Captain Erasmus Tycho of the Blood Angels
Captain Tycho of the Blood Angels during the Third War for Armageddon
Captain Tycho of the Blood Angels before succumbing to the Black Rage
Captain Tycho of the Death Company
Erasmus Tycho was the Captain of the Blood Angels Space Marines' 3rd Company, and proved instrumental in the Imperium's victory over the forces of the Orks during the Second War for Armageddon. In this conflict, half of his face was severely mutilated by a psychic attack from an Ork Weirdboy. From then on, Tycho wore a gold mask covering the damaged half of his face. Captain Tycho was slain during the Third War for Armageddon after succumbing to the Black Rage and joining the Blood Angels' Death Company.
History
Captain Erasmus Tycho was once the greatest strike leader the Blood Angels Chapter had ever known. Some even whispered that he would succeed Dante as the Chapter's Lord Commander. Today he is a grim reminder that even the Blood Angels' best and brightest Battle-Brothers are not safe from the embrace of the terrible Black Rage. Tycho took command of the Blood Angels 3rd Company when his predecessor was slain during the Second War for Armageddon. The former sergeant quickly proved his talent for command, orchestrating the the rout of Boss Grakka's Speed Freeks and recapturing kep Imperial defensive positions along the River Chaeron. Enheartened by their successes, the 3rd Company pushed on, striking at the Ork supply lines from Armageddon Prime. It was on just such a mission that Tycho and his company were ambushed. Though the Blood Angels proved victorious, their captain fell victim to an Ork Weirdboy's psychic assault early in the battle and was left for dead. Yet Tycho survived, but the after-effects of the psychic attack had paralysed half of his face, freezing it forever in a terrible rictus grin. Tycho's obsession with fine aesthetic taste and beauty was as great as that of any other Blood Angel and to him such a disfigurement was a fate worse than death. So it was that rage began to move into Tycho's once-pure heart, opening the dor to the pent-up anger that lay at the core of Tycho's being, just as it does for every man who is implanted with the the genetic legacy of Sanguinius. Unable to bear the pitiful looks of his Battle-Brothers, Tycho ordered the Chapter's most revered Artificer to forge a mask to cover his disfigurement. This simple act seemed to provide Tycho a measure of peace and for a time he displayed his old brilliance. For the remainder of the Armageddon Campaign, the Blood Angels 3rd Company remained in the thick of the fighting, Tycho commanding them as effectively as he had before, though none could deny that the captain now displayed an increased fervour whenever he tasted the tang of Ork blood.
In the wake of the Second War for Armageddon, it soon became clear that all was not right with Tycho. No longer could he relax in the halls of the Blood Angels' fortress-monastery on Baal, for its beauty served only to remind him of his own loss. Dante reluctantly assigned Tycho to permanent battle duty, yet even there he became ever more violent of temperament and his tactics soon became aggressive to the point of foolishness. Finally, as the Third War for Armageddon began, Tycho at last succumbed to the Black Rage that all knew had been long brewing within him and took his place in the Death Company. And it was on Armageddon, where he should have perished many years before, that Erasmus Tycho finally fell, tearing at the Ork defenders of Hive Tempestora with the fury of a man possessed by the rage of a Primarch.
Equipment
Tycho was given a suit of Artificer Armour in his role as a Blood Angels Captain. He carried a modified Combi-Melta called Bloodsong, capable of firing the special ammunition of the Blood Angels Sternguard Veterans. He wielded the Dead Man's Hand, a potent gauntlet capable of penetrating armour in close combat. After Tycho's induction into the Death Company, his Power Armour was painted black as required by the Blood Angels' ancient traditions.
Sources
- Codex: Angels of Death (2nd Edition)
- Codex: Blood Angels (3rd Edition)
- Codex: Blood Angels (4th Edition)
- Codex: Blood Angels (5th Edition)