Warmachine: Reckoning 2ds3d

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CREDITS WARMACHINE created and designed by Matthew D. Wilson

Lead Designer, WARMACHINE

Writing & Continuity Manager

Brian Dugas Doug Hamilton Michael Jenkins Ben Misenar

Douglas Seacat

Jason Soles

Additional Sculpting

Designer, Reckoning

Javier Garcia Ureña

David Carl

Studio Modeler

Project Director

James A. Thomas

Bryan Cutler

Additional Modeling

Creative Director

Stephen Scott

Ed Bourelle

Miniature Painters

Lead Writer

Matt DiPietro Geordie Hicks

Douglas Seacat

Editor Dan Henderson

Video Producer Tony Konichek

Publications Manager Aeryn Rudel

No Quarter EIC Michael G. Ryan

No Quarter Assistant Michael Sanbeg

Director of Operations

Studio istration Assistant

Jason Martin

Charles Foster III

Mark Christensen

Hobby Manager & Terrain

Technical Director

Stuart Spengler

Kelly Yeager

Matt Goetz Lyle Lowery William Shick

Hobby & Terrain Specialist

Packing/Shipping Manager

Michael Archer

Joe Lee

Continuity

Photography

Vendor Coordinator

Matt Ferbrache

Geoffrey Konkel

Project Manager

Metal Casting Supervisor

Shona Fahland

Marcus Rodriguez

Licensing & Contract Manager

Resin Casting Supervisor

Brent Waldher

Scott Paschall

President

Lead Quality Control

Sherry Yeary

Cody Ellis

Chief Creative Officer

Production

Matthew D. Wilson

Oren Ashkenazi Ryan Baldonado Nelson Baltzo Felisha Bolzenthal Thomas Cawby Johan Cea Henry Chac Bryan Dasalla Alfonso Falco Joel Falkenhagen Maddie Gill Trevor Hancock Mike Harshbarger Bryan Klemm Mark Lawson Chris Lester David Lima Clayton Links Keith Loree Christopher Matthews Bryan McClaflin Chris McLeroy Antonio Mora Phuong Nguyen Antwan Porter Sam Rattanavong Erik Reiersen John Roth Rob Seamount Jesse Sterland Tu Thanh Chris Tiemeyer

Writing Matt DiPietro Geordie Hicks Zach Parker

Additional Writing

Douglas Seacat Jason Soles

Editorial Manager Darla Kennerud

Graphic Design Director Josh Manderville

Graphic Design & Layout Richard Anderson Bryan Cutler Shona Fahland Matt Ferbrache Laine Garrett Josh Manderville

Art Director Mike Vaillancourt

Cover Illustration Andrea Uderzo

Illustrations Carlos Cabrera Oscar Cafaro Johan Grenier Kory Lynn Hubbell Nick Kay Raphael Lübke Marco Mazzoni Néstor Ossandón Andrea Uderzo

Lead Concept Artist

Director of Business & Branding Development William Shick

Executive Assistant Michelle Horton

Marketing Manager Lyle Lowery

Web/IT Professional Micah Scott Ralston

Convention Coordinator Michael Plummer

Marketing Coordinator Simon Berman

Organized Play & Volunteer Coordinator William Hungerford

Quartermaster Assistant

Nick Kay

Dianne Ferrer

Concept Illustrations

Retail and Development Specialist

Roberto Cirillo Andrea Uderzo Mike Vaillancourt Chris Walton

Studio Director Ron Kruzie

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Staff Sculptors

Charles Agel

Customer Service Adam Johnson

Customer Justin Cottom Gabriel Waluconis

Production Director

Ben Tracy Dara Vann Matt Warren Michele Wheeler

Development Manager David Carl

Roleplaying Game Producer Matt Goetz

Game Developer William Schoonover

Playtest Coordinator Jack Coleman

Infernals Peter Gaublomme Travis Marg John Morin Gilles Reynaud D. Anthony Robinson Donald Sullivan

Internal Playtesters Ed Bourelle David Carl Leo Carson Johan Cea Jack Coleman Cody Ellis Bill French Charles Foster William Hungerford Tony Konichek Lyle Lowery Bryan Maclaflin Michael Plummer Erik Reierson William Schoonover William Shick Jason Soles Jacob Stanley Gabe Waluconis Matt Warren

External Playtesters Andrew Allen Alice Bettoli Jonathan Boggs Cody Brown Corey Brown Andrew Hartland Kristin Hartland Jake Hoffman Tom Hoffmann Federico Ingrosso Stu Liming James Moreland Shane Phillipi Thomas Phillipi Andrew Ready Owen Rehrauer Josh Saulter Tim Simpson

Proofreading David Carl Dan Henderson Darla Kennerud William Shick

THE NEXT BIG THING Bigger is better. That was the mantra we held to when we unleashed colossals upon WARMACHINE tabletops across the world three years ago. Since that time these massive weapons of war have irrevocably changed the way battles are fought. The modern colossals have forced commanders to adapt new tactics and strategies, both when employing their faction’s own colossals and when fighting against their enemy’s ultimate weapons of war. Even as Immoren itself still trembles from the impact of these first mighty constructs, the foundries and factories of the Iron Kingdoms prepare to deliver the next generation of colossals to the war-torn battlefields, each nation hoping that their innovations will provide them the muchneeded edge to finally wrest total victory from their foes. These new colossals, outfitted and armed with the latest advancements in weaponry and technology their factions have access to, certainly demand attention—but they are far from the only new weapons tabletop generals can call on to aid them in their fight for supremacy.

Reckoning introduces powerful new character warjacks for some of the most recognizable warcasters, including Cygnar’s Allister Caine and Khador’s infamous Orsus Zoktavir. New troops and heroes also heed the call to battle and add their formidable strength and skills to the armies of western Immoren as the struggle between the living and the dead comes to a dramatic and explosive climax. New warcasters, colossals, and character warjacks provide faction commanders with plenty of shiny new toys, but Mercenaries are by no means left out in the cold! The Talion Charter mercenary contract receives some longawaited reinforcements, the Searforge contract gains the first Mercenary battle engine, and the Puppet Masters contract introduces a deadly new Cephalyx warcaster. Whether you fight for wealth or ambition, for the survival of Immoren or to lay waste to all beneath your gaze, the time for restraint is over. Roll out the big guns. It is time for Reckoning!

TABLE OF CONTENTS DEEPER OBLIGATIONS, PART ONE . . . . . . 4

RETRIBUTION OF SCYRAH. . . . . . . . . . . . . 64

THEME FORCES & CEPHALYX RULES . . 17

MERCENARIES . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 74

CYGNAR . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .22

MODEL GALLERY . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .92

PROTECTORATE OF MENOTH . . . . . . . . . 34

PAINTING GUIDE . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 96

KHADOR . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 44

DEEPER OBLIGATIONS, PART TWO . . 104

CRYX . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 54

Visit: www.privateerpress.com Privateer Press, Inc., 1705 136th Pl. NE, Ste. 120 • Bellevue, WA 98005 Tel (425) 643-5900 • Fax (425) 643-5902 For online customer service, email [email protected] This book is printed under the copyright laws of the United States of America and retains all of the protections thereof. All Rights Reserved. All trademarks herein including Privateer Press®, Iron Kingdoms®, Full Metal Fantasy, Immoren, WARMACHINE®, Forces of WARMACHINE, Steam-Powered Miniatures Combat, Convergence of Cyriss®, Convergence, Cryx, Cygnar, Khador, Protectorate of Menoth, Protectorate, Retribution of Scyrah, Retribution, warcaster®, warjack®, HORDES®, Forces of HORDES, Monstrous Miniatures Combat, Circle Orboros, Circle, Legion of Everblight, Legion, Skorne, Trollbloods, Trollblood, warbeast, Formula P3, Formula P3 Hobby Series, and all associated logos are property of Privateer Press, Inc. This book is a work of fiction. Any resemblance to actual people, places, or events is purely coincidental. No part of this publication may be stored in any retrieval system or transmitted in any form without written permission from Privateer Press. Duplicating any portion of the materials herein, unless specifically addressed within the work or by written permission from Privateer Press, is strictly prohibited. In the event that permissions are granted, such duplications shall be intended solely for personal, noncommercial use and must maintain all copyrights, trademarks, or other notices contained therein or preserve all marks associated therewith. If you steal our copyrighted material, Haley's experience has taught us that the transgressions of Past You will ensure there is no Future You. We trust her judgment; she's been through a lot. First printing: February 2015. Printed in China.

WARMACHINE: Reckoning . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . ISBN: 978-1-939480-47-7 . . . . . . . . . . . . PIP 1060 WARMACHINE: Reckoning Hardcover . . . . . ISBN: 978-1-939480-48-4 . . . . . . . . . . . . PIP 1061

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DEEPER OBLIGATIONS PART ONE

THE THORNWOOD NECROFACTORIUM, EARLY 609 AR

Kommander Oleg Strakhov sat on his haunches keeping watch on the entrance, glad to be free for the moment of the oppressive drudge helmet that he had been wearing for the weeks—or was it months?—since he first infiltrated the Cryxian base. He had lost all track of the age of time amid his desperate bid to find and rescue Kommander Karchev. Time meant little below the earth with no sun or moons to mark its age, and Strakhov had quickly given up trying to track it. He had been back to see Karchev several times since discovering his location within the necrofactorium. When the great kommander was lucid enough to speak to him, he would ask Strakhov to kill him so that he could not be made into a weapon against the Motherland. Each time Strakhov had refused or deflected the request, asserting that he would find a way to free Karchev and return him to the fight against Khador’s enemies. The promises sounded increasingly empty to Strakhov’s ears. Karchev was clearly deteriorating, the torments inflicted upon him by his captors eroding even his legendary iron will. Strakhov’s own mind had begun to fray under the pressures of remaining unseen in the bowels of the Cryxian base for so long. He had forgotten the taste of real food, subsisting on the vile substance employed to nourish cephalyx drudges. His apparent impotency to rescue Karchev from the torments that were slowly breaking the kommander was far worse than any deprivations, though. His own darkest moment had come when he found Karchev, fresh from some new and horrific interrogation, raving incoherently and with wild eyes, incapable of recognizing him. Strakhov had almost drawn his blade to end the kommander’s suffering. As his hand had tightened on its grip, his resolve had returned, as if the familiar feel of the hilt had reignited the fire within him that had been smothered by the necrofactorium’s darkness. The next time he had visited, Karchev had been his usual stoic self, his mind intact, though weary beyond belief. “Kommander, I need your assistance,” a gruff voice hissed, breaking him from his thoughts. “Of course, Alexi,” Strakhov said in a similarly low tone, trying to keep his voice from carrying. He stood and made his way to his fellow Khadoran, carefully picking his way through the scattered scrap piles of the necrofactorium’s mechanical salvage area. Strakhov had discovered this place shortly before he had found Karchev. At the time he had dismissed it as useless; it had appeared to contain only the worst of the wreckage Cryx

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had scavenged from the battlefield. Most of its piles held little more than shredded scrap. All the better pieces had been claimed by necrotechs and taken to their laboratories. Following his last visit with Karchev, Strakhov had returned here, desperate to find something—anything— that could help him make Karchev’s life-sustaining equipment mobile. He had determined that the undead used a systematic approach to sifting through the scrap. Intact cortexes were prioritized and taken away, but among those that were rejected he sensed several of Khadoran manufacture that still had a spark of internal functionality. Strakhov was able to steal the best of these before they could be broken down and reclaimed. His limited mechanikal aptitude was another barrier, and it was this that had prompted him to seek help. He had entered the necrofactorium alone. During his explorations he had come upon chambers where recently captured prisoners underwent the horrific surgery that transformed them into mindless drudges to serve the cephalyx. Among these prisoners had been his unfortunate countrymen, including battle mechaniks waylaid in the last engagement. “I need you to maneuver this piston here,” Alexi said, motioning with the steel clamp that had replaced his hand. “None of the rest of us have the necessary delicate touch, thanks to our captors.” Alexi spat into the cold earth at the mention of the cephalyx. “You have made do. As true soldiers of the Motherland,” Strakhov said. He forced himself not to think about the fate of the men he hadn’t saved. It had been difficult to stand by as his countrymen, and even the Cygnarans, were cut apart, violated and transformed into mindless abominations. He’d had little choice, of course; trying to save them all would only have led to his death—and Karchev’s. So he had waited and watched, until he saw Alexi’s small group of mechaniks. It had taken all his skill to liberate them without alerting the entire base. Unlike with the mindless thralls or drudges, the death of a cephalyx, even a minor one, would not go unnoticed. It was an unavoidable risk. He had been unable to intervene until after the cephalyx had begun many of the external modifications to the men. In order to throw off the rest of the base as long as possible, Strakhov had staged the scene to appear as if several prisoners had broken loose and killed the overseeing cephalyx before being torn apart by drudges. He had not relished killing his own countrymen, but those chosen had been suffering and were slated for a fate worse than death. It had been imperative that the scene be as authentic as possible.

He swore their sacrifice would be honored once he had succeeded in liberating Karchev.

This connective tubing will probably leak, and many of the parts are damaged. Anyway, Alexi, it’s ready for its cortex.”

He was depending on the hope that the cephalyx cared so little about individual humans they would not notice the deception. This meant he was trying to conceal an entire group from the inhabitants of the lower tunnels. The clock was ticking. They would be noticed eventually.

“Did you pick one out, Kommander?” Alexi motioned to the three cortexes Strakhov had selected. Each had severe dents from direct impacts, and one had been partially flattened.

“Now you’ll need to bend these back into position here, but be careful you don’t crumple the piston itself,” Alexi instructed. Strakhov did as he was told while Alexi and another mechanik named Vadim use their mechanical appendages to secure the hydraulic array in place. “You can let go now,” Alexi said. Strakhov released the piston and stepped away. He winced at the sight of the slapdash nature of the thing. “You’re sure you can get this machine operational?” Alexi scowled, exaggerating the heavy lines in his sallow face. “Depends on what you mean by ‘operational.’ The legs are misaligned and the steam engine has faulty relief valves, which could lead to a boiler explosion. I’m confident we can get this kuchka to move, however, and so get Kommander Karchev out of this place.” Strakhov nodded, though looking at the thing along with the ragged band of survivors he had his doubts. He had saved their lives, but they were scarred, mentally as well as physically. The horror they had endured combined with the strain of scurrying about the base had left its mark: they moved more like mice avoiding a housecat than soldiers of the Motherland. Normally he would never have tolerated such weakness, but he knew he must rely on these men, for they had skills he lacked. He recognized their tenuous mental state and had made it a point to bolster their shattered spirits in whatever way he could. He said, “Once we make our move, we’ll have precious little time before the alarm is raised.” “We were lucky to find a chassis with so little boiler damage,” Lazlo interjected, speaking quickly and with enthusiasm. The scrawny youth’s harrowing experiences had clearly not extinguished his energetic personality. “Doubly so that it was on one of the new Grolars. The sheer power possible from its boiler array will give you plenty of speed.” “You’ll just need to watch your fuel,” Vadim added from his place atop the warjack’s chassis. His face, damaged by the cephalyx, had been hastily bandaged, and he struggled to speak clearly. “There’s a full load taken from the other wrecks, but that won’t last long if you push it.

Strakhov pointed to the one on the left. “That one.” Lazlo looked skeptical. “That one by far has the worst wear. Are you sure, Kommander?” “My mother told me once, the prettiest girls rarely make the best wives,” Strakhov said flatly. A light of amusement entered Lazlo’s eye. “A strange lesson, Kommander.” “My mother was not an attractive woman.” Strakhov’s face showed no humor as he fixed his gaze on the mechanik. Alexi chuckled. “But clearly she was a smart one.” Strakhov nodded. “The brightest I have ever known.”

SUDDENLY A MUFFLED BOOM ECHOED THROUGH THE CHAMBER WALLS, AND STRAKHOV FELT THE FLOOR OF THE ROOM VIBRATE.

“Stop chit-chatting with the kommander,” Vadim growled from atop the ’jack where its access hatch had been opened wide. “Get his cortex up here! My ass is getting numb.” Lazlo looked between Strakhov and the delicate but heavy cortex, then down at his own hands—one a cauterized stump, the other an oversized metal gauntlet. “Um, Kommander . . . ?” Strakhov patted Lazlo on the shoulder once and went over to pick up his chosen cortex. Alexi followed. Suddenly a muffled boom echoed through the chamber walls, and Strakhov felt the floor of the room vibrate from the activation of heavy machinery in the heart of the necrofactorium. He stopped and listened as his hand instinctively went to his blade. The walls had come alive with a vibrating hum. He thought he heard more muffled noises. Explosions? Gunfire? “What is it?” Vadim hissed, his eyes darting around nervously. Strakhov held up a hand for silence as he strained to listen. It was difficult to discern over the new sounds of the machinery, but he was certain he heard distant explosions.

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DEEPER OBLIGATIONS, PART ONE “Above,” he said, an excited edge to his voice, “our comrades have commenced a new attack.” He turned and looked to Alexi. “We will never get a better chance than this. Our enemies will be distracted. We have to move, now!” The group worked quickly, Alexi overseeing Vadim and Strakhov’s installation of the cortex while Lazlo stoked the warjack’s boiler. When the final conduits were connected, Strakhov felt the dull pulse of the warjack’s damaged consciousness surging to life. Though its mind was clearly impaired, there was an impulse still there: a need to serve. Strakhov gave a sharp nod. “Let’s get Kommander Karchev.” SOUTHWESTERN THORNWOOD, TWO WEEKS EARLIER

The dark-haired woman rode in an enclosed wagon that looked like any of the many others comprising the long resupply column. It was ahead of several wagons hauling inert warjacks and behind a number of iron-banded and barred wagons resembling prisoner transports. These displayed the sigils of the Greylords Covenant and contained dozens of doom reavers. Regular soldiers were already descending from the front wagons and being swiftly assigned to tents among the forest encampment by ranking officers. These were reinforcements brought in to fill the ranks of war-ravaged kompanies. Grim-faced arcanists in fur hats and coats assembled outside the doom reaver transports, awaiting orders. The doom reavers themselves would be offloaded and bivouacked under Greylord supervision, assigned to isolated tents. Through the wagon’s slatted window, she observed Obavnik Kommander Zerkova, who had led the convoy’s military escort, disembark from one of the forward wagons to give the ranking Greylord officers their orders.

SHE SET HER LIPS AND FACED HIM SQUARELY, SEEING BEFORE HER ONE OF THE GREATEST ENEMIES OF HER PEOPLE.

The army encampment was bustling with activity, and not only among those wearing the uniforms of the Motherland. A portion of the encampment was dominated by soldiers attired in blue, gold, and white—Cygnarans, who watched the arrival of the Khadoran reinforcements warily. A single hooded form stepping down from one unmarked wagon was easy to overlook. Those with an attentive eye might have noted something significant was happening at the largest command tent,

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adjacent to the new arrivals. This was a place set aside for meetings between officers of the two allied armies. More soldiers than usual were posted around its perimeter, among them several Man-O-Wars and elite Iron Fangs from highly decorated units. Also present were heavily armored Cygnaran knights, both Stormblades and Stormguard, and though their voltaic weapons were dormant at the moment, a blue glow simmered within each. Some of the knights wore armor that gleamed silver, bereft of the typical blue. Several warjacks rumbled at either end of the tent, their numbers divided exactly between Cygnaran and Khadoran machines. She noted that this precise parity continued among the tent’s watchful guardians, which included among them a battle-seasoned warcaster from each side. Every man standing guard around the tent was tense and wary. Before she stepped down from the wagon the slim woman had been stopped by a hesitant sound from another enger, a much older man sitting partially in the shadows. Though aged, he retained a robust frame and there was an alert gleam to his eyes when the light caught them. “You are certain you do not want me to you?” “I am sure,” she said firmly, though her eyes offered the barest smile. “We will speak afterward. You worry overmuch.” “Of course I do,” he said with a sigh. He spoke in that rare tone reserved for when he wished her to think of him as family. “But you have heard my warnings already. I will not tire you with their repetition.” “Good,” she said. She knew all too well the risks she was taking, yet she also knew how vital it was to be here. “I am nowhere safer than here with my officers, my countrymen.” His look suggested he could think of several more secure locations, but he held his tongue. As she approached the opening of the tent, she saw, as she had requested, the hulking presence of a certain warcaster. He stood leaning part of his weight against his great axe, the butt of its shaft set into the soil. Sensing movement, he turned to face her with a scowl. She pulled back her hood, revealing her face. On her brow was the simplest of her crowns. The nearest guards immediately turned to her, removed their helmets, and bowed deeply. An expression of wonderment crossed the face of Orsus Zoktavir before he, too, bowed, lowering himself as far as his thick armor would allow. She inclined her head slightly to him and laid a hand on his shoulder as she walked past him and into the tent. It was a large space, intended to accommodate dozens of officers together with their accompanying clerks and aides as well as a large table and several desks. The furniture had

been pushed back to clear the center, where only a pair of chairs remained. The tent was empty of occupants except for a single figure standing at the other side of the cleared area, adjacent to one of the chairs. He was thin and narrow of shoulder, though not as short as she had been led to believe. He wore attire that resembled a military uniform, such as those worn by nobles when they wished to demonstrate their former service, his chest festooned with a variety of medals. Something about his bearing and attire struck her as funereal. She stepped forward into the light cast by the oil-fed lanterns, and they stared at one another for several long seconds, each feeling the tension. She saw that his black hair included grey and that his face was lined and looked weary, though he possessed a certain dignity. She set her lips and faced him squarely, seeing before her one of the greatest enemies of her people. There was no etiquette for this occasion. They had never met, and this meeting had been arranged in secrecy. No translators were present; she knew the Cygnaran tongue and suspected he knew Khadoran. His erudition was well known.

She waited, allowing him to speak first. She would let him decide if this was courtesy or insult. It felt as though they both stood on a precipice, staring into a chasm of unknown depths. At last he broke the silence. “Empress Ayn Vanar, it is my great honor to greet you. I offer hospitality and welcome. I am pleased you accepted my unorthodox invitation, and I am also glad you arrived safely.” He spoke in able Khadoran, but in his southern accent the words sounded like profanity. She noted that he did not use the royal "we." She gave a small inclination of her head. “King Leto Raelthorne,” she said. “We are pleased you are enjoying our hospitality in what was until recently a place of contention. We acknowledge the courage you demonstrate in accepting the risk of coming here for a discussion. We could respond with nothing less.” After a brief pause she said, “We ask that you use your native tongue, so you may more easily speak your mind. We will understand you. Do you require a translator?” “That will not be necessary, Your Majesty. I know your tongue well enough.” He spoke in Cygnaran, as requested. The language was not pleasing to her ear, but she preferred

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DEEPER OBLIGATIONS, PART ONE it to hearing a southerner speak Khadoran. He added, “Let us speak without unnecessary formality.” She stepped forward a pace and he did the same, allowing them to address one another more comfortably and discreetly. She kept her expression carefully blank, revealing none of her loathing. Once she would have thought the only way she would ever stand so close to this man was with him in irons, her prisoner, begging for mercy. A pleasing image. “Yes,” she said. “Let us not waste time on idle pleasantries.” He indicated the field chairs. “Would you like to sit?” “I prefer to stand,” she said. “We both know why we are here: to discuss the strange alliance our armies entered into unbidden.” He nodded, pensive. After a pause, he said, “We find ourselves in an unusual circumstance, one that has never arisen between our two nations.”

“WHEREAS YOU SEEK CONQUEST, CRYX SEEKS ANNIHILATION AND ETERNAL ENSLAVEMENT.”

army not cracked its walls and invaded its streets. Despite this, I do not hold you to blame for what transpired at Cryx's hands. We have been at war for a long time. Khador’s objectives were military ones, and I believe your forces would have treated the civilians with honor. But whereas you seek conquest, Cryx seeks annihilation and eternal enslavement. Those who fall to the lich lords cannot even find peace in death. Your men saw terrible things in the streets of Point Bourne—pure evil, unadulterated by politics or mortal ambition. Your officers reacted as any sane person would have. The living must stand against the undead. So was this alliance born, as a means to counter the darkness. I see this as a moment of clarity and sanity.” Ayn was not unmoved, though her face did not show it. She could not help but imagine the same fate afflicting her people. Cryx had stretched its skeletal claws north before. Port Vladovar had suffered under its assault. Its horrors had even defiled her own cathedral in Korsk. Still, this was no time for comion. She said, “War is harsh and innocents suffer. You hold me to blame for the deaths of thousands of your countrymen: in Llael, at Northguard, in Point Bourne. Neither can I forget the spilled blood of countless sons and daughters of the Motherland slain as a result of your commands. It would be foolish to pretend to be friends.” “I do not seek your friendship,” Leto said. “But our path and cause are for the moment aligned.”

