World Eaters, a short story series

Last year, the wonderful Great Crusade forum ran a short story competition. Anyone who entered had to compose a short, 1000 word story about an event taking place either during the Great Crusade or Horus Heresy era. Furthermore, the contest was to be judged by Black Library author Aaron Dembski Bowden himself! Unsurprisingly, the contest received a huge number of entries, the entirety of which are accessible through the link below (if you are a fan of Pre-Heresy, and are not already a member of the website, I urge you to go and sign up straight away!)

A number of the stories featured the World Eaters. As I am attempting to make this blog a resource for Pre-Heresy World Eater hobbyists and collectors, and because few things are as inspiring as a well-written piece of fiction, over the coming weeks with the permission of their authors I will be posting those stories again here.

So without further ado, here is the first story. It is called 'Rage Unknown' and is written by Joshua Bullock (aka Ahriman from the TGC forum). It focuses on a slice of the action during the infamous final battles upon the surface of Istvaan III, the sequence written about in the early salvo of Horus Heresy books, whereby the Traitor legions were attempting to exercise their loyalist elements.

Rage Unknown

By Joshua Bullock

ANGER FILLED HIS body. Anger whose source was unknown to him, anger the likes of which he had never quite felt before, even with the psycho-stimulative implants in the base of his skull. The air smelled of blood and his armour was caked in it. He smiled to himself as he stared down at the dull redness that covered his body, breathing in its coppery tang and focusing on the rage that filled his head.
The ruins of Istvaan III’s Precentor Palace lay all around him, reminiscent of dying men’s fingers clawing at the sky. The air was thick with dust and anyone but an Adeptus Astartes would have been hard pressed to see more than a few metres.
But there were none but Astartes within the ruined walls of the dead city. Brother fought brother from behind hastily constructed barricades amid the shattered but still hauntingly beautiful architecture, with the frescos of primitive gods still somehow intact following the orbital bombardments and the ongoing ravages of battle.
Warriors from several legions made war upon the planet’s surface: the perfect ranks of the pristine Emperor’s Children stood beside the sea green of the Warmaster’s own sons, while the stoic forces of the Death Guard fought one another within the grimy trench systems outside the ruined city. Kruer stood with his own warriors, the white of their battered armour catching the fading light of the dying world’s sun. The World Eaters were on edge, ready to rip apart anything within their reach. None more so than the primarch Angron, who stood with his favoured warriors, fixated upon the blood congealed upon the teeth of his huge chainaxe. The blood of those whom had fallen from his graces.
Kruer took in none of this. Not the ruins nor the art, not the purple and gold-clad warriors cleaning their weapons, nor the Sons of Horus who seemed content to let the other legions do the work for them. Not even the awe inspiring presence of Angron could disturb him from the all-consuming rage that filled his body. From where this anger had come, the hatred for warriors that just mere hours earlier had been his brethren, he did not know. All he did know was that he liked it.
Oh yes, he was quite certain about that.
A hash on his vox-channel penetrated the haze, and a single command rose through the roaring in his head:

+++KILL+++

Kruer needed no more encouragement. He barely registered the Emperor’s Children advancing to his right, moving steadily through the devastated buildings covering one another as each squad carried out its function in the great scheme of battle.
The World Eaters followed no such tactics, each squad running loosely together, vaulting fallen masonry and smashing down walls in their haste to close with the enemy. Kruer could now see them, crouched like cowards behind the remains of the broken city: it served only to fuel his burning rage, seeing warriors with whom he had once been proud to serve, stooping to such gutless cowardice.
He sprinted through the rain of bolter shells, paying them no heed. He could see the entrenched warriors clearly, their white and blue armour standing out from the destruction around them. He knew some of them by name, and he knew all of them by blood. And it would fill him with great sense of satisfaction to remove this taint from his legion.

