Lugganath

Lugganath is a minor Craftworld of the Aeldari. In the Aeldari Lexicon their name translates as "Light of the Fallen Suns". The Lugganath world-rune, the "Black Sun", is a reference to the lost glory of the original Aeldari Empire's star systems.

It is said that if a viewer were to look far enough into the void he would be able to perceive the last light of those dead stars -- as close to a metaphor for hope as the Aeldari of Lugganath know.

Craftworld Lugganath is known to wander the western regions of the Segmentum Obscurus. Lugganath is the traditional home of the Fir Iolarion Aeldari Titan clan.

History

The Lugganath Aeldari have turned their backs upon the material realm, for they consider its worlds already lost. Perceived as little better than Corsairs by other Craftworlds, the Aeldari of Craftworld Lugganath are a society of renegades.

They seek to foster close ties with the Harlequins of the Laughing God, as the Lugganath Aeldari hope to abandon this galaxy and start civilisation afresh and claim the Webway as their realm, possibly reclaiming the Labyrinthine Dimension from the Drukhari as well.

It is their ultimate plan to secede from realspace entirely by finding a Webway gate large and stable enough to sail their Craftworld through, and a hidden spar of the galactic labyrinth in which to create a new home and thus find salvation for the Aeldari within its twilight expanse.

Having cast off many of the rigid ways of Aeldari culture, the Craftworld has become a haven for outcasts of all kinds. They foster continually closer ties with the Harlequins, for their knowledge of the Webway is unrivalled.

Aeldari Corsair fleets cluster around the docking towers of the Craftworld, amongst them the notorious Sunblitz Brotherhood. Under the watchful gaze of their Farseers, the hard-eyed people of Lugganath mingle freely with these warriors of the fringe. When Lugganath gathers for war, its armies are an eclectic mix of standing and auxiliary forces, a riot of colour in a galaxy grey with age.

The Lugganath Craftworld is last known to have been active in the western quadrant of the Segmentum Obscurus in recent millennia. In 801.M41 forces from Lugganath attacked the stronghold of the Steel Hearts and destroyed this Chapter of Renegade Chaos Space Marines in its entirety. Later in 805.M41 forces from Lugganath aided in stymieing a daemonic incursion on the world of Cathox Prime and also in suppressing an uprising by Chaos Cultists on the world of Cathox Gamma.

Notable Events

• Balthor Sigma Intervention (012.M31) - A blood-maddened pursuit force of Traitor World Eaters engaged in hunter-killer operations against defeated Loyalist forces during the Horus Heresy was counterattacked by a Legio Osedax demi-legion at Balthor Sigma. The World Eaters were supported by numerous super-heavy tanks and therefore able to hold the Cockitrices' Titans at bay until, in quick succession, the tanks were engaged from an unexpected quarter and destroyed in short order. Entirely unheralded, a force of xenos Titan analogues, later determined to belong to the Aeldari Fir Iolarion clan of Craftworld Lugganath, intervened to devastating effect. It is only when Traitor-aligned Titans of the Legio Fureans fought their way through to reinforce the Traitors' lines that total defeat was averted. At the conclusion of the battle, the xenos Titans disengaged and vanished into the ash-shrouded depths of Balthor Sigma's equatorial magma wastes.

