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The Mark of Slaanesh

The Legions of Excess are the Daemonic armies of the Chaos God Slaanesh that exist within the Realm of Chaos. They sometimes manage to slip into realspace under the right conditions to seek an excess of pain and pleasure among the worlds of Humanity and xenos alike.

Slaanesh's Legions of Excess strike with a sinuous grace, hitting the foe in a whirling blur of lithe and bladed limbs. As they do so they are at once horrific and alluring, mesmerising and loathsome. Slaanesh's Daemonic legions vary in composition and purpose, but all desire to spread their lord's corruption. Slaanesh uses temptation and the promise of pleasures to seduce mortals and Daemons alike, and thus are many brought into submission by the Dark Prince. These insidious tactics take time, however, and often a less subtle approach is required to fulfil Slaanesh's whims.

When the souls of mortals need to be forcibly cut from their bodies rather than given willingly, or a territory within the Immaterium must be fought over, Slaanesh calls upon its Daemonic armies -- the Legions of Excess. Although Slaanesh's forces cannot match the raw power of Khorne's cohorts, the resiliency of Nurgle's tallybands, or the eldritch might of Tzeentch's hosts, they are possessed of a speed and lethality that is unequalled in the Immaterium and realspace both.

A god of whims and bizarre fancies, the Dark Prince encourages such personal fulfilment in its generals, the Keepers of Secrets -- the dark heart of a Legion of Excess. There are also noted instances of Legions of Excess being led by Daemon Princes, for Slaanesh lauds the greatest of its once-mortal champions perhaps more so than any of its brother-gods. While some of the Dark Prince's generals are obsessive in commanding a single type of Daemonic legion, the majority will change formations as mood or need suits them.

Each type of Legion of Excess varies greatly in both composition and the tactics they employ. The Flayer Legions are given over to wanton destruction, and their many Daemonettes take great pleasure in the act.

The Hunter Legions are masters of the quick kill, and are built primarily around fast-moving cavalry and chariots; they are ideal for tracking down specific quarry, for Slaanesh always collects his due.

The flamboyant Glamiatrix Legions are the most sorcerous, relying heavily upon psychic powers and mesmerism.

The Terror Legions are a shock force, specialising in elaborate, gory displays of combat; they are infamous for unleashing a barrage upon the senses that can overwhelm weak-willed enemies.

The Legions of Eternal Punishments have no specialty, but rather call upon all the damnations of Slaanesh, intermixing facets of magics and temptation alongside their finely-honed battle-craft.

Perhaps strangest of all the Legions of Excess, however, are the Courante Legions. To them, battle is but a dance; their garish Daemons whirl about one another as they slay the foe in bizarrely choreographed manoeuvres. While they lack the speed and pursuit of the other types of Legions of Excess, the elegance and creativity with which each kill is carried out often capture the favour of their divine master in a way that more practical assaults could never hope to emulate.

Beneath the Keepers of Secrets in hierarchy are the Heralds of Slaanesh or Daemon Princes that each lead one of the legion's subunits, known as "cavalcades." Of these formations there are six in total in each legion, for that is the sacred number most often associated with Slaanesh.

The main body of troops in most cavalcades are the Lesser Daemons known as Daemonettes, the handmaidens of the Lord of Pleasure. The cavalcades of those legions with a predilection for speed or hitting power, such as Hunter or Terror Legions, will often include a large number of Seeker cavalry, Seeker Chariots and Hellflayers in support of Daemonette packs.

Any of the legion types can include the Daemonic beasts known as Fiends, but they appear in greatest numbers in Glamiatrix and Terror Legions, and are infrequent in Courante Legions.

Sources[]

  • Codex: Chaos Daemons (8th Edition), pp. 22-25, 65
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