Chapter Summaries

The Third Legion and the Mordian Iron Guard invaded Planet IV, breaking through Rangdan defenses with orbital bombardment and ground assaults. Void Walkers arrived rapidly to destroy the inner fortresses, while Bukayo Arshavin used Forced Dream Induction to leave a Rangdan Overlord vulnerable to a fatal barrage.

• The Ramillies destroyed Planet IV’s orbital defenses and bombarded the planet until the Rangdan fortress shields fell.
• Stormbirds and transports landed, and the Third Legion and Mordian Iron Guard advanced against the Rangdan strongholds while Librarians tested a Neural Collar removal device.
• Bukayo Arshavin coordinated the assault as the troops destroyed gun turrets, but a Bastion-type Inner Fortress halted their advance with powerful energy bolts.
• The Dark Lord requested Void Walker support, and five Titans arrived swiftly and reduced the Rangdan bastion defenses to ash.
• Bukayo trapped a charging Rangdan Overlord in a psychic dream, and the command vehicle’s barrage shattered its shield and killed it.

On Planet VI, Santiago Bergkamp used Apprentice’s Open Door ability to surprise and kill a Rangdan Overlord while leading the Shadow of Order through the ice caverns. In orbit, Kion’s fleet repelled a Rangdan ambush and pursued the enemy until drone losses forced him to halt, as Nimrod reached Desolation Star.

• Santiago Bergkamp led fifty Shadow of Order through the ice caverns while his squad reported dwindling ammunition.
• Santiago detected the Rangdan Overlord and rejected explosives, a Warp Gate assault, and cutting through the reinforced ice wall as too risky or slow.
• Apprentice opened a ghostly blue door in the ice, allowing the Shadow of Order to fire through and Santiago to vaporize the Rangdan Overlord with his Archaeotech Pistol.
• The Rangdan Fleet ambushed the Expeditionary Fleet in orbit, but Kion identified the enemy ships and the Death Wither and Imperial Fleet unleashed their weapons against them.
• Kion’s fleet pursued the retreating Rangdan ships until swarming drones sank a forward capital ship, prompting him to stop the chase.
• Nimrod set foot on Desolation Star, the core world of the Rangdan outer defense line.

Nimrod used the Osiris Mind-Seed’s psychic staff to subdue Rangdan forces and prepare the Expeditionary Fleet for its decisive assault on the Helix-Mors homeworld. After directing the attack on the Artificial War Satellite and the Rangdan army, he planned to kill the Rangdan Warmaster himself.

• Nimrod seized control of Rangdan Warriors and Overlords with the psychic staff, then ordered the Librarians to collar the captives and send them to the Ramillies.
• The Expeditionary Fleet completed its campaign in Helix-Mors’s outer systems in fifty-seven stellar days and advanced toward the primary world as Rangdan drones harassed it.
• Arsena Dunn reported the Imperial casualties, the capture of 2,530 Rangdan, and the liberation of more than ten million human slaves.
• Nimrod ordered the Ramillies and Death Wither to suppress the Artificial War Satellite while the Fourth and 11th Chapters supported a boarding assault.
• Nimrod assigned the Third Legion and Void Walkers to attack the Rangdan army head-on, ordered other Legions to flank and strike its weak points, and planned to lead the Honor Guard against the Rangdan Warmaster.

The Expeditionary Fleet fought the Rangdan Artificial War Satellite, with the Ramillies-class Star Fortress eventually breaking through its defenses and enabling Imperial forces to board. The battle reached the satellite’s interior, where Bradshaw was killed by a Rangdan Overlord.

• The Tug crews drew the Ramillies closer to the Artificial War Satellites while Rangdan weapons destroyed or damaged many of their ships.
• The Ramillies and the Artificial War Satellite exchanged fire as the Expeditionary Fleet and Rangdan warships fought around them.
• On the thirteenth day, the Expeditionary Fleet gained a numerical advantage, and Diana Pauline ordered a saturation strike that destroyed the satellite’s Regional Power Center and disrupted its defenses.
• The Fourth Legion and the 11th Chapter advanced into orbit and launched boarding actions against the Artificial War Satellite.
• Bradshaw led his team into a Rangdan structure, fought its defenders, and was impaled and killed by a Tiger-headed Scorpion-tailed Overlord.

