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===Beast of Beasts===
 
===Beast of Beasts===
When one was finally was encountered on [[Ullanor]], The Beast was at first thought to be statue. However when the statue moved the Imperial invaders realized he was in fact a massive Ork, at least ten meters tall, encased inside battle armor.{{Fn|6}}
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When one was finally encountered on [[Ullanor]], The Beast was at first thought to be a statue. However, when the statue moved the Imperial invaders realized he was in fact a massive Ork, at least ten meters tall and encased inside battle armor.{{Fn|6}}
  
 
This Ork was larger than the other "lesser" Beasts. His armor and throne were adorned with [[Goffs|black-and-white check marks]]; his helmet was horned, with a snarling ork face that covered his own, and adorned with rubies.{{Fn|6}}{{Fn|8}}{{Fn|9}}
 
This Ork was larger than the other "lesser" Beasts. His armor and throne were adorned with [[Goffs|black-and-white check marks]]; his helmet was horned, with a snarling ork face that covered his own, and adorned with rubies.{{Fn|6}}{{Fn|8}}{{Fn|9}}

Latest revision as of 05:43, 9 August 2023

Targetdrone.gif This article is about the the M32 Ork Warboss; for the Warboss also known as 'The Beast of Armageddon', see Ghazghkull Mag Uruk Thraka.

"Your empire is on its knees. We shall be its death."[6]

The mark of The Beast

The Beast was one of the most powerful Ork Warbosses to have ever lived. In 544.M32 he united much of the Ork race and nearly succeeded in conquering the Galaxy.[1b] His Waaagh! was the largest the Galaxy has ever seen and rampaged across the Imperium, eclipsing even the one Horus defeated during the Ullanor Crusade which earned him the title of Warmaster. The Beast was a highly intelligent Ork, capable of speaking flawless Gothic. Embittered by the humiliation of the Ork race during the Ullanor Crusade, he intended to cripple humanity and rule the galaxy.[6] The Imperium only halted his advance at great cost and desperate measure, devastating the Adeptus Astartes.[1a]

It was eventually concluded that there was not a single Warboss known as The Beast. Rather, they were a collection of six "Prime-Orks", monstrously powerful and intelligent Warbosses who each commanded a "Legion" (possibly Clan) of Greenskins.[8] However, the Prime-Ork the Imperium encountered most was larger than the others, nicknamed the "Beast of Beasts".[9]

Name and Appearance

In transmissions intercepted by the Imperial military, the warboss referred to himself in Orkish terms that defied exact translation into High Gothic, but roughly equivalent to "beast", "I am slaughter", or "lord who will bring great slaughter."[2b]

The Beast-class Prime Orks were perhaps the largest Ork Warbosses ever encountered, which in Ork society denoted his power, prestige, and lethality. In a transmission, he was estimated to be the size of a hab-block; The Beast made even Nobs appear as mere children in his presence and his mouth was filled with tusks the size of tree trunks.[2a]

Beast of Beasts

When one was finally encountered on Ullanor, The Beast was at first thought to be a statue. However, when the statue moved the Imperial invaders realized he was in fact a massive Ork, at least ten meters tall and encased inside battle armor.[6]

This Ork was larger than the other "lesser" Beasts. His armor and throne were adorned with black-and-white check marks; his helmet was horned, with a snarling ork face that covered his own, and adorned with rubies.[6][8][9]

Lesser Beasts

Another one of the "Prime Orks" encountered by Imperial forces of Ullanor was said to be the size of a small Gargant. A single arm of his massive battle armour was equipped with two Battle Cannons as well as Autocannons, Missile Launchers, Flamers, and other weapons. His other arm wielded a Vibro-Mace as tall as a Space Marine. He wore patchwork armour and blue face-tattos, and was accompanied by a court of massive orks with death's head symbols.[8]

