Index Astartes Brevium - Part 2: The Night Claws

[Codex Grey]

Welcome to the Index Astartes Brevium! This is where I try to make fun and/or interesting Chapters, based on weird and/or silly sources of inspiration. The goal is to make short and sweet descriptions of Chapters that feel like they could reasonably fit into the established 40k universe, even if the inspirations for the Chapters are ridiculous.

 

Note: I call this Index Astartes Brevium, because I don't want to turn this into a big article, just a short and flavorful write-up. If any Latin experts have a problem with this, please advice 

 

---

 

INDEX ASTARTES BREVIUM: BLOOD BULLS
 

 

 

   

 

"It is said we all fall in the end, Brothers, but we do not wait to fall. We seize our destiny and dive.
Drink, Brothers. Drink the Blood of the Bull and I promise you, we will not fall - We will fly."

- Epistolary Daeng

 

 

Part of an unknown founding, the Blood Bulls have stood against the enemies of the Imperium for at least six millennia as proud successors of the Blood Angels. While they care less for art and presentation, they fight with the same valor, loyalty and ferocity as their gene-cousins. However, they also share the same genetic curse and, like many sons of Sanguinius, the Chapter is defined by how they deal with it.

 

The Blood Bulls made their home on the isolated planet Daithnal in the Ultima Segmentum. This Feral World is mostly covered in dense jungles and forests, filled with deadly insects, beasts and vegetation. A hostile place for humans, Daithnal has bred a hardy population of hunter-gatherers, the perfect recruits for the Blood Bulls Chapter. However, the deep woods hide more than just dangers. The Daithnalli have spent thousands of years harvesting and experimenting with all manner of plants, herbs, seeds, mushrooms and other growths the wilderness provides, becoming proficient with natural medicines and potion brewing. The skills and rituals associated with these practices have over time been adopted by the Chapter Apothecarion and plays a big part in how they operate today.

 

While the bulk of the Chapter's facilities lies within their Fortress-Monastery, nested between the tallest mountain peaks of the central continent, the Apothecarion maintain several smaller facilities, deep with in the woods. Here they apply and refine the knowledge of the native tribes, brewing potions and studying their effects. These potions have been proven useful to the Chapter and are consumed for various purposes. Several potions have a sedating effect, used in conjunction with meditation to calm warriors after battles and to possibly delay the Black Rage. Many attempts have been made to create a brew that that can satiate or even remove the Red Thirst, but the results have been lacking. However, one potion has become the most important and has even shaped the Chapter's outlook on their existence and the way they fight.

 

The potion, known as the Blood of the Bull, contains a combination of psychoactive ingredients with the potential to unlock the deepest and darkest memories encoded into the geneseed of all Blood Angels successors, triggering the Black Rage. On the eve of desperate battles, it is usually a handful of veteran warriors, who have already kept the Black Rage at bay and served for many years, who willingly drink the potion. The Blood Bulls have already accepted that they are meant to die and view this as reclaiming control of their destiny, to wield the curse as a gift and to die an honorable death in the name of the Emperor.

 

The unfortunate side-effect of these practices is that the Chapter is more often than not under strength. To most Blood Bulls, the anxiety of not knowing when the Rage will set in and the wish for an honorable death has led to them being more than willing to drink the potion. Chapter Command, the Reclusiam and the Librarium have done their best since adopting the use of the potion to strike a balance, to preach of self control and to ensure the Chapter can live on. Yet after the Great Rift opened, their losses have been catastrophic, and they were not able to assist during the Devastation of Baal. While they did receive Primaris reinforcements, they are still severely under strength and lack much in terms of equipment and support personnel. There are some within their ranks who view themselves as a dying Chapter and are debating the ultimate course of action, the Blood Charge, in which the entire Chapter will drink the Blood of the Bull - and die an honorable death.
 

 

---

 

In the Random Chapter Inspiration Thread, I made a few color schemes based on random prompts from Gamiel. Some of these color schemes reminded me of other things, which inspired me to give them code names to differentiate them. Then one of these names, and its color scheme, stuck with me, and I wanted to see if I could turn this random sequence of inspirations into a fun Chapter that would still (at least mostly) fit within established lore, despite its silly source of inspiration. It should be fairly obvious what I based this Chapter concept on, but jcheck the hidden content below for spoilers.