IRATUS KNELT DOWN to reload his boltgun, yanking out the drained sickle magazine before ramming home a fresh clip and raking the slide. He rose again swiftly as others around him knelt to reload their own weapons. The sight was strange to him – this was not how the World Eaters usually fought, taking cover behind barricades and exercising tight bolter drills.
The back of his head throbbed as his psycho-stimulative implants urged him to violence, and it took almost all of his willpower to stay in line with his brothers and not to engage the implants’ feedback loop and launch himself at the traitors heading their way. One thought above all others kept him grounded in the moment: they were World Eaters no more. They were War Hounds once again.
He resumed firing, adding his bolts to the fusillade. A depraved figure emerged from the midst of the rabble, caked in blood and charging with such reckless abandon that he cared not what struck him – masonry, bolt rounds, shrapnel. Even his own comrades, whom he smashed aside in his need to close with Iratus‘s line.
He emptied his rest of his magazine at the bloody figure and those around him, before diving down once more to reload. The warrior to his right fell to the ground clutching his throat, blood running thick and fast before his enhanced physiology could clot the wound. The War Hound to the other side of Iratus fell also, his headless body crashing into the rubble and the armoured helm following an instant later. Desperately Iratus leapt back to his feet, ready to fire, only to be confronted by the viscera streaked face plate of the berserk World Eater on the other side of the barricade.
The roar of his chainaxe seemed to merge with the war cry from the warrior’s helmet vox-emitters, and Iratus fired two rounds into the berserker’s armoured torso before the boltgun was torn from his grip by a downward strike. The World Eater leapt over the barricade, and Iratus drew his combat blade and held it out across his chest. The tempered plasteel was no match for the foe’s axe, but if he was lucky...

RAGE WAS ALL Kruer knew, all that he could see. He didn’t even feel the foe’s blade as it pierced his throat, nor the impact of his chainaxe upon the loyalist dog’s helmet. Darkness overcame him and he smiled behind his visor.
It mattered not from where the blood flowed.

Apothecary in MK5 armour

I think it's time to try and forget last week's unpleasantries and move on. I have finally finished painting my Apothecary. I've tried something new with this one in the form of weathering the armour, a new methods I tried when painting some WFB orcs. Overall I'm quite pleased with how it is has come out, although I may have used a little too much of it on this guy! The Legion badge will be added to his right shoulder pad as soon as I have access to my transfers.

Apothecary Csobán

Pictured following the first 72 hours of the compliance of Konos III. As a trainee of the Medicae facilities of Bodt, Csobán was attached to the 2nd company along with two other medical personnel under the command of the (then) Captain Sevruk.

The 2nd company, along with the 5th and 17th, was involved in the spearhead assault of the Etat Union's primary industrial facility. It was heavily defended, and Csobán had his hands full during the early hours of the operation. At one of the industrial facilities, a breached cooling towers resulted in the cataclysmic destruction of it's reactor, killing both defender and attacker alike within a several kilometer radius, and severely damaging a large contingent of the 17th company that were involved in the operation. Following direct correspondence from Commander of the Fleet Borya (who was overseeing the entire operation from orbit) Csobán and other medicae officers were ordered to the area to recover what they could of the fallen Astartes.

Pictured here, the Apothecary is carrying a personal medi-pack, designed for battlefield triage but also more importantly carrying a freezer unit to carry the gene seeds of the fallen. His high-powered chainblade (attached to a bionic arm, testament to a previous campaign) designed to cut through Astartes battle-plate - either to administer treatment, or to reach the highly valuable geneseed held within. A collection of frag grenades, while primarily designed as an offensive weapon, were also used to destroy the waylaid remains of Astartes when the extraction of their bodies and wargear was not possible, so that it might not fall into enemy hands. The heat-spectrascope, an ancillary addition to his backpack, enables the Apothecary to instantly ascertain the location of Astartes physiology. It was especially useful in this circumstance, as many Marines were buried beneath sizeable amounts of rubble and sand. An enhanced auspex unit in his helmet allows his to receive full physiological information from a wounded Astartes, and will recommend various courses of action to administer aid.

Rules

WS	BS	S	T	W	I	A	LD
5	4	4	4	1	4	2	9

Wargear: Power Armour, chainsword, bolt pistol, frag and krak grenades, narthicium

Notes on Special Rules

Obviously a Blood Angel Sanguinary Priest has no place in a World Eaters force. However the presence of one 'counting as' such a unit not only presents a cool modelling opportunity, but also helps to sneak in an added bit of assault capability in the form of the 6" 'Furious Charge" bubble that exists around the Apothecary. As such, I may well try and get 2 or 3 of these guys in the finished army, just to increase power in assaults across the board for those units who don't succeed in obtaining 'red thirst' before the game.

The presence of the Apothecary himself in the unit also provides the 'feel no pain' special rule. I like the idea of medics being attached to various units, it fits in nicely with how Marines used to be presented in the original incarnation of the game, and the more pragmatic approach to how the Legions were organised before the 'great upset' happened, and the marines had 10,000 years or so of ritual and dogma added to their routine.

