All the Black Arks we have seen in prose in AoS have been seaborn and I can't remember any mentions of flying ones in rules or unit descriptions. That said they would make sense as one of the piratical threats the Kharadon supposedly have to deal/compete with.
All the Black Arks we have seen in prose in AoS have been seaborn and I can't remember any mentions of flying ones in rules or unit descriptions. That said they would make sense as one of the piratical threats the Kharadon supposedly have to deal/compete with.
I've read the 2017 book but not the 2020 book yet. That book mentions Harkrakens, a bunch of miscellaneous monsters I forget right now, and skyship pirate Orruks and Grots. Not together, as different crews. I think it's very funny that their first thought for a competing sky threat to the Kharadron was Orcs and Goblins.
Post coming soon, just need to get some maps in place.
The Mortal Realms exist within a system known as the Cosmos Arcane. I mentioned the basics of the Cosmos in my intro post, but as a brief refresher, you have 8 Realmspheres formed from condensed magical energies consisting of the Eight Winds, the Aetheric Void in between where the energies are thin and insubstantial, the Allpoints/Eightpoints which serves as a nexus between the Realms and connects to all of them, the Realms of Chaos belonging to each individual Chaos God, and some miscellaneous sub-realms. The skies of the Realms are often the great expanse of the Void, and to move from one Realm to another, or in fact across the same realm, there are portals known as Realmgates that allow you move vast distances in an instant. There are also several other ways of traversal, but this is the main one.
The Realms are not a static collection of unchanging form that follows the same logic or laws. Each Realm has its own nature and structure. There are a few commonalities however. If you look at the map of the Mortal Realms, you will see that there are celestial objects, moons, that orbit around the Spheres. These moons all have their own little stories and info, but unfortunately I don't have my 3rd Edition core book to go over them right now. Moons like Lunaghast in Shyish and Celennar in Hysh are particularly relevant to their realm, and Ghur has a moon that was half eaten by the Realm itself. That's why it's called "Half-Eaten". The number of moons a Realmsphere has and what the moons properties, orbit or purpose is differs from one realm to another. It should be noted that Azyr has an endless collection of them presented as stars, so they don't really show them in the map. However, most prominent are Dharroth (the remains of Morrisleb from the Old World), Mallus (Core of the World-That-Was which spawns Sigmarite) and Sigendil (Sigmar's personal favorite that he draws power from to throw lightning bolts).
I would also like to note that Leylines and Waystones are still a thing in Age of Sigmar across the Realms. To those who don't know what I'm talking about, Leylines are geomantic magical pathways across the lands. Waystones require some background on WHF. Basically, the Old Ones in WHF constructed a webway of magical constructs known as the Geomantic Web in the Old World when they arrived to the planet, and they used it as a way to extract energy to power their great works like moving the planet closer to the sun, separating the continents and making portals. When the Polar Gates of the Old World collapsed, the forces of Chaos flooded over the lands of the Old World and magic went haywire, so the High Elves of Ulthuan created the Vortex so they could shunt that energy back to the Warp, the immaterial realm of Chaos and all that is possible, where the Winds comes from. The Elves constructed Waystones based on the Geomantic Web to direct the flow of energy, or the Leylines, towards the Vortex, so they could make sure the world was safe from Daemonic incursion.
So it might seem a bit weird that Age of Sigmar has these Waystones without this context. It isn't as if it's a major part of the setting, because it's usually mentioned offhand as a sort of shorthand for a locus of magic that needs to be protected by the Forces of Order. There are lots of these Locuses, and it should be noted that many Realmgates are effectively that. Realmgates are highly magical concentrations of power, and they tend to attract all sorts of people who might exploit that, which is why almost every Stormkeep (fortified Stormcast Garrisons) in the Mortal Realms is built around a Realmgate to protect it. The importance of Realmgates and the safety of a Stormkeep also makes it so that many if not all of the Free Cities are built around a Stormkeep.
Also common across the Realms (with one exception thanks to Nagash) is the concept of the Realm's center vs its edge. All the Realms are vague collections of landmass built on concentrated gaseous substance made of the Realm's element, but the nature of such things differs from Realm to Realm and elevation is not constant. Chamon and Shyish are not flat so much as a nebulous space of height differentials. However, what remains constant is that the Realm's centre is always the calmest and most stable section of a Realm. The Realms are made of Magic, but the centre is where that magic is most stable and least volatile. As such, most mortal civilisations live towards the center of the Realm, whether it be the Ghurish Heartlands, the Spiral Crux in Chamon, The Great Parch of Aqshy, the Everspring Swathe of Ghyran, Xintil in Hysh, the Shadrac Convergence in Ulgu or the Prime Innerlands of Shyish. The closer you get to the Realm's Edge, the more magical and volatile the land becomes as it becomes inimical to life. The nature of the Realm's Edge differs from Realm to Realm, but an example set out in 2nd Edition is that going to the Edge of Ghyran may result in you growing foliage or perpetually giving birth (knowing AoS, I don't think this is related to your physiology). That is why the Edge of the Realm is known as the "Perimeter Inimical". Towards the Edge of the Realm, magical forces are so powerful and violent that it's incredibly easy to cast magic, even for those who haven't studied or attuned themselves. The Realms all contain an essence of their own nature, and with the Necroquake destabilising the magical nature of the Realms, Realm Magic has become more prominent even outside the Realm's Edge, where Wizards would be able to cast spells they didn't necessarily know or were capable depending on their location.
Which brings us to the Necroquake. Long story short, because this needs more extensive coverage sometime later, is that Nagash wanted power, he made a Black Pyramid (again), and this time he concentrated Shyish's Realmstone (more on that later) into a drill that dug into Shyish's centre. Unfortunately for him, Skaven sabotaged his plans yet again, and they destabilised his ritual such that it failed to give him quite as much power as he expected and resulted in a worldwide magical cascade known as the Necroquake. And by worldwide I mean across every Realm in the Mortal Realms.