 

Any other aspects from the source of inspiration that would be fun to apply to these guys or anything that should be elaborated on?
Also, I'm not super well-versed on Blood Angels lore so anything that seems wrong in that regard, or in any regard for that matter, I'd appreciate it.

 

Spoiler

 

 

---

 

INDEX ASTARTES BREVIUM: NIGHT CLAWS
 

 

 

 

''Comms are down and all ship are inoperable. There is no escape.

I have no doubt we will die here, so, here's what I suggest: We take 'em down with us. Whose with me?"

- Brother Sergeant Hiltonrod.

 

 

Once a promising Ultima Founding Chapter of the Raven Guard lineage, the Night Claws have become a shadowy band of murderous monsters, intent on eradicating the few remaining elements of their Chapter still loyal to the Imperium.

 

Shortly after the Night Claws entered the fray of the Indomitus Crusade, their talents of infiltration, surgical strikes and ship to ship combat were made clear. And so, when the Indomitus Crusade Fleet Quartus was formed, the Night Claws were chosen to bolster the fleet's capabilities with their specific areas of expertise. With less than a third of their numbers left behind to guard their recruitment facilities on Hansen Secundus, the Chapter joined Battle Group Cerastus and set sail towards the Bergheist Stars in Imperium Sanctus. There they would successfully aid the Imperial efforts in concluding a seven year war against Heretic forces, only to face an invasion by the Ork hordes of Warboss Grukk Face-rippa during the victory celebrations. Fully embroiled in the defense of the Bargheist Stars, the Night Claws and Battle Group Cerastus were unable to aid in Fleet Quartus' new primary assignment: to defend the Choral Engine in Imperium Nihilus.

 

The newly rediscovered Choral Engine, an ancient localized psychic beacon similar to the Astronomican, would for a time allow for more efficient warp travel and astropathic communications in Imperium Nihilus, as well as calm nearby Warp Storms. However, the light of the Choral Engine also attracted the attention of the the Daemon-Primarch Angron, who led a massive host in an assault on the beacon. Acting as conduit through which the very power of the Blood God, Khorne, was channeled, Angron delivered a deathblow to the Choral Engine, which produced a powerful psychic backlash known as the Murder-curse. The Murder-curse drove the forces of Fleet Quartus mad, as former allies turned on each other in an indiscriminate killing frenzy. And due to the psychic connections between all the Battle Groups of Fleet Quartus, the curse spread, even crossing the Great Rift to affect those still operating in Imperium Sanctus, including Battle Group Cerastus at the Bargheist Stars.

 

At first, the curse had a productive effect on the Night Claws. The Chapter, struggling to leverage their talents against the erratic and unpredictable tactics of the Orks, suddenly ignored their own battle-plans and threw themselves at the green-skins in a uncharacteristic rush of blood-lust, and slew their prey to the last. However, their blood-lust didn't end. The Chapter turned its attention towards their allies soon after, and for days, the Night Claws stalked the edges of Battle Group Cerastus, using their talents to hunt and harass smaller vessels, at times launching random boarding actions to satisfy their blood-lust up close. This went on until their curse-ridden former allies finally drove them off. Battered, but still overpowered by the need to spill blood, the Night Claws turned their attention to the only other place known to them.

 

The Night Claws still stationed on Hansen Secundus were initially pleased to see their brethren return, but quickly became suspicious when their hails were ignored. Following a swift hailstorm of orbital bombardment, the cursed Night Claws dropped straight into the jungles and mining cities of the planet, facing little resistance as they tore through the helpless populace. The loyalists, mostly made up of freshly recruited marines, launched a hasty counter-attack from their training facilities in a desperate attempt save their people, only to spring the traitors' traps and be forced to fall back and regroup. After a series of brutal back-and-forth skirmishes, both sides of the remaining Night Claws became heavily depleted and the conflict developed into a planet-wide guerrilla war, which continues to rage on with no end in sight. Finally, the Night Claws can make full use of the talents.

