Word Bearers

The Word Bearers are one of the nine First Founding Space Marine Legions that betrayed the Emperor of Mankind during the Horus Heresy. They became Chaos Space Marines, their allegiance pledged to their Daemon Primarch Lorgar and to Chaos Undivided. The Word Bearers were also the first Space Marine Legion to be corrupted by the Ruinous Powers of Chaos many decades before their counterparts turned to the Dark Gods and through their actions they corrupted the Warmaster Horus and brought on the terrible civil war of the Horus Heresy in all its savagery. Today they bend all their considerable efforts towards the overthrow of the "Corpse Emperor" and spreading the "truth" of Chaos to all Mankind. The Word Bearers Legion was originally known as the Imperial Heralds Legion when it was first raised on Terra and took part in the Great Crusade; after the Legion was reunited with its lost Primarch Lorgar on his homeworld of Colchis he renamed the XVII Legion the Word Bearers, which was in line with his belief that the Emperor of Mankind was the divine saviour of humanity.

Lorgar
Along with his brother Primarchs, Lorgar vanished from Terra whilst still an infant; mysteriously transported through the Warp by the Ruinous Powers of Chaos from the Emperor of Mankind's gene-lab deep beneath the Himalayan Mountains and scattered throughout the galaxy. Of all the sons of their secular father, Lorgar was perhaps the most divergent, for he landed on the highly religious world of Colchis, and spent his entire life prior to discovery by the Emperor as a player in the complex socio-religious political structure of that world. Prior to his discovery, Lorgar had overthrown an ancient Ecclesiastic Hierarchy based upon the debased worship of Chaos gods. Lorgar was discovered by the Emperor on the feudal world. His lost son had unified the world of Colchis beneath his authoritarian, theocratic rule in a series of brutal religious wars in response to his visions of the Emperor's coming arrival. Upon the arrival of the Emperor, which Lorgar saw as the confirmation of his many visions and prophecies, Lorgar and his people embraced the ruler of the Imperium as their promised messiah and God-Emperor. Perhaps the most manifest display of this belief was the now infamous Lectitio Divinitatus, a document written by Lorgar expressing his belief and the rationale basis for this belief, in the divine nature of the Emperor of Mankind. Ironically, this document created the foundation for what would later become the Imperial Cult during the Emperor’s own lifetime, for the new religion would eventually emerge during the 32nd Millennium on the myriad worlds of the Imperium following the Emperor's interment in the Golden Throne. When the Emperor finally met his long lost son face-to-face, as Lorgar had foreseen, the Primarch immediately dropped to one knee in obeisance, leading the population of his world in rejoicing and worshipping the Emperor as the one, true God of Mankind. At the conclusion of these festivities, the Emperor bade Lorgar to take his best warriors and induct them into the XVII Space Marine Legion, the Imperial Heralds, who had been derived from his own genome. Lorgar gratefully took up the Emperor's purpose, but he renamed the XVII Legion the Word Bearers to express his deeply-held desire to spread his faith in the God-Emperor to every world in the Imperium. Lorgar then joined his father on the Great Crusade to reunify the human worlds of the galaxy under a new Imperium. Lorgar appointed trustworthy regents to rule over Colchis in his absence and devoutly complied with what he believed were his father's wishes.

Great Crusade
Lorgar was an unusual Primarch because of his abiding faith in religion and his own deeply-held belief that the Emperor of Mankind was actually a divine being made manifest in the mortal realm. As a result, Lorgar was determined to spread his own faith in the Emperor to every world that his Legion encountered in the course of the Great Crusade, a policy that would be in direct contradiction to the atheistic and rationalist principles of the Imperial Truth. While the other Space Marine Legions were rapidly conquering planet after planet, the Word Bearers proceeded much more slowly, as they would build temples and shrines in veneration of the Emperor, who was also deemed the God of Mankind by Lorgar, on each newly conquered planet. All forms of blasphemy and heresy that threatened the divine centrality of the Emperor in the new regime, such as ancient scrolls, books, artwork and icons dedicated to the worship of beings other than the Emperor, were burned and smashed before the advancing ranks of the Word Bearers Legion. In their place, vast monuments and cathedrals all dedicated to the worship of the Emperor were erected upon the mounds of corpses belonging to those who had resisted conversion. The greatest Chaplains of the Word Bearers Legion produced enormous devotional works on the divinity and righteousness of the Emperor, and Lorgar himself delivered countless speeches and sermons, converting millions to the worship of the Emperor with his words alone.

A Legion Rebuked
During this period, the absolute loyalty of Lorgar and the Word Bearers Legion was absolutely unquestionable. Their worlds regularly delivered tithes in the Emperor’s name, and the orders of Terra were accepted without question throughout the worlds liberated by the Word Bearers. Lorgar and his Legion had successfully prosecuted the Emperor's Great Crusade for almost a century, and in that time the Emperor had never once admonished his zealous son or the Word Bearers Legion for their fervent worship of Him even though such doctrine clashed with the Emperor's policy of spreading the Imperial Truth.

But the Emperor, for all his love of his son, was greatly unsatisfied. He had initially tolerated the beliefs of the less secular of his sons, even those of Lorgar, but as the Great Crusade reached its maximum extent, the Emperor found himself increasingly frustrated with the slow pace with which Lorgar conquered and then converted worlds for the Imperium. The Emperor finally ordered the Word Bearers to cease their religious activities, as their mission was to reunify the galaxy under the banner of the secular Imperial Truth, not preach of the Emperor's personal divinity. The Emperor had long opposed the spread of organized religion and was determined to use the creation of the new Imperium of Man to enshrine reason and science, not religion, as the true guiding light of a new interstellar human civilization. The Emperor was particularly troubled by any notion that he should be worshiped as a god and the actions of the Word Bearers Legion in slaughtering those who refused to accept the Emperor's divinity stank of the religious excesses that had so often poisoned human history.

