The Horus Heresy (according to the 2003 CCG)

[LSM]

Awhile back I made a post (The Horus Heresy according to 2004) where I went through my old Index Astartes books and jotted down various things. Of course, I should have probably called that "according to 2002" as the collected IA volumes were reprints of earlier WD material, but...

 

Anywho; I've decided to have a look through the lore cards (those that are available to me) of the Horus Heresy CCG (base set in 2003, expansions in 2004 and 2005) and jot down how the story is presented thereupon. I find it interesting, when combined with the IA articles from immediately beforehand, as a charting of the evolution of the Horus Heresy narrative into the then "upcoming" Black Library series.

 

Of course, calling it the narrative of "The Horus Heresy" is being generous, as it's actually focussed on the buildup - effectively ending in the Dropsite Massacre.  

 

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Base Set; 2003

 

The Age of Strife: Lasting for the five millennia prior to the Great Crusade, this period saw Earth cut off from its colonies and allies due to violent warp storms wracking the galaxy. Isolated, human civilization was torn apart by local warring factions and the plundering of hundreds of alien races. Those that survived reverted to (relative) barbarism; worse, the dangers of Warp Creatures was not well understood and many planets fell prey to those who were able to breach the barrier between true space and the Immaterium (generally on worlds with large concentrations of psykers). Earth itself was in a terrible state - a wasteland inhabited by degenerate, feral nomads, insane prophets, and religious demagogues. Only Mars was still in intermittent contact with humanity's homeworld, and the Red Planet's Tech-Priests were considered deadly foes. Out of this emerged The Emperor: a powerful mutant who conquered parts of old Terra and instituted rationality and practicality in place of fear and faith. The Emperor began to experiment in genetic manipulation in an effort to recreate mankind as it had been before the Earth's radiation storms; and his new government hailed him as divine.

 

The Great Crusade: Though his origins are unrecorded, the Emperor succeeded in bringing the entirety of Earth under his command towards the end of the Age of Strife. From the outset of this conquest the Emperor used his genetically modified super soldiers - the Space Marines. These troops dominated their Terran opponents in the War of Unification, and quickly forced the Tech-Priests of Mars to sue for peace. The Mechanicum of Mars entered an alliance with the Emperor, vastly increasing the power of his Legions; as well as providing vast battleships and the mighty Titan warmachines. Aliens were flushed from the moons of Saturn and Jupiter and their human slaves freed. The Space Marines fought with righteous zeal, and it's said that it was they who first referred to their wars as "a crusade". Just as they finished conquering the Solar System, a massive shock blasted across the Warp, clearing the storms and allowing the Emperor to take his forces to the stars. The Great Crusade to reunite humanity had begun. World after world were freed from aliens and Warp Creatures, routed in epic wars or obliterated by virus bombs and Vortex missiles, and the Space Marine Legions were reunited with their lost Primarchs. The worlds on which they were found became the new homeworlds of the Legions, from which they could launch assaults on new enemies. The Imperium was at its zenith, and nothing could stand against the might of the Emperor's armies.

 

Origin of the Space Marines: Research and development began during the Age of Strife, after the Emperor had gathered about him a team of master scientists in the secret genetic laboratory beneath his Terran fortress. The Emperor hand-picked men from his bodyguard and subjected them to surgical and psychological modification; creating unflinchingly loyal warriors who were both immensely strong and possessing incredible willpower. The early Space Marines were organised into twenty regiments of a few hundred warriors, each named by the Emperor to strike fear into the hearts of their foes. It was with these Legions that the Emperor subjugated the warring tribes of Earth, and he recruited from those he conquered such that after Earth was completely under his control each Legion could muster several thousand warriors.

 

The Primarchs: The Emperor was already planning the reconquest of the galaxy before the end of the Age of Strife, and to assist him in this endeavor he created twenty beings known as the Primarchs. They were to be his generals, and to possess powers and skill beyond any human besides the Emperor himself. His ambitions were dashed, however, when a strange Warp Vortex snatched the foetal Primarchs from the Emperor's laboratory and scattered them across the galaxy. Amongst the various cultures of the worlds they were deposited on the Primarchs grew and matured and came to dominate. The Space Marine Legions had been each created with genetic material from the Primarchs, sharing with them various mental and physical traits. When the Great Crusade reunited the Emperor with these beings in turn, he gave them command of their respective Legions. There was speculation as to whether the Primarchs were indeed intended to be the leaders of a new Golden Age, or if they might have merely been a by-product of the creation of the Space Marines. Regardless, they were each mighty warlords, with martial and mental prowess matched only by their charisma. As to the Scattering little is known; some suggest a random Warp Vortex created by the psychic energies harnessed for their creation, others that the Emperor wished for them to learn a life beyond the laboratory within which they were spawned and the ability to carve destinies for themselves... while some suggest a plot by the Dark Gods to foil the Emperor's dreams.

 

The Astronomican: Before expanding the Great Crusade beyond Sol, the Emperor ordered the building of a great psychic beacon upon Earth. Huge numbers of Tech-Priests were brought from Mars, and the majority of the Terran population was drafted to create the towering machine-building. At its completion it was the largest single construct on the planet, and the Emperor could use it to direct his fathomless psychic energies and project a navigational beam through the Warp. Those attuned to its frequencies, the Navigators, could use it as a point of reference to greatly increase the accuracy of their course-plotting, significantly speeding up interstellar journeys. This beam is often referred to as the Light of the Emperor or his Divine Light; despite this, only a few individuals actually know that the Emperor is actively powering the Astronomican, and they fear that should he be disabled of killed the galaxy will fall into a new Age of Strife.