 

 

---

 

Ever since the made the Blood Bulls, this idea has been floating around my head, and I had to get it out of my system. Yes, the source of inspiration quite similar. I've actually toyed with the idea of a third Chapter based on energy drinks, thereby forming an energy drink trio. And I don't even like energy drinks! What's wrong with me?

 

 

 

 

 

Edited December 31, 2024 by Codex Grey

[Bjorn Firewalker]

Looks good so far.

 

Nitpicks, with suggested corrections in [brackets]:

On the eve of desperate battles, it [is] usually a handful of veteran warriors, who have already served and kept the Black Rage at bay for many years, who willingly drink the potion.

I thought the comma after "Yet" was extraneous.

To most Blood Bulls, the anxiety of not knowing when the Rage will set in[,] and the wish for [an] honorable death[,] has led to them being more than willing to drink the potion. Chapter Command, the Reclusiam and the Librarium have done their best since adopting the use of the potion to strike a balance, to preach of self[-]control and to ensure the Chapter can live on. Yet[ ]after the Great Rift opened, their losses have been catastrophic[,] and [they] were not able to assist during the Devastation of Baal.

There are some within their ranks who see a dying Chapter and are debating the ultimate course of action, the Blood Charge, in which the entire Chapter [will] drink the Blood of the Bull - and die an honorable death.

[Bjorn Firewalker]

Is bullfighting a rite-of-entry to the Blood Bulls or one of their Elite units? I had the following idea for my own Blood Angels successor:

The Iron-hearted Angels' [my IA Chapter's] Sanguinary Guard members are known as "Red Winged Angels" for the red-painted left wing on their jump packs, representing the red cape worn when Argentum [the Chapter planet] martial artists engage in the sport of bullfighting- itself representing one of Sanguinius' wings.

 

The variation of bullfighting popular on Argentum- known as devil fighting or "diablomaquia" in the local dialect- was initially performed to commemorate the Emperor's triumph over the Arch-traitor Horus, before local authorities secularized the religious ritual to commemorate their own triumphs. The bull wears a mask resembling the human skull, to represent the Arch-traitor. The bullfighter or "matador" wears a red cape over his left shoulder, to represent the Loyalist Primarch Sanguinius, his white wings stained red as he gave his life for his father the Emperor. Tradition and local laws require mounted gunmen- known as prickers or "picadores"- to accompany the matador in every fight, so in the event the bull kills the matador- an ever-present danger in the sport- the picadores will execute the bull, so the audience will know no "traitor" will ever escape the Emperor's justice.

 

Diablomaquia holds such significance to those recruited from Argentum, the Iron-hearted Angels' Sanguinary Guard make bullfighting a rite-of-entry into its ranks.

Edited November 19, 2022 by Bjorn Firewalker

[Bjorn Firewalker]

Quote

The potion, known as the Blood of the Bull, contains a combination psychoactive ingredients with the potential to unlock the deepest and darkest memories encoded into the geneseed of all Blood Angels successors, triggering the Black Rage.

I STRONGLY doubt Astorath or his predecessors were happy with this. (FYI, Astorath's psychic senses allow him to sense when one of Sanguinius' sons is about to succumb to the Black Rage, no matter where in the galaxy they are. For this reason, he was appointed "Redeemer of the Lost" for ALL Blood Angels Successor Chapters; his duty is to executing those who succumb to the Black Rage, so they may die with honor.)

 

Did the Blood Bulls tell Astorath or his predecessors to go to hell, when he came to perform his duty? (Gabriel Seth, the Flesh Tearers Chapter Master, fought Astorath when the latter came to execute Flesh Tearers who succumbed to the Black Rage.)

Edited November 20, 2022 by Bjorn Firewalker

[Codex Grey]

Quote

I STRONGLY doubt Astorath or his predecessors were happy with this. (FYI, Astorath's psychic senses allow him to sense when one of Sanguinius' sons is about to succumb to the Black Rage, no matter where in the galaxy they are. For this reason, he was appointed "Redeemer of the Lost" for ALL Blood Angels Successor Chapters; his duty is to with executing those who succumb to the Black Rage, so they may die with honor.)