This Necroquake heralded the era known as the Arcanum Optimar, which for timeline purposes occurs after the Age of Sigmar began, the Realmgate Wars ended, and the Free Cities were established. It was the beginning of 2nd Edition, and it resulted in Undead all over the Realms rising from their grave and joining Nagash's legions, and allowed him to establish the Nighthaunt in force. The effects of his Necroquake were tremendous. First is that it reversed the magical polarity of Shyish's realm, turning the centre into a bottomless magical hole known as the Shyish Nadir. From there, Nagash made it so that magic focused around the center of Shyish, where his fortress of Nagashizzar was built, rather than the Edge. This allowed him to drag the Underworlds across Shyish into the Nadir where he would feast on them, and empower himself.
The second effect, or rather third since the Nighthaunt were also an effect, was that magic across the Realms went haywire. Previously, when magic was implemented the spell would dissipate with time as it was drawn inexorably into the Realm's Edge. Spells were not permanent unless they were bound into an Artefact. What the Necroquake did is that it created "Endless Spells" which is a fitting name because Shyish is the Wind of Ending. By messing with the Wind so thoroughly, Nagash allowed for the creation of spells that had no ending, at least not without being dispelled. Many of these spells hold a particularly powerful story or myth attached to it, such as Ravenak's Gnashing Jaws and the Purple Sun of Shyish, and their powers only grow more powerful as they wander the Realms. Some have become so infamous and destructive and grew so powerful that they gained their own names and legends, even being worshipped as Gods. Whole groups and organisations of Spell Hunters were crafted to take down Endless Spells, a dangerous job with a lot of risk but also much reward. Reward not just because there would be bounties for spells, but because they often left magical residue when dispelled, usually in the form of solidified Realmstone.
The Necroquake also empowered Realm Magic and turned many non-magical objects that held cultural significance or importance into Artefacts of Power, the name of magical objects in the Mortal Realms. But beyond that, we need to talk about Realmstone.
Realmstone:
Realmstone is, in its most basic explanation, a crystalisation of magic into a substance. The Substance doesn't even need to be solid, it can be liquid or gaseous and it could still be considered Realmstone. These objects are effectively focused magical energy, and most prominently they form from the Eight Winds within their respective Realms. This, of course, means that there are at least eight Realmstones, of which there are. There's also more than that, because there is no shortage of magical substances, but not all magical materials are considered Realmstone. Sigmarite, Ur-Gold and Aethergold aren't Realmstone, but Aetherquartz is.
Realmstone is created when the raw force of magic meets reality, either naturally through time or after some sort of powerful metaphysical phenomenon triggers it. Realmstone is highly valuable and its physical appearance and effects differ greatly based on the type, from Emberstone of Aqshy glowing like burning hot coal and intensifying the emotions of those around it to the Falsestone of Ulgu and its viscous, billowy cobweb texture and its ability to cause mystical hallucinations around it. The power of Realmstone is highly variable and not always easy to determine, with size not exactly correlating to strength. Some Collegiate Arcane Wizards theorise that magical density of the given location of formation or use might effect it, or that the rate of arcane degradation is the key. Regardless of type, however, Realmstone is universally known as Cursestone for its uncanny ability to draw whoever seeks it into trouble. Those who overuse it have been known to suffer tragedy and ruin, as can be seen from the Spirefall of the Lumineth of Hysh.
Realmstone can also often be found as residue after the dispelling of Endless Spells or at the Edge of the Realms. The Grave Sand of Shyish is well known to accumulate at the Edge, and it is said that every speck is tied to the lifespan of a specific mortal. To accumulate all the Gravesand of a person's life and to place it in an hourglass, and then flipping it, would result in said individual extending his lifespan. Vitrifying the Gravesand through magic allows for the creation of Shadeglass, coined by the mages of Shadespire in Shyish, it allowed them to capture the souls of their greatest Mages to preserve them and their teachings and knowledge, cheating death. At least until Nagash figured it out and snapped the city out of existence into Uhl-Gysh in between Ulgu and Hysh.
Celestium of Azyr is concentrated in the clouds and stars and it drifts like stardust, often landing in shooting stars and meteors and granting oracular visions to those who wield it. The Cyclestone of Ghyran is an icy substance that melts into a puddle and then evaporates into a gas and then freezes into ice, representing the cycles of Ghyran. Its power was used by the Sylvaneth in their Waystones to hide their groves out of sight, which Nurgle's followers sought for corruption and led to fights over possession of it. The Amber Bone of Ghur is shaped like the bones of a beast and often overlooked, but it possesses great power in drawing out the bestial nature of the Wilds and is highly sought after by Bonesplitterz Shamans.
Chamonite is a quicksilver-like substance of transmutational power. Soft and malleable, it is highly valuable in alchemy and can be forged with other metals to create all sorts of new and powerful alloys. Its change magic is highly valued by the followers of Tzeentch who seek out its transmutational properties. Emberstone or Aqthracite is a greatly valued Realmstone by the Bloodbound of Khorne, as it not only radiates heat but also emotion, stoking primordial rage to those near it. It is sought after for its use in the forging of peerless weaponry. The Falsestone of Ulgu is a billowy fog invisible to those without magesight. It's almost sentient, creating illusions to hide its true nature and causing hallucinations around it when found, forcing people to question what is real and what is not.
Aetherquartz' effects were discussed, but its shape was not. It used to be that the magic of Hysh could not be harnessed, as it manifested in beams of light too fast to be trapped. Until Teclis discovered and shared the method of trapping the beams, creating the prismatic substance of Aetherquartz. Teclis used this substance to create the Tower of Prios in Hysh to lessen the effects of the Necroquake within his domain.
Also notable are other forms of Realmstone. Warpstone still exists in Age of Sigmar for those who know it from Warhammer Fantasy, except its primarily a Skaven thing because its primary source is Skavenblight. It's still as chaotic, volatile, unstable and mutative as ever, and it is produced through the corruption of condensed magical energy by the powers of Chaos. As such, the Skaven constantly seek out all sorts of magical forces to corrupt for their precious Warpstone. There's two more forms of Realmstone. Varanite is a special molten substance existing within the Eightpoints after its corruption by Archaon. The substance is the stuff of chaos and possesses utterly ridiculous mutation abilities. It is rarer and more powerful than Warpstone and possesses the power of ruination as a crystalisation of the power of Chaos, and only the greatest of Chaos Warriors are deemed worthy to wield a Varanite weapon.