I'm also hoping to get hold of the wonderful MK4 FW librarian at some point in the future. Next up, the 'meat and veg' element of my army has been solely lacking recently, in favour of more exotic elements, so depending on what comes first in the post expect to see either some more assault marines, or another tactical squad (these guys dressed entirely in mk3 armour - think the cover of False Gods :) )

Oh, Games Workshop...

This post will be a first for this blog. Since it's inception, I have tried to keep focus entirely on the World Eaters and the discussion surrounding them. I have reasoned that the people who do visit my blog do so to read about the mighty twelfth Legion and worlds being eaten, and not petty, real life stuff.

So it is some indication of the importance that I ascribe to the 'hot topic' that leads me to make this post now. Been away for a few days and not sure what it is yet? I recommend that you head over to Dakka, Warseer, Bell of Lost Souls (even Games Workshop's own FB page) and take in the first half dozen or so, 20 page discussions. Or look at any number of the blogs on my blog roll. Put simply, Games Workshop HQ has been taken over by Gremlins. Someone fed them after dark, and now in their evil and tricksy ways they have set about with great gusto in attempting to upset their fans as much as possible.

I won't go into specifics here, suffice to say that most criticism revolves around a not insignificant price increase across the board (on the back of a switch to a supposedly cheaper material), and a big middle finger to the Southern hemisphere, or at least anywhere like Australia, where customers from those countries were previously using UK based internet retailers. The reason being, it was possible to buy GW product at something approaching RRP, rather than the ridiculous prices determined by the the exchange rate that GW follows. Now those customers will be forced to swallow their pride (and presumably packets of instant noodles, the only thing the average middle class citizen will be able to afford after a trip into an Aus GW) if they want to continue to buy new GW product. Unsurprisingly, the comments from the former colonies have not been overwhelmingly pleased. On a personal level, it means I cannot continue to order from the likes of Wayland and Maelstrom. While this won't really effect my World Eaters project (what project you may ask, after looking at the number of posts recently? :) ) which subsists on bits orders that get put into parcels from my family back home, it has given my other projects - a WFB orc force and Eldar army - a questionable future. I have more than a 5 hour journey to Seoul if I want to buy any GW, and I will have to pay more than RRP for it if I want to do so.

So, where does that leave us? The internet has a history of kicking up storms that don't really go anywhere, and of people raging at their keyboards (see: every other GW price increase), but I have a feeling this one is going to be different. There is a hell of a lot more passion behind it, and it's as if the dam has become unplugged, letting forth all manner of unpleasantries which had previously been welling up.

For this reason, I have decided to write a letter (on a computer, not hand written, we have to roll a little bit with the times here!), print it out and as of today mailed it off to GW HQ back in the motherland. Internet fan communities do have weight, if they pull together (just look at Rage Against the Machine making it to Christmas Number 1 in the UK, or Greenpeace naming that whale Mr. Splashy Pants!).

So, if you feel as strongly as I do about this topic, I advise you to follow suit and make up one of your own. Make it polite and concise; let GW know exactly how you feel about this recent spate of changes. Here is the address of GW HQ:

Games Workshop
Direct Sales
Willow Road
Lenton
Nottingham
NG7 2WS

If enough of us do it, someone might just take notice. It could well be that nothing whatsoever will happen, and that exec types will sit at their desks with their fingers in their ears yelling 'lalalala' even as the office junior gets a big overtime payment that month shovelling letters into landfill. But if in the years to come GW does nose dive, at least we will have the knowledge that we tried to make a difference. Games Workshop has been a big part of my life, and that is what has prompted the emotional reaction on my part. I genuinely feel for the company, and the feeling of 'betrayal' that I am currently experiencing is as much concerning my fear for the companies future as it is the personal inconvenience the prices rises, trade embargoes and other nonsense are causing me.

This will be the last such comment from me on this blog, and all future postings will indeed go back to discussing pre-Heresy matters, chiefly the boys in white and blue. That is, unless something happens again in the future where by I feel the hobby that I know and love is threatened..

WIP Mk5 Apothecary

This is a WIP of a new Apothecary, kitted out in Mk5 armour. Even though he is going to be a counts-as Sanguinary priest in game, I don't want him to be too grandiose. He's just a combat medic, attached to other squads of World Eaters as and where he is needed.

I have made the mk5 armour from a standard mk7 set, using the tutorial found here.

The head is from the marine bike sprue, and the bionic arm from the FW veteran squad (got a few bionic left arms lying around from those packs!) The chain weapon, used to cut open marines armour (and to treat them, or maybe get to the progenoid glands?!) I think is from the old 2nd edition ork CC weapon sprue.

