Indrick Boreale

FOR THE EMPRA!

Indrick Boreale is the Force Commander of the Blood Ravens Space Marines in the Dawn of War: Soulstorm campaign. Famous for his speech impediment and baldness. He is the origin of the terms Empra and SPESS MEHREENS. According to Dawn of War II, he died in the Kaurava System during the events of Soulstorm, which some have interpreted as something of an apology from Relic for the terrible quality of the expansion.

Boreale Addressing His Troops

TEHRE IS NO TIME TO BE LOST!!

BATTLE BROTHARS!

SPESS MEHREENS, TODEH THE ENEMEH IS AT OUR DOAR! WE KNOW OUR DUTEH AND WE WILL DO EHT. WE FIGHT FOR OUR HORNOUR AS BLUHD REHVENS, AS SPESS MEHREENS, AND WE FIGHT IN THE NEHME OF THE EMPRA!

AND IF WE DIE THIS DEH WE DIE IN GLOARY. WE DIE HEAROES' DEFFS-BUT WE SHALL NORT DIE-NO IT IS THE ENEMEH WHO WILL TEHSTE DEFF AND DEFEAT! AS YOU KNOW... (He doesn't sound very confident of himself, does he?)

MOAST OF OUR BATTLE BROTHARS ARE STEHTIONED IN SPESS, PRUHPEARED TO DEEP STRIKE! OUR PERIMETER HAS BEEN PRUHPEARED IN THE EVENT THEHT OUR ENEMEHS SHOULD BE SO BALD AND SO FOOLISH. WE HAVE PLEHCED NUMEROUS BEACONS, ALLOWING FOAR MULTIPLE, SIMULN-TEHNEOUS, AND DEVEHSTEHTING DEFENSIVE DEEP STRIKES.

THE CODECKS ASTARTEES NEHMES THIS MANEUVAH STEEL REHN. WE WILL DESCEND UPON THE FOE, WE WILL OVAHWHELM THEM - WE WILL LEAVE NONE ALIVE! MEANWHILE OUR GROUND FOARCES WILL ENSURE THE FULL DEFENSE OF OUR HEADKWARTERS.

WE ARE THE SPESS MEHREENS! WE ARE THE EMPRA'S FUREH!

How Boreale lost his "voice"

Scene starts as Thule defeats Gorgutz in Dark Crusade. Gorgutz flees the Green Beach and is currently on his Ork ship. Indrick Borale is in his personal Thunderhawk with Techmarine brother Spasmius heading towards the Litany of Fury. Brother Spasmius had an unclear mind due to seeing a daemonette on imperial television, and hence drove Brother Captain Boreale into Gorgutz' ship, looking for Gabriel Angelos.

Nob: Isn't that 'umie un of 'ose wez got trash'd up by? Gorgutz: Nah, that 'umie looks dumb, and 'ez talks funny too. Must be un of 'ose Chaos Boyz we'z stomped on. Nob: What shall we do boss? Stomp on 'im? Gorgutz: Move aside ya git. 'ez mine.

Gorgutz smashes up Boreale, leaving him with no teeth and a even more damaged brain. Boreale stumbles back into his thunderhawk, Gorgutz gleefully picking up his teeth.

"Brother Spessmius...Where are weh?"

Brother Captain Boreale's Bad Day

Boreale made doubly sure his armor was perfectly polished. He checked his sword scabbard and pistol holster. He fitted his Purity Seals on and ensured that his breastplate decorations were positioned correctly. He held his helmet under his arms. As he turned from his massive planning table, he checked his reflection in one of his other suits of Power Armour. Tall, large, inspiring. Perfectly presented, every inch an Imperial Space Marine.

His hair was still very short, but Boreale had begun to accept that. Even after two hundred years, his hair (or lack thereof) bothered him. But it wasn’t the worst thing. That would be his speech.

He had been fighting his speech for years. He was an inspirational speaker, able to turn his formidable speech-composition skills to demagoguery or fiery rhetoric. He always wrote and delivered his own speeches, and he strongly believed in the importance of words as an element of leadership. But he always struggled with the same thing:

Pronunciation. A more obdurate enemy than any he had ever faced.

He mouthed the words of his speech to himself, very softly, as he looked into his reflection on the chestplate of a Power Armour suit.

“Space Marines, today is the day…” the words came out very softly, but they were correct. Perhaps today WOULD be the day? Perhaps today he would get it right, and deliver the greatest speech of his entire illustrious career? He continued to practice: “today is the day we serve the…Empr-…Empera…Emperor. Tode-today…” He took a deep breath and started again:

“Today is the day we serve the Emperor by putting our lives, minds and souls in the line of duty in His name, and in service to the Imperium….”