The Emperor ordered a task force composed of the Ultramarines Legion and lead by their Primarch Roboute Guilliman and accompanied by a force of his elite personal bodyguards, Adeptus Custodes and the Imperial regent, Malcador the Sigillite, to destroy the planet Khur, a world dear to the Word Bearers, whom considered its capital, Monarchia, the "perfect city" because of their intense devotion of its citizens and the sheer number of cathedrals and monuments dedicated to the worship of the Emperor as a God. Following the cities destruction by the Ultramarines, the entire Word Bearers Legion (100,000 Space Marines strong) were ordered to assemble on the planet's surface, within the smoldering ruins of Monarchia, and was humiliatingly rebuked by the Emperor himself, who forced everyone, including Lorgar, to kneel before him, and simply told them that they had failed him and humanity. Lorgar is said to have been stunned by his father's reproach and refusal to accept his worship, and to have fallen into a melancholic state.

Feeling betrayed by the Emperor, he refused audience to all but Kor Phaeron, the Word Bearers Cardinal and adoptive father whom raised him on Colchis. He had served as Lorgar's chief lieutenant and advisor since his time that he ruled as the theocrat of Colchis. Kor Phaeron sympathised with Lorgar's unrequited religious longings, and felt that the Word Bearers Legion should serve gods truly worthy of worship. Kor Phaeron explained that he knew of such gods, and thus, Lorgar learned of the existence of the Chaos Gods, who not only accepted the zealous worship he offered, but demanded it. Thus the seeds of the Horus Heresy were first sown among the Word Bearers. Eventually the Warmaster Horus would finally be turned against the Emperor in the name of Chaos largely due to the machinations of the Word Bearers' Chaplain Erebus, who arranged for Horus to be exposed to the temptations of the Chaos Gods, and the Word Bearers quickly joined the rebellion. The worlds they had conquered since their conversion also joined the side of Chaos, having been secretly corrupted to the worship of the Ruinous Powers in the final days of the Great Crusade.

The Horus Heresy
As the Horus Heresy unfolded, the Word Bearer Battleship Furious Abyss set off for the realm of Ultramar in the Eastern Fringes of the galaxy after its secret construction was completed on the Jovian moon of Thule. The Furious Abyss' first kill was the Ultramarines starship Fist of Macragge as it was heading for repairs to the Vangelis spaceport. The astropaths of the Fist of Macragge managed to send out a telepathic warning through the Warp, ultimately received as a very powerful psychic scream at the Vangelis spaceport. Seeing visions of Macragge and the impending terror brought by the Traitor Marines of the Word Bearers Legion, Captain Cestus, the Fleet Commander of the Ultramarines Legion, quickly gathered a force of starships at the main Vangelis hub of Coralis. He managed to find seven Loyalist starships: the Wrathful (which Cestus commandeered as his flagship) and her escorts, the Fearless, the Ferox, the Ferocious, the Fireblade, and the Thousand Sons Legion's starship Waning Moon. Captain Vorlov of the starship Boundless also requested to join Captain Cestus, and was accepted. The Loyalist fleet pursued the Furious Abyss and battled with it, suffering heavy casualties (all of the Loyalist starships but the Wrathful and Fireblade were destroyed), ending when the Furious Abyss entered the Warp to continue its journey to Ultramar. The Wrathful and Fireblade made the transition as well, but the Furious Abyss deployed a psionic mine which disturbed the Warp, causing the Fireblade's Gellar Field to fail, and the ship was torn apart by the daemonic forces of the Immaterium.5

When the Word Bearers of the Furious Abyss finally launched their attack against the Ultramarines' dominion of Ultramar, the strike against the world of Calth was led by Lorgar's greatest champion, the former Master of the Faith, Kor Phaeron. He swore to utterly destroy the Ultramarines' homeworld, and was very nearly successful. From his personal battle-barge, now renamed Infidus Imperator (False Emperor), Kor Phaeron directed a full-scale invasion of the Calth System. Calth's three sister planets were all destroyed, massive geo-nuclear strikes ripping them apart at the core. The system's once gentle sun was laced with deadly heavy metals and other unstable substances that increased the star's radiation output tenfold; within a century after the Heresy's end, the final elements of Calth's atmosphere were burned off and the world was left an airless void, its populace forced to live in gigantic underground caverns.

The war on Calth was devastating and horrific. The Ultramarines were shocked by the millions of Chaos Cultists the Word Bearers used as human shields and disgusted by the hordes of daemons they unleashed from the Warp. The Word Bearers, in turn, had underestimated the tenacity and resolve of their Loyalist foes. In the end, Lord Kor Phaeron was defeated when Ultramarines reinforcements from Macragge drove the Word Bearers from the surface of Calth. Kor Phaeron retreated all the way to the Maelstrom, a turbulent Warp rift much like the far larger Eye of Terror where the Immaterium of Chaos seeped through into the material realm of the universe.

Lorgar himself lead the rest of his Traitor Legion alongside the Warmaster Horus in the forces of Chaos' siege of the Imperial Palace on Terra, where he helped invade the realm of the master he had once served with the fanaticism of a zealot. In the end, Horus was defeated personally by the Emperor aboard his own flagship in orbit of Terra, and the Traitor Legions of Chaos were forced to flee into the Eye of Terror. The Word Bearers were also forced to retreat to the Eye of Terror with their traitorous brethren, and there they have remained, returning to the worlds of the Imperium only to raid, pillage, and destroy.

