Changes

The '''Blood Pact''' is was a highly organized [[Chaos Cult|Chaos warrior-cult]] devoted to [[Khorne]]. Unlike many cultist warbands, the Pact fights fought as a disciplined army, similar in training and this is what makes them so effectiveorganization to the [[Imperial Guard]]. Consisting Originating as the personal army of highly trained, vicious soldiers and the warlord [[XenosUrlock Gaur]] mercenaries, they quickly became a dominant "elite" of the soldiers of Chaos forces opposing the Blood Pact know no fear or hesitation. They have overrun entire worlds [[Sabbat Worlds Crusade]], and caused the people of the [[Imperium]] no small amount of suffering and woe.{{Fn|4x}}

The exact origin of the Blood Pact is unknown, but it is generally held they originated some 3,000 years ago on a planet known as [[Ghourra]], sometimes pronounced '''Gaurra''', at the edge of the [[Sabbat Worlds]].{{Cite ThisFn|4x}}

At that time, the tribal society of Ghourra was ruled by a feudal overlord, or [[Gaur]] (sometimes referred to as "Ghour" or "Gour"). The Gaur surrounded himself with an elite priesthood who conducted the ritual observances by which the Gaur made tribute to his god, [[Khorne]]. This militant-priesthood evolved over time into a bodyguard force which practiced its martial skills as diligently as it had once conducted its simple bloody sacrificial rites.{{Cite ThisFn|4x}}

As the Gaur's influence grew and spread to neighboring worlds, it was this bodyguard force that led his conquering armies. It soon became a mark of respect to be 'bloody-pacted" to the Gaur. Numbers grew, recruited from vassal worlds, and the bodyguard force eventually became an army in its own right; the current Blood Pact.{{Cite ThisFn|4x}}

Uniquely, every single member of the Blood Pact (and Imperial tactical estimates suggest there may be as many as three quarters of a million Blood Pact warriors) is personally inducted into service by the Gaur himself. To prove his allegiance in blood to both the Gaur and the Blood God, each aspirant ritually gashes his hands on the sharpened edges of the Gaur's battle armor.{{Cite ThisFn|4x}}

The Blood Pact were first encountered by the Imperium during the [[Sabbat Worlds CrusadeImperium]]. An oft-disputed area, the Sabbat Worlds had 's first been colonised as part of encounter with the Imperium Blood Pact occurred in [[M35]], when Chaos was driven from the [[sector]] by aftermath of the original [[crusade]] Battle of [[Saint SabbatBalhaut]], after whom the sector was namedin '''765. In the middle period of [[M41]]''', a vast Chaos host commanded by the warlord, when [[Archon (Chaos)|Archon]] [[Nadzybar]], swept through the Sabbat Worlds and tore them out of Imperial hands. Nadzybar's host was not one single army, but slain in fact a cooperative alliance of many, each one led by its own warlord, known by his title of personal combat with [[Warmaster]] [[Magister (Chaos)|MagisterSlaydo]]. These warlords became NadzybarA member of Slaydo's lieutenantsbodyguard unit, and the names of many live in infamy: [[Anakwanar SekImperial Guard Sergeant|Sergeant]], [[Enok InnokentiCommodus Ryland]], [[Sholen Skara]]was captured and interrogated by a cultist, [[Heritor Asphodel]], [[Nokad the Blighted]] and [[Urlock Gaur]] identifying herself as a warrior of the Blood Pact, loyal to Urlock Gaur.{{Cite ThisFn|5}}

In 755.M41, the [[High Lords After a period of Terra]] charged infighting between Nadzybar's [[WarmasterMagister]] s and [[SlaydoPater (Chaos)|Pater]] with the task of raising a liberating army and retaking the Sabbat Worlds. Slaydo built a formidable Crusade and eventually took on a major part of Nadzybar's strength at Balhaut. Though Slaydo himself perished in the battle, this was a famous Imperial victory. Archon Nadzybar was slain and his forces put to rout. After protracted infighting, a new Archon Gaur emerged from the ranks of the Chaos warlords to take Nadzybar's place: Urlock Gauras the new Archon.{{Cite ThisFn|4x}} Although Urlock the Gaur was never counted among the most charismatic or tactically brilliant of Nadzybar's lieutenants, his position as commander possession of a sizable, disciplined army within - the Chaos forces Blood Pact - allowed him to beat dominate the other Magisters in the brief power struggle following Nadzybar's deathChaos warhosts.{{Cite ThisFn|4x}}

This recognition was aptly demonstrated at the [[Battle of the Akkorite Peninsula]] on [[Belshiir Binary]] in 771. A vital and much-contested world due to its [[promethium]] wells, refineries and processing depots, Belshiir Binary was the site of a notable Blood Pact victory. A force of two hundred Blood Pact troopers, supported by just four [[stalk-tank]]s and two [[Loxatl]] brood groups, cut off and annihilated a force of three thousand [[Imperial Guardsmen]]. The outnumbered Blood Pact force was commanded by an officer called [[Vesh Etogaur]] (the second word possibly indicative of rank, as in 'demi-gaur' or [[colonel]]) whose strict command led to the Pact force lying in baking heat for three days without breaking cover until the Imperial forces had moved into the cone of their ambush. The resulting combat lasted twenty-two minutes. No members of the Guard unit survived the slaughter, and the Akkorite Peninsula refinery remained under Chaotic control for a further fifteen months.{{Fn|2}}{{Fn|4x}}