• Shattering of Lugganath (764.M34) - Craftworld Lugganath is invaded in force by the Emperor's Children Traitor Legion. Thousands die as the devotees of Slaanesh defile much of the Craftworld and drive the defenders back. The reeling Aeldari rally at the Plaza of Reflection, where the Emperor's Children Noise Marines use their Sonic Weapons to collapse much of the Craftworld's graceful architecture upon the defenders, crushing hundreds of Aeldari to death amidst splintered spars of Wraithbone. Seeing the devastation wrought by the terrible weapons of the Chaos Space Marines, the Autarchs of Lugganath authorise the use of Hemlock Wraithfighters. The Emperor's Children eventually retreat before the resultant barrage of necromantic energy, abandoning their dead and pursued every step of the way by vengeful Harlequins and unflinching, tireless Ghost Warriors.
  • Death of the Radiant King (764.M34) - With the help of a troupe of Harlequins, the Aeldari of Lugganath defeat and kill a rising Chaos Champion of Slaanesh, the Radiant King, who -- if left unchecked -- could quite possibly have reunited the warring warbands of the Emperor's Children into a single fighting force. In order to draw out their prey, the Aeldari do not hesitate to manipulate the Clone Lord, Fabius Bile, to side with the Radiant King by offering them a target too tempting to ignore: the Craftworld itself. Successfully drawing out their enemies, the Aeldari of Lugganath allow the Emperor's Children to penetrate deep into the Craftworld before springing their trap, as the Aeldari counterattack successfully, isolating the Radiant King as he entered the transitional phase from mortal to Daemon Prince. Surrounded by Lugganath's Seer Council, the Radiant King is utterly destroyed. Yet this victory proves costly as the secondary ploy to tie Bile's fate to that of the III Legion failed. Worse yet, Fabius Bile was able to steal several Spirit Stones inhabited by the souls of Lugganath's Farseers. Who knows what terrible monsters Bile will be able to forge from the knowledge they contain?

• Slaughter of the Inner Council (421.M41) - A nameless messenger butchers the Inner Council of Craftworld Lugganath, smashing apart a statue of Khaine and using the shards as deadly weapons. Fleeing into the Webway with a holocapture of her murderous deed, the young warrior calling herself Steel Fang is welcomed by the Wych Cults of the Dark City. She soon founds her own Cult, and her teachings in the art of improvised weaponry spread throughout the arenas of Commorragh.

• Destruction of the Steel Heart (801.M41) - Aeldari forces from Craftworld Lugganath attack the stronghold of the Steel Heart Chapter of Chaos Space Marines, destroying the Renegade Chapter in its entirety.

• Cathox System Suppression (805.M41) - Aeldari forces from Craftworld Lugganath help to defeat a daemonic incursion on Cathox Prime, and aid in the suppression of a Chaos Cultist uprising on Cathox Gamma.

• Dishonourable Alliances (909.M41) - A vast Imperial force comprised of the 52nd and 124th Valhallan Imperial Guard regiments leads an invasion of the ice planet of Klaihn. To prevent a sacred Aeldari Temple of Isha from falling into the hands of the Imperium, Biel-Tan and Lugganath each field their most potent Ghost Warriors and Aspect Warriors in a unified force. Partially because of the strange, ethereal blizzards that plagued the world, and the stubbornness of the Valhallans, what was intended to be a fast strike results in a protracted and exhausting conflict. Eventually, the Aeldari reach the temple and encircle it with Ghost Warriors, only for a Warp-blizzard to bring new terrors in the form of a wave of Daemons. An uneasy alliance is struck between the Aeldari and the Imperial forces to purge the planet of frost-blighted Slaaneshi Warp-horrors. However, the Aeldari have a greater plan, and lure the Daemons and Valhallans into a bloody conflict against each other that greatly reduces the numbers of each. Though the Valhallans are finally victorious against the Warpspawn, the Ghost Warriors easily rout the exhausted Imperial survivors.

