The Saga of Decay - A Horus Heresy Battle Narrative

This past spring us Teemu and Manel (@mp_miniatures) joined forces in Barcelona for some hobby adventures and the Horus Heresy was (unsurprisingly) one of the main agendas! Our gaming hobby is mainly about the visuals and the narrative that's usually developed especially for the games at hand, and we have always been on the same page about what kind of hobby experiences we're after. 

We took it upon ourselves to enact a little thematic skirmish battle and to do some story-driven miniature photography - as a result we're presenting a Horus Heresy saga between Death Guard and Space Wolves, inspired by our shared fascination for the 30K universe as well as our Civil War gaming format!

Prologue 

Echoes of churning machines cradled the otherwise silent research fortress Irongard. Its foundations had been laid by Martian pioneers decades ago, but the Mechanicum had evacuated the area before the facility's completion. After the Warmaster's forces extended their influence over the sector, it was the insidious minds of the XIV Legiones Astartes, the Death Guard, who had overseen the refurbishment and fortifying of the site.

Right at the doorstep of the facility loomed the Fanghorn, a vast and primeval forest of many mysteries. The Death Guard had burnt enough of its borders to facilitate their weapon drop deliveries, but they had recently received new orders - to clear the entire western woodland territory for a full-scale landing zone. The production facilities of Irongard were ideal for development of life-eating viruses, and the Death Guard poisoner teams had done swift work unleashing a terrible rot upon the surrounding terrain. That is until their greenside patrols had started to vanish without a trace...

Omens

The Death Guard scouts had relayed reports of old pagan idols and gruesome warning totems encircling the darkest parts of the forest. Some of these primitive structures resembled ancient burial mounds, and many had been weaponized, catching some XIV Legion sentries off-guard. The eerie atmosphere of the wilds, combined with vicious traps and what felt like supernatural darkness had made sector mapping challenging for even the seasoned Astartes recon elements.

The first perimeter's Master Sergeant checked the time again. The mechanized convoy of toxin deliveries heading to Irongard was late. The Death Guard veteran scanned the motionless treeline around the fenced logistics hub.
"Where are they?" The squad vox briefly broke the silence.
"No contact. Have the squad count the barrels again. Deploy sentries."
"Acknowledged."

The Lost Convoy

What was thought to be a vacuous wilderness had proved to be an off-world Fenrisian domain, a site of ancient significance under the protection of the Lord of the Rout himself. As the sector had been overtaken by the Warmaster's forces, a contingent of loyal Astartes had concealed their presence in their forest realm, waiting for the right time to strike. The Death Guard operations now threatened both their secret as well as the sacred ground of old. The elders had decided it was time to shed the shadows.

What remained of the Death Guard toxin convoy lay in wreckage. Now the hunt was on.

Quiet in the Night

"Substance silo twelve secure. Area clear, returning to base."

The XIV Legion sentries barely had the chance to register the base's reply - the Grey Stalker infiltrators closed in fast. As the Fenrisians launched their ambush from the cover of the Fanghorn treeline, the Space Marines brandished runic weapons of many shapes - power spears, frost axes and short, double-edged swords ideal for close quarter brawls. In one direct motion the Rout loped over their former allies, continuing their charge across the glade with mangled bodies in their wake.

Flanking Maneuvers

As the infantry closed in on the Death Guard fortifications, a howl of motors coming to life echoed on the eastern flank. A mechanized formation spearheaded by Asaheim-pattern Attack Bikes and a Sabre Strike Tank broke from their concealed positions, opened suppressive fire and moved in to meet the Traitor defenders. 

The Siege

The onslaught of the Fenrisians was bluntly direct - power armoured infantry covered by their mechanized assets literally ran over the no-man's-land to knock the front door down. Although this reckless show of force was fatal for many of the VI Legion besiegers, they drew all boltgun crosshairs on themselves, which again gave smaller teams space to reach the Irongard entrances discreetly. With coordinated growls in their radio network the patrols prepared for a simultaneous breach.

The Counter-Offensive

The Death Guard did not sit idle. The scions of the Pale King mobilized specialised ground troops to take on the approaching Loyalist armour. Their tactical sentries on the Irongard battlements reformed to close order drills, sending endless salvoes of boltgun fire towards the besiegers. 

On the courtyard the retaliation of the Poisoner Heavy Support squads was brutal and their virulent fire engulfed the charging Attack Bikes with devastating effect. The Fenrisians watched their ceramite plate melt off their black carapace in the sinister chem-flames that flickered in the emotionless lenses of the Death Guard specialists.

The Night's Own

A scout patrol of Death Guard Despoilers hurried back towards their homebase. Their comms were filled with sightings of oncoming enemy - hostile infantry that was already inside the perimeter and the walls of Irongard itself. All recon and rearguard elements were being pulled back to confront the ferocious assault of the forest-dwelling Astartes.

