Turbulent Winds ~ Eltharion’s Plaza

And this, children, is Eltharion’s Plaza! In all of Tor Yvresse no place is more solemn, no place dearer to our Warden than this. Why, children? Let me tell you the sad tale of this plaza…

A long time ago before Eltharion was our Warden, he was a young elf full of courage and exquisite martial skill. Few Asur commanders ever dared to raid Naggaroth, and of those none ever came back. None until Eltharion. Our dear Warden went to that dark land and assaulted Malekith’s lair to let the Druchii know that they were safe no where and the Asur feared them not. Unbeknownst to him, during his raid on Naggaroth a greenskin war-horde landed upon the shores of Yvresse and led a bloody assault on our shining city. Eltharion knew not of the struggle that was taking place here, and during his raid on Naggaroth he was mortally wounded and lay in his death throes as his ship sailed home for Ulthuan. It was a vision of his father dying at the hands of the greenskins in Tor Yvresse that gave Eltharion the strength to recover and to return to Tor Yvresse to repel the greenskins. With the previous Warden dead and much of the city in ruins, Eltharion was given the mantle of the Warden and he tasked the Yvressians to rebuild their mighty city. Everywhere the buildings were rebuilt, everywhere save where his family was slaughtered by the greenskins. His own home he did not rebuild, instead he let nature reclaim the soils into which his family’s blood soaked. That place is where we stand now, Eltharion’s Plaza, and we stand here to always remember the sacrifices of our ancestor’s and always be alert for the forces of darkness which seek to end our way of life.

~ Cedwic Firecloud of Tor Yvresse

Turbulent Winds ~ Avalanche Pass

“Who goes there?!”

“Easy corporal, it’s Sergeant Blut”

“Sorry sir, it’s just this blasted snow blowing everywhere… all I can see is white! Makes me jump at every sound I hear.”

“These damned mountains have a way of playing tricks on the senses, that much is true.”

“I don’t even know why we post pickets in this weather, why I wouldn’t see the enemy before they was breathin’ down my neck! And worst yet, if they kill me, no one will hear my cry over this infernal wind!”

“A soldier’s duty… we cannot let our guard down and grow callous in our duties. Somewhere in that white emptiness beyond Avalanche Pass lays the Raven Host. We must keep vigilant!”

“Why do you suppose they call it that, sir? Avalanche Pass I mean.”

“These are the Jotunheims boy, there be giants in those mountains lookin’ for a fresh meal…”

~ Conversation between Corporal Tangrid and Sergeant Blut of the Ostermark Mountain Watch

Turbulent Winds

Sinister winds stir in the mountains of Norsca, but these are not dark winds boding ill tidings. No, these winds radiate warmth and lure the weary cold-stricken Kislevites to a false promise. As the purple cascade of false warmth flows gently down the mountains of Norsca unto the steppes of Kislev, another icy blue wind from the heart of Kislev rushes north to counter the false warmth of Chaos. The result – a veritable windstorm over the heads of the Kislevits as the warm purples clash and collide with the icy blues. Though many long for warmth in the harsh winter of Kislev, in these trouble times they must have faith in the purity of ice. A storm is gathering over Kislev as Slaanesh begins his struggle to seduce the hearts and minds of the weak humans, but can the magics of Kislev put a chill on Slaanesh’s ambitions?

Turbulent Winds Intro

Fort Straghov… they tell our kin back in the Empire that we died defending this rotting fort at the foot of Norsca, no would will know where we died. It was here they sent my company of the Altdorf Volunteer’s Regiment. Here… Fort Straghov, a decrepit wooden outpost with walls as gaping as a farmer’s fence. Winter is setting in and my boys have to not only keep watch in that freezing cold, but come night we sleep with the sheer wind cutting through our tents and blankets. The fortress walls offer no protection against the wind, I dread to think what little use they’d offer if the hordes of Chaos came upon us.

Back in Norsca we faced the blood-crazed Norse savages who came at us as wild unstoppable beasts. A blow that would normally fell a man did little to sway them. No, with those savages we had to hack em to bits and let their blood drain into the soil before they stopped raving. In the defense of Gotland my superiors fell to the savages and I was was ‘promoted’ simply because I’d been around the longest. Been around the longest? Just means I ain’t died yet, I pity all the lads who ‘ave died. New noble whelp comes from Nuln to command the company – suits me fine, I don’t have to order my boys to die. Then we get our orders to march to this dreaded fort in the early days of winter. It’s one thing to march with the elements bearing down on you, it’s another to march knowing you not only head closer to the winds of Chaos, but you march into the heart of winter. It becomes a question of what’s going to get you first – the freezing cold or some foul beast of Chaos? Given the options, some men turn to the third option – their own blade…