Blood Pact warriors usually resemble a particularly ragged or barbaric [[regiment]] of the [[Imperial Guard]]. They wear fabric battledress uniforms either looted from the corpses of Guardsmen, or manufactured to resemble a basic Imperial design. Over this are worn packs, webbing and the usual assortment of infantry kit, including a steel bowl-helmet. Because their kit, equipment and battle dress is essentially a mix of plunder and homemade, no two Blood Pact troopers are ever identical. Their appearance is rough and ill-kempt: their clothing torn, patched and dirty, and helmets chipped and dented.{{Cite ThisFn|4x}}

A Blood Pact member is most characterized by their ritual iron visor, known as a "[[grotesque]]," and which is worn by all [[human]] members. These generally portray a grimacing, or leering face, often coupled with an exaggerated hooked nose or chin. These masks are usually a black color, although it has been known for senior officers to wear one of gold or silver.{{Cite ThisFn|4x}}

Their armor and clothing is all a drab red, the color of dried blood. In fact, one of the Pact's rituals prior to battle is to dye their clothing with the blood of their enemy. As a result, the Blood Pact warriors exude a revolting, charnel stink, made even less palatable by the unguents and oils with which they anoint their bodies and their own lax standards of hygiene. Their support vehicles all tend to be painted this universal crimson as well.{{Cite ThisFn|4x}}

A Blood Pact warrior's hands always remain bare to display the ritual scars across the palms and knuckles, made at the time of induction to the Pact. Often this ritual scarring covers other parts of the body and face. The deeper and more severe the wounds, and the amount, are part of a unofficial honour system and devotion to Khorne.{{Cite ThisFn|4x}}

The Blood Pact, originally consisting of soldiers from the worlds around Ghourra, is a diverse organization. As the Blood Pact rose to prominence amongst the forces holding the [[Sabbat Worlds]], many lesser war bands and forces submitted to their rule and were absorbed. The leaders of the Pact willingly encourage the integration of other [[Chaos]] war bands, especially traitor [[Imperial Guard]] regiments and soldiers. The Blood Pact is also allied with alien races and mercenaries, such as the [[Loxatl]].{{Cite This}} The Blood Pact is a highly organized army, consisting of soldiers rather than blood-crazed [[cultist]]s. They often have support in the forms of plundered tanks, which are often looted from defeated [[Imperial]] armies or manufactured in captured [[Forge World]]s. They are drilled and trained in warfare techniques to a standard of competence at least equivalent to the [[Imperial Guard]]. They have excellent (often captured) communication systems, and a firm chain of command, meaning that they can be confidently deployed with tactical precision. A Blood Pact General is called an [[Etogaur]]. The Blood Pact can hit specific targets or accomplish specific missions, and individual warriors have the intelligence and field training to operate independently, if necessary, for the Pact's interests. This is what makes them so dangerous. They are not mindless fanatics; they are excellent battlefield soldiers in the sworn service of Chaos.{{Cite ThisFn|4x}}

The Blood Pact is a highly organized army, consisting of soldiers rather than blood-crazed [[cultist]]s. They often have support in the forms of plundered tanks, which are often looted from defeated [[Imperial]] armies or manufactured in captured [[Forge World]]s. They are drilled and trained in warfare techniques to a standard of competence at least equivalent to the [[Imperial Guard]]. They have excellent (often captured) communication systems, and a firm chain of command, meaning that they can be confidently deployed with tactical precision. A Blood Pact General is called an [[Etogaur]]. The Blood Pact can hit specific targets or accomplish specific missions, and individual warriors have the intelligence and field training to operate independently, if necessary, for the Pact's interests. This is what makes them so dangerous. They are not mindless fanatics; they are excellent battlefield soldiers in the sworn service of Chaos.{{Fn|4x}} Certain elite or veteran sections of the Pact form the so-called '''Death Brigades''', representing the finest and most ruthless storm squads in the Blood Pact. Though few in number, the Death Brigades are often encountered at the spearhead of assaults, as the private company of senior Chaos leaders, or deployed on specialist missions, and are the most dreaded of all Blood Pact units.{{Cite ThisFn|4x}}

Unlike most Khorne worshipers, the Blood Pact favors a more disciplined and tactical style, emphasizing the martial aspects of the Blood God over those of the [[berserker]]. This means that the average Blood Pact trooper will be armed with a [[lasgun]] or [[autogun]] as his primary weapon. In close-quarter environments such as trenches or when storming techniques are required, they favor plate or chain mail tunics and arm themselves with billhooks, trench clubs and [[grenades]]. Some are able combat specialists in the field of demolition or sniping.{{Cite ThisFn|4x}}

Blood Pact units will often contain a mix of heavy and support weapons akin to those of the Imperial Guard. Some Imperial tacticians claim that the officers of the Blood Pact deliberately style themselves on the Imperial Guard, and it is certainly the case that [[traitor Guardsmen]] are used to hone and improve the basic combat abilities of the Pact. Such traitors, due to their relative rareness, are distributed throughout the Pact's numbers to disseminate good techniques. Others point out that Blood Pact armaments resemble those of the Imperial Guard because these are the most commonly plundered. Several munitions-producing Forge Worlds - especially [[Neffethyl]] and [[Urdesh]] - were amongst the planets conquered in the Sabbat cluster, and from them the Blood Pact have enjoyed a ready supply of Guard-quality weapons.{{Cite ThisFn|4x}}

*[[Vesh Etogaur]]

*{{Endn|4}}: [[The Sabbat Worlds Crusade (Background Book)]] by '''Dan Abnett''', **{{Endn|4x}}: {{Cite This}}*{{Endn|5}}: ''[[Regicide (Short Story)]]'' by [[Aaron Dembski-Bowden]]