REVIEW: Deus Sanguinius synopsis

• Available from The Black Library
• Written by James Swallow
• Cost £5.99 (just under $12)
  

Synopsis [Spoiler alert] This bit tells you exactly what happens in the book!

Blood Angel Brother Rafen secretly worships the Emperor in a makeshift shrine on Shenlong. Arkio tells Rafen of his plan to reunite the Blood Angel successor chapters then launch a Blood Crusade into the Maelstrom.

Captain Gallio and Librarian Vode arrive to investigate Arkio on Chapter Master Dante's behalf. Inquisitor Stele uses his psychic powers to turn the confrontation into a battle; Gallio and Vode are slain. Rafen quizzes Inquisitor Stele but is driven off by psychically-induced suicidal impulses. He stumbles back to the shrine to kill himself but is saved at the last moment by a vision of Sanguinius.

Inquisitor Stele consults with Warmaster Garand of the Word Bearers and the Daemon Mallafax. They tell Stele to convert the Blood Angels to Chaos more quickly.

Sanguinary Priest Sachiel requests an audience with Dante on the shrine world of Sabien. Fearing a trap, Mephiston goes in his place.

Rafen tries and fails to overload the fusion core of the Ikari fortress. Arkio believes Rafen died in the attempt, but Rafen escapes. Sachiel reveals his doubts to Stele but his mind is wiped by the Inquisitor. Rafen sneaks aboard the starship Bellus and travels to Sabien with Arkio. Arkio is troubled by dark dreams and visions and his corruption by Chaos is only hidden by Inquisitor Stele.

Arkio and Mephiston meet on Sabien. Mephiston challenges Arkio to single combat. Rafen takes up the challenge. Rafen injures Arkio. His taint is realised by Sachiel who is psychically killed by Stele. The Inquisitor blames Mephiston and uses Sachiel's death as an excuse to launch an attack on the Blood Angels.

Warmaster Garand takes the opportunity to begin his own ambush of the Blood Angels. The Warmaster also orders his space ship, Misericorde, to attack the Bellus as well as Mephiston's Europae.

Rafen kills Arkio. Stele summons the Daemon Mallafax. Mallafax kills Stele, then the Chaplain Delos. Rafen wields the Spear of Telesto and the rebel Blood Angels renounce Arkio, fighting once more for their united chapter. Rafen destroys Malfallax. As the Daemon dies it forces the Blood Angels to succumb to the Black Rage. The Word Bearers retreat. Rafen and the Spear bring Mephiston and the Blood Angels back from the brink.

The Spear is taken back to Baal. Shenlong is destroyed by Exterminatus. Warmaster Garand must explain his failures to Abaddon the Despoiler. Rafen is offered Captaincy but refuses it, asking for forgiveness instead.

REVIEW: Deus Encarmine

Review This bit doesn't give the plot of the book away

As a long time Blood Angel player (from Rogue Trader days) I was looking forward to reading this book. In my view the Blood Angels have had a hard time of late due to a very dodgy third edition codex. This was overpowering rules-wise and left many Blood Angels players and their opponents with a negative view of the chapter. The slim mini-codex also had little space devoted to background material, so new players had no real insight into the motivations behind the chapter. With a set of broken rules and no context to place them in the Blood Angels got a very bad reputation on the tabletop battlefields of the 41st millennium. I hoped this book would remedy that.

Sadly it doesn't. Deus Encarmine doesn't really convey the full richness and depth of the Chapter. The Blood Angels have a lot of internal conflicts that could make for a great narrative but they aren't really developed or explored here. For example, the Blood Angels are created from shambling mutants on Baal and become superhuman Space Marines. Because they are so long lived they have the time to hone their artistic skills and have the most ornate armour and banners of any Chapter. At the same time they are susceptible to the Black Rage and can become homicidal maniacs. They are forever torn between the height of civilisation, art, and the depths of barbarism, murder. I got the feeling in reading Deus, that the Blood Angels could have been substituted for any other Chapter without much revision and without substantially changing the plot or characters.