 

The Navigators: An ancient strain of humanity, from even before the Age of Strife, some suspect the hand of the Emperor in their creation. A mutant lineage that maintains itself via a number of Houses (the Navis Nobilite) and which possesses the ability to peer into the Warp and hence guide a vessel through its otherworldly currents. Even so, a Navigator is only themselves capable of charting relatively short journeys without the beam of the Astronomican offering them a point of reference. Ships without a Navigator that attempt a crossing will inevitably find themselves quickly lost, never to return from the Immaterium. 

 

Imperial Commanders: The galaxy is big and travel through the Warp is unpredictable, as time flows strangely there. Communication is the biggest problem of the fledgling Imperium, and despite a new class of human psyker being introduced to conquered worlds - the Astropaths - there is no practical way to implement direct galaxy-wide rule. Reconquered worlds are therefore handed over to Imperial Commanders to rule in the Emperor's name, often military men being rewarded for their service or indigenous rulers who swore allegiance to the Emperor. They are expected to pay tithes of men and materials, as well as providing shelter and succor for his armies and fleets. They must purge their populations of the mutant, particularly psykers (who they must hold to be taken away to Earth by the black ships). They are charged with protecting their populations from the enemies of mankind: the alien, the mutant, and those who would treat with them. (Daemons were not understood at this time, and were generally considered some form of alien or mutant when encountered.) Many reclaimed worlds immediately venerated the Emperor, particularly those which had been held in the grip of evil beings and had subsequently developed prophesies of deliverance. Terran demagogues were quick to fan these religious flames, and though the Emperor denied his divinity this act merely heightened the demands for him to embrace it.

 

The Astropaths: This corps of inter-stellar communicators was created by the Emperor during the final months of Earth's unification, as he foresaw their need in his coming conquest of the galaxy. The Emperor did not favour the use of psychic talents, as he was aware of the dangers they possessed, but prudently deployed some in special roles. "Astro-telepaths" were individuals capable of communicating with others of their kind over interstellar distances, and the only means of the Imperium maintaining some semblance of unity. All of them undergo a special process known as "soul-binding" - a ritual to boost their power and strengthen their mental defences performed only by the Emperor himself. Taking place at the Imperial Palace, the Emperor performs this act in batches of one hundred at a time. Many potential Astropaths are driven insane by this, and even successful candidates have their personalities altered to some degree. All Astropaths are blinded by the soul-binding, and many additionally lose their senses of smell, touch, or hearing. The black ships of the Astro-Telepathica travel the Imperium, collecting the tithe of psykers from compliant worlds, and returning them to Terra to undergo the soul-binding. Amongst the crews of these ships are the Sisters of Silence, recruited from the Untouchables (a rare human variant who are psychic blanks capable of disrupting a psyker's power). These mysterious warrior-investigators are trained in hunting down and containing hidden psykers.

 

The Emperor Honours Horus: As the Great Crusade drew to a close, fully two million worlds had been reunited into the Emperor's domains. Foremost amongst his generals was Horus, first and mightiest of the Primarchs, whom he considered like a son. Having decided that his work as a soldier was done (for he had great tasks to perform on Terra), the Emperor would leave the Great Crusade and in his place he named Horus as Warmaster. From that day forth the armies of the Emperor would take orders from Horus as if they were spoken from the Emperor's mouth. However, he cautioned Horus not to attempt to change the natures of his brother Primarchs, but to use their particular strengths. Unwilling to discuss with Horus what matters he was leaving to undertake, the Emperor returned to his Palace where he called upon Malcador and the Fabricator-General of Mars and retired to his private vaults. Horus began to execute his plans to see out the Great Crusade, closest to him his brothers Mortarion, Angron, and Fulgrim. Many were dismayed at the Emperor's actions, feeling bitterly that he had turned his back on them. Horus swore that he would never let them down. In truth, Horus himself felt slighted and abandoned, and as the wars continued and many died not once did the Emperor care enough to honour them with his presence. The other Primarchs increasingly argued amongst themselves; many begrudged Horus his rank, and frequently questioned his orders, twisted them to their own purposes, or simply ignored them altogether. Horus quickly came to trust only a few - those who would follow without question or who could be easily manipulated. As the Emperor's proclamations filtered to him from Earth, Horus grew more bitter and estranged, choosing to focus his energies on finishing the Great Crusade and bringing glory to his Legion.

 

The Council of Terra: After a series of great victories, the Emperor decided it was time to return to Terra and begin the next stage of his plans to save humanity. Calling to his side Malcador and the Fabricator-General, the Emperor decried that the completion of the Great Crusade could be left to his Primarchs, who had proved themselves time and time again. Horus, as Warmaster, would lead "the War Council", while the matters of state and maintenance of Imperial Law would fall to a new Council of Terra. Malcador was named First Lord of this Council and would lead it in the Emperor's absence. Malcador was an unassuming man of learning who had been the Emperor's most trusted advisor since the early years of Unification; blessed with long life, rumours swirled around his origins - some suggested he was a psyker, the first to undergo the soul-binding, and perhaps that he was even a distant relative of the Emperor himself. Also appointed to the Council were the Fabricator-General, the leaders of the Astropaths and Administrative Divisions, and the Chief Custodian Constantin Vaz. [Note: unit card says "Valdor" instead of "Vaz".] Having done this, the Emperor took refuge in the laboratories and workshops beneath the Imperial Palace and began the construction of great psychic-engines, the designs of which mystified even those he had tasked with assisting him. Secluded in his factories, anger and resentment grew amongst the Primarchs due to the elevation of petty administrators and sycophantic adepts over those who had fought and won his battles.