She said, “You should know, before all else, that I did not consent to ally. Given the circumstances it is clear that neither did you. Those who made this bargain might be deemed guilty of treason and could be executed in both our nations. It is only the extraordinary circumstances and the supreme kommandant’s value to me that forestalled my hand. I am still weighing whether I should proclaim this alliance null and void.” His eyes widened. He replied carefully, “While it is true that I was also taken by surprise by this arrangement, my commanding officers have my utmost confidence. I understand the reasons they chose as they did. The enemy we face makes other enmities seem paltry. If Cryx prevails, all suffer.” Ayn’s lips compressed. She did not consider the claims of the Khadoran Empire and twelve centuries of grievances paltry. She said, “It was natural for your generals to beg for help. None can fault them. Your city was in flames, your citizens slaughtered. Your army was not strong enough to protect them. It must have been difficult for your generals to ask aid of those they blamed for their suffering.” Leto’s expression darkened. “Yes,” he said softly. “Point Bourne would not have been vulnerable to Cryx had your

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“So you are decided that you wish to extend this alliance, even knowing it will not end the bitter enmity between our people?” It gave her some satisfaction to see the pained look in his face at her blunt speech. Leto continued in a measured tone, “There are deep grievances between our peoples, ones not easily put aside. I still think it worth the attempt. If afterward a resumption of war is needed to resolve them, I will accept that. But not now. Not today, or tomorrow, or any day Cryx holds a portion of the mainland. We should agree to a period of extended cooperation terminating only when Cryx is driven from these lands. We can resume our discussion then.” Ayn narrowed her eyes. She said, “What do we gain from this cooperation? Certainly Cryx is terrible. We have fought them before and will again. I am uncertain if it is to our benefit to tie our fate to yours. We should discuss real . In any negotiation there is a stronger and a weaker party. The weaker must compromise and satisfy the stronger.” At last she had broken his calm demeanor; she saw anger flash in his eyes for the first time. “? This is not a peace negotiation. We are not surrendering. The issue is whether we can save thousands of lives by cooperating

to eliminate a threat that faces your nation as much as it does mine.” She found it reassuring to see a break in the serene veneer he preferred. She said, “Those are noble sentiments, but it is misleading to suggest Cryx is as much a threat to us as they are to you. They dwell off your western shores, and ours are only rarely troubled. Now that we are aware of the extent of the problem in the Thornwood, it will be dealt with.” “The recent defeat of our combined armies suggests otherwise,” Leto said. “You do not have the luxury of time to assemble a greater army here. We know this enemy. They are deeply entrenched. If not extracted now, they will only extend their hold. For the moment we have an advantage, won at great cost: we have learned the disposition of the enemy. We have found their heart. Give them time to adapt, and their vulnerability will vanish. They can recover more swiftly than we can. Combining our forces now is the only way to ensure we can root Cryx out before it becomes impossible. This foe relies on fear and hesitation.” He spoke with rising energy and conviction. Near the end, however, she saw him open his mouth to say something else before he apparently thought better of it. What was he withholding? His hesitation called to mind reports from her spies regarding a recent clash in Ordic territory along the Dragon’s Tongue River, west of Point Bourne. Something significant had transpired there, she was sure; the Cygnarans’ eagerness to resume the fight in the Thornwood had followed immediately thereafter. She also knew many Cygnaran nobles were increasingly restless, almost defiant. The southerners were near the breaking point, which made her loath to do anything to bolster them. Balanced against this was the recent and unexpected visit from the Old Witch. More than anything else, it had been this that had convinced her to risk her life to travel to this forsaken place. The ancient crone had delivered dire pronouncements regarding Cryx. She had said that Ayn would regret ignoring the Thornwood. The annals of Khardic and Khadoran sovereigns contained proof of tragic calamities befalling those who disregarded Zevanna Agha. “Did you feel that?” King Leto asked abruptly. She frowned and realized there was a growing vibration underfoot. Each of them stepped back, but before they could even raise a voice to shout an alarm the ground tore open with a rumble and creatures of blackened steel ripped through the earth to crawl up from below. Ayn stumbled briefly as she stepped back. She was scrambling to right herself when something heavy landed in front of her, one of its

forelegs piercing the ground where she had just stood. Its hunkering form was fronted by a freakish gaping mouth filled with long bleached teeth, and along its lower jaw gleamed a pair of hooked metal mandibles. The outer wall of the tent tore open in a half-dozen places as the guardians stationed around the perimeter reacted to the disturbance. Even as the bonejack lunged for the empress, an Iron Fang moved to interpose himself. He gave a choked cry as the creature hooked into his torso, piercing his lower breastplate and driving upward into his chest cavity. An Iron Fang kovnik put himself before her next, driving the machine back with his axe. A smaller, more spindly bonejack with a skeletal head leapt at Leto, and he narrowly evaded, stepping to the side. It shattered a table behind him, its sharpened foreleg piercing the outer wall of the tent, before it whirled back around, hissing through its open jaws. Then that side of the tent was torn and more defenders poured in. There was a roar and Ayn was pulled back as Orsus Zoktavir strode past, his face red and livid. His great axe was drawn back to strike. He pushed past the kovnik and with a single great blow cut through the Helldiver, which split apart with a shriek of protesting metal. The air of the tent quickly became rank with necrotite as the machine’s fuel reserves spilled across the ground. Orsus paid no heed, giving a bellow and striking at the next Cryxian thing in reach. The entire tent was in uproar, and Ayn found herself being ushered back and away as Khadoran soldiers converged. Leto had a sword in hand, perhaps given him by one of his men, and he drove its point through the skull of the Stalker that had sought to skewer him. Undeterred, the machine struck again as Leto moved aside. Then he, too, was pulled back and surrounded by armored soldiers. Moving quickly to the fore was Lord General Stryker, whose warcaster armor filled the tent’s interior with sharp blue light and a buzzing sound like angry bees. Spectral forms continued to pour from the hole below the tent, unnatural figures that seemed half shadow, attired in strangely archaic armor and wielding long bladed polearms. They struck down several of the nearest soldiers before they were hacked apart. A cordon of Man-O-War shocktroopers surrounded Ayn, shields locked tightly together as they moved her back. “Wait!” she commanded, refusing to be pulled entirely away. The nearby encampment had been thrown into tumult by the attack and the air was filled with shouts, cries, and barked orders. She saw Zoktavir annihilate another dark machine and then turn without thinking toward Lord

9

DEEPER OBLIGATIONS, PART ONE General Stryker, who had closed from the other direction. Zoktavir snarled and drew back his axe, seeing only a hated enemy. The looming form of an Ironclad came up behind Stryker, its hammer raised. “Orsus!” Ayn yelled sharply through the chaos. He checked his swing, preventing it from making its deadly arc. Though Stryker’s warjack seemed to have sensed the threat, the man himself realized his peril only when he saw the huge axe stop. His power field hummed and glowed brightly, but it likely would not have saved him. The thought entered Ayn’s mind that if not for the larger threat of Asphyxious she would have remained silent. The moment ed, and the two warcasters returned to annihilating the last banes and bonejacks erupting from below. Ayn heard shouting outside and realized there was more fighting beyond the tent. Clearly more than one hole had opened to unleash Cryxian horrors. She saw Aleksandra Zerkova, flanked by her reaver guards, engaged on the other side near where their wagons had arrived. What of Blaustavya? She felt relief to see him with his own escort at a safe distance. Armed Cygnarans were converging on additional shadowy forms to the south, where their own tents were clustered. Despite the initial clamor, it was not long before the fighting ended. Cryx had not sent a force large enough to threaten the armies themselves; assassination had clearly been their goal. The Cryxians elsewhere had been intended to sow confusion while those in the main tent murdered the sovereigns. Her protectors had been swift, however, as had Leto’s. She realized her hands were trembling, more from adrenaline than fear. She took hold of the Morrowan pendant she carried, together with the icon of Ascendant Katrena, and offered a brief prayer. She allowed herself only a moment before putting it away, composing herself before the eyes of her soldiers. “Thank you for your actions,” she said to the shocktroopers. “Attend me.” She motioned for them to step back. They stayed near as she circled the annihilated command tent. Additional soldiers and officers as well as several other warcasters and their ’jacks had closed on the area, though discipline held and the senior officers were taking matters in hand. Supreme Kommandant Irusk was among the arrivals, ordering the tunnels from which the foe had emerged to be scoured and collapsed. He saw her and strode forward, taking a moment to bow deeply. “Your Majesty, you are unharmed? We should take you somewhere more secure.” Behind him Great Vizier Blaustavya also neared, flanked by his escort. His eyes warmed at the sight of her safe and whole.

10

“No,” she said. “Where is King Leto?” She accumulated a larger escort of watchful officers as she made her way to where the Cygnaran sovereign was similarly protected. He had been pulled back from the command tent toward his own army, but his guardians parted respectfully at the approach of the Khadorans. The soldiers of each side seemed less wary of one another now after being reminded of their mutual foe—a sentiment Ayn could appreciate. “Your casualties?” she asked. She felt her heart still racing and knew she was not entirely calm. “Fortunately few,” he said, “though we don’t have a full tally. Yours?” She looked to Irusk and he said, “The same. There were losses. It could have been much worse.” He stopped abruptly, perhaps aware of the extreme understatement. Frowning, Leto said, “I am at a loss as to how they knew to strike where they did. We undertook great precautions arranging this meeting.” “As did we,” said Ayn. “The matter will be investigated.” She sent a look to Blaustavya, whose expression was grim. He gave a small nod; the guilty party would be punished. She turned back to Leto and squared her shoulders, taking a deep breath. Then she said, “Regarding the matter we were discussing: you were right. I should not have suggested otherwise.” A hush fell all around them, particularly among her contingent, none of whom had ever witnessed an ission of this sort from the empress. She said, “Let us put an end to Cryx, together, now.” King Leto’s eyes shone with a blend of relief and conviction. He nodded and said, “Together we will see it done.”

Later, in a hastily improvised command tent, Supreme Kommandant Irusk stood with Lord General Stryker discussing the plan Irusk had worked out among his senior officers. The two strove to arrange for the proper coordination required between their separate armies. Irusk felt tense, distracted by the aftermath of the attack on the sovereigns. He sought to focus on the maps and sketches of forest geography arrayed before him. Among the soldiers of the two kingdoms the attack had created temporary solidarity. Irusk had seen several Winter Guard mingling with Cygnaran trenchers, enough to make him wonder at the state of general discipline, but he left the task of reprimanding such individuals to his sergeants and junior officers. In this tent there was no such camaraderie.

Irusk suspected he and Stryker shared some thoughts in common, such as how mad it had been to allow their sovereigns to meet here, in the Thornwood. Of course, they could never have expected Cryx to find a way to attack so precisely. But each also had experience with the stubborn resolve of a monarch set on a course of action. Their respective rulers had chosen to meet despite all warnings and objections. “You have a plan to neutralize Cryx’s advantages?” Stryker asked, folding his arms. “We do,” Irusk affirmed. “We put the best minds of the Greylords Covenant to the task. They have analyzed this fortress and its mystical workings. The lich lord’s necromancy is based on Orgoth principles, which our arcanists understand very well.” “No doubt,” Stryker said, with narrowed eyes. Irusk ignored the implied condemnation. “Now that we better apprehend their defenses, we can attack with greater effectiveness. We intend to approach deliberately, laying down extensive fire on their fixed positions as we encircle the perimeter.” “We will lend our own cannons to that effort,” Stryker noted. Irusk nodded. He continued, “I intend to shell the area for several days before we begin our main approach. Naturally the enemy will attack our artillery positions, but we will advance in formations to protect them. The Cryxians have extensive underground facilities, so shelling will accomplish only so much—its purpose will be primarily to allow us to seize the perimeter with limited losses. Once we control the surrounding ground, we can approach the tower more systematically.” “What of the fortress itself? Its supernatural defenses are formidable.” “Its strongest protections rely on fresh souls. It is absolutely vital we limit initial casualties. Every death in proximity of the fortress’ outer spires will make them stronger.” He tapped a sketch showing the known layout of Cryx’s outer defenses. Stryker said, “The power wielded by those emplacements behaved similarly to voltaic energy. Our stormsmiths described it as necromantic lightning.” “That fits.” Irusk nodded. “Some of the external structures of the complex serve as conduits for this power.” He traced those areas on the sketch. “Before we allow our armies to close on the main tower, we need to disable these necromantic spires.”

“There are dozens of them,” Stryker said. “The Greylords theorize we can disable the system by a focused two-pronged attack,” Irusk noted. “We will send one special vanguard here, to destroy this building we believe serves as a surface conduit to the southern spires. I have a force picked for this, comprised primarily of doom reavers and warjacks. Those should be immune to the necromantic defenses. Kommander Orsus Zoktavir will lead them. Their deaths will still empower the complex, but that cannot be avoided. We will use as few as we can. Simultaneously, I need you to bring a concentration of voltaic weaponry here.” He pointed to a portion of the complex on the opposite side. “If we can deliver a great surge of voltaic energy into the system at this northern conduit not long after the southern one is destroyed, the connections between the spires should overload, perhaps even harming the central fortress itself.”

THEIR RESPECTIVE RULERS HAD CHOSEN TO MEET DESPITE ALL WARNINGS AND OBJECTIONS.

“This is the recommendation of your Greylords?” Stryker asked, clearly skeptical. “Yes. Their theories are sound, I believe. It will be risky.” After a moment the Cygnaran warcaster nodded. “While we reserve our strength the entire Cryxian army will seek to slaughter those sent forward.” “True,” Irusk said. “I will go over detailed plans to divert the foe and provide covering fire to the forward elements. With just the numbers we have gathered, even the recent reinforcements, I would not hold our chances of success very high. But we will not be alone. A messenger has brought word of additional forces from the north. I am working to time their arrival to coincide with our main assault.” Stryker frowned. Merywyn?”

He

asked,

“Reinforcements

from

Irusk offered a tight smile. “Not directly. From Umbrey and Leryn.” When the lord general shot him a sharp look, Irusk added, “Great Prince Tzepesci brings his vassals. With them comes Hierarch Severius and his Northern Crusade.” He saw the blood drain from the Cygnaran’s face. “Severius was persuaded by the great prince to lend his strength against Cryx.”

11

DEEPER OBLIGATIONS, PART ONE THE THORNWOOD NECROFACTORIUM

On receiving the news, Asphyxious hissed his displeasure and lashed out, scraping long rents along the nearest wall with his clawed fingers. He slammed his sword Daimonion into the metal workbench in front of him, hewing the bench in twain. The pistol wraith who had reported to him cowered and backed away, though neither such efforts nor its insubstantial state would save it from the lich lord’s wrath. Deneghra stood nearby, arms folded, unperturbed. She spoke to the pistol wraith, saying, “You may go.” It fled with alacrity, clearly glad to escape the temper of its lord. Deneghra eyed Asphyxious and saw how anger roiled from him like a tangible thing, manifested through the power that flowed effortlessly through and around his metal form. “I can find something else for you to destroy, if that is your desire.” She knew being sarcastic was a risk when he was in a temper, but he continued to rage heedless of her remark.

“You can’t trust Severius,” Stryker said vehemently. “He will use this to his advantage.” Irusk clenched his jaw. “All I require of the Menites is to arrive and to fight. Great Prince Tzepesci assures me they are ready to do that much. I will entrust nothing more complicated to them; they will serve as a distraction. Without their numbers, Cryx would quickly overwhelm us.” “Perhaps,” Stryker said. He was clearly troubled. “The most vital aspects of this plan fall to your people and mine, Lord General.” Stryker nodded and said, “If your people do their part, we will do ours.”

12

“Failure!” He paced, his hands glowing with power. “The deaths of the human leaders would have left their armies—their entire nations—overwhelmed by grief and thrown into anger, despair, and confusion. It would have given us time. Time that is increasingly scarce.” “Yes, I heard the report,” she said. “You actually believed the attempt would succeed? I thought it more likely a gambit to provoke or divert them.” “I do not comprehend the difficulty in obliterating a pair of insignificant mortals. They wither and die at the slightest touch.” “These particular ‘insignificant’ mortals are the rulers of powerful nations,” Deneghra said. “Each protected by large and vigilant armies, each led by formidable individuals who have thwarted us before. You should have sent me. I would have seen it done.”

He turned to face her. His glowing eye appraised her and his metal hand clenched. “No. There is much yet to attend to that requires thy attention and thine alone. With the intelligence we possessed, the measures enacted should have sufficed.” “It was a chance worth taking,” Deneghra allowed. “But I it I had reservations about the source of your intelligence.” “The information given us was accurate,” Asphyxious retorted. “An opportunity such as this will never come again. Perhaps I erred in not sending thee.” Deneghra considered the depths of Asphyxious’ aggravation. It was unlike him to place so much stock in any one plan, particularly one assembled in such haste. She knew it was because of the thought of losing this necrofactorium complex. That was a blow he did not take lightly; even an immortal did not readily abandon decades of labor. Had this gambit paid off, perhaps they could have found another solution. Adding to the tension was another recent report relating the fall of Terminus at the Black River, a fact Asphyxious might once have welcomed. But much had been risked on the recovery of the athanc, and there would be consequences for failing the Dragonfather. Deneghra hoped only Venethrax would be held responsible. However grave the situation with the athanc, they could not afford for Asphyxious to be diverted. The noose was tightening. “Assassination is always a gamble,” Deneghra said. “Regardless, now we need to focus on our next move.” She knew he did not want to hear it. “We should prepare to leave this place, and quickly.” “No. Not yet.” His eye flared. “The cephalyx hive needs to be secured, their deepest tunnels sealed. We cannot surrender the necrofactorium until I am certain they will be undisturbed, for they are essential to my future endeavors. Nothing has changed, except the span of time left us. We must defend this place, keep our enemies at bay. Only when the hive is secure can we consider withdrawal.” “Very well,” she said. “I will be ready for them.”

Strakhov let out a string of quiet curses as he peered down the corridor leading to where Karchev was being held. Whatever was happening on the surface had put the Cryxian base into a frenzy of activity. Though that had allowed Strakhov and his men the liberty to move unimpeded, their luck had run out. The corridor was filled with drudges; their hulking forms stood eerily still as their cephalyx master floated among them, its wicked

steel prostheses clicking and scraping as it adjusted their weaponry. Strakhov took a moment to consider his course of action. There were other pathways to Karchev’s cell, but none were close—and more importantly, none of them could accommodate the bulk of the Khadoran warjack vital to his plan. This corridor was his only option. He made his way back to his motley team, who waited in a nearby corridor. Strakhov had used his obscuring magic to mask the presence of his makeshift warjack, as it posed the largest threat of exposing them. He let that spell fade now and conjured new runes about the machine’s frame to imbue it with increased speed and accuracy. He hoped this would be enough to offset its awkward movements. Its heavily battered cortex was a significant concern; though it had been responsive so long as he controlled it directly, if left to its own devices the machine seemed incapable of walking a straight line, instead stumbling into the corridor walls.

THEIR CEPHALYX MASTER FLOATED AMONG THEM, ITS WICKED STEEL PROSTHESES CLICKING AND SCRAPING.

Strakhov made a quick assessment of the men around the ’jack. Alexi’s expression remained sullen, but his eyes showed resolve and strength. He had proven worthy of his rank. Vadim’s bandaged face showed his fear. His eyes darted at every noise and his body was tense. Strakhov expected him to spring back like a startled cat at any second. Lazlo looked like he was trying to make himself as small and inconspicuous as possible. In all, it was far from the squad Strakhov wanted at his back in a vicious close quarters fight. He pointed at the men in turn. “Alexi, you are with me and the ’jack. Lazlo and Vadim, you two will follow behind. It will be safest there if we run into trouble.” Years of covert operations had taken away any twinge the lie might have given his conscience. Strakhov had learned long ago that morality often stood in the way of completing a mission. As the group approached the corridor, he leaned in close to Alexi and spoke in a low voice. “When the fighting starts, stay close to me and do exactly as I tell you. Understood?” Alexi looked at him for a long moment and then nodded. Strakhov unslung his riot gun and readied it. He moved decisively around the corner, letting combat reflexes

13

DEEPER OBLIGATIONS, PART ONE honed over decades of service take over. In the span of a breath he snapped off three shots, the explosion of the heavy powder loads booming like thunder in the confined corridor. Strakhov had hoped the element of surprise would allow him to drop the mind slaver quickly, but through some unnatural awareness several drudges instead placed themselves in front of his shots. The impact of the bullets threw them back to collapse and bleed out in silence. He sent his will into the ’jack and then yanked Alexi tight against the wall mere seconds before the warjack’s boiler screamed and the machine rushed by, inches from their pressed forms. The warjack crashed into the hallway, Strakhov using its bulk to crush drudges beneath its iron onslaught. He pushed Alexi forward in the wake of the warjack’s rampage. He felt a rush of euphoria as he directed the warjack and threw himself into battle. The liberation of combat dispelled the oppression of so long spent skulking in this wretched place.

STRAKHOV HAD LEARNED LONG AGO THAT MORALITY OFTEN STOOD IN THE WAY OF COMPLETING A MISSION.

Stowing his riot gun, Strakhov drew his trench sword and began cutting a path through the drudges, doing his best to keep himself and the protection of his power field between the drudges and Alexi. He spared one glance back to make sure Alexi was following and caught sight of Lazlo and Vadim. He felt a moment of pride as he saw them cast off their terror and shout a battle cry as they charged their enemies, swinging crudely improvised clubs pulled from the salvage room. They disappeared behind a wave of drudges. They had found their courage in the end. Strakhov urged the warjack forward, having to direct it more closely than he would an undamaged machine. He imagined he could sense something akin to rage within its shattered mind as it avenged itself on drudges. Through its eyes, Strakhov saw the cephalyx slaver make a hasty retreat, disappearing down a side corridor. With all guiding influence gone, the movement of the drudges slowed and their attacks became more erratic. In minutes the corridor was awash in the blood and black ichor of cephalyx creations. Strakhov turned to Alexi, who was scanning the mass of bodies for Lazlo and Vadim. He placed a gauntleted hand on the mechanik’s shoulder. “We must press on. It is only a matter of time now before the cephalyx brings an even greater force.” Alexi spared

14

another moment of futile searching before dropping his head. “They will be ed for their service,” Strakhov said before urging the ’jack forward. It took only minutes to reach the chamber where Karchev was being held. As his eyes met those of the legendary kommander, Strakhov felt a rush of panic. Karchev looked even worse than last time he had been here. The kommander hung limply within the life-sustaining contraption that held him. His eyes were dull, and his head drooped. For a moment Strakhov feared they were too late. Suddenly Karchev’s deep voice grumbled through a dry and cracked throat. “So you have returned, Kommander.” Strakhov felt a surge of relief as Karchev’s head rose and the iron returned to his eyes. “I barely believed it when I sensed a Khadoran cortex nearby. I assumed it was a trick.” “No trick, Kommander,” Strakhov said. “Liberation!” Karchev fixed his eyes on Alexi, who stood mute, staring in awe at the famed kommander. “I assume I have you to thank for this machine?” the warcaster asked. “Y— Yes, Kommander,” Alexi stammered. “I apologize it is not much to look at.” “It moves. That is enough,” Karchev said. Strakhov turned to face the mechanik. “We must be gone before the Cryxians muster a response. I need you to remove the kommander and attach his life systems to the ’jack’s engine.” Alexi’s eyes went wide. “I don’t know the first thing about such systems!” he protested. A large explosion boomed somewhere overhead, causing the chamber to shake. Strakhov’s stare remained steady on the Khadoran mechanik. “You had better learn. Quickly.”