I have another problem in Inquisitor Stele, who commands many Blood Angels. My understanding is that the Blood Angels are loathe to trust outsiders, especially Inquisitors, who may be exposed to their rage and therefore expose their failing geneseed. I just didn't buy his position of authority within the Chapter. He had to be there to make the plot work but I felt it ruined the internal consistency of the novel.

Another section of the book I struggled with was the flashback to Baal. That also felt tacked on and forced. It sketched out the relationships of the main characters in a very schematic way without conveying any real character. In the end I really didn't care much about the predicament of any of the protagonists.

In fact the whole book seemed very thin; on plot, on detail, on character.

There are some positive points, though. The action scenes are written well. They are pacy and very cinematic. In many scenes I could imagine a computer game version of the events running in my head as I read. And at least it is some focus and attention on the Blood Angels.

I should also note that this is the first of a two book series. In that light, this book is simply a prelude to the second in terms of introducing characters, exposing conflicts between them and setting the scene. If the pay-off is good in the next novel, then the first volume has done it's job.

We'll just have to wait and see.

Summary

Deus Encarmine is a wasted opportunity to explore the Blood Angels Chapter. The plotting, character and detail are lacking but the action scenes are involving.

Score 4/10

Scores

All of my reviews end in a score out of ten for the product. The table below explains what that score means.

• 10/10 Perfect, absolutely nothing better
• 9/10 Excellent, highly recommended
• 8/10 Very good, recommended
• 7/10 Good
• 6/10 Above average, some problems
• 5/10 Average, some good points some bad points
• 4/10 Below average, some redeeming features
• 3/10 Poor, major flaws
• 2/10 Very poor, avoid if possible
• 1/10 Absolutely appalling

REVIEW: Deus Encarmine synopsis

When I switched the web address of this blog earlier in the year I neglected to delete the old blog content on my webspace. That meant that if anyone was to search for lone pilgrim through a search engine they'd have a good chance of finding the old blog which halted abruptly in August, and they'd have no idea that I had continued at this address. This point was made forcibly to me recently when a frustrated friend explained he couldn't find my blog at all!

So I've deleted the old blog files on my webspace and hopefully people should find their way here. A side issue, and the reason for this post, is my static HTML website. That is still sitting there on my old webspace with a fistful of content on it. I want to shut that down too, and make this blog my only web presence, but in order to do so I need to transfer the content over here. I don't want to just lose it.

The first things I want to bring over are my reviews. So I'm starting with my book reviews. First up is Deus Encarmine.

• Available from The Black Library
• Written by James Swallow
• Cost £5.99 (just under $12)

Synopsis [Spoiler alert] This bit tells you exactly what happens in the book!

Cybele is a war-grave world in the Ultima Segmentum. The Blood Angels, including Brother Rafen, are trying to stop it's desecration by the traitorous Word Bearers. At the last moment, the beleaguered Blood Angels are reinforced by the returning members of the Bellus expedition, led by Inquisitor Stele. The mission lasted 10 years and successfully recovered the Spear of Telestus, an artifact dating back to the Horus Heresy and which was reportedly used by the Primarch Sanguinius himself. Brother Sachiel has moved quickly through the ranks while on the mission and is now a Sanguinary Priest. Rafen is reunited with his younger brother Arkio, who has matured remarkably.

Meanwhile, Iskavan, the Word Bearers Dark Apostle, has his Sorceror Tancred make a fortune telling. Tancred is too frightened to tell Iskavan of his forthcoming doom.

Arkio leads an attack on the starport and uses its gun batteries to destroy the orbiting Chaos space ship. Arkio saves Sachiel's life during the battle by killing a Daemon single-handedly. Sachiel declares that their Primarch Sanguinius has been reborn in Arkio.

Iskavan is commanded to retreat by warmaster Garand against the Word Bearers tradition. Iskavan flees to Shenlong and the captured Ikari fortress (a munition manufactory).