Sadly I don't have a substantial bits-box while I am away from home. I'm hoping not too many people will identify his medical kit as a Tau accessory (did marines get tried for Heresy back in the Great Crusade? Have some Tau travelled back in time so the marine could get hold of this piece of kit? There are all sorts of Terminator-esque time-travel paradoxes involved here :) )

Hopefully when painted, it will look a bit less obvious, and I may well modify it slightly.

The scanning array on the backpack is from the vehicle accessory sprue. I didn't have any access to cabling for the torso, so I resorted to using greenstuff. I actually think it has come out a bit better than the cable I have used previously, and will have to see how it looks when it is painted.

As you can see he still needs basing, and some mold lines cleaning, I only seem to notice them when I look at the photo :)

As for colour scheme, the guys on the Great Crusade website have pointed me in the right direction, and there is evidence of Apothecaries in both the '40k' colour scheme (white armour) and also in standard Legion colours. I think I might go with the latter route, as it ties in more with how the Librarians and Techmarines are represented, and also paints the marine as a specialist who is still part of the Legion. He hasn't gone off to train in some ancient special apothecaries sanctum, it's been handled in-house as part of the Legions operations. Although I realise that his armour will be white in any case, so it makes very little difference! :)

'A small part of a larger plan' A short story about the World Eaters

Here is a short story, based during the events of the compliance of Konos III (the setting I have created as a background to this blog). I hope you enjoy it.

----------------------------------------------------------------

A Small Part of a Larger Plan

Gesard didn’t smell good at the best of times. Now, within the tight confines of the tunnel and with Gesard’s rump directly in front of his face, Teso sorely wished that he was somewhere else. He could feel the others pushing up against his feet from behind, and with the way ahead blocked he felt distinctly uncomfortable. A few of them had gone a little crazy down here in the tunnels, got the shakes and started seeing things in the dark. Teso counted himself fortunate that he wasn’t one of them, although that didn’t mean he had to like it. Fact was that most of them couldn’t come down here, couldn’t squeeze down the tiny access tubes that made up the tunnel network, couldn’t do the important work. Boss had told them what had to be done, how he and the other boys were the only ones that could do it, how they had to keep fighting even though they were afraid.

A muffled squelch sounded from Gesard’s camouflaged fatigues once more, and Teso cursed him even as he heard the others behind him illicit nervous laughter. “Shut it you animal…” he paused for a moment as they shuffled forward. Struggling to breath within an environment which would have been stifling at the best of times he nudged the rump in front of him. “Have you reached the hatch?” Gesard replied in his high-pitched, slightly petulant tone, “yeah Teso, it’s right here.”

“right here, what?” Teso snapped at him.

“Uh yeah, right here.. sir” the camouflaged pants conceded somewhat reluctantly. Boss has told them about how important it was to respect ranks, how they had to follow the plan to the letter. Teso was determined that his lads would look good in their leaders eyes. That one day they would get to join the unit that Yama and some of the other older boys had gone to join, taking part in the really important and heroic jobs. The ones that would help drive the invading bastard scum from their world.

Gesard grunted again as the pushed the hatch forward, accompanied by a rumbling and scraping sound. For a moment Teso feared the sound which meant that the tunnel was about to collapse as dust and debris came spinning out, but it soon stopped. Someone behind him coughed, and Teso blinked as the hard light of the morning sun came spilling into the tunnel. One by one they filed out, and stood around the entrance hatch, gingerly stretching limbs which had been cramped in one position for several hours. After a few moments, and after checking the half dozen of them were present, Teso nodded and spoke to them all; “Ok, let’s do this. Boss told us the plan, we know what we have to do.” He hoped that his own concern at what they were about to wasn’t revealed by a trembling voice or hand, or by dropping eyes. He hoped that the fear that he saw in his friends was not mirrored by himself. There was a murmur of assent from the group as they followed him from behind the refuse pile and narrow alley into which they had emerged. Plucking up a courage that he didn’t know he possessed, Teso turned to them and grinned, “come on this will be fun… just like a game of chase and bag.” Gesard’s squeaky voice replied even as the others looked on, “yeah, but we haven’t ever been chased by a monster before.”

……

“Ok.. this is it..” Teso lay flat up against the wall, his actions followed by the others further along the alley. He unwrapped the small package he held in his hand, taking out a small autobike mirror contained within, and held it by its bracket. Holding his breath, and with the delicacy of a man putting his hand into a nest of vipers, Teso held out the mirror so that it emerged from around the corner of the building. Blinking the sweat from his eyes, he forced himself to calm although his heart thundered in his chest and the narrow stem of metal in his hand shook and threatened to slip from his sweaty grasp.

