Voted best in category in the Users' Choice awards.
Of course since what gives her Fast Cavalry is just shadow steed that means that every wizard who can cast from the Lore of Shadows should be fast cavalry and I think that might be a little unbalanced... but at the end of the day it is like you said above, we are not really planning to break out the minis and start a battle, this is just for fun.
I'm justifying it as her mastery allowing her to not concentrate on the spell at all in the process. Mathilde is particularly noted to have an exceptional shadowsteed that requires little actual concentration for her to maintain and control, and even follows her desires instantly. Most people would have an awkward mechanical Shadowsteed that might disrupt their casting and fighting, and would only ever use it for transportation.
 
Of course since what gives her Fast Cavalry is just shadow steed that means that every wizard who can cast from the Lore of Shadows should be fast cavalry and I think that might be a little unbalanced... but at the end of the day it is like you said above, we are not really planning to break out the minis and start a battle, this is just for fun.
1. We have a spell mastery for this specifically.
2. Now I wanna see the battle for the final reclamation of the peaks as an actual battle.
 
Funny thing about that. Characters that join Skirmisher units and don't have SKirmishers gain it as long as they're part of the unit. They're not the same as Fast Cavalry for some reason.
You are probably correct... Its been a long, long time.

I also just got an image in my head: the rite of way multicasting method applied to shadow steed.
Surprise cavalry :V.

If we made that, it would really make mathilde's specialization putting cavalry where it shouldn't be.
Difficult, broken terrain? Rite of way.
Only infantry in your Army? Rite of Pony!
Alone? shadow riders!

Bonus points of rite of pony includes Mathilde's mastery, so they don't even have to be able to ride.
 
You are probably correct... Its been a long, long time.

I also just got an image in my head: the rite of way multicasting method applied to shadow steed.
Surprise cavalry :V.

If we made that, it would really make mathilde's specialization putting cavalry where it shouldn't be.
Difficult, broken terrain? Rite of way.
Only infantry in your Army? Rite of Pony!
Alone? shadow riders!

Bonus points of rite of pony includes Mathilde's mastery, so they don't even have to be able to ride.
We should introduce Mathilde to Creed. Their kids would conquer the galaxy.
 
So I'm going through the leaders of the Asrai realms again. Generally it's either a Lord or Lady controlling each of the twelve realms, with the occasional Lord and Lady ruling a particular realm. I made the assumption that they're probably husband and wife each time, which might be incorrect but considering every time it was a Lord and Lady and assuming heteronormativity I made that assumption.

So my eyes zoomed in like a hawk the instant I saw "Lady Tevaril and Lady Delynna" as ruling Anmyr the Witherhold, because that's just who I am. But then I noticed that Lady Delynna is also the name of the Warden of the Sun. And not just in DL, she is the Warden in 4th Edition as described in Archives of the Empire. Either Delynna is just a common name or GW just love to reuse names, because I do not think they're the same person.
 
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Slightly silly thought: if we have The Protector active on a turn where we figure out how to repair Waystones, or (Ranald willing) create them, will the entire Old World know about it?

Hell, the divine knowledge of what that means and certainty that it's true could rehabilitate the entire view of Wizards even amongst Sigmarites.

I'm justifying it as her mastery allowing her to not concentrate on the spell at all in the process. Mathilde is particularly noted to have an exceptional shadowsteed that requires little actual concentration for her to maintain and control, and even follows her desires instantly. Most people would have an awkward mechanical Shadowsteed that might disrupt their casting and fighting, and would only ever use it for transportation.
Speaking of which, whilst Rite of Way is flashier for being a new Battle Magic, I honestly think codifying the Shadowsteed mastery ought to be a higher priority (than Rite of Way, not necessarily in general.) Rite of Way might help in certain niche scenarios in battles (or certain niche battles, like attacking Marienburg) but Mathilde has gotten so much done thanks to that mastery. I honestly think it would be of huge logistical benefit to the Grey Order.
 