Shoot! This is what I feared, something that would ruin the fun. I might be biased, but I don't really like this Astorath guy . Seems like such an oddly specific ability to have, which also takes away agency from Blood Angels successors (and makes my task more difficult ).

 

Also, how long has the Redeemer position existed? How is it transferred? How does this psychic sense develop and how rare is it?

 

Thanks for the catch, though! Even if this Chapter concept is just for fun it could be a interesting to figure out a reasonable way to circumvent this issue anyways? Any examples from the lore? How did the resistance of the Flesh Tearers pan out?

I've come come up with some possible explanations. Please add anymore or discuss the merits of mine.

 

- The Blood of the Bull could be a fairly recent invention. The times they have triggered the Black Rage is so few that it seems like an anomaly (although with a hint of suspicion), and may happened so suddenly that a Redeemer would only get to the scene after they have succumbed to the Rage, fought and died. I assume the Redeemers can't get to everyone who succumbs to the Rage on time?

 

- The Blood Bulls Librarians have developed an ability (or the Apothecaries have developed another potion ) that somehow block the senses of a Redeemer. If the Redeemer can have silly special ability, so can I!

 

Quote

Is bullfighting a rite-of-entry to the Blood Bulls or one of their Elite units?

Ehh, I don't think so. Doesn't really fit with what I'm trying to do here. Also, I see the name as symbolic of their nature, more than them being super into bulls or anything relating to bulls.

 

 

Edited November 20, 2022 by Codex Grey

[Bjorn Firewalker]

If you want to say the Blood Bulls declared the Redeemer of the Lost persona non grata, you're free to do so. I suspect the canon Flesh Tearers did so- Astorath is still just one Marine, so if a Chapter Master tells him to go to hell, he'll need to convince another to send the latter's ENTIRE CHAPTER into battle against a Blood Angels successor.

 

As an alternative, the Blood Bulls may "redeem" their Death Company members, by fixing demolition charges to the latter's breastplates, for use as suicide bombers. (My own IA Chapter did so, which disgusted the Redeemer of the Lost so much, he fought my IA Chapter's Master of Sanctity.)

[Bjorn Firewalker]

Just had an idea for how the Blood Bulls may confound Astorath's psychic senses:

Quote

There is ample evidence Daithnal was subjected to Exterminatus, in pre-Inperial times. Though Imperial scholars found no evidence to help identify those who performed the Exterminatus, they found many artifacts from those the Exterminatus was meant to kill, in long-buried mausoleums filled with what the scholars referred to as "death metal," an alloy the mausoleums' mysterious builders used to craft ossuaries to honor the dead. The Blood Bulls have a close relationship with techpriests of the nearby forge world of Rankweil, who offer great bounties in exchange for the right to excavate the mausoleums, dismantle the ossuaries, and reuse the death metal for some secretive projects.

 

 

The Blood Bulls themselves use the death metal to make yokes, which they place upon the necks of those who are about to partake in the Blood of the Bull, in the hope its weight will remind them of their final duty.

 

The idea is Daithnal was a Necron tomb world, which the Old Ones subjected to Exterminatus during the War in Heaven, killing the Necrons in stasis within it.

 

Necrontyr and other living metal have anti-Warp and anti-psyker properties, which should outright prevent Astorath from sensing the Blood Bulls who succumb to the Black Rage after drinking the Blood of the Bull.

Edited November 21, 2022 by Bjorn Firewalker

[Gamiel]

Nice idea and a nice color scheme. Personally I would use "Crimson" or other words for red instead of Bloos since I feel it's just so steriotypical that a BA successor have "Blood" in it name, but then again having a other word for red instead of blood could make people get the joke a bit to fast. 

 

Do you know of the Basque cave spirit Aatxe? It usually takes the form of a young red bull, maybe something to nod to. And while we are talking about red bulls, there is the Red Bull in The Last Unicorn also. 