Perhaps the oddest of the Realmstones is Nullstone, or Voidstone. It is a crystalised fragment of the Aetheric Void, the vast expanse outside the Realms. When it lands within the Realms, it serves as an anti-magic locus that devours magic and nullifies it. When harnessed and utilised in objects, it can protect users from magical interferences and even absorb and destroy magic. It even has the ability to destroy the knowledge of magic from the minds of those learned in it, which makes it particularly dangerous against mages.
Light and Darkness:
One particular connection that I feel is important to note which I haven't gotten to is the connection between Hysh and Ulgu. These two Mortal Realms are connected to a greater degree than any other Realm, and that is because they are dual natured. Hysh is the Sun of the Mortal Realms, producing the light that all the other Realmspheres receive. Ulgu is Hysh's counterpart, serving as the shadow to its light. The two spheres orbit each other in an endless cycle. Where one waxes, the other wanes. The cycle of time is measured from the orbit of Hysh and Ulgu's cycles, which also determines the light you typically receive in the Mortal Realms. Sometimes it doesn't matter that much, because Aqshy has its own light sources, but for places like Shyish it's pretty valuable.
Also in between Hysh and Ulgu is Uhl-Gysh, the Twilight Gloaming. A sub-realm representing Twilight, it is a mysterious place that is very, very difficult to navigate and one of the best places to secrete someone away, which was perfect for the Aelven Pantheon's plans to entrap Slaanesh. Also a side note, Teclis and Tyrion are inextricably linked to Hysh, and Morathi and Malerion to Ulgu, and as such neither can truly manifest in the opposite Realm. The four of them met each other in Shyish after searching for their Aelven kin with a bunch of Shyish monks as the middlemen, and they agreed on Uhl-Gysh as a meeting point as it was not anathema to any of them.
Aqshy:
The basics of Aqshy have already been covered, and I'll cover the individual Realms in more detail later, but some basics about Aqshy:
Aqshy is a molten and cracked landscape of vast continents, and it is believed that it's constantly expanding at the edge. The people of Aqshy inherit the realm's temperament and tend to be passionate people. The central continent of Aqshy where most mortal civilisation lives is called the Great Parch, a vast continent of which has an extensive history that has been brushed over quite a bit across the years. It's probably one of the more fleshed out settings for Age of Sigmar, and it is also where Grimnir and Vulcatrix had their battle that scarred the land:
Side note regarding the map, I'm well aware of the Soulbound Great Parch map. It is vastly superior with greater visual fidelty, color, more details, and more locations of interest that this map doesn't contain. The Soulbound map was created for the RPG after this map was made in 2nd Edition, and the 3rd Edition Map of the Great Parch matches the Soulbound Map pretty closely. Unfortunately, I can't get a high quality image that lets you zoom in on the Soulbound Map because it's being sold separately by Cubicle 7, so people are treading lightly on that map, and I will too for the moment.
It's noted that Aqshy's cracked landscape is unique, and some legends state that it was Vulcatrix and Grimnir's battle that caused it. Others, such as the Calderan Horselords, believe that it was Sigmar's battle against Symr the First Flame that caused the land to be fractured. Either way, the lands of Aqshy are parched, arid and dry for the most part. They are hot and steaming with lakes of molten lava and blood, but it was not always this way. There was a time where the Realm of Fire was prosperous and populated with the Twelve Belicose Tribes that worshipped Sigmar and the Fyreslayers of Grimnir, and it was only after the Age of Chaos that Khorne's influence transformed the lands into what it would become. The lack of food and arable land led to much cannibalism, which the Bloodbound indulged in.
Still, the lands of Aqshy are not all inhospitable and arid. There are plenty of volcanoes and mountains and valuable materials within the Realm, even forests and sweltering jungles and seas full of healthy beasts and fish to feast on. Obsidian and other minerals were extracted from Vostargi Mont and the eastern mountains while the traders of Bataar in the west offered their fine Firesilk and the mages of Aspiria utilised their Agloraxi teachings to work wonders of magic. The lands were battered by the Khornates, but with the Age of Sigmar came the revival of Aqshian civilisation. Part of it were the Azyrite settlers who came from Sigmar's Eternal City, Azyrheim, but a good portion of it were Aqshian natives, known to the Azyrites as the "Reclaimed".
There's a lot to talk about with Aqshy, but I'll leave that to its own dedicated post. For now, it's useful to know that the Fyreslayers originate from this Realm and it is where they are most prominent, and that the Free Cities of Hammerhal Aqsha, Hallowheart, Tempest's Eye and Anvilgard (which would later become Har Kuron) are in this Realm. The Fuethan Enclave of Idoneth, Shark loving warmongers, also inhabit this Realm's sees, and this place is also where the Scarlet Doom of the Nighthaunt first originated from the desecrated corpses of those who were defiled by the Khornates. Khorne and his followers love this place, and Ignax the Solar Drake is a pretty prominent Godbeast, although she's been absent as of late. That would happen when you're bound by Grimnir and forced to become an artificial Sun for Aqshy's populace for centuries until you're bound by Chaos magic then freed by Fyreslayer runic powers. She probably didn't want to go back home to where her mom (Vulcatrix) died. Although some apparently still worship her.
Ghyran:
Ghyran is the Realm of Life, which already gives an idea of what it's like. Ghyran represents seasons and cycles, and not just the traditional four seasons of Summer, Winter, Spring and Autumn. It also includes seasons such as the Dwindling, Burgeoning, Everdusk, Reaping and thousands more. The cycles are constantly shifting and flowing and all things in this realm follow the cycle of life. Magical energy suffuses the forests and foliage of this realm, but not all the places are so colorful. After all, Ghyran represents Winter, and its connection to death is undeniable. The edges of Ghyran's realm are always growing and expanding and the untamed forests are utterly impenetrable the farther you get from the center. Most mortals, as such, prefer the Everspring Swathe, the collection of continents in the center of the Realm and where Alarielle the Goddess of Life resides:
Ghyran's waters are fresh and nourishing, providing such potent rejuvenation and healing that it soothes not only a person's body, but their mind and soul. It is an abundant resource in Ghyran, but an incredibly valuable resource in all other Realms, particularly in Aqshy and Shyish where the water is often not drinkable. This substance is so valuable that it's used as a currency known as Aqua Ghyranis, and it is measured through Drops, Phials and Spheres. Ghyran provides endless space for production of food and the use of valuable resources, but the forest grows so fast and expansively that some of the settlements in it are in danger of being overrun by the Realm itself. As such, some areas develop countermeasures, such as Hammerhal Ghyra transporting the lava flows of its sister city Hammerhal Aqsha through its realmgate to keep the forest at bay. Hammerhal Ghyra repays the favor by supplying food and water to its sister city.
