The Drukhari - Art of Cruelty l Warhammer 40k Lore

today I will tell you about the cruel sadists who have achieved tremendous success in the torture of the soul and body of their slaves the dark Elder remember if you find yourself captured by them use any opportunity to end your life and entrust your soul to the mercy of the emperor for if you cannot your fate will be hard to Envy as the Eldar Empire swiftly plummeted into the abyss of decadence many of its people indulged in feasts of debaucher not only on their planets but also in giant cities built in the webway at the moment of the birth of the god slanesh numerous Eldar lost their souls which were devoured by the new chaos God however those who were hiding in the largest city kamora managed to survive the fall their souls were torn out only partially driving them insane yet they were alive and in some safety but most importantly unlike their Brethren the Elder from the city of kamorah did not repent their sins it was this and the fear for their souls as the inhabitants of comra did not use Soul stones that helped them find their own path in their ongoing orgies and murders they realized that by torturing a victim the duari nourished their souls with Agony and suffering this prolonged their youth and allowed them to delay the moment of their ultimate consumption by the hungry Beast as they called slanesh having unraveled the secret to their salvation the people of comra United to venture into the real world together on a hunt millions and millions of living beings were captured as slaves and to this day the comites continue their raids after all fragile lives are a swiftly ending resource and without a constant infusion of suffering the last true Shard of that very Elder Empire will cease to exist this is how the dark Elder were born the dark Elder differ little from their kin in physical terms their skin is pale almost transparent a consequence of living in a city devoid of sunlight thanks to nourishing themselves with the souls of victims and slaves the dark Elder can live for many thousands of years but they are not completely Immortal over time they developed a dependency and a wild hunger thus they required an endless flow of foreign Souls the comites cling to their existence for after death they are guaranteed to fall into the hands of the slanesh also psychers are not found among the Dark Eldar which is very uncharacteristic for their people many believe that their abilities disappeared due to a narrow focus on physical Perfection after all constant skirmishes and Wars made the Dark Eldar physically more developed unlike their Brethren others believe that the use of psychic powers only attracts unwanted attention from slanesh for this reason sorcery is strictly prohibited within the territory of comra and this says a lot after all am is a city of killers deceivers traitors and sadists the duari as the dark Elder call themselves compensate for their lack of psychic powers by using a plethora of psychically charged artifacts in terms of Technology they are very similar to their kin from the craft worlds with the only difference being that the korit do not have bone singers and thus they have to build and assemble necessary items instead of growing them from wraithbone the dark city of kamora itself is a colossal Gomer of eyelets of various sizes constantly moving close to each other in an endless Whirlwind towering over these isets are gigantic black spires the size of which can even drive frail Minds to Madness indeed it is incorrect to refer to comra as merely a city it is more accurately a vast collection of satellite kingdoms and cities interconnected by countless portals and hidden Pathways in the webway separate parts of the dark city exist in the real world albeit at Great distances from each other however thanks to the network of portals moving between them is extremely easy any major Imperial Hive world would seem like a dollhouse in comparison to the dimensions of comra whose population exceeds even entire star systems over comra hang stolen Stars IL Maya or black Suns as they are called by the duari these are dying stars that have been moved moved into the webway to feed their energy to the duari realm between the spike covered spires endless streams of ships constantly fly as this is the most convenient method of transportation of course not counting the webway portals ruling over all this disjointed place is the Supreme Overlord of the dark city of comra as drwal veed the main ruling Elite are the cabal a group of duari that obeys the supreme ruler and his closest Associates an Aron Supreme Lord has the right to establish his own laws and orders the cabal also serves as the army of its archon which he leads on hunts for slaves or on Wars for power among other cabals arons constantly weave intrigues among themselves hire assassins to eliminate their Rivals from other cabals and wage Wars for territory influence and power cabals are quite numerous and constant Warfare requires reinforcement of Manpower therefore to maintain their