I am the Destroyer Hive; the slayer of worlds …
Briareos coughed violently again. The coughs had become worse and more frequent. There were near permanent dribbles of phlegm and pus running from the corners of his mouth. His eons old skin showed signs of a deathly pallor and many of his cybernetic implants showed visible signs of rust and degeneration. Strangely, he felt an almost euphoric joy with every wracking cough and his implants continued to function despite their obvious damage.
Things had taken a decided turn for the worse since the Plague Marines had joined his treasured Iron Warriors. Disease and pestilence had taken hold of them. Not a single warrior in his band was exempt from the myriad of wasting diseases that attacked them. It has to be the followers of Father Nurgle, he thought to himself as he bent double, a coughing fit laying waste to his centuries old, gene enhanced system.
As he rounded a corner of the now wasted vessel that carried them through the Warp, a glow emanated from all around him. Something was entering the reality; inside the ship from the Warp outside. A nearby brother marine began to convulse and scream in disease tortured ecstasy. His limbs began to distort; his bloated, foetid body warping and finally exploding in rancid pus and waste so explosive that it coated the walls. The glow coalesced into a vaguely human form.
As reality reasserted itself, it spoke in a voice like the buzzing of a million plague flies. “I am the Destroyer Hive, the waster of worlds. Briareos you are bless-ed by Father Nurgle.”
After a number of years campaigning with the Iron Warriors (with some small success, I might add), I have decided to re-vamp them to take a break from having to COMPLETELY rethink my Sisters of Battle. The Plague Marines have often been a source of fascination for me; more so than Khorne’s Berserkers or any of the other Chaos Legions. My Iron Warriors were kind of a dare. I mean, really, who would willingly take an army with nine Obliteraters in it?
More importantly, who would then suck so epically with said combination?
There is so much inspiration surrounding the Plague Marines. Some of the more interesting armies that appear at Liber Animus have been Nurgle based ie. Tom Damin’s Plague Marines, Pete Dunn, Ben Leong, Pedro Silva and the ubiquitous Plague Marines of Mark Morrison to name but a few! The only downside: Plague Marines are the new black.
With their toughness five and “Feel No Pain” special rules, they certainly represent one of the stronger armies in Warhammer 40000. Never let it be said that I allow a band-(plague)-wagon pass me by! More details to follow! Until then, keep up the medicine and make sure to keep the flu at bay!