 

Horus Falls at Davin: Horus' Legion - the Sons of Horus - had ties to the warrior-society of Davin, and it was at the request of their dark, priest-like leaders that Horus joined his troops in the purging of one of Davin's moons. The cleansing of the plague-worshipping cultists present should have been a simple task, but Horus himself was felled by an assassin. The Legion's apothecaries were not able to treat the festering wound, and in desperation turned to the healers of a Davinite sect. Taken to the Temple of the Serpent Lodge a dying man, Horus emerged days later cured and full of energy. No one knew what rites were performed to heal him so. Horus instructed his commanders to be initiated into the Davinite Warrior Lodges, and in the following months introduced the Lodges into the other Space Marine Legions. Horus was a changed man; weakened by his physical trauma, laying in the Temple of the Serpent, the Chaos Gods had whispered in his ear. Why was the Emperor not there in Horus' hour of need; why did he instead prefer the company of the fops and clerks of Terra? Was Horus not the one who led the Legions to countless victories; the one who was there - who had fought and bled and cried - as brave Space Marines died horrible deaths against their alien foes? Was Horus not the Rightful Master of Mankind? And so, an evil pact had been struck - and one so simple. For the Chaos Gods told Horus that they desired only the death of the Emperor, the being who's psychic might was destroying their realm.

 

Horus the Conspirator: Horus met with his closest allies, and corrupted them to his cause. Angron was already a seething mass of resentment, and easily swayed. Mortarion was more difficult - but Horus appealed to a promise of a new age of might and justice; the Emperor too weak and exhausted to see it to fruition. Fulgrim saw all that was good in him - his honour, love for the Emperor, and quest for perfection - twisted by Horus into something dirty and cruel; a broken man, to whom Horus promised a restoration of his dreams. These three returned to the Legions they lead and spread their corruption via the Warrior Lodges so recently introduced. Most were easily turned, beholden to their gene-fathers over their Emperor, but there were many who were marked for a dark fate. Those for whom the Emperor was like a god, many of them born of Earth; those who had known loyalty to their Legions before their Primarchs' discoveries. Of the three most stalwart Legions, the Blood Angels, Dark Angels, and Ultramarines, Horus concocted massive campaigns which would guide their bulks into the distant reaches of unknown space. The Imperial Fists and White Scars were deployed around Terra, too close for Horus to chance without suspicion. Horus spread his plans, taking in Perturabo's Iron Warriors and winning over a great number of Imperial Commanders and Mechanicum Forgemasters, but mysteriously the Thousand Sons did not answer his Astropaths - something terrible must have been happening on Prospero.

 

The Isstvan Rendezvous: The third world of the Isstvan system was in revolt, and its Imperial Commander (Vardus Praal) was suspected of being a mutant (and possibly a dangerous psyker). The Council of Terra ordered the Warmaster to quell the rebellion, capture Praal, and send him to Terra for judgement. Drawing together the strength of four Legions (the Sons of Horus, Death Guard, World Eaters, and Emperor's Children) constituted the greatest single force of Space Marines since the battle for the Pargor Hith system, including the presence of three Primarchs (Fulgrim was delayed, and Lord Commander Eidolon led in his absence). Those of the Legions who were deemed potentially disloyal were formed into a massive assault force, and deployed in a series of quick, brutal strikes at the rebels. Just as victory was assured, all communication with the fleet above ceased and a thousand virus bombs were launched to rain down on Isstvan III. The deployed marines and the planet's six billion inhabitants alike would soon be dead in a horrific firestorm.

 

Isstvn III: However, the Warmaster's plans had gone awry when a Death Guard officer by the name of Captain Garro instinctively beamed warning messages of the imminent betrayal to his battle brothers on the planet's surface. Others still aboard the traitors' ships, such as Captain Tarvitz of the Emperor's Children, also made similar efforts, though most were quickly slaughtered. Garro managed to commandeer the frigate Eisenstein and flee the system, while Tarvitz was able to seize a Thunderhawk and descend to the planet below. Thanks to the warning messages from above, fully two thirds of the Marines on the surface managed to find shelter from the virus bombs. As Horus tried to work out what to do, Angron took it upon himself to launch his World Eaters at the survivors. Incensed, Horus had little option but to order the Sons of Horus, Death Guard, and Emperor's Children to commit to the battle.

 

The Red Sorcerers of Prospero: Magnus the Red was a red, cyclopean giant; the most psychically powerful of the Primarchs. He had grown up on Prospero, the Planet of the Sorcerers, and come to lead the ruling Commune of Prospero. Upon meeting him, the Emperor warned him of the dangers of sorcery, and fearing where ignorance might lead shared with Magnus (and Magnus alone) the truth of the Warp. Feigning shock and horror, Magnus immediately vowed to renounce sorcery and re-educate the people of Prospero. In truth, Magnus dismissed such warnings, for he had already seen such truths with his one great eye and was obsessed with its beauty and promise. The Thousand Sons Legion, made from his stock, had been plagued with psychic mutancy in the years before their reunion with Magnus. He taught them sorcery in secret, and they became a hidden cabal of warlocks. While they fought bravely, many Primarchs thought ill of them. Leman Russ regarded them as sly and devious, Corax refused to field his Raven Guard alongside them, and Mortarion openly accused them (correctly) of secretly dabbling in sorcery. Others however were open to the development of the Space Marine Librarian project, which Magnus was instrumental in the development of. This would allow those Marines who exhibited psychic mutation to safely make use of their power for the betterment of their Legions. 

 

The Council of Nikaea: Towards the end of the Great Crusade, most of the Legions had established Librarius departments. However, a crisis began to brew: while some Primarchs desired purposefully recruiting psykers to swell the ranks of their Librarians, others grew more vehement in their objections. Russ argued that they were no better than warlocks, Corax and Dorn refused to field their Legions alongside them, and Mortarion accused Magnus of practising sorcery. Before departing for Earth, the Emperor called together the War Council on the planet of Nikaea to settle the matter. The Primarchs spoke in turn, some in support of Magnus and some in accusation. Magnus denied practising sorcery, and denied attempting to introduce sorcerous practises into the other Legions via the Librarians, but the Emperor ruled that even the accusation had become dangerous and unacceptable. Hence forth, the Space Marine Legions would make no use of any psychic powers at all (including their Primarchs). While there had been no proof of the claim, the Emperor was enraged at the idea that Magnus had broken the trust placed in him when they had first met years before, and had continued his practises in secret. The Emperor ordered Magnus home to Prospero, there to undergo a complete overhaul of his Legion and remove any use of their psychic gifts. Should Magnus disobey, the Emperor promised to destroy the Thousand Sons and wipe their name from all records.