numbers many dark Elders are artificially grown in special capsules such cites are initially at the lowest rungs of their people's hierarchy while those born by natural means immediately receive great Privileges and high status the cabals themselves are the result of the evolution of pleasure Cults that dominated Eldar Society before the fall over the years they have transformed into something more than just street gangs feuding over territory the next important Association is the hon culi covens it is unknown exactly how one can become one of them their lives are always shrouded in a veil of darkness and secrets however they are simply essential for the survival of their people Huli are unrivaled masters of torture behind the scenes Masters true connoisseurs of pain who relish every moment of suffering they inflict perhaps there is no one more cruel than the duari in the dark city the hon culi covens dwell in the lower and darkest parts of comra where nothing distracts them from the endless Delight in the pain of thousands of their captives with the help of cunning inventions the most elaborate poisons and toxins and exquisite knowledge in anatomy the hemuli are able to prolong the agony of their victim preventing death until the very last drop of their soul moreover the Huli are extremely skilled in modifying bodies hence many Dark Eldar turn to them to acquire new abilities for instance these flesh sculptors can easily grow wings on a client's back or replace his skin with durable elastic scales there is practically no operation that the hemuli could not perform they also enhan themselves growing new limbs or strengthening their bodies but despite their talents in self modification all honu without exception cannot restore their youth yet yet they continue to extend their lives however they are much more sensitive to others pain and derive far more pleasure from it in time they must seek even more sophisticated torture methods to experience the same Vivid emotions in battle the Huli are terrifying opponents moving gracefully and slowly across the battlefield they strike the enemy with weapons capable of desiccating an opponent in an instant or blades imbued with the most horrible poisons upon death honai are reborn in one of the Clones they previously created another important aspect of Dark Eldar Society is the witch cult since the fall the duari have constantly been in search of intense feelings and nothing in the dark City offers such a range of emotions as the spectacle of a cruel bloody Gladiator battle in hundreds of Arenas scattered throughout the city these Arenas belong to the witch Cults groups of female assassins who have HED The Art of War to lofty Pinnacles every night battles are held in the Arenas between the cult Warriors and the slaves they have captured or aliens they have seized each arena is unique with its Secrets traps and other challenges that befall the Unfortunate Souls who enter the fry the battles in the Arenas are so horrific that even their mere spectating quenches the bloodlust of the audience it's an effective method for controlling the bloodthirstiness of kamora's residence pre preventing the duari from descending into Anarchy before the battle members of the Cults Dawn light open seductive attire that offers no protection thus the witches tease the enemy and demonstrate their superiority in combat the witches are LED into battle by the succubus the most experienced witch whose age reaches many centuries the frequent battles and the pleasure of killings helped to keep her body young and attractive it is usually the succubi that draw all the viewers attention to themselves for their Dance of Death is always performed flawlessly the archons of cabals often find themselves as patrons of certain witch Cults granting them not only recognition from the populace but also providing them with truly Mighty allies The Witches themselves are not averse to venturing into the real world together with a cabal force as this allows them to Showcase all their refined skills to the enemy and their most favored opponents are the commanding officer and leaders each which possesses numerous trophies taken from the defeated bodies of orc bosses Space Marine Heroes and Chaos Champions hulas covens witch Cults and cabals are divided into many separate groups often competing with each other despite such fragmentation their compositions are similar an archon's retinue is a very diverse company of his closest Warriors and favorites however in addition to dark Elder it can include creatures of other races for instance archons often choose the snake-like forearmed SLE race as their bodyguards dark Elder are not known for loyalty and dedication so a self-respecting archon would hardly want to have guards of his own kin meanwhile the SLI excel at their task equipped with a rich Arsenal they easily repel any attempt to attack their Master among the most popular members of an archon's retinue are the medus these creatures originally resemble flying brains floating in the warp they feed on strong emotions