Gradually the shaking lessened, and the scene revealed by the mirror came into focus; As expected, the street was largely empty, windows shuttered and doors barred despite the summer heat. A few market stalls stood untended, although an old man sat by the side of the road, a collection of nuts and herbs placed somewhat optimistically in bowls before his hunched form. A stray dog with only 3 legs made its way haphazardly across the road, pausing to sniff at some small animal which had died there. A miniature dust devil whipped up, pushing refuse into the air. But the rest of the street was empty. Teso experienced a moments doubt, where was it? Why wasn’t it here? Maybe the boss or his information had been wrong?

Teso was about to turn to Gesard and tell him, when something caught the corner of his eye. His stomach wretched and heaved all at once, and threatened to come rolling up his throat. His mouth hung agape and he swallowed, a mixture of dust and sand making it a sensation like sanding wood. But he didn’t notice the sensation nor the discomfort, for his attention had been drawn inexorably to what he now saw stood in the corner of street.......

Continued in part 2!!

World Eaters 2nd Company Captain Sevruk (update)

These are updated rules for Captain Sevruk, utilising the 5th edition Blood Angels Codex.

For gaming purposes, Sevruk counts as Astorath the Grim from the Blood Angel codex.

Background

Sevruk was one of the first Captains of the 12th legion from the Recruitment world of Bodt to have reached the rank, as opposed to the existing Terran ethnicity of many in the legion. Over the years he carved a name for himself as being utterly ruthless, often at the forefront of any attack and, even amongst the others of his legion, was regarded as being a shining example of ferocity and mercilessness.

It was on the barren and unforgiving landscapes of Talmasci IX that he would cement his rise to captain amidst a welter of blood and offal. Surrounded by the corpses of his slain cohort he faced the brutal orcish overlord of that world, a behemoth even by greenskin standards, atop a crude but towering orcish fort. With bestial cunning the orc declined Sevruk's challenge of combat, and instead raised his primitive flamethrower and doused the exposed chest and face of the marine in promethium. Sevruk's cried in agony as his skin boiled and eyes burst in their sockets, and the orc warlord, snickering all the while, turned to his horde to howl in triumph. But his victory cry proved premature as Sevruk, somehow still alive and guided by some innate sense, flung himself at the orc, and in a single motion raised the orc above his head and cast him from the battlements to shatter on the ground far below. The body of Sevruk was recovered by the legion apothecaries, and despite all predictions he lived, a complex bioneural interface from the mechanicum of Mars ensuring that he would see and fight again.

Sevruk showed no misgivings at all about the changes Angron brought to the Legion, and he was among the first to encourage the use of neural implants within the legion. This is shown by his personally selected guard who always have the modifications made. Although his accompanying marines usually suffer massive casualties in being the first into the breech, such a posting is seen as a great honour. The sight of Sevruk and his beserker guard howling in rage with chainaxes spinning as they charge is a fearsome sight indeed.

During the assault on the Gedren system, towards the end of the Crusade, Sevruk was instrumental in bringing about the demise of the Fief-Overlords. Personally spearheading the assault on Gedren Prime, arriving amongst the drop pods of slain Legion-troopers, his body guard were all but massacred by the criss-cross of devastating laser weapons. Undeterred, he tore into the giant abhumans sent to finish him, and reduced their psychic handler to giblets of quivering flesh with his chainaxe. As the laser beams continued to fly, he ignited his jump-pack, smashing through the ballistrade of the fortress walls and casting the horrified defenders from the parapet. He then, aided by a Captain of the Space Wolves legion, used a wall-mounted defence weapon to blast the turret from an approaching transport bearing reinforcements. It was said that after the battle, not a sliver of white or blue was still visible on his armour, so intense had been the bloodshed.

After commendation for his role in the compliance of Gedren Prime, Sevruk and his 11th company were placed under the command of Borya, Commandar of the fleet of the 591st Expedition. Their objective, the Konos System.