 

Magnus' Warning: Magnus, bitterly disappointed by the outcome of the Council of Nikaea, returned to Prospero and raged against the Emperor's ruling. He had no intention of giving up the power and the glory of the Warp, and agreed with his senior Librarians to continue their sorcery. It is suggestive of their corruption being well progressed; however when Magnus peered into the Warp and saw Horus make his pact with the Ruinous Powers - and saw all the horror that would unfold from that (all but his own part in it) - Magnus chose to warn the Emperor. Gathering his cabal, they decided against sending an astropathic message; for there was a quicker, surer means of communication - a daemonic spell! This conjuration of unprecedented power flew through time and space, breaching the protective wards and hexes of the Imperial Palace, and lanced into the Emperor's brain. No one knows what Magnus thought the Emperor's reaction would be, though if it was that he would be pleased then Magnus was mistaken. The Emperor disregarded the content of the message in his wrath, focussing instead on the fact that Magnus had clearly violated his edicts to cease his practice of sorcery. The Emperor dispatched Leman Russ and his Space Wolves to prosecute the arch-heretic Magnus and his Thousand Sons, and they were to be shown no mercy. Sent alongside them were a contingent of his own personal guard, as well as a fleet of black ships to carry back any surviving psykers from the civilian population after the Thousand Sons had been destroyed.

 

Random notes: there is an Emperor's Children Eidolon card, but its a Support Squad (one of six! EC-Lascannon-equipped-squad cards); Abaddon's rank is "Lodge Captain"; Kelbor-Hal is named as the Fabricator-General of Mars in the unit cards, but not the lore cards; there is a Justaerin Terminator Squad card, but they're Emperor's Children and not Sons of Horus.

 

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Sedition's Gate; 2004

 

The Custodian Guard: The Space Marines were not the only genetically enhanced super soldiers created by the Emperor, for before them came his personal guard: the Legio Custodes. Stronger than a Space Marine, each has an unbreakable devotion to the Emperor. They are structured similarly to the Space Marines, though they number only 1000 strong, and they have access to all the technologies of the Legions and more besides; particularly the Guardian Spear, a combination Bolter and Power Axe. A contingent always remains around the Emperor, though in these turbulent times small detachments are dispatched across the galaxy to ensure the Emperor's will is enacted.

 

The Mechanicum: Born on Mars, the Tech-Priests of the Mechanicum worship technology in the form of the Machine God. During the Age of Strife, they conducted many raids upon Earth - ancient seat of humanity - to plunder the machine secrets hidden there. This earned them the bitter enmity of the Terran tribes. During this time they also tried to ascertain the reason for the Warp Storms that cut off humanity from itself, dispatching great Explorator Fleets. Many were lost, and none returned; but a great number of new Forge Worlds were seeded across the galaxy. When the Emperor began to rise on Terra, they saw in him a kindred spirit - a man of science who valued the machine and technological advancement. Some Tech-Priests even saw in him the fulfillment of ancient prophesies of the coming of the Machine God. The Emperor made alliance with Mars, agreeing to respect the sovereignty of their Forge Worlds and gifting them six Navigator Houses in exchange for the supplying of the Great Crusade, as well as the fielding of the Collegia Titantica. The Mechanicum appointed an ambassador to Terra, known as the Fabricator-General, and he was granted a place on the War Council (alongside Malcador the Sigilite, the Chief Custodian, and each of the Primarchs).

 

The Warp: The Immaterium is a separate dimension which coexists with true space. Whereas the latter is a place of physical laws and the steady march of time, the Warp is an anarchic flow of energy; eddies, tides, and storms. By entering at one point and exiting at another a ship may make journeys faster than light speed. Small jumps, while not safe, can be reliably made. Longer journeys risk a ship going wildly off course, becoming lost in the complex weave of shifting currents, or being torn apart. It is not unknown for ships to arrive years after (or even years before) they were predicted to. Few humans understand its precise nature, though it is generally understood that there is a link between it and psykers. It is also widely known that the Warp is filled with predatory creatures; ravening beasts who prey upon warp-ships that are becalmed during travel.

 

Psykers and the Warp: The Emperor is the greatest human psyker, though the mutation is found in every culture throughout the Imperium. For most it's manifestation is relatively minor - luck in games of chance or a sense of foresight. Others are more dangerous; able to call forth fire or lighting, move objects with their mind, or dominate the wills of others. These people are vulnerable to the predation of the creatures of the Warp - cruel reflections of baser human emotions. Only the Emperor seems immune. When a psyker is overtaken by such a creature, dreadful physical changes are enacted as it tries to remodel their body into something more akin to its natural form, and the host's life force invariably burns out. Some are more clever, and will seek to hide their corruption; nurturing other psykers who can be possessed in turn. The most powerful of these creatures are the Daemons of Chaos, each in thrall to one of the four Great Powers. The Emperor seems to be one of the few who knows of these creatures, and he seemingly keeps that knowledge from humanity in an effort to protect them.