So... do you guys recall that talk we had about female Grail Knights, and the GM said that no one would dare to question a Grail Knight about their gender? Well while that is entirely reasonable I had this nagging feeling that I had read about an openly female Grail Knight somewhere, so I went looking. Turns out I should have been looking in the wiki entries of known Grail Knights

This is from the entry of Baron Janduiá de Turín:
The Baron's Banner of Shielding is carried into battle by none other than Jacomettá, his wife. She was the only child of the former Grand-Duc and was an aspiring priestess until directed by a vision from the Lady onto the quest of a true knight. As such, Janduiá's wife is the only woman known to have supped from the Holy Grail.[1]

This may not be the newest canon in the world but there you have it, black and white, an openly female Grail Knight.
 
So... do you guys recall that talk we had about female Grail Knights, and the GM said that no one would dare to question a Grail Knight about their gender? Well while that is entirely reasonable I had this nagging feeling that I had read about an openly female Grail Knight somewhere, so I went looking. Turns out I should have been looking in the wiki entries of known Grail Knights

This is from the entry of Baron Janduiá de Turín:
The Baron's Banner of Shielding is carried into battle by none other than Jacomettá, his wife. She was the only child of the former Grand-Duc and was an aspiring priestess until directed by a vision from the Lady onto the quest of a true knight. As such, Janduiá's wife is the only woman known to have supped from the Holy Grail.[1]

This may not be the newest canon in the world but there you have it, black and white, an openly female Grail Knight.
The White Dwarf article this comes from is one year older than me.
 
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There is a reason why it took me an hour pocking the the internet to find the damn thing :V

Still canon is canon and it is not from the 'dwarf necromancer' part of canon at least.
I'm sorry to tell you that it is from the same era as Dwarf Necromancy. Champions of Chaos 5th Edition was released in 1998. The canonicity tier list goes:
Tier 4: Black Library, White Dwarf articles - canonish, but the QM may not be familiar with them and the details are likely to end up varying if they are used.
Tier 6: Army Books (pre-6th), WHFRPG (1e) - the Dwarf Priests Know Necromancy Zone. May be looted for ideas from time to time but is usually completely incompatible.
Now, this doesn't mean Boney can't do whatever the hell he wants. This is his story and I appreciate him wanting to tone down the sexism, but I don't think we should pretend that this isn't some throwaway character made back when Bretonnia was Noble Arthurian fantasy in a White Dwarf article that most people haven't even heard of. If we can go back to any edition or any random White Dwarf article and say "canon is canon" then it'd be utter chaos. There's a reason Boney gave us that list, to not automatically assume that every source is equal.
 
After speeding through End Times stats, apparently Nagash isn't the only character in End Times who counts as a Level 5 Wizard. Eternity King Malekith, Incarnate of Life Allarielle and Incarnate of Metal Gelt are all Level 5 Wizards. Although Malekith and Allarielle were forced to use only one lore of magic as a result of their Incarnate status (Shadow for Malekith and Life for Allarielle).

Also, technically Teclis is a Level 5 Wizard because of his War Crown of Saphery even before End Times. Poor Mazdamundi, left out of the mechanics. He'll just have to satisfy himself with the fact that he's a Loremaster in any lore he chooses and that he can forget a spell he knows and swap it with a spell from any Lore he's capable of casting whenever he successfully casts something.
Sadly being a Loremaster is basically useless in End Times. Knowing a spell from a given Lore automatically lets you know every spell from that Lore. And everyone also gets the Lore of Undeath.

I will be posting this in my compilation of WHFB statistics, but I made my own statblock for Mathilde for WHFB:
MWSBSSTWIALd
454453538
Troop Type: Mathilde is a special character who usually counts as Infantry, but can count as Cavalry if Mounted on her Shadowsteed. Shadowsteed has M8, is Ethereal and cannot be targeted or damaged normally, but it counts as a mount and therefore increases Mathilde's Armor Save by 1 and has all the rules normally associated with Cavalry aside from the Split Model rule.

Magic: Mathilde is a Level 1 Wizard who uses spells from the Lore of Shadows. Mathilde does not generate spells normally, instead, she always knows the spell Melkoth's Mystifying Miasma.

Special Rules: Stubborn, Scout

Lashing Shadows: Mathilde is covered in darting shadows that squeeze and crush her enemies and cause fear in her enemies. Mathilde counts as a unit with Terror, and every Close Combat phase she inflicts an additional 1d3 hits dealt at 1d6 Strength to enemies in base contact with her. If Mathilde is in a challenge, those hits are only dealt to the enemy she is in a challenge with, and contribute to Overkill.