Post-Heresy
From the Daemon World of Sicarus, Lorgar now watches over his Legion and orchestrates the vast corruption from within that the Imperium suffers at the hands of his various sponsored Chaos Cults and covens. Unlike many of the other Traitor Legions of Chaos Marines, the Word Bearers have remained a unified, if loosely organised, military force, the main ruling body of which is known as the Dark Council, which rules in Lorgar's self-imposed absence as he meditates on the mysteries of Chaos.6 From the two primary bases of the Legion, Sicarus and the factory-world of Ghalmek which is located within the Maelstrom, the Word Bearers launched twisted wars of faith against the Imperium. On each world they attack, they incubate a seed of heresy that will one day contribute to their ever-expanding web of Chaos Cults. Sometimes, however, this brings them into competition with the efforts of the Alpha Legion. Though the Alpha Legion and the Word Bearers have united several times to take part in the Black Crusades of Abaddon, they are more usually in states of bitter division and rivalry. However, these conflicts are but distractions as their war against the Imperium of Man is a total one, and they do not intend for it to end until every icon of the False Emperor lies shattered at their feet.

Notable Campaigns

 * Great Crusade, Compliance of Forty-Seven Ten (Date Unknown.M31) - The world of Forty-Seven Ten, also known as Khur, was brought into compliance approximately a little more than a century before the events of Istvaan III at the outset of the Horus Heresy. The beautiful capital city of Monarchia, also known as the Perfect City, is built to commemorate the Emperor. Six decades after being brought into compliance, the XIII Legion Ultramarines utterly destroyed the capital city as an example to both Primarch Lorgar and his Word Bearers that by violating the light of the Imperial Truth, and demonstrating that Monarchia's veneration of the Emperor and the spread of such idolatrous doctrine would not be tolerated.
 * Great Crusade, The Purging Of Fortrea Quintus (Date Unknown.M31) - The world of Fortrea Quintus had been isolated from Imperial rule for several centuries, and when the leading edges of the Great Crusade reached the frontier of their system, the planet s monarchy was unwilling to submit itself to Imperial rule and had the Emperor s representatives executed The Word Bearers were the nearest Legion, though were already heavily engaged in fighting Orks in the Chairak Nebula. Lorgar despatched two thousand warriors to Fortrea Quintus with orders that the planet be pacified within three months. The Word Bearers quickly established positions on the planet and found the populace to be living in abject poverty, while the corrupt and ruthless monarchy grew fat off their labours. A well-trained and disciplined army defended the planets rulers, equipped with advanced weaponry and war-machines. Under the command of Captain Jarulek, the Word Bearers steadily pushed their enemies back, their captain rousing the populace with stirring speeches and fiery oratory. In ever-increasing numbers, the people of Fortrea Quintus joined Jarulek's march until his army numbered more than a million. A month after the Word Bearers had landed. Captain Jarulek. together with his millions of new followers, launched his attack on the planetary ruler s last bastion, the Palace of Light. The casualties amongst the populace were horrendous, thousands dying every minute as they charged the defended walls, armoured bastions and labyrinthine trench systems of the main gates armed with little more than pistols and spears. As the carnage continued at the mam palace gates, the Word Bearers attacked on another front, catching the defenders off guard and striking for the heart of the palace. Nothing could stand before them and Jarulek himself captured the planets ruler, throwing him to the blood-maddened survivors of the battle at the gates. Fully 90% of the people who had joined Jarulek s march were dead, while barely a handful of Word Bearers had been killed. Following the victory, Jarulek began indoctrination teachings among the populace and when Adepts of the Ministorum arrived to bring the word of the Emperor to Fortrea Quintus, they were horrified by the Word Bearers careless use of the populace, but found the people as well versed in the faith of the Imperium as any loyal world could be.
 * Great Crusade, Compliance of Forty-Seven Sixteen (Date Unknown.M31) - Forty-Seven Sixteen was the first world brought into compliance after the rebukement by the Emperor on the world of Khur. The lost human world had at first rejoiced to be reunited with their long-lost brothers. For over four thousand years they had thought themselves alone in the universe until the arrival of the XVII Legion. They had greeted the Word Bearers envoys with open arms, gazing upon the immense, grey-armoured Astartes warriors with awe and reverence. Upon their return to their orbiting vessels, First Captain Kor Phaeron commented that the people of Forty-Seven Sixteen were, ‘Irrevocably corrupt worshipers of a heathen deity.’ The humans of this world appear to venerate a large profane titanic colossus known only as the 'Storm Lord'. Since the Emperor had rebuked their Primarch and the entirety of the XVIIth Legion for their slowness in bringing worlds into compliance, the Word Bearers could not refuse the will of the Emperor. The XVII Legion did not have the time necessary to convert the ignorant heathens to the Imperial Truth, and since their profane beliefs were deemed incompatible with the Imperium the world of Forty-Seven Sixteen must burn. Less than 24 hours later more than a 190 million people were dead – over 98% of the doomed world’s population. Only one city survived the 12 hour orbital bombardment, in which entire continents disappeared in flame. This was the seat of the planet's governance and centre of its blasphemous worship. The world's profane palace-temple of the enemy was protected within a bubble of coruscating energy. Five full companies of the XVIIth Legion were mobilised to the planet's surface to finish the job. Battling through the masses of artificial intelligence-guided machines, led by Captain Sor Talgron, the Word Bearers 34th Company spearheaded the assault and eventually forced their way inside. Within the dome of the temple were gathered hundreds of human survivors as well as the leaders of the people of Forty-Seven Sixteen. Wanted to see how divergent the people of Forty-Seven Sixteen really were, Sor Talgron spoke with the head priest and discovered, much to his shock, that these people worshipped the Emperor as a God, and that they wanted to join the Imperium! Sor Talgron felt guilty for the genocide that had been committed by his Legion because of a misunderstanding. Informing the Primarch of what had transpired, the First Captain Kor Phaeron and a cadre of 100 Terminators teleported to the surface, materialising inside the dome, their weapons trained on the human worshipers. Then the Urizen and First Chaplain Erebus materialised, making their presence known. The Primarch dismissed the fact that the people of this world worshiped the Emperor as a God and that they had somehow obtained a copy of the Lectitio Divinitatus scribed by the Urizen himself. Lorgar informed Talgron that he had been penning a new magna opus, something that would make everyone forget the obsolete Lectitior Divinatus. This was to be the Book of Lorgar. The people of Forty-Seven Sixteen were condemned, for ignorance was no excuse for blasphemy. The Primarch explained to Captain Talgron that sometimes sacrifices had to be made, and with a signal to his First Captain the survivors of Forty-Seven Sixteen were massacred in a hail of Storm Bolter rounds.

