Chaos
"For the Dark gods!"
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In the table-top wargame Warhammer 40,000, the Chaos Space Marines or Chaos Marines, are Space Marines who serve the Chaos Gods. They are also referred to as the Traitor Legions, primarily in background material written from the perspective of the Imperium.
In Games Workshop's Warhammer 40,000 and Warhammer Fantasy fictional universes, Chaos refers to the often malevolent entities which live in some sort of parallel universe, known as the Warp in Warhammer 40,000 and as the "Realm of Chaos" in Warhammer Fantasy. The term "Chaos" can refer to the entities and their influence, the servants and worshippers of these entities, or even the parallel universe in which these entities reside.
Both game worlds depict settings out of spiritual balance, where aspects of human nature are able to coagulate and gain purpose in a mystical (or psychic) context. In the two game settings, Chaos represents the classic theme of Man vs. Himself, with the fantasy twist of giving these psychological struggles a physical form and influence. In both settings, Chaos is seen as a seductive force, capable of corrupting any who follow it; even the most strong-willed and goodly-inclined follower will gradually be corrupted and become another follower of Chaos. This corruption is not just spiritual, but also physical- followers of the Chaos Gods frequently find themselves being mutated by their masters.
The Chaos Gods
The most powerful of the Chaos entities are those known as the Chaos Gods, also sometimes referred to as the "Dark Gods" or the "Ruinous Powers". These entities are described as being enormously powerful, and seeking to extend that power into the realm of mortals. They do this by attracting followers amongst mortals by promising power, wealth, immortality or whatever else the potential servant desires. The gods are typically capricious, selfish and vain, demanding absolute loyalty from their servants and rewarding deeds when they wish, in whatever ways they deem appropriate.
Background materials for both settings state that there are many Chaos Gods, but also that there are four which are significantly more powerful than the rest. The four great gods often serve as antagonists in their respective settings, frequently sparking great wars against other factions with the aim of gaining total domination over the entire setting. The names and aspects of these four great gods are:
- Khorne - god of hate, blood, rage, war and killing
- Nurgle - god of decay, despair, destruction, and disease
- Slaanesh - god of decadence, excess, pleasure and self-indulgence
- Tzeentch - god of change, manipulation, scheming and sorcery
While these selfish gods distrust each other and in-fighting is common, each is also diametrically opposed by one of the other gods. Khorne is an outward acting deity, seeking the death of others; he is opposed by Slaanesh, who acts inwardly, seeking the pleasure of all experiences (including that of killing). Nurgle represents forces of decay, destruction and stagnation, while Tzeentch represents constant building, evolving and change. These inimical relationships can have an effect upon the nature of the armies that Chaos generals can field in both game settings, since warriors who follow one god will not serve a general who worships their god's enemy; likewise, the general's god would punish him for trying to enlist the aid of the god's enemy.
Especially dedicated worshipers of the gods can be gifted with traits associated with their god; warriors blessed in such a manner are said to bear the "mark" of their god. The effect of this mark varies by game system, army and god, but is generally beneficial to the warrior in question. For example, in Warhammer 40,000, Chaos Marine worshipers of Nurgle become infected with a multitude of terrible diseases, which causes their bodies to rot and become resistant to pain and injury; their counterparts in Warhammer Fantasy are similar, but the rotting effect instead makes them appear frightening to their foes. Another example would be Khorne, whose followers in both settings are nearly uncontrollable, insane warriors who crave nothing more than to tear apart their foes in hand to hand combat. These marks can then lead to further boons from the patron god, known as "gifts"- these gifts can eventually turn the warrior bearing them into a powerful daemon, such as a Daemon Prince.
Other Chaos Gods
Besides the four major gods, there exist other, lesser gods. The minor Chaos gods who have been mentioned in the Warhammer Fantasy and Warhammer 40,000 settings include:
- Be'lakor - also known as The Dark Master, Be'lakor was once a mighty champion of the Dark Gods and the first mortal to gain immortality in Warhammer Fantasy[citation needed], but he fell from grace and was stripped of his power. He is now considered a Daemon Prince, but has attempted to attain godhood. His power is such that he can grant his followers (called "Dark Emissaries") magic spells similar to other gods.
- Hashut - in the Warhammer Fantasy setting, Hashut is the god of the Chaos Dwarfs. He represents aspects of industry, fire, volcanoes, darkness, hammers and lightning.
- Kweethul - in the Realms of Chaos: Lost and the Damned book, a Skaven (prior to the addition of the Horned Rat to the Warhammer setting) who was a minor chaos god in his own right. Kweethul is possibly the basis for the Horned Rat below.
- Horned Rat - in the Warhammer Fantasy setting, the Horned Rat is the god of the Skaven. He represents aspects of disease, magic, the power of Chaos itself, rats, and other characteristics of the Skaven race.