Shadowsteed: Mathilde's spectral steed is a marvel of magic, attuning to her in a way unlike any living horse, but it has its weaknesses. As mentioned above, if Mathilde enters battle with Shadowsteed, she counts as a Cavalry model and may join Cavalry units. Shadowsteed cannot have barding, has M8, has the Swiftstride and Ethereal special rules and does not have its own profile and cannot make attacks. It cannot be targeted, however, if Mathilde receives an unsaved wound, Shadowsteed can provide a 4+ Ward Save. If the Ward Save is successful, the wound is nullified but the steed vanishes, leaving Mathilde dismounted and turning her into an Infantry unit. Mathilde may not be able to ride Shadowsteed again during battle. In addition, Mathilde has the Fast Cavalry special rule when mounted on her Shadowsteed, and loses it when she is dismounted.

Rite of Way: Mathilde has developed her own unique spell to allow troops to move at significant speed regardless of terrain. This allows for amazing maneuvers unheard of in the field of battle. While Mathilde is part of an Infantry unit (if she is dismounted) or a Cavalry unit (if she is mounted), then she automatically grants Strider to the unit. In addition, the unit succeeds in any Swift Reform Maneuver they would like to make, allowing them to perform the maneuver even without a musician, and allows the unit to reroll failed charges. Units that do not have Swiftstride gain Swiftstride.

Waaghbane: Mathilde is exceptionally knowledgable on the Waaagh, and is capable of countering their magic much more reliably than the average Wizard. Mathilde has +1 to dispelling spells from Da Little and Big Waaagh Lores.

Necromantic Expert: Mathilde has read the Liber Mortis and supplemented this knowledge with a frightening level of understanding of Dhar and Necromancy. Mathilde has a +1 bonus to dispelling spells from the Lore of Vampires and the Lore of Undeath.

Magic Items:
Branulhune: Magic Weapon. This runic sword resolves all hits at Strength 10. Parry Saves cannot be taken against Branulhune. If Branulhune deals an unsaved wound against an opponent, then a D6 is rolled. On a 4+ any magical equipment they hold is disabled and may not be used in the game again. This ability also removes any Augment spells active on the opponent.

In addition, Mathilde has developed a unique style that relies on Branulhune to utilise. While Mathilde is utilising Branulhune, all enemies in base contact with her have -1 WS and she has the Killing Blow special rule.

Seed of Rebirth: Enchanted Item. Mathilde has a Regeneration (4+) save.

Enchanted Robes: Magic Armor. Mathilde has a 5+ armor save that she can use despite being a Wizard. This upgrades to a 4+ save if she is mounted on a Shadowsteed.

Belt of the Unshackled Mountain: Talisman. Mathilde has +1 Toughness (already added to her profile) as well as a 2+ Ward Save against Flaming Attacks. Whenever Mathilde suffers an unsaved wound, the model that caused it suffers a hit at the Strength of the hit+2. The first Hex, Magic Missile or Direct Damage spell that targets Mathilde or her unit is automatically dispelled, with an automatic wound inflicted on the caster. The caster must also roll a D6, on a 4+, they forget the spell they just cast.

In addition, Mathilde has Magic Resistance (3) against spells from the Lore of Dark Magic, Lore of Ruin, Lore of Plague, Lore of Nurgle, Slaanesh, Tzeentch, Hashut, Lore of Vampires and Lore of the Wild.

Staff of Mistery: Arcane Item. Mathilde may cast the Overcast version of Melkoth's Mystifying Miasma on a 5+, rather than the normal 10+. If she successfully casts the spell, she may cast it again on the same Magic phase, but if it succeeds again then she can no longer cast it again on that magic phase. This gives her two casts of MMM per magic phase assuming she's successful on both castings.

Dwarven Revolver: S4, Armour Piercing, Quick to Fire, Extra Attack, Multiple Shots x3, Flaming Attacks. Range: 12".
I would like to thank @deathofrats0808 because I took inspiration from their profile, but I wanted to show my own interpretation. I tried to be faithful, provide flavor so it's not all boring, and also not make it too OP. Mathilde has yet to master Branulhune, so her WS is still 5, but will increase to 6 when she manages to master it. I tried to represent Mathilde's masteries and spells, and funnily enough she turned out like how I would expect a Loremaster of Hoeth hero would look like.