 

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Traitor's Gambit; 2004

 

Military Hierarchy of the Imperium: The Legiones Astartes - the Space Marines - form the core of the Imperium's military might. Each Legion can muster at least 100,000 troops, and the largest (the Ultramarines) numbers over 250,000. The Legions divide their forces into Companies of 100 Marines, led by a Captain. Battalions generally consist of 5 Companies, and are led by Lieutenant Commanders. Battalions are then paired into units of 1000 Marines, referred to variously as Regiments, Wings, Great Companies, or Chapters. Each of these is led by a Commander (or sometimes Lord Commander). Subordinate to the Space Marines are the Imperial Army - generated from the tithes of men obligated to be paid by every world (excepting Forge Worlds, Space Marine recruiting worlds, and those of the Solar System). They are ideal for siege work, mass invasion, and garrisoning duty. The Mechanicum is bound to support the Great Crusade with its massive Titans, and it additionally supplies war-robots and other troops.

 

The Chaplain Edict: After the Council of Nikaea forbade the use of psykers in the Legions, First Lord of Terra Malcador the Sigilite was not convinced that all would abide by the Emperor's decision. Many of the Primarchs placed great value upon the power that a psyker could unleash on the battlefield - and they had become central components of their strategies and tactics. For inspiration, Malcador looked to Lorgar and his Word Bearer Legion - and issued the Order of Observance, more commonly known as the Chaplain Edict. Lorgar had been raised on the cult world of Colchis, becoming both its military and spiritual leader. The coming of the Emperor to it had been hailed as the fulfillment of holy prophesy. Upon taking control of his Legion, Lorgar had introduced a new sect of warrior-priests known as Chaplains; tasked with ensuring that their faith in the worship of the Emperor was strong. Malcador's edict instructed that all the Legions would introduce such Chaplains, to internally enforce the Emperor's will. Many Primarchs immediately began to appoint such officers, many did not (some duplicitously). The vagaries of communication across the Imperium did not make this notable. Lorgar himself was quietly amused by the edict; for his Legion had already fallen to Chaos.

 

The Secret Treachery of Lorgar: Long before the betrayal at Isstvan III and the heresy of Magnus the Red, Lorgar and the Word Bearers had sworn themselves to the Ruinous Powers. Raised on Colchis, Lorgar was a puritanical religious zealot; as a young man he had visions of the Emperor, and had fought a series of bitter holy wars to enforce his doctrine that these visions were the prophesised coming of a messiah. When the Emperor arrived on Colchis it's people were in thrall to the Cult of the Emperor. Lorgar exulted the God-Emperor to much rejoicing, but the Emperor himself had no wish to be worshipped - only obeyed. Moreover, he wished for Lorgar to take charge of his Legion and to join in the Great Crusade. The Word Bearers became the Emperor's most strident supporters and Lorgar his most zealous apostle, but the Emperor became increasingly frustrated by the conduct of the Legion. Their focus seemed to be on preaching, the construction of great cathedrals, and the punishing of the insufficiently pious rather than the military objectives they were tasked with. This last disquieted the Emperor the most; the religious pogroms instituted - killing countless innocents - for not worshipping an Emperor who did not seek to be worshipped. The Emperor reproached Lorgar - his mission was battle, not faith. While he wasted his time with useless religious displays, countless worlds suffered under the yoke of alien oppression. Forced to renounce his belief in the Emperor's divinity, and look to the likes of Roboute Guilliman's Ultramarines for example, Lorgar sat idle for a month. Just when it seemed the Emperor would have to issue a second rebuke, the Word Bearers sprang into action with a series of swift campaigns which delighted all. It appeared that Lorgar had learned his lesson, but in truth he had been shocked to the core. Turning to his most devout followers - Kor Phaeron of Colchis and First-Chaplain Erebus - they argued that the Emperor had imparted a false vision upon Lorgar. It seemed that it was the old gods of Colchis, the Chaos Gods, who were truly deserving of their worship. First the Chaplains were perverted, becoming Lorgar's Dark Apostles, to spread the corruption throughout the Legion. While Kor Phaeron was impatient to reveal their new allegiances - truly believing that the strength and self-evident righteousness of the Ruinous Powers would win over Lorgar's brother Primarchs should they but declare themselves - Erebus was more circumspect, counselling that they work in shadow to first build their power and find potential allies. Lorgar knew he was not respected by his brothers, and they would not follow him in the way that they might follow Guilliman, Sanguinius, Dorn, or Horus. As such, when Horus was brought to the Dark Priests on Davin, messages were sent to the Word Bearers. There, the Dark Apostle Erebus met with Horus to swear to him the fealty of Lorgar and his Legion. Horus told him of his own pact with the Dark Gods, and while Lorgar was eager to throw off the cloak of deceit Horus cautioned further patience - for there was will work to be done in the arrangement of events.

 

Dark Mechanicus: In the months leading up to the betrayal at Isstvan III, Horus dispatched agents to many Forge Worlds. Already within the Mechanicum a schism had been brewing between those Tech-Priests who viewed the Emperor as the living manifestation of their Machine God and those who thought this a blasphemy. Horus' agents agitated that it was the Emperor himself who had tricked the former into this belief, such that he might steal their devotion from the true Machine God. On Horus' behalf they "revealed" the Emperor's secret plans to enslave the Tech-Priests and seize their machines. Having won their secret allegiance, Horus' agents went further and introduced many Forge-Masters to the power that only the Dark Gods could offer.

 

War on Isstvan III: On the devastated planet of Isstvan III, the survivors of the Sons of Horus, World Eater, Death Guard, and Emperor's Children Legions found themselves under attack from those who declared Horus the True Emperor. Amongst their erstwhile brethren are the black-robed cyborgs of Mars, Imperial Army regiments sworn to obey the orders of their Space Marine Lords (and likely unaware of the broader implication of Horus' actions), as well as ferocious cultists and Dark Priests from Davin openly displaying the runes and chanting the names of their dark gods.