Orsus Zoktavir realized he had been eager for this, had been thirsting for it like a man left without water for days. A grin split his face as he waded into battle with Lola in hand, his two argus rushing ahead. Fanned out to either side of them were dozens of doom reavers, their Orgoth weapons readied, each reaver overtaken by destructive enthusiasm as his dark blades chanted litanies into his mind. Nearer to Orsus, his warjacks ran as quickly as heavy Khadoran armor could move, a mobile barrier to intercept the arcane death hurled their way. Behind them the air was rent by the sound of rifle and artillery fire, followed by explosions ahead. The conduit that was his target lay less than sixty yards before him and off to his right—but past the mob of thralls and necrotite-belching machines.

An acrid stench filled his nostrils, and he choked on the sulfur and ash that filled the air. The muddy ground was treacherous, yet he had no trouble finding purchase—he was rushing toward the enemy, and the ground always favored him in battle. His mind was filled with the barking of his argus and the susurrations of the fell blades around him. They made the perfect cadence within which to deliver obliteration. The heavy blades of the doom reavers swung into motion as they reached the wall of thralls. They hacked through the walking dead even as the rune-covered thralls began to raise their giant fists to retaliate. Helljacks and bonejacks loomed behind the forward ranks, unleashed from the blackened fortress at the center of the green-glowing spires. Flickering emerald energy surged across the talon-like spires surrounding the structure, flashing in time to the surging clouds above. Green fire lashed out from the spires like whips, each dispersing just before reaching a doom reaver. It was as though the chanting of the gaping mouths along the sides of their Orgoth blades was disrupting the balefire before it could land. Orsus felt nearly alone amid a field of undeath. Other than the doom reavers, which were offered as sacrifices to the mission, his army was not at his side; they had remained behind. The soldiers were afraid of balefire and did not want to risk their souls. He understood this fear, though he himself felt only a familiar blend of rage and joy. The soldiers of the Motherland were providing what they could by indirect fire. Destroyers and mortars sent shells arcing high into the air to come shrieking down in thunderous explosions amid the enemy ranks. The rest of the army would close after he had done his part. He could hear the clash of battle elsewhere as Sorscha, Zerkova, Irusk, and the various Cygnaran battlegroups directed their forces against Cryxians that had been drawn out to the wider perimeter. None were willing to close on the fortress. By going where the others would not, Orsus had drawn the Cryxians to him like hornets swarming from their nest. Several doom reavers on his left were washed with caustic bile. They staggered as their flesh was melted through, and then their bodies dissolved into steaming sludge. Their souls were wrenched from their dying bodies, howling and gibbering as they were collected by the nearest spire. He directed one of his Juggernauts to trample through those bile thralls, which exploded wetly underfoot. A Slayer loped forward between the ranks of thralls ahead, unleashing an unholy howl of steam as it came at him, flanked by Deathrippers. His eyes burned with power and his axe lit afire with blue light. He sounded a short note on his war horn and the argus leapt together to confront the bonejack on the left, their fangs flashing in

the light. It was a nimble machine, snapping with its own necromechanikally augmented jaws. It sidestepped the first argus but not the twin heads of the second, which was maddened and empowered by the Butcher’s rage. Their teeth tore through metal plates and ripped the bonejack’s head from its body, shaking it to send pieces flying. The Slayer came for him, swiping its claws, but his axe crashed into its torso first. The impact drove through the armored ribcage to lodge deep into the helljack’s cortex. He yanked the weapon free amid a spray of sparks and greenish ichor even as the Slayer’s left arm clawed at him, its metal talons skidding across his power field. He hacked into its armpit, shearing through its shoulder and arm to the torso, then scrambled to the side as the helljack toppled. The second Deathripper launched itself to snap down on his armored left forearm. He yanked it free as the metal began to buckle and pinch his skin. A backswing with Lola sent the machine tumbling, skittering on its small legs to right itself. The pair of argus were upon it in a moment and ended its twitching movements. More helljacks were coming and he directed his warjacks into them, letting their weight and momentum drive the Cryxians back. At his urging the two Devastators opened their armored shells to deliver an explosive barrage, obliterating both the ’jacks and the thralls nearest them. Ruin, the new machine delivered to him by Zerkova, waded into the battle as if it were another frenzied berserker, its enormous mace glowing with power akin to the necromantic gleam illuminating the helljacks and the spires around him. He could feel the chanting of the relics attached to its arms ringing within his mind. The red haze threatened his vision, like blood seeping into his eyes. Orsus clenched his teeth and held madness at bay. The chorus of voices from the fell blades reached a crescendo around him as Fenris charged past astride his demented steed, one accursed blade in each hand. He was close enough to the main tower to see a figure at the apex, standing on a platform and surrounded by a runic halo. This was Lich Lord Asphyxious, who seemed capable of guiding the attacking forces from a great distance, no doubt aided by the talon-like spires. The lich lord’s dark intelligence gleamed behind the fiendish eyes of the Cryxian helljacks. Orsus wanted to surrender to the rising tide of violence and drive onward to confront Asphyxious. Nothing would please him more than to see the lich lord hacked into a bent and twisted heap—but he had a different purpose. Another squad of bile thralls closed from his left flank. Galloping soulhunters circled around the right side. Those that came too far forward fell under fire from the Khadorans behind Zoktavir. He could sense cortexes in

15

DEEPER OBLIGATIONS, PART ONE motion and knew a freshly delivered Victor colossal and the Behemoth were marching forward, directed by Irusk and Sorscha respectively, each lending firepower against the foe. Shells dug deep craters where they struck, and the twisted, horselike bodies of two soulhunters were torn apart in one forceful blast. Ahead rose an enormous machine with long tentacle-like arms. It could only be one of the Cryxian colossals he had been told of—a Kraken. It moved with surprising speed on insectoid legs as its long tendrils snaked out to seize one doom reaver after another. Orsus gave a battle cry, his vision entirely crimson, and gripped Lola in both hands. He charged the colossal while runes surrounded him to empower his straining leg muscles. Ruin and his battered Juggernaut came with him. He set his Devastators to reload and fire their grenade launchers again, hoping to clear the flanks. He paid no mind to the doom reavers, leaving them to be shepherded by Fenris. Each would inflict a toll before he fell. A number of flying bonejacks peeled off from the heights of the central tower and sped to intercept.

NOTHING WOULD PLEASE HIM MORE THAN TO SEE THE LICH LORD HACKED INTO A BENT AND TWISTED HEAP.

One of the extended tentacles of the colossal struck for him like a metal serpent and crashed against the brightened hemisphere of his power field. He lashed out with a sweep of his axe with contemptuous ease, as if he were slapping the hand of a giant. Lola cleaved through the machinery at the end of the limb, sending pieces of metal flying. Another of the Kraken’s tendrils struck his Juggernaut, wrapped it in its coils, and sent the warjack hurtling away through the air until it crashed and tumbled end-over-end. The Cryxian colossal’s belly cannon spat sharpened steel at him, and he snarled as a piece tore through the armor at his waist. Consumed by anger and drenched in adrenaline, he felt no pain. Ruin reached the larger machine and struck a powerful blow, tearing through and buckling the metal on one of its forward legs. The argus at Orsus’ left veered off to intercept a brute thrall coming for him. He hardly noticed, his focus entirely on the Cryxian colossal. Ruin’s shattering of its front left leg had caused it to wobble, and it leaned forward as its great gears churned and it worked to recover its balance. A ring of runes surrounded Orsus as his magic poured through him. He leapt through the air, axe raised above his

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head, and then brought it down. The power he channeled blazed along his arms, his entire body become a projectile with Lola at the fore. The axe blade parted steel with a whine when he struck and then fell downward, all his weight upon Lola’s haft as the blade carved a gash almost ten feet long down the front of the colossal. He tumbled under an awkward retaliatory strike from its remaining tendril’s claw. Another blow of his axe exploded through metal and shattered the innards of the machine. Alongside him, his warjacks battered it repeatedly. It toppled, swayed, and fell in a resounding crash. Other helljacks would be coming. He had kept one of his Marauders in reserve, following behind. He sent it forward now to obliterate the conduit. As it got up to speed, he reached forth his left hand, which was surrounded by gleaming arcane runes, and then clenched his fist. With all his will he unleashed an eruption of rending energy into the target, creating an explosion that momentarily deafened him and caused the ground to buckle. A portion of the stone and metal foundation blasted free, and a hail of debris littered the area. His power field ebbed. The Marauder hit a moment later, driving its steampowered ram pistons into the structure. Orsus sent what power he had left into the machine, urging it to batter the building and its necromantic machinery to oblivion. Greenish power wrapped around the warjack and erupted outward from the building. Then there was a keening sound that ended in a tremendous fountain of sparks, and a number of the nearest fortress spires suddenly darkened, no longer fueled by the energy that normally fed them. He had done his part. Now there was only to survive long enough for his army to reach him. He saw more bonejacks and helljacks clambering toward him across the torn, pocked ground. He raised his hunting horn to deliver a single long, sustained note. For a moment the red haze before his eyes receded and his memories returned to him, filling him with pain and grief. He clenched his fists and felt Lola’s haft within them, and then he looked to the horde of onrushing enemies. Setting his stance, he adjusted his grip on the axe and whispered, “I’ll be with you soon, my love. But not yet.”

THEME FORCES AND CEPHALYX RULES CEPHALYX WARCASTERS Cephalyx warcasters do not control battlegroups of warjacks. Instead they control forces of surgically altered, mechanically enhanced giants colloquially known as monstrosities.

CEPHALYX WARCASTER SPECIAL RULES Cephalyx warcasters can control only monstrosities and cannot control warjacks. A Cephalyx warcaster can allocate focus points to monstrosities in his battlegroup as if they were warjacks. A Cephalyx warcaster’s warjack points can be used on monstrosities even though they are not warjacks. In addition to their other special rules as warcasters, Cephalyx warcasters have the following special rule:

MONSTROSITY DAMAGE KEY On a monstrosity’s damage grid, the following letters represent the monstrosity’s systems: B: Brain L: Left arm weapons system R: Right arm weapons system H: Head weapons system M: Movement A monstrosity with a crippled brain (B system) loses any focus points on it and cannot be allocated focus points. It cannot spend focus points for any reason. Monstrosities with crippled left arms, right arms, heads, or movement suffer the same penalties as warjacks do (see WARMACHINE: Prime Mk II ).

HEALING

At any time during its activation, this model can spend focus points to heal damage a monstrosity in its battlegroup that is in its control area has suffered. For each focus point spent this way, remove 1 damage point.

MONSTROSITIES Monstrosities are classified according to base size a light monstrosity has a medium base (40 mm), and a heavy monstrosity has a large base (50 mm). Even though it is assigned to a specific battlegroup, each monstrosity is an independent model.

MONSTROSITY SPECIAL RULES Monstrosities are not warjacks and do not have a cortex. Monstrosities can be controlled only by Cephalyx warcasters. Monstrosities are living models. Monstrosities are so utterly dominated by their Cephalyx masters that they lack even the rudimentary capacity for free will required to form bonds. Additionally, monstrosities have the following special rules:

BRAIN

This model can be allocated focus. This model can have no more than 3 focus points at any time as a result of allocation. This limit does not apply to focus gained by means other than allocation. Unless otherwise stated, this model can spend focus only during its activation. FOCUS: ADDITIONAL ATTACK

This model can spend focus to make additional melee or ranged attacks as part of its combat action. It can make one additional attack for each focus point spent. FOCUS: BOOST

This model can spend 1 focus point to boost any of its attack rolls or damage rolls during its activation. Add an extra die to the boosted roll. Boosting must be declared before rolling any dice for the roll. FOCUS: SHAKE

During your Control Phase after allocating focus, if this model is knocked down it can spend 1 focus point to stand up.

Monstrosities have damage grids like warjacks.

During your Control Phase after allocating focus, if this model is stationary it can spend 1 focus point to cause the stationary status to expire.

DESTROYED MONSTROSITY

MONSTROSITY POWER ATTACKS

When a destroyed monstrosity is removed from the table it is not replaced with a wreck marker.

This model can make power attacks. When a monstrosity performs a power attack or a model performs a power attack against a monstrosity, follow the WARMACHINE: Prime rules as if the monstrosity were a warjack. All monstrosities can make the slam, head-butt, and push power attacks. Heavy monstrosities can make the trample power attack.

DAMAGE GRID

FEARLESS

Though it does not appear on their stat lines, all monstrosities have the Fearless advantage.

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THEME FORCES Monstrosities with at least one non-crippled weapon with the Open Fist weapon quality can make headlock/weapon lock and throw power attacks. Monstrosities with two noncrippled weapons with the Open Fist weapon quality can make double-hand throw power attacks. CEPHALYX WARCASTER DESTRUCTION

If a Cephalyx warcaster is destroyed or removed from the table, the monstrosities in his battlegroup become inert like warjacks and can be reactivated like warjacks.

MERCENARY CONTRACT To field a Cephalyx army, you must choose either the Cephalyx contract or a Theme Force. The contract and Theme Forces include rules for building the army. In addition to the guidelines presented in a contract or Theme Force, Cephalyx armies follow all the normal army composition rules.

PUPPET MASTERS ARMY COMPOSITION

• An army constructed under the Puppet Masters contract can include Cephalyx models/units. Additionally, the army can include up to one non-Cephalyx Mercenary unit if that unit includes a Cephalyx Dominator UA. • Increase the FA of Cephalyx Mind Slaver units by +1.

Drudge

• Increase the FA of Cephalyx Overlord units by 1. SPECIAL RULES

• Units that include Cephalyx Dominator UAs gain . Advance Deployment • The army can also include Bloat Thrall, Machine Wraith, and Pistol Wraith solos. These solos are considered to be friendly Mercenary models instead of Cryx models.

The complete rules for Theme Forces can be found in WARMACHINE: Prime Mk II. The complete rules for contracts can be found in Forces of WARMACHINE: Mercenaries.

MAJOR PRIME VICTORIA HALEY STRANDS OF FATE

WARJACKS: Cygnar non-character warjacks, Thorn

UNITS: Field Mechaniks, Long Gunner Infantry, Trencher units SOLOS: Journeyman Warcaster, Trencher solos

TIER 1

TIER 3

Requirements: The army can include only the models listed above.

Requirements: The army includes one or more Trencher Commando units.

You can begin the game with Haley Past and/or Haley Future in play. For each model in this unit in play at the start of the game you can redeploy one model/unit after both players have deployed but before the first player’s first turn. The redeployed models must be placed on the table in a location they could have been deployed initially.

Units in the army gain Prowl during the first round while of the game. (Models with Prowl gain Stealth within terrain that provides concealment, the AOE of a spell that provides concealment, or the AOE of a cloud effect.) TIER 4

TIER 2

Requirements: Haley’s battlegroup include two or more advantage. warjacks with the Arc Node

Requirements: The army includes three or more Trencher units.

During your first turn of the game, models in Haley’s battlegroup gain +2 SPD.

Reduce the cost of Trencher units by 1.

Permission is hereby granted to create reproductions of this page for personal, non-commercial use only.

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ANSON DURST, ROCK OF THE FAITH DEFENDERS OF THE WALL WARJACKS: Protectorate non-character warjacks

UNITS: Choirs of Menoth, Paladin units, Temple Flameguard SOLOS: Paladin solos, Temple Flameguard solos, Vassal solos

TIER 1

TIER 3

Requirements: The army can include only the models listed above.

Requirements: The army includes High Paladin Dartan Vilmon.

For each unit in the army, increase the FA of Paladin of the Order of the Wall solos by 1.

Paladin solos gain Advance Move. (Before the start of the game but after both players have deployed, a model with Advance Move can make a full advance.)

TIER 2

TIER 4

Requirements: The army includes one or more Temple Flameguard units.

Requirements: The army includes two or more warjacks with advantage. the Shield

Add a unit attachment to one Temple Flameguard unit free of cost. This unit attachment ignores FA restrictions.

advantage are Warjacks with the Shield automatically allocated 1 focus point during your first Control Phase of the game.

OBAVNIK KOMMANDER ZERKOVA & REAVER GUARD WINTER’S WIND WARJACKS: Khador non-character warjacks

UNITS: Doom Reaver units, Greylord units, Winter Guard units SOLOS: Doom Reaver solos, Greylord solos

TIER 1

TIER 3

Requirements: The army can include only the models listed above.

Requirements: The army includes Koldun Kapitan Valachev, and his unit includes at least one other model with Magic Ability.

The army can include up to one Mercenary unit if that unit includes Koldun Kapitan Valachev.

You gain +1 on your starting roll for the game.

TIER 2

TIER 4

Requirements: The army includes two or more Greylord units.

Requirements: The army includes two or more warjacks.

For each Greylord unit in the army, one warjack gains Advanced Move. (Before the start of the game but after both players have deployed, a model with Advance Move can make a full advance.)

For every two warjacks in the army, add one Koldun Lord solo to the army free of cost. This solo does not count toward FA restrictions.

Permission is hereby granted to create reproductions of this page for personal, non-commercial use only.

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THEME FORCES

DENEGHRA, THE SOUL WEAVER WEFT OF SOULS

WARJACKS: Cryx non-character warjacks, Deathjack, Malice, Nightmare

UNITS: Bane Riders, Mechanithralls, Soulhunters, The Withershadow Combine SOLOS: Pistol Wraiths, Skarlock Thrall, Soul Trapper BATTLE ENGINE: Wraith Engine

TIER 1

TIER 3

Requirements: The army can include only the models listed above.

Requirements: The army includes three or more solos.

Increase the FA of Soulhunter units by 1. TIER 2 Requirements: The army includes one or more cavalry units. You gain +1 on your starting roll for the game.

Solos in the army gain Advance Deployment

.

TIER 4 Requirements: The army includes two or more warjacks with Soul Drive. Reduce the point cost of warjacks with Soul Drive by 1.

THYRON, SWORD OF TRUTH RUSH OF BATTLE

WARJACKS: Retribution non-character myrmidons

UNITS Houseguard units, Mage Hunter Infiltrators, Stormfall Archers SOLOS: Arcanists, Ghost Snipers, Houseguard solos, Soulless solos, Narn Mage Hunter of Ios, Sylys Wyshnalyrr

TIER 1 Requirements: The army can include only the models listed above. Solos gain Advance Deployment

.

TIER 3 Requirements: The army includes one or more Mage Hunter Infiltrators units. You gain +1 on your starting roll for the game.

TIER 2 Requirements: The army includes two or more Houseguard Halberdier units.

TIER 4 Requirements: The army includes three or more light warjacks.

Add a unit attachment to one Houseguard Halberdier unit free of cost. This unit attachment ignores FA restrictions.

Friendly models/units can begin the game affected by Thyron’s upkeep spells. These spells and their targets must be declared before either player sets up models. Thyron does not pay focus to upkeep these spells during your first turn.

Permission is hereby granted to create reproductions of this page for personal, non-commercial use only.

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COGNIFEX CYPHON

OPPRESSION OVERWHELMING WARJACKS: Mercenary non-character monstrosities

UNITS: Mercenary Drudge units SOLOS: Mercenary Cephalyx solos

TIER 1

TIER 3

Requirements: The army can include only the models listed above.

Requirements: Cyphon’s battlegroup includes three or more monstrosities.

Cephalyx Mind Bender

Drudges units become

FA U. TIER 2 Requirements: The army includes two or more Cephalyx Agitators. Drudges in the army gain 2 SPD during your first turn of the game.

Monstrosities in Cyphon’s battlegroup gain Advance Move. (Before the start of the game but after both players have deployed, a model with Advance Move can make a full advance.) TIER 4 Requirements: The army includes two or more Cephalyx Mind Bender Drudges units. Add a minimum-sized Cephalyx Mind Slaver Drudges unit to the army free of cost.

EXULON TH EXUS WILL OF DARKNESS WARJACKS: Mercenary non-character monstrosities TIER 1 Requirements: The army can include only the models listed above. Cephalyx Overlords become FA U. Additionally, the army can include up to one non-Cephalyx Mercenary unit if that unit includes a Cephalyx Dominator UA. TIER 2 Requirements: The army includes one or more Cephalyx Mind Slaver Drudge units. Cephalyx Mind Slaver Drudge units gain Ambush. (You can choose not to deploy a unit with Ambush at the start of the game. If it is not deployed normally, you can put it into play at the end of any of your Control Phases

UNITS: Cephalyx units SOLOS: Cephalyx solos

after your first turn. When you do, choose any table edge except the back of your opponent’s deployment zone. Place the unit with Ambush within 3 of the chosen table edge.) TIER 3 Requirements: The army includes four or more units. Add a Cephalyx Agitator solo to the army free of cost. This solo does not count toward FA restrictions. TIER 4 Requirements: The army includes two or more Cephalyx Overlord units. Increase the FA of Cephalyx Dominators by 1. The army can include up to one additional non-Cephalyx Mercenary unit if that unit includes a Cephalyx Dominator UA.

Permission is hereby granted to create reproductions of this page for personal, non-commercial use only.

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22

THREADS OF FATE POINT BOURNE INFIRMARY, 609 AR

Victoria Haley clenched and unclenched her right fist. She watched intently as her fingers folded toward her palm and straightened again. Much had changed since her death and restoration, but the re-creation of the limb she had lost so long ago held her attention above all else. She had become accustomed to her metal prosthetic, and the feel of flesh on flesh was oddly foreign. At the foot of her bed, her new storm chamber powered armor stood upon an armor rack. General Nemo had completed the suit during her illness in hopes of raising her spirits with the promise of continued service as a warcaster, though she had not believed that would happen. Now she was glad he had taken the time to craft the suit. Its presence, and the insignia on the right shoulder that marked her as a major, confirmed her continuing place in Cygnar’s ranks. She and Nemo had discussed much after her unexpected restoration. The relic Stryker’s forces had recovered from the Cryxian column, the current state of the alliance with Khador— these events were pieces of the same puzzle. Nemo had left Point Bourne the previous day to rendezvous with the armies gathering in the southern Thornwood for a second possible assault against Asphyxious, and she yearned to them. A soft knock sounded on the door, and Vigilant Peer Carrick Dolan stepped into the room. Dolan was the Church of Morrow’s foremost expert on supernatural afflictions and poisons, and despite Haley’s protests that the debilitating poison she had carried within her no longer plagued her body, he continued to pester her. He did so on Nemo’s orders, as she well knew. “Still feeling right as Caspian rain?” Dolan asked. “Never better,” Haley replied. Dolan chewed his lower lip and narrowed his eyes, looking her over. “I still can’t understand it,” he said after a moment. He shook his head. “I’d like to run a few more tests and keep an eye on you for a while longer.” “More tests?” Haley asked, indignant. “There’s a war on, if you hadn’t noticed.” “Major Haley, the fact that you survived the poison is remarkable; I don’t mind saying you surprised us all. But though I appreciate your contributions to the war effort, the war is not my primary concern. The well-being of my patients is.” She sighed and waved him on, and he went about his examination. She knew he would find no sign of the poison or its effects. In truth, Haley accepted these intrusions because they gave her an opportunity to conduct an examination of her own.

As she had done half a dozen times before, Haley relaxed her mind as well as her eyes and focused her attention on Dolan. A slender, ethereal thread glowing gold seemed to materialize from Dolan’s chest and floated there as he worked. She knew he couldn’t see it. For a moment the glowing strand faded, and Haley redoubled her efforts. The thread brightened and revealed more of itself, weaving from Dolan to the doorway and the hall beyond. There it split in two, one part leading left and the other right. Even through the thick stone walls she could see the luminous strands branching again at other junctions. Dolan finished and said something about rest before heading to the door. Haley nodded absently. As he spoke, the thread leading to the right faded, together with all its branches. A choice had been made, extinguishing a series of possibilities. Dolan turned left, closing the door behind him. Haley slid from the bed and crossed to the window. Dolan wouldn’t be back soon; none of his threads led in her direction. Outside, the damage wrought by the invading Khadorans and Cryxians lingered over Point Bourne like a pall. Displaced citizens and soldiers roamed the streets, collecting bricks in wheelbarrows and hauling supplies alongside laborjacks. Haley focused on the thin strands of energy flowing from the people toiling below. Gradually, the threads came into existence, first hundreds and then thousands viewed through the foundations of buildings in the same way she had seen Dolan’s threads. She swayed momentarily and held the window frame for as the multitude of decision lines washed over her. Great spools of threads wove about churches and the makeshift field hospitals housing the injured. She let most of them go to focus on one—her own—which wound through the streets, though not in the direction she had imagined it would. “South?” Haley asked aloud. She had expected to be drawn north, toward the Thornwood. She focused harder, gripping the windowsill. Her thread was faint and very difficult to follow, but she saw it, pulled taut like wire and strained to the breaking point as it stretched off to the Wyrmwall Mountains. She gasped to see a roaring black vortex there that swallowed the mountain tops some presence far beyond any mortal fate. Her thread vanished into its dark heart, a prospect she found terrifying but also alluring. Something pulled at her mind, drawing her there. When she turned away, under her relief lay an undeniable certainty. She turned to the armor that until her restoration she had expected to never wear and reached for it with her mind, effortlessly lifting it into the air. By the time anyone came to check on her, she would be long gone.