You will notice Rite of Way isn't described as a normal spell, that's because I don't think it should be. It fits better as a Special Rule. I also tried to portray how much of a gamechanger troop movement can be by depicting the increased maneuverabilty of troops that don't need to worry about terrain. Mathilde's Staff of Mistery is an absurd MMM cheat machine, like it should be. We have way too many magic items for tabletop, so I just crossed out the Dragonflask. Killing Blow from Branulhune represents the strength of the weapon, Mathilde's assassin training, and the deadliness of Quickdraw and position changing. WS -1 is to represent the difficulty of keeping up with Mathilde's feints.

If you got any questions about how I chose to represent Mathilde, feel free to ask 'em.
Interesting. Definitely more of a focus on representing quest stuff than I had.

You could give the shadow steed the "Spectral Steed" special rule from the Vampire Counts book. That would allow Ethereal movement, without making Mathilde immune to non-magic weapons, which I think is what you were trying to do?
 
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Hell, the divine knowledge of what that means and certainty that it's true could rehabilitate the entire view of Wizards even amongst Sigmarites.
We are talking the entire world here.

While I don't think that would trigger the coin, if it did, we would have a good chance of pulling a lesser Sigmar and just straight up creating a minor deity out of the publics perception of us.
 
I'm sorry to tell you that it is from the same era as Dwarf Necromancy. Champions of Chaos 5th Edition was released in 1998. The canonicity tier list goes:


Now, this doesn't mean Boney can't do whatever the hell he wants. This is his story and I appreciate him wanting to tone down the sexism, but I don't think we should pretend that this isn't some throwaway character made back when Bretonnia was Noble Arthurian fantasy in a White Dwarf article that most people haven't even heard of. If we can go back to any edition or any random White Dwarf article and say "canon is canon" then it'd be utter chaos. There's a reason Boney gave us that list, to not automatically assume that every source is equal.

I actually did have that tier list in mind, tier 4 being better off than tier 6. That said this was mostly to get the gremlin off my brain and once I did I wanted to share it so someone would profit from my 1 hour search at least. :V
 
Sadly being a Loremaster is basically useless in End Times. Knowing a spell from a given Lore automatically lets you know every spell from that Lore. And everyone also gets the Lore of Undeath.


Interesting. Definitely more of a focus on representing quest stuff than I had.

You could give the shadow steed the "Spectral Steed" special rule from the Vampire Counts book. That would allow Ethereal movement, without making Mathilde immune to non-magic weapons, which I think is what you were trying to do?
Ethereal mount makes the rider Ethereal? I didn't know that was the case. I thought I just made the Steed Ethereal.
 
I am doubtful the protector would work with the waystone project, the description is:

- The Protector: When you act in a way that defends an individual or group from a danger that you did not cause, they will become aware of what you have done and will believe you acted selflessly in doing so. Rule of thumb: if you have to explain why this might apply, it probably doesn't.
Maybe if we'd gone with Kislev it would trigger for Kislev specifically but given we chose Laurelorn as the base with a focus on helping the elves tap into the network the project doesn't really fulfill the requirements.
 
Ethereal mount makes the rider Ethereal? I didn't know that was the case. I thought I just made the Steed Ethereal.
Only for movement purposes iirc.
AFAIK, there are no Ethereal mounts without Ethereal riders. The closest you get are the Skeletal Steeds from Vampire Counts, and they have a special rule so they (and models mounted upon or pulled by them) only count as Ethereal for movement purposes. Apart from that, every model I'm aware of is either Ethereal or not, not split. Cavalry is a weird one for this too, because you can't attack cavalry mounts separately anyway.
 
AFAIK, there are no Ethereal mounts without Ethereal riders. The closest you get are the Skeletal Steeds from Vampire Counts, and they have a special rule so they (and models mounted upon or pulled by them) only count as Ethereal for movement purposes. Apart from that, every model I'm aware of is either Ethereal or not, not split. Cavalry is a weird one for this too, because you can't attack cavalry mounts separately anyway.
I believe templates and AOE can hit mounts.
 