 

Flight of the Eisenstein: As the traitors launched their orbital barrage onto the surface of Isstvan III, Captain Garro of the Death Guard (Terran born, and a staunch loyalist who had fought with the Emperor numerous times) and the seventy Marines under his command seize the frigate Eisenstein. Garro had sent warning to the loyalists below, before endeavoring to flee the system and make for Earth. Passing through Horus' fleet, the Eisenstein suffered massive damage, including the deaths of all its astropaths and the mortal wounding of its Navigator. Despite this, to remain in true space would have seen their sure destruction, and so they transitioned into the turbulent Warp. The ship, in no state for a long journey, was forced to make an emergency exit; and found itself adrift in an unknown region of space. Garro made the decision to jettison and detonate the ship's Warp engines, in the hope that the act would act as a beacon to some nearby traveller. Luck was with them, as Rogal Dorn and the Imperial Fists' great fleet had themselves been becalmed nearby. Upon hearing of Horus' perfidy Dorn was dismayed - for he had always held Horus in high esteem. Dorn resolved to send the bulk of his fleet to Isstvan to assist the embattled loyalists, while he escorted Garro's forces to the Emperor personally. 

 

The Muster at Calth: As Horus launched his attack at Isstvan III he sent word to Lorgar and the Word Bearers: the time had come. Aware of the bitter hatred Lorgar held for the Ultramarines, Horus revealed that he had ordered Guilliman to leave the Sol System and muster his Legion in Ultramar for a new campaign. While 40 companies of Word Bearers remained near the Sol System (under the command of the trusted Sor Talgron), the rest of the Legion would join the Ultramarines and launch a surprise attack against them. As the Ultramarines entered the Calth System it was clear that something was wrong - dreadful storms immediately engulfed the system, and none of the Legion's astropaths were able to send or receive messages. It was in this growing unease that the Word Bearers struck! Command of the Calth Assault Force was given to Kor Phaeron, while Lorgar remained in charge of the Word Bearer fleet - scattering the Ultramarines in a number of hammer blow assaults. The planet Calth's three sister worlds were destroyed, and the system's sun was bombarded - threatening to send it supernova. 

 

Sanguinius Betrayed: Horus had ordered Sanguinius' Blood Angels to the Signus Cluster, in the Ultima Segmentum and near to the galactic core. He had been ordered to cleanse its seven worlds and fifteen moons - once one of the centres of galactic human civilization - of their xenos-ovelords and free the people thereupon. Sanguinius shared great mutual admiration for the Warmaster - a bond which had in the past incited jealousy amongst their brothers - and relished the opportunity to serve him. Unbeknownst to him, the Signus Cluster was ruled by Kyriss the Perverse, Greater Daemon of Slaanesh, and his daemonic host. Sanguinius and his Blood Angels were approaching the most foul of traps.

 

The Razing of Prospero: The Space Wolves fall upon the Thousand Sons' homeworld of Prospero in waves, where their feral savagery is pitted against the dark witchcraft of Magnus' Legion. The Thousand Sons have revealed themselves as a coven of sorcerers, and Leman Russ has been sent to exact summary justice for their heresy; aided by the Legio Custodes and Silent Sisterhood. The latter are Untouchables, immune to psychic assault and anathema to Prospero's sorcerers. They are all tasked with defeating the Legion in the field, arresting Magnus, and capturing all surviving psykers. The once paradise world is reduced to smoldering rubble.

 

Random notes: The events of Isstvan III, Calth, Signus, and Prospero are written in the present tense, and don't talk of their conclusions. (ie. players are playing out those four events).

 

//

 

Demon's Fire; 2004

 

Signus Prime: In the highly populated Signus Cluster, an uprising of Chaos Cultists and the summoning of a great daemonic host have undone untold generations of civilization. Four runes of Chaos mark the Capital Hives of Signus Prime, where four Greater Daemons stake their claims. As the Angel Sanguinius and his Blood Angels arrive they are ambushed by the Daemon Kyriss, who unleashes a sorcerous attack which kills many of the fleet's Astropaths, Navigators, and psi-sensitive Space Marines. Despite being outnumbered by the strange foe - the likes of which have never been encountered before - the Blood Angels counterattack. The planet is awash in the blood of Space Marines and Cultists, and the ichor of daemons. Sanguinius strikes at the Cathedral of the Mark, there to confront and destroy Kyriss of Slaanesh, but is blocked by Ka'bandha - a mighty Bloodthirster of Khorne. Ka'bandha reveals to Sanguinius the treachery of Horus, and makes to him an offer: join the daemon as one of Khorne's champions, and together they will defeat the pervert Kyriss and rule in the name of the Blood God. Fearing the daemon's claims about Horus to be true, the winged Sanguinius does battle with him in the sky while frenzied Blood Angels fight Khornate daemons below. After being wounded by Sanguinius, Ka'bandha knocks the Primarch to the ground and departs by flying through the Blood Angels' formation, killing 500 Marines in one fell swoop. The psychic backlash of so many of his sons dying knocks Sanguinius unconscious, and the Blood Angels must finish the fight without their leader.

 

Battle for Calth: As the Ultramarines muster at Calth, they are attacked by the traitorous Word Bearers. Terrible warp-storms cut off the Ultramar sector from outside communication, and prevent interstellar navigation. Their ground forces reeling and fleet scattered, the Ultramarines find themselves with no choice but to dig in and attempt to hold their positions. Waves of Marines, Cultists, and Dark Mechanicum troops under the command of Kor Phaeron are supported by packs of terrible daemons. However, Kor Phaeron had underestimated the Ultramarines' resolve, and they were able to first halt the assault, and then begin to engage in counterattacks of their own. The Ultramarine forces of Brother-Captain Ventanus had been preparing to board transports when the attack began, and retreated to the Palace of Leptius Numinus. Though initially losing half his forces, he held the Palace against the assault of the Dark Apostle Erebus with only 500 Marines and supporting elements of the Calth 5th Infantry. Making contact with other Legion officers, he realises that his situation is repeated across the world; and what's more - no one knows the fate of their Primarch, Roboute Guilliman. Erebus is ecstatic - after so many years of plotting the hated Ultramarines are being destroyed and the time of Chaos is close.

