Sanguinary Brotherhood

The Sanguinary Brotherhood, also referred to as the "Chapters of the Blood" and more poetically as the "Sons of Sanguinius," are those Space Marine Chapters created from the genetic legacy of the Blood Angels Legion's angelic primarch Sanguinius. Like all those of the Adeptus Astartes who bear the blood of the Great Angel, the Space Marines of the Sanguinary Brotherhood are afflicted by the terrible genetic Flaw found within Sanguinius' gene-seed which leads to the onset of the conditions known as the Red Thirst and the Black Rage.

The great majority of these Chapters are culturally and politically bound quite strongly to their First Founding progenitor Chapter, and a great many went to Baal's aid when the Tyranids' Hive Fleet Leviathan struck Sanguinius' homeworld during the subsequent Battle of Baal.

Nonetheless, there are some Chapters of Sanguinius' bloodline that have less regard for their ancestral traditions or their brother Chapters. Some operate in isolation, either humiliated by how strongly the Flaw has gripped their ranks or determined to resolve the curse in their own way. Some are kept apart from their brothers by war for standard millennia at a time, and thus their traditions and cultures diverge.

History[]

Over the long Terran millennia of the Imperium's existence, the Blood Angels' genetic legacy has led to the Founding of dozens of Successor Chapters. Some, such as the Flesh Tearers, Angels Encarmine, Angels Sanguine, Blood Drinkers, and Angels Vermillion, have existed since the Second Founding and the dissolution of the ancient Blood Angels Legion following the end of the Great Scouring and the subsequent adoption of the Codex Astartes.

Others have been formed in later Foundings, though they are relatively few in comparison to the sons of Roboute Guilliman who comprise the Successor Chapters of the Ultramarines due to the twin genetic flaws of the Red Thirst and Black Rage that afflicts their gene-seed and severe losses suffered during the Horus Heresy. Many survive to this day, though some, such as the Knights Sanguine, have been destroyed in war, or have been declared Renegade, such as the Knights of Blood, or fatally undone by the Flaw of Sanguinius' legacy, such as the Flesh Eaters.

Each newly-forged Chapter of the Sanguinary Brotherhood helps to cement the legacy of the Primarch Sanguinius, ensuring it lives on as long as they fight. But as time has passed it is clear that, though all of these Chapters started their life drawing on the genetic and cultural legacy of the IX^th Legion, they have all diverged from their progenitor to some greater or lesser degree.

Some, such as the Angels Encarmine, have established a reputation beyond reproach and a legacy of heroism every bit as honourable as their founding Legion. Others, however, are barely recognisable. Indeed, the Carmine Blades are a Chapter who passed, perhaps accidentally, as descendants of the Ultramarines Legion for a considerable time, until a chance meeting with Astorath the Grim in the 41st Millennium revealed the truth behind their origins. The Carmine Blades had at last an answer for the strange symptoms that they had worked so hard to conceal from those around them -- they now had a name for the Red Thirst and Black Rage that they had hitherto been unable to explain.

It is well-known that the Sons of Sanguinius keep a firmly united counsel, convening on matters of grave import from time to time. In such conclaves, it is typical that all present defer to the Commander of the Blood Angels, although over the course of 10,000 standard years, there have been occasions when the voice of another is considered senior. One such case was when the newly-appointed Lord Commander Kalael of the Blood Angels succumbed to the Black Rage in the 35th Millennium and his brother Chapter Masters from the Angels Sanguine and Angels Vermillion jointly took up the mantle of seniority over the Brotherhood for a time, overseeing the reaction of the Sons of Sanguinius to WAAAGH! Vangrod, the Chaos incursion of Silas Gorehand and the latter phase of the Nova Terra Interregnum.

This spirit of cooperation has led the Sanguinary Brotherhood to stand together time and again, uniting in common cause against terrible enemies. A great example of this occurred during the fighting on the archeotech world of Hell's Hollow in the 37th Millennium, where the Angels Encarmine, Blood Drinkers and Blood Angels joined forces to crush a vast uprising of Chaos Cultists, and the subsequent Daemonic invasion. Likewise, in the 40th Millennium, a Knights of Blood and Flesh Tearers strike force routed a massive Craftworld Aeldari army from the Maiden World of Kal Eyath.

This cooperative attitude does not just extend to brother Chapters of the Blood Angels, either, and many times the successors have found themselves fighting beside other Imperial armies, such as during the Third War for Armageddon where the Flesh Tearers and Blood Angels bolstered the defences of that Hive World against innumerable Orks, or when the Blood Drinkers rescued the Cadian 35^th Regiment on Helios Alpha.

Most recently, a majority of the Sanguinary Brotherhood gathered to defend Sanguinius' homeworld of Baal in ca. 999.M41 from the great assault of Hive Fleet Leviathan, despite the fact that they likely all faced annihilation. Only the surprise intervention of the Khornate Bloodthirster Ka'Bandha, Sanguinius' ancient Daemonic nemesis, and the arrival of the Indomitus Crusade of the resurrected Primarch Roboute Guilliman allowed the Sons of Sanguinius to prevail in the terrible conflict that is now known as the "Devastation of Baal."

In the wake of the Sanguinary Brotherhood's reinforcement by the Primaris Marines brought by the Indomitus Crusade, and the assignment by Guilliman of the Blood Angels' Commander Dante as the new lord regent of the Imperium Nihilus, the Sanguinary Brotherhood faces the daunting challenges of the Era Indomitus with a renewed faith that they will be able to defeat the myriad foes of Mankind through steadfast faith and loyalty to the principles of the Great Angel.