Legion Organization
Before their fall from grace, it is recorded that the Word Bearers were not considered particularly different from the organisation of a typical Astartes Legion, apart from the number of zealous brothers whom served as Chaplains. Outside of their Legion, the Word Bearers' organisation is not currently known. Before the Horus Heresy, the Word Bearers Legion, like many of their fellow Astartes Legions were sub-divided into Chapters. A full Chapter consisted of one-thousand Astartes, sub-divided into 10 Companies, each 100 strong and led by Captains. It has also been noted that not all Chapters consisted of the standard 10 companies of 100 Astartes each. The Serrated Sun Chapter for example seems to consist of only three companies which each originally consisted of a 100 marines each. Also noted is that the order of companies in those Chapters is rather Chaotic. The Serrated Sun Chapter includes the 7th, 15th and 37th Companies of the Legion. Other Chapters are known to even have 20 or more companies. Despite being part of the greater Word Bearers Legion, every Chapter has its own traditions and its own role within Lorgar's Word.' Furthermore, each Chapter has its own iconography, symbology, and specific tactical role within the Legion, giving each their own distinct appearance. Four of these Chapters remain known to the Imperium today, bearing these logos:
 * A quill with a drop of blood at the nib
 * An open hand with an eye in the palm
 * A burning book
 * A sceptre crowned with a skull

Known Chapters of the Pre-Heresy Word Bearers Legion:
 * The Burning Hand Chapter - Commanded by Chapter Master Deinos, in keeping with the name of his Chapter, Deinos's gauntlets were permanently wreathed in flames from gas jets built into his vambraces. Nothing is known of this Chapter's particular function or specialty.
 * Chapter of the Coiled Lash - Nothing is known of this Chapter's particular function or specialty.
 * Chapter of the Crescent Moon - Nothing is known of this Chapter's particular function or specialty.
 * Chapter of the Opening Eye - Commanded by Chapter Master Faerskarel, nothing is known about this Chapter.
 * Chapter of the Osseous Throne - Nothing is known of this Chapter's particular function or specialty.
 * Chapter of the Void - Led by Chapter Master Tenaebron, the Chapter of the Void was probably the least respected among the Word Bearers Legion for it was by far the smallest, with less than seven hundred Astartes. There was little glory in its history, used moreover as a reserve force that enacted its missions behind the front line. This grim dishonourable purpose fell to the Void and Tenaebron. Their Master did not complain, for he knew that his Chapter's true role was to create and test new weapons and tactics for the rest of the Legion. It had not gone unnoticed that Lorgar had ordered Tenebron to concern himself with the exploitation of the Word Bearers' psychic resources.
 * The Crimson Mask Chapter - Commanded by Chapter Master Rukis, battle-brothers of this Chapter were known to have the faceplate of their helmets wrought to resemble fearsome red-skinned snarling creature (daemons).
 * The Ebony Serpent Chapter - Commanded by Chapter Master-Skolinthos. Nothing is known of this Chapter's particular function or specialty.
 * The Quillborn (Chapter Symbol: A Quill with a drop of Blood at its base) - The Quillborn were so named because their traditions emphasised their birth, created in the Labratories and Apothecarions of Colchis. They were written into existence, born as syllables of the Word. A dedicated naval formation, the Quillborn were true marines, fighting ship-to-ship, completely at home battling through the cramped structure of a starship.
 * The Serrated Sun Chapter - Nothing is known of this Chapter's particular function or specialty.

Each of these Chapters represented a different aspect of the Word of Lorgar. After their corruption by the Ruinous Powers, alone amongst the Traitor Legions, the Word Bearers maintain a facsimile of their former discipline and faith. Word Bearers do not worship the Chaos Gods individually. Instead, the Word Bearers venerate and regard them as a Dark Pantheon of Chaos Gods, placing their faith within the concept of Chaos Undivided. The Sons of Lorgar view those who limit their worship to a single Chaos God with contempt and are partially at odds with the Emperor's Children for their decadence and devotion to Slaanesh alone. The Word Bearers often rely on daemons as shock troops, 'meat-shields', and to form the bulk of their armies. Their elite Chaos Space Marines are used to accomplish vital tasks. The Word Bearers have been known to have a massive base of Chaos Cultists, and have used cultists and insurgents in their assaults since the Great Crusade. However, unlike the Alpha Legion, the primary use of Chaos Cultists for the Word Bearers is only as cannon fodder and distractions.

The Word Bearers are notable for being the only Traitor Legion who still have a corps of Chaplains, now known instead as Dark Apostles. The Word Bearers follow the words of their Dark Apostles with total faith in battle. The Dark Apostles divine through many ways how a battle is to be fought and won, and the warriors of the Host of Lorgar obey unquestioningly. Before battle, the Word Bearers gather in ritual prayer, chanting hymns and cult doctrine to affirm their faith in the power of Chaos Undivided. Often these chants will be answered and it is common for the Word Bearers to fight alongside daemonic entities.