After Chapter Master Bradshaw fell, Per killed the Rangdan Overlord and took temporary command of the 11th Chapter for the assault on the Artificial War Satellite. The Expeditionary Fleet and Imperial forces launched a major offensive against the Rangdan on Spiral Horn–Morse, where Wilshire also slew an Overlord.

• Per led Fifth Company through Zone C-10, where the Librarians halted the Slave Army and his troops cleared the factory.
• After learning Chapter Master Bradshaw had fallen, Per joined the guard’s fight in Zone C-14 and killed the Rangdan Overlord with Ramsey’s help.
• The guard captain declared Per temporary Chapter Master, and the commanders accepted his leadership as the 11th Chapter prepared to capture the Artificial War Satellite.
• The Expeditionary Fleet entered low orbit and bombarded the Rangdan defenses on Spiral Horn–Morse while the Third Legion and Mordian Iron Guard landed and attacked the caves.
• Santiago Bergkamp and the Shadows of Order killed Rangdan Overlords as the Mordian Iron Guard fought through the Slave Army.
• Wilshire led the Shadows of Order against a Rangdan Overlord and smashed its head with his Thunder Hammer.

The Mordian Iron Guard and the Void Walker Titans fought back against a Rangdan counterattack, while Chief Apothecary Mikel used his Vampire abilities to battle Overlords and rescue the Shadow of Order. Mikel recovered a fallen battle-brother’s Gene-seed as the battle continued.

• The Mordian Iron Guard advanced on the Rangdan fortresses, destroying their shields and the enslaved army with tank fire.
• Rangdan Psykers broke through the Mordian line, prompting the Astartes and Titans to attack; Heart of Dreadnought killed a Rangdan Overlord.
• Mikel raced across the battlefield and weakened an Overlord’s shield with his Corrosion Claw, allowing the wolf pack to kill it at the cost of one Thunderwolf and twelve Catachan Wolves.
• Mikel treated a wounded Shadow of Order and gave him medicine that temporarily strengthened and paralyzed him so he could keep fighting.
• Mikel restrained an Overlord with Abyssal Shackles, and his Brainy Cat shattered its shield before the wolf pack attacked.
• The Chief Apothecary recovered Gene-seed from a fallen Shadow of Order while Mikel’s wolf pack attacked the Overlord.

The Shadow of Order and allied forces attacked the Rangdan army, and Pierre Wright killed a Rangdan Overlord. Saisak charged a massive Brain-Eater identified as the Rangdan Warmaster, who disarmed and began devouring him before golden lights marked the creature.

• Library members and Tech Sergeants used Spy Flies and Golden Garudas to track the battlefield and mark Rangdan targets for the Tactical Network.
• Thierry Vieira and Saisak ordered the attack, and Pierre Wright led Shadow of Order warriors through the slave army toward a Rangdan Overlord.
• Pierre Wright and five squad leaders overcame the Overlord's psychic assault, shattered his shield, and Pierre killed him with a Force Sword thrust.
• Saisak indulged in the battle's slaughter until he encountered a massive Brain-Eater surrounded by more than a thousand xenos, and Dickson identified it as a possible Rangdan Warmaster.
• Saisak ignored Dickson's warning and charged the Warmaster, whose Neurotoxin and psychic influence intensified Saisak's rage as the two fought.
• The Warmaster severed Saisak's sword arm and seized his head to devour him, but golden points of light appeared and the creature sensed it had been marked by a terrifyingly powerful being.

Nimrod subdued a Rangdan Brain-Eater without damaging its corpse, mourned Saisak, and secured the First Company's retreat before returning to the Nation of Disorder. He brewed and consumed the Sequence 6 “Baron of Corruption” potion, discovered its eleven enhanced abilities, and then examined the newly unsealed Sequence 5 “Mentor of Disorder” formula.

