STRIKE FORCE FURY By Chris Ward |
BATTLE COMPANY STRIKE FORCES |
These images have been reproduced with the kind permission of Chris Ward. |
BACKGROUND: Battle Force Fury was formed by the newly appointed Supreme Grand Master W after the massacre on Delios IV.. Supreme Grand Master Azrael was investigating rumours of Cypher and a group of Fallen in the Scyllia sector with a large force of Dark Angels, including the entire Ravenwing, whose infiltration skills and mobility would be invaluable in hunting down the Fallen. Also include in the force were several companies and a strong core of Deathwing. Scouting forces located Cypher and the Fallen in a stronghold located on the barren planet of Delios IV, thinly guarded by chaos minions. The Librarians verified the scouting ship's claims and Azrael ordered an immediate attack, eager to claim their most hated foe. The Dark Angels launched an invasion in force, using thunderhawks to drop to the planet's surface. Upon landing, the Dark Angels established a Perimeter and the Ravenwing were sent out to locate the stronghold. The Ravenwing never found Cypher or the stronghold, it never existed. Delios IV was inhabited by orks under the banner of Warlord Makaar, a savage and bloodthirsty warlord even by ork standards. Something had tricked the scouts and confused the Librarians into thinking Cypher was here. The orks retaliated against the invasion, and within hours of the Dark Angel |
Supreme Grand Master W & Command Squad Five years ago Supreme Grand Master W was a veteran sergeant of the 7th Assault squad in the 3rd company, and was inducted into the Deathwing. The 3rd was campaigning against the accursed dark eldar in the Allsore system. The then Master of the 3rd, Master Turrus, was killed by an Archon and its retinue of warriors, and as veteran sergeant W was the only member of the Deathwing left, he was given a battlefield promotion to Master of the company. As Master of the 3rd he performed with exceptional brilliance, catching the dark eldar raiders in a series of devastating attacks which all but destroyed the alien scum. En route back to the Rock, information was received indicating the possible presence of a fallen, and Master W, with sergeant Nimmo of the 6th tactical squad, managed to capture the renegade and bring him back to the Rock for interrogation. Due to his success against the eldar and the capture of the fallen, Supreme Grand Master Azrael ratified Master W's promotion, despite his relatively young age. Since then Master W lead the 3rd with courage and honour, leading from the front, never giving ground and never accepting defeat. After |
Grand Master W's Command Squad Veteran Sergeant Nimmo Bolt Pistol, Powersword, Bionics Brother Sivess Terminator Honours, Bolt Pistol, Powerfist, Standard of Retribution Apothecary Turnbull Narthecium, Reductor, Bolt pistol, Powersword, Krak Grenades Techmarine Harvey Bolt Pistol, Chainsword, Servo Arm, Signum 3 Brother Marines : Bolters, 1xMeltagun |
Veteran Sergeant Nimmo was the sergeant of the 6th tactical squad in the 3rd company under Master W. He accompanied the new Master on the mission to capture the member of the fallen, where he took a melta blast in the head. The fallen had a number of followers with him, and as the two Dark Angels cut there way through the mass, one member, armed with a melta gun, fired of a blast straight towards Master W. Veteran Sergeant Nimmo leapt in front of his Master and took most of the blast in the head. Master W was able to rout the remaining mob and subdue the fallen. Miraculously, Nimmo survived the blast, but half of his head had melted, and had to be replaced with bionic implants. Apothecary Turnbull |
landing hordes of the greenskin warriors were engaging the Ravenwing advance force. Upon learning of the trap, Azrael ordered the Ravenwing to disengage and return to base, were they would be evacuated with the rest of the force. But before Azrael could order the thunderhawks down, his ship commander informed him that a Thousand Sons warfleet had appeared from nowhere. All communications were being blocked and the ships were moving to attack. The Dark Angel ships, including 2 Battle Barges, had to leave orbit around Delios to fight the traitor fleet. Grimly Azrael ordered the Dark Angels to dig in and prepare for the orks. The Dark Angel strike cruiser, Holy Vengeance, was speeding its way towards Delios, bearing the 3rd company. Master W of the 3rd had been sanctioned by the Supreme Grand Master for not following an