And so the 2nd company of the 1st battalion of the Altdorf Volunteer Regiment made way for Fort Straghov with the other three companies to follow behind several days, as to not strip the countryside of too much resources as we passed. One thousand soldiers of the Empire on the march, and we were the spearhead, heading towards a fort whose previous garrison was found naked and slaughtered in pools of blood and other bodily fluids. Our orders were simple – arrive at the fort, clear out all the bodies and kill anyone on sight who didn’t fly the banner of the Empire or of Kislev. Word amongst the men was that Slaanesh was at work, that’s why the Kislevite garrison was slaughtered by women. Rule of thumb was don’t trust the women in these parts. We did our duty, cleared the bodies and kept the fort safe. But then the problems began to come one after another…

First some noble looking woman came with four servants – all female. She claimed she was the regimental colonel’s wife. The captain being a young lad said we must let her in, was the gentleman’s thing to do. Me and the lads told him no one comes near the fort if they’re not displaying the Empire or Kislev’s colors, and no women! He rebuked our cries of common sense and said that he could not turn away the colonel’s wife. So the stupid lout let them in, and we eyed them like hawks day and night. A few days passed and the other companies did not show on schedule… we all began to grow worried. The lads grew anxious, their watch turned from the ladies to the horizon, constantly scanning for the other companies. Then one night it happened, the blasted women crept into the captains tent and massacred him and his guards before throwing themselves onto the rest of the company. Five crazed women, just five. A score of our lads slaughtered and two dozen more wounded. Cursed women of Slaanesh.

Now the command falls on my shoulders once again. Hold the fort through the winter until reinforcements arrive. I don’t suspect anyone would be mad enough to attack in the freezing winter, but then again I’d never seen five women slaughter twenty men. But strange things are afoot in this infernal land – the skies to the north in the mountains of Norsca glow with a warm purple hue and come cascading down into the steppes of Kislev. From the south icy blue winds soar north colliding into the purple winds of the north in a bright storm over our heads. Their warmth draws the men, but I tell my boys to not be lured by the wiles of Slaanesh. So here we are, holding our post in Fort Straghov as the winds clash above… I pray Sigmar watches over us as we weather the winter and the winds of Chaos.

~ Jurgen Kuper, Captain of the Altdorf Volunteer Regiment

Artistic Process

You may have noticed recently a small gap in my ‘daily’ posts. Well, the simple fact is that the wonderful art drawn for my blog takes lots of time to do! Much of the art is drawn in advance allowing me to post, but unfortunately with the busy time of the year, my friend has gotten caught up with other tasks. Here’s a link to his site so you can see some other great work he’s done. And below is a small sample of the different steps it takes for a picture to come to life – this example being the most recent Kossar vs. Pleasure Cultist fight. Enjoy!

Pleasure Cultist ~ Slaanesh MDPS

Vain women, wretched women who place more value on their beauty than on the powers of Chaos. The Changer would have them all put to the sword, but they are Slaanesh’s chosen attendants. Let us hope that whatever they lack in skill of warfare they make up for in their looks and perhaps lure the enemy into weakness. Either they prove their worth in breaking the enemy, or they prove their worth in being slain so that Tzeentch may prevail.

~ Lycithas the Harridan Seer

Pleasure Cultist

Archetype – Melee DPS

Armor – Medium

Weapon – Greatsword

Mechanic – Forbidden Desire

• You submit to your primal desires which are fed to your soul by Slaanesh. You mark your targets as your Targets of Obsession and feed of their pain as you fight them, building Sadistic Pleasure points. The Sadistic Pleasure pool numbers from 0-100 and will decay if you are not fighting an enemy you have marked with your Target of Obsession; this pool of points can be used for powerful attacks.

Mastery Trees

• Masochism – You focus on toe-to-toe combat, devoting your sadistic attention to one target.
• Hedonism – You focus on inflicting pain on a wide-spread scale.
• Sadism – You focus on attack your target from behind and reveling in their pain.

Kossar ~ Kislev MDPS

In times of war the winged lancers ride out and win glory on the battlefield; their valor earns them much praise and songs of honor. But there are those who shed blood on Kislev’s behalf even though they are not bound to fight, those who die and sacrifice much and receive no praise. The only songs that will ever be sung in their name are funeral dirges, and perhaps if they are lucky a local bard’s tale. They are the kossars of Kislev, the common folk who inhabit the villages and countryside. They do not fight because their profession demands it, they fight because their way of life necessitates it. When war comes to Kislev, they are honor-bound to fight for their tsardom. Kislev is their mother, and they her proud sons; when war comes to Kislev, they do not hesitate to answer the call to rise to her defense.

~ Linz Troppe, Anthropologist of Altdorf

Kossar

Archetype – Melee DPS

Armor – Medium

Weapon – Dual-wield Axes, Pistol

Mechanic – Will of the Wild

• You hone in on your survival skills and focus on your target learning their behaviors and mannerisms as you fight. You mark your targets with your Wild Focus and while fighting your targeted enemy you build your martial skill and accumulate Command of the Wild points. The Command of the Wild pool numbers from 0-100 and will decay if you are not fighting an enemy you have marked with your Wild Focus; this pool of points can be used for powerful attacks.

