Death Angels

"As darkness descends upon us brothers, think of the blood your swords shall drink, the heretics you shall slay, daemons that you shall terrify with blinding death; You are the instrument of his will! Kill the heretic and spill the unclean! We shall make a wall from their bodies and hold to the last gasp and we shall know no fear!"

- Chapter master Tairinis before the First Siege of Tenadain, upon the home planet of the Death Angels, before his death.

The Death Angels are a Successor Chapter of the venerable Blood Angels Space Marine Chapter. They were created during the 5th Founding sometime during the early centuries of the 33rd Millennium. These Scions of Sanguinius were created at the express order of the High Lords of Terra in order to counter encroaching Forces of Chaos within the Tenadain Sector. After successfully putting down a massive Chaos incursion on the feudal world of Tenadain, the young Chapter was recognised by the High Lords of Terra and granted rights over Tenadain as their new homeworld and its surrounding system as their demesne. They built a mighty fortress-monastery known as The Bane Fortress, and continue to stand sentinel over their homeworld and the surrounding system from any further attacks by the forces of the Ruinous Powers.

The Death Angels tend to display a violent savage mien in battle, and have garnered a reputation as a bellicose and bloody-handed Chapter. As a Successor Chapter of the Blood Angels, they too, are greatly affected by the twin curses of the Red Thirst and the Black Rage. It is rumoured that they continue to reign down terrible destruction, wrought against friends and foes alike, yet the Death Angels still continue to faithfully serve the Emperor and their Primarch Sanguinius, despite their genetic afflictions.

Founding
The Death Angels are a Successor Chapter to the Blood Angels. The Death Angels where created to quell rebellion. Their planet is Tenadain and they reside in their fort called The Bane Fortress. Their first objective was to quell the rebellion on the feudal world of Tenadain which is now their home.

After they where founded and where unsuccessful from stopping a warp gate from being opened on their planet of Tenadain. The Death Angels where beset by Chaos forces which caused them to lose their grip on their world resulting in the death of their first Chapter Master Tairinis, Chaplain Cartoross and crippling Sanguinary Priest Kerith the Black.

After this massive defeat, the Death Angels amassed their temporary fleet on the moon Zegga and pushed back the chaos forces. They fought with vicious furry and terrifying vengeance. They only new death or survival which drove the Forces of Chaos back to their warp gate, therefore losing almost all of their warriors in the reclamation of the their planet.

Recovering from a harrowing siege of their home planet of Tenadain from the Forces of Chaos was difficult for the Death Angels. Though recruits,where many and able they are still not nearly as strong as their fellow chapters though are still a fearsome force to recon with. The Death Angels reformed their priorities as a chapter trying to balance the savagery and their need to express themselves artfully with their morals and dedication to the Imperium due to the jurisdiction and leadership to improve their standing with the Imperium from Chapter Master Halviniar the Oath Keeper, such as: following the Codex Astares more closely, restricting the act of drinking the enemy's blood on the battlefield, Heretic Idols, unconventional  moral shocks looked down upon by the Imperium to improve the relationship with their fellow Astartes brethren and the rest of humanity. Though The Chapter Master cannot control the actions of his individual brethren it is now well known that the Death Angels have made effort to improve their reputation and standing with the Imperium as well as trying to keep their violent bloody culture within the dark walls of their fortress.

At Present
The Death Angels being noted on their successful methods of terrain destruction have been appointed to be a world destroyer and regularly dispatch whole worlds with their gift from the Adeptus Mechanicus, the Star Hammer.

The Death Angels have been recently been sighted as being active on the Imperial world of Vulcan 5 fighting against the greenskin horde of the Evil Eyes Ork tribe which infests the planet.