order on its strict interpretation. The Master was young and Azrael was keen to enforce a strict level of discipline into the warrior. As a result Azrael had ordered Master W with his company to return to the Rock, which he was in the process of obeying when his trusted Librarian Davidson told him of a terrible premonition he had experienced that Azrael's force was in extreme danger. Although Master W did not want to disobey a direct order form the Supreme Grand Master, Davidson was a strong psyker and had never been wrong before. Upon entering the Delios system Master W saw the Tzeentch warfleet hitting the Dark Angel ships hard. He immediately gave the order to attack. The Thousand Sons had obviously not been expecting help to arrive for the Dark Angels as their rear was unguarded, so intent they were on destroying the Dark Angel ships. The Holy Vengeance was able to deliver punishing blows to several warships before they could react. The Tzeentch warships, perhaps fearing more imperial reinforcements, broke away and made their way out-system. The Holy Vengeance passed by Delios IV and five thunderhawks bearing the 3rd company were launched, along with several other thunderhawks form the fleet. The thunderhawks entered the atmosphere o f Delios IV to find a veritable sea of green swamping the Dark Angel base. The thunderhawks landed and the 3rd rushed into the chaos, stunning the ork horde. Master W was eager for vengeance, but the Dark Angels had suffered badly from the orks, Master W and his squads cleared their way through the orks towards the standard of Devastation, which was still aloft. They came across Azrael, mortally wounded on the battlefield, Master W knelt down to inspect the Supreme Grand Master, who whispered in his ear. Master W seemed about to protest, but Azrael held his gaze and handed him the Sword of Secrets as he died. Master W roared in rage and frustration, then standing, he held the sword aloft and in a defeated tone ordered the Dark Angels to retreat. Once the Dark Angels had returned to their ships, Master W declared himself as the new Supreme Grand Master, as decreed by Azrael. No one opposed this, and in fact he was the most senior commander to survive, as both Grand Masters of the Deathwing and Ravenwing fell on Delios. Supreme Grand Master W wasted no time. His first official act was to promote sergeant Ward to Grand Master of the Ravenwing, and immediately ordered him to chase the quickly retreating Thousand Sons. Grand Master Ward gathered all his able bodied warriors and took to the Holy Vengeance in pursuit. Senior members of the Inner circle advised returning to the Rock in order to replenish the heavy losses before pursuing the Thousand Sons, but the Supreme Grand Master was adamant. To go back now would mean loosing the enemy's trial. Grand Master W believed that Cypher was behind this attack and vowed to bring the traitor to justice. The severely wounded were sent back to the Rock with the damaged ships, while the rest of the Dark Angels, mainly comprising of the 3rd company, followed the path of the Holy Vengeance in the battle barge Righteous Annihilation. |
becoming Supreme Grand Master and receiving the Sword of Secrets and Lion Helm, W has become all but unstoppable in combat. The Lion Helm protects him and his squad from incoming fire, while his Storm Shield protects him in close quarters. The mighty Sword of Secrets lends him great strength, as shown on Serjo II when he carved his way through an entire squad of Thousand Sons Terminators. |
served in Azrael's command squad and was a survivor of Delios IV. He was on the battlefield when the dying Azrael passed on the Sword of Secrets, and was one of the marines that carried the dead Supreme Grand Master's body back to the thunderhawks. Now serving in Supreme Grand Master W's command squad, he is the only member to have not been taken from the 3rd company. Techmarine Harvey was assigned to the 3rd company for the Allsore campaign where he served with distinction, using his Servo Arm to rip apart a dark eldar talios. His bravery in battle combined with his technical skills made his appointment to the Supreme Grand Master's command squad certain. Brother Sivess was promoted to the 3rd company's banner bearer after rescuing the banner when it fell in battle against the tyranids. Because of his service, he has been granted the Standard of Retribution to carry into battle against the Thousand Sons as a sign for the Dark Angels of the retribution they must bring. |