mainly nightmares if a living being appears in their realm they attach to its head and take control of its body breaking into the real world this is how the Dark Eldar catch them and put restraining helmets on their heads the primary use of medus is to absorb the emotions of the archon's victims on the battlefield and store them in their Consciousness later eating one of the parasites tentacles can let one re-experience the full spectrum of Despair fear and suffering of the victims as if the battle had happened just a moment ago life among the aristocracy in comra is full of lies Intrigue and betrayal therefore archons often include servants from The Cult of lamea in their retinues apart from their impressive abilities in the realm of fleshly Pleasures they are also the most talented poisoners and poison experts in the entire dark city having at least at least one Laman on their side grants an archon access to the deadliest and most agonizing poisons lovers and Warriors of the Lans are rightfully valued among the aristocracy moreover the rulers of cabals love to collect exotic Beasts for their collections or for combat in the Arenas most precious to them is possession of the terrifying urul blind yet extremely deadly and agile xenos they have incredibly developed senses of smell archons are fond of using them as chain dogs and assassins against those foolish enough to challenge their power everyone living in the dark city must know how to defend themselves it often turns out that even children can fight better than many of the inhabitants of the craft Worlds the most skilled young Eldar might be noticed by cites cunning agile and strong Warriors who often become leaders of battle squads if a young Eldar gains approval from a cite they receive weapons armor and the status of a warrior the lowest rank in the cabal Army in return the newly minted Warrior swears allegiance to the cabal however as you have already understood Allegiance is not often found among the dark Elder on the other hand once they become Warriors this elevates them above the ordinary citizens thus it may become the first step on the path to Greatness and power their armor functions on the same Principle as that of their Craft World Brethren however their weap weon is a more heavyduty Splinter rifle whose blades inflict exponentially more pain on the enemy born not in artificial capsules but naturally these Elder occupy a higher social position which is reflected in the quality of the weapons and armor they use they form separate squads and their leader Bears the title of dracon now let's move on to the Grim creatures that accompany the himon culi on the battlefields first come the hites or racks these are Elder dissatisfied with their appearance they swear allegiance to the hemuli asking in return to alter their bodies eventually they transform into monstrous monsters with several additional arms their wrists are replaced with cunning devices which assist both in combat and in medical operations they always wear masks on their faces and their thoughts are occupied only by a thirst for blood and Ascension they are remarkably resilient tough and strong but most importantly they unconditionally obey any order from their Master doing all the dirty work for him what scares the most is that the Dark Eldar who cease to derive pleasure from anything voluntarily undergo such Transformations just to dispel boredom but there are other creatures of the coven that no one would want to become by their own will the Monstrous grotesque a massive pile of muscles protruding bones deadly Claws and Blades those who have somehow Ang the himon culi are transformed into these the master of Flesh creation May conduct experiments on his victim for years eventually turning their body into a Mindless monster its face with an eternally Frozen fear is covered by a heavy mask after labotomy these beings become extremely docile although sometimes the hon culi like to leave grotesque Bits Of Consciousness so they eternally experience the full horror that happened to them on the battle field they unleash a real Massacre tearing opponents apart and slicing them up with their Cleavers and clawed pores but the true Pinnacle of the hmon culi coven's art are the pain engines the most common of these models are the tals and Kronos Talos are levitating torture and slaying machines equipped with powerful arms and sturdy armor their primary function is the collection of body parts from opponents so that after the battle the Huli can use them in their experiment the Kronos however can literally extract the soul from an enemy causing almost instantaneous aging as a result the victim eventually disintegrates into dust these machines amplify the energy of the agonizing soul and broadcast it around themselves nourishing the Dark Eldar with the suffering of the enemy this process is extremely pleasurable so archons sometimes acquire a Kronos to feed on Souls even outside of battle besides their female combat formations the witch Cults have squads primarily composed of men they