With Cybele saved, Inquisitor Stele presents the Spear to Arkio. In their bloodlust, the Blood Angels forget their duty to defend Cybele and set out for Shenlong. Veteran Sergeant Koris and Sachiel argue. Commander Dante, back on Baal, orders Stele to remain on Cybele. The Inquisitor kills the Astropath carrying the message.

Flashback to Baal, and Koris the Marine is selecting initiates to become Blood Angels. Arkio, Rafen and Sachiel are among the candidates. Koris takes Sachiel and Arkio but dismisses Rafen as he shows no humility. The Thunderhawk carrying the aspirants crashes. Rafen rallies the survivors against the flora and fauna. Koris reverses his decision and takes Rafen as an initiate.

Back to the present, and Koris and the other skeptics confront Stele. They think the attack on Shenlong is suicide. Stele lies and tells them that the Ikari fortress conceals an Eldar webway portal. Koris accepts the now vital mission, despite the odds. Stele shares a benediction with the Marines. They all succumb to the Black Rage before the attack on the fortress. Just before he dies, Koris tells Rafen of Stele's treachery and that Arkio could destroy the Blood Angels.

Rafen kills Tancred, and the Blood Angels take the fortress, largely thanks to Arkio, wielding the Spear of Telesto. Iskavan escapes.

Rafen secretly sends a message back to Dante on Baal, recounting the abandonment of Cybele and the attack on Shenlong. Stele finds out about the message and executes the Bellus' astropathic choir, so that he has sole control over communications.

Arkio and Sachiel begin the execution of civilians upon Shenlong for hiding the impure. Commander Dante dispatches a force to bring Arkio and the Spear back to Baal. Inquisitor Stele and Arkio reveal their plans to set aside the Codex Astartes and raise an army on Shenlong.

Garand tells Iskavan that his army was a sacrifice to try and corrupt the Blood Angels. In order to spoil Garand's plan, and gain vengeance upon the Blood Angels, Iskavan tries to release chemical weapons which would kill everyone upon Shenlong. He is delayed by Rafen and finally killed by Arkio. During the climactic battle Arkio sprouts wings, just like his Primarch.

When Rafen recovers he is made to pledge his allegiance to Arkio. Sachiel forces him to drink a benediction.

PAINTING: Tide of filth

Merry Christmas!

I'm as organised for Christmas as I can be - it's too late for anything else now - and my manflu has finally abated so I thought I'd drop by the ole blog and let everyone know what I've been up to.

I had 30+ models on the painting table and had planned to finish the lot by New Year. A week ago it seemed like there was no chance of that happening but now it's a possibility. I managed to get some painting done over the weekend and despite painting the models to a far higher standard than the rest of my Chaos army, I finished two squads. They aren't based yet so I've only taken quick snaps for now. Apologies for the poor images but the light is terrible and the flash is very harsh.

First up are the Plague Marines.

I wanted to keep away from the standard green paint scheme so I went for an off-white/grey armour. This was liberally splashed with Blood Red paint and layers of red/purple/black ink washes. I painted the metallics Boltgun metal with washes of black, brown and orange to get a rusted look. These models took an absolute age as I painted a test model first, didn't like it then painted them in the new scheme. I layered and washed everything unlike the rest of my Chaos models which were speed painted. At least they're finished now (bases apart). If they perform well on the tabletop I may consider painting more units later...

Nine Plague Bearers accompany the Plague Marines. I overbrushed a Bubonic Brown and Rotting Flesh mix over the black undercoat. I added Bleached Bone and Skull White to the mix for successive drybrushes. Then I washed them with Brown and Green ink. I next painted the swords in the same way as the Plague Marine metallics, with plenty of rust. The only other details were the teeth (Skull White), eyes (Sunburst yellow with and orange wash) and the exposed muscle (Blood Red with red washes).

It took me maybe 6 hours to finish the daemons and the results - although it might be difficult to tell from the photo - are mighty fine.