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MAJOR PRIME VICTORIA HALEY There are times, and they are exceedingly rare, when someone emerges to redefine the limits of what is and what is not possible. Major Haley has shattered everything we thought we knew. —Artificer General Sebastian Nemo

HALEY PRIME

SPD STR MAT RAT DEF ARM CMD

6

5

6

5

16 14

8

HAND CANNON RNG ROF AOE POW

12

1

—

12

ECHO POW

P+S

7

12

FOCUS DAMAGE FIELD ALLOWANCE WARJACK POINTS SMALL BASE

8 15 C +3

FEAT: ARCANE SINGULARITY Victoria Haley’s mastery of time and space has served to refine er see in l infini e s i l po en i l r in on what has been, what is, and what will be, Haley summons a maelstrom of arcane power.

Take control of target enemy non-character warjack that has a functional cortex. You can make a full advance with the warjack and can then make one normal attack, then Domination expires. Domination can be cast only once per turn.

The models in this unit currently in this model’s control area gain 2 FOCUS for one turn and immediately gain 2 focus points.

TACTICAL SUPREMACY

HALEY PRIME This model can cast any spell cast by another model in its unit this activation as if that spell were one of its own. At any time during its unit’s activation, this model can spend 2 focus points to add either Haley Past or Haley Future to this unit if that model is not already in play. Place that model within 2 of Haley Prime. The placed model enters play with a number of focus points equal to its FOCUS. The placed model cannot activate this turn. When this model replenishes its focus points, this model can receive 2 fewer focus points for Haley Past and or 2 fewer focus points for Haley Future. If this model does not receive 2 fewer focus points for another model in this unit, remove that model from play. This unit is made up of Haley Prime, Haley Past, and Haley Future. However, only Haley Prime begins the game in play.

ECHO

A model in this model’s front arc suffers 2 on charge, slam power attack, and impact attack rolls against this model.

Despite humble beginnings and a tragic childhood, Victoria Haley has risen through the ranks of the Cygnaran Army to become one of the most formidable warcasters the nation has ever seen—and perhaps one of the most potent arcanists in all recorded history. Her inexplicable and unique control over the flow of time has continued to develop in recent years, though it was only with her recent brush with death that the nature of her power became fully apparent. Bending the fabric of time to suit her needs, Major Prime Victoria Haley draws upon the past and present to outpace, outmaneuver, and outfight the foes of Cygnar.

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Enemy upkeep spells and animi on the model unit directly hit by Repudiate immediately expire. An enemy model maintaining an upkeep spell that expired as a result of Repudiate suffers d3 damage points. Target friendly model unit can advance up to 3 after all models have ended their activations on your turn. While within 5 of a model in this unit, friendly models gain 2 DEF and enemy models suffer 2 DEF. Temporal Flux lasts for one round.

TACTICAL TIPS DOMINATION – You cannot spend focus points on the affected warjack. REPUDIATE – Because they expire immediately, upkeep spells and animi that had an effect when the model unit was hit or damaged will have no effect. TIME WALKER – You can put both other Haleys in play during the same turn.

The young warcaster’s bright future took a dark twist when, during an attempt to save the life of her friend and mentor Sebastian Nemo, the blade of a Cryxian assassin meant for him found her instead. The blade was coated with a poison designed to neutralize an arcanist’s magic, and the alchemical solution thrived on the font of her power, threatening to strip it from her permanently. The loss of her arcane potential and her warcaster abilities precipitated a loss of identity for the woman who had come to be defined by them. This proved one of the hardest trials of Haley’s life, particularly when this affliction was determined to be both incurable and eventually fatal. With time growing short, Haley began to listen to the whispers of the Convergence of Cyriss, a cult of machine worshipers with the ability to house living consciousness in artificial bodies—to grant immortality, of a sort. The Convergence offered to transfer her mind and soul into such a body, anticipating her eventual conversion to their beliefs. Haley found that she could not overlook her deeper philosophical concerns, though. Ultimately, she rejected the machine cult’s offer, choosing to retain her humanity even though it would bring about her own demise. She sought to compose herself to face death on her own . Haley’s time came soon after. As her soul departed her body— and before it could into Urcaen—her essence reconnected with the source of her power, and this awakened her to her

25

HALEY PAST

HALEY PAST

SPD STR MAT RAT DEF ARM CMD

6

5

6

5

16 14

8

TELEKINETIC STRIKE POW

P+S

5

10

This model gains an additional die on its damage rolls.

This model is not a warcaster FOCUS 4 but has the following DAMAGE 5 warcaster special rules FIELD ALLOWANCE C Control Area, Focus Manipulation, Power Field, SMALL BASE and Spellcaster. During your Control Phase, this model can allocate focus points to warjacks in Haley Prime’s battlegroup that are in her control area. This model can channel spells through warjacks in Haley Prime’s battlegroup with the arc node advantage that are in her control area.

TELEKINETIC STRIKE

After determining the point of impact for this attack, roll deviation for an additional 3 AOE from that point. Models in that AOE are hit and suffer a POW 6 blast damage roll. Instead of suffering a normal damage roll, a non-incorporeal model Force Hammer hits is slammed d6 directly away from the spell’s point of origin regardless of its base size and suffers a POW 12 damage roll. Collateral damage from this slam is POW 12.

TACTICAL TIP FORCE HAMMER – Incorporeal models are not slammed. They just suffer a damage roll.

full, unfettered potential. She experienced a moment of arcane enlightenment and the threads of fate revealed themselves to her, extending as an infinite web both forward and backward in time. In this instant of clarity Haley seized these threads and manipulated them, summoning into the present echoes of herself from the past and future. By connecting with her own essence she was able to summon a reflection of her former self and make it tangible, restoring her body. This not only erased the ravages of the poison but made her body whole, restoring the arm she had lost years before. Her soul reed her body and she awoke, alive and changed, intimately aware of the fabric of reality around her. She retains the ability to manipulate the streams of time and can conjure manifestations of her past and future selves to fight at her side. From her past, a willful and reckless youth strides onto the field with unabashed confidence, a reminder of a time when Haley’s arcane potential had just emerged. This echo lacks the self-control to regulate her power, which surges forth explosively. Still angry from the death of her parents and rebelling against the suppression of her powers by those in charge of the Morrowan abbey that sought to raise her, the younger Victoria Haley embodies the defiant streak still present in the warcaster today. The future echo yields a side of her she does not fully understand or recognize, an enigma possessed of wisdom and insight earned from many years of warfare and having confronted the consequences of wielding her vast powers. She is a daunting affirmation of the fact that the depth of Haley’s power remains unplumbed. How far into the future this echo travels from is unclear, but her mere presence has disturbing cosmological implications regarding the nature of fate and free will.

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HALEY FUTURE Target friendly model unit gains Ghostly for one turn. (A model with Ghostly can advance through terrain and obstacles without penalty and can advance through obstructions if it has enough movement to move completely past them. An affected model cannot be targeted by free strikes.) Return one destroyed friendly Faction Grunt to play with one unmarked damage box. It must be placed in this model’s control area in formation and within 3 of another model in its unit.

Though these manifestations do not speak, when both are summoned each of the three intuitively knows the pending actions of the others, allowing them to act in concert. Among them they have access to a diverse arcane arsenal collected from across the span of Haley’s past and future lives. In a flurry of martial and magical prowess, the trio unleashes a tempest of power on their foes, exploiting the fabric of time to achieve unprecedented levels of coordinated destruction.

HALEY FUTURE

SPD STR MAT RAT DEF ARM CMD

6 While this model is in play, models in this unit gain True Sight. (A model with True Sight ignores concealment, Camouflage, and Stealth.)

5

6

5

16 14

8

PHASE BOLT RNG ROF AOE POW

—

10

3

—

FOCUS DAMAGE FIELD ALLOWANCE SMALL BASE

13

4 5 C

This model is not a warcaster but has the following warcaster special rules Control Area, Focus Manipulation, Power Field, and Spellcaster. During your Control Phase, this model can allocate focus points to warjacks in Haley Prime’s battlegroup that are in her control area. This model can channel spells through warjacks in Haley Prime’s battlegroup with the arc node advantage that are in her control area.

PHASE BOLT

TACTICAL TIP REVIVE – , the Grunt can activate normally with its unit this turn. If all models in the Grunt’s unit have been destroyed, it cannot be placed within 3 of a model in its unit and therefore cannot return to play.

Haley’s ability to manipulate the flow of time is unprecedented. Even Cygnar’s finest minds cannot begin to grasp the fundamental principles at work. The exceptional nature of her powers has prompted the Strategic Academy—on Artificer General Nemo’s recommendation—to grant Haley the arcane rank of Prime. This prestigious rank is awarded only to those operating well beyond the capability and power of other arcanists; only a few individuals have achieved it in the army’s entire history. Since her restoration, Haley is glad to return to the front lines in order to wield her powers in of her nation and those she holds dear. Through the threads of fate now visible to her, she sees threats on the horizon that may prove cataclysmic, and she knows she must fight to bring a ray of hope to her people. With her renewed abilities, Major Prime Haley is resolved to meet whatever dangers lie ahead for Cygnar with confidence and conviction.

27

DYNAMO Dynamo’s got plenty of quirks, to be sure—but with a cannon like that, I’ll take quirky any day! —Storm Chaser Caitlin Finch

HEIGHT/WEIGHT: 12´3˝ / 6.5 TONS

DYNAMO

ARMAMENT: FIRESTORM CANNON (LEFT ARM), BATTLE SPEAR (RIGHT ARM)

SPD STR MAT RAT DEF ARM CMD

5

11

7

6

12 18

—

FIRESTORM CANNON RNG ROF AOE POW

L

10

1

—

12

BATTLE SPEAR R

POW

P+S

5

16

DAMAGE

1

2

3

4

L L

5

6

R

L

M

C

R

M

M

C

C

FIELD ALLOWANCE POINT COST LARGE BASE

R

C 10

While in Nemo’s control area, Dynamo can reroll missed attack rolls from weapons with Damage Type Electricity . Attack rolls can be rerolled only once as a result of this affinity. Each time this model hits an enemy model with a melee or ranged attack during its activation, it gains a cumulative 1 to each of its subsequent damage rolls against that model that activation. Friendly models B2B with this model gain Immunity Electricity

.

This model can be included in Nemo’s theme forces. It can also be bonded to Nemo.

FIRESTORM CANNON Make an attack with this weapon. On a hit, after resolving the attack this model can immediately make one additional attack with this weapon targeting the last model hit or another model within 2 of the last model hit, ignoring ROF. This model can make up to four attacks during its activation as a result of Multi-Fire.

BATTLE SPEAR A model in this model’s front arc suffers 2 on charge, slam power attack, and impact attack rolls against this model.

Armed with an experimental cannon fed by the energies of its storm chamber, the Dynamo unleashes sustained voltaic pulses, each discharge more potent than the last. This brilliant stream of destruction can focus fire on hard targets or scatter shots to gun down infantry in quick succession. The telltale whine of this cannon charging is enough to rally faltering lines and send enemies diving for cover. The concept for the Firestorm cannon first occurred to Nemo after completing the Thunderhead, when he was eager to create another warjack deriving its power from an integrated storm chamber. He was convinced there was a way to prevent it from exploding under combat stresses without

28

FUEL LOAD/BURN USAGE: NONE (ELECTRICALLY POWERED) INITIAL SERVICE DATE: UNKNOWN; REBUILT AS A STORMCLAD 597 AR, REBUILT/REFITTED AS DYNAMO 608 AR CORTEX MANUFACTURER: FRATERNAL ORDER OF WIZARDRY ORIG. CHASSIS DESIGN: SEBASTIAN NEMO

TACTICAL TIPS MULTI-FIRE – Multi-Fire ignores ROF but does not ignore RNG. Additional attacks against targets beyond this weapon’s range will automatically miss. SPECIAL ISSUE – This only gives the warjack the potential to bond to the warcaster. It does not automatically add a bond.

resorting to components that were difficult to manufacture— and therefore expensive. It occurred to him that the proper weapon might itself channel and store excess energy, essentially serving akin to a pressure valve. Nemo avoided the expense of fabricating new prototypes by requisitioning severely damaged machines from the war front and working on the project in his spare hours. The initial cortexes he subjected to his hardware succumbed to overload and either had their memories wiped or suffered cataclysmic failure outright. The solution came from a battle-scarred cortex recovered from a highly decorated Stormclad that had been battered to scrap in the Caspia-Sul War. For unknown reasons, this veteran cortex proved resistant to the tempestuous environment created by the storm chamber, and it was uniquely suited to regulating galvanic energies. After months of experimenting with new methods to insulate both the cortex and the chassis from building energies, he attached the Firestorm and braced for the worst. Dynamo took to its weaponry with enthusiasm, effortlessly stabilizing energy levels by releasing blasts of electrical energy from the cannon. Since receiving the Firestorm, Dynamo has displayed an impulsive eagerness that belies the age of its cortex. Those who observe the warjack describe it as hyperactive, which seems appropriate given its power source. It has developed a strong attachment to Nemo, who insists his own preference for this machine is a result of its independence from coal and regular supply lines, but the many hours he invested in restoring it to functionality likely play a part. Dynamo remains a finicky machine in need of the fine tuning only Nemo can provide, though these efforts have proven well worth it. Dynamo unleashes a fury of galvanic energies on Cygnar’s foes and has become the favored battlefield companion of the nation’s senior warcaster.

29

ACE This one’s got some mischief in it. —Chief Mechanik Ewan Liefer

ACE

ACE

SPD STR MAT RAT DEF ARM CMD

6

7

6

7

14 15

—

RUNE SHOT CANNON L

RNG ROF AOE POW

14

1

—

12

BATTLE AXE POW

P+S

4

11

R

2

3

4

5

The model hit does not block LOS this turn. Enemy models hit are pushed d3 directly away from the attacking model. On a critical hit, the enemy model is knocked down after being pushed. If this attack directly hits, choose a model within 4 of the model hit. The chosen model suffers an unboostable POW 10 magic damage roll. The point of origin for this damage is the model hit.

DAMAGE

1

When Ace makes a normal Rune Shot Cannon attack while it is in Caine’s control area, choose one of the following Rune Shot abilities

6

Once per game during its activation, this model can use Infiltrate. This model gains Stealth . While its controlling warcaster is B2B with this model, that warcaster also gains Stealth Infiltrate lasts for one round.

.

This model can be included in Caine’s theme forces. It can also be bonded to

L L

Caine.

R

L

M

C

R

M

M

C

C

FIELD ALLOWANCE POINT COST MEDIUM BASE

This model ignores concealment, Camouflage, and Stealth.

R

RUNE SHOT CANNON C 7

Designed in secret by the Cygnaran Armory to carry out covert operations for the Cygnaran Reconnaissance Service, Ace was built as a one-of-a-kind prototype. The machine integrated an experimental mechanikal device intended to camouflage the warjack, rendering it almost invisible in the field. Some elements of the chassis, including the ability to negotiate forests with relative ease, would influence the Hunter design eight years later. Though the original chassis of the ’jack was destroyed during an operation in Llael in 596 AR, Allister Caine was able to recover Ace’s cortex. With the backing of the CRS, Caine saw the ‘jack rebuilt with several modifications, including a runeshot cannon capable of enduring the force of spellcharged ammunition. Though Ace’s infiltration system was replicated, the field it generates is temporary and unstable, and the machinery must be repaired after each use. Since the warjack’s reconstruction, Caine has relied on it during a number of CRS missions requiring an abundance of both discretion and firepower. HEIGHT/WEIGHT: 8´5˝ / 2.8 TONS ARMAMENT: RUNE SHOT CANNON (LEFT ARM), BATTLE AXE (RIGHT ARM) FUEL LOAD/BURN USAGE: 400 LBS / 8.5 HRS GENERAL, 90 MINS COMBAT INITIAL SERVICE DATE: ORIGINAL PROTOTYPE 595 AR, REBUILT 607 AR CORTEX MANUFACTURER: CYGNARAN ARMORY ORIG. CHASSIS DESIGN: CYGNARAN ARMORY

30

TACTICAL TIP SPECIAL ISSUE – This only gives the warjack the potential to bond to the warcaster. It does not automatically add a bond.

TRENCH BUSTER

CYGNAR OGRUN TRENCHER SOLO

When going over the top to rush the enemy, you want a trench buster in the lead every time. Those ogrun are worth their weight in bullets. —Captain Maxwell Finn

TRENCH BUSTER

As part of a charge, after moving but before making its charge attack, this model can make one ranged attack targeting the model charged unless they were in melee with each other at the start of this model’s activation. When resolving an Assault ranged attack, the attacking model does not suffer the target in melee penalty. If the target is not in melee range after moving, this model must still make the Assault ranged attack before its activation ends. When this model makes a melee attack against an enemy model within the melee range of a friendly model of the type indicated, this model gains 2 to attack rolls and gains an additional damage die.

This model does not suffer blast damage. Friendly models B2B with it do not suffer blast damage.

TRENCH BUSTER

SPD STR MAT RAT DEF ARM CMD

6

9

7

5

13 17

9

CINDER BOMBER RNG ROF AOE POW

10 When attacking with this weapon, this model can ignore intervening models except those within 1 of the target. This weapon’s AOE is a cloud effect that remains in play for one round.

1

3

14

BAYONET POW

P+S

4

13

ASSAULT SHIELD POW

P+S

2

11

DAMAGE FIELD ALLOWANCE POINT COST MEDIUM BASE

8 2 3

TACTICAL TIP ASSAULT – The assaulting model ignores the target in melee penalty even if is not in melee range of its charge target after moving.

Valued for their size, strength, and courage, ogrun make natural trenchers. Those who enlist by the customary physical screening process to begin immediate training for one of several ogrunspecific roles, the most famed being the trench busters. Akin to mobile artillery, trench busters cover the advance of other trenchers in the field. With shields as heavy as they are broad and grenade launchers with enough kick to dislocate a human shoulder, these brave souls cross no man’s land under a hail of gunfire to obscure the enemy’s view with explosive smoke bombs. Trench busters wade into the fight to skewer foes with bayonets while using their massive shields to protect allies from incoming mortar and bombard fire. Ogrun trench busters make the safety of their fellow trenchers their personal responsibility, their pride as warriors compelling them to volunteer for the most difficult assignments and remain on the battlefield past the endurance of all others. Ogrun loyalty is such that their comrades quickly abandon any uncertainty about serving alongside a towering wall of armored muscle. ust as young ogrun bokurs often vow lifelong service to a korune, ogrun trench busters bond with their assigned company and are never transferred. Trench busters record the legacy of their company in tattoos and frequently retold stories. Such an ogrun has a more accurate of a company’s recent history on his skin than exists in any history book. On the battlefield and off, trench busters embody trencher pride.

31

HURRICANE

CYGNAR COLOSSAL Howling wind, sheets of rain, and sky-splitting thunder—after fighting alongside the Hurricane I find those things reassuring. —Trencher Sergeant Klaus Maverly

HURRICANE

HURRICANE

HEIGHT/WEIGHT: 28´ / 60 TONS ARMAMENT: DUAL STORM EMITTERS (LEFT AND RIGHT CHASSIS), DUAL CANNONS (LEFT AND RIGHT CHASSIS), TWIN SHOCK FISTS (LEFT AND RIGHT ARMS)

SPD STR MAT RAT DEF ARM CMD

5

17

6

6

10 19

—

STORM EMITTER RNG ROF AOE POW

L

12

1

—

16

STORM EMITTER RNG ROF AOE POW

R

12

1

—

16

CANNON RNG ROF AOE POW

L

14

1

4

13

CANNON RNG ROF AOE POW

R

14

1

4

13

SHOCK FIST L

POW

P+S

3

20

POW

P+S

3

20

FIELD ALLOWANCE POINT COST HUGE BASE

2

3

4

5

CORTEX MANUFACTURER: CYGNARAN ARMORY/FRATERNAL ORDER OF WIZARDRY ORIG. CHASSIS DESIGN: CYGNARAN ARMORY

STORM EMITTER Enemy models hit are pushed d6 directly away from the attacking model.

SHOCK FIST

2 18

LEFT DAMAGE

1

INITIAL SERVICE DATE: 608 AR

When a warjack is hit by this weapon, it suffers 1 damage point to its first available Cortex system box.

SHOCK FIST R

FUEL LOAD/BURN USAGE: 1,650 LBS / 10 HRS GENERAL, 110 MINS COMBAT

Models activating within 10 of this model lose Flight for one round.

RIGHT DAMAGE

6

1

2

A

A

A

A

3

4

L

L

A

C

C

A

R

R

5

6

L

L

C

C

C

C

C

C

C

C

R

R

L

C

M

M

M

M

M

M

M

M

C

R

Flashes of lightning and echoing thunder herald the Hurricane as it arrives to battle like a tempest. Torrential rain and driving winds swirl about the colossal’s towering form, and both man and beast take cover at its approach. The vortexes of wind it generates can force away even the heaviest of warjacks, sliding them easily over muddied ground. Its arc node flashes like a beacon in the heart of the downpour, channeling one blistering spell after another to extend the power of Cygnar’s warcasters across the battlefield. Infantry and machines are smashed into streaks of gore or heaps of smoldering metal beneath the Hurricane’s fists as each strike issues its own clap of thunder to punctuate the storm.

32

TACTICAL TIP CORTEX DAMAGE – Because this damage is caused by the effect when the model is hit, mark it before making the damage roll.

Though production of the Stormwall was slowed by numerous setbacks and spools of red tape, that machine’s creation smoothed the way for the Hurricane, whose design was finalized even before the first Stormwall strode from the assembly line. Cygnar’s engineers were able to use the same factories to construct the Hurricane immediately after the initial run of Stormwalls was completed. A streamlined assembly process cut production times on the Hurricane to nearly half that of the Stormwall despite its complex design. In addition, Sebastian Nemo’s role as artificer general helped accelerate progress on the project, as the Cygnaran Armory could immediately act on his directives rather than having to wait for budgetary approval. Influenced by clashes involving strong warjack in the north, including the recent setbacks in the Thornwood, the designers of the Hurricane set out to craft a colossal with the capability to stop the heaviest enemies in their tracks. Hardware, conduits, and insulating framework surrounding the Stormwall’s lighting pods were repurposed to house several new systems to this end. The most extensive divergent system is a pair of storm emitters set into the shoulders of the Hurricane’s chassis. Applying technology wielded by stormsmiths on a scale previously unseen, these devices generate potent, localized storms capable of driving back the stoutest opponents with focused winds while lashing them with streaks of lightning. Similarly, the Hurricane’s fists include subtle adjustments to the routing of voltaic energies to render them particularly useful in damaging the cortexes of any warjacks tough enough to survive direct strikes, diminishing their ability to retaliate. For Cygnar, this new colossal marks not just another engineering triumph but a beacon of hope for a nation so often beset on all sides. For Cygnarans, the distant rumble of its thunder represents the infinite power of storms wielded against those who would do their people harm.