Other Orks of this size, speculated to be "lesser Beasts", were briefly seen exploding in the psychic shockwave that destroyed the orks of Ullanor. Since there were six thrones in the Beast's throne-room, each associated with a different symbol, it was speculated that they were "Prime-Orks" that each founded a legion among Waaagh! The Beast.[8][9]

History

Main article: War of the Beast

Believed to have originated on Ullanor[9a], The Beast first appeared at the head of an unprecedentedly massive Waaagh! in Segmentum Solar. After destroying the world of Ardamantua and nearly the entire Imperial Fists Chapter with his Attack Moon.[2b] After the destruction of Ardamantua, the Beast initiated his great push across Segmentum Solar, killing billions of Imperials and overrunning entire Sectors. The Beast's Waaagh! field was so powerful that it influenced the Orks under his control to grow far larger and become even more aggressive than usual.[3]

Despite losing an Attack Moon during the Battle for Port Sanctus, the Beast was able to successfully position another directly over Terra.[4] As the galaxy burned, Imperial forces sought out the Beast's homeworld, which was believed to be Ullanor.[5] The Imperials under the returned Vulkan eventually led a massive invasion of Ullanor in a final gamble to slay the Beast, who revealed his strategic cunning by drawing the invaders into urban kill-zones as opposed to confronting them directly. The Beast intended to delay the Imperials on Ullanor long enough until the converted "attack planet" could teleport to Terra using the Attack Moon still in its orbit and wipe out the throneworld once and for all. However Vulkan was able to lead an Astartes strike directly into the part-palace part-Gargant of the Beast in his capital of Gorkogrod and confront the creature directly. As per Vulkan's wishes Lord Commander Koorland evacuated his forces from the temple and allowed the Primarch to fight The Beast directly. During their duel, The Beast revealed he spoke perfect Imperial Gothic, gloating that humanity was on its knees and he would be its end. Vulkan tackled the Warboss and they both fell into the temple-gargants power generator, where the Primarch became imbued with massive amounts of Waaagh! energies. Rather than be consumed by the energies as so many other men had, Vulkan used his primal and savage essence to become one with it and launch one last attack. He slammed Doomtremor into The Beast's face and detonated the generator, causing a chain reaction that shattered the temple-gargant and seemingly obliterating them both.[6]

However it soon became apparent that The Beast had somehow survived his encounter with Vulkan. He announced his presence on the Attack Moon over Terra.[7] Koorland then launched a new plan to try and slay the Beast using a captured Ork Psyker and Sisters of Silence to create a devastating "reverse-Waaagh!" effect. In the second invasion of Ullanor, The Beast was seemingly killed by the ritual after an execution force led by Koorland again reached his palace. However shortly after his death, another, even larger Ork Warboss appeared and it became apparent that there were in fact six "Beasts", each a Prime-Ork commanding his own "Legion". This newly appeared Warboss was identified as the same that had fought Vulkan and killed Koorland.[8]

After the death of Koorland, Maximus Thane, Chapter Master of the Fists Exemplar, rebuilt the Imperial Fists using portions of Battle-Brothers from each Chapter of the Last Wall. This force led a third push on Ullanor. In the third battle for the planet, Thane and his entourage again attempted to use a captured Ork Psyker in conjunction with a ritual by the Sisters of Silence to slay the Beast. During the battle, the assassination team encountered one of the Prime Orks, which was speculated to be the "Beast of Beasts". As it was about to wipe out the Imperial invaders, the Beast's head exploded due to the psychic ritual. The remaining Beast-class Orks and the majority of Greenskins on Ullanor died with him.[9]

An Ork about twice the size of a Space Marine was chosen to be officially presented as the Beast before the public of the Imperium - large enough that it would not make the Imperium look weak for struggling, but not so large as to encourage cowardice.[10]

In the aftermath of the downfall of The Beast, his Waaagh! crumbled but it took many years and a century's-long Crusade by the Imperium under Thane to finish off his forces.[10]

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