So that is seventeen models down, eighteen to go. The good news is that the remaining models should be easy to paint. Eight of them are Khorne Berzerkers which I plan to paint the classic way - red armour and brass trim. It's a scheme I've painted many variations of and enjoy painting. Nine of the remainder are Khorne daemons. In many ways they are similar to the Nurgle ones in that they have large areas of flesh with the only other details being the weapons and faces. I plan to paint them in fleshy colours with spatters of blood and then give them brass weapons. I reckon I'm looking at about 15-20 hours to complete them all.

The final model is an old school Keeper of Secrets. I'm not enamoured by the model so I doubt I'll go overboard with this. I plan to keep it quick and easy - which is probably appropriate for a Slaaneshi daemon!

Once this lot are done I can then turn my attention to Apocalypse. I've already started to put my Baneblade together and I have one other idea which I'd like to have a crack at...

Anyway, that's me for now.

My posting will be sporadic over the holiday season so I hope everyone reading this has a Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year.

GENERAL: Invasions, both xenos and bacterial

I've now posted the third battle report in the Phoenix Campaign. I'm really enjoying these battles as they are adding a new dimension to our games. Due to the unusual scenarios and victory conditions for the missions Gary and I are having to explore our codexes all over again. Units we may have once dismissed for competitive play are suddenly optimal while old favourites get left behind on the shelf. Our brains are also being exercised as they have to come up with new plans and strategies to achieve specific goals. It is also nudging us to add more units to our armies. Gary plans to add anothe Wave Serpent and a Fire Prism.

Of course I already have a stack of Chaos models still to paint. I haven't made any more progress unfortunately. My manflu has developed into a full bacterial invasion of my sinuses. I've had a headache for 5 days and I can't seem to concentrate on anything. I was sent home from work and forced to go to the doctors. So now I'm on anti-biotics and lazing around at home. Normally I'd be putting my hobby cap on and tearing through my list of projects to do but all I feel like doing is sleeping or lying on the sofa watching films (I watched some Band of Brothers today).

Ho hum. As long as I'm recovered for Christmas.

CAMPAIGN: Phoenix campaign game 2

I've posted up my second battle report from the Phoenix campaign. This is another long write up as my Chaos Space Marines clash with Gary's Eldar in a Night Fight. Hopefully I'll get the third game played next week and then I can start painting my reinforcements over Christmas, now that my manflu is receding.

CAMPAIGN: Phoenix campaign first encounter

I've posted up the first battle in the Phoenix campaign on my Battle Reports blog. It's turned into quite an epic, and is replete with army lists, background, photo's and more. Check it out here.

I'm starting to pull myself together and recover from my manflu so I plan to get the second game posted tomorrow then I may even try to get some painting done. My half finished Plague Marines are calling me...

CAMPAIGN: Phoenix campaign map

Here's the map Gary and I are using for the Phoenix campaign.



The campaign takes place on Kutch, an insignificant agri-world in the Salazar systems. The Exigators Chaos Space Marines have set up a secret base on the deserted Tyro peninsula, part of the planet's major northern continent. Unbeknownst to them, an Eldar Webway portal lies nearby.

And here are all the descriptions of the locations.

Location 1
Eldar Webway portal. This portal had lain dormant for many millennia until the Starstriders of Alaitoc rediscovered it. The Eldar have used the portal to transport their armies to Kutch. This is risky; should the Eldar fail in their campaign the forces of Chaos may be able to enter the Webway.

Battles fought here:

D6 Mission played
1-2 Strongpoint Attack
3-6 Bunker Assault

Location 2
A long tunnel links the island of Orzark with the peninsula of Tyro. It was built during the Greenskin invasions of the 39th millennium, when the whole peninsula was used as an Imperial Guard facility. Since then the tunnel has fallen into disrepair but it is still navigable.

Battles fought here:

D6 Mission played
1-4 Patrol
5-6 Take and Hold

Location 2a
Orzark Island tunnel mouth. The Eldar have constructed a small airbase close to the tunnel mouth and have stationed some Wave Serpents and Falcons there. They occasionally brave the ferocious winds that blow around the headland to bring troops onto the peninsula more quickly.