33

34

BEARING WITNESS CENTRAL THORNWOOD, NEAR THE CENTRAL NECROFACTORIUM

The rhythmic sound of mortar fire grew louder as the combined force of the Northern Crusade and the Umbrean army neared the valley where the Cryxian stronghold was under assault. Upon the approach, the Umbrean cavalry had spread to the right while Menite vengers went left to climb the hills and gain the superior vantage. From there, they would be able to charge down to the fray when ordered. The long column of infantry had proceeded through a narrow entrance to the valley. Severius rode atop a palanquin resembling a golden throne, resplendent in his scrutator mask, warcaster armor, and gleaming vestments. Although a lifetime of service had taken its toll on his body, the hierarch took pleasure in spending his twilight years crusading in the name of the Creator. High Exemplar Kreoss rode on his right, and several Protectorate warjacks strode alongside. On his left rode the Umbrean Vladimir Tzepesci; the great prince’s warjacks were with his soldiers at a distance. “Vile things have long flourished in this dark forest,” Vladimir said, speaking serviceable Sulese. “We thought we had uprooted the corruption. Clearly we were mistaken.” Severius said, “The light of the Creator shines brightest in the darkest places. We will cleanse these lands with faith and resolve.” “I am not certain you have taken a proper measure of our foe.” “The faithful have faced Cryx before. We will force them back.” The palanquin dipped slightly as its bearers struggled against the tangle of roots. “I thought the same when I discovered their foothold here years ago. The concentration of their strength is greater than you imagine.” The prince faced forward as he spoke, eyes scanning the thick trees. Severius ired his vigilance. It was a shame the man was a heretic, carrying the tainted blood of his line and dancing on the puppet strings of the Old Witch. With the proper guidance and willingness to forsake his legacy he might have made a good Menite.

Vladimir nodded, focusing his gaze elsewhere. “I saw more than enough, yes. I only regret I could not cleanse this place fully. I would not rely on reports, especially given the recent information. I feel this time is different.” Since starting south to the forces amassing in the Thornwood, the great prince had done what he could to maintain communication with Khador’s supreme kommandant, Irusk, to coordinate their movements for the coming engagement. The plan outlined a t effort with the Cygnarans, calling upon Severius and Vladimir to launch an assault from the north at his signal. Although the hierarch had said nothing, such orders were of no consequence to the forces of the crusade. Perhaps the Cygnarans were content to follow the commands of their northern rivals, but Severius would assess the situation upon his arrival. Another round of mortar fire sounded, and the crackle of rifles carried on the wind. The battlefield lay just ahead. “Let us see what it is we face,” Severius said. The sound of war became deafening as they ed the last few blackened trees and he beheld the scene before them. Severius stood on his palanquin, his scalp tightening as a chill played along his spine. Below lay a valley of death, within which nothing natural remained—not grass, nor trees, nor the trickle of streams. The stench of decay and necrotite choked the air. Dozens of enormous spires jutted from the ruined earth, with masses of the dead swarming like insects beneath their towering forms. Brilliant green light streaked from these spires to lash the hills, drawing the hierarch’s gaze to the embattled forces there. Each blast tore agonized screams from trenchers and Winter Guard alike as it snuffed out their lives and snatched their souls to be fed to the necrofactorium, the promise of Urcaen lost to them forever. In the depths of this valley dwelled certain ruination.

“So many thought, including our kommandants as well as Cygnaran commanders. We underestimated the enemy. Such evil must be seen firsthand to be fully comprehended.”

Severius felt the spiritual void before him and ice flowed through his veins. It was one thing to know how Cryx abused the souls of the fallen but another to see depravity on such a scale with his own eyes. Every soul torn from flesh here was stolen from the Creator. Yet amid his horror shone a flicker of hope looking upon the desperate battle, he understood a way Cryx’s gluttony for souls might eventually be turned against them. Such a course would require great sacrifice, but the lich lords of Cryx would suffer a blow from which they would not soon recover. Menoth had led him to this precipice so he might observe something only his eyes could see.

“I also read of your significant role in the events surrounding the temple.” The hierarch’s words carried an edge, for it was Vladimir who had struck down the Harbinger at the height of the conflict.

“Menoth give me strength,” intoned the hierarch. He gripped his staff, feeling a familiar fire kindle within his breast despite his age. In that moment he felt not despair but steadfast resolve. He did not fear death, so long as his life served the Creator.

“I read the reports of the Battle of the Temple Garrodh,” Severius said. “The Cryxian armies there were all but destroyed, swallowed by the earth.”

35

ANSON DURST, ROCK OF THE FAITH

PROTECTORATE PALADIN WARCASTER Let our enemies come, for the Rock of the Faith stands in their way. —High Paladin Dartan Vilmon

DURST SPD STR MAT RAT DEF ARM CMD

5

8

8

4

13 18

10

RECOMPENSE POW

P+S

7

15

FOCUS DAMAGE FIELD ALLOWANCE WARJACK POINTS MEDIUM BASE

6 19 C +6

FEAT: BASTION OF FAITH Through unwavering belief in the might of the Lawbringer, Anson Durst instills his own resolve in the very fabric of his warjacks, giving rise to an unshakable wall. When his forces close with the enemy, it is behind the shield of faith e s n fir

While in Durst’s control area, warjacks in Durst’s battlegroup gain 5 ARM. When a friendly Faction warrior model in Durst’s control area is directly hit by an attack during your opponent’s turn while B2B with a warjack in Durst’s battlegroup, you can choose to have the warjack directly hit instead. The warjack is automatically hit and suffers all damage and effects. Bastion of Faith lasts for one round.

SPELLS COST RNG AOE POW UP OFF BOUNDLESS CHARGE 2 6 – – NO NO During its activation, target friendly model can charge without spending when it focus or being forced and gains 2 movement and Pathfinder charges. Boundless Charge lasts for one turn.

CLEANSING FIRE

3

Cleansing Fire causes fire damage . the Fire continuous effect

DEFLECTION

2

8

3

14

NO YES

. On a critical hit, models hit suffer

SELF CTRL

–

NO NO

While in this model’s control area, friendly Faction warrior models gain 2 ARM against ranged and magic attack damage rolls. Deflection lasts for one round.

HALLOWED AVENGER 2

6

–

–

YES NO

When an enemy attack destroys or removes from play one or more friendly Faction models within 5 of target warjack in this model’s battlegroup, after the attack is resolved the affected warjack can charge an enemy model, then Hallowed Avenger expires.

WALL OF STEEL

2

SELF CTRL

–

YES NO

While in this model’s control area and B2B with one or more models in this model’s battlegroup, models in this model’s battlegroup cannot be knocked down and gain 2 DEF.

DURST Rampart Guardian Stance – During its activation, this model can forfeit its movement or action to gain Cornerstone for one round. (A model with Cornerstone cannot be knocked down, placed, pushed, or made stationary, and friendly models B2B with a model with Cornerstone cannot be knocked down, placed, pushed, or made stationary.)

Already remarked for his size and strength, Durst was recruited into the Order of the Wall at the age of ten. He endured training that had been perfected to forge youths into unyielding guardians of the faith. He took readily to combat training, but his mighty temper nearly undid him.

Retaliatory Strike – When this model is hit by a melee attack made by an enemy model during your opponent’s turn, after the attack is resolved this model can immediately make one normal melee attack against that model. This model can make one Retaliatory Strike per turn.

When a rage-fueled scuffle at the age of twelve resulted in him killing another boy, the tragic event scarred Durst deeply. Shame drove him to an intense commitment to the paladin code. He still seeks to atone for the stain on his soul, finding solace in the discipline of his order and employing his strength to protect others.

RECOMPENSE Magical Weapon Reach Weapon Master Eruption of Ash If a model is boxed by an attack made with this weapon, center a 3 AOE cloud effect on the boxed model and then remove that model from play. The AOE remains in play for one round. Enemy models in the AOE when it was put in play are hit and suffer a POW 12 fire damage roll . Enemy models entering or ending their activation in the AOE suffer a POW 12 fire damage roll . Eruption of Ash damage rolls cannot be boosted.

TACTICAL TIP BOUNDLESS CHARGE – Modifiers to movement apply only to a model’s normal movement.

Anson Durst is the rock on which the enemies of the Protectorate break, a bulwark to the faithful who weathers tides of violence to keep blameless Menites safe. Though he has no interest in the theosophical ruminations occupying some of his brothers, none can question his devotion to the paladin creed. 36

His soldier’s life guarding the Protectorate’s border at a northern garrison was changed drastically by the late discovery of his warcaster gift. He was thrust into the role of military leader during the onset of the Cygnaran invasion of Sul. Durst earned his epithet fighting as part of a force of Temple Flameguard and paladins to repel wave after wave of invading soldiers. As the war raged on, countless times he used his powers to prevent harm to his men. His machines advance in tight formation alongside his soldiers, ready to receive blows intended for them. Though committed to his oaths, Anson Durst is first and foremost a military asset of the Protectorate. His main desire is to stand between the faithful and their enemies, but the Great Crusade requires him to obey priests who sometimes see him as a weapon with which to crush the faithless. Ever true to his faith and his paladin oath, he continually seeks to find balance between his duty as a warcaster and remaining true to his code.

37

PURIFIER

PROTECTORATE LIGHT WARJACK The road to redemption is paved with the ashes of disbelief. —Vice Scrutator Vindictus

PURIFIER

PURIFIER SPD STR MAT RAT DEF ARM CMD

5

9

6

4

13 16

—

IMMOLATOR L

POW

P+S

4

13

IMMOLATOR R

POW

P+S

4

13

2

3

4

5

Flametrail – When this model advances into B2B with an enemy model during its activation, the enemy model suffers the Fire continuous effect . Overtake – When this model destroys one or more enemy warrior models with a normal melee attack, after the attack is resolved this model can immediately advance up to 1 .

DAMAGE

1

Immunity: Fire

6

IMMOLATOR L L

R

L

M

C

R

M

M

C

C

FIELD ALLOWANCE POINT COST MEDIUM BASE

R

U 5

Chain Attack: Combustion – If this model hits the same model with both its initial attacks with this weapon, after resolving the attacks it can immediately make one additional melee attack against that model. If the additional attack hits, models within 2 of this model suffer a POW 12 fire damage roll and the Fire continuous effect .

Chain Weapon – This attack ignores the Buckler and Shield weapon qualities and Shield Wall.

Crafted as a literal interpretation of the most wrathful ages in the Canon of the True Law, the Purifier possesses a singular drive to eradicate unbelief through the cleansing fires of the Creator. In battle the ’jack rushes enemy formations with startling speed, brutally whipping its flails through the opposition in comets of ash and flame that streak around the machine’s form as it darts and dives. Wherever blows from these weapons land, the air fills with the sharp crack of bone and the tortured screams of men as the force of impact drives their charred and broken bodies into the earth beneath them. A trail of flaming footprints marks the Purifier’s ing, and any opponents it encounters that were not crushed under the weight of its flails soon meet a cleansing death. Roaring fires conjured by the holy ages inscribed upon the chassis of the Purifier carry out this duty, quickly devouring one unbeliever after another in a feast of sizzling flesh. 38

HEIGHT/WEIGHT: 8´7˝ / 3.9 TONS ARMAMENT: IMMOLATOR (RIGHT AND LEFT ARMS) FUEL LOAD/BURN USAGE: 390 LBS / 7 HRS GENERAL, 75 MINS COMBAT INITIAL SERVICE DATE: 599 AR CORTEX MANUFACTURER: VASSALS OF MENOTH ORIG. CHASSIS DESIGN: SUL-MENITE ARTIFICERS

HAND OF JUDGMENT

PROTECTORATE CHARACTER HEAVY WARJACK Let the fires of your resolve burn a path to victory. —Visgoth Ark Razek

HAND OF JUDGMENT Immunity: Fire While in Feora’s control area, this model gains boosted ranged attack rolls. Blazing Wrath – This model can charge without spending focus or being forced if its charge target is suffering the Fire continuous effect . Fuel for the Flames – When a model suffers a Fire damage roll while within 5 of this model, add 2 to the roll. This model can be included in Feora’s theme forces. It can also be bonded to Feora.

IMMOLATOR CANNON Continuous Effect: Fire Damage Type: Fire

HAND OF JUDGMENT SPD STR MAT RAT DEF ARM CMD

5

11

7

10 19

—

IMMOLATOR CANNON

FLAME OF TRUTH Critical Fire

L

Reach Flame Burst – When this model boxes an enemy model with this weapon, enemy models within 1 of the boxed model suffer the Fire continuous effect .

5

RNG ROF AOE POW

SP 8 1

—

14

FLAME OF TRUTH R

POW

P+S

7

18

DAMAGE

1

2

3

4

5

6

TACTICAL TIP SPECIAL ISSUE – This only gives the warjack the potential to bond to the warcaster. It does not automatically add a bond.

L L

R

L

M

C

R

M

M

C

C

R

HEIGHT/WEIGHT: 12´/ 8.5 TONS ARMAMENT: IMMOLATOR CANNON (LEFT ARM), FLAME OF TRUTH (RIGHT ARM) FUEL LOAD/BURN USAGE: 837 LBS / 6 HRS GENERAL, 60 MINS COMBAT INITIAL SERVICE DATE: 607 AR

FIELD ALLOWANCE POINT COST LARGE BASE

C 10

CORTEX MANUFACTURER: VASSALS OF MENOTH ORIG. CHASSIS DESIGN: SUL-MENITE ARTIFICERS

Hand of udgment exists for a single purpose to execute the will of Feora, Priestess and Protector of the Flame. Through her station and her influence with Visgoth Ark Razek, overseer of the Sul-Menite Artificers, Feora commissioned Hand of udgment as a testament to her political and martial authority. The sacred magic that radiates from the machine’s chassis stokes even the smallest flames into roaring fires, turning the stream of its flamethrower into a firestorm. During its short term of service, Hand of udgment has demonstrated a dangerous temper only Feora can keep in check. Wherever the warcaster treads, Hand of udgment follows, eager to slip its leash to destroy those who displease its master.

39

REVELATOR

PROTECTORATE COLOSSAL There can be no escape from the fires of judgment. —Vice Scrutator Vindictus

REVELATOR SPD STR MAT RAT DEF ARM CMD

4

17

6

5

8

19

—

CONFLAGRATOR L

RNG ROF AOE POW

10

1

4

15

CONFLAGRATOR R

RNG ROF AOE POW

10

1

4

15

14

1

—

12

RNG ROF AOE POW

14

1

—

12

FIST L

POW

P+S

3

20

POW

P+S

3

20

FIST R

ARMAMENT: DUAL CONFLAGRATORS (LEFT AND RIGHT CHASSIS), DUAL LIGHT BRINGERS (LEFT AND RIGHT CHASSIS)

Damage Type: Fire

RNG ROF AOE POW

LIGHT BRINGER R

HEIGHT/WEIGHT: 34´ / 75 TONS

Feretory – This model ignores concealment, Camouflage, and Stealth. Additionally, this model’s weapons gain Magical Weapon . While its S system is disabled, this model loses the benefits of Feretory.

CONFLAGRATOR

LIGHT BRINGER L

REVELATOR

FIELD ALLOWANCE POINT COST HUGE BASE

Burning Earth – On a direct hit against an enemy model, this attack’s AOE remains in play for one round. Models entering or ending their activations in the AOE suffer a POW 12 fire damage roll and the Fire continuous effect .

LIGHT BRINGER 2 19

Damage Type: Fire Radiance – A model hit by this weapon loses Camouflage and Stealth for one round.

FIST Open Fist

LEFT DAMAGE

1

2

3

4

RIGHT DAMAGE

5

6

1

2

S

S

S

S

3

4

L

L

S

C

C

S

R

R

5

6

L

L

C

C

C

C

C

C

C

C

R

R

L

C

M

M

M

M

M

M

M

M

C

R

To face the Revelator is to be stripped of pretense and laid bare before the fires of judgment. In its presence the flames of an angry god refuse to wane, persisting to cleanse the world. The screams of the guilty serve as its litanies, the crackle and hiss of their flesh an enduring choir. For those who have turned aside from the Creator, this colossal represents the inevitable termination of tragic and misguided lives.

40

FUEL LOAD/BURN USAGE: 1,984 LBS / 6 HRS GENERAL, 50 MINS COMBAT INITIAL SERVICE DATE: 608 AR CORTEX MANUFACTURER: VASSALS OF MENOTH ORIG. CHASSIS DESIGN: SUL-MENITE ARTIFICERS, FOUNDRY OF THE SACRED FLAME

The Protectorate has once again shouldered the burdens demanded by its faith to outpace the industry of larger nations through sheer will and determination. Forged in the fires of faith and empowered by some of the nation’s holiest relics, the fires of this new colossal burn brightly. Each Revelator contains a feretory within which is sealed a precious fragment of the shattered altar recovered from the first great temple of Calacia, where Priest-King Valent of Thrace brought the words of the Creator to his congregation. Previously the remnants of that altar had been preserved within the Great Temple of the Creator in Sul. The visgoths decided such relics would be better employed in active service, bringing their holy power to the front line of the crusade through these towering machines. ust as the udicator harnessed the holiness of sacred remains, the Revelator harvests the concentrated faith and sanctity of ancient artifacts to spectacular effect. Through the holy power accumulated in its feretory, the Revelator renders all heathen attempts at concealment futile. The pious believe this power is a gift from heroes of the faith watching from Urcaen. Hidden foes seen by a Revelator can be revealed to Menoth’s crusaders through a pair of Light Bringer cannons; any that survive direct fire are emblazoned with holy illumination, marking them for destruction. Each of these blessed cannons is painstakingly engraved and then anointed with hundreds of hours of intensive prayer by novice and initiate priests led by those who supervise the cleansing of all mechanika that is produced by the Sul-Menite Artificers. Once transgressors have fallen beneath its all-seeing gaze, the Revelator unleashes the fury of its Conflagrator cannons, each firing ordnance containing refined Menoth’s Fury. Before being encased in the ammunition, the volatile substance is treated with a thickening agent, allowing it to burn for longer periods of time once set alight. Enemies of the true faith who meet the colossal in battle are awestruck at the sight of its holy wrath—though such enemies persist as little more than ashes on the wind.

41

PYRRHUS, FLAMEGUARD HERO

PROTECTORATE TEMPLE FLAMEGUARD CHARACTER SOLO Only by faith and strength can this shattered world be remade. —Pyrrhus

PYRRHUS

PYRRHUS SPD STR MAT RAT DEF ARM CMD

6

7

7

4

15 15

9

FLAME SPEAR POW

P+S

5

12 P+S

1

8

DAMAGE FIELD ALLOWANCE POINT COST SMALL BASE

BEAT BACK – The attacking model can advance even if the enemy model is destroyed by the attack.

Fearless Tough

SHIELD POW

TACTICAL TIP

Commander

5 C 3

Impenetrable Shield – While this model is B2B with one or more friendly Temple Flameguard models, it does not suffer damage from non-magical melee or ranged attacks.

Friendly Temple Flameguard models activating while in this model’s command range gain Relentless Charge that activation. Rapid Strike – This model can make one additional melee attack each combat action. Relentless Charge – This model gains Pathfinder activations it charges.

during

Unyielding – While engaging an enemy model, this model gains 2 ARM.

FLAME SPEAR Reach

Urcaen. He developed his own rigorous training regimen in preparation for enlistment in the Flameguard, pushing his limits and toning his physique and reflexes day by day. When finally of age to apply for service with the Flameguard, Pyrrhus ably ed every examination. He had committed every doctrine and procedure to memory long before, and the physical trials paled in comparison to those of his own design. His focus only increased upon his acceptance. He spent his little free time sparring, sacrificing any relationships he might have had beyond the walls of the temple. His single-minded dedication impressed and daunted peers and superiors alike, giving him a reputation for arrogance exceeded only by his skill. Those who realized his potential saw past his abrasive personality to recognize the heart of a true Menite warrior. In record time, Pyrrhus earned a promotion to Arms Master, but his superiors opted not to immediately grant him a command of his own; rather, he was assigned to train others in the use of spear and shield.

Weapon Master Set Defense – A model in this model’s front arc suffers 2 on charge, slam power attack, and impact attack rolls against this model.

SHIELD Weapon Master Beat Back – Immediately after a normal attack with this weapon is resolved during this model’s combat action, the enemy model hit can be pushed 1 directly away from the attacking model. After the enemy model is pushed, the attacking model can advance up to 1 .

Pyrrhus is more than the epitome of a Flameguard; he represents a pinnacle of Menite devotion and service. With movements honed through years of training, he charges forward to decimate opponents, taking everything while giving nothing in return. His mastery of his weapons extends well beyond that of any of his peers, and his faith in the Creator gives him extraordinary confidence in himself as a conduit for the wrath of Menoth. From the day the boy Pyrrhus decided his true purpose lay not in this life but in service to the Creator in the next, he dedicated himself to self-improvement. He needed to become the ultimate mortal soldier if he were to eventually bring triumph to Menoth in the eternal War of Souls in

42

He made an unforgiving instructor, expecting of others the superlative performance he demanded of himself. While unsuited to training raw recruits—several of whom were broken by his regimen—he proved adept at forging the worthiest into hardened soldiers. He finally received his first taste of war with the invasion of Sul. Allowed to lead a small group of his former top pupils, Pyrrhus ed the defense of the Great Temple and distinguished himself against the Cygnarans, ending the lives of over a dozen and keeping his own soldiers intact. This performance saw him promoted to the rank of Preceptor and assigned to lead a portion of the vanguard in the counterassault on Caspia. Pyrrhus’ exemplary service in dangerous campaigns and border patrols since that war prompted his promotion to Captain. He now serves at the forefront of the Great Crusade alongside his unit. Time and again, the Menite has been a shining example to his subordinates and his commendable faith and martial prowess promise more heroic feats to come.

43

44

UNTAMABLE SOUTHWESTERN THORNWOOD, COMBINED ARMY ENCAMPMENT

Orsus Zoktavir clapped a massive hand to the closer of the argus’ twin heads and smoothed its fur before cinching the next strap of its armor. As he let go, the argus gave a bite to his forearm and shook its head. This might have dislocated the shoulder of a lesser man, but the Butcher of Khardov only wrapped his free arm around the other head and applied pressure until the first relented. While the rest of the camp bristled with preparations for the battle, the corner Orsus and his men occupied remained relatively quiet. Dozens of masked doom reavers stood scattered around him. Fenris stood nearest, obscured by the shadow of his nightmare steed. Orsus brooded, the lingering anger over the recent attempt on Empress Vanar’s life first in his thoughts. He could not entirely dispel the icy feeling of dread that had filled his veins when he heard the sounds of violence within the tent where she was meeting the Cygnaran king. “Orsus Zoktavir,” said an authoritative feminine voice behind him. He turned to find Kommander Aleksandra Zerkova, flanked by a pair of reaver guards. The weapons they bore were clearly of Orgoth origin. His eye was drawn to an unknown warjack behind them, which emitted a low rumble as exhaust rolled from its smokestacks. “Kommander Zerkova.” He’d had little interaction with the warcaster, but even among the secretive and manipulative Greylords, Zerkova carried a particularly sinister reputation. The insignia on her tabard indicated a promotion to Obavnik, one of the highest ranks within the Covenant. She took in the lay of the camp with her good eye, the other being scarred over by some past trauma. “I come bearing a gift from Khardov,” Zerkova said. Her gaze returned to him. Orsus felt as though she were mentally dissecting him. The argus behind him growled, and the other came alongside, sensing his unease. Zerkova merely indicated the warjack rumbling behind her. “The high obavnik arbiter has granted you use of this machine in the coming battle. It is one of a kind.” Suspicious, Orsus frowned but stepped closer and looked the ’jack over. Its chassis resembled existing designs, but the relics attached to it were another matter. One fist gripped a huge blackened mace, and the armored plate along the back of the other fist had been shaped from an ornate Orgoth buckler and glowed with sinister power. Orgoth runes marked both artifacts as well as other ornaments affixed to the machine and the metal plates bolted to the cowling around its head. He thought he could hear indistinct whispers and felt a strong desire to connect with its cortex.