are hunters and Tamers of various monsters which they track down across the Galaxy then they break their will and train them to later unleash them into the arena or the battlefield while the Tamers themselves watch from above standing on grav boards and driving the monsters with energy whips the order of the incubi or Incubus stands apart they are encased in heavy Swordsman armor and see endless combat as the purpose of their life they eagerly become mercenaries to the archons as this allows them to demonstrate their prowess as Warriors a candidate for the incubi must first become strong enough to kill another Incubus and take his armor then he must track down an aspect Warrior from the craft worlds kill him and split his Spirit Stone only then is the candidate accepted into the ranks of the incubus rumors suggest that the order of Incubus is a dark reflection of the Elder from the craft worlds and bears a remote resemblance to the aspect Warriors of those artificial worlds another special kind of warrior is the mandre horrifying beings that live in the shadows and by this we mean quite literally in the shadow mandres exist simultaneously in both the material and immaterial worlds like ghosts they hunt their victims and feed on the suffering of their souls their origin is unknown but one thing is certain they they were once Dark Eldar they are surrounded by an aura of death and cold which they can also manipulate firing energy projectiles from their hands for their talents in stealth and shadow travel archons often try to recruit them to their side usually in return mandres ask for slaves but sometimes their requests are extremely vague and unclear in any case refusing them is dangerous notably they wear clothing made from the skin of those who have broken agreements with them now let's move on to the trio of the most treacherous types of warriors in the dark city who also often compete with each other the first of these are the scourges if a warrior accumulates enough wealth and is ready to risk his life he will order a hon culi to transform his body into a Scourge his bones will be shattered and reassembled additional muscles grown on his back and then either bird or membranous Wings attached this is an extremely painful and mortally dangerous operation however if the client survives he must pass the final test that is to rise on new Wings to the upper spires of the dark city where other scourges dwell on his way he will be obstructed by two other types of aerial warriors but more on them later if the converted reaches his goal he instantly earns the right to call himself a vital cell of the dark Elder Society indeed scourges the principal Scout s and Messengers among the noble inhabitants of KRA this job is generously paid and also grants impunity due to their importance killing a Scourge is considered a grave crime the most experienced scourges are called solarites they spend their wealth to further alter their bodies asking hon culi to elongate their skulls and grow feathers to resemble predatory Birds more closely the second aerial warriors of comra are the reavers skilled glad rators fighting on grav bikes in the skies of the dark city they create aerial Arenas refining the art of beheading enemies at full speed on their bikes a thirst for Speed and spectacular killings entirely fills their hearts the most experienced and famous Gladiators might receive the archon's mercy these Pilots spend so much time in the saddle that during combat they become virtually one with their bike wreaking havoc on the battlefield while simultaneously performing aerial pirouettes boasting their skills the last and most feral of the dark City's Flyers are the street gangs of Helens typically they are joined by either the youth those who have transgressed and avoided death from the cabals or those who chose freedom from the archons rule these marauding gangs raid both the dark streets of kar and the real world even attacking cabals of the archons their primary equipment are grav boards this is an extremely complic liated single person anti-gravity board to control to master such transport Helens consume numerous combat drugs their reaction is as sharp as the blades of their hell glaves their leaders are known as hel archs the most cunning and treacherous of these Bandits sometimes archons or succubi from witch Cults turn to them to hire such Wild Force into their squads but it is extremely expensive the favorite tactic of Helens is a rapid raid on the enemy where they sever limb of their foes at full speed then they scatter only to regroup for a second attack well that covers the Infantry units and monsters but there's more to tell about the machines the main battle transport of the duari are Rider skimmers fast light and maneuverable platforms on an anti-gravitational cushion to give you a foresight all Dark Eldar Machinery utilizes anti-gravity technology Raiders are adorned from top to bottom with blades and spikes which are used in battle both for their intent purpose and as places to display slaves and trophies on