Battles fought here:

D6 Mission played
1-4 Blitz
5-6 Sabotage

Location 2b
Tyro peninsula tunnel mouth. The Exigators are unaware of the tunnel's existence at the start of the campaign.

Battles fought here:

D6 Mission played
1-4 Seek and Destroy
5-6 Blitz

Location 3
Tyro military airbase. Squadrons of Marauder Bombers and Thunderbolts were based here during the Greenskin invasions and later in the war it was large enough to accommodate bulk lifters and other space-going craft. The abandoned spaceport was the main reason that the Exigators made Tyro peninsula their base. They have made the eastern parts of the spaceport operational once more.

Battles fought here:

D6 Mission played
1-4 Patrol
5-6 Secure and Control

Location 4
Tyro harbour used to be a sleepy fishing port but it became a heavily fortified military base during the Greenskin invasions. Now it is little more than a ghost town. The Exigators maintain a small garrison here to watch out for Imperials from the mainland.

Battles fought here:

D6 Mission played
1-4 Patrol
5 Cleanse
6 Seek and Destroy

Location 5
This central part of the peninsula was used as a firing range and weapons testing area. As the Greenskin war escalated forbidden weapons were unleashed and the area is filled with drifting chemical clouds and radiation. This makes it a treacherous area to cross. Nevertheless, it is an important strategic area linking the eastern and western parts of the peninsula.

Battles fought here are always Night Fights.

Location 6
Emerald ridge is an important crossroads that links the northern and southern parts of the peninsula. It is exposed to the elements and endures especially high winds. Despite this, it was used as a forward airbase during the Greenskin invasions. The Exigators have set up a small communications array here.

Battles fought here:

D6 Mission played
1-2 Strongpoint attack
3-5 Sabotage
6 Bunker Assault

Location 7
Newalla town was the most heavily settled area on the peninsula and it's population tripled when the Imperial Guard set up base here. Like the rest of the peninsula it is now deserted. The Exigators occasionally use the town to monitor Imperial shipping off the coast.

Battles fought here:

D6 Mission played
1-3 Patrol
4-5 Cleanse
6 Sabotage

Location 8
At the southern tip of Emerald ridge lies the Exigators storage depot. Here they have stashed their stolen weapons and munitions.

Battles fought here:

D6 Mission played
1-2 Seek and Destroy
3-4 Take and Hold
5-6 Cleanse

I hope to post the battle reports up shortly.

GENERAL: Bargain books

I was having a mooch around town in my lunchbreak yesterday when I spied a Black Library Warhammer book in a second hand bookshop. I went in to see if they had any 40k novels and found three; Storm of Iron by Graham McNeill, Dark Apostle by Anthony Reynolds and Faith and Fire by James Swallow.They were only £3 each which is a bit of a bargain; Dark Apostle was only published in September this year.

Storm of Iron is a particularly timely acquisition as I have not long finished Nightbringer, McNeill's first Ultramarine novel in that trilogy. From what I can gather, Storm of Iron fits into the Ultramarine stories and, if I want to read the books as one grand narrative, I should it next. I had been prevaricating about buying Storm of Iron or just ploughing on with the Ultramarine trilogy. My mind has now been made up for me.

Faith and Fire I'm not so sure about. I absolutely loathed James Swallows' Blood Angels books but I enjoyed his Horus Heresy novel Flight of the Eisenstein. I'll give it a go and see how the Sisters of Battle fare.

I have a few days off now so I'm hoping to get a few more posts up regarding the Phoenix campaign (lurgy allowing).

GENERAL: Eating humble pie

I'm dying. Well...probably not but it feels like it. My Manflu has found another gear while my voice has dropped an octave as the virus attacks my throat. Sniff.

Anyhoo, this is just another short post to flag up another battle report I've posted on my dedicated blog. This game was a re-match with Wayne's Tau. I ate a lot of humble pie after this game. Ho hum.