“Does your high obavnik often give gifts?” Orsus gave Zerkova a sideways glance. After a pause she said, “Its name is Ruin. It has proven . . . difficult to control. It crushed its controller during a field test outside Khardov and would heed no commands. Several Greylords were likewise killed before it ran out of fuel.” Zerkova nodded to the argus and then Fenris. “Given your affinity for the untamable, the Covenant has deemed you suitable to test its use in battle. Place your hand on the chassis. I will relinquish my hold, though you must be quick to seize the cortex. Ruin will not remain idle if left to its own devices.” Orsus ran a hand over the warjack. He felt a strange rapport with the machine and its seething anger. “Ruin,” he said. “A good name. Why not claim it for yourself?” She gave him a tight smile. “Orders are orders.” Orsus felt Zerkova surrender her bond to the cortex. Almost immediately the warjack hunkered and raised its arms to readiness. It pulled back its mace, but the arm froze as Orsus plunged his mind into its cortex, swiftly delivering the code images to seize control. He had done this countless times, but this felt very different. Whispers suddenly flooded his mind, as though he were surrounded by a legion of ghosts. For a moment it was as if his mind were not his own. Rage filled him and he felt a strong urge to seize the haft of his axe. He restrained himself with effort, gritting his teeth to force the voices to quiet. “You see?” Zerkova asked softly. “Only the strongest warcasters can endure it.” He asked, “You will fight alongside me in the assault?” It was clear she desired the machine. She hoped to see him perish so she could reclaim it. He intended to see her disappointed, to master this machine. She frowned. “As much as I would enjoy ing you in seizing the necrofactorium and plumbing its depths, I have other duties. I am to stay at Empress Vanar’s side.” Orsus flinched as if struck. Once again he saw the empress stumbling as a death-fueled construct lunged at her. That he hadn’t been chosen to oversee her safety opened an old wound in his mind. “What? Why?” The words sounded more hostile than he had intended. Zerkova looked to Ruin and back. “There are times we must obey and play the role given us.” Her tone was cold and suggested a meaning he did not apprehend. Of course she must obey the empress. To do otherwise was unthinkable. Without another word, the obavnik turned and walked away, her reaver guards following. A strong wind pulled at her coat and the scattered tents. Orsus barely heard its howl over the whispers filling his mind. 45

OBAVNIK KOMMANDER ZERKOVA & REAVER GUARD It is remarkable what one can achieve when freed from the limitations of mediocre minds and superstition. —Aleksandra Zerkova

ZERKOVA SPD STR MAT RAT DEF ARM CMD

6

5

6

5

15 15

9

ORGOTH BLADE POW

P+S

7

12

FOCUS DAMAGE FIELD ALLOWANCE WARJACK POINTS SMALL BASE

7 16 C +4

FEAT: ARCANE CONVERGENCE Drawing upon a lifetime spent gathering forbidden knowledge, Aleksandra Zerkova summons a torrent of raw arcane power for her allies to seize upon and shape.

Each friendly Faction model currently in Zerkova’s control area can immediately cast one spell without spending focus, performing a special action, or performing a special attack.

ZERKOVA

Enemy upkeep spells on target friendly model/unit expire. Affected models cannot be targeted by enemy spells or animi. A model hit by Dissolution Bolt cannot channel spells for one round. Hoarfrost causes cold damage . On a critical hit, models in the AOE . become stationary for one round unless they have Immunity: Cold While in this model’s control area, friendly Faction models gain an additional die on their magic attack rolls this turn. Remove one friendly living Faction model in this model’s control area from play to allocate 1 focus point to each warjack in this model’s battlegroup that is currently in its control area. Sacrificial Lamb can be cast only once per turn.

Immunity: Cold This model is a Greylord model. Friendly Greylord models/units in this model’s command range never flee and immediately rally. This model cannot be targeted by enemy spells. If this model is disabled by an enemy attack, you can choose a non-disabled model in this unit within 3 of this model to be destroyed. If another model is destroyed as a result of Self-Sacrifice, this model heals 1 damage point. This unit is made up of Zerkova and 2 Reaver Guards.

ORGOTH BLADE When making an attack with this weapon, ignore spell effects that add to a model’s ARM or DEF.

Through a combination of fearsome reputation, ruthless tactics, and intimate knowledge of the occult, Aleksandra Zerkova has scaled the ranks of the Greylords Covenant faster than any might have believed possible. Elusive in the extreme, the warcaster has vanished for months on end with little to no explanation, each time returning with yet more artifacts and tomes of forgotten lore to add to her collection. Her willingness to utilize any knowledge available has made her increasingly dangerous. For Zerkova, military protocols and conventional morality are weaknesses to exploit rather than principles to be followed. She plays a dangerous game as she pursues even the darkest of the forbidden dark arts, but time and again she has proven to be a master of the occult as well as in espionage. Recently Zerkova was involved in the secret seizure and investigation of a powerful Nyss relic recovered from Korsk. Unknowingly she had taken into her possession

46

This model can channel spells through target friendly model as if it were a . model in this model’s battlegroup with Arc Node

TACTICAL TIPS DISSOLUTION BOLT – Channeling a spell includes casting a spell through a channeler as well as being the channeler. SACRIFICIAL LAMB – A warjack cannot exceed normal focus allocation limits as a result of Sacrificial Lamb.

a vault containing the frozen Iosan god Nyssor, a find of enormous significance. Her studies were cut short by Iosan strikes on two hidden Greylord facilities deep in Khador. Desperate, Zerkova ultimately entered into an unsanctioned collaboration with the unliving elven warcaster Goreshade in a failed attempt to recover the frozen Nyss vault, which was secured by the Retribution of Scyrah and returned to Ios. Despite the outcome, Zerkova herself considers the endeavor well worth the risk, which demonstrates the lengths she is willing to go for knowledge—even to the point of provoking hostilities with foreign powers without regard for the plans of the empire or the desires of her superiors. Even considering the significant autonomy Greylords are ordinarily allowed, Zerkova has gone well beyond her purview, taking advantage of hidden budgets and loopholes in the bureaucracy to maintain her operations. Despite increased scrutiny from organizations responsible for internal security, such as the Greylords own Prikaz Chancellery, Zerkova has continued to consolidate her position, establishing undisclosed bases of operation throughout Khador and occupied Llael. While Prikaz agents have dogged her footsteps for years, on the trail of budgetary irregularities, Zerkova’s intricate and deeply rooted network of informants has kept her several paces ahead.

47

REAVER GUARD SPD STR MAT RAT DEF ARM CMD

6 When this model destroys one or more models with a melee attack during its combat action, immediately after the attack is resolved it must make one additional melee attack against another model in its melee range.

7

7

4

13 15

7

FELL AXE POW

P+S

5

12

DAMAGE SMALL BASE

5

When an enemy model advances and ends its movement within 6 of this model and in its LOS, this model can immediately charge it. If it does, it cannot make another counter charge until after your next turn. This model cannot make a counter charge while engaged. This model is a Doom Reaver model. This model cannot be targeted by enemy spells. This model does not have to make Berserk attacks.

FELL AXE

TACTICAL TIP COUNTER CHARGE – A Counter Charge is not a model’s combat action, so Berserk will not trigger.

Her disregard for protocol has earned her the ire of a number of prominent obavniks, several of whom have sought to use their authority to halt her operations. Zerkova has been aided by the of High Obavnik Arbiter Vasily Dmitrilosk, the head of the Greylords Covenant. The

high obavnik clearly finds Zerkova’s research invaluable and prizes her successes above the questionable nature of her methods. He, too, seeks to empower the Motherland by delving into dark mysteries. In response to concerns regarding Zerkova’s disregard for the chain of command, the High Obavnik promoted the warcaster to the rank of Obavnik, shielding her from interference within the order. Now she is beyond the reach of all but a handful of people—most particularly Great Vizier Blaustavya, whose agents have their eye on her. Zerkova has recently earned the confidence of the empress herself, though, once again proving her capability of anticipating the moves of those who would oppose her. As her reputation has grown, so has the degree of fear she inspires in her fellow Greylords. More than a few of Zerkova’s detractors have disappeared without a trace, and those who were once highly vocal in their assertions of wrongdoing have grown strangely quiet. It has not gone unnoticed that many of her subordinates have also met untimely ends. Nevertheless, those who desire to plumb the mysteries of the occult continue to seek her patronage and serve her with zealous devotion. With her promotion, Zerkova’s quest for power has only gained momentum. Those elements of her private collection once kept behind closed doors are now on public display. From forbidden relics to an entourage of guardians enslaved to her will, her open display of occult power has overshadowed the reputation of her ancestors. Recent events have turned her gaze toward the depths of the Thornwood. Conflicts in the region are secondary to her interest in the Orgoth and Morrdhic ruins and the massive Cryx necrofactorium built beneath the forest floor, where a wealth of knowledge awaits.

REAVER GUARD CONCEPT ART

48

MAD DOG The key to mastering a mad dog is to keep it on a short leash—and know when to let go. —Kommander Oleg Strakhov

MAD DOG This model can run or charge without spending focus or being forced. This model gains an additional die on trample attack rolls and can make trample power attacks without spending focus.

MAD DOG

SPD STR MAT RAT DEF ARM CMD

4

TACTICAL TIP UNSTABLE – Do not replace this model with a wreck marker.

HEIGHT/WEIGHT: 10´11˝ / 8.4 TONS ARMAMENT: HAMMER SPIKE (LEFT AND RIGHT ARMS) FUEL LOAD/BURN USAGE: 715 LBS / 5 HRS GENERAL, 55 MINS COMBAT INITIAL SERVICE DATE: 460 AR CORTEX MANUFACTURER: GREYLORDS COVENANT ORIG. CHASSIS DESIGN: KHADORAN MECHANIKS ASSEMBLY

5

3

11 18

—

HAMMER SPIKE

At the start of its activation, this model can spend 1 focus point to use uryRigged. This model gains 2 SPD this activation. At the end of this activation, it suffers 1 damage point to its first available Movement system box. This model cannot use ury-Rigged if its Movement system is crippled. ury-Rigged can be used only once per activation. At the end of any activation in which this model spent 1 or more focus points, roll a d6. If the roll is equal to or less than the number of focus points spent, this model explodes and models within 3 of it suffer an unboostable POW 14 blast damage roll. Remove this model from play.

11

L

POW

P+S

3

14

HAMMER SPIKE R

POW

P+S

3

14

DAMAGE

1

2

3

4

5

6

A veritable battering ram of steel, the Mad Dog is the bane of enemy infantry facing Khador L R in the field. Among the oldest Khadoran warjacks L L M C R R still in service, the Mad M M C Dog was designed for the sole purpose of FIELD ALLOWANCE U smashing its way through POINT COST 5 LARGE BASE enemy formations. The machine is fitted with a modified steam engine built to produce the enormous pressure required to propel this brawler headlong into the enemy. Despite the wear and tear these warjacks suffer in battle, some few have been maintained and are still capable of moving with alarming speed. They barrel onward heedless of resistance to tread on the broken bodies of enemies caught beneath their hulking frames. Once in the fray, the Mad Dog employs its spiked gauntlets with vicious enthusiasm, crushing anything within reach. The havoc it wreaks amid the enemy is enough to break even the most disciplined battle line, allowing the warjack’s comrades in arms to dispatch any survivors. Few Mad Dogs remain wholly functional, but some kommanders are quite partial to their use nevertheless. Over the course of a lengthy term of service, these heavy warjacks have become increasingly unstable; both their cortexes and their modified propulsion systems have degraded to the point of unpredictability, making psychotic rampages and explosive overloads all but inevitable.

49

RAGER Nothing keeps a man alive like a wall of Khadoran steel. —Korporal Miloslav Zhabin

RAGER

RAGER

This model can run or charge without spending focus or being forced.

SPD STR MAT RAT DEF ARM CMD

4

11

5

3

11 18

—

SHIELD CANNON RNG ROF AOE POW

L

8

1

—

15

At the end of any activation in which this model spent 1 or more focus points, roll a d6. If the roll is equal to or less than the number of focus points spent, this model explodes and models within 3 of it suffer an unboostable POW 14 blast damage roll. Remove this model from play.

SHIELD L

POW

P+S

1

12

SHIELD

GLADIUS R

POW

P+S

4

15

Once per round, when a friendly model is directly hit by a ranged attack during your opponent’s turn while within 2 of this model, you can choose to have this model directly hit instead. This model is automatically hit and suffers all damage and effects. This model cannot use Shield Guard if it is incorporeal, knocked down, or stationary.

DAMAGE

While not as prone to the violent outbursts as some other aging machines in the Khadoran arsenal, the Rager is inclined toward fierce overprotectiveness and will throw itself L R upon any perceived L L M C R R threat to its M M C master without hesitation. It is FIELD ALLOWANCE U for this reason POINT COST 6 that many LARGE BASE of Khador’s warcasters, particularly veterans, still find a place for the aging warjack in their battlegroups, though they keep the machine at arm’s length given its increasing tendency toward destructive overloads. The Rager was designed with a heavy shield cannon of the sort used by Man-O-War shock troopers, lending the ’jack the means for a strong defense without depriving it of a second weapon. Rather than hacking into the enemy with reckless abandon, the Rager employs a more measured fighting style, making careful use of its sword and shield. 1

2

3

4

5

6

While few Ragers remain in service today, they continue to demonstrate the same steadfast resolve and loyalty as when they first set foot on the field of battle. That they endure is a testament to the strength and resilience of Khadoran engineering. HEIGHT/WEIGHT: 10´11˝ / 8.4 TONS ARMAMENT: SHIELD CANNON (LEFT ARM), GLADIUS (RIGHT ARM) FUEL LOAD/BURN USAGE: 715 LBS / 5 HRS GENERAL, 55 MINS COMBAT INITIAL SERVICE DATE: 463 AR, REFITTED WITH SHIELD CANNON 522 AR CORTEX MANUFACTURER: GREYLORDS COVENANT ORIG. CHASSIS DESIGN: KHADORAN MECHANIKS ASSEMBLY

50

TACTICAL TIP UNSTABLE – Do not replace this model with a wreck marker.

RUIN To place a deranged weapon in the hands of a deranged man is surely madness. —Forward Kommander Sorscha Kratikoff

While in Zoktavir’s control area, Ruin gains Boundless Charge. (During its activation, a model with Boundless Charge can charge without spending focus or being forced and gains +2 movement and Pathfinder when it charges.)

soul tokens at a time. During its activation, this model can spend soul tokens to gain additional attacks or to boost attack or damage rolls at one token per attack or boost.

RUIN

SPD STR MAT RAT DEF ARM CMD

4

12

L

This model gains one soul token when a living enemy model is destroyed within 2 of it. This model can have up to three

When this weapon hits a model/ unit, upkeep spells on that model/unit immediately expire.

R

DISPEL – Because they expire immediately, upkeep spells that had an effect when the model was hit or damaged will have no effect. ORGOTH SEAL – The attacking model does not suffer damage if the model with Orgoth Seal is no longer in play after the attack is resolved. SPECIAL ISSUE – This only gives the warjack the potential to bond to the warcaster. It does not automatically add a bond.

obavnik ordered Ruin’s transfer to Orsus Zoktavir, a man with a proven affinity with doom reavers, in an attempt to exploit the weapons for the Motherland whatever the cost.

—

POW

P+S

4

16

POW

P+S

6

18

DAMAGE

1

TACTICAL TIPS

10 20

BLACK IRON MACE

ARMORED FIST BLACK IRON MACE

3

ARMORED FIST

This model can be included in Zoktavir’s theme forces. It can also be bonded to Zoktavir.

When a model targets this model with an offensive spell, the spell suffers –3 RNG. If a model directly hits this model with an offensive spell, after the attack is resolved the attacking model suffers d6 damage points.

8

2

3

4

L L

5

6

R

L

M

C

R

M

M

C

C

FIELD ALLOWANCE POINT COST LARGE BASE

R

C 10

HEIGHT/WEIGHT: 11´9˝ / 12 TONS ARMAMENT: ARMORED FIST (LEFT ARM), TORAZARD’S BLACK IRON MACE (RIGHT ARM) FUEL LOAD/BURN USAGE: 990 LBS / 6 HRS GENERAL, 70 MINS COMBAT INITIAL SERVICE DATE: 558 AR, REFITTED 608 AR CORTEX MANUFACTURER: GREYLORDS COVENANT ORIG. CHASSIS DESIGN: KHADORAN MECHANIKS ASSEMBLY

Ruin is a blend of engineering and black magic, an unsettling fusion that has resulted in a malevolently aware machine. The Greylords Covenant consider this a great accomplishment, but others wonder if it is a triumph of madness over reason. For years Greylords scoured ruins for answers to the dark riddles of the Orgoth. Greylord Obavnik Rolonovik of Khardov eventually unearthed a vast burial chamber housing the remains of the terrible Orgoth Torazard, a hulking giant of a warlord. The enormous relics buried with him thrummed with a willful hunger to harvest souls. Together with High Obavnik Dmitrilosk, Rolonovik initiated a secret occult experiment to harness the power of these items and weld them to a warjack. Employing Orgoth runes to bridge the gap between the cortex and this weaponry circumvented the need for them to be wielded by mortal hands. The artifacts whisper incomprehensibly into the warjack’s cortex. Maintaining control of this ’jack requires warcaster supervision, preferably by one with a mind inured to such voices. The high

51

VICTOR KHADOR COLOSSAL War is the mother of industry. — Khadoran Mechaniks Assembly proverb

VICTOR

VICTOR SPD STR MAT RAT DEF ARM CMD

4

18

6

4

7

20

—

SIEGE MORTAR S

RNG ROF AOE POW

20

1

5

15

Each time this model makes a normal Siege Mortar attack, choose one of the following abilities: The AOE is rough terrain and remains in play for one round.

AUTOCANNON L

RNG ROF AOE POW

10

1

—

12

Models hit by this attack suffer –2 DEF for one round.

AUTOCANNON R

RNG ROF AOE POW

10

1

—

12

This attack causes fire damage , and models hit suffer the . Fire continuous effect

FIST L

POW

P+S

4

22

POW

P+S

4

22

FIST R

FIELD ALLOWANCE POINT COST HUGE BASE

SIEGE MORTAR 2 18

When attacking with this weapon, this model can ignore intervening models except those within 1 of the target. This model

suffers 4 to attack rolls with this weapon. Attacks made with this weapon cannot target any model within 6 of it. Make d3 ranged attacks targeting a primary target and any number of secondary targets within 2 of the first target. Ignore intervening models when declaring secondary targets. A secondary target cannot be targeted by more attacks than the primary target. Auto Fire counts as one attack for ROF. This model gains an additional die on attack rolls with this weapon against models with Flight.

FIST LEFT DAMAGE

1

2

3

4

RIGHT DAMAGE

5

6

1

2

S

S

S

S

3

4

5

6

L

L

L

S

C

C

S

R

R

R

L

L

C

C

C

C

C

C

C

C

R

R

L

C

M

M

M

M

M

M

M

M

C

R

TACTICAL TIP AUTO FIRE – These attacks are simultaneous. Attacks against targets beyond this weapon’s range will automatically miss.

HEIGHT/WEIGHT: 31´ / 102 TONS ARMAMENT: SIEGE MORTAR (INTEGRAL), DUAL AUTOCANNONS (LEFT AND RIGHT CHASSIS) FUEL LOAD/BURN USAGE: 3,150 LBS / 6 HRS GENERAL, 45 MINS COMBAT INITIAL SERVICE DATE: 608 AR CORTEX MANUFACTURER: GREYLORDS COVENANT ORIG. CHASSIS DESIGN: KHADORAN MECHANIKS ASSEMBLY

Through the scream of shells arcing overhead and the ceaseless rattle of autocannon fire, the Victor brings a culmination of Khador’s finest engineering against the enemy. Beneath the might of the colossal’s versatile siege mortar, fortifications are reduced to rubble, infantry is erased, and warjacks are turned to smoldering heaps of scrap. A number of brilliant young innovators at the Khadoran Mechaniks Assembly laid plans for the Victor during the production of the Conquest, which was intended to serve as a framework for the Motherland’s future colossals, each with distinct weaponry and different roles on the battlefield. The Victor’s ambitious engineers sought to create a multi-use heavy artillery platform capable of neutralizing all manner of high-priority and hard targets. The concept of a complex loading system capable of feeding multiple types of shells into a high-caliber siege mortar would ultimately become the backbone of the Victor’s design. The Victor’s primary weapon stands as the largest piece of field ordnance ever ed to a cortex. Additional s were welded to the colossal’s interior to accommodate the significant weight and recoil of the weapon, and a series of massive gears and cranks serve to adjust trajectory. A sophisticated multitrack loading mechanism occupies a large portion of the chassis and feeds one of three distinct types of ammunition into the siege mortar as needed, requiring only that the cortex make a selection according to the needs of its warcaster. Similarly complex systems augment the Victor’s dual autocannons. Belted ammunition manufactured on a large scale ensures continuous fire without long reload times, while a heat-dispersing cowling and a water-circulation cooling system prevent the ’jack from overheating during sustained use. While the old guard among the Assembly dismiss the Victor as overly complicated and worry it will require prohibitive maintenance, most see it as a step forward in Khadoran engineering. The advances developed during its production are expected to lead to future innovations in armament for the empire.

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53

54

UNFORESEEN CIRCUMSTANCES IOS, NORTHEAST OF SHYRR

The hooves of undead mounts battered the forest floor in a swift yet silent gait as the ethereal forms barreled through trees and undergrowth to carry their riders ever deeper into Ios. Goreshade had set out from Eversael two days earlier with a host of eldritch and banes riding at his back. His circuitous route to the capital had swung them north and west in hopes of avoiding undue attention, but even proceeding with caution they had still needed to actively evade far-reaching patrols. That they were not alone in their incursion, however, was soon apparent. They discovered the smoldering ruins of a village late in the first day. Near midday on the second, they spotted several columns of smoke rising into the sky far to the north. Here and there, the thralls riding at the northernmost limits of the group came upon tracks of both men and beasts. “Warriors from across the sands,” Goreshade said as they reined in their mounts in the forest outside a village. He had diverted their course to inspect the source of smoke nearby, and now they watched through the trees as pale, armored soldiers in red and gold torched the remaining structures and clapped survivors in irons. Thick chains ran from one set of wrists to the next, and the steady crack of whips forced the prisoners into orderly lines. Although Goreshade’s knowledge of the marauders was secondhand, he recognized them as skorne—the same vicious race that had pursued his people in their exodus from Lyoss after the destruction of the Bridge of Worlds. “An invasion! Where are the Dawnguard?” Lothvyn asked from Goreshade’s side. Despite his initial hostility, the former Silowuyr noble’s disposition had changed considerably after he had been bested beneath the ruins of Eversael. Thus far, the eldritch had proven himself knowledgeable of the area’s comings and goings despite his exile, and Goreshade felt no regret at sparing his existence. “Hiding,” Goreshade said, his voice heavy with disdain for the self-righteous knights of House Nyarr who traditionally protected this region. His gaze lingered over the column of Iosans being led from the village, youths and even some few children among them. “Cowering behind their walls while those who depend on them fall prey to barbarians.” His race had grown weak in his absence, and the thought of the oncegreat people falling to outside aggression goaded him deeply. “They stay comfortable in their strongholds, abandoning the rest to ruin,” Lothvyn said. Hearing this from a fallen member of House Silowuyr, whose dedicated themselves purely to the defense of Shyrr, grated on Goreshade. “What of you?” he snapped. “How many centuries did you spend hiding in Eversael before I came to

drag you out kicking and screaming?” He looked to each eldritch in turn. “The Dawnguard are short-sighted imbeciles. But you—some of the greatest minds of your time!—you have no excuse for years of cowardly inaction.” The words hit their mark. Lothvyn hissed and looked toward the village, drawing his weapon, and several other eldritch followed suit. “We will prove our resolve,” he said. “No!” Goreshade said sharply. “At least, not yet. We must know more. This force is but a raiding party.” Once the last of the skorne and their captives had departed the village, Goreshade urged his steed from among the trees. Lothvyn and the other eldritch followed, Suneater and his bane thralls trailing behind. Black smoke swirled around them before billowing into the sky in a fountain of ash. A roof collapsed with a crash, and a cloud of sparks rose from beneath it to flare and die. Tracks lay thick upon the ground. Goreshade said, “This group is too feeble to have made it through the border on their own. From the smoke, it is clear they intended to attract attention, though to what end?” “We will be spotted ourselves if we are not careful,” Lothvyn said. Goreshade guided his mount around the roaring remains of the village, taking in the gruesome details. Here and there limbs and heads lay on the ground near the Iosan bodies they had been severed from, including some hands still gripping the hilts of blades. There were no skorne corpses; if the attackers had suffered casualties, they had taken away the fallen. Goreshade’s eyes narrowed. Too many questions remained. The fact that this force was connected to an army was all but certain. His mind turned to the capital and its defenses. In all his planning, dealing with Shyrr’s defenders—most notably House Silowuyr—had been least clear in his mind. The presence of the skorne so near opened up a number of possibilities. “We will follow these raiders and discover their intentions,” Goreshade said. “What of the capital?” Lothvyn asked. “This will help prepare the way. Send word to our forces beyond the border to make ready. We may need to seize an opportunity at short notice.” Goreshade gripped the hilt of Voass, feeling the thrum of power from the blade. Never had he been so close to achieving his goals. Although the presence of the skorne was unexpected, he felt confident he could accommodate for them in his plans. If Ios must burn before it could be saved, so be it. 55

DENEG H RA, THE SOU L WEA VER The darkness she commands echoes those forces within her soul. —The Witch Coven of Garlghast

FEAT: HELL GATE

DENEGHRA

SPD STR MAT RAT DEF ARM CMD

9

5

6

4

15 16

9

VENOMOUS BREATH RNG ROF AOE POW

—

SP 8 1

—

10

MALEFACTOR —

POW

P+S

8

13

BARBED TAIL POW

—

12

FOCUS DAMAGE FIELD ALLOWANCE WARJACK POINTS HUGE BASE

7 18 C +4

Deneghra’s grasp on the thread between life and death has given rise to powers most terrible during her service to the Nightmare Empire. Drawing upon the well of imprisoned souls at her disposal, the Cryxian warcaster descends on the living with a deluge of power to fuel her blistering spells.