the outside Raiders resemble ancient Elder boats which have been repurposed for combat the transport itself lacks a roof allowing the Warriors it carries to freely fire from it and also to LEAP onto their enemies at any moment after a battle still living opponents are either tied up or impaled on the spikes thereby transported into slavery or to the dark city the corpses of the Dark Eldar Warriors themselves are taken back in exactly the same manner demonstrating no particular respect for their bodies a heavier version of this vessel is the ravager spaces for passengers in it have been converted to accommodate three powerful cannons this however has not affected the maneuverability and speed of this type of grabcraft its primary targets are the enemy's heavy machinery be it super heavy tanks or Titans for destroying Titans they even use a unique tactic which the duari called The Shadow dance a group of several ravagers flies as low as possible possible over a planet surface trying to use the landscape for cover once close enough to their target the leading ravager strikes the Titan with a shadow spear a warped beam that creates a barely noticeable breach in The Titan's Force Shields this breach lasts only a few seconds and it's only the supernatural reflexes of a dark Elder pilot that allow him to seize this opportunity in the blink of an eye powerful cannons fire at this breach point and the Titan Burns in Flames before its crew realizes what happened even among the skilled Eldar Pilots the shadow dance is considered one of the most difficult Maneuvers and a sign of supreme piloting skill however ravager Pilots are extremely headstrong archons often have to negotiate with them before a battle stating that until the main target of the ravager Squadron is downed they are prohibited from diverting to other enemies a rarer but much more powerful type of assault ship is the reaper an upgraded version of the ravager its operation revolves around a single powerful weapon fixed on the nose of the antigrav boat a storm Vortex projector before battle Pilots collect storm energy striking the spires of comra into special Vortex Chambers mounted on the ship during combat energy from these Chambers is fed into the nose Cannon unleashing the unrestrained might of the elements such salvos instantly disable enemy Machinery while the crew's nervous system are burnt out despite the size of the weapon Reapers also rely on speed and maneuverability the capabilities of their cannons are greatly appreciated by cabals for their ability to not cause special damage to transport and cargo ships but effectively disable them which benefits Marauders and plunderers there is also another rare and expensive modification of these grav platforms called the Tantalus it has appeared relatively recently once the archon of the cabal of the dark mirror ordered a prototype of such a gravitic vessel for himself to display his status and might upon receiving it he orchestrated a true Massacre on the streets of comra however soon he was trapped by a gang of marauders and killed after that his cabal split apart and the inheritors of his wealth exchanged the schematics of the Tantalus for weapons or gifted them to their new Masters consequently these war machines began to appear more frequently in The Fleets of various cabal the Tantalus represents a significantly improved version of the Raider with a split deck reinforced engines allow it to maintain speed despite increased Dimensions while heavier guns and Blades augment its combat power another form of Transport for the Dark Eldar are the fast and deadly grav bikes named Venom although small in size they can carry a whole Squad of bloodthirsty Warriors Venom Pilots are true professionals capable of maneuvering even through the Flack fire of enemy anti-air defenses this is further aided by holographic flicker field generators which only further confuse The Radars of their adversaries after deploying their passengers Venom can cover the warriors with its Weaponry these grab bikes are extremely popular among the duari nobility who either greatly enjoy hunting their prey from the air or are too mistrustful of their own Warriors to join them on the Reaver in battle a larger duari aircraft is is the razorwing jet fighter it earned its name in homage to the Predators from the planet in the ciros subs sector despite being smaller than the aircraft of other races it nonetheless possesses an impressive Arsenal it is armed with twin Splinter rifles two dark Spears and four missiles of various types these include necrotoxin missiles which release shards of toxic shrapnel upon explosion killing and pinning the enemy to the ground there are also chatterfield missiles which freeze everything around them with the first explosion and then rupture the Frozen targets with a second the third type are monoy missiles releasing waves of energy that decapitate the nearest enemies usually successful Reaver grav bike Pilots become razorwing Pilots the dark Elder Aviation also includes the void Raven bombers like all