• Nimrod used Wild Howl and a mental illusion to distract the Rangdan Brain-Eater, then seized its corpse while killing a Rat-Headed Overlord with the Spear of Dionysus.
• Nimrod found Saisak dead, ordered the Shadows of Order to stop their frenzied slaughter, and appointed Kion as First Company Captain.
• Nimrod sent Kion and Arsena Dunn to pursue the fleeing Rangdan while he returned to the Nation of Disorder with the Brain-Eater's corpse and other potion ingredients.
• The Space Apes brewed the Baron of Corruption potion, and Nimrod consumed it to advance to Sequence 6.
• Nimrod examined his eleven enhanced abilities, including Rule Lines, Distortion, and Corrosion, and organized them by their effects and spirituality costs.
• Nimrod approached the Blasphemy Slate to inspect the newly unsealed Sequence 5 Mentor of Disorder potion formula.

Nimrod reviewed the difficult-to-collect ingredients for the Mentor of Chaos potion and joined Rian Ramillies and his Skitarii in the battle against the Rangdan on Xuanjiao-Morse. After the planet’s four-month cleansing, Lucius’s forces requested the technology for building Artificial War Satellites.

• Nimrod identified Soul-Eater Bees, Herud, Slaugth, and Enslavers as ingredients and considered preparations for the coming Rangdan wars.
• Nimrod invited Rian Ramillies to fight beside him, and Rian agreed to join the ground battle with his Skitarii.
• Nimrod saw Rian’s Skitarii burn the Slave Army with Volkite weapons and destroy a Rangdan Overlord’s energy shield.
• Nimrod used telekinesis to break a Rat-Headed Overlord’s Force Shield and kill him.
• After the cleansing of Xuanjiao-Morse lasted four stellar months, Lucius’s side requested Artificial War Satellite construction technology from Nimrod.

After the First Rangdan War, Nimrod arranged research into the Rangdan Artificial War Satellite, reviewed the Expeditionary Force’s losses, and honored the battle’s soldiers. He left the Fourth Legion at Gyro-Morse while the rest of the force returned to Vostonia to rest and prepare for the future Rangdan threat.

• Nimrod demanded permission for a technical team to study Lucius’s Hollow Furnace in exchange for allowing Lucius to join the Artificial War Satellite research, and the Envoy Magos agreed to take the request to the Fabricator-General.
• Nimrod gave Rian Ramillies the Know-it-all potion and assigned him to lead research on the Rangdan Artificial War Satellite and establish a mining base in the Rotary Horn-Morse system.
• Arsena Dunn reported that the Expeditionary Force had lost 5,410 Legion warriors and 138 ships, including 24 capital ships, while the Third Legion and Mordian Iron Guard suffered the heaviest casualties.
• Nimrod awarded Pierre the Order of the Broken Claw for killing four Rangdan Overlords and honored Santiago with an Iron Halo for his victory on Planet VI.
• Nimrod ordered the Fourth Legion to remain at Gyro-Morse to collect the dead, designated the Ramillies as a research and training base, and directed the Chapters to rotate through its training.
• Five days later, the Shadow of the Throne and the 11th Chapter’s fleet sailed back to Vostonia.

Nimrod inspected the newly completed Fortress-Monastery on Vostonia and accepted it from Wensue-HL-19, naming it Shadow Keep and ordering a Bastion-class Energy Shield. He then asked whether the Legion had enough gene-seed, while considering how he could provide more if needed.

• Arsena Dunn reported that the Vostonia and Triken Ramillies-class Star Fortresses were complete, while Nimrod assigned Mars's final Gloriana-class Battleship to the Third Legion.
• Nimrod agreed to meet Rogue Trader Lewis von Valerius at the Fortress-Monastery and traveled there with Arsena Dunn, Thomas, and Mikel.
• Wensue-HL-19 introduced the asymmetrical Fortress-Monastery, which combined a palace, defensive fortress, and Legion garrison, and Nimrod accepted it.
• Nimrod named the Fortress-Monastery Shadow Keep and ordered Legion Tech Sergeants to install and maintain a Bastion-class Energy Shield.
• Nimrod asked the Chief Apothecary whether the Legion's gene-seed stockpile was sufficient and considered drinking potions to replenish any characteristics he might pass on.

Nimrod reviewed the Legion’s Gene-seed reserves, ordered new facilities built at Shadow Keep, and agreed to lead a campaign against the Mitu United Empire in the Coronid Abyss. He planned to seek the First Legion’s help and headed to the Shadow of the Throne for the War Council.