Target friendly Faction model gains 2 DEF and Poltergeist. (When an enemy model misses a model with Poltergeist with an attack, immediately after the attack is resolved you can choose to push the enemy model d3 directly away from the model with Poltergeist.)

Deneghra immediately gains seven soul tokens.

Target enemy model unit suffers 2 DEF and ARM and cannot be healed. Mortality lasts for one round.

DENEGHRA

Models hit by Scourge are knocked down.

Undead

Cull Soul – This model gains one soul token for each living enemy model destroyed within 2 of it. When this model replenishes its focus during your next Control Phase, replace each soul token on it with 1 focus point. Flight – This model can advance through terrain and obstacles without penalty and can advance through ructions and other models if it has enough movement to move completely past them. This model ignores intervening models when declaring its charge target. Soul Mastery – Anytime during its activation, this model can spend soul tokens for the following effects. Each use of a Soul Mastery effect costs one soul token. This model can cast a spell with COST 3 or less without spending focus. Choose a warjack in this model’s battlegroup that is in its CMD range. The warjack is allocated up to 3 focus points. Soul Weaver – During its activation, this model can choose a friendly model in its CMD range with Body Count, Cull Soul, Soul Collector, or Soul Taker. Remove any number of soul tokens from the chosen model and place one soul token on this model for each token removed.

Thousands have suffered and died because of the warwitch Deneghra. Thousands more will fall before her in the days to come. As Cryx’s legions sweep across western Immoren, she stands ready to enact the will of her master, Asphyxious. Deneghra has served the lich lord as his most potent and loyal retainer, continually impressing her master with her

56

Target friendly model unit gains Ghostly for one turn. (A model with Ghostly can advance through terrain and obstacles without penalty and can advance through obstructions if it has enough movement to move completely past them. An affected model cannot be targeted by free strikes.)

TACTICAL TIPS CULL SOUL – A model can have more focus points than its FOCUS as a result of Cull Soul. SCOURGE – This means every model in the AOE is knocked down, friendly and enemy alike. SOUL WEAVER – You can use Soul Weaver any number of times each activation.

cunning and her command of the arcane gift she possesses. She manipulates the armies of her enemies into attacking where she desires and outmaneuvers them with her own forces. Her actions have put events in motion that shape the fate of nations. In the time since her death and reanimation she has plumbed the depths of her necromantic powers, gaining profound insight into and power over mortal souls. In her wake the world of the living is left blackened and exanimate. Deneghra manipulates the souls of the dead with consummate skill, using their power for her own designs. Those slain in her presence are forbidden age into Urcaen, their souls left twisting in her grasp and used as a weapon to destroy her enemies. Such is her mastery that she can send these tormented spirits to empower the machines at her command or tear their essence apart to weave a torrent of withering magic. Many of Lich Lord Asphyxious’ gains can be laid directly at Deneghra’s feet. No obstacle, not even death, has stayed her from achieving her master’s wishes. In pursuing his goals, she has amassed power and influence. From out of his shadow, she has risen in prominence to become the Soul Weaver, a black queen of the Nightmare Empire. Atop her nightmarish mount, Deneghra blots out the sun, casting a long shadow over those destined to die by her command.

57

BARATHRUM Within Barathrum rages a soul that howls and thrashes at its restraints, but against the iron will of Lich Lord Terminus it has no choice but to obey. —Master Necrotech Mortenebra

TACTICAL TIPS

BARATHRUM

SPD STR MAT RAT DEF ARM CMD

6

10

8

5

13 17

—

TALON POW

P+S

7

17

L

TALON POW

P+S

7

17

R

TUSKS POW

P+S

2

12

—

DAMAGE

1

2

3

4

L L

5

6

R

L

M

C

R

M

M

C

C

FIELD ALLOWANCE POINT COST LARGE BASE

R

Terror Counter Charge – When an enemy model advances and ends its movement within 6 of this model and in its LOS, this model can immediately charge it. If it does, it cannot make another counter charge until after your next turn. This model cannot make a counter charge while engaged.

SOUL DRIVE – A warjack cannot exceed normal focus allocation limits as a result of Soul Drive.

Dig In ( This model gains cover, does not suffer blast damage, and does not block LOS. The model remains dug in until it moves, is placed, or is engaged. The model cannot dig into solid rock or manmade constructions. This model can begin the game dug in.

ORIG. CHASSIS DESIGN: UNKNOWN

C 10

During this model’s activation, immediately after resolving an attack in which it boxed a living enemy model, this model can use Drag Below. The boxed model is removed from play and this model can immediately make a full advance and then perform a Dig In special action, then its activation ends. Soul Drive – This model is allocated 1 additional focus point during your Control Phase. This model can be included in Terminus’s theme forces. It can also be bonded to Terminus. If this weapon damages a warjack that is part of a battlegroup, its controller suffers 1 damage point.

Among Master Necrotech Verrik Kurr’s final and most unusual fabrications, Barathrum is a mechanized terror born from the nightmares of a lunatic. The machine was crafted at the height of Kurr’s brilliance even as he began his descent into madness and exploits similar necrotechnology as was employed in the Seether. Its soul drive is of a similar design as that of its predecessor, and the tormented souls that fuel this device lend it the same unpredictable ferocity. Barathrum’s form is distinct, however, with great scooping talons that enable it to burrow into the earth and emerge elsewhere with terrifying alacrity.

58

DRAG BELOW – Because the boxed model is removed from play before being destroyed, it does not generate a soul or corpse token.

SPECIAL ISSUE – This only gives the warjack the potential to bond to the warcaster. It does not automatically add a bond.

HEIGHT/WEIGHT: 12´ / 6.5 TONS ARMAMENT: TALON (LEFT AND RIGHT ARMS), TUSKS (HEAD) FUEL LOAD/BURN USAGE: 99 LBS NECROTITE, 265 LBS COAL / 12 HRS GENERAL, 2 HRS COMBAT INITIAL SERVICE DATE: UNKNOWN CORTEX MANUFACTURER: MASTER NECROTECH VERRIK KURR

Lich Lord Terminus took an interest in this helljack after Kurr’s disappearance and claimed it as his own. Likely he was intrigued by the helljack’s unusual intellect and will. In the years since, the lich lord has spent considerable effort to bend the crazed machine to his will. Barathrum has slowly developed a measure of restraint—or perhaps more accurately, fear and respect—for its master. Through the application of the lich lord’s undeniable resolve, the helljack has learned the arts of patience and subterfuge. No longer does the machine’s cortex constantly submit to the incessant rage of its soul drive. Instead, the helljack burrows with its massive talons to await the footfalls of the living. Once its prey is within reach, Barathrum explodes from the ground in a shower of soil and black iron amid a cloud of necrotite fumes to seize its victims and drag them screaming beneath the earth to a premature burial. Few things are as demoralizing to the infantry of the Iron Kingdoms as seeing a string of comrades swallowed by the very ground on which they tread. The rage-fueled viciousness of the spirits trapped within the helljack’s soul drive has only grown more terrible in its time under Terminus’ command. Once Barathrum is let loose to rampage, this maleficence reasserts itself. Committing to slaughter with reckless abandon, the ’jack cleaves men in two with its shoveled hands and impales others on its tusks. When it ultimately plunges out of sight, it is often with yet another victim in tow—a trophy sentenced to a horrific death.

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SEPULCHER We shall reduce their lands to fields of slaughter and reap what we sow. —Lich Lord Terminus

SEPULCHER

SEPULCHER

SPD STR MAT RAT DEF ARM CMD

5

15

6

5

10 19

—

DESOLATOR RNG ROF AOE POW

S

13

1

5

13

SPIKER RNG ROF AOE POW

L

11

2

—

13

SPIKER RNG ROF AOE POW

R

11

2

—

13

HARVESTER L

POW

P+S

3

18

This model gains one corpse token each time a Mechanithrall or living model is destroyed within 5 of it.

HARVESTER R

POW

P+S

3

18

This model ignores the effects of deep and shallow water and can move through them without penalty. While completely in deep water, it cannot be targeted by ranged or magic attacks and can make attacks only against other models in deep water. While completely in deep water, this model does not block LOS.

Once per turn during its activation, you can remove corpse tokens from this model to add models to a friendly Mechanithrall unit. You can remove up to three corpse tokens to add one Grunt per token removed, or you can remove three corpse tokens to add one Brute Thrall. Added models must be placed in formation and within 3 of this model.

FIELD ALLOWANCE POINT COST HUGE BASE

2 18

LEFT DAMAGE

1

2

3

4

RIGHT DAMAGE

5

6

1

2

S

S

S

S

3

4

L

L

S

C

C

S

R

R

5

6

L

L

C

C

C

C

C

C

C

C

R

R

L

C

M

M

M

M

M

M

M

M

C

R

TACTICAL TIPS AMPHIBIOUS – This model can attack other models that are in deep water. BODY SNATCHER – that if more than one model is eligible to collect a corpse token, the closest model collects the token. PULL – “Any distance” means “as much as necessary,” not “any distance the player chooses.”

HEIGHT/WEIGHT: 27´ / 85 TONS ARMAMENT: DESOLATOR (INTEGRAL), DUAL SPIKERS (LEFT AND RIGHT ARMS), TWIN HARVESTERS (LEFT AND RIGHT ARMS) FUEL LOAD/BURN USAGE: UNKNOWN INITIAL SERVICE DATE: UNKNOWN CORTEX MANUFACTURER: UNKNOWN

When attacking with this weapon, this model can ignore intervening models except those within 1 of the target. On a critical hit, living models hit have their base DEF reduced to 7 and cannot run or charge for one round. Gain 1 to damage rolls with this weapon against models with medium bases and 2 to damage rolls against models with large or huge bases. When declaring and resolving attacks with this weapon, this model can target and draw line of sight to models in its field of fire or its back arc.

This weapon has a 4 melee range during this model’s activation. This attack ignores the Buckler and Shield weapon qualities and Shield Wall. Pull – If this weapon hits an enemy model with an equal or smaller base, immediately after the attack is resolved the hit model can be pushed any distance directly toward this model.

60

ORIG. CHASSIS DESIGN: UNKNOWN

The Sepulcher brings the horrors of Cryxian industry to the doorsteps of western Immoren in the form of an armored necromantic factory. With a rapidity unbefitting a machine of its size, it lashes out with its harvesters to seize any within reach to subject them to a horrific fate. The surgical implements comprising its mandibles twitch in anticipation of converting its victims into cannon fodder to be unleashed in the wars of the Nightmare Empire. Long kept back as part of the Cryxian reserves, the Sepulcher has recently proven to be a weapon of prodigious and terrifying industriousness. The colossal roams the battlefield in search of fresh materials that can be stitched together to produce a never-ending supply of necromechanikally enhanced thralls. It lumbers forward with a mechanical hiss in search of victims, pausing only to open fire on formidable threats with a diabolical array of powerful weaponry. A smear of mud and guts constantly coats the underbelly of the nightmare machine, and the smell of viscera hails its arrival as clearly as the billowing smoke of its necrotite engines. A direct result of Cryx’s expanding war effort, the Sepulcher reveals to enemies a hint of the nightmarish war to come.

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SHRIKE Once you hear its horrific shriek, it’s too late for anything but prayer. —Temple Flameguard Mordecai Penthorne

HEIGHT/WEIGHT: 6´4˝ / 1.5 TONS

SHRIKE

SPD STR MAT RAT DEF ARM CMD

7

7

7

4

16 13

—

VICIOUS BEAK H

POW

P+S

4

11

WING BLADES –

POW

P+S

4

11

DAMAGE

1

2

3

4

5

6

H

C

C

C

C

M

H

H

M

M

FIELD ALLOWANCE POINT COST MEDIUM BASE

While making a trample power attack, this model ignores free strikes and does not stop when it s a model with a medium or larger base, an obstacle, or an obstruction. This model makes trample attacks against models regardless of their base size. Flight – This model can advance through terrain and obstacles without penalty and can advance through obstructions and other models if it has enough movement to move completely past them. This model ignores intervening models when declaring its charge target.

U 4

This model can make trample power attacks.

This model can add this weapon’s POW to its trample power attack damage rolls.

The Shrike soars against the weight of its great temperedsteel wings by virtue of the roaring fires of its necrotite engine and the dark spells woven into its frame. Following the predatory instincts instilled in its cortex, the Shrike surveys the field of battle from aloft before plunging into the formations of the living to scythe through the ranks with its bladed wings. Limbs are shorn off, torsos are sliced in two, and a splattering of gore covers those lucky enough to survive its initial attack. With each the Shrike emits a soul-chilling shriek that is soon echoed by the tormented cries of the wounded and dying. Enemies would do well not to underestimate the devastation these swift bonejacks can cause, for the malicious machines can wreak a surprising amount of destruction for their size. Moreover, the appearance of Shrikes is often a precursor to a larger Cryxian force. The bonejacks harry those enemies attempting to take shelter behind battlements, slashing through soldiers who think themselves safe and sending the heads and limbs of defenders toppling from walls.

62

ARMAMENT: VICIOUS BEAK (HEAD), WING BLADES (NONE) FUEL LOAD/BURN USAGE: 35 LBS NECROTITE, 61 LBS COAL / 18 HRS GENERAL, 3 HRS COMBAT INITIAL SERVICE DATE: UKNOWN CORTEX MANUFACTURER: UNKNOWN ORIG. CHASSIS DESIGN: UNKNOWN

By the time the primary army of undead arrives, chaos has already been sown among the living, making victory all the easier.

SOUL TRAPPER No life is sacred, no soul out of reach. —Iron Lich Tremulus

TACTICAL TIP SOUL TRANSFER – This does not allow you to exceed the maximum number of soul tokens the target model can have.

Every soul that escapes the Nightmare Empire in its battles is seen as a wasted opportunity. Unsatisfied with this inefficiency, the lich lords tasked the Cryxian necromancers to devise a thrall that shared the insatiable hunger of its masters. They answered with the soul trapper.

Undead

SOUL TRAPPER

SPD STR MAT RAT DEF ARM CMD

5 4 5 3 11 12 5 This model gains one soul token MECHANO-CLAW when a living enemy model POW P+S is destroyed within 10 of 4 8 it. This model can have up FIELD ALLOWANCE 3 to three soul tokens at a 2 SOUL TRAPPERS 1 time. During its activation, this model can spend soul SMALL BASE tokens to gain additional attacks or to boost attack or damage rolls at one token per attack or boost. RNG 5. Target friendly Faction model with Body Count, Cull Soul, Soul Collector, or Soul Taker. If the model is in range, remove any number of soul tokens from this model and place one soul token on the friendly model for each token removed.

Drawn to the dying, the soul trapper stalks the front lines with both eagerness and desperation. Its arms continually wrest souls of the recently departed from the air, limbs darting here and there like the workings of a manic threshing machine. It crams its stolen harvest into prepared chambers akin to soul cages within its body, where they await transference to other, mightier entities. The mere sight of the thrall is enough to unnerve most infantry, as the implications of its presence are all too clear. The runes carved upon the undead flesh within the soul trapper’s carapace imbue the creation with an incessant need to gather as many souls as possible, seeking to ease a hunger that will never relent. Once souls have been claimed, the thrall’s ill-gotten gains are ultimately seized by its superiors, leaving nothing but a renewed sense of emptiness and starvation. It is said the screams of the souls transferred through the creation’s chest can be heard echoing from its ribcage long after they have gone, though few mortals have ever gotten close enough to hear. Despite making most decisions based purely on its hunger for fresh souls, the soul trapper possesses intelligence greater than that of most thralls, which makes it self-sufficient— and all the more dangerous.

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64

MARCHING ORDERS IOS, EAST OF THE GATE OF MISTS

Two dozen of House Ellowuyr’s finest swordsmen traveled an ill-used path through the northern reaches of the Mistbough. Each was committed to the rites and traditions of their house, which bound them to their blades, to their fighting discipline, and to one another. Foreign invaders had brought war to Ios, and their blood stirred. Boasts and promises conveyed their excitement and apprehension alike. “I’ve heard of new invasions north of the capital,” said Rayl, the youngest of the volunteers. “Rumor has it the village of Yren was enslaved and Shynl burned. I’m surprised we aren’t marching there.” “The main skorne army threatens Iryss from the south, coming through the Twilight Gate,” sneered Fynar, a bladesman of the first mark. “That is where we go. Leave the north to the dogs of Nyarr. The loss of those villages is their shame, not ours.” Rayl reflected that these incursions were a mark against all the great military houses but only said, “I wonder which coalition houses we’ll be fighting alongside.” “Worried?” asked Melyna, to his left. She walked with a nonchalant stride, her blade balanced across her thin shoulders. Rayl shrugged. “Curious. What about you?” “No. We have him.” Melyna nodded toward Thyron at the head of the column. He loomed over the other warriors, his cape and ornate helmet suggesting his noble standing, with a pair of large, graceful myrmidons in Ellowuyr colors flanking him. The noble’s skill with the blade combined with his warcaster talent and leadership made him a unique asset. Rayl had seen the issyr best several adept opponents simultaneously, demonstrating flawless technique and blinding speed. The path turned and they reached a clearing occupied only by the ruins of a watchtower. From here the trail split, one strand heading west to Iryss while the other disappeared deeper into the Mistbough. Thyron raised a hand and brought the column to a halt. He climbed atop the remains of a low wall and looked out over the gathered Ellowuyr elite. “My brothers and sisters, I hold each of you in tremendous regard for volunteering to me. Before we proceed, I need to clarify our situation. “As you know, our nation faces an invasion for the first time in history. We must draw upon every resource, employ every tactic. Consul Brysor is limited by the political realities of the Consulate Court, and the majority of the warriors of our house have been ordered to remain at Aeryth Ellowuyr to guard the interior. That is not what I intend. It is in times like these when a trusted few must serve in the consul’s stead,

walking a path he cannot. Know that he is glad we are here, though he cannot openly acknowledge this. “I march not to fight the enemy alone, nor to the Homeguard Coalition. Rather I have chosen to those who we called our rivals House Shyeel, House Vyre—even the Dawnguard of House Nyarr.” A murmur rippled through the warriors; each of those houses was allied to the Retribution of Scyrah. Thyron continued, “This is not a temporary measure, nor is the choice based solely on the enemy incursions. I have chosen to aid the Retribution by any means necessary. The rest of our house may never follow, though I am not alone in my thinking.” Silence hung over the soldiers. Rayl looked at the bewildered faces around him. He knew individual nobles of some the lesser houses had similarly gone over to the radical sect, taking their liegemen. But they were House Ellowuyr, held to a higher standard. Conflicting emotions tightened his chest. He had never heard the Retribution spoken of with anything but scorn and loathing. That Thyron embraced their cause was beyond shocking, yet it also made him wonder if his own presumptions had been wrong. “I know your loyalty, but I do not order you to me. This decision is yours alone, and you are free to turn back. I would only say that some threats must be confronted to avoid a greater disaster. Blood spared on the front will be exacted tenfold from the innocent in our cities. Beyond this foe, our enemies are myriad. They would be glad to see us extinct. Let us stand for our house among those who already bleed for Ios, accepting risks refused by those bound by tradition. I will go on alone, if need be.” The issyr’s stern gaze moved from one swordsman to the next. A part of Rayl longed to return to his house, but another ached to take up arms against their foes. He was not alone in having marveled at the return of Nyssor and enviously watched the triumphant procession of Incissar Vyros of the Dawnguard. The Retribution did not seem loathsome. How could a group so committed to the preservation of Ios deserve censure? He knew what he must do. Before he could speak, a voice cried out, “Allegiance to you, Issyr!” Rayl turned to see Melyna with a fist pressed against the ceremonial knife fitted to her shoulder. “Allegiance to you, Issyr!” Rayl shouted, placing a fist over his own shoulder. He exchanged looks with Melyna and Fynar, seeing his excitement reflected in their eyes. One by one those around him took up the cry. “Very well,” Thyron said, smiling at last. “Let us show the Retribution the true steel of Ios. We bring them the sword of Ellowuyr!”

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THYRON, SWORD OF TRUTH RETRIBUTION WARCASTER

Advance without relenting. Strike without error. Kill without remorse.

THYRON SPD STR MAT RAT DEF ARM CMD

6

7

7

5

15 16

9

REMEMBRANCE POW

P+S

6

13

FOCUS DAMAGE FIELD ALLOWANCE WARJACK POINTS MEDIUM BASE

6 18 C +5

FEAT: BLADES OF VENGEANCE

SPELLS ASSAIL

In a blur of precise maneuvers Thyron positions body and l e i pr i e ui i Intense concentration elevates his swordsmanship to new heights, inspiring those around him to push beyond their own limitations and hack through e ene

GROUND ZERO

Thyron and friendly Faction models beginning their activations in Thyron’s control area gain an additional die on melee attack rolls and Side Step. (When a model with Side Step hits an enemy model with an initial melee attack or a melee special attack that is not a power attack, it can advance up to 2 after the attack is resolved. A model with Side Step cannot be targeted by free strikes during this movement.)

—Lyslan, Sword Master of Aeryth Ellowuy

COST RNG AOE POW UP OFF 3 6 – – YES NO

Target friendly Faction warjack can charge or make slam or trample power attacks without spending focus. The warjack gains 2 movement when it charges or makes a slam or trample power attack. Models slammed by the warjack are moved 2 .

3

SELF

5

13

NO NO

Center a 5 AOE on this model. Each other model in the AOE is hit and suffers a POW 13 damage roll. Each enemy model damaged by Ground Zero is pushed d6 directly away from this model in the order you choose.

ONSLAUGHT

2

SELF CTRL

–

YES NO

Friendly Faction models beginning a charge in this model’s control area during the charge. gain Pathfinder

SPELLPIERCER

2

SELF CTRL

–

NO NO

While within this model’s control area, friendly Faction models units’ and Blessed. Spellpiercer lasts for one weapons gain Magical Weapon round. (When making an attack with a weapon with Blessed, ignore spell effects that add to a model’s ARM or DEF.)

STORM RAGER

2

6

–

–

YES NO

Target friendly Faction warrior model gains 2 STR, MAT, and ARM and cannot be targeted by combined ranged attacks or combined melee attacks.