duari technology they are very fast and agile but among the pilots the bombers are considered the slowest void Ravens are equipped with dark Spears and missiles the missile types are the same as those of the Razer Wing however they also have a unique type the implosive missile during the explosion of this missile a field is generated causing molecular dissonance as a result of which the victim caught in the blast is literally turned inside out moreover the bombers are equipped with a sound absorbing system allowing them to approach their victims almost silently and their most lethal weapon the void mine containing a drop of dark light in the explosion everything within its radius was literally arised from reality there is also an older type of combat aircraft called The Raven Fighter while the Razer wi and void Raven are merely elegant daggers for precision strikes The Raven is more akin to a butcher's Cleaver wreaking havoc among enemy ranks the rear of the aircraft is equipped with twin fragmentation cannons firing poisons and sharp crystals meanwhile two Shadow Spears are mounted on the wings which particularly cruel Pilots can replace with disintegrators rapid fire guns that shoot antimatter capable in the literal sense of evaporating a well fortified enemy as you can see the military Tech of the Dark Eldar keeps Pace with their rivals in combat power and the Elegance with which they deliver death therefore its destruction is a priority on the battlefield naturally this comes after the elimination of the most important and prominent figures of their command the most prominent figure in Dark Eldar Society is supreme Aron asdel vect as befits such a notable figure his past is shrouded in darkness however V himself likes to recount his rise nevertheless it would be foolish to take the word of the most cunning ruler of the most devious people at face value but still we will retell this story according to azdrubal V he was born before the fall of the Elder Empire and because he was still a child and had not tasted the hedonistic life the birth scream of slanesh did not consume his soul along with the survivors he took refuge in the webway and grew up during the transformation of comra into the dark city he remembers the times when the future duari discovered a way to transform the suffering and Agony of victims into Life Energy thereby strengthening their bodies and souls however vect still became a slave in the dark city but thanks to his incredible cunning treachery and sharp mind he began to ascend the social ladder gradually he became the leader of one of the street gangs and then he added the others to his fold the then rulers of comra did not give much importance to the gradually increasing influence of azral VE for which they ultimately paid from the United gangs as dubel V created the cabal of the black heart in one of the raids into reality he managed to capture a Space Marine Cruiser belonging to the chapter of the salamanders he knew that the vengeful Servants of the Imperium would not forgive such impudence and soon an army of The Emperor's servants invaded the webway and comra itself the attack was repelled but the entire leadership was destroyed and their cabals lost their influence it was then that azra elve ascended to the throne the cabal of the black heart rapidly grew richer gaining strength and influence soon becoming the largest and most powerful in effect this made vect the ruler of the dark city for even after so many centuries no Force has arisen that could rest power from him the fact that he has been able to maintain power with an iron grip all this time only further emphasizes his intelligence and caution for he has survived all assassination attempts it is known that he has a double named G elding whom he uses from time to time with his influence vect doesn't need to personally participate in battles however sometimes the blood lust takes over and the Supreme archon enters the battlefield seated upon the throne of deis of Destruction a unique modification of the ravager to ensure the archon's safety a special force field is installed on his transport sometimes as drale vect prefers to fight on foot in battle he uses special obsidian orbs created from The Souls of tormented victims moreover they heal the archon in combat feeding on the fear of his enemies his primary weapon is the scepter of the dark city a symbol of supreme authority this tool is equipped with pain inducers intensifying the pain inflicted on victims asral vect is one of the most dangerous figures in the galaxy and has been one of the primary targets for the aicio assassinorum for many hundreds and thousands of years however neither the Imperial assassins nor Vex Rivals from the dark city itself have been able to end his life therefore only the emperor knows how much more trouble he will bring to the Imperium and only the emperor can protect against it

Channel: Imperial Iterator

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Id: AszW2FMZqEU

Length: 32min 43sec (1963 seconds)

Published: Sun Apr 07 2024