• Mikel reported that the Legion had enough Gene-seed for recruitment, described safeguards and dispersed reserves, and Nimrod ordered one third of the Shadow of the Throne’s stock moved to Shadow Keep.
• Nimrod ordered the Apothecaries, Librarians, and Tech Sergeants to establish facilities at Shadow Keep, then summoned Lewis Von Valancius.
• Lewis told Nimrod that the Mitu United Empire enslaved humans and persecuted other species in the Coronid Abyss, and asked him to intervene.
• Nimrod weighed the campaign’s costs and strategic value, then agreed to lead his army against the Mitu.
• Nimrod decided to seek support from the Dusk Raiders and First Legion, then returned to the Shadow of the Throne to attend the War Council.

At the War Council, Nimrod reported the purge of Helix-Mors and agreed to lead the First Legion against the Mitu xenos. The Emperor then ordered Nimrod to accompany him to Prospero and bring back Magnus.

• Nimrod attended the War Council, where he traded barbs with Russ and Hannibal thanked him for the Salamanders meat.
• Nimrod reported that the xenos in Helix-Mors had been purged, though the campaign had cost the Shadow of Order more than five thousand dead.
• Nimrod warned the council that Rogue Trader Lewis von Valerius had discovered the Mitu xenos nation in the northeastern galaxy.
• Nimrod agreed to lead the First Legion and his own forces in the campaign against the Mitu, and the Emperor approved the plan.
• After dismissing the other council members, the Emperor ordered Nimrod to accompany him to Prospero and bring back Magnus.

Nimrod used his new authority in the Kingdom of Disorder to plan Hathor Maat’s Corrosion and bring him into his service. After approving a research agreement with Lucius, he ordered the expedition to Mitu to assemble.

• Nimrod summoned Bukayo Arshavin and awarded him a new Gloriana-class Battleship for his past merits.
• Nimrod explored the Fifth Layer Space and devised a plan to forcibly Corrode Hathor Maat, intending to use him as a loyal subordinate and spy among the Thousand Sons.
• Nimrod planned to join the Thousand Sons’ warship under the pretense of concern and draw Maat into the Kingdom of Disorder while helping the Legion.
• Arsena Dunn reported that the Tech Sergeants had chosen sites for the Foundry and fortress armory, and that Lucius had agreed to a supplementary research agreement.
• Nimrod approved and signed the agreement granting Shadow of Order access to Lucius’s Hollow Furnace for research, then ordered the expedition to Mitu to assemble.

Nimrod assembled forces for the campaign against the Mitu and traveled with Ahzek Ahriman to help find the Primarch of the Fifteenth Legion. He arranged for the Shadows of Order to assist the Thousand Sons with their flesh-change, and their Apothecaries discovered they were unaffected by it.

• Nimrod ordered the Sixth, Tenth, and 11th Chapters to muster at Lucius, called the First Legion and XIV Legion to join them, and directed the 28th Expeditionary Fleet to wait in the Sol System.
• Mars transferred a Gloriana-class Battleship to Bukayo Arshavin, giving Nimrod's Legion four such ships.
• Nimrod met Ahzek Ahriman, recognized his weakness and distress, and promised to accompany him to find the Primarch of the Fifteenth Legion.
• Ahriman explained that the Thousand Sons' flesh-change spread among nearby Legionaries and that infected warriors were isolated in crystal coffins with stasis fields.
• Nimrod sent his Apothecaries and Honor Guard to help monitor and contain the affected Thousand Sons, and a Shadow of Order Apothecary alerted the Thousand Sons when a patient's vital signs surged.
• The Thousand Sons learned that the Shadows of Order were unaffected by flesh-change and wondered whether their Legion suffered from a genetic flaw.

Nimrod used the Fifth Layer Space to cure Mhat’s flesh mutation and corrupt him into serving as a spy within the Fifteenth Legion. He sent Mhat back to the Thousand Sons with new abilities and a way to receive orders, leaving him poised to gather their secrets.

