The Kabal of the Severed, known to the Imperium simply as "The Severed," are a spacebound Drukhari Kabal that left Commorragh hundreds of Terran years ago.
The Severed have plagued the systems of the Ghoroid Strip since time immemorial.
Their brightly painted Raiders and Ravagers are adorned with chains of shrivelled hands taken from other Drukhari, Space Marines and Imperial Guardsmen alike.
History[]
Kabalite Warrior of The Severed
The archon of the Kabal of the Severed, S'aronai Ariensis, once botched a coup that cost him his place in the Dark City and most of his left hand. He defiantly refuses to regenerate his wound, and his warriors are often mutilated in the same manner as a sign of respect, their left hands reduced to talons or replaced by augmetic claws.
It is a testament to Archon Ariensis' utter ruthlessness that, having lost such face before his followers, he managed to retain the reins of power. Indeed, in the days following his and his Kabal's exile from the Dark City, Ariensis faced challenges to his authority almost daily. Each was answered with sudden, shocking violence, the archon making such hideous examples of his rivals that those who remained soon lost all desire to attempt coups of their own.
Now the Severed are a force to be reckoned with once again. With his authority beyond dispute, Archon Ariensis has fought a Terran centuries-long campaign against all who cross his path. His Kabal's pirate fleet -- once a ragtag collection of battle-damaged voidcraft -- has become a sleek flotilla of hundreds. They strike at will, navigating the broader sections of the Webway with peerless skill to strike against worlds across the galaxy and even, on rare occasions, Commorragh itself...
Notable Campaigns[]
- Battle for the Thaxar Rift (745.M35) - The Chaos-worshipping Human pirates and Renegades that make their lairs in the Thaxar Rift became so powerful that they proved a serious problem to The Severed, those Drukhari Kabalite fleets seeking to plunder the rift at their leisure. Rather than face the Renegades directly, Archon S'aronai Ariensis ensured that his foes came to the attention of the Navis Imperialis and Adeptus Astartes, and a grinding war ensued. The Severed haunted the edges of this conflict, tales of murderous ghosts and xenos pirates spreading like wildfire in their wake among the Humans while they tested and studied the Imperium's way of war. Eventually the Imperium's forces were reduced to a shadow of their former might. The Thaxar Wars turned into a grinding stalemate that lasted for six standard years before the area was declared lost to the Emperor's realm and subjected to systematic and aggressive Exterminatus actions. The Drukhari watched and learned from the spectacle. While the doomed worlds still smouldered, the Severed descended in full force. They annihilated the surviving Navis Imperialis warships left behind to watch over Thaxari space, before proceeding to plunder and pillage the remaining Humans at will.
Sources[]
- Codex: Drukhari (8th Edition), pg. 44
- Codex: Dark Eldar (7th Edition), pp. 17, 49
- Codex: Dark Eldar (5th Edition), pp. 21, 63
- Colours of the Kabals (Defunct Games Workshop Site) (Picture)