It should, however, be noted that the Realm of Life is primarily inhabited by the Sylvaneth, the children of Alarielle. They are the spirits of nature within the Realms, but no more so than Ghyran the Realm of Life. The Sylvaneth are the result of the planting of Soulpods within groves of magical power within the forests of Ghyran, and their spirits return to the earth after their Lamentiri is harvested and replanted. Their heartwood is protected by their barkflesh and they inherit the ancestral memories of those before them, and they communicate with each other and nature itself through Alarielle's spirit-song. When deprived of the Spirit-Song, the Sylvaneth can grow mad and deteriorate.
However, when individuals desecrate nature and the trees and forests and environment calls out with its spirit-song is when the Sylvaneth Glades are called to war. When this happen, they muster under the War-Song and hunt down those who thoughtlessly disrupt the cycle of life, regardless of whether they be Order or Destruction or Chaos. More on Sylvaneth later.
The Realm of Ghyran has a lot going on, and it's probably the second most developed region after Aqshy. It should be noted that Alarielle did acquire a seed of the Oak of Ages from the Old World to those who know WHF, so if you look at the map you can see "The Oak of Ages Past", which yes is the same Oak, except bigger because this is Age of Sigmar. The Realm of Ghyran was hopelessly corrupted by Nurgle during the Age of Chaos, and Alarielle's efforts to repel his forces were in vain, so she withdrew into her secret glade until the Realmgate Wars revitalised her. The full story is to be told sometime later, but it's important to know that great portions of Ghyran were corrupted by Nurgle, and you can see a lot of his naming conventions on the map. Invidia is probably one of his strongest bases in the Everspring Swathe. Oh, and before I forget, Ghyran has living avalanches/blizzards with names. They just move around the place.
Ghyran is the home of the Sylvaneth, although they do tend to move around because forests exist outside Ghyran, albeit changed. Chamon has metal forests (and the Ironbarks of that place are equally metallic as a result) and Ghur has living meat trees in its Gnarlwood for example. Ghyran is also the resting place of Behemat, son of Ymnog (who was killed by Sigmar in the Age of Myth) and father of Gargants. Apparently Behemat got very drunk and full before he wandered into Ghyran, tripped and vomited out the first Gargants. Then he fell asleep and entire forests and lifeforms grew over his body until he was eventually corrupted by Archaon in the Realmgate Wars and killed by Sigmar's Lightning.
Ghyran is also home to the Hammerhal Ghyra, Living City, Greywater Fastness and Phoenicium Free Cities as well as the Briomdar Idoneth Enclave and the forces of Nurgle and Clans Pestilens.
Chamon:
Chamon is a shifting realm of subrealms. It does not sit on a flat central plane as some Realms do, rather it exists within a collection of domains that float in the firmament of Chamon. While it may be shifting and transmuting, some Sub-Realms abide, usually towards the center. Towards the edge of the realm that constant change is inimical to life, particularly as the land became corrupted by Tzeentch's machinations.
Chamon is a land of endless opportunity and resources. Despite its looks, it does have drinkable water and edible food regardless of the fact that metallic substances coat the Lands of Gold. Their trees may be covered by iron bark and the land by ferrous oxides and their clouds with minerals lighter than air, but the people adapt. Those who don't fall by the wayside and fade away. Such is the nature of Chamon. Chamon is the favored realm of Grungni, where he built his 19 great wonders around the Spiral Crux, perhaps the most prominent sub-realm of Chamon towards the center where mortal civilisations thrived:
The Spiral Crux was the center of the Khazalid Empire of the Dwarves, which collapsed during the Age of Chaos. Some escaped to the confines of Azyr and became the Dispossessed, only to return centuries later during the Age of Sigmar to restore their lost holds of their long gone Empire. Many more, however, were not so fortunate. Even the Fyreslayers sealed their Magmaholds to survive such that their Duardin cousins could not take shelter, so they adapted. With sheer ingenuity, the Duardin of Chamon learned the properties of Aether-Gold and utilised it to fly high above where their enemies wouldn't reach them, and they thrived in general secrecy. Aether-Gold is a substance that cannot be tracked through magical means, although it attracts beasts of the sky, so with it the Duardin escaped the eyes of Tzeentch's cults and followers and prospered as the Kharadron Overlords. After a while they met at the Conference of Madralta and agreed on a set of rules to follow. They discarded the old ways of monarchy and nobles and succession by birth and embraced a meritocratic, mercantile society based on practicality and profit. From this conference was produced the Kharadron Code that the Overlords live by to this day, although Amendments and Footnotes had to be added through the years as more and more edge cases pop up.
Chamon, and the Spiral Crux in particular, has a rich and lengthy history, but the general gist of it is that everybody prospered in the Crux, particularly Grungni's favored city of Elixia in the Hanging Valleys of Anvrok where some of the greatest smiths of the age, such as Celemnis the Silver Maiden. One day, after Grungni's departure from the Realms, things took a turn for the worse with Tzeentch's schemes. Dracothian's son Argentine the Silver Wyrm was corrupted by Tzeentch, and that was particularly bad as he was the one whose breath warmed the silver falls of Anvrok. After Argentine's fight with the Godbeast known as the Lode-Griffon, the Griffon was driven out of its home and took roost at the center of the Spiral Crux, the Godwrought Isles. Just as Tzeentch planned, because the Lode Griffon's magnetic polarity began drawing the Crux's metal to the Griffon and twisting the lands, destroying Grungni's works and shaping the Crux into its current shape. Much of the Chamonite that flowed within the tubes constructed by Grungni flew from the shattered pipes and coalesced into the clouds of Chamon.
