Archon Vraesque Malidrach of the Kabal of the Flayed Skull
Vraesque Malidrach, self-styled as the "Murderprince of the Poisoned Crown," is the archon of the Drukhari Kabal of the Flayed Skull, the militarily second-strongest kabal of Commorragh. The Flayed Skull are specialists in the use of airpower and aerial attacks in carrying out their sweeping raids into realspace to claim loot and slaves from the "lesser races."
History[]
Archon Vraesque Malidrach of the mighty Kabal of the Flayed Skull was once a notorious, lowborn Reaver death racer. Malidrach survived over one hundred races in the laserloop of Commorragh's arena of Khad Mhetrul -- the Bitterspire -- and made a name for himself as a vicious competitor. Eventually, Vraesque the Reaver used his riches and fame to buy, bully or steal the allegiance of sufficient Kabalite followers to make himself Vraesque the archon. With this, the Kabal of the Flayed Skull was born.
Since its inception, this kabal has grown at an impressive rate. In terms of sheer logistical strength, the Flayed Skull is said to be second only to Asdrubael Vect's Kabal of the Black Heart. In the Terran centuries since Vraesque first formed his kabal, its victories have far outnumbered its defeats. This is thanks in no small part to Vraesque's incredible reactions, lighting-fast tactical mind and killer instincts.
Icon of the Drukhari Kabal of the Flayed Skull
The archon has never allowed the skills he learned as a Reaver to dull with disuse. Surrounding himself with similarly quick-witted lieutenants has ensured that the Kabal of the Flayed Skull never finds itself ambushed, trapped or outmanoeuvred. It does not take great imagination to see how this proves invaluable to a kabal in a city where most killing blows are struck from behind.
Archon Malidrach also favours overwhelming airborne strength in battle. As such, his kabal maintains mercenary contracts with an unprecedented number of Drukhari Razorwing Jetfighter pilots and Voidraven Bomber crews. Furthermore, Malidrach puts great stock in the winged Scourges, and rarely goes to battle without at least one band of these altered and augmented Drukhari warriors in his pay. When the Kabal of the Flayed Skull launches a raid, it fills the skies with screaming flocks of death-dealers, each vying for the murderous honour of claiming first blood.
The Kabal of the Flayed Skull has countless outposts and hideways scattered throughout Commorragh, from the dubious gambling dens of the Sprawlgates of Heng Khestuul, to hidden aerial platforms concealed in the Shadowcloud Abyss. However, the heart of the kabal's holdings, and the personal seat of power of Archon Malidrach himself, is the towering armoured eyrie in High Commorragh known as the "Poisoned Crown."
Inaccessible by any means other than flight, the Poisoned Crown towers above its surrounding districts. Bursting from the ground around its base comes an insane network of pipes, both metallic and organic. This tentacular tangle winds its way up the outside of the spire, making it appear as though the fortress is under attack by some promethean beast.
Finally, having squirmed their way up past countless weapon-blisters, torture galleries and aircraft hangars, the pipes reach the summit of the Poisoned Crown. Here, they grope skywards in a madman's idea of regal circlet. The pipes, issuing all the way from the laboratories of the Haemonculi far below, vent a constant stream of toxic fog. They wreath the crest of the kabal's lair in the vile miasma that gives the place its name; above which looms a statue of Vraesque himself.
During the Era Indomitus, Malidrach suffered his first great defeat at the hands of the Slaaneshi Chaos Lord Lucius the Eternal.
Wargear[]
Vraesque Malidrach has been known to wear bone-white armour, all the better to display the splattered blood of his victims.
Sources[]
- Codex: Dark Eldar (5th Edition), pg. 61
- Codex: Dark Eldar (7th Edition), pp. 90-94, 101-103, 118-120, 177
- Codex: Drukhari (8th Edition), pg. 19
- Codex Heretic Astartes - Chaos Space Marines (8th Edition), pg. 48
- White Dwarf (September 2019), "Galactic War Zones - Frozen Wastelands," pg. 42