While working on my Corsair Voidscarred kill team, I spent a few days reading about Aeldari and Corsairs and noodling about names. I adore the warband name “Sunblitz Brotherhood,” and that’s the energy I wanted to capture.
I jotted down all sorts of ideas, but eventually returned to one of my first good ones: the Void Tigers.
Yes, there are already Void Dragons and Void Warriors, but there are also Eldritch Raiders, Sky Raiders, Dusk Raiders, and several other Raiders (and Sky Reavers and Skyslayers). There are thousands of Anhrathe warbands and kill teams out there, and the Aeldari know a good theme when they see one. I’m cool with some overlap.
Void Tigers lore
The Void Tigers are a tight-knit band of pirates, a mix of outcasts, escaped prisoners, looters, hunters, assassins, and freebooters. My kill team is part of the Golden Dirge warband, united by its members’ common belief: The universe is in its final centuries, so why not kill, plunder, and have some fun on the way out? The Void Tigers live by this credo, carving a bloody path through the stars and living it up on their ill-gotten gains.
The Golden Dirge operates from a fleet of voidships, giving them the ability to strike just about anywhere. The Void Tigers’ ship is the notorious Final Embrace, which has plagued the space ways for centuries.
Kill team roster
As of March 2023, I’ve built nine Void Tigers. My rule of thumb for Aeldari names is, “If Kylo Ren thought of this name while he was shopping at Hot Topic, would he think it was cool?” They gotta be the right amount of extra, emo, and 40k — which is a fun balance to try to strike.
- Felarch: Iradel Voidlight, Strider of the Glittering Way, a flamboyant pirate who thinks “too far” is a good start; raised on Alaitoc craftworld, Ralial chafed at the stultifying purity and boredom of Aeldari society
- Heavy Gunner: Morroruin Vathesh Maulathar, who left the Lugganath craftworld to experience this world for as long as it exists, rather than fleeing into the Webway with his kin
- Kurnathi: Celayla, Daughter of Isedra, Wielder of the Star-Shards, an assassin who once trained with the Harlequins
- Kurnite Hunter: Ralial Firehawk, devout follower of Kurnous; imprisoned for poaching on Ulthwé craftworld; now a bounty hunter who excels at finding rich targets for the Void Tigers
- Shade Runner: Xynha Veshan of the Bloodweb, an assassin and former Drukhari Wych Cult member hiding out from her comrades
- Starstorm Duellist: Xirhadru Meleer Eth’ar Lidaena Duskwarp, a reckless thrill-seeker who loves nothing better than a good duel and the thrill of combat
- Warrior (shuriken rifle): Vyparis the Bloody Thorn, a Drukhari pleasure-seeker who grew weary of his Kabal’s obsession with pain
- Warrior (shuriken pistol and power sword): Ylloné of the Citrine Shadow, a brash swashbuckler who spent centuries in the employ of various rogue traders before finding the Void Tigers
- Way Seeker: Siac-Zar, who abandoned the Iyanden craftworld to its fate so that she could live a life of excess among the stars
Unifying element
It seems weird to me that a bunch of freedom-seeking rebels and pirates would get together and be like, “Now, everyone put on your uniform” — but I also like having a unifying visual element for my factions/armies/etc. For the Void Tigers, this is their orange and black tiger-striped back “blades” (or Blink Pack, for the Shade Runner).
Apart from that, they’re going to dress however I feel like painting them.
I love the Corsair minis, and coming up with names, backstories, and the lore behind this kill team has been a hoot. I’m excited to paint them!
Out now: The Unlucky IslesThe Unlucky Isles [affiliate link], the first system-neutral guidebook for my Godsbarrow fantasy campaign setting, is now on DriveThruRPG.