After careful deliberation, the combined forces of the Crux's nations had nine Aethermancers working together to perform a ritual to transmute the Lode-Griffon. They didn't realise the significance of their nonagonic ritual star, or that one of them was actually the Gaunt Summoner known as the Watcher King, because the ritual killed all eight non-Tzeentchians and turned the Griffon to gold. The magnetic force stopped, but it came at the cost of the Griffon's death screams opening a rift to the Realm of Chaos where Tzeentch's forces flooded through:
Fun fact about this place is that it's mentioned briefly that one of Grungni's gifts were the "cog-people of Odsin, who were disowned after the Winding Storm". Such an intriguing line that implies so much yet says so little. Sometimes this happens, like the incredibly brief mention of a monstrous deep-sea race known as the Abholons or the Deep Ones in the 3rd Edition Idoneth Deepking book. It could be foreshadowing by seeding things to come, or it could be an offhand mention of something for flavor. It's possible they are mentioned somewhere else.
Chamon is the home of the Khazalid Empire, or the Dispossessed of Azyr, and the Kharadron Overlords. One of the Greyfyrd Fyreslayer Lodges is in the Spiral Crux, and the Quicksilver Dead procession of Nighthaunt are led by the ghost of Celemnis in Elixia, haunted by the atrocities of Ephryx the Gaunt Summoner who destroyed her home city. The Free City of Vindicarum is in Chamon, and the Ironbark Sylvaneth reside within the Crux's metal forests, forming a strong relationship with the Dispossessed of the Khazalid Empire. The Silver Wyrm Argentine remains in the Hanging Valleys of Anvrok and heats the metal falls of the Valley to turn it into molten silver. There's also some sort of crystal cockatrice Godbeast around the place.
Some interesting facts about Chamon include its semi-frequent Aetherstorms that the Kharadron Overlords have to deal with, the fact that all of their major Sky-Ports are in the Spiral Crux, the fact that all of their cities have migratory patterns and some contain Realmgates that they supply to passengers. They also provide transportation services using their airships to those who can pay the price, which is exorbitant. Chamon's metals are its most valuable resource.
Ghur:
Ghur is the current focus of Age of Sigmar 3rd Edition. We are, after all, in the Era of the Beast. Ghur is a wild and bestial realm full of Megafauna and Megaflora, where not only the animals try to kill you, but the plants and even the land itself will. The Bonesplitterz believe that the Realm of Ghur is alive and sentient and that it possesses a Realm Spirit, and they aren't wrong to assume that, considering one of the moons was literally chomped on by the Realm. The continents of Ghur are sentient in their own right, hunting and feeding on each other. The strong survive, the weak die. Such was the fate of Donse, devoured by Andtor and Thondia within the Ghurish Heartlands:
Not only the continents, even geographic features such as the mountain of Beastgrave possesses its own identity and moves around hunting other mountains. Such is the nature of Ghur that all things are both predator and prey.
The Realm of Ghur is a wild place and it is filled with wild people. It is one of the few Realms that fought back against the forces of Chaos so thoroughly that they never managed to take it over, despite Khrone's efforts. Ghur is largely populated by the forces of Destruction. Orruk, Ogor, Gargant and Grots, although Grots can tend to move away from the place. There is no shortage of enemies to fight and beasts to kill, and neither is there a shortage of meat to eat. Ghur's landscape is littered with the corpses and skeletons and fossils of large beasts. Some are said to have been Godbeasts slain by Gorkamorka long ago, whereas others are merely the naturally occurring bone-like Realmstone known as Amber Bone greatly sought after by Shamans. Gorkamorka is worshiped greatly within this Realm, even by nomadic humans.
The Ironjaws, Bonesplitterz, Kruleboys, Sons of Behemat, Ogor Mawtribes and Gloomspite Gits call this place home (although the Gits prefer the Everdank). The Free City of Excelsis is also within the Heartlands, specifically the Coast of Tusks next to the Spear of Mallus, a large fragment of the World-That-Was that fell on the Coast. Its Sigmarite exterior is shaved by the city's denizens to provide Glimmerings, a current that allows people to glimpse into the future a tiny amount. The Dhom-Hain and Nautilar Idoneth Enclaves, the Lofnir Fyreslayer Lodge, the Droghurk race from which Kragnos spawned, the Draconith Empire of long ago, the Coalesced Seraphon and many others thrive within the lands of Ghur, as long as they survive.
Ghur's profusion of animals makes sea salt greatly valuable for preservation reasons, and trade is performed with all sorts of Realms for rare monster materials as well as meat. Places like Shyish in particular greatly appreciate Ghurish meat. Bone, Leather and a wide variety of materials are also derivable from animal carcasses. In terms of Godbeasts, Fangathrak is a giant worm with an Arcway portal to the Eightpoints in its mouth, Ymnog used to live here before Sigmar killed him, Auroxis the World-Titan used to be here before Sigmar killed him, Ravenak was rampaging around before Sigmar sealed him in a mountain, and Drakatoa is a living mountain of amber that sealed Gorkamorka within its confines before Dracothian freed them, and you know the rest.
Shyish:
Shyish is probably one of the more interesting yet complicated of the Realms. I'm not going to do a deep dive here because that would require checking and cross referencing multiple sources and I've been mostly freehanding this post. Suffice to say that Shyish is one of the more malleable Realms, as its constantly changing and expanding and shrinking. The reason for this is that Shyish is the result of the collective belief of mortals across the Realms. When someone believes in an afterlife, typically through some sort of cultural impetus, then an afterlife is crafted within the edge of Shyish. It is believed that Duardin afterlives tend to be deeper below the humans ones and that Aelven afterlives tend to be higher, and that Greenskins typically become one with the "Great Green" on death due to their beliefs, whereas the Stormcast are reforged within the Sigmarabulum, the Seraphon live on in the memories of their Slaan, the Sylvaneth are reborn through their Lamentiri, and the followers of Chaos are devoured by their respective god.
The interesting thing is that where you end up depends on your belief. If you believe that you deserve to go to hell as punishment for your crimes in life, then you will. If you believe that you're a good person who deserves a good afterlife, you will. It entirely depends on your beliefs where you end up after death. Afterlives are constantly being created, and as people stop believing in them, so do they fade. Nothing is permanent in the Realm of Endings.
