1,370
edits
Changes
From Warhammer 40k - Lexicanum
expansion
Ingethel the Ascended led the Serrated Sun Chapter of the Word Bearers into the [[Eye of Terror|Great Eye]] where the failure of the [[Eldar|Eldar Empire]] was witnessed first hand. Ingethel informed the Word Bearers that the Eldar failed and suffered [[Fall of the Eldar|the Fall]] because at the moment of their ascension they were unable to accept the [[Chaos|Primordial Truth]]. They gave birth to a [[Slaanesh|god of pleasure and promise]], yet they felt no joy. Their new god awoke to find its worshipers abandoning it out of ignorance and fear, thus was the endless storm of the [[Eye of Terror|Great Eye]] formed, an echo of the birth-cries of the Eldar's new god. The nature of the Primordial Truth was revealed to the Word Bearers in the ashes of the Eldar Empire, they learned that in order for humanity as a species to survive they must not commit the same sins the Eldar did, they must instead accept Chaos.{{Fn|7f}}
The Pilgrimage ultimately proved that the Emperor's [[Imperial Truth]] was in fact a lie and that gods truly did exist. Secretly pledging themselves to new Dark Gods, the Word Bearers hid their true allegiance for the next four decades.{{Fn|18b}} To do so, the Legion covertly [[The Brotherhood|purged]] loyalist elements in its ranks, mostly older Legionaries who remembered the days of the Imperial Heralds.{{Fn|66}} The purge was largely successful, though a few loyalist Word Bearers avoided its impact due to being on far-off missions during the late Great Crusade.{{Fn|67}}
Lorgar and the Word Bearers spent the remaining years of the Great Crusade attempting to enlighten humanity about the universal truths of the universe, and began the long process of sending their forces throughout the rest of the Astartes Legions to establish [[Warrior Lodge]]s and subvert them from within.{{Fn|7g}}{{Fn|67}} Through this subterfuge they eventually managed to sway several Primarchs to their cause, the most notable being [[Horus|Horus Lupercal]]. Meanwhile, the Word Bearers avoided suspicion by loyally waging a great many campaigns, soon becoming one of the most militarily successful Legions in the Crusade and seemingly making up for their past failures. In command of the 2nd largest Legion after the [[Ultramarines]], Lorgar's campaigns against predominately [[Human]] empires became vicious, brutal, and seemingly spiteful, perhaps a way for the Legion to vent its hidden frustrations.{{Fn|7h}}
When it became clear that humanity could not be enlightened without bloodshed whilst it remained shackled to the lies of the Emperor, Lorgar and Erebus helped orchestrate the corruption of [[Horus]] himself, initiating the [[Horus Heresy]].{{Fn|7g}}
The war on Calth was devastating and horrific. The Ultramarines were shocked by the millions of [[Chaos Cults|cultists]] the Word Bearers used as human shields and disgusted by the hordes of [[daemon]]s they unleashed. The Word Bearers, in turn, had underestimated the tenacity and resolve of their foe. In the end, Lord Kor Phaeron was defeated when reinforcements from [[Macragge]] drove the Word Bearers from the surface of Calth. Kor Phaeron retreated all the way to the [[Maelstrom]], a turbulent region of the galaxy where the Immaterium of Chaos seeps through into the material realm of the universe. Meanwhile, Lorgar led his own [[Shadow Crusade]] in conjunction with the [[World Eaters]], hoping to create a gigantic [[Warp]] storm to cut off [[Ultramar]] from [[Terra]].{{Fn|21a}}
Following the Shadow Crusade, the Word Bearers were ordered to muster at [[Ullanor]] for Horus' planned drive on [[Terra]]. By this point Lorgar had come to view Horus as weak for resisting the embrace of the Gods, and secretly planned to usurp him as [[Warmaster]]. Nonetheless, Lorgar, [[Zardu Layak]], and a small force journeyed into the [[Webway]] to find [[Fulgrim]] under the guise of returning him to the war. After successfully binding Fulgrim with his [[True Name]], Lorgar planned to use him in a coup to dispose of Horus. However in the end, Lorgar's treachery was exposed and the plan fell apart. Lorgar was exiled from Horus' sight, but 5,000 Word Bearers under Zardu Layak agreed to follow the Warmaster to Terra.{{Fn|27}} Meanwhile, a few scattered bands of loyalist Word Bearers continued to fight for the Emperor across the Galaxy.{{Fn|67}}
While Lorgar and Layak went separete ways, a force of Word Bearers led by [[Zedak Mordakar]] would aid the Sons of Horus in the [[Siege of Cthonia|recapture]] of their home planet.{{Fn|53a}}
*{{Endn|64}}: [[Index Chaotica]] - Defilers (E-Book), pg. 3
*{{Endn|65}}: [[Warhammer 40,000 5th Edition Rulebook]], pg. 148
*{{Endn|66}}: [[Lorgar: Bearer of the Word (Novel)]], The Brotherhood
*{{Endn|67}}: [[Campaigns of the Age of Darkness: The Battle for Beta-Garmon]], pg. 161, ''Word Bearers''
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