History: Planetstrike - Descending in drop pod upon contrails of nucleonic fire, you have experienced the hell-dive of a planetary assault. Having assaulted the bastions of numerous foes, no challenge is beyond you.
Appearance
Outside of his armour, Vorticar stands at around 6'10" and weighs in at 335 lbs. In standard issue power armour his height comes in at 7'6" and weighs in at over 600 lbs.
Vorticar is known as a 'Son of Horus', the term used for those Luna Wolves who bear a strong physical resemblance to their Primarch (a peculiarity of their gene-seed). This quality has been admixed with his Cthonian blood, giving Vorticar craggy, saturnine features complimented by his dark brown hair and eyes. Those with more discerning eyes however may not that it is not a one-to-one similarity; Vorticar's features are narrower than the Lupercal's, and years of service have left him lined and weather-beaten.
Personality
- If one word could be used to describe the essence of who Vorticar is, it would be 'survivor'. Nothing seems to stop him in the pursuit of his goals. Hardened by the ordeals of life on Cthonia, he has developed a sense of perseverance that keeps him going where lesser souls would have surrendered long before. He does what is necessary with the resources at hand, taking to heart the principles of adaptability espoused by the Lupercal. Obstacles are just logistics in Vorticar's mind, and excuses have never healed a broken leg. He never surrenders or backs down, his will indomitable even in the face of death itself.
- With this comes a certain callousness however. Vorticar has little patience or sympathy for those unwilling to do whatever it takes to endure hardship; such people are likely to die when tested, but Vorticar simply refuses to allow the weakness of others to be his downfall. Even as they fall to the wayside, he will forge on in spite of their failings. Succumbing to fate's cruel whims and refusing to withstand more than a person can is the source of much of Vorticar's disgruntlement with mere mortals.
- In person however - especially amongst other Astartes - Vorticar is known for being witty and charming, possessing tact and grace rarely seen amongst the Space Marines. Historically he has bent these manners towards ingratiating himself to his superiors, a practice which has earned him a reputation as a social climber amongst his fellow Luna Wolves. Vorticar simply considers himself career-focused, but whatever the case his end goal is ascending up the Legion's hierarchy as high as he can. Intrigue and gossip are his meat, and he can often be found at the periphery of trouble, watching and listening to see what he can learn and possible use for his own benefit later. However, he knows better than to burden - or burn - his bridges. As a result, he's not above playing the diplomat should the need arise. Vorticar will do anything to make himself look good, which informs his interactions with others.
History
- Born in 2.217.816.M30, Vorticar hails from the barren and impoverished world of Cthonia, homeworld of the Luna Wolves and their Primarch, Horus Lupercal. Long stripped of natural resources and abandoned to entropy and violence, Cthonia is a dead husk of a world riddled with catacombs, crumbling industrial plants and exhausted mine-workings. Life on Cthonia is defined by both its savagery and a desperate struggle for survival as fierce, lawless gangs raid, murder and burn endlessly - whether for food, ammunition, supplies, or simply to cultivate fear or to winnow out the weak from their ranks. Between these factions a fluid web of respect, tribute and rivalry existed. Factions would form, evolve and dissolve in a few solar months. Of those that endured longer, only one thing was certain: their time too would pass. No law but the blade rules on Cthonia, no desire save that to survive.
- Vorticar's family were thralls to one such reaver gang, following behind like carrion after a battle and tending to the wants and needs of their masters. The winding tunnels of Cthonia's underground became his home in turn, Vorticar and his family moving from camp to camp as nomads. The revelry of the drunken raiders sung him to sleep at night. A boot in the ribs knocked him awake come the morn. Innocence does not last long in the face of Cthonia's horrors and Vorticar was no exception to this truth, but in place of innocence neither indignation nor resignation took root; rather, the bleak prospects of his life made Vorticar all the more driven towards improving his lot.
- Leaving his family to their fate at age seven, Vorticar took up arms alongside the reavers - better a blade in your hand than at your throat he reasoned - and began training in the ways of Cthonian warfare alongside other prospective recruits. The reavers were harsh teachers, pitting the children against each other and forcing them through brutal survival training to cull the weak from the strong. Moulded by hands such as these Vorticar grew strong and resolute - at age 10 he began joining raids on rival bands, earning the first notches on his dagger in turn. Being more than a simple brute however, Vorticar also commanded a cunning mind well-disposed to following the ebb and flow of clan politics and the force of personality needed to became a player all his own. All these he rigorously honed in the hopes of becoming a great warlord in his own right.