Suddenly the Despoiler sergeant stopped dead in his tracks. In an eyeblink the squad raised their twin Bolt Pistols towards the shadow that loomed over them. The following muzzle flashes lit the glade for a second, but the roar of the charging beast filled the air just as the simultaneous gunfire did. The Wulfen was a force of nature, Fanghorn's Apex Predator, and the XIV Legion reserves were brought down like the prey they were.

Locking Arms

Within the Irongard walls the close quarters combat was at its thickest. The Grey Stalker infiltrators were moving through the facility room by room, almost like a rabid animal escaping captivity. Their rotor cannons filled the corridors with suppressive fire and the Death Guard who got close were met with Fenrisian power weapons. It seemed, however, that the Rout had underestimated the Traitor presence inside the research facility, and the Death Guard were many. One after another Boltgun mags were emptied towards the loyalist attackers and their strength began to dwindle.

Reinforcements

Unknown to the feral besiegers, the research facility of Irongard also hosted test sites for experimental weapon designs. The special units of the Death Guard Destroyer cadre had just deployed and moved swiftly to bolster the defensive efforts with their horrific weaponry.

Two units of veterans met face to face and for a moment time stood still. Former brothers locked eyes, then squinted and raised their chosen legion arms. Scythe against hunting spear, virulent flame against bolt shells. 

The Sacrifice

The head of the Death Guard operations, the Chief Medicae himself entered the fray. With their master coordinating the efforts of the Tactical troops the Death Guard tightened the noose. This was now the last stand of the Fenrisians, who kept on fighting, bloodied but defiant, although the darkness of Irongard was about to swallow them. 

This was inevitable. This was foreseen.

As the last Grey Stalkers sold their lives dearly, a lone infiltrator had reached the Generatorium of the Irongard. The sole survivor opened a leathery bag, revealing a stack of primed demolition charges.

"Fenrys hjølda."

Prophecy

The Elder covered his eyes as a massive explosion lit the night sky, followed by a chain reaction of several detonations across the research facility's silhouette. The mighty fortress of Irongard burnt in green, noxious flames, its inhumane secrets now aflame along with the technology that had created them. The sentinels of Fanghorn had returned to earth, and brought their adversaries down with them.

The prophecy had been fulfilled. The primeval wilds would stand to outlast the galactic civil war.

Death Guard presentation by Manel

This army was created by the Horus Heresy 2nd edition release, I had previously done some Mechanicum stuff, but this was my first Astartes army. The Destroyer expansion was done for my first Civil War at Finland, painting DG in black made my army look so cool in the cabinet with some color variation, and this specialized units fit the theme of the force so well. For this narrative event I took a good mix of my army that could help tell this siege story.

Fenrisians presentation by Teemu

The Fenrisians were my personal Civil War project for 2024, started right after the SN No Retreat VI. The army is a bit of an antithesis in a way, as I've felt many interpretations (including some of the official ones) kind of miss the point of the legion and lean entirely on the wolf theme. I consciously left all wolf logos, icons and details out of the entire army and tried to focus on the essence of vikings/pagans/pillagers that would represent various Fenrisian cultures.

The core of the force is a Grey Stalker squad armed to the teeth - the unit was divided in two for the purposes of this narrative. The mechanized section has a couple of Attack Bike conversions and a Sabre Strike Tank, as mobile firepower is very fun to play. The Wulfen has operated as a Scout squad, but one of my early thoughts was to run him as a Pathfinder Consul, fitting for a hunting beast. The burial mound idols count as Tarantulas, almost like a thematic backdrop for the force.

This was a fun joint project for us and we'll definitely combine efforts to do something similar in the future. Needless to say, AI had nothing to do with what you see here. Thanks for taking a look! 

The Night's Watch - Search for the First Wulfen

The Fenrisians were my personal Civil War project for the year, started right after the Horus Heresy No Retreat VI. The army is a bit of an antithesis in a way, as I've felt many interpretations (including some of the official ones) often kind of miss the point of the legion and lean entirely on the wolf theme. I consciously left all wolf logos, icons and details out of the entire army and tried to focus on the essence of vikings/pagans/pillagers that would represent various Fenrisian cultures.

In the Civil War list I wanted to include multiple small units that would each add to the patrol's narrative but also be fun and dynamic to play. The VI are quite rapid with their run + charge which felt neat especially in the patrol scale.

The beauty of Civil War is in its scale, with mini projects like this finding a meaning as the threshold for thematic army building becomes delightfully low - also a great thing for beginner hobbyists who feel a fully painted, event-sized army is still far in the horizon.

The Grey Stalkers were a perfect unit for a hobby project as there's so many differing roles within the squad - it's fun to plan what kind of distinct characters the maul/sword/spearmen or a heavy weapon gunner would be! I approached each mini as an individual, converting the army list roles one by one to match the vision for the unit.

The Grey Stalker Huscarl was armed with a traditional Fenrisian hunting spear, the shield is just a decorative piece. Instead of the usual heraldic colours I played with forest green and purple, which was also used as an undertone in the entire army. As it was very much about experimenting I didn't have the stones to really push the effect in such a tight project timeframe, so it's very subtle - still a fun nuance especially in the basing.