GENERAL: Manflu

My cold has developed into full-blown manflu so my posting will be curtailed for a while.

I've just come back from Gary's where we've played the second game of the Phoenix campaign. I'll write up the first two reports and post them on my battle reports site shortly.

In the meantime I have another old Chaos Space Marine game up on my battle reports blog. This game was against Gary's Chaos Space Marines.

GENERAL: Nurgle attacks

I'm battling away to get my Plague Marines painted (the metallics are all done and the armour has two layers of highlights and a wash so far) and I have a cold. What are the odds?

That means I won't be making a big post today.

If you've been following my battle reports you can read the latest installment here. I played this game against Morris' beautifully painted Ultramarines. It was almost a shame to blast them into tiny pieces!

CAMPAIGN: Phoenix campaign rules

We wanted to keep things really simple so we based the campaign around the Phoenix Island campaign in the hardback 40k rulebook with just a few small changes. For the sake of clarity I'll summarize all the rules here.

The campaign revolves around the campaign map, which includes 10 locations. All the rules for choosing scenarios are the same, we've just renamed the locations. I'll write up the map and descriptions of all the locations in my next post.

My Chaos Space Marines begin with four locations, Gary's Eldar start with four and two are uncontested. There is a simple campaign phase before each game. Both players dice off and the winner can move from an occupied location to capture an uncontested one or can attack an occupied location.

Some locations are linked by a route which is difficult to navigate. The player moving along such a route must roll equal to or under the number shown otherwise he is unable to move along the route and cannot capture the intended location or fight the battle.

Each location has a chart to decide what missions should be played there. Some are the standard missions like cleanse while others are a bit more esoteric like blitz or sabotage.

The winner of the battle captures the location. If the result of the game is a draw both armies withdraw and the location becomes uncontested. Once the winner of the dice off has completed his campaign turn then the loser takes his turn.

Victory conditions
The campaign will last until 10 battles are fought or one player captures all of the locations. If a player captures all the locations he has won a major victory. If one player has not captured all the locations once the 10th battle is fought then the player who owns the most locations has won a minor victory. If both players hold the same number of locations after the 10th battle, play one final game. The winner of this game wins the campaign with a minor victory.

Gary wrote a special homebrew scenario to kick off the campaign. Our infiltrators and scouts would fight a small skirmish and the winners would be able to choose the first location to be fought over, the mission to be played and have the first turn. The surviving skirmishers kept their positions on the board for the first battle.

Meanwhile, in other news, your tireless reporter continues to bring you stories from the front. If you're interested in seeing how my Exigators fared against the Death Guard check this out.

NEW MODEL FUND: Inching forward

Christmas party season is in full swing now and I'm posting this hungover following my works bash last night. This is in a busy week of two football matches (Arsenal midweek and then Birmingham this afternoon) and two concerts (Kings of Leon and a thankfully cancelled Stone Roses tribute).

With all that behind me, I have a relatively free weekend, apart from the Ricky Hatton fight at 4am on Sunday morning (is there such a time on a Sunday?), so I want to kick on and get my Plague Marines finished by Sunday night. I also want to get the rest of the Pheonix campaign rules and background up here before my next game against Gary's Eldar on Tuesday night.

Onto the finances.

I still haven't managed to get anything on e-bay but I have doubled my New Model Fund anyway. This money came from my penny jar. Here's what it did to my finances.

• Total income from sales (and my penny jar) £354.36
• Less selling fees £31.02
• Less models bought £299.16
• New model fund £24.18

In theory, despite having a pittance in the fund, I'm not too badly off; I have 30+ Chaos models to paint immediately then I will move on to my Blood Angels for the next 6 months. Pretty much all of those models are already bought and they are just waiting to be painted. The only other models I'm tempted to get in the short term are Super Heavies for Apocalypse. I'm currently building a Chaos Baneblade and an Imperial version for my Cadians would be sweet. I'd also like to take a shot at a Brass Scorpion.