A corps group of the most dedicated and powerful Dark Apostles within the Legion make up an evil priesthood known as the Dark Council. This elite cadre is the main ruling body, enforcing the will of their Daemon Primarch Lorgar and the Chaos Gods. They rule from their immense cathedral-fortress known as the Basilica of the Word upon the Daemon World of Sicarus, located deep within the Eye of Terror. They rule the legion in absence of their Primarch, who has isolated himself in meditation within the Temple Inficio to seek enlightenment and commune with the Ruinous Powers.

Specialty Units

 * Host - Each Dark Apostle enforces a strict regime of worship of the Ruinous Powers upon their fellow Word Bearers and are also highly likely to be found leading the elements of the Legion in battle. Each Dark Apostle is gifted a warband of his own, known as a Host. The numbers vary, with the smallest typical size for a Word Bearers Host roughly analogous to that of a standard Space Marine company of 100 Astartes, and the largest exceeding the manpower of a full Space Marine Chapter of 1,000 warriors. The organisational make-up of each Host differs wildly as well, and can change depending on the whims of the Dark Apostle that leads it. Often they will suddenly alter the hierarchy of their Host for reasons known only to themselves. These changes can result in seemingly unwieldy or tactically inflexible formations. The Word Bearers themselves accept these changes without question. The most commonly occurring structure for a Word Bearers Host is that roughly equating to a Space Marine Company, with the Host broken down into units of about twelve Traitor Marines. Each is commanded by a Chaos Champion of the Word Bearers who strives to become as devout a war leader as the Dark Apostle in the hope of one day being chosen to succeed him on the occasion of his death. The Word Bearers then march into battle beneath their standards, bellowing catechisms of hatred at their foe as drums beat out a dolorous thunder. The relentless advance of the Word Bearers is a terrifying sight, as the monotonous chant and beat of drums can break even the strongest will. The unshakable belief of the Word Bearers in the truth of Chaos and their cause has seen them marching into certain death, yet unwilling to take a single step backwards. A battle ends either in victory or the utter destruction of the Word Bearer Host.
 * Dark Apostle - The Dark Apostles are the corrupted Chaplains of the Word Bearers Chaos Space Marines Traitor Legion, who gleefully redirected the Legion's fanatical zeal from preaching of the Imperial faith to howling the praises of Chaos. They serve as the spiritual and overall leader for their own Word Bearer Host. In battle they are skilled demagogues, able to exhort followers to greater acts of bravery and depravity - enemy commanders have often found out to their cost that the only way to truly blunt an attack by such fanatics is to either remove the Apostle, or destroy each and every Word Bearer facing them. Their strategies sometimes border on prescience.
 * First Acolyte - The First Acolyte serves as an apprentice to a Dark Apostle and will inherit a portion of the Host when the Dark Apostle and the Dark Council see fit to allow it. There are only three ways for a First Acolyte to become the Dark Apostle of his own Host: to wait for the current Dark Apostle to die in battle, to be elected as the new Dark Apostle by the Dark Council, from the Daemon World of Sicarus or for the First Acolyte to kill the Dark Apostle himself and await the Dark Council's appointment as the new Dark Apostle. In any case, the Acolyte will need the Dark Council's blessings to become a Dark Apostle.
 * Coryphaus - The largest known Host of the Word Bearers numbered over two thousand Chaos Marines at its peak. The size of this force required that the Dark Apostle be served by two chief lieutenants, his First Acolyte and a Chaos Champion, called the Coryphaus. The role of the Coryphaus is to be the intermediary between the Dark Apostle and his Host. This allows the Dark Apostle to be seen primarily as a spiritual figure. Furthermore, the Coryphaus is essentially the military commander on the ground and is responsible for making the majority of the tactical decisions on the battlefield, freeing the Dark Apostle to commune with the dark powers, fuel the hatred of the Host and ponder strategic matters.
 * The Annointed - The Annointed are the warrior-cult of the most favoured warriors within the Word Bearers Traitor Legion. Additionally, a Host often possesses an Icon Bearer and an elite unit of The Annointed, consisting of over 200 Chaos Terminators.
 * Gal Vorbak (Colchisian for the "Blessed Sons") - Space Marines of the Serrated Suns Chapter of the Word Bearers Legion who ventured into the Eye of Terror Warp rift and brought back the Primordial Truth of the existence of Chaos to their Primarch Lorgar. The Gal Vorbak were originally the 1,000 Space Marines of the Serrated Sun Chapter of the Word Bearers lead by their Chapter Master Argel Tal. Their Power Armour was painted red as opposed to the standard pre-Heresy Word Bearer colour scheme of grey, which differentiated them from the rest of the Legion. During the Drop Site Massacre on Istavan V when the Traitor Legions betrayed their Loyalist brethren, the Gal Vorbak underwent another change. When Lorgar attacked Corax, the Primarch of the Loyalist Raven Guard Legion, all of the members of the Gal Vorbak were possessed by daemons; their flesh and Ceramite fusing and warping into new, bestial forms. The Gal Vorbak resumed their normal forms of Space Marines again, though the battle had proven costly and only six of their number had survived taking on a Primarch in battle to continue to fight in the service of Chaos throughout the rest of the Horus Heresy. They remaining members of the Gal Vorbak became the most feared unit in the Word Bearers Traitor Legion.