There are certain situations, however, where a soul does not leave for Shyish. Usually this is either because they hold no belief in an afterlife or they're so attached to their current predicament, their life regrets holding them back from leaving where they died. Some locations, such as old battlefields and graveyards, attract this type of energy, and as such, instead of going to Shyish, Undead can rise from the developing energies of Death curdling within a place. But usually this was a relatively minor thing. Until Nagash.
Everything changed when Sigmar came to the Realm. After Sigmar's fight with the Hydragors and their Godbeast father, Sigmar came across Nagash sealed under a cairn. After much deliberation he released him to assist him in his plans to craft empires across the Mortal Realms, and fought with him to seal the Dreaming God of Shyish. The Amethyst Princedoms formed from this union around the Prime Innerlands, as mortal, living beings began to settle within the Prime Innerlands of Shyish towards the center. Many of the dead spirits of the Realm were uneasy with this intrusion into their space, but the mortals of the land found great use to some of its aspects. The seas were dangerous and often an Underworld in its own right (like the Underworld of people who drowned), but there were fish to be caught and eaten. Gemstones were abundant within the underground regions of Shyish, crushed under the pressure of the Realm, and Amethyst was one among many traded across the Realms. While the denizens of Shyish could live on root based vegetables and fish, they still greatly preferred to trade for meat from Ghur over the anemic wildlife of Shyish.
Nagash was not satisfied with this, however. He was the self proclaimed Supreme Lord of the Undead, and the lands of Shyish were to be his and his alone. He assisted Sigmar with his endeavours, but beyond the God King's notice he forged his own armies and planned his own schemes, transporting great amounts of Grave-Sand from the edge of the realm to create his new Black Pyramid to draw in all of Shyish towards him and then kill and resurrect everyone under his command as their Undying King. He also ventured across the Underworld of Shyish, consuming Underworld after Underworld, minor god after minor god, until he would be the only God over Shyish. If any still remain, and there are followers who insist on that fact, then they remain in hiding. Some of these gods Nagash threw into the deepest level of his personal underworld, his prison the Great Oubliette from which he enacts his twisted justice and slowly drains their power.
The edge of Shyish is full of Gravesand, but it is also completely inimical to life, full of raging death storms that would kill any living being. Even undead such as skeletons turn to dust when exposed to it for too long. Such is the danger of the Perimeter Inimical. And Nagash, of course, turned that upside down when he reversed the realm's polarity and created the Shyish Nadir, drawing everything towards the center where it is most magically potent:
Shyish is pretty interesting, and I'll probably cover it in some length in the future. It was really the primary focus of 2nd Edition Age of Sigmar during the Soul Wars. The Grand Alliance of Death of course originates here, and the Free Cities of Glymmsforge and Lethis are also here. The Drakkfoot Bonesplitterz, Skullbugz Kruleboyz, Skitterstrand Spiderfang Grimscuttle Tribe, Mor'phann Idoneth enclave and more call this place home. Edgy subfactions choose either this Realm or Ulgu.
Ulgu:
Speaking of Ulgu, let's talk about it. It's probably one of the less fleshed out and developed domains, primarily because the Army that is supposed to be in charge of most of it, Malerion's Umbraneth, has not been released yet. As such, most of what we know is from snippets derived from Daughters of Khaine.
The basic gist of it is that Ulgu is a shadowy land of mist and confusion and that it consists of Thirteen Dominions each with its own distinct identity. Eight of these thirteen meet in the Shadrac Convergence around the center of the Realm:
The Umbral Veil is the primary base of Morathi, one of the smaller Dominions that she managed to finagle out of Malerion, but she was perfectly fine with it because she built her primary Temple of Hagg Nar on top of the Helleflux, a font of Shadow Magic. The seas of Ulgu are shadowy and dark, and that is where the term Shadowsea derives from. There are also valuable materials that can be acquired here, such as poisonous materials and surprisingly light yet durable metals with their own special names that I'll probably dive into later because I can't remember the names right now. Ulgu is also home to the Umbral Web, the interconnected leyline of shadowpath networks leading almost everywhere there is shadow in the Realms. Unfortunately, those who dwell too long in there lose their physical substance as they fade away into the Realms, some even being plucked by the Shadow Daemons that wander the Paths. Despite that, there are those who are given the Mircath, or Shademark, by Morathi and take the title of Shadowstalker to wander the paths, although they don't really know the consequences so Morathi uses it to get rid of nuisances.
Tzeentch was interested in Ulgu but his agents couldn't get a proper grip into the endlessly paranoid populace. Skaven, particularly Eshin, managed to thrive during their invasion. Slaanesh' followers hunt the lands of Ulgu in search of their missing god and the Daughters of Khaine are particularly adamant about hunting them down. They hate all Chaos, but especially Slaanesh. The Age of Chaos is known in Ulgu as the Cathrar Dhule, because of course they need their own fancy term.
Ulgu has a lot of potential, but it's still a budding setting. The Daughters of Khaine are based here and so are the Umbraneth whenever they come out, and the Free City of Misthavn exists within Cape Tenebrax.
Hysh:
Hysh is the Realm of Light, and it consists of ten landmasses called the Ten Paradises. The Center is Xintil, where the City of Settler's Gain and most non-Aelven mortals live. The Edge is Haixiah, the only uninhabited paradise as its searing light and boundless knowledge is incomprehensible to the mortal mind and just as likely to sear your eyes as it is to kill you. Tyrion discovered that firsthand, but only the most resilient of those who travelled there return, and they don't speak of what they saw, only that they can't see physically, but know far more than they should.
Hysh is primarily inhabited by the Lumineth Realmlords who crafted their Great Nations in all the Paradises with the exception of Haixiah and perhaps Xintil. Their society is split around Vanari Tyrionic followers and Teclian Scinari followers, so half their nations are Tyrionic and half are Teclian. One of the more prominent is the Great Nation of Ymetrica in the Paradise of Ymetrica, who are in tune with their mountains and mountain spirits. It is here that the Ymetrican Geosegment is illustrated, because that's the primary map available:
Hysh is a land of geometry and beauty, and its people follow their skills and interests to a near obsessive degree. Their contemplation and pondering ends with some of the greatest breakthroughs in the Mortal Realms regarding academic and magical advancements. The lenses of Hysh in particular possess some of the greatest quality across the Mortal Realms, but much of what it produces is greatly valuable. The issue is that this Realm, like every other Realm, alters its people. But it doesn't make you more passionate or wild or adaptational, so much as it heightens your thoughts and elevates your thinking. This might seem positive, but it also comes with the issue of those in it becoming self absorbed and obsessive, focused too much on whether they could, rather than whether they should. This attitude only became worse when Aetherquartz was introduced and became overused, the leftover spent Aetherquartz that contained the emotions of its populace thrown into the City of Cathartia which contained a Realmgate to Ulgu. This eventually resulted in the Pit of Cathartia thanks to the collapse of the city's energies during the Spirefall.