Long term, after the Blood Angels, I plan to start my Chaos Renegades and though I have bought some Forge World resins already, this army will cost me an absolute fortune (£500+). Gulp. Still, that's six months off so I have plenty of time to invest in my New Model Fund until then.

I'm ploughing on with those old battle reports and my latest offering is this grudge match against Gary's Chaos Space Marines.

Righto, I'm off to the match then back to paint some pustules.

GENERAL: Aha Chaos Heartbreak

I'm still rocking from the Kings of Leon gig last night and I'm off to see Newcastle United versus Arsenal tonight, so there is no let up in my hectic schedule. I've still found some time to post up an historical battle report (you lucky, lucky people!) - this one is a right royal spat between my Exigators and Gary's Chaos Space Marines.

Enjoy.

GENERAL: A view from both sides of the table

I'm posting on the run again as I'm going to a Kings of Leon concert tonight. My latest battle report has a bit of a twist because it includes a write-up of the game by my opponent. I had hoped this would happen more often but my opponents rarely participate (lazy bastards!). Anyway, this game was against Wayne's Tau.

GENERAL: Waaaaagh!

I don't have time for a full post on the Pheonix campaign so I thought I'd draw your attention to another battle report I've just posted. This one was played against Gary's Orks.

CAMPAIGN: Phoenix campaign background

I've been working out the motivations behind our little campaign and trying to tie it into the greater narrative of the Skolarii Sector. Here's the basic premise for the campaign.

971.M41. Tchoi Guerez, former captain of the Exigators 1st company, has sworn a pact with The Adorator, the leader of Chaos forces in the Kjalter sector. Guerez will return to the Skolarii Sector and try to turn the rest of his chapter to Chaos. Together with his re-united followers, the Exigators will act as the vanguard for a major Chaos incursion.

The Adorator has given Guerez three main objectives.

1. Provide intelligence for other Chaos forces.
2. Destroy isolated targets.
3. Raid Imperial shipping for supplies.

The first part of Guerez's plan worked well. He secured the loyalty of both Daemon Prince Bellicus (formerly second company captain Badalementi Astrid) and Jaxx Sebastian (formerly third company captain) and their warbands. Guerez already had the support of Forax Tork and his Nurgle cult, Hotep the Sorceror and Axhote the Berzerker.

The Chaos alliance set up a secret base of operations upon Kutch, and insignificant agri-world in the Salazar systems. Numerous piratical raids allowed them to stockpile weapons and munitions in preparation for the coming conflict.

Resistance to Guerez's plans came from an unexpected quarter.

*

Starstriders of Alaitoc craftworld tirelessly traverse the south eastern fringe of the Imperium, seeking out those who would oppose the aims of the Eldar. Upon their travels in the Skolarii Sector Eldar Rangers, led by Saduras Clearsight, reported Chaos forces massing upon Kutch. The hot-headed Saduras petitioned his craftworld to attack. Autarch Icareane noted the report but did not act upon it. The Chaos army may have been dangerous for the Mon-Keigh who worshipped the Carrion God but they were not yet a threat to Alaitoc. Saduras maintained a silent vigil over the Chaos marines.

Things began to change when Farseer Lauthelias began to feel portents of doom. His divinations revealed that a great black wave would engulf the entire Skolarii Sector, and that that wave emanated from the Salazar systems. Although the Farseer cared little for the millions of Mon-Keigh lives that would be lost, he cared deeply for the single Exodite world of Habour in the Kandaeon Worlds which would be swept away.

Lauthelias appealed to Icareane to send out an expedition. This time Icareane agreed. If the Eldar could defeat the meagre Chaos forces on Kutch now, they might just stop the Chaos incursion before it really started.

My next post will explain the rules for our campaign.

Meanwhile, here's another little bit of history involving the Exigators. This was a battle between my Chaos Space Marines and Steve's Feral Orks.

