Nurglings are Lesser Daemons of Nurgle, appearing as miniaturised versions of Nurgle himself.
Overview[]
Like their Plaguebearer counterparts, Nurglings are lesser Daemons of Nurgle, manifested from the Plague God's power and will. Unlike Plaguebearers, Nurglings are much smaller and often childlike in behaviour and personality. For these reasons, Nurglings are often subject to displays of affection from Nurgle's larger and stronger minions, likely a reflection of Nurgle's paternal attitude towards his followers. Standing at an average height of 1ft, Nurglings can gestate within the bodies of Great Unclean Ones and even mortal cultists devoted to Nurgle.
While physically weak, Nurglings are also carriers of innumerable pathogens and extremely contagious. Physical contact with a Nurgling can result in an individual becoming infected with multiple deadly diseases. This threat is compounded further by the Nurglings' tendency to travel and attack in large hordes, often appearing as a river of sickness underfoot the armies of Nurgle.
When the Iron Warriors legion invaded the planet Toil, their Primarch Perturabo made a pact with Nurgle for aid in defeating the Mechanicus forces controlling the Forge World. This resulted in the emergence of a variant of Nurgling known as Glitchlings. Resembling a Nurgling with cybernetic augmentations, Glitchlings differ from the standard Nurglings in that their mere presence causes nearby technology to malfunction, spreading Nurgle's entropy from the living to machines.