 

Guilliman at Calth: Roboute Guilliman had been on the bridge of the battle barge Macragge's Honour when the attack began, and the ship took heavy damage in the initial bombardment. Fully three quarters of the Ultramarines' fleet was crippled or destroyed before the remainder was able to scatter away. From the damaged Macragge's Honour, Guilliman did his best to stabilise the situation. He immediately realised that his Legion was the victim of a trap set by the Warmaster Horus, and while he had ever found Lorgar distasteful and unsettling, the fact that Horus had wielded him so caused Guilliman to suspect this was but part of a larger treachery. But first, there was the very real possibility of the destruction of his Legion. He began by organising hit-and-run counter attacks against the Word Bearers fleet, which was over-confident and lacked cohesion; the surviving Ultramarines were able to isolate and destroy a number of their ships despite being hugely outnumbered. Guilliman then turned to organising counteroffensives on the planet's surface. Ventanus received word from his Primarch - the Word Bearers had focussed on killing Ultramarines and in their bloodlust not taken the time to properly disable the defensive lasers at the Numinus Spaceport. Ventanus is ordered to make a breakout back to the port to reactivate them.

 

The Emperor: Having returned to Terra, the Emperor busies himself beneath the Imperial Palace with his secret project. He seems oblivious to the events at Isstvan, at Calth, Signus, and Prospero. He leaves Malcador the Sigilite as his Regent while he completes his secret Project, with instructions that none must disturb or impede his work. Daily, greater and greater requests for men and materials comes, to be sent into the dungeons. The vast resources of Terra are increasingly directed into the Imperial Vaults. The Sigilite has been given great responsibility, and it is not a task that he relishes. The Primarchs openly resent his authority, constantly question his command, and now seem to refuse to even maintain contact. The Mechanicum is restless, making daily demands to be admitted into the Emperor's presence. Malcador senses a crisis brewing as warp-storms begin to cut off the Imperium, and even the Astronomican's light appears to wane; he has not heard from the Warmaster or many of the other Primarchs in some long weeks. Only Jaghatai Khan is present in the Solar System with his White Scars Legion, supported by a substantial force of Word Bearers (though Lorgar himself has been dispatched to rendezvous with the Ultramarines). Malcador makes the Astronomican his priority, and disturbs the Emperor's work. The Emperor's anger is focussed at Magnus the Red, for his interference has caused the Emperor to need to channel his psychic might into staving off a great threat to his Project, and even he cannot both do this and fuel the Astronomican's beacon. While the Emperor had been working, thousands of potential Astropaths had been waiting to undergo the soul-binding ritual, and with his reluctant approval Malcador begins using them to fuel the Astronomican; an act which quickly strips them of their lives.

 

Horus: As the battle of Isstvan III rages, Horus' equerry Maloghurst the Twisted is worried that the unforeseen failure of the purge is causing potentially catastrophic delays. Maloghurst is also confused and concerned about the events at Prospero, but Horus reassures him that Magnus will soon be joining them. Fulgrim arrives at last and meets with Horus upon the bridge of his flagship Vengeful Spirit, to inform him of his failure to sway Ferrus Manus and the Iron Hands to the Warmaster's cause. Horus has taken care of the Dark Angels, Blood Angels, and Ultramarines, while the Space Wolves have spent themselves against the Thousand Sons. The White Scars are out of reach at Terra, but Horus believes that the Khan will ultimately choose to side with him. Dorn will be difficult to overcome; but no more attempts will be made to sway any other of his brother Primarchs - the secret knowledge of who is loyal to Horus, and the Emperor's ignorance of this, will be key to victory.

 

//

 

Dropsite Massacre; 2005

 

Malcador's Despair: Before Malcador came the Primarch Rogal Dorn and Captain Garro of the Death Guard, and so the Regent of the Imperium learned of the treachery of Horus in all its horror. He turned to Dorn to plan a response, for he was not a warrior and the Emperor was locked away in his Vaults, but no word had been received for quite some time from the Blood Angels, Dark Angels, or Ultramarines, nor from the Space Wolves and their mission to Prospero, nor was there news from the Imperial Fists which Dorn had sent to Isstvan. Horus, as Garro had related, had four Legions under his command. Malcador despaired that any of the Primarchs could so break their oaths of loyalty - his had been a life utterly devoted to the Emperor since they had first met at The Sigilite Fortress, but he had never been a warrior or general. His most fervent desire was that the Master of Mankind would leave his secret work and take back control of the Imperium, but he knew this would not happen.

 

The Emperor's Champion: Upon returning to Terra, Rogal Dorn immediately began to organise the Imperial defenses for the coming war. His first task was to ascertain where the still-loyal Legions were, but the warp storms gripping the galaxy made it impossible. If only he could contact his brother Primarchs, they could join together to crush Horus - who may have had four Legions and Mechanicum support, but each Legion would be heavily depleted by the events of Isstvan III. He pressed Malcador for a solution, who told him of how they were even now binding psykers to the Astronomican in an effort to maintain its light. Worse, Malcador no longer thought the warp storms an unfortunate occurrence, but the malign design of the creatures of the Warp. Horus must have made a pact - cast his lot with evil and become a Champion of Chaos! Dorn was undeterred by Malcador's revelations; that Horus, Angron, Mortarion, and Fulgrim had perhaps even been possessed by daemons made sense of the situation. Learning of Magnus' foul oathbreaking also helped explain it, for surely the sorcery of the Thousand Sons made them vulnerable - perhaps it had been through Magnus that Horus was possessed, he reasoned. No matter - the why and how could be analysed in future. Malcador agreed to a gamble: though it would quickly kill the remaining psykers rounded up on Terra, they would be used en masse to boost the Astronomican, hopefully allowing the planet's Astropaths to pierce the storms and re-establish communication. The gamble paid off.