• Fall of the Seers of Lugganath (975.M41) - The Craftworld of Lugganath falls prey to the disease known as the Brittle Coma. Its Seer Council projects their spirits into the Garden of Nurgle in the Realm of Chaos, hoping to find a cure, but instead meet a tragic and unsettling end. Very few mortal eyes have beheld the Garden of Nurgle. Its swamplands constantly wheeze a fog of supernatural diseases, and living beings cannot endure so much as a single breath of its repugnance. Only Nurgle himself can spare visitors from his garden's toxic affections; when he is expecting company, he will open a path through the gurgling fungus-fronds with a single magnanimous gesture. Trespassers are viewed poorly in Nurgle's domain, as the Seers of Lugganath found to their cost. The Aeldari of that far-flung Craftworld have long told the story of the Caged Maiden, wherein Isha, the Aeldari Goddess of Fertility and Healing, is imprisoned in Nurgle's mansion at the mercy of her grotesque admirer. The Aeldari believe their legends to be absolute truth and even aspire to one day free their goddess from Nurgle's unctuous grasp. So it was that when Lugganath was ravaged by the terrible disease known as the Brittle Coma, an army of its most gifted psykers cast their minds into the realm of Nurgle in pursuit of the truth of the myth of Isha's captivity, hoping to find their lost goddess and put a halt to their Craftworld's deadly malaise with her freedom. They knew that they would almost certainly die in the attempt, but believed that their souls would ultimately be drawn back into the glittering Spirit Stones of their comatose bodies. Once safe in their crystal afterlife, they could impart Isha's message to the Spiritseers and lift Nurgle's curse from their homes. At first, their astrally-projected forms appeared to be able to pass through the grasping foliage of Nurgle's garden with ease. Their Ghosthelms kept them as insubstantial as spirits and their psychic rune-shielded minds cut through the dismal vegetation, for they were sharper than any corporeal blade. The Rot Flies of that realm buzzed loud in alarm, however, and whispered of the intruders into Nurgle's ear. Just as the Seers of Lugganath sighted Grandfather Nurgle's manse in the distance, a great host of Plaguebearers rose up from the mud and began to chant in a droning monotone as they came forward. The Seers chanelled their psychic energy into great blasts of cleansing blue fire, boiling away huge chunks of Nurgle's army and darting out of the clumsy reach of their foes, but ever more Plaguebearers emerged from the slurry to block their path. The battle raged for solar days, and swathes of Nurgle's Garden were blasted to ruin in the process. However, in the material dimension, the physical form of the trespassing Seers began to convulse and shake, succumbing to the very plague they hoped to overcome. Slowly, as their bodies shrivelled and their Spirit Stones turned to rotting mulch, the souls of the Seers that were trapped in Nurgle's realm began to pass fully into the Immaterium. The soupy air of the garden seeped into their lungs, worm-riddled mud spattered up their legs, and white-bodied daemonflies clambered into their mouths. Claimed at last, the Seers' feet took root as their faces hardened into bark. Their arms split and twisted into gnarled branches, each finger hung with ripening Nurgling-fruit. The Seers of Lugganath remain there still, a copse of wailing trees that brighten Nurgle's leisurely walks and strike a note of despair into the heart of Isha, his immortal captive. Such is the fate of those who enter uninvited into the heartlands of Nurgle, for even the generosity of the Grandfather of Plagues has its limit.

• Sanctity Breached (998.M41) - Furious battle erupts in the twilight realm of the Webway as Chaos Space Marines of the Thousand Sons Traitor Legion fight their way to within sight of the Black Library. Their leader, the master Chaos Sorcerer Ahriman, is thwarted by a powerful force of Aeldari Harlequins and allies from both Craftworld Ulthwé and Craftworld Lugganath. Several major arteries of the Webway are choked with the dead before the warrior-psykers of the Thousand Sons are driven from the secret paths by a concerted attack. The breach caused by the rampaging Chaos Sorcerers is runically sealed, but as a result, a section of the Webway is lost forever.

Appearance

Lugganath has become a haven for scoundrels and pirates, and it is not uncommon for their Guardians to bear the icons or patterns of the Harlequin masques or Corsair forces they fight alongside.

Comparisons have been drawn between the Craftworld's own colours and the fiery orange of the Corsairs of the Sunblitz Brotherhood. Whether this similarity is a coincidence or an indication of some deeper connection between the two factions is open to speculation.

Sources

• Adeptus Titanicus - The Horus Heresy: Rulebook (Specialty Game), pg. 17
• Codex: Chaos Daemons (6th Edition), pg. 22
• Codex: Chaos Space Marines (6th Edition), pg. 21
• Codex: Dark Eldar (7th Edition), pg. 110
• Codex: Eldar (6th Edition), pp. 17-19, 21, 23
• Codex: Eldar Craftworlds (7th Edition) (Digital Edition), pp. 43, 48, 184-185
• Dataslate - Eldar Ghost Warriors (Digital Edition), pg. 13
• Imperial Armour Volume Eleven - The Doom of Mymeara, pg. 149
• Warhammer 40,000: Battle Missions (5th Edition), pg. 33
• White Dwarf Magazine 236 (UK), "Codex: Eldar - Arrogant Threat," by Gav Thorpe, pg. 11
• Warhammer 40,000: Dawn of War II
• Fabius Bile: Primogenior (Novel) by Josh Reynolds

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