  

On 11/20/2022 at 10:09 AM, Codex Grey said:

Shoot! This is what I feared, something that would ruin the fun. I might be biased, but I don't really like this Astorath guy . Seems like such an oddly specific ability to have, which also takes away agency from Blood Angels successors (and makes my task more difficult ).

 

Also, how long has the Redeemer position existed? How is it transferred? How does this psychic sense develop and how rare is it?

 

Thanks for the catch, though! Even if this Chapter concept is just for fun it could be a interesting to figure out a reasonable way to circumvent this issue anyways? Any examples from the lore? How did the resistance of the Flesh Tearers pan out?

I've come come up with some possible explanations. Please add anymore or discuss the merits of mine.

 

- The Blood of the Bull could be a fairly recent invention. The times they have triggered the Black Rage is so few that it seems like an anomaly (although with a hint of suspicion), and may happened so suddenly that a Redeemer would only get to the scene after they have succumbed to the Rage, fought and died. I assume the Redeemers can't get to everyone who succumbs to the Rage on time?

 

- The Blood Bulls Librarians have developed an ability (or the Apothecaries have developed another potion ) that somehow block the senses of a Redeemer. If the Redeemer can have silly special ability, so can I!

Or you don't need a reason, the Redeemer is just one marine and it's a big Galaxy. He could just not have had the time to get to the Bulls becouse of others, or his standard space marine duties. 

 

 

 

[Bjorn Firewalker]

3 hours ago, Gamiel said:

Nice idea and a nice color scheme. Personally I would use "Crimson" or other words for red instead of Bloos since I feel it's just so steriotypical that a BA successor have "Blood" in it name, but then again having a other word for red instead of blood could make people get the joke a bit to fast. 

How about "Carmine Bulls"? The Merriam-Webster thesaurus lists "blood red" and "bloodstained" among the synonyms of "carmine."

[Gamiel]

Ince idea. I would go with "Bulls Carmine" myself.

[Codex Grey]

Quote

The idea is Daithnal was a Necron tomb world, which the Old Ones subjected to Exterminatus during the War in Heaven, killing the Necrons in stasis within it.

 

Necrontyr and other living metal have anti-Warp and anti-psyker properties, which should outright prevent Astorath from sensing the Blood Bulls who succumb to the Black Rage after drinking the Blood of the Bull.

Interesting. However, I don't want add another "big idea" (imo) to what is supposed to be a short and focused write up, and anti-psyker necron metal doesn't really tie into the core themes of shamanistic potion making (or energy drinks ).

Quote

Or you don't need a reason, the Redeemer is just one marine and it's a big Galaxy. He could just not have had the time to get to the Bulls becouse of others, or his standard space marine duties. 

I'll probably just do this. If I could justify why a Redeemer is not an issue with one or two lines that make immediate sense then that would be ideal, but in lieu of that, I'll just leave it.

 

As for the name, I like the simplicity of the name. Rolls of the tongue. Same syllables as the original. Gets the point across. Overused, sure, but in this case I would rather use something that has precedence, instead of trying too be to clever. I'll leave that to the more serious articles.

 

Thanks for the thoughts and other ideas. I'll have to think about how they could be integrated in a way that makes sense to me.

 

 

Edited December 23, 2024 by Codex Grey

[Codex Grey]

INDEX ASTARTES BREVIUM: NIGHT CLAWS
 

 

 

 

''Comms are down and all ship are inoperable. There is no escape.

I have no doubt we will die here, so, here's what I suggest: We take 'em down with us. Whose with me?"

- Brother Sergeant Hiltonrod.

 

 

Once a promising Ultima Founding Chapter of the Raven Guard lineage, the Night Claws have become a shadowy band of murderous monsters, intent on eradicating the few remaining elements of their Chapter still loyal to the Imperium.

