World Eaters
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The World Eaters are a segment of the Chaos Space Marine forces in the tabletop game Warhammer 40K known as a legion. They are worshippers of the god Khorne, and live for nothing more than to spill blood in His name. Their Primarch (founding father) Angron was one of the first to join with Horus during the Horus Heresy.
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Founding and the Great Crusade
The World Eaters Legion is one of the twenty legions of the First Founding, having been spawned from the gladiatorial Primarch Angron. Their heraldry originally included suits of blue and white armor and their Legion badge depicted a green and blue world being crushed between a set of edged teeth. After being reunited with the Emperor, Angron was given command of the Space Marine Legion created from his gene-seed by the Emperor to help reclaim the galaxy in the Great Crusade. During the Great Crusade, the World Eaters acted as the spearhead of many planetary invasions, bloody assaults and ferocious battles. Their loyalty to the Emperor was held up as an example, for they were willing to face any opponent in even the most suicidal of assaults. Their techniques and ferocity earned them a reputation for bloodshed at an epic scale across the galaxy.
As time wore on, the World Eaters developed training and indoctrination methods that were frowned upon by the Imperium for being unorthodox, as well as dangerous. Chapter rituals began to include deathly gladiatorial combat, blood drinking, as well as the use of psycho-surgery to alter the pleasure centers of a warriors’ brain, linking bloodshed and satisfaction at the most basic level. For some World Eater Space Marines, the result was an uncontrollable thirst of slaughter even away from the battlefield. However, the results produced by the World Eaters on the front lines were so effective that the Imperium was willing to turn a blind eye to the World Eaters’ practices.
The Horus Heresy
Having sensed the downward spiral of Angron and his World Eaters, Horus capitalized on the legion’s ranks of raving warriors and bloody rituals and corrupted them into the worship of Khorne. In particular, Angron was swayed through his firm sense of martial pride, and was convinced that he alone could save the Imperium from its external enemies and internal decadence. In an event that sealed the fate of the World Eaters, Scyrak the Slaughterer, a World Eater hero, slayed the Chief Librarian of the World Eaters – the last ward against the influences of Chaos. Thus, the World Eaters became one of Horus’ original three traitor legions, along with the Death Guard and Horus’ own Lunar Wolves.
During the Horus Heresy, the World Eaters fought many bloody battles, their allegiance to Khorne growing ever stronger. The climax of the World Eaters’ glory came during the onslaught of the very heart of humanity: Terra. Newly blessed with daemonic gifts, Angron and his World Eaters overtook the defenders of Eternity Wall Spaceport. Later, the World Eaters had the duty and privilege of leading the frontal assault on the Emperor’s Imperial Palace. Among those first in was Khârn who helped to assault the Imperial Palace. Despite contrary claims by the sons of Horus, World Eater records indicate that it was Angron’s daemonic runesword that was responsible for the downfall of the great gate of the Imperial Palace.
The 41st Millennium
After Horus' death at the hands of the Emperor, the tide of the Battle for Terra turned and the remaining forces of Chaos were scattered. Angron and his World Eaters fought their way across the galaxy to reach the Eye of Terror. Once inside, the bloody Chaos Space Marines chose a daemonworld, which Khorne blessed and perverted into a realm of constant battle, bloodshed and pain. Overtime, however, the raving blood thirst of the World Eaters broke down any form of organization and control. Units of World Eaters of varying sizes broke off from the main force to seek out glory and skulls for Khorne. Squads of ancient World Eater berzerkers can be found as parts of larger armies, in Khorne sworn forces, or even in small teams – always seeking combat, blood and skulls.
The original blue and white heraldry has given way to blood red and brass, the favored colors of Khorne, although one can find some pieces of the World Eaters’ original heraldry in individual pieces of armor. While most World Eaters retain their original badge, the skull rune of Khorne, as well as other Chaos icons and symbols often supplements it. In battle, World Eaters almost exclusively employ chainaxes and chainswords to maximize blood spillage, although some most powerful warriors use arcane power or daemonic Khorne weapons. Other Space Marines that have given in to the pull of Khorne since the Horus Heresy have adopted the look of the World Eaters, but few can compare to the experience that thousands upon thousands of battles has brought to the original World Eaters. What was once the most effective shock assault force in the galaxy is now a terrifying collection of savage berzerkers and insane killing machines that live only to spill blood and take skulls for their Lord Khorne.
Combat Doctrine
In game play, the World Eaters are an army dedicated to close combat. Reflecting the breakdown of organization and strategy in the Legion, most World Eater strategies consist of rushing a force of World Eater Berzerkers towards the enemy line as quickly as possible. Once locked into close combat, few enemy units can persevere against the World Eaters’ Berzerkers. World Eater armies feature little to no long range weapons, but they balance it in their exceptional close combat prowess.