First published in issue 231 of White Dwarf way back in 1999 before being included in 2001’s Dark Imperium anthology, William King’s classic 40k short story The Wrath of Khârn is now available as a standalone e-short. As well as having a pun-tastic title it’s a bloody, all-action story showing Khârn where he’s most comfortable – in the thick of the fighting, claiming skulls for Khorne. As he leads a frontal assault on the walls of a Slaaneshi temple he revels in the slaughter inflicted on his foes, but the decadent temptations of Slaanesh test even the Betrayer’s loyalty to his god.
It’s twenty years old (issue 231 was March ‘99) and this is definitely a story of its time – it’s told from Khârn’s perspective so we see through his eyes, which is satisfying on a visceral level, but it’s not quite the insightful, character-led depiction that we’re perhaps used to these days. Chaos Marines were simply different back then. If you can get past the older style of storytelling (and the more human portrayal of Space Marines) though, it’s actually quite an entertaining story with even a little humour (Khârn kicking a berserker’s head over the temple wall as a ‘reward’, for example). It’s not complex or nuanced, but it’s good fun.
