Blood of Oryx

"They are the shadow of an unknown master, harbingers of a power beyond anything we've faced."

- Master Rahool

The Blood of Oryx is a Hive sect who act as the direct servants of Oryx, the Taken King. They are distinguishable by their grey and purple colouring.

They are the primary force aboard the Dreadnaught and can be found in the Skywatch on Earth, protecting Omnigul’s efforts to breed more Spawn of Crota in order to rebuild Crota's army.

The Court of Oryx
"I shall establish a court, and whoever comes into this court may challenge me. My court will be the High War. It will be a killing ground and a school of the sword logic we have learned from our gods."

- Auryx, King of the Hive

Following the Hive’s war with the Ecumene, Oryx created the Court of Oryx, a group of Ascendant Hive comprised of his most powerful champions. They commanded legions and were capable of creating their own Throne's which earned them the right to enter Ascendant Realms due to their dedication to the Deep. Krughor, a spawn of Savathûn was the first Ascendant Hive raised into Oryx's court. Later Oryx decreed a tithe system where each Hive would kill their enemies, take some to feed their own worm, and tithe the rest to their superior. This tribute chain went from the Knights and Wizards to their respective Ascendant Hive and lastly their God-kings.

Ten thousand years later, The Hive entered a war with the Taishibethi by sending Taken to blight their worlds and War Moons to ram their orbitals and star webs. Krughor instigated the invasion with legions of Cursed Thrall, while the Warpriest obliterated the Taishibethi counterattack. Mengoor and Cra'adug led an army to the Raven Bridge and killing Taishibethi for a decade. Later they were punished for tithing their kills to one another and not Oryx. The war came to an end once Oryx took the Emperor Raven and transformed her into the Perfect Raven. Later the Warpriest gained more notoriety after conquering five-hundred and eighty-five worlds from the time of the Golden Amputation.

The Spawn of Oryx
"When I get home from my wanderings in the Deep, and I take back my throne, I’m going to have children. That’s what I need. Sons and daughters to love and kill."

- Oryx

After destroying the Taishibethi, Oryx communed directly with the Deep by using the Tablets of Ruins carved out from the flesh of Akka. However, while speaking to the Deep, Savathûn and Xivu Arath conspired against Oryx to cut off his flow of tribute and steal his Tablets. Fearing that he was becoming a nihilist by wandering within the Deep, Oryx decided to sire his own spawn. After fighting his way back into realspace and defeating his sisters, he spawned the Hive Princes Nokris and Crota and the Deathsinger twins, Ir Anûk and Ir Halak.

With the emergence of his new spawn, Oryx raised Crota to be his champion, the "Eater of Hope", traveling to many distant worlds and devouring them on his behalf and chasing after the Traveler. While the Deathsingers refined their Deathsongs and came up with the idea of the Oversoul. Oryx used this concept in his Dreadnaught, making the ship itself into his Oversoul. Further inclusions of his court would include the offsprings of Savathûn, Balwur and Malok, and his foster son Alak-Hul.

At some point Oryx set one of the Tablet of Ruins into Golgoroth; a creation of the traitorous Worm God Xol, as a rebuttal of Crota's demands to claim it. The Ogre, once with the purpose to devour Oryx and his family, would become one of the King's most powerful Hive Champions after the Worm God Eir intervened in its creation into a new shape.

The Hive Prince Nokris sought to prove himself to Oryx by devising a plan to commune with the Worm Gods much like Oryx did. While all the Worm Gods rejected Nokris, the Worm God Xol made a pact with him where Nokris traded his heart for some of Xol's power and the secret of necromancy. Oryx upon learning this was furious as he considered it sacrilege since necromancy was considered a heretical violation of the Sword Logic. For his crimes, the King exiled Nokris and removed all references of his disowned son from the World's Grave and the Books of Sorrow.

In contemplation, Oryx realised his strong dependence on his Court and Shrines for survival as they were a vital source of tribute to keep his worm sated. He accepted that if the High War was destroyed, then his own death would follow shortly. If his Court fell then it meant they had been weak, meaning he had been a bad King and Father. To combat this, Oryx sought to keep his Court strong by testing them in various battles.

The Shrine of Oryx
"Until the Darkness reigns, the Eyes must never close."

- Grimoire description

Following a lead from the exiled Warlock Osiris, the Guardians searched the darkest corners of the Hellmouth for the fabled Shrine of Oryx. The exact nature of Oryx was once unknown to the Guardians, but the name "Oryx" appeared too often in Hive rituals that it could not be ignored.

As the Guardian breached into the Shrine, Sardok, Eye of Oryx, Hive Champion of the Blood of Oryx is called upon to protect it. Sardok is eventually defeated and the Shrine destroyed. Later it is discovered that Shrines dedicated to Oryx are used by the Hive to communicate with the god-king across the universe and members of the Hive brood are thought to be the direct servants of Oryx himself.

The Taken War


"What Crota began, I complete. My will... conquers all!"