The events of the Spirefall occur and the land is horrifically scarred by the aftermath. Magical superweapons that were created out of curiosity and told by the creators that it would never be actually used, utilised to destroy the land and settle rivalries. The Aelmentors managed to heal the wounds by bonding with the spirits of Hysh, but that has only gone so far. The Reinvention occurs around the Age of Sigmar.
Azyr:
Surprisingly, there are no maps of Azyr. It's probably one of the least developed settings despite all the attention Stormcast get, because they spend most of their time outside their homebase. Azyr is typically split between Low Azyr, where most mortals live, and High Azyr, where the Stars and out of reach stuff tends to linger. This is where the Sigmarabulum, the circular structure built around Mallus and which serves as Sigmar and the Stormcast's base, resides. It's also where the Starborn Seraphon Constellations and their Temple-Ships reside. The creatures of Azyr are heavenly and often Draconic in nature, and that is likely because of Dracothian's connection to Azyr. He's a pretty big deal and he has a looooot of children. Some are in High Azyr, such as the Star Drakes, and some are in the Hinterlands of Low Azyr, such as the Dracoths. Low Azyr is full of mountains, some notable ones include Mount Celestium, Boreal and Sidereal.
Azyr contains the largest Free City in the Mortal Realms. The First City, the Eternal City, Azyrheim. The City itself is the largest congregation of Sigmar worshipping mortals across the Realms, consisting of Aelves, Duardin, Humans and recently some Seraphon. The City is led by a Conclave consisting of something like 121 officials or something like that, and the head of the Sigmarite Mega-Church operates from here. This is also where the Order of Azyr, the Sigmarite Witch Hunters of Azyr who root out cultists and Chaos and stuff, are based in. Azyrheim has many Realmgates, and it leads to the Gates of Azyr. Azyrite settlers come from Azyrheim to move across the Realms, establish new outposts and Free Cities in the name of Sigmar and fight Chaos. Many have their own motives, such as the Wanderers atoning for the sin of abandoning the Sylvaneth to their fate so long ago, the Dispossessed seeking their lost Empire, or the Devoted seeking to purify the lands.
Conclusion:
There's still so much to cover. I haven't even gotten to the Eightpoints. But I've decided this is enough for a delve into the Settings' Cosmos for the moment. It's probably better to create focused posts for each Realm than attempt to shove it all together.
As always, feel free to ask questions. I really do need to refresh my memory though. Most of this post is freehand, so I hedged my statements to an extent. I really could have gone more in depth if I had all my resources.
I read the 2015 Seraphon book, not the 2020 Seraphon book, so my answer will be a bit basic. Essentially, when Seraphon first came out people were upset about how they lost their wild and primal side and became celestial phantasms and insubstantial creatures. They did, in fact, have the "Daemon" keyword for most of their troops aside from the Slaan, because they were basically Celestial Daemons of Order.
2020 Seraphon expanded on the concept and attempted to fix some of the issues with the species, and introduced the Coalesced. The Seraphon are insubstantial and impermanent manifestations of the Slaan's magical energies, but the Coalesced are those Starborn who landed in the Mortal Realms, often around nexuses of the Astromatrix (the Slaan's Leyline network), and mingled with the energies of the Mortal Realms, hoping to become solid and permanent, joining with the Realms. The Seraphon have spaceships known as Temple-Ships, so all they need to do is land the ship and build a city around it, and they will eventually solidify into Coalesced.
Seraphon? Yeah it's pretty ridiculous. Fangs of Sotek is crazy. Can't believe how strong Skinks are. I think Thunder Lizard Coalesced is another dominant playstyle too, primarily with Bastiladons.
Even after Skinks were nerfed in Coalesced so they no longer reduce all incoming damage by 1 (which is hilarious by the way. Skinks of Steel was not what they intended but it was funny), they can still shoot and retreat, and with the appropriate buffs you can make them inflict mortals on shooting, run and shoot, buff their melee and let them inflict mortals on melee, and somehow Salamander Hunting Packs count as Skinks so they also benefit from all of that.
But eh, the meta is fickle. Balance shifts up and down so often that it can make you dizzy. Wasn't so long ago that people were mad about Stormcat's alpha strike playstyle with their shooting and teleporting mortal wound Dragons and now both are nerfed and no one knows what to do with them. Pour one out for Stormcast players who have a thousand warscrolls to sift through and the majority of them are mediorce to straight up bad.
Seraphon? Yeah it's pretty ridiculous. Fangs of Sotek is crazy. Can't believe how strong Skinks are. I think Thunder Lizard Coalesced is another dominant playstyle too, primarily with Bastiladons.
Even after Skinks were nerfed in Coalesced so they no longer reduce all incoming damage by 1 (which is hilarious by the way. Skinks of Steel was not what they intended but it was funny), they can still shoot and retreat, and with the appropriate buffs you can make them inflict mortals on shooting, run and shoot, buff their melee and let them inflict mortals on melee, and somehow Salamander Hunting Packs count as Skinks so they also benefit from all of that.
But eh, the meta is fickle. Balance shifts up and down so often that it can make you dizzy. Wasn't so long ago that people were mad about Stormcat's alpha strike playstyle with their shooting and teleporting mortal wound Dragons and now both are nerfed and no one knows what to do with them. Pour one out for Stormcast players who have a thousand warscrolls to sift through and the majority of them are mediorce to straight up bad.
Haha, nooo, I play Kharadrons. Just general grousing. Seraphon have a similar issue. So do slaanesh actually. But Seraphon have a design space where it should be easy to reign in their problems. They play the game in a way that everyone else does. KO are the weird outlier that GW can't figure out how to make, well, fun. That's the main issue.