Notable Campaigns

 * Reclamation of Tenadain (Unknown Date.Mid-M33) - Shortly after their inception, the newly created Death Angels are charged with quelling a massive system-wide rebellion in the Tenadain Sector. Their first objective was to quell the planet-wide strife on the largest planet in the system, the feudal world of Tenadain. The Imperial world was the site of a hitherto unknown Chaos warp gate, which allowed a massive daemonic incursion into the material realm, thanks to the secret Chaos cults which had dug up the long-forgotten artifact. The Death Angels where beset on all sides by the followers of the Ruinous Powers, and in the resulting carnage, they temporarily lost their grip on the beleaguered world which resulted in the death of their first Chapter Master Tairinis, Chaplain Cartoross and crippling Sanguinary Priest Kerith the Black. After this massive defeat, the Death Angels made a hasty withdrawal and amassed their forces on the nearby moon Zegga. Once they consolidated their remaining forces and quickly chose a new Chapter Master to marshal their forces, the Death Angels proceeded to launch a counter-strike against the Forces of Chaos. They fought with vicious fury and terrifying vengeance. Determined to rid Tenadain of the foul taint of Chaos, they drove the daemonic forces back through the warp gate. The Death Angels then proceeded to launch a massive orbital strike and bombarded the site of the ancient artifact until nothing remained but a smoking crater. The remaining battle-brothers than proceeded to rally the remaining human survivors on the planet, and helped wipe out the remaining Chaos cultists. Though they had achieved a great victory, the cost was high, as the Chapter had suffered the loss over three-quarters of their warriors in the reclamation of the planet. The Chapter would slowly be rebuilt to full strength from its reserve stocks of gene-seed over the next several decades and swore an eternal oath of vendetta against the Forces of Chaos. After their Chapter is rebuilt, they proceed to cleanse the rest of the system of Chaotic taint and drive their foes back to the Warp in tatters. The cost is great, but the Death Angels recover a huge populous system for the Imperium. In recompense, the High Lords of Terra recognized the young Chapter's efforts, and so, they decreed that Tenadain and the worlds of the surrounding system, would forevermore be under their custodianship.
 * The Scourge of Zegga  - Zegga was a Hive World which became infected with the taint of Chaos. A cult calling them selves the Beloved, set up a foothold in Zegga and over through the Imperial Governor. The Beloved created a warp gate allowing the fiends of Slaanesh to enter the world. The remaining garrison on the planet called for aid. The Death Angels were the closest fleet in range and responded with benediction. Terminators dropped from the Reclaimer.
 * The Silence of Rathnar - Rathnar was a Feral world whose planet operations was mining Plutonium and Adamantium. The Death Angels were tasked with an operation to seize control of the Hoaldivard Mining Facility which was overrun with what was reported as a Tyranid gene-stealer invasion. The Death Angels sent a Death Company to cleanse the location of Zeno presence yet none returned. This prompted to set a secure perimeter around the facility sending in a dreadnought kill team and a heavy terminator squad to wipe the discovered gene-stealers from the sight. Little did they know hive fleet Kraken entered orbit. Millions upon billions of Tyranid Zenos rained down upon the world. The Death Angels with their small number fled out of the drop zone to the more secure city of Zuleth. There they secured the population to be evacuated to Rathnar's moon Onmaga Secundus. The Death Angels Achieved this feat, however taking many losses and losing their large supply of dreadnoughts at the same time. Unfortunately, the evacuation was quite unsuccessful and civilian losses where a catastrophic 86%. The Death Angels mission escalated far above their control calling the Ultramarines to their aid. But, due to turbulent Warp winds, the Ultramarines could not relive the undermanned Death Angel defense. Chapter master Halivar made the decision to deem the planet Exterminatus. Star Hammer was used for the first time in this battle and eviscerated the planet's surface. Every living thing on Rathnar was snuffed out including the massive Tyranid forces and the remaining Death Angels and civilians trapped on the planet. When Star hammer's task was complete it was attacked by the hive fleet. The remaining Forces of the Death Angels retreated into the turbulent warp and did not return. Until a thousand years later.
 * The Scorch of Julluth

Culture
"We want you to quell the rebellion not kill the planet! We still need workers and factories on this planet to manufacture!"

- Planetary Lords of Malithain

The Death Angels's planet of Tenadain is a feudal world. The ruling class is usually highborn nobles ruling the equivalent of peasants and farmers that use the land they own to grow and live in return for protection. Those that rule over the High classes are the Death Angels with the iron bloody fist that took control from them in the first place. In order to keep the peace when lords act against the law that the Death Angels have procured their lands and titles are stripped and given to the Imperium, their children are taken to be space marines and their family members are made to be servitors or as examples.

Fortress-Monastery
The Bane Fortress is a dark wrathful place. Unlike the Blood Angels who's fortress-monastery is a beautiful sight to behold, and a terrifying sight to see. The black walls are adorned with spikes and the impaled bodies of those that do not bend to their will. Designed after the ancient castles that dot the land on Tenadain, this massive looming fortress built into the side of a mountain range truly discourages anyone who dares venture near it.

Chapter Recruitment
Chapter recruitment is usually voluntary other than the rare occasions when they strip the high born of their family and property and forced recruitment in times of need.