Slightly silly thought: if we have The Protector active on a turn where we figure out how to repair Waystones, or (Ranald willing) create them, will the entire Old World know about it?

Hell, the divine knowledge of what that means and certainty that it's true could rehabilitate the entire view of Wizards even amongst Sigmarites.

Now imagine that this is what we expect to happen. But it does not. We fix the Network, we fix old Waystones and bring more of them to the Network. More Waystones than ever are feeding the Network and yet... noone is thankful. Is Ranald playing trick on us? Has Coin overheat due to too much minds to affect? Or maybe, just maybe... the Waystone Network does not protect anyone from anything. It's all One Big Lie.
 
Now imagine that this is what we expect to happen. But it does not. We fix the Network, we fix old Waystones and bring more of them to the Network. More Waystones than ever are feeding the Network and yet... noone is thankful. Is Ranald playing trick on us? Has Coin overheat due to too much minds to affect? Or maybe, just maybe... the Waystone Network does not protect anyone from anything. It's all One Big Lie.

As perpetrated by whom exactly? Calandor Dragontamer? It is more likely that Ranald is Tzeench in a cat mask than that the Waystone network does not protect the wold. :V
 
I will be posting this in my compilation of WHFB statistics, but I made my own statblock for Mathilde for WHFB:
MWSBSSTWIALd
454453538
Troop Type: Mathilde is a special character who usually counts as Infantry, but can count as Cavalry if Mounted on her Shadowsteed. Shadowsteed has M8, is Ethereal and cannot be targeted or damaged normally, but it counts as a mount and therefore increases Mathilde's Armor Save by 1 and has all the rules normally associated with Cavalry aside from the Split Model rule.

Magic: Mathilde is a Level 1 Wizard who uses spells from the Lore of Shadows. Mathilde does not generate spells normally, instead, she always knows the spell Melkoth's Mystifying Miasma.

Special Rules: Stubborn, Scout

Lashing Shadows: Mathilde is covered in darting shadows that squeeze and crush her enemies and cause fear in her enemies. Mathilde counts as a unit with Terror, and every Close Combat phase she inflicts an additional 1d3 hits dealt at 1d6 Strength to enemies in base contact with her. If Mathilde is in a challenge, those hits are only dealt to the enemy she is in a challenge with, and contribute to Overkill.

Shadowsteed: Mathilde's spectral steed is a marvel of magic, attuning to her in a way unlike any living horse, but it has its weaknesses. As mentioned above, if Mathilde enters battle with Shadowsteed, she counts as a Cavalry model and may join Cavalry units. Shadowsteed cannot have barding, has M8, has the Swiftstride and Ethereal special rules and does not have its own profile and cannot make attacks. It cannot be targeted, however, if Mathilde receives an unsaved wound, Shadowsteed can provide a 4+ Ward Save. If the Ward Save is successful, the wound is nullified but the steed vanishes, leaving Mathilde dismounted and turning her into an Infantry unit. Mathilde may not be able to ride Shadowsteed again during battle. In addition, Mathilde has the Fast Cavalry special rule when mounted on her Shadowsteed, and loses it when she is dismounted.

Rite of Way: Mathilde has developed her own unique spell to allow troops to move at significant speed regardless of terrain. This allows for amazing maneuvers unheard of in the field of battle. While Mathilde is part of an Infantry unit (if she is dismounted) or a Cavalry unit (if she is mounted), then she automatically grants Strider to the unit. In addition, the unit succeeds in any Swift Reform Maneuver they would like to make, allowing them to perform the maneuver even without a musician, and allows the unit to reroll failed charges. Units that do not have Swiftstride gain Swiftstride.

Waaghbane: Mathilde is exceptionally knowledgable on the Waaagh, and is capable of countering their magic much more reliably than the average Wizard. Mathilde has +1 to dispelling spells from Da Little and Big Waaagh Lores.

Necromantic Expert: Mathilde has read the Liber Mortis and supplemented this knowledge with a frightening level of understanding of Dhar and Necromancy. Mathilde has a +1 bonus to dispelling spells from the Lore of Vampires and the Lore of Undeath.

Magic Items:
Branulhune: Magic Weapon. This runic sword resolves all hits at Strength 10. Parry Saves cannot be taken against Branulhune. If Branulhune deals an unsaved wound against an opponent, then a D6 is rolled. On a 4+ any magical equipment they hold is disabled and may not be used in the game again. This ability also removes any Augment spells active on the opponent.