CAMPAIGN: The Phoenix campaign

I'm back from my trip away so I'll be trying to get some posts up over the weekend. Most of them will revolve around the campaign I've just started with my long term gaming buddy (and nemesis) Gary. I'll be using my Exigators Chaos Space Marines while Gary will be playing the enigmatic Eldar. My first posts need to explain the background and campaign rules, then I'll be writing each battle report up on my dedicated site - I'll link them all from here of course.

I'm desperately trying to get all of my remaining Chaos models painted so I can use them in the campaign. To that end I've started painting my Plague Marines and I'm trying to paint a unit per week so that they'll all be finished by Christmas. I'll keep you all updated on my progress.

So my first real contribution to The Phoenix Campaign will be an Exigators campaign roster. While we aren't using fixed army lists as such, this campaign will be set solidly in the background we have both developed for our armies. We're both using experience points so our units will remain the same for the whole campaign.

Here's the entire list of units I have to choose from, and more importantly, their names. The units in italics are still to be painted. I've had to mess about with some units (bold) because I chose the army list for my first game without checking this master roster. I simply won't play them again in the campaign, or change them around so that they match the established ones.

HQ

• Bellicus - Daemon Prince
  
• Tchoi Guerez - Chaos Lord, Terminator armour, Lightning Claw, Combi-plasma
  
• Sebastian Jaxx - Chaos Lord, bike, lightning claw
• Forax Tork - Chaos Lord, mark of nurgle, daemon weapon
• Chaos Lord, mark of nurgle, palanquin of nurgle, daemon weapon
  
• Evomere Incursus - Sorceror, mark of nurgle, nurgles rot
• Ppbhuln'naks - Greater Daemon (Great Unclean One)
• Areoakirsh - Greater Daemon (Keeper of Secrets)
  

Elites

• Squad Surculus (The Gene Cursed) - 5 Possessed
• Atrocitor - Dreadnought, twin linked lascannon
• Squad Myre - 8 Chosen, 2 plasma guns, aspiring champion with powerfist
  

Troops

• Squad Krall – 10 Chaos space marines, plasma gun, lascannon, aspiring champion with powerfist, icon of chaos glory
• Squad Brakar – 10 Chaos space marines, plasma gun, lascannon, aspiring champion with powerfist, icon of chaos glory
• Squad Profuge - 6 Chaos space marines, plasma gun, aspiring champion with plasma pistol, icon of chaos glory
• Squad Hotep – 9 Thousand sons, Sorceror with warptime
• Squad Putid - 7 Plague marines, melta gun, flamer, aspiring champion with power weapon
  
• Squad Pestis - 7 Plague marines, plasma pistol
  
• Squad Odoratus - 7 Plague marines, 2 plasma guns, aspiring champion with powerfist
• Squad Contagio - 6 Plague marines
• Squad Kanker - 7 Plague marines, 2 plasma guns, aspiring champion with power weapon
• Squad Axhote - 8 Khorne Berzerkers, aspiring champion with powerfist
• Hhakuuoohlaoks - 9 Lesser daemons (Blood Letters)
  
• Iideommae - 6 Lesser daemons (Daemonettes)
• Arableuerakiar - 8 Lesser daemons (Furies)
• Uuandearzao - 9 Lesser daemons (Plague Bearers)
  

Fast Attack

• Squad Scrementor – 8 Raptors, 2 flamers, aspiring champion with power weapon
• Mirescab and Witherpuke - 2 Spawn

Heavy Support

• The Machine Cursed - 3 Obliterators
• Torius - Predator, twin linked lascannon, heavy bolter sponsons
• Squad Imber - 6 Havocs, 4 heavy bolters, icon of chaos glory
• Squad Abraxar – 6 Havocs, 2 autocannon, missile launcher, icon of chaos glory
• Squad Infractis – 7 Havocs, 2 melta guns, flamer, aspiring champion with plasma pistol

That's quite a list to choose from. I doubt I'll use them all in the campaign but that largely depends on how fast Gary's Eldar keep killing them!

I better get off now as I've lots to do. Before I go, here's a link to another old battle report where, funnily enough, my Chaos Marines fought against Eldar.