• Nimrod secretly entered Maat’s chamber and drew him into the black mist of the Fifth Layer Space.
• Nimrod cured Maat’s flesh mutation and demanded loyalty beyond the orders of Magnus and the Emperor.
• After thirty-three days, Mhat knelt before Nimrod and pledged to serve him, marked by a black sphere above his head.
• Nimrod ordered Mhat to return to the Fifteenth Legion and follow his commands without answering aloud.
• Nimrod gave Mhat a Spectator potion, and Mhat promised to use its powers to bring him the Legion’s secrets.

The Tiger Eye Titans, House Mordred, and the Shadow of Order 7th Legion purged Humala’s savage tribes and Tarellian war-beasts. Sage Neto became Incaladion’s new Fabricator-General, and Nimrod sent Sanchez’s Legion to rest before its next orders.

• Anton led the Tiger Eye Titans and House Mordred’s Knights into battle against Humala’s war-beasts and Savage Tribes.
• Victor Mordred killed a Savage Tribe wizard after breaking through his Force Shield.
• Thibault and Pyromancer killed the leader of Humala’s largest Savage Tribe during their assault on its camp.
• Sage Neto announced Incaladion’s rebirth and was chosen as its new Fabricator-General.
• Sanchez reported Incaladion’s liberation to Nimrod, who ordered the 7th Legion to rest and reorganize before its next deployment.
• Nimrod returned to the real world and boarded a Stormbird bound for the Bucephalus.

The Emperor and Nimrod arrived on Prospero, where Magnus welcomed them and presented his plans for Tizca’s future. After the Emperor departed two days later, Nimrod stayed in the city.

• Nimrod surveyed Prospero and Tizca from the Stormbird, noting the threat of Soul-Eater Bees and the city’s rebuilding around the Square of the Hidden Eye.
• The Emperor and Nimrod landed near Tizca, where Magnus warmly embraced the Emperor and greeted Nimrod as his brother.
• Magnus introduced Amon to the Emperor and Nimrod, then guided them through Tizca and described his plans to expand the city and eliminate the Soul-Eater Bees.
• Magnus presented the Emperor as The Ultimate One to Tizca’s scholars, and the gathered figures knelt with him in loyalty.
• The Emperor left Prospero after two days, while Nimrod remained in Tizca.

Nimrod took selected members of the Honor Guard to hunt Soul-Eater Bees, giving them a firsthand chance to learn how to fight the dangerous creatures. After a five-hour battle, the group captured 316 bees, including a Queen Bee that Nimrod planned to use as an ingredient for his Mentor of Chaos potion.

• Magnus met his son Hathor Maat and asked for his help, while Nimrod led the selected Honor Guard aboard a Stormbird toward an ancient city.
• Nimrod attracted Soul-Eater Bees with psychic power, then bound and killed some of them while explaining their attacks to the Honor Guard.
• The Honor Guard fought the swarm, using heavy flamers, toxin-coated bullets, shields, and power weapons to test ways to kill the bees.
• A Queen Bee attacked a Shadow of Order, but Nimrod deflected its strike, overcame its psychic attack, and trapped it with Imprisonment.
• After five hours, Nimrod and the Honor Guard searched the area and returned to the Kingdom of Disorder with 316 Soul-Eater Bees, including the Queen Bee and three unconscious specimens for Apothecary experiments.

Nimrod brought three captured Soul-Eater Bees to Tizca, where Amon warned him of their danger. The Thousand Sons awakened after surviving the flesh-change, and Magnus asked Nimrod to keep secret that he had lost his right eye to save them.

• Amon recognized the captured Soul-Eater Bees as dangerous creatures, but Nimrod said defense alone would not protect Tizca.
• The Thousand Sons emerged from stasis, and Ahriman recalled the flesh-change and mourned Ormuzd.
• Maat remembered that Magnus had sacrificed his right eye to save a thousand survivors and credited Nimrod with saving him as well.
• Nimrod considered recruiting Matte’s loyal followers and secretly reflected that the flesh-change had only been suppressed temporarily.
• Magnus told Nimrod he had paid a price to save his sons and asked him to conceal the loss of his eye.
• Magnus withdrew the psychic barrier and told Nimrod he wanted to discuss the Librarian divisions and other shared interests.