A Fenrisian pillager with his sack of looted relics. I'll shoot some additional angles later to show some of the details on the models!

Pair of rotor cannons. Splendid to model and fun to play, although not that effective.

I imagined the fur details on the models being blackbear hides, once again consciously steering away from having anything wolf related on the models.

Grey Stalker Berserker with a trophy taken from a slain Fenrisian Frost Giant. I found that WHFB Dwarf bits often make better Space Wolf parts than actual Space Wolf parts, very fitting in the style of ornamentation and the bits are often a bit smaller which makes them easier to incorporate to conversions.

Fenrisian power spear and some wild charging momentum, one of my favourite Marines in the Grey Stalker unit. The black feather decorations (here hanging off the spear) are a repeating detail within the squad.

Prosperine Veteran, a survival of the grand planetary siege. The warrior possesses a couple of pillaged artifacts in the form of a master-crafted Boltgun and a Thousand Sons' ceremonial dagger. The bolter's beak ornamentation funnily adds to the bird theme of the squad.

The Envoy of Feathers is the symbolic leader of the warband. He's been carrying out a quest for the Lord of Fenris for the last three hundred years - travelling the planet's vast wilderness in search of the First Wulfen. The rest of the Grey Stalkers are his hand-picked crew, who have joined the old one on his long journey. Having used a head and a shaman drum from the old zombie kit I thought it would be funny to include as many zombie parts as possible - some parts are a bit off scale but otherwise fit the vibe. He even has some guts hanging off his belt (on the back side) for ritual purposes. Birds are very prominent in viking culture and stories and therefore were used as one of the thematic details in the patrol force.

The strange Wayfarer was a last minute addition to the patrol army — I was left with a couple of hobby hours to spare so I painted up a counter model for the Grey Stalkers. The Wayfarer's presence is to mark when the unit has the Heart of the Legion benefit, as the fellow traveller arrives to aid the Astartes with healing balms and to motivate them with cited sagas whenever the Marines stand on an objective. Fun way to add to the narrative and increase the patrol's display footprint a bit!

The Næturvár, a Fenrisian Tarantula Battery, three Frontier Idols with concealed Heavy Bolters. These are erected on the borders of settlements to keep outsiders and rival tribes away - the frightening figures are usually enough to scare off mundane threats, while the automated gunfire takes care of the rest. The slates used for these and the army basing were collected from the banks of fjords in Northern Norway, where actual viking ships might have sailed back in the days. I felt it was pretty cool little feature, adding to the army's essence!

Asaheim Attack Bike, a custom variant for long-range operations and extended patrolling. These would be used as forward scouts as well as hauling stowage, munitions and rations for the forces deployed to the wilderness. Attack Bikes felt like a cool and rather rare unit to include in the Civil War force and were my favourite unit to play. Mobile firepower and a fighting chance in a headlong charge, what's not to love! The conversion is essentially a combination of a Marine Bike and Mechanicus Kataphron Destroyer tracks. I went for a bit of a "snowmobile" look to emphasize the all-terrain capability they would have to have in the Fenrisian tactica.

Asaheim Attack Bike II, a hunting partner for the chain lancer. This warrior single-handedly drove off @fellfyre Sons of Horus Tactical Squad and only barely fell short of sweeping them out - a true patrol shock assault!

Sabre Strike Tank, the centerpiece for the patrol. Armed purely according to the rule of cool, as I liked the opportunity to mix some WWII bits in and also because I didn't want to have any energy weapons in the army's narrative theme or colour palette. It has a magnetized base for display, but was often played without it to be able to navigate our dense terrain a bit easier.

Sabre side armour. Most of the stowage is the new Rogal Dorn tank kit and Tamiya vehicle accessories with some other bits in the mix. The small runes are the Green Stuff World etched brass Dwarven runes that were used on some of the infantry models too.

On patrol.

The First Wulfen, Apex Hunter of the Wild Frontier, was the central figure for the patrol's narrative. Part of the Fenrisian folkore and The Fang's legends, the ancient being had now emerged from its exile after centuries. This was a bit of a special request from other participating players, as I played him as a Scout squad accompanied by a flock of raven minis. Basically he was the sergeant model and narratively speaking the birds of prey would follow in the Hunter's wake - kind of like wound counters for this force of nature. Everybody was onboard with the idea and it played exactly as a Scout unit would have, just a bit of a visual difference to make the concept possible. The base model was the Blade-slave Gal Vorbak for some added stature with all kinds of fantasy bits and green stuff clothing added.

So that's another project in the books - a Space Wolf patrol roster with zero wolf references. In a way it's exciting to pick a Legion you're really not that fond of and try to interpret its essence in a personally interesting way. Exploring this particular theme felt rather rewarding and it wouldn't be hard to line up a couple of reinforcing unit projects - it would just require an external incentive in the form of an event or a similar deadline!