Special Rules

	WS	BS	S	T	W	I	A	LD	SV
	6	5	4	4	3	5	3	10	2+

Honour of the Legion: Withdrawing from the fight is simply unthinkable for any marines fighting alongside Sevruk. Any World Eater squad he is part of is fearless.
Horrifying Violence: Sevruk exemplifies the ethos of the world eaters. The impact of a cohort of marines charging into the foe is akin to an express train, as the marines hack and slash with unremittant fury. Any World Eater squad he has joined may re-roll to hit on the turn that they charge. If Sevruk is leading his berserker squad, they may also re-roll to wound.
Blessed: Despite spearheading countless assaults, and suffering wounds which would have killed even other Astartes, Sevruk has somehow managed to stay alive, something which unfortunately can not often be said for his guard. Some call it the blessings of the gods of battle, others just blind luck, but whatever the cause Sevruk has survived far longer than he has had any right to. Confers 4+ inv. save (equivalent of Rosarius).
Shadow of the Primarch: Units which are part of Sevruk's assault plans are hand-picked for their fearsome melee abilities and aggression, and even tactical and heavy support cohorts have been known to get stuck in and assault the enemy at close range. If Sevruk is in the force, all units will use the 'Red Thirst' rule on a 3 or less, rather than the usual 1 on a D6.

Wargear

Artificer Armour, Bolt Pistol, Jump Pack, Frag & Krak Grenades, Chainaxe
Chainaxe: Sevruk has extraordinary strength even for a marine. Although he has weilded the same weapon since becoming an astartes, his phenomenol strength means that it cleaves through the thickest of armour, literally hacking apart anything that stands in his way as he swings the weapon 2-handed in a giant figure of eight. Counts as a 2 handed power weapon that strikes at Str 6, successful invulnerable saves against the weapon must be re-rolled.

Final Notes

I wanted Sevruk to be a proper attempt at the 'counts as' rule, and for people to look at the miniature and understand why he confers the bonuses of the 'Astorath the Grim' character, offers no armour save, and is hard to kill!

With the new Blood Angels Codex, Lemartes (the previous ruleset utilised for Sevruk) has seen a slight change in rules, but most importantly he no longer counted as an HQ unit. As a Captain and therefore in charge of his own contingent of marines, I felt that the rules for Astorath would be more fitting. His force of troops would act as the 'Spearhead' of a World Eaters assault, featuring the most aggressive and fearsome assault troops and smashing into the enemy without pause, as is the World Eater way :)
For his unit itself, combined with a squad of Berserkers (Blood Angel Death Company) they inspire great fear on the tabletop for anyone who has ever faced a charge from them in a game, potentially one of the most powerful close combat unit in the game! I think this ties in nicely from what we know about Berserkers in the background information of the World Eaters.

Using Blood Angels 5th Edition to represent Pre-Heresy World Eaters

Previously, I considered the White Dwarf Blood Angel codex to be pretty useful for representing Pre-Heresy World Eaters. There were other options (see the article here), but for the type of force I was representing, that codex had far more positives than negatives. Please note that this article follows on from the now defunct article featuring the previous White Dwarf codex, linked above.

Fast forward a few years (and then a delay of over 6 months until I actually got hold of a copy!) and now we have, what in my mind, is perhaps the ideal codex to represent the 13th Legion on the tabletop. This article will go into depth as to why I think this is the case, and how the versatility of the codex can be used to represent a variety of different PH WE forces, from both the beginning of the Crusade to the Heresy itself.

I will note when I am writing my own opinions on background, everything else is referenced from the Index Astartes: World Eaters article, the Horus Heresy: Collected Visions book and the Horus Heresy book series itself. I will also welcome any comments on the article, and will amend any of the inevitable errors or omissions!

It should also be noted that when talking about Pre-Heresy, much of it comes down to personal interpretation. The fact that, despite the HH book series, so much of it remains a mystery means that this kind of article can only ever be advisory in the loosest possible sense. It is purely my own opinion, built upon reading the books and my own background in war gaming. It's quite possible that some people reading this will have an entirely differing viewpoint on any given situation. If that is the case, then I think it's something which should be celebrated; Pre-Heresy modelling gives us an opportunity to create something truly different, away from the increasingly defined and catalogued game universe of Warhammer 40,000. If you want to use Codex: Orcs to represent your Pre-Heresy World Eaters, while I might find it questionable, far be it from me to stop you!

A note on the character of the World Eaters

For anyone planning on creating a Pre-Heresy World Eater force, I think it's really important to establish early on exactly what type of force you want to represent. Is it the 'War Hounds', the fresh faced legion of Terrans who are just embarking on the Great Crusade, or is it the crazed and frenzied berserkers of Angron pounding on the gates of Terra? Is it something in between, where the first vestiges of madness are beginning to grip the Legion after the discovery of their gene-sire?