Combat Doctrine
Due to the Death Angels being so vicious and fearsome, they often utilize violent fast assault and fear tactics to kill their enemy. The Death Angels also use a large amount of dreadnoughts, devastators and heavy ordnance weapons to eviscerate terrain so their assault troops can move in with ease.

Death Angels heavily favour the use of terror tactics, to be fear itself, as they incorporate tactics such as heinous acts of terror, devastating artillery strikes, and mass assaults. The Death Angels harbor few good qualities storming into battle. Their first priority when attacking is to terrify their enemy by any means necessary. This was brought on by the Imperium asking the Chapter to minimize casualties when quelling rebellions through any means necessary which resulted in the repeated use of terrifying an intransigent populace into order rather than having them slaughtered.

The Death Angels also favour the use of swords. Every Death Angel is a swordsman by their own right. Though they are vicious and savage in battle, Death Angels believe that the power sword or any sword is a much more versatile weapon in close combat than any other. A Death Angel's grace and precision with these particular weapons are truly terrifying, countering the character of their savage nature on the battlefield.

Heretic Idols
Heretic Idols are a form of marking conquered territory and is considered a form of terror tactics that is exclusively utilized by the Death Angels Chapter, despite going against Imperial edict and official Chapter rules. Heretic Idols can range from a pile of decapitated heads to a gore totem or even as "extravagant" as mass graves that they blow up with grenades. These grisly displays symbolize an enemy that is in need of subduing and is an effective way of halting a rebellion through terror. Though this practice is looked down upon as being barbaric and sometimes is deemed as heresy, those recipients whom think that they know no fear, usually think twice before rebelling again.

Notable Death Angels

 * Chapter Master Halivar the Oath Keeper - Second and Current Chapter Master of the Death Angels Chapter.
 * Chapter Master Tairinis - First Chapter Master of the Death Angels Chapter.
 * Chaplain Cartoross - First Reclusiarch of the Death Angels Chapter.
 * Sanguinary Priest Kerith the Black - Senior Sanguinary Priest of the Death Angels Chapter.
 * Tristan the Bladesman- Former of the Death Angels Chapter
 * Tirounous Kadarain - Notable Captain of the Death Angels Chapter
 * Elusious the Wrathful - Chapter Captain of the Death Angels Chapter
 * Toriian the Thirster - Current Champion of the Death Angels
 * Sergeant Segaross- Sergeant of Tactical squad 12

Chapter Colours
The Death Angels primarily wear blood red coloured battle plate. They also make use of the colour black on various parts of their power armour including; the top of the backpack, the backpack exhaust ports, the shoulder pauldron trim, the couters (elbow guards), both greaves (lower leg armour) and sabatons (boots). The left poleyn is coloured blood red, and centered upon it is a white coloured gothic numeral which designates company number. On the right shoulder pauldron, which is coloured black, a blood drop(s) displays the assigned company an individual battle-brother belongs to, based on the colour and number of drops. The right poleyn displays the unique squad designation commonly used by both the Death Angels' Progenitors and many of their fellow Scions of Sanguinius Successor Chapters. The right greave displays a white coloured squad specialty symbol, which designates squad specialty (Veteran, Assault, Devastator and Tactical).

Heraldry of the Host
Like their progenitors, the Death Angels adhere to a strict heraldic system, allowing them to recognise what company and squad any given battle-brother belongs to at a glance. The advantages of such swift recognition amid the madness of battle are obvious. More than this, however, the Scions of Sanguinius revere their heraldry, and bear these marking as badges of pride.

Like their Progenitors, instead of using the standard Codex-compliant symbols to show a unit's role or helmet colour to denote rank, the Death Angels' helms reflect the squad type to which they belong:


 * Assault Marine: Single black stripe - 1st Company Veteran Battle-Brothers
 * Tactical Marine: Red - Battle-Brother of the standard Battle Companies
 * Devastator Marine: Black - Battle-Brother assigned to a Heavy Support Squad
 * Veteran Marine: Gold with a hood- Member of a company's Honour Guard

Also, like their genetic forebears, a Death Angels company's markings differ from those outlined by the Codex Astartes in utilising symbols on the right shoulder plate instead of different colored trim and numbers. Only in special cases does the Chapter badge not appear on the left shoulder plate. The following is a list of how each Company represents itself:


 * 1st Company (Veteran): A white skull over red background on the right shoulder plate. On Terminator (Tactical Dreadnought) Armour, the left shoulder plate shows the First Company's specific heraldry, the right shoulder guard displays the Chapter badge in black (yellow for Sergeants).
 * 2nd Company (Battle): A single yellow blood drop.
 * 3rd Company (Battle): A single white blood drop.
 * 4th Company (Battle): A single green blood drop.
 * 5th Company (Battle): A single black blood drop.
 * 6th Company (Reserve Tactical): Twin yellow blood drops, side by side.
 * 7th Company (Reserve Tactical): Twin white blood drops, side by side.
 * 8th Company (Reserve Assault): Twin green blood drops, side by side.
 * 9th Company (Reserve Devastator): Twin black blood drops, side by side.
 * 10th Company (Scout Marines): The Death Angels' Scout Company wears a black skull on the right shoulder plate, and the Chapter badge on the left.