- Those dreams were nearly dashed after a disastrous raid on an rival gang left much of Vorticar's tribe dead or taken into slavery. Escaping the slaughter with a handful of other child warriors into a long forgotten section of Cthonia's catacombs, he was quick to sense the opportunity before him and formed the survivors into a new gang under his control. Recognizing that they would be far outclassed by all but the weakest of gangs Vorticar implemented a more passive strategy for survival - predominantly scavenging and theft, until such a time as they could more reliable project strength against rivals. This worked for a time, the gang even gaining new members from amongst other children living and hiding in the tunnels; however fate it seems had more in store for Vorticar sometime before his 12th birthday.
- Spirits were high amongst Vorticar and his comrades on this day. They had robbed a lone traveller in the catacombs who was laden with all manner of supplies and materials - not only enough to guarantee their survival for a few months, but enough to allow the gang to begin scaling up their operations. They celebrated well that night, convinced of their invincibility in the face of Cthonian brutality... and in that momentary lapse of attention their weakness was laid bare. A hulking warrior in stark white armour easily smashed through the defenses the gang had erected, swatting away any who resisted as though they were mere gnats. Battered and bruised Vorticar was certain he would be killed by whatever this thing was. But when it seemed poised to crush him underfoot the warrior paused... and laughed. Removing his helmet revealed a man, blonde-haired and blue-eyed, who introduced himself as Luc Sedirae - one of the fabled Space Marines. The traveller the gang had robbed was a serf belonging Sedirae's legion, and he had been transporting some equipment on their behalf. Sedirae had found what he was looking for amongst the gang's belongings, but in their young eyes also saw drive and ability that could prove useful to his lord. He offered to lead the children to a better life amongst the stars; sensing another opportunity - and seeing the proverbial blade at his throat - Vorticar and his comrades accepted.
- While most of the children would come to serve the Legion as Serfs, Vorticar and three of his friends would become Aspirants of the Luna Wolves. One of these friends would die during the Aspirant trials, while another died after his body rejected the Catalapsean Node, but these losses served only to strengthen the bond between Vorticar and Erigor, his surviving friend. The two stood fast by each other as they underwent their changes into Astartes and the gruelling training that accompanied these changes. They saw combat together as Scouts attached to the 253rd Training Company across various campaigns, most prominent of these being the Castigation of Terentius. Their service during the castigation impressed their Captain, and by 834.M30 the two had received the Black Carapace that marked their transition to full Legionnaires.
- Vorticar has served in the Great Crusade as a Legionnaire for over 150 years now, earning a reputation as both a ferocious warrior and a cunning leader well-disposed towards the orbital shock assaults that define Luna Wolves strategies. Erigor and he advanced together through the Legion at a measured pace before finally securing positions in the 10th Battle Company under Captain Garviel Loken, fighting under the Captain during the Keylekid Xenocide. For valour demonstrated in the prosecution of this campaign he was honoured with a pair of gauntlets once worn by Maral Lupus, Legion Master of the Luna Wolves prior to Horus' return to the Imperium. Once secure in the 10th Company Vorticar began to turn his attention once more to personal advancement, eyeing the heights he could achieve - would he settle for Captain of a Battle Company? Centurion or Consulship? Why not a seat on the Mournival, or even standing athwart the Lupercal as his Equerry? He had sturdy legs; why not climb as high as he could?
- Tragedy is rarely long behind triumph however. During the Battle of Gyros-Thravian - where the Legions of Horus, Rogal Dorn and Mortarion pitted themselves against Warboss Gharkul Blackfang and his forces - Erigor sacrificed himself to save Vorticar, pushing his battle-brother out of the way of heavy Ork weapons fire. The blast left naught but bloody ruins of Erigor, the viscera staining Vorticar's armour red. Even so many years later Vorticar still mourns the death of his friend, but the loss of Erigor also served to further galvanize his drive to climb the ranks of the Luna Wolves. Now given the opportunity to serve the Lupercal in killing the hated Orks of Ullanor, Vorticar means to carve a bloody swath through the Greenskins... and by their wretched corpses take his place as a leader amongst his battle-brothers.