fate and chaos ... 

 

There's an interesting quote of some possible relevancy around that kind of thing from one of the Eisenhorn novels:

 

"Your daily work brings you closer and closer to the warp, increases your understanding of orderless powers. Gradually, without noticing it, even the most puritanical and rod-stiff inquisitor becomes seduced... The first step is the knowledge. An inquisitor must understand the basic traits of Chaos in order to fight it. In a few years, he knows more about the warp than most untutored cultists. Then the second step: the moment he breaks the rules and allows some aspect of Chaos to survive or remain so that he can study it and learn from it... The third step... the third step is the line itself. When the inquisitor becomes a radical. When he chooses to use Chaos against Chaos. When he employs the agencies of the warp. When he asks the heretical for help... So... are you going to ask me to help you?"

 

Anyway, I er .. just remembered that this isn't quite the direction you were probably intending to head in and that i've turned a brief possibly off-hand remark into a several paragraph reply.

 

What I would perhaps suggest viz. 'cleansing for chaos' - in the RuneQuest / Glorantha tabletop setting , that's basically how various creatures of chaos regard the whole thing. They're in existential pain as the result of being forced, limited, down into ordered, material world ... and so they're basically seeking to destroy it, and those 'ordered' elements therein in order to return the whole thing to the primordial chaos-ness a-priori to this (and their) inflictions. There may be some relevant fluff bits and pieces in those books or online treatments of same that you could take a look over for inspo purposes. [it's also quite a neat setting for how much attention to real-world archaeology and comparative mythology often goes into it, with a particular emphasis upon the Bronze Age, but I digress] 

 

 

 

Interested in the last bit, but whether I want my leadership to be de facto possessed as opposed to merely out for power and revenge remains moot. I like to think that they are bright enough to know what they are doing; they however aren’t bright enough to know the extent to which they are simply being used by the Dark Gods. Being misled by the Gods fits in very much with my Hellenist background and the plot of nearly every tragic play, after all.

Yeah, legit; the manipulation of the manipulators by greater manipulators still.

 

So your cult's *leadership* might be reasonably competent in various metaphysical comprehensions (or so they think ... understanding chaos is .. well, the term 'understanding' is by necessity an abstraction. Not least as that's what it is that is being understood - an abstraction. Although I suppose you could fairly argue that so, too, from a warp-oriented perspective, is [sidereal] reality an 'abstraction' and only the warp is truth ... or something. There may be a 'chaos platonism' in here somewhere. ) ; but various of the people they've gathered to them, or a helot-class of serfs even further on the outer , may be considerably less so. 

 

Those clades would presumably be where the opportunity for the kinds of blatant lies around "you're just going to transform into a glorious new and beautiful form" for "actually, your soul is going to be eaten by the daemon that's about to twist your physical form to be more to its liking and wear what was once you as a skin" would be relevant. 

 

It's a good point as well around chaos entities carrying out misleading bits and pieces for mortals - not least because with the malevolence of various of these (the entities .. although I suppose also the mortals), you wind up with people being prodded and lead to become something the complete inverse, a mockery of what they had been before. A good example of this being Perturabo going from a being of cold rationality and disdainful of emotion as weakness .. through to being a daemon prince made out of warpstuff and therefore *literally comprised* out of emotion and the thing that is opposed to rationality. You get the idea. 

[Zebulon]

The path to hell is paved with good intentions- to summarise the interesting digression in the first half of the above post - and yes, that does interest me, albeit the resonances for me are as much political as they are religious. I suppose that’s why they call it ideology...

 

Anyway, the demagogic stylings of my commander Barukh neatly straddle that line between religious and political leadership I suppose. I probably need to flesh out Maï Q’ura a bit, but then I like the mysterious, less is more feeling that I have given to their characterisation. Are they the amoral puppet-master who really runs the show, all that noise.

 

I have had a quick look at Glorantha etc and will poke further into that (if I can find the time?!) as I agree it seems a worthwhile path of investigation- whether or not it ends up as part of the wider melting pot for this project.

 

You understand correctly regarding the various levels of manipulation and understanding across the warband. It might be interesting to formalise that - or give some examples at least, to illustrate that some know more than others. Akin to the Dark Angels and their differing circles of knowledge, perhaps.

 

I might seek a little indulgence in pre-Socratic philosophy, but then again all that sort of thing tended to seek answers which didn’t involve the gods. Hmm, but again perhaps that could again be misdirection. Or, misunderstanding.

 

Lastly, re: Perturabo: Well, who among us can’t say they are a burning effigy of everything they used to be?! (And grave apologies for that reference, but it IS a good line...) :ph34r:

Edited January 29, 2021 by Zebulon

[Zebulon]

The Grimoire of the Thrice-Cursed

 

Barukh carries on his person at all times the Grimoire of the Thrice-Cursed. This arcane tome was a gift from the Dark Gods; whenever he scribes the last page, new pages of flayed flesh are prepared by his dark disciples and are woven in with the entrails of unbelievers.