Unlike other Chapters of the Adeptus Astartes, the Death Angels utilize the same squad markings as their Progenitors, which comprise a single symbol worn on the right knee plate of their power armour:
 * 1st Squad: A white skull on a black background
 * 2nd Squad: A white skull on a blue background
 * 3rd Squad: A red blood drop on a yellow background
 * 4th Squad: A red blood drop on a black background
 * 5th Squad: A white X on a black background
 * 6th Squad: A white X on a blue background
 * 7th Squad: A yellow lightning bolt on a black background
 * 8th Squad: A black lightning bolt on a yellow background
 * 9th Squad: A yellow angelic wing on a black background
 * 10th Squad: A black angelic wing on a yellow background

Chapter Badge
The Death Angels Chapter badge is a stylised scythe with a rube red blood drop dripping from the tip of the blade.

Chapter Fleet
A gift from the Adeptus Mechanicus for it's resurgence from the warp, this massive ship armed with a modified nova cannon destroys planets by glassing the surface rendering planets uninhabitable killing everything on the surface burning holes in the crust of the planet exposing the mantle. It is used to perform Exterminatus deemed threats to the surrounding solar system and the planets around them or last resort by the Imperium. The Star Hammer is in a discus shape with the nova canon buried into the center of the ship. The ship's firing port is the body of the ship and floats in the orbit of the planet. The ship cabin holds a crew of around 5,000 as well as other anti-air guns that defend the ship from attackers, Stormravens, and small star ships to defend the ordnance. The Star Hammer has little uses other than cleansing planets, orbital bombardment, and Exterminatus due to its cumbersome and inaccurate nature. The Capital ship of the Blood Reapers is named after their first Chapter Master: Tairinis. Much like Tairninis, the ship is merciless, massive and dangerous. The capital ship was used during the Reclamation of Tenadain. Because of its massive size the Death Angels do not have enough men to man the beast; therefore the ship sits in its dock, waiting to strike at full strength. The Reclaimer

Chapter Relics

 * The Blade of Tairinis - The great sword wielded by the former chapter master which is said to grow more powerful with every life taken with it's wicked blade. It is also said that it contains the Chapter Master's soul within the blade.


 * The Reaper - The sword wielded by Kerith the Black which is said to steal the souls of its victims.


 * The Star Hammer - A gift from the Adaptus Mechanicus for their sacrifice in the Urdwin campaign.

Relations
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Scions of Sanguinius Chapters
The Death Angel's allies are few, though, without friends they are not. The Death Angels have a close allegiance with their parent Chapter the Blood Angels. Though the Blood Angels would rather not be associated with the Death Angels, their loyalty to their founders is absolute which is always useful to exploit the Chapter in the Blood Angels' interests. The Death Angels also have close ties with the Flesh Tearers and the Blood Drinkers. Both Chapters are shrouded in infamous mystery and savage rumours and all three are Successors of the Blood Angels, so friendly relations amongst the shunned comes only natural.

Ordo Hereticus
The Death Angels strangely have a good relations with the Ordo Heriticas. This odd relationship is most possibly due to the inquisitive nature of the Death Angels themselves or their ever growing search to destroy Chaos wherever it lies, but it is truly known the the Death Angels regularly send for the aid of the Inquisition for routine check ups on their Chapter and home world so that Chaos can never again creep back into Tairinis or the Chapter ever again.

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Enemies
The Death Angles' enemies are many. Their enemies include the enemies of the Imperium, those that are enemies of their Primarch Saguinius, and the Emperor Himself.

Notable Quotes
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By:
"Look at the little runts, look at them squirm and slink back to their Boss. I have never seen anything more glorious than dismembered green skins after a whirlwind bombardment, (sniffs). Do you smell that Akovir? It is the smell of death Emperor bless us!"

- Chapter Master Halivard the Oath Keeper ""We are the darkness in the night, the roar of artillery and the clash of the blade. We are death incarnate and we shall know no fear!"

- Kerith the Black

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