Haha, nooo, I play Kharadrons. Just general grousing. Seraphon have a similar issue. So do slaanesh actually. But Seraphon have a design space where it should be easy to reign in their problems. They play the game in a way that everyone else does. KO are the weird outlier that GW can't figure out how to make, well, fun. That's the main issue.
Kharadron are a shooting army. Shooting armies are very hard to be fun. Either you're having a good time and your opponent's having a bad time or you're having a bad time and your opponent's having a good time. It's really swingy.
I think the only viable method of playing Kharadron at the moment is "Spell in a Bottle". Probably not great that you're so restricted in what you have to take to be viable.
I considered making something today, but I think I'll be busy waiting for the NOVA Open reveals for Warhammer. It's on 1 AM for me in London, but my sleep schedule is screwed up anyway, so might as well.
It's gonna be Ogors and Gargants. New Gargant model leaked and the Warhammer Community twitter accidentally posted an Ogor "Bloodpelt Hunter" way too early before deleting it. RIP Gloomspite Gitz, they're going to have to continue being bottom of the barrel bad for another year I guess.
Yup. The Duardin Empire during the Age of Myth is literally called the "Khazalid Empire". The vocabulary is somewhat different and includes new words, but you can figure some stuff out with your knowledge of Khazalid from Fantasy.
The Fyreslayer priesthood, for example, are called the "Zharrgrim". That's basically Fire and Harsh/Unyielding from Old World Khazalid. Same thing applies to Eltharin and the Aelves. Grungni shaped Duardin civilisation, so I'm pretty sure Khazalid came down from him.
I haven't gotten around to novels, but I've heard some recommendations about Dynasty of Monsters if you want morally grey Vampires, or Soul Wars if you want a narratively important book. Both have been recommended by sources I trust.
NOVA wasn't exactly what I wanted, but it was decent. Ogor book revealed with a new Hero, and King Brodd reveal for Sons of Behemat. King Brodd is a pretty cool character, being the largest Gargant in the Mortal Realms and Behemat's son, he is one of the smartest and most eloquent of the Gargants and he's their King. He's also a Priest, which I love. I wanted a Wizard/Shaman Gargant, maybe a female one to expand on the range, but Brodd is good. Slaves to Darkness also got a range boost with new Chosen, Daemon Prince and the Ogroid Theridons, but that was leaked months ago, so they're just trying to catch up to the leaks. There's still new S2D models they haven't revealed, like Eternus the Blade of the First Prince which is a pretty cool model that was leaked. GW and leaks, name a better duo.
There was also stuff about 40K that I was mostly not interested in, but Horus Lupercal's model looked awesome. TIL @LilyWitch's old name was apparently based off of him? I always wondered what Lupercal stood for.
Neat. You at NOVA Open? I'd be interested in knowing what the event's like. I wanted to go to an event, but I arrived at the worst time. London doesn't seem to have events open at this time. I also don't want to cross the River Thames just to get to the Bad Moon Cafe. The place is very tempting but the trip sounds like hell.
I can't compare it to other events since nova is the only one I go to, but I find it pretty darn fun. Exhausting, but fun. Albeit I go in for the narrative offerings. Doing necromunda this year. Unless the players there are terrible XD
Azyr: "F--k You", makes you see your own death then hits you with lightning
Ghyran: "F--k You", grows a tree out of you
Ghur: "F--k You", eats you
Chamon: "F--k You", turns you into gold, then lead, then iron, then quicksilver...
Aqshy: "F--k You", lights you on fire mind and body
Shyish: "F--k You", kills you then makes you undead then kills you again
Ulgu: "F--k You", makes you forget everything including your own existence
Hysh: "F--k You", blinds you and removes all emotions
You might be interested in Beastgrave then. Age of Sigmar has several spin-offs. One of them is Warcry, a Skirmish game built around small Warbands instead of army based combat with a quick punchy feel. Warcry was and is primarily Chaos focused and a metric ton of new Chaos Models came from Warcry. Warcry is single handedly reponsible for something like 60% of the Slaves to Darkness roster or something. Most of Warcry was focused on the Eightpoints, where rival Chaos Warbands fight each other to achieve dominance, gain favor with Archaon, and ascend in the "Path to Glory", the journey that all Chaos Mortals go through to ascend. Although I believe some of them don't know they're worshipping Chaos, they just worship an aspect of Chaos under some sort of guise.
Warcry 2.0 recently released, with Rules updates (which are available for free), a Compendium including rebalances and adjustments for all the Warbands in game (and the game is connected to AoS so you can use some AoS models and the Warcry models are usable in AoS), and the setting changed from the All-Points to Ghur, because that's the current setting of the story. They're coming out with a boxed set every 3 months apparently, with two rival warbands and a terrain board.
Aside from Warcry, there's Soulbound for RPG, which I've mentioned before. There used to be these limited time Spinoff games called Warhammer Quest, and they swap between 40k and AoS for these, but the first one was Silver Tower and the second is Cursed City. The models from those spin-off games made it to AoS, either refreshing old models or creating new units.
Then there's Warhammer Underworld, which is sort of similar to Warcry, except it's a Board Game with grid based movement, deck building aspects where you use cards to augment your abilities, and your warbands are super small. Like 3-5 people small. Underworlds has some of the prettiest miniatures because of all the focus they give them. Underworlds is split into "Seasons", with each having a different setting and story.
Anyways, I got carried away. I can cover spin offs in depth later. What is important is that one of the Warhammer Underworlds was the season "Beastgrave", which was one of the most interesting seasons they had. The season was set in Ghur around a sentient mountain by the name of Beastgrave, worshipped by its surrounding denizens, it was a living mountain that drew people closer to its caverns with temptations so it could swallow them whole, and people who enter the mountain eventually grow more wild and primal, forgetting the reason they even came to the place. The mountain is a primal god in itself, albeit a minor one.
There is an interesting book I bought called "Beastgrave", alongside all the other books I bought, and I heard decent reviews. It's a book with a focus on Sylvaneth and Beastmen, so apparently it's quite interesting.
I think I'll have a book review section eventually. I think that'd be interesting.
