View source for Kayvaan Shrike

{{Ambig|subject=Space Marine|disambiguation=Shrike}}
{{Character
|Portal              ={{RavenGuardPortal}}
|Name                ={{PAGENAME}}
|Image               =ShrikePrimaris.jpg
|Caption             =Kayvaan Shrike since crossing the [[Rubicon Primaris]]{{Fn|8a}}
|Title               =
|Homeworld           =[[Deliverance]]
|Birth               =c. [[M41]]
|Active Period       =[[M41]] - Present
|Death               =
|Cause of Death      =
|Species             =[[Human]]
|Type                =[[Astartes]]
|Gender              =Male
|Relatives           =''
*[[Corvus Corax]]<br><small>("Father" via [[gene-seed]])</small>
*[[Raven Guard]] & Successors<br><small>("Brothers" via [[gene-seed]])</small>
|Occupation          =''
*[[Space Marine Captain|Shadow Captain]] of the [[Raven Guard]] [[3rd Company (Raven Guard)|3rd Company]]<br><small>(Formerly){{Fn|1a}}</small>
*[[Chapter Master|Master of Shadows]] of the [[Raven Guard]]<br><small>(Formerly){{Fn|10}}</small>
|Preceded by         =''
*[[Corvin Severax]]<br><small>(as [[Chapter Master|Master of Shadows]]){{Fn|3}}</small>
|Succeeded by        =''
*[[Vordin Krayn]]<br><small>(as [[Space Marine Captain|Shadow Captain]] of the 3rd Company)</small>
*[[Aethon Shaan]]<br><small>(as [[Chapter Master|Master of Shadows]]){{Fn|10}}</small>
|Faction             ='' ''
*[[Imperium]]
**[[Raven Guard]]
***[[3rd Company (Raven Guard)|3rd Company]]<br><small>(Formerly){{Fn|1a}}</small>
|Notes               =
}}
'''Kayvaan Shrike''' was a [[Chapter Master|Master of Shadows]] of the [[Raven Guard]].  Before the [[Fall of Prefectia]], he was the [[Space Marine Captain|Shadow Captain]] of the [[Chapter|Chapter's]] 3rd Company.{{Fn|1a}}{{Fn|3}}

==History==
===Early History===
Shrike was born on [[Kiavahr]] and as a youth worked as a runner for the [[Hive Gang]] known as the Tarkal Guild. As a teenager, he managed to evade rival gangers for over a week before being captured after killing four of his pursuers. After vicious torture, Shrike managed to escape and kill many more of the rival gangers. This was all noticed by the [[Chaplain]]s of the [[Raven Guard]], who saw his potential. Despite resisting the Chaplains, Shrike was promptly taken to [[Deliverance]] and trained as a [[Space Marine]].{{Fn|5}} The forename ‘Kayvaan’ honoured some memory from his gang days of which he would not speak, while ‘Shrike’ he chose for the swift hunter- hawks that nested high in the Diagothian Mountains. He had encountered these avians many times during his formative trials on Kiavahr, and had been struck with admiration for their fearless surprise attacks on seemingly superior prey.{{Fn|8a}}

===Space Marine===
After rising through the ranks of the Raven Guard from a lowly [[Neophyte]]{{Fn|8a}} Shrike ascended to command of the 3rd Company after his predecessor, [[Alerin]], was interred within a [[Space Marine Dreadnought|Dreadnought]]{{Fn|7}} and [[Corvin Severax]] was elevated to [[Chapter Master]].{{Fn|8a}}

Shrike is most famous for his actions during the [[Targus VIII]] campaign against [[Waaagh! Skullkrak]], which invaded the [[Targus System]] in '''862.[[M41]]'''.{{Fn|1b}}  The 3rd Company was originally detailed to eliminate the Orks' orbital defenses, a task they accomplished quickly, but were stranded on the planet when the [[Thunderhawk]] gunship inbound to extract them was destroyed in orbit.{{Fn|1a}}
[[Image:ShrikeNovelArt.jpg|thumb|right|220px|Kayvaan Shrike before his transformation into a [[Primaris Space Marine]] ]]
Without a pause, Shrike led his company in a two-year guerilla campaign behind the Ork lines, striking without warning at vulnerable supplies and providing invaluable reconnaissance data for the naval vessels in orbit.  Shrike's mastery of guerrilla tactics was such that he and his men were all but untouchable, striking at the Orks with impunity and then disappearing without trace into the ruined [[Hive]] cities.{{Fn|1a}}