Mastery Trees

• Harvest Plains – You focus on toe-to-toe combat, intently focusing on your enemy’s every move.
• Burning Steppes – You act like the flame across the steppes spreading damage everywhere.
• Winter Woods – You assume the nature of a winter stalker and attack your prey from behind.

A Pleasure to Kill

Lured into Death’s Embrace by Gregorius Volff of Erengrad

v1.8.4b

Kislev, which has already taken on so much suffering and bloodshed to protect the realm of men against the winds of Chaos, now faces a new threat. The Dark Elves’ plot to lure the hosts of Slaanesh into the war has worked, though not without much effort to win over Khorne and prove to him that his weaker brother could prove of use in war. Now the hosts of Slaanesh march south to join Khorne’s armies in their struggle to break Kislev, and under one banner shall they unite to bring death and suffering to the peoples of Kislev. Kislev stands alone to bear the brunt of the attack, she must look to her own for her defenses.

Forming the core of the host marching to join Khorne are the Pleasure Cultists of Slaanesh, sinister women lured by the promises of Slaanesh and twisted by his ill will. For Slaanesh, beauty and perfection are paramount, and his minions must reflect this. The Pleasure Cultists are models of Slaanesh’s vision both in his perception of beauty, and in their ability to cause great pain and suffering.

Facing a new threat, the Tsarina of Kislev is forced to demand more of her people. Thus far the war has been waged by career soldiers and the most devout of the followers of Ursun, but with such a massive host approaching more must sacrifice for the sake of Kislev. Called onto the battlefield in the defense of not only Kislev, but of all of humanity are the Kossars of Kislev – the backbone and muscle of society, the common folk. War touches all, and none suffer more than the commoners, but now the Kossars must take a stand and fight to repel the hosts of Slaanesh.

Order players who acquired the Massing of Defenders Edict in the Savage Reprisal live event have two weeks early access to the Kossar. Destruction players who acquired the Barbed Whip in the Savage Reprisal live event have two weeks early access to the Pleasure Cultist

Savage Reprisal Guide

v1.8.4a consists of the Savage Reprisal live event. Morathi’s loathing for the High Elves has come to full fruition. Frustrated with the progress of the war in the Old World, Malekith is all too willing to hear his mother’s advice. The plan called for a great display of suffering and pain to be spread across the land to solidify a pact Morathi had made with the Chaos god Slaanesh, the Dark Prince of pain and pleasure. The suffering of High Elves has had the desired affect – Slaanesh is pleased with the attention and is marching forth his legions to join the hosts of Chaos in the struggle against the humans of the Empire and of Kislev. Kislev now faces the wrath of three Chaos gods as they carve a path of bloodshed across the steppes of the Tsardom.

Slaanesh’s commitment in the alliance is not yet solidified with the actions of Malekith, for his minions have to win acceptance among the hosts of Tzeentch and Khorne. As the forces of Destruction seek to appease the god of pain and pleasure, the forces of Order struggle against all odds to strengthen Kislev’s resolve and fortify her defenses.

Savage Reprisal ~ Sacellum Challenges

Within the twisting confines of the Inevitable City lays arena in which the forces of Chaos beat their chests and proclaim their greatness. Savage brutes think that by slaughtering mindless beasts and starved creatures that they are true warriors. The hordes of Chaos know not the true values of a skilled warrior. After seeing this crass spectacle of might, I now know that our alliance with the forces of Chaos is purely for the sake of convenience, for I am certain that the legions of Naggaroth would triumph over these blood-crazed wretches. 

~ Gareth Felgaze, Captain of the Uthorin Escort in the Inevitable City

With the forces of Slaanesh gathering to join their Chaos brethren, their presence has become great within the streets of the Inevitable City. Any warrior who wishes to prove his valor and win the favor of the Chaos gods must demonstrate his worth in combat of arms. The ideal location for this display is right under the eye of the Chaos gods at the heart of the Chaos Wastes – the Sacellum of the Inevitable City. It is here the hopeful-champions of Slaanesh flock that they may best their counterparts devoted to Khorne and Tzeentch, it is here they will prove their worth.

The forces of Order however are aware of the test of skills, and have sent brave volunteers disguised as the enemy into the heart of evil- the primary contingent consisting of Kislevites disguised as savage Norse followers of Khorne. Now the forces of Order confront the forces of Destruction within the walls of the Inevitable City in an attempt to  disrupt the winds of Chaos.

The Sacellum Challenges scenario takes place within the grand arena in the form of a series of fights. This is a 6v6 deathmatch with three rounds – after one faction has eliminated all the opponents, the first round ends and the fight resets. Each round lasts 5 minutes. Points are awarded for kills, winning a round, and in the event that one faction has won the first two rounds, if the other faction wins the third round they get bonus points for a come-back. The gauntlet has been thrown down. Who will accept the challenges and claim victory?