As I wrote in the previous article on this subject, it's important to note that the character of the Legion varied a great deal from it's initial creation to it's fall to chaos. We have now had it confirmed that the 'War Hounds' (as they would have been before the discovery of Angron) were already an assault-orientated Legion, and they engaged in brotherly rivalry with the Blood Angels who were of a similar nature. After Angron was reunited with his Legion, the introduction of 'bio-implants' (the medical procedure which turned gladiators into raging psychopaths on his home world) steadily transformed the Astartes into the blood-spilling monsters they would later become. Therefore, it is possible to characterise your WE force, using the BA codex, by how far along this 'path' the Legion is. However, it should be noted that by no means is this exclusive; remember that the Legions were massive. I imagine it would have been quite possible for distant elements of the Legion which were part of different expeditions to have had less changes made to the character of their force, while other force commanders might have embraced Angron's doctrines whole-heartedly. So, in any case, this observation of the armies 'character' should only be viewed as advisory.

Why the Blood Angel Codex?

In time I will write special character and rule profiles for the various part of the codex, but for now here are some general components of how the BA codex is especially applicable to the World Eaters:

The Red Thirst

This special rule will potentially give squads the fearless and furious charge special rules. It's a wonderful way of representing the assault-orientated nature of the Legion, and their impact when they take part in melee combat. The likely hood of a squad getting this perk can be made more likely depending on choice of special character (more on this later).

Assault Troops as a troops choice

Again, this rule represents the assault-bias of the World Eaters. You can imagine dozens of rhinos racing forward as part of a spearhead, while assault-equipped marines jump out to secure objectives! Now the '2 special weapon' rule allows you to make a similar unit to the 'flamer team' seen in the HH:CCG.

Death Company

This unit is practically crying out to be labelled as 'Berserkers'. Quite possibly one of the most dangerous close combat units in the game. If you have ever used the Death Company in a game, the look of consternation on your opponent's face as move the models into base contact with their unit is absolutely as it should be, as the Berserkers were the most barbaric and frenzied assault unit of any Legion! The new rules allow you to use a variety of wargear options, and have created some great conversion opportunities.

The Special Characters

In many ways this is the most useful facet of the Blood Angels book, using 'counts as' they can be used to represent a variety of roles within the Pre-Heresy Legion. It's even possible to make a pretty good facsimile of Angron himself, or at least as close as is possible within the standard rules of the game.

Although this will be explored in greater depth in future articles, for now:

Lemartes: Has rules which transfer well to an assault orientated captain.

Astorath the Grim: Perhaps the most vital for late-crusade or Heresy era forces. Removes the 0-1 Death Company restriction (allowing an army of Berserkers!) and also increases the likelyhood of squads getting the 'red thirst' rule to 50%, which again can perfectly represent the assault-orientated bias of the force. A combat monster in his own right, attach to the front of a unit of Death Company to create an assault unit worthy of the 13th Legion!

Mephiston: This marine has some skeletons (possibly demonic ones) hiding in his closet, and his quite crazy stat line makes him perhaps the closest contender for anyone wanting an 'Angron' in your force. Many of his psychic powers can quite easily be represented as the almost preternatural abilities of a Primarch (I shall be expanding upon this in a future article).

Sanguinary Priests: One idea is to just have them as combat medics in the force (without the cup of blood of course). Medics were a lot more prevalent back in 1st edition days, and this ties into the juxtaposition of that era's representation with 'modern' Horus Heresy background quite nicely. The added bonus of furious charge and FNP special rules can represent the characteristics of a World Eater unit.

Gabriel Seth: This chap is practically a champion of Khorne anyway, but with black pauldrons.

Furioso and Death-Company dreadnoughts

You can imagine a dreadnought taking part in 13th Legion operations would share a similar tactical acumen to his battle brothers, and would equip himself (itself?) with close combat weaponry accordingly. Similarly, what would happen if a marine previously fitted with neural implants were placed within a dreadnought? It's only a thought on my part, but I think the rules for a Death Company dreadnought might be a close approximation of this.* Of course for most of the Crusade the Legion would have utilised combined tactics, and so a standard-type dreadnought (such as those seen in the HH:CCG) could be equally applicable.

* I used a dreadnought within my own force to represent this idea (click here), referenced from the Tempus Fugitives campaign special rules.

Rhinos with Lucifer-pattern engines

This one is a little harder to justify, not least because it is noted in the BA codex that they are a recent addition to the chapter's forces. However, I think it is important to note that there are important differences in terms of relative technology between the Warhammer 30,000 and 40,000 universes. Specifically, we are often reminded of how the latter is a universe where old technology is gradually failing, it's secrets lost or forgotten. It might be logical to suppose that the higher efficiency of both the Mechanicum and Legions themselves produced rhinos during the crusade that had a performance equivalent to that of a Lucifer pattern engine. Certainly, when viewed in the wider context I don't think that it is beyond the realms of possibility!