- Malal - The renegade fifth Chaos God, he represented Chaos fighting against itself. Due to copyright issues, he is no longer mentioned in current background material.
- Necoho - in Warhammer Fantasy, a renegade minor god known as the "Doubter", representing aspects of agnosticism and atheism.
- Zuvassin - in Warhammer Fantasy, a renegade minor god known as the "Great Undoer", representing a desire to foil the efforts of others.
- An'sl, Mo'rcck,and Phraz-Etar - minor gods mentioned in older background material for Warhammer 40,000 (Johnson, 1999). Other than their names being puns for (Bryan) Ansell, (Micheal) Moorcock, and (Frank) Frazetta and the fact that they are minor gods, nothing is known of them.
- Screaming God Child - A god in Warhammer Fantasy which looks like an eyeless child. Not much is known about him except that he has been sealed in another dimension known as Othernesse since the beginning of time. If reached he will answer any question but will never allow anyone to leave his nursery/cage. Malus Darkblade tricked the Screaming God Child and left Othernesse but the Screaming God Child captured him and imprisoned a chaos daemon known as Tz'arkan within him.
- Others - there are a multitude of other unnamed gods and cults. In the Warhammer 40,000 setting, for example, the Chaos Space Marines called Raptors and Obliterators each have their own cults, the natures of which are virtually unknown. Also in the Warhammer 40,000 setting, the fallen Dark Angel known as Cypher is protected by an unknown entity of great power, although it is unclear if this entity is a Chaos God. Background material for Warhammer Fantasy mentions many other minor gods with very little background beyond their names and aspects, such as Khakkekk (goblin god of blood), Atagro (god of beasts), Meneloth (elven god of pleasure), Obscuras (god of shadows and hidden things) and Mermedus (god of the sea). It has been hinted that these lesser deities are deceptive alias' of the four major Chaos Gods. For example, Khakkekk draws parallels with Khorne, both in name and aspect.
Chaos Undivided
In addition to the individual gods, some followers of the Dark Gods worship Chaos in other ways. Some followers worship the gods as a pantheon rather than following one particular god. Other followers worship Chaos as a single great entity, with the various Chaos Gods simply manifestations of that entity's aspects. Still others may simply follow one god briefly and then switch allegiance to another, owing more to convenience than actual faith. Regardless of the nature of their worship, all of these are grouped together as Chaos Undivided; followers of Chaos Undivided may bear a mark, similar to the followers of the four great gods.
Generals who bear the mark of Chaos Undivided, in both settings, have more freedom from the effects of the difficult relations between the Chaos Gods. As an example, while warriors who worship Slaanesh would not serve a general who worships Khorne, an Undivided general can convince these gods' warriors to fight for him, without fear of reprisal from either.
Also, other more specialized forms of the mark of Chaos Undivided exist which are usually carried by extraordinary leaders. For example, Abaddon the Despoiler of the Warhammer 40,000 setting bears the mark of "Chaos Ascendant", which was specially gifted to him by the four greater gods due to his status as the major leader of the forces of Chaos. It is essentially the Mark of all four Chaos Gods, amalgamated into one incredibly powerful blessing. Archaon from the Warhammer Fantasy setting is similarly marked as the "Everchosen" or the "Lord of the End Times". He has collected magical artifacts, each having been once wielded by a favoured champion of one of the Chaos Gods. He has also earned the 'Crown of Damnation', a badge of office showing his full favour with all four Chaos Gods.
History
The background shown in both Codex: Space Marines (Haines and McNeill, 2004) and Codex: Chaos Space Marines (Chambers et al, 2002) states that the Chaos Marine Legions were nine of the twenty original "First Founding" Legions of Space Marines who fought in the Great Crusade for the Imperium of Man. At this time Horus, Warmaster of the Imperial forces and Primarch of the Luna Wolves Legion (which was renamed the Sons of Horus in his honour), was corrupted by Chaos and instigated the galaxy-wide civil war known as the Horus Heresy.
After the death of Horus and the end of the Heresy, the remnants of the nine Legions along with the other Imperial forces that had joined Horus escaped into an area of the galaxy known as the Eye of Terror. Due to the nature of Chaos, and the temporal instability of the Warp, the very Chaos Marines who revolted against the Emperor continue to fight against the Imperium.
The Legions have kept their old names, with the exception of the Sons of Horus who were renamed the Black Legion by their new leader, Abaddon the Despoiler. Besides Horus, two other Chaos Primarchs were killed during or shortly after the Heresy (those of the Alpha Legion and Night Lords). The six surviving Primarchs have since become Daemon Princes. These daemonic Primarchs rarely take part in the affairs of their Legions or any part of the Warhammer 40,000 universe. Some of the Legions have pledged a particular loyalty to one of the four Great Chaos powers. The closest thing to a leader that has appeared among them is Abaddon the Despoiler. Abaddon is the only Chaos Marine since Horus to be able to command the loyalty of all nine Traitor Legions, and has led thirteen Black Crusades against the Imperium of Man.