 

The book, which is said to have existed before even the duality between good and evil had yet come into being, is an ancient artefact filled with heretical knowledge about the nature of the vital force which flows through the galaxy, about the power of the word, and the unity of thought, deed, image and power within the entity that is the Warp.

 

To its abundant pages, previous bearers of the Grimoire have each added their thoughts, their concepts and their fantasies, etched in the blood of the blameless, carved with rudimentary instruments formed from the ribs of the uninitiated. There are the discussions of Pymandros, yes, and the gnostic Asclepiad; the rhetoric and sayings of Stobaeus, too - and even excerpts from the philosophy of Magnus the Red.

 

Now, Barukh in his turn has added to the Grimoire’s pages, his hymns of praise, his speeches, his Warband’s creed and the Black Psalm itself, doleful and malevolent, a chant to die for; a chant to kill for...

[Zebulon]

LASC: Liber Astartes Swap Challenge 2021

 

Name: The Black Psalm

Appearance:

 

The majority of the Chaos Marines follow Khorne most closely, and wear dark bronze armour with bright brass trim, and bear weapons stained with deep blood red. Their panoply has darkened from the shining armour once worn when they were Illustrians; the acrid smoke of battle has darkened their colours just as Chaos has darkened their hearts and minds.

 

 

It has also been observed that a number of members of the Black Psalm Warband daub strange glyphs on their armour in gleaming silver; they appear to be a little known language and may be a means of squad designation.

 

Those who have taken another Chaos god as their patron tend to embellish their armour as a mark of tribute; followers of Slaanesh typically daub garish shades of pink on their armour and weapons, followers of Nurgle allow sickly shades of olive green to fester on their wargear, and those who favour Tzeentch will wreath parts of themselves in turquoise hues. However, all of these minorities within the Warband will still wear predominantly bronze and brass.

 

Personality/Identity:

 

Dour and zealous warrior monks, they took their training seriously and prepared patiently for war, honing their skills over centuries of training and combat experience. All this changed however when they turned to Chaos. Now, they are a blend of maddened berserkers, psychotic thrill-seekers, and twisted agents of fate. Only the marines who serve as Nasyatin more closely resemble the original character of the Chapter, but they now see their role as that of purifiers of the galaxy, by reducing all to ash. The Warband is led by a group of four key leaders who each personify one or more of the warband’s characteristics:

- Barukh the Choirmaster: zealot and rhetorician, beloved of Khorne and Slaanesh, but also Tzeentch

- Khairemon the Head-Taker: frenzied axeman, beloved of Khorne and Slaanesh

- Immeghar the Immolator: raging firebrand and pyromaniac, beloved of Khorne and Nurgle

- Maï Q’ura: unknowable sorceror, favoured of Tzeentch

 

Tenets:

 

The Black Psalm is the name of the warband but is also a key text which members treat as a creed, a prophecy and a warcry. Whilst marines of the Black Psalm often follow more than one of the Chaos pantheon, nearly all are bound closely to Khorne, worshipping the others as guardians and patrons of their martial and philosophical tendencies.

 

On the whole, the warband is pragmatic, and though they have their flaws (misplaced pride, the bearing of grudges, a desire to see the galaxy burn) they appear in some ways very sane. They are perfectly willing to work with abhumans who share their goals, hence their leader Immeghar who is no marine but a freak of nature whom they respect enough to elevate to the highest level of command. They remain highly suspicious of xenos, yet there remain uncertainties as to Maï Q’ura’s true nature, with many speculating as to their true species. Certain contradictions of these sorts make the Black Psalm an enigma to other warbands who have fought alongside them, but at the end of the day, slaughter is as slaughter does.

 

Warband symbol:

 

The “screaming skull” motif was adopted by The Black Psalm when they turned to Chaos. It depicts both their fury and their zeal, being a primarily Khornate warband with a large number of berserkers, and also being fanatical followers of the Dark Gods as a pantheon.

 

 

 

Timeline:

 

M36: Founded as “The Illustrians” (possibly 22nd Founding - unconfirmed)

M37: Enter the Eye of Terror as part of the Abyssal Crusade. Become The Black Psalm.

M38-41: Have contributed forces to each of Abaddon’s Black Crusades from the 9th to the most recent 13th; their core text the Black Psalm mentions Abaddon by name and this meant they eagerly joined forces with him, believing that his Will to Power would beatify them all.

M38: The Reaping. As a new warband, The Black Psalm had to fight for their very existence within the Eye of Terror, so as to carve out a niche and a territory for their own. Weakness is not tolerated amongst the Ruinous Powers, and so it was that in a climate of severe paranoia, hostility and bloodshed that the leaders of the Black Psalm sought to reap those of uncertain faith, of lesser martial skill and those of questionable loyalty from within their own ranks, before then turning against all others who stood to gain in their stead, until they could declare themselves unchallenged masters of their turf. This consisted of a ring of five planets, whose luckless mortals were bound to provide tribute in flesh, arms and souls - the worlds of Akhiyawa, Lukhar, Arzawah, Alashiyya and Palla.