Land Raiders

Continuing with the above line of reasoning, we know that Land Raiders were more common during the crusade. Especially if you adhere to the retconning which attempts to connect Rogue Trader and 1st edition Epic to current Horus Heresy background, this codex lets you use practically as many Land Raiders as you can afford.

The Stormraven

Although the vehicle itself was supposedly not made until the 41st millenium, the template for a small scale aerial assault vehicle gives the opportunity for scratch-builders and converters to create some form of bespoke vehicle which might have seen service during the Crusade (we know from the HH book series that several of the aircraft designations have yet to be defined beyond a title, so why not use the 'stormraven' as the basis for it's rules?)

Wargear/weaponry

Hand Flamers were a staple part of Rogue Trader and 2nd edition-era armaments. As those used by the Blood Angels are prized relics, it makes sense that they would have been used Pre-Heresy. An Infernus pistol could also represent other technology since lost, or perhaps a weapon taken from a slain alien commander or offshoot of humanity.

A note on self-restriction:

Although I am advocating the use of the BA codex in this article, at the same time I think if a true representation of the Legion is your objective, then some self-discipline in terms of unit selection is in order. Although I understand that many people will give priority to the aesthetics or rules instead of having something 100% accurate to the source material, nevertheless here are some of the areas which are important to note if you want to create an accurate army.

Jump pack-equipped assault troops

It has been acknowledged by several sources that, while they exist, these were less than plentiful for most of the Great Crusade. Subsequently an early crusade force consisting entirely jump pack equipped assault troops would not be entirely accurate. I have opted to only include a jump pack equipped unit for every standard unit mounted in a vehicle, although this is entirely up to you.

Chaplains

There is some debate as to whether some or all of the Legions featured chaplains in their forces, although the World Eaters might well have done towards the end of the Crusade and following the council of Niceaa. I have found it more characterful to use a captain model 'counts as' a chaplain (see the rules and explanation for Captain Sevruk), simply because in many ways Chaplains are a representation of the changes in the ethos and thinking of the marine chapters found in 40k.

Librarians

As above. Although Khorne is inimical to psykers, this would only have been an issue towards the end of the crusade. It's also been documented that Angron ordered the murder of all the Legion's Librarians, so they must have existed. (As a side note, it also gives you the opportunity to use this quite wonderful Forgeworld model!)

Baal Predator/Land Raider/Razorback/Land Speeder options

It has been noted that the Baal is a Blood Angel only option in the background. Similarly, the above vehicles have been explicitly labelled as post-heresy. So, does that mean they shouldn't be used? My personal opinion would be to follow the advice of the Tempus Fugitives design team and limit them to 0-1 use. This represents the ability of Crusade-era commanders and Mechanicum to make ad-hoc modifications to wargear and weaponry in regards to the situation, and the differing viewpoint of technology.

Lucifer Pattern Rhinos:

If you didn't agree with my above comments regarding the rhino, you may wish to choose to disregard the 'Lucifer engines' special rule

Use of Other Codecies

As I mentioned in my previous article on this topic, the Blood Angels codex is by no means the be-all and end-all of codex choice when it comes to representing the World Eaters. I have written above why I think it is the most prudent choice, when it comes down my own conception of the Legion in the time frame I want to represent them, but that by no means excludes other codecies.

The standard Space Marines codex would be ideal for an early crusade force, perhaps representing the War Hounds. Both the Space Wolves and Black Templar codecies are similarly assault-orientated, and arguments can be made for both of them (although you may have to exercise more self-discipline and opt not to use some of their more radical options). Similarly, a Khorne-themed force from the latest Chaos codex would be excellent for a late Crusade or even Heresy era force. To conclude, I have written this article to give people ideas for their own force, not to dictate what they should or should not do, and the standard caveat which I feel should run through the entirety of the gaming and modelling community is that no one should ever say, "actually, that's not right".

End of Part 1..

So, that's the 'core' of adapting the Codex: Blood Angels to represent your Pre-Heresy World Eater force. If anyone has any suggestions, queries or comments about what I have written here I will be happy to answer them.

The next article will switch the focus to adaptation of Special characters. Using 'counts as' troops within an army seems to be something which is attracting a great deal of negative press recently, but I want to show how this can be mitigated by making an effort as part of the design process.

If you have got this far, thanks for reading! :)