Legion Combat Doctrine
The Word Bearers follow the words of their Dark Apostles with utter loyalty and faith in battle, and they in turn interpret the will of Lorgar by many and varied means. The means to win a battle may be contained within the entrails of a particular captive, a particular alignment of the stars or the pattern of cast bones. The Dark Apostles decree how the battle is to be fought and the warriors of the Host obey unquestioningly. Before battle, the Word Bearers gather in ritual prayer, chanting blasphemous hymns and forbidden doctrine to affirm their faith in the power of Chaos. Often these chants will be answered and it is common for the Word Bearers to fight alongside hideous daemonic entities that have made diabolical pacts with the Dark Apostles.

The Word Bearers then raise their damned standards high and march into battle beneath cursed icons, bellowing catechisms and canticles of hatred at their foe as hideous drums beat out a dolorous thunder. The relentless advance of the Word Bearers is a terrifying sight, as the monotonous chant and beat of drums can break even the strongest will. The night before battle, the enemy can hear dark mutterings emanating from all around, echoed in the pounding drums, stretching the nerve and instilling every man with fear. The unshakable belief of the Word Bearers that they alone can save the galaxy has seen them marching towards certain death, yet unwilling to take a single step backwards. Any victory won over the Word Bearers is only won at a terrible cost, as their attacks will only ever end when all are dead.

Legion Homeworld
Colchis was once a technologically advanced world that regressed to a feudal state during the Age of Strife. The arrival of Lorgar brought with it both a blessing and a curse. A blessing because it brought the world into the fold of the Imperium, a curse because his arrival signed the planet's death warrant many hundreds of years later. Under Lorgar's brief rule the planet prospered, but when the Emperor came to Colchis and put Lorgar in command of the Word Bearers, those he left behind allowed the world to fall into decline. When the Ultramarines took the fight to Colchis, they found a devastated world, its industry in ruins and its people clinging desperately to civilisation. Given Lorgar's treachery, the Inquisition ordered the planet to be cleansed and the Ultramarines battle barge, Octavius, bombarded Colchis with cyclonic torpedoes. The geological structure of Colchis was highly unstable and the resultant seismic activity split the planet apart. Nothing now remains of Colchis and where it once existed is still a closely guarded secret.

The Word Bearers currently reside on the Daemon World of Sicarus within the Eye of Terror. Beneath churning clouds of pendulant fire and blood the surface of Sicarus is covered by massive temples, towering cathedrals and blasphemous monuments dedicated to the worship of the Chaos Gods. Millions of slaves toil endlessly in the construction and raising of new structures and monuments of dark devotion. New levels are built upon existing crumbling edifices which results in towering spires that reach kilometres into the foreboding sky. The building beneath them result in sprawling subterranean warren of labyrinthine passages that interconnect the various devotional structures. From this Daemon planet, the Word Bearers Dark Council, a collection of the Word Bearers Leigon's most powerful Dark Apostles is the main ruling body that leads the XVII Legion in the absence of their Daemon Primarch, who has isolated himself in meditation for millennia within the Templum Inficio. The seat of the Dark Council is located within the immense cathedral-fortress known as the Basilica of the Word. This structure is crowned with hundreds of five kilometre high barbed spires, each studded with jagged spikes, upon which are impaled countless living sacrifices.

Legion Beliefs
Rooted in the beliefs of Lorgar himself, the Word Bearers are the heralds of a terrible new age of religious servitude. Only united behind the teachings of a god and offering the obeisance that such a god requires can the masses of Humanity be saved from the perils of alien menace and internal schism. There is only one power in the galaxy worthy of such submission, and that is the dark majesty of Chaos. Each warrior of the Word Bearers is a missionary bringing the darkness of Chaos with them, preaching the one true faith to those that will hear it and exterminating those who will not. Their belief is simple, tread the path of Chaos or die.

Gene-Seed
The gene-seed of the Word Bearers was originally thought to be pure, but events subsequent to the Horus Heresy revealed the weaknesses inherent in their genetic make-up. The Space Marines of the Word Bearers have a marked tendency towards dogged, unquestioning belief and stubbornness that verges on insanity. Since the Heresy, their gene-seed has become corrupted beyond redemption and those negative traits have been magnified to hideous proportions. The Word Bearers do not display a particular tendency towards mutation, though those who are gifted with such blessings of Chaos are much favoured amongst their Host.