Thanks to Shrike and his company, the Targus campaign was brought to a close decades before the predictions of [[Imperial Tactician]]s.{{Fn|2}}  By the time the 3rd Company was extracted from Targus, the entire system hailed him as a hero.{{Fn|1a}}

===The Hunt For Voldorius===
{{main|Hunt for Voldorius}}
Shortly after the Targus campaign began to swing in the Imperials' favour, Shrike received word of the fall of [[Quintus]], where the [[Daemon Prince]] [[Kernax Voldorius]] had corrupted the Imperial forces and turned the entire planet’s military to the service of the [[Alpha Legion]].{{Fn|1c}}

Shrike and the 3rd Company were waging a guerilla campaign against the [[Chaos]] forces when unexpected allies arrived in the form of Captain [[Kor'sarro Khan]] and his men. Khan, as the [[White Scars]]' [[Master of the Hunt]], had been ordered to bring Voldorius's head back to the Chapter's [[fortress-monastery]] on [[Chogoris]]. The rivalry between the White Scars and the Raven Guard was thousands of years old, but the two Captains forged an uneasy alliance. Their combined efforts led to victory, and Shrike and Khan fought side-by-side to defeat the Daemon Prince in close combat. Shrike returned to the Targus battlezone, parting from Khan on terms of respect.{{Fn|1c}}

In 995.[[M41]] he killed the [[Tau]] [[Water Caste|Ambassador]] [[Myen O’Res]] during his trying to convince a populace of [[Lurid IX]] planet to join the [[Tau Empire]].{{Fn|4}}

===Ascension===
Shrike went on to conduct equally masterful actions against Orks in the [[Donara]] and [[Yakhee]] systems. He is now regarded as a near-mythical figure on many Imperial worlds; whenever Orks invade, desperate citizens offer prayers to the [[Emperor]] to send Shrike to save them. He and his men continue to war against Waaagh! Skullkrak. If Shrike is aware that his aid is constantly requested by senior commanders of the [[Imperial Guard]] and [[Imperial Navy|Navy]], in those theatres where the Orks press them hardest, he ignores them. He and his men save their efforts for those worlds that have already been abandoned to the greenskins, whose civilian populations are close to being entirely consumed by the invading Orks. Among these people, Shrike is a saviour angel, and a source of whispered terror among Skullkrak's [[Boyz]].{{Fn|1a}} Shrike has also trained a special unit, known as [[Shrike's Wing]].{{Fn|2}}

During the [[Prefectia Campaign]], Raven Guard [[Chapter Master]] [[Corvin Severax]] along with much of the 3rd Company were slain by [[Commander Shadowsun]]. Shrike led a counterattack that recovered much of the company's [[Gene-seed]]. For this and his other past actions, Shrike was elected by his fellow Shadow Captains as the new Chapter Master of the Raven Guard.{{Fn|3}} Shrike however still sees himself as a Shadow Captain of a Battle Company, and has grown uneasy and brooding regarding the death of Severax. He has pledged that should a worthier candidate come along, he will abdicate as Chapter Master.{{Fn|8a}}

Since the creation of the [[Great Rift]], Kayvaan Shrike has undergone the [[Rubicon Primaris]] and has been converted into a [[Primaris Space Marine]] of the [[Vanguard Space Marine|Vanguard]] variety.{{Fn|6}} Later during the [[Battle of Xalladin]] Shrike led the Raven Guard against [[Orks]]. However during the fighting, the [[Iron Hands]] and [[Imperial Fists]] nearly came to blows. Shrike took decisive action by covertly destroying their source of dispute, the relic known as the [[Brimstone Heart]].{{Fn|8}}

===Resignation===
Shrike eventually ordered a [[The Scattering|scattering]] of the Raven Guard's strike forces while also stepping down as Master of Shadows.  Having been elected to command in the aftermath of Severax’s death in the [[Prefectia Campaign]], Shrike came to realize that he did not fit well as high commander. He saw in himself the same recklessness and lust for battle that had seen Severax die. Moreover, he had invested himself deeply in mastering the [[Path of Ambush]]. A Master of Shadows, he believed, should be instead the master of all three elements of [[Corvus Corax|Corax]]'s [[Trifold Path of Shadow]]. Shrike had almost immediately from when he was elected intended to resign from the position as soon as he could safely appoint a successor.{{Fn|10}}