 

Rogal Dorn: Malcador and Dorn surveyed the reports in front of them, every one telling them the same thing - across the galaxy, war raged. Imperial Commanders declared for Horus, rebels rose against governors, the loyal Tech-Priests were reporting rebellion on Mars and desperately calling for Terran reinforcement, and alien races emerged from the dark to tear at humanity. Malcador wept; Dorn was stoic, and quietly pleased by the outrage at Horus' betrayal that his loyal brother Primarchs displayed when they were able to be contacted. Not all had been though, and Dorn sorely wished for Guilliman's strategic insight. Nor had they reached Lion El'Jonson's Dark Angels (though their homeworld of Caliban was reporting itself facing civil unrest). The scant word from the Blood Angels indicated that they had suffered dire casualties after being ambushed by daemons in the Signus Cluster, and that Sanguinius had been wounded. Of the Space Wolves campaign against the Thousand Sons there was still nothing. The golden Primarch was further at a loss for why the Emperor would not (or could not) afford him audience, and was unable to understand what could be possibly more important than the events that were unfolding throughout the Imperium. Malcador counselled Dorn to have faith in the Emperor.

 

Malcador's Doubts: Dorn organised his four veteran Imperial Fists companies into a relief force for Mars, and ordered Commander Sor Talgron's forty companies of Word Bearers to make for the Isstvan system, where they would join with as many other Legions as could be mustered to crush the weakened Horus. Six other Legions were within striking distance of the Isstvan system: the Iron Hands, Iron Warriors, Salamanders, Raven Guard, Night Lords, and Alpha Legion. Jaghatai Khan's White Scars were ordered to Terra to act as a reserve, being too far from Isstvan to participate in the attack [sic]. This enacted, Malcador expressed his doubts to Dorn - the sacrifice of so many innocents to empower the Astronomican had worked, but perhaps too well. If the raging storms had been the design of Chaos, then this reestablishment of communication could be a part of their manipulations. He feared a trap. Dorn countered that perhaps this was the dividends of the Emperor's secret works; he counselled Malcador to have faith in the Emperor.

 

Horus Sets His Trap: After the events at Isstvan III, Horus set up a new HQ on the barren world of Isstvan V. He was executing a trap long in planning, for he knew that the Emperor would seek to crush his rebellion long before it could threaten Terra. Isstvan III had in truth been the lure, for Horus had won many Primarchs to his side in secret, and knew that they would be amongst the forces sent against him now. He instructs the Dark Priests of Davin to quiet the Warp, to facilitate the Imperial counterattack. 

 

The Legions Muster at Isstvan: Rogal Dorn, on the Emperor's behalf, has organised a force of seven Legions to crush Horus, and placed it under the command of Ferrus Manus. Ferrus has desperately sped to the Isstvan System with ten of his veteran companies of Iron Hands, for months previously he was confronted by Fulgrim of the Emperor's Children. The two Primarchs had long been close friends, and Ferrus was dismayed and angered by Fulgrim's attempt to sway him to Horus' cause. The two fought in an effort to detain Fulgrim, but he managed to escape. When the Iron Hands attempted to pursue, they found their fleet becalmed. When they attempted to alert Terra of the treason, their astropaths were met with silence. For months Ferrus' rage built, and when he at last learned of the full breadth of the betrayal his rage grew even fiercer. As Ferrus waited for the entirety of his command to muster he pestered his Astropaths for knowledge of their arrival. The Raven Guard and Salamanders came first, and when word was received that the Iron Warriors, Night Lords, Alpha Legion, and Word Bearers were mere hours away Ferrus ordered the attack. Corax's Legion would take the right and centre, Vulkan's the left, and Ferrus' veterans the vanguard. The other four Legions would follow and establish a dropsite from which to reinforce the assault.

 

The Fury of Ferrus: The traitorous Sons of Horus, World Eaters, Death Guard, and Emperor's Children were arrayed along low hills at the northern edge of Isstvan V's largest desert, the Urgall Depression. Ten thousand drop pods of the Iron Hands, Salamanders, and Raven Guard rained down upon Urgall, the fleet unleashed a bombardment, and hundreds of landers were dispatched carrying heavy equipment and war machines. Ferrus' forces smashed into the heart of the traitors' encampment, and though the carnage was terrible the loyalists were winning. As the other four Legions appeared above the Urgall Dropsite, Horus ordered his forces into a mock retreat to overstretch Ferrus' lines. The Iron Hands facing off against Fulgrim's Emperor's Children, Ferrus was filled with rage and a thirst for vengeance. He bided his time until he could relinquish his duty of command and seek out Fulgrim, which came when the Dropsite was secured by the forces of the Iron Warriors, Night Lords, Alpha Legion, and Word Bearers. As the traitors fled, Ferrus ordered a full pursuit, but Corax and Vulkan hesitated. Their Legions had been dealt heavy casualties and they counselled consolidation, and allowing the fresh Legions to press the attack instead. But Ferrus had spotted Fulgrim, and pressed forward into his traitorous brother. Confronting him in personal combat, Fulgrim revealed to Ferrus that the four reinforcing Legions were already sworn to Horus, and once more bid him to join with them. With mounting horror, Ferrus realised that there could be no escape for the three truly loyal Legions - but Ferrus did not fear death, only dishonour. As Ferrus and Fulgrim duel, traitors pour back over the Urgall Hills. As the Raven Guard and Salamanders attempt to regroup with their supposed allies at the Dropsite, they are massacred.

 

[BadgersinHills]

Thanks for this, really interesting to see what changed and what remained the same or similar.