M39: After consolidating their position within the Eye of Terror, the Black Psalm turned their sights towards raiding the Imperium which had betrayed them. In addition to the Black Crusades, Barukh and Khairemon organised the Timoria Expeditions, a series of hit-and-run attacks on the planets closest to the Eye of Terror. These initiatives allowed the Black Psalm to further swell their ranks with expendable cultists, and to spread fear and unrest among the citizens of the Imperium.

[Zebulon]

Any thoughts?

 

I am considering moving Immeghar to the command of the Nasyatin due to his flame weaponry, and having Khairemon command the Berserkers, as those seem like better fits. This would probably mean further changes to the characters’ personalities however.

 

Also, it occurs to me that a black skull on a black shoulderpad will not work well. Either the background of the pad should be white, or maybe a pale grey - or some other colour? I am unsure.

[Ryltar Thamior]

You *could* get around the black on black issue by having a thick white outline to the skull - but yes, I do see the issue you are having with that 

alternatively .. have said skull *on fire* and let *that* be the outline

or something. 

[Zebulon]

Skull on fire is a pretty cool suggestion!

 

Another option might be to change the shoulder pads colour depending on which Chaos god the marine is most closely aligned with, which would mean deep red, pink green or turquoise.

[Ryltar Thamior]

Skull on fire is a pretty cool suggestion!

 

Another option might be to change the shoulder pads colour depending on which Chaos god the marine is most closely aligned with, which would mean deep red, pink green or turquoise.

Definitely a good call there - simple, easy, and most of those should contrast reasonably well with a big black skull; although you'll have a bit of an issu with tthe red tongue on the red pad, and the turquoise might be a bit dark for the black to stand out, but it's nothing that's not work-around-able. 

 

Also having your hot-head flame champion associated with that Nasyatin sounds like a pretty logical choice for reasons that you have aforementioned. 

[Doctor Perils]

The black skull could also be taken as a symbol because of rituals involving charring the skulls when offering them up to the dark gods

 

Do they have a warcry, or would it simply be changing THE Black Psalm throughout the duration of a battle, meaning that they are forced to resort to non-verbal communications to give orders? This would be ok in general before they are stuck into a fight, but once the fury of close combat sets in they can never see an order to retreat or move to a different target?

 

This is looking like a very cool Warband, the colour scheme and certain elements WRT their stance on abhumans and mutants set them apart from the word bearers. Can you think of an in-universe reason they didn't simply join the word bearers legion though? How do the warband and legion see each other? What about relations with the other ex-abyssal crusade Warbands

[Zebulon]

Dr Perils, thank you for your input and queries. I like the idea of rituals of burnt offerings being part of chapter cult practice and will definitely look to incorporate that in some way. That could also justify the symbol being a burning, screaming skull. In fact that gives me a number of further avenues to explore.

 

I think the War cry would have to be a line from the Black Psalm. I will have a think what would suit; if none of the lines work I will think of something suitably doom-laden and with religious overtones. Something like “there is never redemption - any fool can repent yesterday!” - or something I haven’t straight ripped off...

 

I will seek counsel on this; the obvious answer would be some minor theological disagreement or other, think of all the sects within Christianity, and in other major world religions. Perhaps there is disagreement on methods, rather than aims. Perhaps they can work together but are wedded to their particular identity and are fiercely independent. I will work something out.

 

Hmm it might make an interesting foil to compare and contrast The Black Psalm with another Abyssal Crusade warband. There might be former close comrades who have taken a different path. Or, there might be rivals whom the Psalm have clashed with and overcome.

 

Plenty of food for thought - again I thank you.

[Zebulon]

The Skulls that Scream

 

Some have asked why the symbol of the Black Psalm Warband is the blackened skull. The answer lies at the heart of the profane rites carried out by the Warband, to give thanks to the Ruinous Powers after each victory on the battlefield.

 

Not for nothing do their enemies fear capture more than death, for the Black Psalm are known to practice the unnatural and inhumane act of human sacrifice, on a grand scale.

 

Once the battle has been won, all captives are made to strip naked, and to dig the holes that will become their graves. These holes are dug so that the victims stand vertical, up to their necks in the earth. When ready, they are forced into these holes, and the earth packed tightly around their necks, so that only their heads are above ground.

 

As the assembled Warband begins chanting, and the rites of death are read to the condemned men, one by one their exposed heads are set alight with searing fire, their screams of agony titillating Slaanesh, their corpses’ purification satisfying Nurgle, their grim fate being noted by Tzeentch, and their charred skulls being at last exposed for the glory of Khorne.

 

These blackened skulls are emblematic of the dark, twisted purpose at the centre of the Black Psalm’s dual missions: to promote the cause of the Dark Gods through spreading abject terror, and to ensure that none survive the sin of apostasy from the Word of Chaos.