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From the warhammer 40K Wiki:

The Obliterator Virus is what makes an Chaos Obliterator from a Chaos Space Marine. It origins lie in the infamous Eye of Terror. After the Horus Heresy, the traitors fled to the Eye of Terror, and there met with several virulent plagues that they had not encountered before. One of these is Nurgles Rot, famed within the Death Guard. Also, the Chief Apothecary of the Emperor's Children Fabius Bile was experimenting with various pathogens, viruses and plagues and measuring the effect of the warp upon them. Whether it was from here that the Obliterator Virus comes is unknown, and will likely stay that way.

It effects a victim in 9 stages, ranging from simple carriage to total absorption. The carrier may not even know they have the virus until it is too late to stop. Due to the mutating nature of the virus, it tends to take time for the Obliterator to fully grow, and as such their numbers are quite limited, although in the Iron Warriors they are much more prolific. Why this is so is unknown, although rumours possibly mention the Iron Warrior's infecting their own warriors in order to increase their numbers. There is also some evidence that the virus has been left in the wake of Abaddon the Despoiler's 13th Black Crusade and is now spreading rampantly throughout the Imperium. With this revelation came the possibility of the existence of Obliterator Cults spreading through the worlds of the Imperium. Nature of the Virus

The virus is transmitted by the transfer of bodily fluids or simply by touch. Generally, the longer a person is in contact with an Obliterator, the more chance they have of becoming infected. The nine stages of infection and mutation differ in length between all people and depends mainly on whether the carrier is aware and resisting the spread of the virus. On the other hand, the infection is much more rapid in those that welcome such a virus, although the numbers of these people are surely small.

Stages of Infection

The infection comes in nine stages, leading from simple carriage to total absorption and the creation of a fully fledged Obliterator. The stages are:

Stage 1

No obvious effects but the victim is a carrier and can spread the disease to others.

Stage 2

The carrier now finds themselves to be more at home with weapons, his aim increases and the gun sits more naturally in his hands.

Stage 3

The carrier, now becoming more of a victim, finds themselves merging with their weaponry if they hold it for long enough. They also start to generate ammunition for the weapon they are holding, a most disturbing development.

Stage 4

The victim is now in the very throes of Obliteratorhood, with their armour no longer being able to be removed and seems to be able to repair itself. They also find their movement to be impaired and their joints rearrange and meld with the metal of their armour and weapons.

Stage 5

By now, the victim finds they can absorb small weapons such as knives and pistols and then recreate them at their own will, but only in small numbers at a time. Their sanity is also impaired by now.

Stage 6

The victims' very flesh is now made into a daemonic melding of metal and skin which adds to their armour and allows the absorption of many more complex weapons. They no longer look like humans as their body has bulged in places where weapons have been absorbed.

Stage 7

The body increases in strength and fortitude in an attempt to counter the ever increasing weight of the body. This makes them terrifying opponents in close combat.

Stage 8

The victim can now create things other than weapons, including bionic limbs and organs. Their original body flesh and daemonic metal are no longer distinguishable.

Stage 9

The final stage sees the creature as a fully fledged Obliterator and can use the heaviest of weapons in order to destroy its enemies.


that's what it sounded like to me, but because I'm the one feilding them, I could have been subconsiously interpreting it so that they are insanely good