He was doing well so far. Perhaps today would be the day indeed.

Confident with his initial success, Boreale straightened himself out to his full height of about nine feet. It had been only days since the attack on their Stronghold by the Sisters of Battle, where he had personally defeated Canoness Agna in single combat. The woman had charged in towards him, full of righteous fury, and screaming a challenge. Meeting her with his own blade and screaming his own battle cry (it unfortunately came out as FOR THE EMPRA, in the heat of battle), Boreale had overwhelmed her with superior speed and strength, and she had fallen on her sword rather than let him strike the killing blow.

Regrettable that it came to fighting the Empe...Emperor’s servants as such, but necessary. Necessary for the survival of the Imperium and mankind, necessary to please the Emperor and the Unknown Primarch. Necessary. No, essential!

Boreale gritted his jaw, and corrected his sword one last time. It was time.

He stepped out onto the podium where hundreds of Blood Ravens stood assembled silently and unmoving, waiting for his words. He felt confidence fill him the likes of which he had never felt. Today would indeed be the day.

Boreale drew a deep breath.

“BROTHERS!”

…

“TODEH WE SERVE THE EMPRA!”

Some things just never changed.

Boreale in Therapy

SPESSSSS

"Space marines. Suh-Pay-Seh Ma-Reens. Space Marines," Brother Tullus nodded, "Now, you try."

"Sp-Sp-SPESS-"
"No, no, ACE. AAAACE."
"EHSSS"
"Ace."
"Ace."
"Good. Now say 'Spay."
"Spay."
"Now say both of them."
"Spay. Ace."
"And all together now."
"Sp-sp-spess."

Brother Tullus delicately plucked the spectacles from the bridge of his nose while the other massaged his much aching head, "No, no, Emperor damn it..."
"I have failed..."
"No, no, no Boreale you-" Tullus leaned back in the chair, as it cried out in protest, trying in vain to think of something-
"THE EMPRAH!"
He fell back out of his chair in surprise at the sudden exclamation.

Brother-Captain Indrick Boreale was but one of many held at the Mental Reclamation Convent of Saint Gimpus, and really, Tullus reflected as he righted his chair, one of the better behaved ones.

For instance, one cell over...

"METAL BOXES!" Came muffled through the wall, shaking the diplomas bespangling it.

STEEL REHN

Steel Rehn

Some steh dry and others feel the pehn

Steel Rehn

Landing drop pods makehs infernahl din

Steel Rehn

Our eterhnel fureh strikes the hearts of mehn

Steel Rehn

Deep strikeh is our vehry own bent

Steel Rehn

No matteh how hard our enemeh’s try

Steel Rehn

They all see our reputashen is no lie

Steel Rehn

Forecast to be fallen yesterdeh

Steel Rehn

Yet it will likeleh also fall todeh

Steel Rehn

We fall to earth at enormouehs rates

Steel Rehn

The Empra’s foes cannot stop ourh haet

Steel Rehn

Our drop pods coveh the light of dehy

Steel Rehn

Our enemeh’s flee but there is no weyh

Steel Rehn

Fiereh blood rushing throuegh our vehns

Steel Rehn

Afteh we finish we prepare to fall back down agaihn

Steel Rehn

We are called dowehn by the radio

Steel Rehn

The purpose is to gain grouend controhl

Steel Rehn

We could not call it aneh otherh nayme

Steel Rehn

Everything else soundehd quite insayhn

Steel Rehn

We are preparing to fall onceh moreh now

Steel Rehn

The Empra will someday rewaredh us, somehow

Boreale stopped singing once he reached the end of what he had composed, and sat down silently, sitting his head in his hands. On paper, it was brilliant, a hymn that could be sung by billions of the Emperor’s servants across thousands of worlds in countless joyous anthems.

But what was the point if he couldn’t sing it properly himself?

YTP Indrick Boreale

On YouTube:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MbRGg3e1b68&feature=user

Boreale's Death

Boreale met his end when he accidentally bit his exceptionally long tongue with his superhuman strength. He usually left his mouth open for a while to allow his tongue to slide in,which was one of the many factors that affected his speech. However, he had overworked himself during his therapy and bit his tongue with his teeth, causing him to die of pain that even an Astarte could not endure.

Unsurprisingly, his death has now been confirmed in Dawn of War II. The Kaurava System campaign is remembered with shame and epic failure by the rest of the Blood Ravens.