Differences between Chaos Space Marines and Space Marines
The Chaos Space Marines have the same origins as the Space Marines, thus have the same physical power. Due to their allegiance to Chaos, veteran Chaos Marines can be mutated, thus making them physically stronger, faster or otherwise superior. Chaos Marines are also virtually immortal, which can allow them to learn advanced battlefield skills and tactics that Space Marines may not know.
They are equipped with power armour and weapons they had when they initially betrayed the Imperium, which are the same as those used by Space Marines. The current setting of the Warhammer 40,000 game is about 10,000 years after the Horus Heresy, and, while the Imperium has made little technological advancement, Chaos Marines have not benefited from this advancement. In general, anything developed since the Heresy is unavailable to them unless it has been captured; for example, Iron Warriors are known for capturing and using Imperial tanks. While Chaos Space Marines have only older technology, they compensate for this by having access to daemons and daemonic technology.
Forces of the Chaos Space Marines
Each of the Chaos Space Marine Legions fights using a different style of warfare; also, four of the nine are dedicated to one of the four major Chaos Gods. Codex: Chaos Space Marines (Chambers et al, 2002) includes the current rules for fielding a Chaos Space Marine army in a game of Warhammer 40,000; it also includes rules for fielding any of the nine specific legions.
The nine Chaos Marine Legions are:
| Traitor Legions | ||||
| Name | Primarch | Primarch's World | Current Base of Operations | Comments |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Luna Wolves/Sons of Horus | Horus | Cthonia (Destroyed) | Eye of Terror | The Luna Wolves were renamed to Sons of Horus by the Emperor in honour of Warmaster Horus before the Horus Heresy erupted. After Horus’ death they became the Black Legion, after Abaddon the Despoiler expunged Horus' name for his failure to defeat the Imperium of Mankind. |
| Night Lords | Konrad Curze/Night Haunter | Nostramo (Destroyed) | Eye of Terror | The Night Lords specialise in raids and terror tactics, taking special interest in psychological warfare. |
| Word Bearers | Lorgar | Colchis (Destroyed) | Sicarus (Eye of Terror), Ghalmek (Maelstrom) | The Word Bearers are strongly religious in mindset, worshipping all Chaos Gods as a pantheon; their Chaplains are known as Dark Apostles. They are known for never retreating, even if facing certain destruction. |
| Alpha Legion | Alpharius | No Record | Scattered around Imperial Worlds, acting as spies and undercovers | The Alpha Legion adopted the hydra as their motif. Subtlety and covert operations are this Legion's forté, using minimalistic but devastating force against their enemies. |
| Emperor's Children | Fulgrim | Chemos (Destroyed) | Eye of Terror | Once the most loyal and steadfast defenders of humanity, the Emperor's Children now are hedonistic devotees of Slaanesh, deriving pleasure from the most extreme actions and sensations. |
| Iron Warriors | Perturabo | Olympia (Destroyed) | Medrengard (Eye of Terror) | The Iron Warriors are siege and trench warfare specialists. They favour heavy weaponry and fortifications. |
| World Eaters | Angron | No Record | Eye of Terror | The World Eaters are the chosen ones of Khorne and favour close combat. The Legion have devolved into bloodthirsty fanatics with no organised command structure, with a common desire to spill blood and collect skulls for their God. |
| Death Guard | Mortarion | Barbarus (Destroyed) | Plague Planet (Eye of Terror) | The Death Guard are plague-ridden devotees of Nurgle who are driven to spread plague and pestilence across the galaxy to please their god. They are amongst the most organized of the Chaos Space Marines. |
| Thousand Sons | Magnus the Red | Prospero (Destroyed) | Planet of the Sorcerers (Eye of Terror) | The Thousand Sons are favoured by Tzeentch and value knowledge, especially arcane. The majority of the Legion have been rendered incorporeal by the Rubric of Ahriman and fight as walking suits of armour, led by the Legion's Sorcerers. |
There are also many humans and mutants who serve Chaos, and they are often used by the Chaos Marines to bolster their ranks. These traitors, mutants and heretics are collectively labelled the Lost and the Damned. Rules and background for these forces can be found in Codex: Eye of Terror (Chambers et al, 2003).
In addition, since the Horus Heresy, some Space Marine Chapters have been corrupted in one way or another by Chaos. Very little background information has been provided about these Chapters, and no specific rules exist for them, allowing players to adapt other rules to represent their forces. Examples include the Sons of Malice, the Damned Company of Lord Caustos, the Violators, the Thunder Barons, and the Astral Claws (known as the Red Corsairs since their rebellion).