"I am the Arch-fiend, the Despoiler of Worlds, and by my hands shall the False Emperor fall."
— Abaddon, Warmaster of Chaos
Abaddon, also known as "Abaddon the Despoiler," once named Ezekyle Abaddon, whose preferred title is "Warmaster of the Imperium Nihilus," and is sometimes called by others the "Warmaster of Chaos," is a Chaos Lord and the greatest Champion of Chaos Undivided in the galaxy. Abaddon is the master of the Black Legion of Chaos Space Marines and is rumoured to be the clone-progeny of the Warmaster Horus, the greatest Traitor in Imperial history, and at one time his most favoured son as the first captain of the Sons of Horus Legion.
Abaddon is now infamous for leading Black Crusades, the terrible military campaigns during which the normally fractious forces of Chaos unite under his leadership and launch a massive attack against the Imperium from within the Eye of Terror.
What few realised at the time was that these campaigns were part of an overall strategic plan called the "Crimson Path" intended to lead the forces of Chaos from the Eye of Terror all the way to Holy Terra itself, which reached its fruition in the final days of the 41st Millennium. Abaddon intends to succeed where his predecessor Horus failed, breaking the Imperial Palace wide open and tearing the Emperor's rotting corpse from the Golden Throne. Over the millennia, each of his conquests and Black Crusades has gradually paved the way from the Eye of Terror towards the Sol System, despite this grand design often being oblivious to the Imperium's defenders. Less obvious, however, is that along that path, his actions have gradually weakened the veil between realspace and the Warp, assisting the birth of the Great Rift after the successful conquest of the Fortress World of Cadia during the 13th Black Crusade in ca. 999.M41. The birth of the Great Rift divided the galaxy in half and marked the start of the Noctis Aeterna and the Era Indomitus.
The name of Abaddon, the Warmaster of Chaos, has become a bitter curse within the Imperium. During the Great Crusade, Abaddon rose to become first captain of the 1st Company of what was then called the Luna Wolves Legion. When the Horus Heresy came to a head, it was clear that Abaddon's loyalty lay with his primarch rather than the Emperor. He led the Terminators of the re-named Sons of Horus across Isstvan III, Isstvan V, Yarant, and Terra itself. Abaddon's anguish at his master's death at the hands of the Emperor drove him deeper into madness and hatred than any mortal should ever sink. Before retreating, Abaddon took up the Warmaster Horus' body and fought his way out of the quickly deteriorating battle before the Imperial Palace. With their cadaverous prize, the Sons of Horus Legion fled before the Emperor's victorious armies.
When Abaddon returned, it was at the head of a diabolic horde ravaging star systems around the Eye of Terror. His Heretic Astartes, now called the Black Legion, were at the forefront of the attack, destroying all in their path. During this 1st Black Crusade, Abaddon formed many bloody pacts with the Chaos Gods. Below the Tower of Silence, he recovered the Daemon Sword Drach'nyen, a weapon of prodigious power, making him nigh unstoppable. Since then, Abaddon has dreamed of forging an empire of Chaos upon the ruins of the Imperium. Twelve more Black Crusades have followed, each achieving some dark purpose that even the mightiest sages of the Imperium cannot discern.
It is said that Abaddon alone has the power to unite the ever-fractious Traitor Legions and finish the treachery begun ten thousand standard years ago, ripping the Emperor from His place on the Golden Throne and at last claiming the galaxy for the Ruinous Powers. Abaddon was long reluctant to take up the title of "Warmaster," not wishing to be associated with the failures of Horus. Horus' failure to achieve victory in the Horus Heresy left a deep mark upon Abaddon. He came to despise his gene-sire, and resolved neither to venerate Horus' memory nor to emulate him in any way. So, for the longest time, did Abaddon refuse to use Horus' title of Warmaster as he believed it to be tainted by his gene-father's failure and weakness.
However, with the success of the 13th Black Crusade and the Fall of Cadia, Abaddon at last considered the time right to resurrect the honorific and make it his own. Yet, in Abaddon's conception, no longer would the Warmaster be the great general and champion of the Dark Gods, ruling nothing he had not bargained for with inhuman entities. Instead, Abaddon declared his title to be "Warmaster of the Imperium Nihilus," master of the sundered half of Humanity's realm that was, he said, far more territory than Horus ever conquered and held. Abaddon has now accepted the once-scorned title, for with the opening of the Great Rift, he feels that final victory in the Long War against the Emperor is at hand.
Comments