After navigating the Raven Guard through the immediate difficulty of the opening of the [[Great Rift]], the [[Indomitus Crusade]] gave Shrike the opportunity to finally select a worthy successor. Shrike selected former [[1st Company (Raven Guard)|1st Company]] Captain [[Aethon Shaan]] as his successor after witnessing his skillful restraint against the [[Genestealer Cults]] of [[Gelvia]] the [[Iron Warriors]] at [[Strigneth System]], and the [[Orks]] at [[Aescia II]]. All three victories had been won with minimal loss of life, and Shrike knew that Shaan would be a worthy successor.{{Fn|10}}

Despite his resignation as Chapter Master, Shrike is still an active member of the Raven Guard. He is currently leading a shadow campaign against [[Xenos]] in the [[Bastior Sub-Sector]].{{Fn|11}}

==Wargear==
In addition to his [[Phobos Pattern]]{{Fn|8a}} [[Power armour]], Shrike is equipped with a [[Jump Pack]], [[Frag grenade|Frag]] and [[Krak grenade]]s, and an [[Iron Halo]].{{Fn|1d}}

His primary weapons are the [[Bolt pistol]] known as ''[[Blackout]]'' and the [[Raven's Talons]], an ancient pair of [[master crafted]] [[Lightning Claw]]s.{{Fn|1a}}{{Fn|1d}} Reportedly made by [[Corax]] himself after the [[Drop Site Massacre]], the Talons are said to be completely unbreakable and can cut through even the thickest vehicle armour.{{Fn|2}}

==[[Quotes Space Marines#S|Quotes]]==
*''"In the darkness all men are equal, save those that embrace it."''{{Fn|1e}}
*''We are coming. Look to the skies for your salvation.'' — to Commissar Lent prior to the Blindhope planetstrike{{Fn|1f}}
*''Wherever you tread, tread lightly. We are closer than you think, and our blades are sharp.''{{Fn|1a}}

==Images==
<gallery mode="packed" heights="200">
Kayvaan Shrike.jpg|Kayvaan Shrike Miniature{{Fn|1g}}
Shrike8th.jpg|Kayvaan Shrike as a [[Primaris Space Marine]] Miniature (8th Edition){{Fn|6}}
Shrike_Art.jpg|Kayvaan Shrike{{Fn|2}}
JoytoyRavenKayvaan.jpg|Joytoy Kayvaan Shrike figure{{Fn|9}}
</gallery>

==Related Publications==
*[[Shrike (Novel)]] by [[George Mann]]

==Related Articles==
*[[List of Chapter Masters]]

==Sources==
*1: [[Codex: Space Marines (5th Edition)]]
**{{Endn|1a}}: pg. 92
**{{Endn|1b}}: pg. 49
**{{Endn|1c}}: pgs. 42–43
**{{Endn|1d}}: pg. 130
**{{Endn|1e}}: pg. 25
**{{Endn|1f}}: pg. 69
**{{Endn|1g}}: pg. 109
*{{Endn|2}}: [[Codex: Space Marines (4th Edition)]], pg. 46
*{{Endn|3}}: [[War Zone Damocles: Kauyon]], pg. 68
*{{Endn|4}}: [[Dataslate: Storm Wing]], pg. 9
*{{Endn|5}}: [[White Dwarf 130 (FR)]] — ''Heroes and Villains''
*{{Endn|6}}: [https://www.warhammer-community.com/2019/08/29/breaking-news-sisters-psykers-and-skeletonsgw-homepage-post-4/  Warhammer Community: Breaking News: Sisters, Psykers and Skeletons (Posted 29/8/2019)] (Last Accessed 29 August 2019)
*{{Endn|7}}: [[White Dwarf 302 (UK)]], pg. 87
*{{Endn|8}}: [[Codex Supplement: Raven Guard (8th Edition)]] pg.34
**{{Endn|8a}}: pg.38
*{{Endn|9}}: [https://www.joytoy.com/products/raven-guard-chapter-master-kayvaan-shrike Joytoy Kayvaan Shrike figure] (last accessed 21/7/2024)
*{{Endn|10}}: [https://archive.ph/vo4im Warhammer Community: Aethon Shaan: Master of Shadows] ''(Saved archive page, dated 2 September 2025, last accessed 2 September 2025, original link: https://www.warhammer-community.com/en-gb/articles/8wocrwoc/aethon-shaan-master-of-shadows/)''
*{{Endn|11}}: [[White Dwarf 517]], pg. 23
==Uncited==
*[[Hunt for Voldorius (Novel)]] by [[Andy Hoare]]{{Cite Marker End}}
*[[White Dwarf 302 (UK)]], pgs. 84-87 - ''Heroes of the Imperium''

{{DEFAULTSORT:Shrike, Kayvaan}}

[[Category:Characters (Raven Guard)]]

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