Notable Word Bearers

 * Lorgar - Primarch of the Word Bearers.
 * Kor Phaeron - Black Cardinal of the Word Bearers.
 * Erebus - First Chaplain of the Word Bearers.
 * Ekodas - Grand Apostle of the Word Bearers and a member of the ruling Dark Council. However, he was a member of The Brotherhood - a clandestine, internal sect within the Word Bearers legion that has been formed three times. Primarch Lorgar ordered its formation on two separate occasions during the initial purges of his Legion. Kor Phaeron ordered its formation a third time in order to overthrow Erebus, whom the First Captain felt had too much sway with the will of the Dark Council. He led the assault against the Boros Gate System but was killed by the Grey Knights Space Marine Chapter.
 * Eliphas the Inheritor - Dark Apostle, leader of the Dark Crusade on Kronus. Currently allied with the Black Legion.
 * Chapter Master Deinos - Commanded the Burning Hand Chapter. In keeping with the name of his Chapter, Deinos's gauntlets were permanently wreathed in flames from gas jets built into his vambraces.
 * Jarulek - Dark Apostle, served as a former First Acolyte to the Dark Apostle known as the Warmonger during the Horus Heresy during the assault on the Emperor's Imperial Palace at the Battle of Terra. He later served as the Coryphaus to the First Captain Kor Phaeron. (Deceased)
 * Marduk - Dark Apostle, former First Acolyte of Jarulek. Part of The Brotherhood which eliminated all Word Bearers who failed to comply with the new direction of the Legion, including all Terran born marines. Fought at Calth against the Ultramarines Legion.
 * Sor Talgron, the Warmonger - Dark Apostle, Sor Talgron served as the Captain of the 34th Company during the Great Crusade era. He took part in the compliance of Forty-Seven Sixteen. He was stationed on Terra during the Horus Heresy. Known to have worn Terminator Armour with a Chaplain's Skull Helm. Fought at the walls of the Emperor's Imperial Palace during the Battle of Terra. Eventually rose to the esteemed rank of Dark Apostle. Was mortally wounded in battle and interred within a Dreadnought and has managed to retain most of his sanity through his dark faith, though at times his hold on reality slips, and he believes he is once against fighting alongside his Primarch during the Horus Heresy.
 * Garand - Warmaster, Garand is a mighty warrior and formidable psyker. He served under Captain Jerulek during the Great Crusade at the battle of Fortrea Quintus, reveling in the slaughter of the planet's population. He rose through the ranks of the Word Bearers Legion and eventually became the Witch-Prince of Helicia. He went on to earn the esteemed rank of Warmaster with the command over a thousand Hosts.
 * Chapter Master Faerskarel - Commanded the Opening Eye Chapter.
 * Chapter Master Rukis - Commanded the Crimson Mask Chapter. Like all Astartes of his Chapter, Rukis wore a helm whose faceplate was wrought to resemble a fearsome red-skinned snarling creature.
 * Chapter Master Skolinthos - Commanded the Ebony Serpent Chapter. Skolinthos's oesophagus had been crushed in the early years of the Great Crusade when it was the Emperor whom the Word Bearers vaunted above all others. His voice crackled sibilantly through a vocal synthesiser on his chest.
 * Chapter Master Tenaebron - Commanded the Chapter of the Void, the least respected Chapter amongst the Word Bearers Legion, primarily used as a reserve force that enacted its missions behind the front line. Though his Chapter's true role was to create and test new weapons and tactics for the rest of the Legion as well as studying ways to exploit the Word Bearers' psychic resources.
 * Kol Badar - A very capable commander and formidable warrior, Kol Badar rose the rank of Captain during the Great Crusade. He was instrumental in the assault upon the world of Forty-Seven Sixteen. He served under the Dark Apostle known as the Warmonger serving as his Coryphaus. Kol Badar harboured an extreme hatred for Markuk whom through undisclosed circumstances, was responsible for the death of his closest blood-brother towards the beginning of the Horus Heresy. Kol Badar was known to have been a part of the Host that fought during the Battle of Terra. Known to wear an ornate suit of Terminator Armour with horned helmet that has the Blessed Horns of Colchis. His helmet face is crafted in the likeness of a snarling bestial visage. He fights with a Combi-Bolter and an ancient clawed Power Fist. Kol Badar leads the elite cadre of Chaos Terminators known as The Annointed into battle.

7th Grand Company/Host
 * Argel Tal - Captain of the 7th Assault Company of the Chapter of the Serrated Suns. After the Horus Heresy, Argel Tal became known as the Crimson Lord of the few remaining Gal Vorbak.
 * Xaphen - Chaplain of the 7th Assault Company of the Chapter of the Serrated Suns.
 * Dagotal - Sergeant, Dagotal Outrider Squad
 * Malnor - Sergeant, Malnor Assault Squad
 * Torgal - Sergeant, Torgal Assault Squad

18th Grand Company/Host
 * Sarabdal - From Colchis, handpicked by Lorgar for his position within the Legion.

34th Grand Company/Host
 * Arshaq - Sergent
 * Paeblen - Sergeant
 * Bachari - Assault-Sergent
 * Aecton - Battle-Brother
 * Burias Drak'Shal - Icon Bearer of the 34th Host. Born on Colchis, Burias was inducted after the Word Bearers switched to the worship of Chaos. Lived in a Monastery-Prison. He fought under the command of Dark Apostle Jarulek and later Marduk, being the latter's blood-sworn brother and closest ally. During the Horus Heresy he fought at Calth against the Word Bearers hated rivals, the XIIIth Legion Ultramarines. Known also as Burias Drak'Shal due to his joining with the soul of a Daemon.
 * Khadmon - Battle-Brother
 * Kol Badar - Assault-Brother Sergent/Tacticion. Later became Coryphaus of Jarulek and then Marduk.
 * Urhlon - Apothecary

Known Word Bearers Daemon Princes
 * Kor Megron, the Reaper of Rhodax - Daemon Prince from the Word Bearers Traitor Legion. During the Great Crusade era, Kor Megron was known as a brave and formidable warrior whom brought many glories to the Imperium. Following the defeat of Warmaster Horus and the failure of the Horus Heresy, Megron swore eternal allegiance to the Ruinous Powers. Upon the Cathedral World of Rhodax he fought the forces of the Imperium, and through his dark, unflinching devotion to the Chaos Gods, he was rewarded with Deamonhood.
 * M'kar the Reborn - Daemon Prince from the Word Bearers Traitor Legion. He was once known as the Dark Apostle Maloq Kartho. During the Horus Heresy he took part in the attack on the hated Ultramarines on the world of Calth, where he was eventually slain by Captain Ventanus who used a small flint dagger known as the Shard of Erebus. Rewarding his dark devotion to the Chaos Gods for the blood slaughter he wreaked on Calth, Kartho was resurrected as a Daemon Prince. He has been a bane to the Imperium of Man for over ten millennia.

Known Word Bearers of the Furious Abyss
 * Zadkiel - Fleet Captain of the Furious Abyss.
 * Baelanos - Assault-captain of the Furious Abyss.
 * Ikthalon - Brother-Chaplain of the Furious Abyss.
 * Reskiel - Sergeant-commander of the Furious Abyss.
 * Malforian - Weapon Master of the Furious Abyss.

