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Aun'Va was the Ethereal Supreme, the spiritual and political leader of the T'au Empire, and the author of much of its recent history, including the Second and Third Sphere Expansions.
He was protected by an Honour Guard of Fire Caste warriors and his hover-throne's paradox shield. He appeared to his people as the living embodiment of the Greater Good, and his decisions shaped the T'au Empire for generations. Even after his death, his image was kept alive to preserve the Empire's unity. Aun'Va was the Master of the Undying Spirit and the Ethereal Supreme, the highest leader of the T'au Empire for centuries. He masterminded the infiltration tactics of the Damocles Gulf Crusade era and, after studying the Imperium, decided his people needed a lift in morale. His decisions shaped Farsight's exile, Shadowsun's career and the Third Sphere Expansion. His death was a disaster his caste did their best to bury.
Origins
He was the most senior Ethereal on the homeworld T'au. When Aun'Wei took his Last Walk, he named Aun'Va as his successor.
Before his elevation, Aun'Va had already served as a respected Ethereal on the T'au homeworld. When Aun'Wei walked into the wilderness on his Last Walk, Aun'Va was named his successor. He became the spiritual leader of the entire T'au race, and the guide of its expansion beyond the Damocles Gulf.
Aun'Va succeeded the ageing Aun'wei as head of the Ethereal Council. He was said to be the oldest Ethereal then living, and his influence on the T'au Empire's rapid expansion in the 41st Millennium was plain to see. To his people he was known as the Master of the Undying Spirit. His full name, Aun'o'T'au'Acaya'Va'Denta, marks him as the Aun'o, the supreme Ethereal of the whole race.
Key events
- Negotiated with Aun'Wei for the Farsight Expedition.
- Became Ethereal Supreme after Aun'Wei's Last Walk.
- Proclaimed the Third Sphere Expansion and appointed Shadowsun to lead it.
- Condemned Farsight as a renegade.
- Was killed on Agrellan by a Culexus assassin despite his Honour Guard and hover-throne shield.
- His death was concealed with a hologram.
He was never only a figure on a dais. T'au histories record him leading early conquests in person. In the Si'coa System his words drove the Fire caste into a righteous fury against the alien Reek. During his later campaigns he rode his hover-throne into the front line. Footage beamed home showed him entering a breach in an Imperial fortress wall, directing Fire Warrior volleys and standing beside the then-new XV104 Riptide amid wrecked enemy tanks. Every T'au, from factory workers on the sept worlds to atmosphere engineers on frontier moons, was required to watch. When the other High Council Ethereals urged him to take fewer risks, the footage showed how futile their warnings were.
His proclamation of the Third Sphere Expansion was staged as a carefully choreographed address. He praised each caste in turn. He admired the newest Earth caste inventions, thanked the Water caste for the alien diplomats arrayed before him and honoured the Air caste with a moment of reflection. Then he rose from his hover-dais to give the Fire caste the old Hunter salute, a gesture no Fire Warrior could watch unmoved.
Battles & campaigns
- The Damocles Gulf Crusade (742.M41): His infiltration tactics won many human worlds.
- The Time of Questioning (745.M41): He chose what his people would believe.
- Second Agrellan Campaign: Assassinated.
Personality
Aun'Va was serene, wise and calculating. He was revered by his people and was a skilled political operator.
He was patient and calculating, willing to sacrifice individuals for the good of the whole. He was skilled at manipulating others while seeming serene. Whether he sincerely believed in the Greater Good or used it as a tool is a question his concealed death has only made more pressing.
Weapons & Vehicles
The long-range electromagnetic plasma induction rifle of the T'au Fire Caste, outranging and out-punching the Imperial bolter without o…
The arcane techno-sorcerous sceptres of Necron Crypteks and Overlords, unleashing searing bolts of captured stellar radiation while ser…
The sleek, antigravitic skimming armoured transport of the T'au Fire Caste, gliding effortlessly over terrain to deploy Fire Warriors a…
Explore all 48 entries in the Weapons & Vehicles armoury.
Connections
Characters (2)
Factions
- T'au Empire primary faction
Also in this faction
Some links are thematic parallels (marked "parallel") rather than recorded meetings. See the connections web.
Legacy
Aun'Va was the Master of the Undying Spirit, the Ethereal Supreme whose authority defined an era of T'au expansion. His death, concealed by the Ethereal Council with a hologram, reveals how carefully the Ethereals guard their own image. His legacy is the Third Sphere Expansion, and the uncomfortable question of what the Greater Good means when its leaders deceive their own people. Aun'Va's death ended an era of T'au optimism.
After the Culexus Assassin killed him beneath the ruins of Agrellan's hive city, the T'au had never known defeat so complete. His Honour Guard had stepped between their master and the assassin knowing they would die. The Ethereal High Council hid the truth. As rumours spread, the Council announced that Aun'Va would soon broadcast a message of hope to every sept. The cover-up shows how much of the Empire's unity depended on him, and how far the Ethereals will go to protect that unity.
Appearances & sources
- Codex: Tau Empire (4th–6th Edition)
- Mont'ka campaign book