- Oryx, the Taken King

Later on, the Guardians would form a Raid team to breach into Crota's throne world and battle the Hive Prince. While in the past conventional means failed to end the Crota at his throne world, the Guardians turned his own Sword Logic against him with the Cleavers dropped from his fallen Blades. Despite the Hive God's formidable powers and his Oversoul, the battle ended with Crota being slain by the Guardians with his own sword. Crota's death saw the Hive facing their first major defeat in the Solar System and first demise of the Hive Pantheon.

Furious at learning his son's death, Oryx personally traveled to the Solar System aboard his Dreadnaught, accompanied by a Hive fleet and his Taken army. He vowed to avenge Crota and finish what he began by destroying the Guardians.

The Hive God's invasion first met resistance by the Queen of the Reef who gathered her fleet to engage the Dreadnaught leading to the Battle of Saturn. The Queen and her Techeuns unleashed the mysterious Harbingers energy weapon on the Dreadnaught, only to be was unscathed. Oryx countered the Awoken by unleashing his Oversoul to obliterate the Queen's fleet in a single blast. However, the battle helped halt Oryx's fleet and keeping it locked outside of the inner system. In retaliation, Oryx and his forces invaded the the homeland of the Awoken, the Dreaming City, for their defiance. While exploring the city he encountered an Ahamkara, Riven Took the creature and begun to create bargains with the wish-making entity.



Oryx then blighted the system and targeted the Cabal based on Phobos. The Skyburners noticed strange activity and began to investigate; only for them to be Taken and made to fight their comrades. The Legion commander, Primus Ta'aun ordered a mass evacuation, which caught Vanguard attention and sent the Guardian to investigate. Oryx confronted the Guardian with a vision and declared his intention to kill the Guardian for killing his son. The Guardian barely escaped the base as more Taken overwhelmed them. Oryx's at the same time unleashed his Taken on Mars at which delivered major casualties to the Dust Giants, Blind Legion, and Sand Eaters legions of Cabal stationed on the planet. The Taken War began.

At the top of the Devil's Spire, Oryx used an Echo of Oryx to attack the Guardians but was repelled by them as they secured Cayde's stealth drive to breach into the Dreadnaught. Oryx then countered the Cabal strike led by Primus Ta'aun, by Taking him and confronted the Guardians with another Echo of Oryx them. When they tried to pass through the rupture, Eris Morn explained that only an Ascendant Hive could enter the rupture. To become ascendant, the Guardians snuck into Crota's throne world and stole his essence during the procession of death ceremony allowing them to bypass the portal.



To stop them Oryx unleashed two of his new Taken Champions, Ta'aun and Baxx, which were defeated by the Guardians. As they neared entrance of Oryx's room, Oryx emerged to personally challenge them. Despite his dark powers, Oryx was unable to defeat the Guardians and retreated to the Ascendant realm, leaving behind his sword, Willbreaker.

Structure
The Blood of Oryx is primarily made up of the Court of Oryx and Oryx's immediate family. Among those are the infamous Crota, Son of Oryx; who provided the biggest tribute to his father and lead the Hive's efforts against the Traveler, and Oryx's twin daughters Ir Anûk, Deathsinger and Ir Halak, Deathsinger; who helped develop deadly Hive arcana (the Oversoul and the Annihilator Totem). Oryx also assimilated members of his Taken into his brood, notably the Taken Prince Malok, Pride of Oryx, and even induct the offsprings of Savathûn through the inclusion of Balwûr.

Hive Pantheon

 * Oryx, the Taken King – Hive King
 * Crota, Son of Oryx – Son
 * Hashladûn, Daughter of Crota – Granddaughter
 * Nokris, Son of Oryx – Son
 * Ir Anûk, Deathsinger – Daughter
 * Ir Halak, Deathsinger – Daughter
 * Malok, Pride of Oryx – Nephew
 * Balwûr, Daughter of Savathûn – Niece
 * Alak-Hul, the Darkblade – Son

Ascendant Hive

 * Sardok, Eye of Oryx
 * Ecthar, Sword of Oryx
 * Thalnok, Fanatic of Crota
 * Golgoroth
 * Warpriest
 * Krughor
 * Mengoor
 * Cra'adug
 * Lokaar
 * Alzok Däl
 * Gornuk Däl
 * Zyrok Däl
 * Vorlog
 * Kagoor

Hive Champions

 * Adleg, Warden of Oryx
 * Blahgrish
 * Celebrant of Oryx
 * Hagrist, Blade's Edge
 * Heolstor, Warden of Oryx
 * Kandorak
 * Light-Eater Ogre
 * Morgeth, the Spirekeeper (inferred)
 * Protector of the Will
 * Syrok, Word of Oryx
 * The Sullied Ogre
 * The Infantine
 * Thracu, Warden of Oryx
 * Ultra Knight
 * Yathbor

Unique Forces

 * Acolyte variants
 * Adept
 * Knight variants
 * Light-Eater Knight
 * Vessel of Oryx
 * Ogre variants
 * Servile Ogre
 * Light-Eater Ogre
 * Thralls variants
 * Blind Thrall
 * Cursed Thrall
 * Dredge Exploder

Trivia

 * Even though Malok, Pride of Oryx is a Taken, his killcam shows that he belongs to the Blood of Oryx.

List of appearances

 * Destiny
 * The Dark Below
 * The Taken King