Legion Fleet
During the Horus Heresy the Word Bearers are known to have possessed the following vessels: The make-up of the Word Bearers' Legion fleet since the Horus Heresy is unknown in Imperial records.
 * Crucius Maledictus (Infernus-class starship) - Before the Heresy this ship was known as the Flame of Purity. It was heavily damaged after fighting the Loyalist White Scars Legion.
 * Destiny's Hand (Battle Barge) - Commanded by First Chaplain Erebus.
 * Furious Abyss (Unique Battleship) - Commanded by Fleet Captain Zadkiel.
 * Infidus Imperator (Battle Barge) - Commanded by Lord Kor Phaeron.
 * Infidus Diabolus (Strike Cruiser) - Commanded by Dark Apostle Jarulek.
 * Kamiel (Battleship)
 * Lorgar's Spite (Battleship)

Legion Colours
The Pre-Heresy Word Bearers Legion originally wore slate grey coloured Power Armour complete with inscribed/engraved prayers, phrases, and words of devotion, with no contrasting colors. Word Bearers Chaplains wore the slate grey armour of the Legion, being distinguished by gold armour trim and their Crozius. The Chaplains repainted their armour black following the Legion's reprimanding by the Emperor in Monarchia, "...in remembrance of the ashes coating every warrior's armour." First Chaplain Erebus was known to have a clean shaven head which was richly tattooed with religious sayings and imagery. It is not known whether or not this was standard practice amongst the members of the Chaplaincy. After their fall to the Ruinous Powers the Word Bearers adopted a new colour scheme: red-coloured Power Armour the colour of spilt blood which is sometimes worn with black or silver trim. Heretical prayers are inscribed/engraved directly onto the surface of their armour. Often times Word Bearers Traitor Marines are also seen wearing devotional prayer sheets hanging from their armour's shoulder pads - the blasphemous words of the 'Book of Lorgar' inscribed upon them.

Legion Badge
The insignia of the Pre-Heresy Word Bearers Legion was an opened book surmounted by a burning flame of truth, which was prominently displayed on the left shoulder pad. Falling their corruption by the Ruinnous Powers the Word Bearers adopted new iconography; the screaming head of a demon superimposed over a blazing fire.

Loyalist Word Bearers Controversy
Although the Word Bearers Legion had initially been thrown into disarray after their public humiliation and rebuke by the Emperor on the world of Khul, it has been established that the Legion was divided into two camps. Those who remained faithful to the previous religion which held the Emperor of Mankind to be the God of Humanity taught by their Primarch (primarily the Astartes from Terra) and those who began to embrace the dark precepts of Chaos, rediscovered by Lorgar after long meditation and study (primarily the Astartes from Colchis). The Word Bearers kept their faith in Chaos secret for many decades, remaining loyal, at least in name, to the Imperial path, until the events of the Drop Site Massacre on Istvaan V, after which time they openly embraced their new faith without any pretense and eagerly joined the Horus Heresy.

Were there those among the Legion who still wished to serve the Emperor? The current literature would seem to indicate as much. The post-Heresy novels inform the reader that those who refused to accept this new creed were “purged” from the Legion over the course of one week. They intimate that this involved the elimination of every one of the Terran-born members of the Legion, as well as any Colchisian Astartes who refused to accept the new religious doctrine espoused by their Primarch. In order to accomplish these purges, Lorgar ordered an internal sect known as The Brotherhood to be formed, composed of his most loyal sons to carry out his will. The Urizen was notably mournful, acting with great reluctance when his hand was forced to form this clandestine sect.

The Word Bearers novel Dark Creed by Anthony Reynolds speaks of the purges within the ranks of the Word Bearers against the Terran-borne Astartes:

&nbsp "Our Fraternity represents divine change. On ancient Colchis, a billion souls were released from earthly flesh in the Brotherhood's purge of the Covenant, and great was the rejoicing; and stronger did Colchis become. The second cleansing saw the Legion's ranks purified of Terran taint; and stronger did the Legion become, its chaff cast aside." (p. 111)

&nbsp ''"The Second Purge came a century later, after our blessed lord, the Urizen, had reunited with his Legion; after our glorified primarch's eyes were opened to the lies of the golden-tongued so-called Emperor of Mankind." ''(pp. 184-185)

''"With realization came the understanding that the old beliefs of Colchis were the only truth in the universe; that the old gods were the only powers worthy of our faith and worship. There were those amongst our blessed Legion that would not have understood these things, brainwashed and conditioned as they had been in their formative years. Our lord Lorgar once more reformed the Brotherhood, again with great mourning and remorse. Thus were the Legion's ranks cleansed and unified. In one week, thus were all warrior brothers of Terran birth eradicated, leaving only those brothers of Colchis blood behind." ''(pp. 184-185)

''"Great was the Urizen's lamentation, for those warriors slain were his sons, his flesh and blood, children of his own gene-code. And yet, through no fault of their own and as a direct result of being raised in isolation from him, they had to be removed. Their will had been utterly corrupted by the lies of the False Emperor. Their souls had been closed off to the great truth." ''(pp. 184-185)

There are a number of unanswered questions. Imperial records repeatedly describe units of Word Bearers stationed on Terra even as the Horus Heresy broke out, but it does not explain what happened to them. In addition, like every other Legion, it is quite likely that the Word Bearers had their Astartes scattered in several different sectors, on missions that were sometimes held in common with other, Loyalist, formations. The fate of these Astartes remains unknown.

The simple answer, for the moment, is that we can generally assume that, however briefly, there were Loyalists in the service of the Word Bearers, but we cannot be certain how many, where they were located, or even for how long they were permitted to exist. Previous sources intimated that there were Loyalists from all of the Traitor Legions who were eventually absorbed by other Legions or chosen for new tasks – but this contentious issue has not yet been settled.

Gallery
[[Category:W]]