 

Shortly after the Night Claws entered the fray of the Indomitus Crusade, their talents of infiltration, surgical strikes and ship to ship combat were made clear. And so, when the Indomitus Crusade Fleet Quartus was formed, the Night Claws were chosen to bolster the fleet's capabilities with their specific areas of expertise. With less than a third of their numbers left behind to guard their recruitment facilities on Hansen Secundus, the Chapter joined Battle Group Cerastus and set sail towards the Bergheist Stars in Imperium Sanctus. There they would successfully aid the Imperial efforts in concluding a seven year war against Heretic forces, only to face an invasion by the Ork hordes of Warboss Grukk Face-rippa during the victory celebrations. Fully embroiled in the defense of the Bargheist Stars, the Night Claws and Battle Group Cerastus were unable to aid in Fleet Quartus' new primary assignment: to defend the Choral Engine in Imperium Nihilus.

 

The newly rediscovered Choral Engine, an ancient localized psychic beacon similar to the Astronomican, would for a time allow for more efficient warp travel and astropathic communications in Imperium Nihilus, as well as calm nearby Warp Storms. However, the light of the Choral Engine also attracted the attention of the the Daemon-Primarch Angron, who led a massive host in an assault on the beacon. Acting as conduit through which the very power of the Blood God, Khorne, was channeled, Angron delivered a deathblow to the Choral Engine, which produced a powerful psychic backlash known as the Murder-curse. The Murder-curse drove the forces of Fleet Quartus mad, as former allies turned on each other in an indiscriminate killing frenzy. And due to the psychic connections between all the Battle Groups of Fleet Quartus, the curse spread, even crossing the Great Rift to affect those still operating in Imperium Sanctus, including Battle Group Cerastus at the Bargheist Stars.

 

At first, the curse had a productive effect on the Night Claws. The Chapter, struggling to leverage their talents against the erratic and unpredictable tactics of the Orks, suddenly ignored their own battle-plans and threw themselves at the green-skins in a uncharacteristic rush of blood-lust, and slew their prey to the last. However, their blood-lust didn't end. The Chapter turned its attention towards their allies soon after, and for days, the Night Claws stalked the edges of Battle Group Cerastus, using their talents to hunt and harass smaller vessels, at times launching random boarding actions to satisfy their blood-lust up close. This went on until their curse-ridden former allies finally drove them off. Battered, but still overpowered by the need to spill blood, the Night Claws turned their attention to the only other place known to them.

 

The Night Claws still stationed on Hansen Secundus were initially pleased to see their brethren return, but quickly became suspicious when their hails were ignored. Following a swift hailstorm of orbital bombardment, the cursed Night Claws dropped straight into the jungles and mining cities of the planet, facing little resistance as they tore through the helpless populace. The loyalists, mostly made up of freshly recruited marines, launched a hasty counter-attack from their training facilities in a desperate attempt save their people, only to spring the traitors' traps and be forced to fall back and regroup. After a series of brutal back-and-forth skirmishes, both sides of the remaining Night Claws became heavily depleted and the conflict developed into a planet-wide guerrilla war, which continues to rage on with no end in sight. Finally, the Night Claws can make full use of the talents.

 

 

---

 

Ever since I made the Blood Bulls, this idea has been floating around my head, and I had to get it out of my system. Yes, the source of inspiration is quite similar. I've actually toyed with the idea of a third Chapter based on energy drinks, thereby forming an energy drink trio. And I don't even like energy drinks! What's wrong with me?

 

Anyways, I've decided to turn this topic into a dumping ground for any stupid idea I might have in the future. So... enjoy?

[space wolf]

YES! I propose one based off of Reign. I've enjoyed this. This would be a cool thread for everyone to post little descriptors of wonky chapters they come up with.

[Codex Grey]

Quote

YES! I propose one based off of Reign. I've enjoyed this.

 

Glad you did!

Hmm, Maybe Reign could be something regal, lordly, etc. For now, I'm actually working on another non-energy drink based Chapter 

 

Quote

This would be a cool thread for everyone to post little descriptors of wonky chapters they come up with.

 

I guess. We already have the Random Chapter Inspiration Thread for posting ideas and I would assume anyone with anything more than an idea would want to make their own thread to control. But, hey, if this inspires anyone to post here, then have at it! Who am I to stop them?

 

Maybe I'll move my own stuff into a blog, which is kinda what I'm starting to do here anyways, and then open up this topic for everyone?

Edited Sunday at 10:18 AM by Codex Grey