In addition, Mathilde has developed a unique style that relies on Branulhune to utilise. While Mathilde is utilising Branulhune, all enemies in base contact with her have -1 WS and she has the Killing Blow special rule.

Seed of Rebirth: Enchanted Item. Mathilde has a Regeneration (4+) save.

Enchanted Robes: Magic Armor. Mathilde has a 5+ armor save that she can use despite being a Wizard. This upgrades to a 4+ save if she is mounted on a Shadowsteed.

Belt of the Unshackled Mountain: Talisman. Mathilde has +1 Toughness (already added to her profile) as well as a 2+ Ward Save against Flaming Attacks. Whenever Mathilde suffers an unsaved wound, the model that caused it suffers a hit at the Strength of the hit+2. The first Hex, Magic Missile or Direct Damage spell that targets Mathilde or her unit is automatically dispelled, with an automatic wound inflicted on the caster. The caster must also roll a D6, on a 4+, they forget the spell they just cast.

In addition, Mathilde has Magic Resistance (3) against spells from the Lore of Dark Magic, Lore of Ruin, Lore of Plague, Lore of Nurgle, Slaanesh, Tzeentch, Hashut, Lore of Vampires and Lore of the Wild.

Staff of Mistery: Arcane Item. Mathilde may cast the Overcast version of Melkoth's Mystifying Miasma on a 5+, rather than the normal 10+. If she successfully casts the spell, she may cast it again on the same Magic phase, but if it succeeds again then she can no longer cast it again on that magic phase. This gives her two casts of MMM per magic phase assuming she's successful on both castings.

Dwarven Revolver: S4, Armour Piercing, Quick to Fire, Extra Attack, Multiple Shots x3, Flaming Attacks. Range: 12".
I would like to thank @deathofrats0808 because I took inspiration from their profile, but I wanted to show my own interpretation. I tried to be faithful, provide flavor so it's not all boring, and also not make it too OP. Mathilde has yet to master Branulhune, so her WS is still 5, but will increase to 6 when she manages to master it. I tried to represent Mathilde's masteries and spells, and funnily enough she turned out like how I would expect a Loremaster of Hoeth hero would look like.

You will notice Rite of Way isn't described as a normal spell, that's because I don't think it should be. It fits better as a Special Rule. I also tried to portray how much of a gamechanger troop movement can be by depicting the increased maneuverabilty of troops that don't need to worry about terrain. Mathilde's Staff of Mistery is an absurd MMM cheat machine, like it should be. We have way too many magic items for tabletop, so I just crossed out the Dragonflask. Killing Blow from Branulhune represents the strength of the weapon, Mathilde's assassin training, and the deadliness of Quickdraw and position changing. WS -1 is to represent the difficulty of keeping up with Mathilde's feints.

If you got any questions about how I chose to represent Mathilde, feel free to ask 'em.

Wow, what a monster. In a good way, of course XD

That said, I do have a few suggestions:

1) Shadowsteed's ward save option should, I think, we reworked. Regeneration save cannot be taken with ward save, so there's almost no situation where she will take the hit on her steed (a flaming attack would have been a way if not for her other, much better, ward save against those).

This should, I think, be removed from Mathilde's control. If it means losing her mount for the rest of the battle a unit like this will most likely choose to facetank a wound instead, given regeneration ability. Instead, perhaps make it a separate roll that triggers automatically (and thus not a ward save), or give the decision to the one who wounded her.

2) Strength 10 is probably an overshot. Yes, "up to the approximate impact force of a cannonball" which is 10, but come on, this is orders of magnitude better that Ungrim Ironfist's Axe of Dargo, which has a pretty similar rule. This is side-grade to friggin' Axe of Grimnir. Kragg's own hammer in his White Dwarf entry simply has Rune of Might btw.

Toning it down to Strength 8 would probably be better for balance.

3) A more minor thing, the belt's Rune of Rancour is based on Master Rune of Spite, which works in melee only. I don't remember it ever returning ranged attacks in the quest either. I suggest adding "Whenever Mathilde suffers an unsaved wound in close combat".

What do you think?
 
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