THYRON Blade Shield – This model gains 2 DEF against ranged attack rolls. Field Marshal [Cleave] – Models in this model’s battlegroup gain Cleave. (When a model with Cleave destroys one or more enemy models with a melee attack during its activation, immediately after the attack is resolved the model can make one additional melee attack. The model can gain only one additional attack from Cleave each activation.)

ASSAIL – Modifiers to movement apply only to a model’s normal movement. FIELD MARSHAL – This includes this model. GROUND ZERO – Roll separately for each model pushed.

Riposte – When this model is missed by an enemy melee attack, immediately after the attack is resolved it can make one normal melee attack against the attacking model.

through its direct and ritualized techniques he has honed his resolve and his mind as keenly as his sword.

REMEMBRANCE

The prospect of House Ellowuyr ing the armies of the Retribution is deeply significant for both its military and its symbolic implications. As yet the house has not agreed to fully commit itself to the cause, sending Thyron and a small cohort under his command to test the waters. Thyron petitioned Consul Brysol Ellowuyr to send him to gain better understanding of the turmoil beyond its borders. Skorne incursions have demonstrated the security of the nation is not as inviolate as they had believed. oining their strength to the Retribution’s is part of a concerted effort to defend the future of their people.

Magical Weapon Reach Weapon Master

A master of House Ellowuyr’s unique swordfighting discipline, Thyron matches stillness with blurring speed. He can cut bullets out of the air and return to a ready stance faster than the eye can track. The massive blade he carries is perfectly balanced, allowing him to change the direction of a swing mid-stroke even as it tears through an enemy. He is a tempest of sharpened steel, a paragon of Ellowuyr’s art of war. Thyron’s voice carries with it the weight of his house, strengthened by the power of his warcaster gifts. Thyron is known among the nobles of House Ellowuyr to cut swift and deep to the heart off the battlefield as well as on it; he is not one to waste his breath on platitudes or meaningless speculation. He has given his life to the art of the blade, and

66

TACTICAL TIPS

Thyron’s approach to war is tempered by a lifetime spent steeped in the ancient traditions of his house. He understands the importance of seizing the initiative in battle, but he does so without leaving himself overcommitted or vulnerable. Instead he stages quick bouts and feints with myrmidons and soldiers to draw out his opponent’s strength. When he perceives weakness in the enemy line, he guides his army like a sword thrust directly at the enemy’s heart, slicing through their ranks with unrelenting force.

67

MOROS

RETRIBUTION CHARACTER LIGHT MYRMIDON In this myrmidon, we have succeeded in distilling the qualities that make the Blade of Retribution a peerless killer: cunning, stealth, and a fearless unpredictability.

—Keldeacon Synvas Uithuyr, at the presentation of Moros

MOROS

MOROS SPD STR MAT RAT DEF ARM CMD

6

8

7

6

12 16

—

DEATH SHADOW —

RNG ROF AOE POW

8

1

—

12

BLADE L

POW

P+S

5

13

BLADE R

POW

P+S

5

13

L

2

3

4

5

L

G

G

R

L

M

C

R

M

M

C

C

FIELD DAMAGE FIELD ALLOWANCE POINT COST MEDIUM BASE

While Moros is in Garryth’s control area, it gains Apparition. (During your Control Phase, place models with Apparition anywhere completely within 2 of their current locations. Only models in formation can be placed.) Duelist – This model gains 2 DEF against melee attack rolls.

DAMAGE

1

Stealth

6

Field Dependent – While its Field Generator system is crippled, this model loses Stealth and cannot make Death Shadow attacks. This model can be included in Garryth’s theme forces. It can also be bonded to Garryth.

R

6 C 6

DEATH SHADOW Magical Weapon

A living model hit by this weapon has its base DEF reduced to 7 and cannot run or charge. Paralysis lasts for one round.

BLADE Grievous Wounds – When a model is hit by this weapon, for one round it loses Tough, cannot heal or be healed, and cannot transfer damage.

In Moros, the newly recruited artificers of the Retribution have crafted a mechanized assassin. Through the use of advanced arcanika and a cortex imprinted with a predilection for the hunt, the light myrmidon exists for the sole purpose of running down targets perceived as unreachable and neutralizing them with precision strikes from its curved blades. Commissioned for Garryth, Blade of Retribution by the command of the Nine Voices, Moros marks one of the earliest and largest projects undertaken by the Retribution of Scyrah’s own recent assemblage of artificers. As the numbers of the Retribution have grown, so too have their manufacturing capabilities, though the operation remains small and deals primarily with modifications of existing myrmidon designs, particularly for use by warcasters.

68

TACTICAL TIP SPECIAL ISSUE – This only gives the warjack the potential to bond to the warcaster. It does not automatically add a bond.

HEIGHT/WEIGHT: 9´1˝ / 2.4 TONS ARMAMENT: DEATH SHADOW, BLADES (LEFT AND RIGHT) PEAK OPERATIONAL DURATION: 2 HRS ARTIFICER: SYVASH ARTIFICERS

Such specialized projects represent the Retribution’s determination to avoid overreliance on House Shyeel for its myrmidons. Extensive experimentation among these artificers eventually yielded an energy field unlike any before it. By pushing the principles of the Chimera’s power field beyond mere blurring and fading of the myrmidon’s form, the Retribution achieved a field capable of rendering Moros invisible to the naked eye. Whether in the dense Iosan forests or the open plains beyond, Moros traverses the maelstrom of conflict undetected, its agile form little more than a shimmering mirage against the backdrop of war. In addition to shrouding Moros in obscurity, the field can be manipulated to lash out at the myrmidon’s quarry, stunning potential victims in preparation for a double-bladed strike from the shadows. For many of the Retribution’s enemies, the low hum of Moros’ energy field is the last sound ever heard. With each aspect of its design fashioned to complement Garryth’s ruthless tactics, Moros serves as the only true companion for a soldier who needs none. Whether launching ambushes in concert or overwhelming the most well-guarded of enemy warcasters, the pair has redefined the possibilities for assassinations during both skirmishes and large-scale battles. Time spent with Garryth has seen the myrmidon develop a strong sense of timing, intuitively waiting for the moment when its prey is most vulnerable before striking to kill. As the pair has faced enemies with far greater numbers than their own, it has become their priority to strike down commanding officers and warcasters at the onset of every engagement, neutralizing the command structure and then vanishing from sight. The combined efforts of Moros and Garryth have contributed to decisive victories as a direct result of severing the enemy’s chain of command.

69

HELIOS

RETRIBUTION COLOSSAL MYRMIDON The enemy will move when we say they move, attack where we say they attack.

—Adeptis Rahn of House Shyeel

HELIOS

HELIOS

TACTICAL TIP

SPD STR MAT RAT DEF ARM CMD

5

16

6

5

10 19

—

TRACTOR BEAM RNG ROF AOE POW

—

12

1

—

—

INFERNO FIST POW

P+S

4

20

L

Force Barrier – This model gains 2 DEF against ranged attack rolls and does not suffer blast damage.

INFERNO FIST POW

P+S

4

20

R

FIELD DAMAGE FIELD ALLOWANCE POINT COST HUGE BASE

Field Dependent – While its Field Generator system is crippled, this model loses Force Barrier and Force Gate and cannot make Tractor Beam attacks.

12 2 17

Force Gate – During its activation, this model can spend focus to gain abilities. It gains one ability per focus point spent. Force Gate abilities last for one round.

Allocate 1 focus point to each friendly myrmidon within 3 of this model. A myrmidon can be allocated only 1 focus point per round as a result of Broadcast Power. This model gains 2 DEF and Poltergeist. (When an enemy model misses a model with Poltergeist with an attack, immediately after the attack is resolved you can choose to push the enemy model d3 directly away from the model with Poltergeist.) When this model is hit with a melee attack, after the attack is resolved the attacking model is pushed 1 directly away from this model. Virtuoso – This model can make melee and ranged attacks during the same combat action. When this model makes its initial attacks, it can make both its initial ranged and melee attacks.

TRACTOR BEAM Force Grip – An enemy model hit by this weapon can be pushed up to 3 in any direction. Rapid Shot [3] – This model can make 3 initial attacks with this weapon during its combat action, ignoring ROF.

INFERNO FIST Continuous Effect: Fire Open Fist Flame Burst – When this model boxes an enemy model with this weapon, enemy models within 1 of the boxed model suffer the Fire continuous effect .

LEFT DAMAGE

1

70

2

3

RIGHT DAMAGE

4

5

6

1

2

3

G

G

G

G

G

G

4

5

6

L

L

G

C

C

C

C

G

R

R

L

L

C

C

C

C

C

C

C

C

R

R

L

C

M

M

M

M

M

M

M

M

C

R

BROADCAST POWER – A warjack cannot exceed normal focus allocation limits as a result of Broadcast Power.

HEIGHT/WEIGHT: 30´6˝ / 66 TONS ARMAMENT: TRACTOR BEAM (INTEGRAL), TWIN INFERNO FISTS (LEFT AND RIGHT ARMS) PEAK OPERATIONAL DURATION: 45 MINS COMBAT ARTIFICER: HOUSE SHYEEL

Built to accommodate the largest field generator ever housed within a myrmidon, the Helios reshapes battlefields. The monumental forces it wields push and pull opponents wherever it chooses in a frightening display of power. Warjacks leave great gouges in the earth as it effortlessly drags their bulk yards at a time, turning them into roadblocks or drawing them close to batter them with its massive fists. Potent force barriers halt advances, and any who manage to close find themselves repelled with pulses of blue-white light or engulfed in flames of the same hue, the flesh flayed from their bones. House Shyeel has ever tempered offensive power with manipulation and battlefield control. It was with this philosophy and the memory of the bloody War of the Houses that their artificers set out to create a colossal intended for their exclusive use. Unlike most of their designs, which they offered to other houses or to the Homeguard Coalition, the Helios was initially kept secret in case their house ever needed to defend themselves in any similar conflicts. Since linking their fortunes to the Retribution, they have contributed some few of these great machines to the cause. The Helios’ tremendous field generator is powered through a combination of power cells and an experimental arcane condenser augmented to absorb ambient energies more efficiently— although the energy drain is so great the machine cannot sustain itself in battle as long as most myrmidons. When the Helios is charged to full strength, the energy in the air around it becomes palpable, and mere proximity can make teeth rattle. This field generation informs the remainder of the colossal’s design. A potent tractor beam replaces all other offensive weaponry, trading firepower for kinetic influence and granting the colossal’s controller strategic advantages through the repositioning of enemies. Helios can also supercharge nearby myrmidons via manipulations of its field. With such , even a small group of myrmidons can make short work of larger forces. Since the colossal’s inception, the vast majority of its use has been nothing more than field tests. With new threats intruding into Ios, House Shyeel has placed the Helios in the hands of the Retribution in an effort to both take the fight abroad and protect borders at home. Thus, despite its creation as a deterrent to violence, the Helios now aids the blades of the Retribution in cutting ever deeper.

71

HOUSE VYRE ELECTROMANCERS RETRIBUTION UNIT

Our fingertips crackle with the portent of destruction, and before our eyes flicker apparitions of ruin.

—Master Electromancer Ellynara of House Vyre

LEADER & GRUNTS

LEADER & GRUNTS SPD STR MAT RAT DEF ARM CMD

6

5

6

6

13 12

9

INDUCER BOLT RNG ROF AOE POW

10

1

—

12

STORM INDUCER POW

P+S

6

11

FIELD ALLOWANCE LEADER & 2 GRUNTS SMALL BASE

2 4

Each time this model makes a normal ranged attack, choose one of the following abilities When a warjack is hit with this weapon, it suffers a cumulative 1 penalty to its focus allocation limit for one round. Models that are immune to Disruption are immune to Energy Leak.

– When a model is hit with this weapon, lightning arcs from that model to d3 consecutive additional models. The lightning arcs to the nearest model it has not already arced to within 4 of the last model it arced to, ignoring this model. Each model the lightning arcs to suffers a POW 10 electrical damage roll . When a model is hit with this weapon, it suffers d3 damage rolls instead of one.

INDUCER BOLT Magical Weapon

STORM INDUCER Magical Weapon Reach Cortex Damage – When a warjack is hit by this weapon, it suffers 1 damage point to its first available Cortex system box.

72

TACTICAL TIPS CORTEX DAMAGE – Because this damage is caused by the effect when the model is hit, mark it before making the damage roll. LIGHTNING GENERATOR – The lightning still arcs to models with Immunity Electricity, it just cannot damage them. Damage from Lightning Generator strikes is not considered to have come from a hit or by a melee or ranged attack. PULSE FIRE – The damage rolls from Pulse Fire are simultaneous.

Not content to stand idly by as their myrmidons march to war beside the battle mages of House Shyeel, House Vyre has recently deployed its own seasoned electromancers to aid the Retribution’s efforts abroad. Arcanists trained for years under the tutelage of House Vyre’s most accomplished battle mages in the manipulation of voltaic forces, the electromancers dispatched to fight for the cause have done much to further the house’s bid for redemption. They are accompanied by the omnipresent hum and crackle of sophisticated arcanikal devices, the smell of burning ozone a constant companion. The voltaic energies forced through their staves lash the battlefield with manipulated storms that arc deadly electrical surges from one target to the next. Warjacks collapse beneath overloaded systems, and scores of infantry fry where they stand, hearts seizing under the current surging through their bodies. For centuries the electromancers have remained within the borders of Ios; now, with the threats of the wide world closing in, they march against the nation’s foes.

SOULLESS VOIDTRACER

RETRIBUTION MAGE HUNTER SOLO

We shall hone each and every resource at our disposal into an instrument of war. Victory demands nothing less. —Keldeacon Synvas Uithuyr

TACTICAL TIP SPELL WARD – This model is shielded from friendly and enemy spells alike.

VOIDTRACER Fearless Stealth Arcane Vacuum – When a model in this model’s command range is targeted by an enemy spell, before the spell is resolved the enemy spellcaster takes d3 damage points.

VOIDTRACER SPD STR MAT RAT DEF ARM CMD

6

6

6

3

13 13

5

TWO-HANDED SWORD POW

P+S

6

12

FIELD ALLOWANCE POINT COST SMALL BASE

2 1

Soulless – This model does not generate a soul token when it is destroyed. Spell Ward – This model cannot be targeted by spells.

TWO-HANDED SWORD Magical Weapon Reach

Though the majority of soulless taken in by the Retribution live out brief lives as anti-magic escorts for the group’s soldiers, a select few who prove particularly malleable and receptive during initial evaluations receive additional training for specialized roles. Among these are the voidtracers, skilled but expendable mage hunters who often are sent to mage hunter infiltrators and other Retribution forces in neutralizing their assigned targets. A voidtracer knows his own value is less than that of his peers and is trained to sacrifice himself for the success of the mission. Voidtracers are relentlessly drilled alongside the other mage hunters of Ios to teach them to fight with muscle memory rather than skill or instinct. Over time the capacity to act with greater autonomy emerges through the memorization of complex contingencies. This ability to operate independently has proven useful to Retribution commanders even as it provides relief to those soldiers who prefer to distance themselves from the soulless altogether. Without fear of death, voidtracers fight ably alongside other Retribution forces to clear the way to their target with swift, reflexive swordplay. Their conditioning also allows them a stronger connection to the soulless’ ability to redirect arcane forces. Voidtracers not only absorb arcane energies employed by the mages they hunt but also reflect it back to the spellcaster in a focused impulse, creating a deadly surge. The majority of the Retribution’s soldiers continue to view the soulless with indifference if not contempt, but few deny the advantages the voidtracers provide. The true value of these highly trained warriors is becoming ever more evident as time and again they offer their lives in place of others’.

73

74

EARLY DEPARTURES CEPHALYX TUNNELS BELOW THE THORNWOOD NECROFACTORIUM

Cognifex Cyphon cocked his head and listened as another explosion sounded far above him. From his place within the sanitation chamber linking cephalyx and Cryxian levels of the hive, the cognifex could sense mental and emotional emanations from both human armies above and the cephalyx remaining in the upper levels. Fear and doubt radiated from the invading forces. In contrast, of the hive demonstrated heightened urgency and awareness, but those thoughts were efficient and focused. A good number of lower-ranking cephalyx had gathered their drudges to contribute to the fight above. Behind Cyphon, a pair of warden monstrosities stood in silent vigilance. Already the exulons had retreated deeper underground, and persistent queries from remaining cephalyx petitioned his mind, many disregarding the etiquette for such communication in favor of expedience. Contingencies had been set in place for this very threat, but the assault on the necrofactorium was early by several weeks, and what was to have been a calculated withdrawal now contained a greater number of variables. What aggravated Cyphon the most was that Thexus had left to attend to some urgent matter with the hive’s northernmost holdings, which forced Cyphon to coordinate matters on the exulon’s behalf. The descent of the remaining exulons deeper into the hive to avoid the unpleasant prospect of speaking with their Cryxian allies only amplified his discomfort with the situation. A series of metallic clacking sounds issued from the opposite end of the chamber, and Master Necrotech Mortenebra entered the room with a pair of helljacks flanking her fabricated form. A sense of revulsion washed over Cyphon at the sight of her. He possessed no strong biases against Cryxians, but Mortenebra had once been a disciple of the Maiden of Gears, and the taint of the association remained—her necromechanikal body was not so different from those used by the Convergence of Cyriss. Even so, he was here on orders from the exulons to assess the situation and pressure their allies. uery Entity Asphyxious projected distant date for attack by externals. Explain discrepancy. As soon as he sent this mental message, Cyphon sensed it had not connected. This was not unexpected; other cephalyx had reported that the minds of the sentient undead were not reachable—a puzzle he might return to, when time allowed. Though he loathed communicating through his artificial vocalizer, he saw little choice in the matter. “Assault disrupts predetermined agenda,” Cyphon said aloud. “Continued existence of the hive is in jeopardy.” “The hive will be secured,” Mortenebra said. Another explosion rained flecks of debris from the ceiling, and the necrotech’s

limbs clattered as they moved to compensate for the vibrations. “No more than the upper levels will be lost to the mortals.” “Upper levels contain projects of import,” he said. Mortenebra nodded. “I, too, have work housed nearby,” she said. “If we act quickly, some of these projects may be saved. Doing so will require a diversion. The drudges and monstrosities created since the last battle should suffice. I have been instructed by Lich Lord Asphyxious to remain with the hive and assist with any complications.” Immediately Cyphon’s mind factored in these potential losses against the gains they had seen from the alliance with the undead. The inefficiency from faulty planning hovered at the edge of acceptable limits, yet the survival of the hive outweighed any other considerations. The commitment of an irreplaceable asset like Mortenebra at least signified the lich lord did not plan to entirely abandon them. “Submit alternative action plan,” Cyphon said. The clamor above was growing steadily louder, and even now, a dozen cephalyx telepathically pressed him for information. “A not inconsequential number of thralls have been sent to assist your drudges in finishing the closure of the tunnels. We must buy them time to complete their task.” “Current resources are insufficient to stall the advance,” Cyphon replied. “Cryxian retreat implies a low probability of success.” The warcaster appeared unfazed. “We must prod the enemy and draw them to tunnels of our choosing, which we will collapse upon them. They will suffer casualties. By granting them victory on our , we shall direct their investigations away from tunnels yet to be sealed.” “At considerable cost.” “There is no other way to preserve the experiments and protect the hive,” Mortenebra said. “The losses are acceptable. Delay will only increase inefficiency. Consider also the resources and data that might be collected on such an excursion.” Behind Cyphon, the monstrosities shifted in their mindless fashion. It had been some time since he had seen such creations in action. A venture to the surface would have benefits, such as the potential to capture an isolated Greylord or wounded warcaster and submit them to surgical and telepathic scrutiny. Conflict brought the risk of discovery, but it brought the means for discovery as well. “Alternative plan accepted,” the cognifex said. Cyphon issued mental commands to half a dozen subordinates to organize the requisite force while another portion of his mind ran through a list of current and future projects and prioritized the various types of captives each required. The list was long indeed. 75

COGNI FEX CYPHON MERCENARY CEPHALYX WARCASTER A mind is a maze, the essence of truth at the center. Let others wander the twisting byways. I remove the walls altogether. —Cognifex Cyphon

CYPHON SPD STR MAT RAT DEF ARM CMD

5

6

6

6

13 17

9

MIND WIPE RNG ROF AOE POW

SP 10 1

—

10

PINCER EMBRACE POW

P+S

6

12

FEAT: ADRENALINE RUSH With a mental command, o ni ex p on oo s e o ies o is ul in ons rosi ies i n in usion o r ren line propellin e or r o e r e ene o pie es e en s eir o n o ies su er ene e s r in

Monstrosities in Cyphon’s battlegroup that are currently in his control area can gain 3 SPD, STR, and ARM for one round. Those that do suffer 1 damage to each column on their damage grids at the end of their activation this turn.

FOCUS DAMAGE FIELD ALLOWANCE WARJACK POINTS MEDIUM BASE

7 18 C +6

Mercenary – This model will work for Cryx. Selective – This model can be included only in Mercenary Contract armies that list Cephalyx as possible .

CYPHON When this model casts a spell and is the point of origin for the spell, you can destroy a friendly drudge in its command range. If you do, the spell gains +5 RNG. When this model is directly hit by an enemy ranged attack, you can choose to have one friendly, non-incorporeal Monstrosity model within 3 of this model directly hit instead. That model is automatically hit and suffers all damage and effects. This model cannot be knocked down.

MIND WIPE Silencer – A model directly hit by this weapon cannot cast spells for one round.

Cyphon is the premier cognifex of the Thornwood cephalyx hive, devoted to the systematic dismantling of intractable minds. Risen from the chthonic tunnels beneath the forest, Cyphon floats silently through the trees, a telepathic predator seeking its quarry. Any who fall into the grasp of his clacking array of metal limbs are methodically dissected layer by layer. He carefully notes as bodily systems fail under the strain of his tests and telepathically samples the flavor of his subjects’ terror and pain. The unique nature of each individual’s suffering serves to inform and precisely attune the suite of tools he plies in his work. He uses these patterns of pain and fear extracted from the dying to leverage a subject’s brain open. Subjects forced to endure Cyphon’s art are reduced to hollow-eyed shells,

76

SPELLS AFFLICTION

COST RNG AOE POW UP OFF 3 8 – – YES YES

When a damage roll resulting from a direct hit fails to exceed the ARM of the target enemy model/unit, the affected model hit suffers 1 damage point.

BREATH STEALER

2

10

–

–

NO YES

Target model/unit suffers –2 SPD and DEF for one round. Breath Stealer can be cast only once per turn.

EMPATHIC OVERLOAD 3

8

4

12

NO YES

Models hit by Empathic Overload suffer a POW 12 damage roll. When Empathic Overload targets a friendly model, it automatically hits.

GALLOWS

3

10

–

13

NO YES

When an enemy model is hit by this attack, it can be pushed d6 directly toward Gallows’ point of origin.

ONSLAUGHT

2

SELF CTRL

–

YES NO

Friendly Faction models beginning a charge in this model’s control area during the charge. gain Pathfinder

PERSEVERANCE

2

6

–

–

YES NO

Target friendly Faction model unit gains 2 ARM, cannot be pushed, and cannot be moved by a slam or throw.

TACTICAL TIP GALLOWS – This means the model is moved before it suffers damage.

their minds destroyed by unrelenting waves of suffering. Once Cyphon’s work is done, his subjects are worthless even as material for the basest drudges, so they are rendered down for nutrition. By this point the cognifex has absorbed the entirety of the subject’s intellect to examine its thought patterns in minute detail so that he may apply this data to his overarching study of thought itself. Ultimately he seeks to develop a telepathic key whereby even the most resilient and protected minds will be compelled to open at his lightest touch. Cognifexes typically operate within the cloistered and antiseptic cells of a cephalyx hive, far from the surface and physical danger, but Cyphon’s work does not afford him such luxury. He must pursue his arts aboveground, adding new insights extracted from the dying or snatching up targets designated as critical resources to endure more extensive telepathic interrogations. To preserve the sterility and security he requires, Cyphon travels the surface cocooned in a black shell of his own design. Its many insectoid limbs are tipped with surgical blades and manipulators as useful for his investigations as for keeping him shielded from the omnipresent dangers of battle. Commanding a force of drudges and monstrosities, Cyphon sweeps through the ranks of potential subjects, constantly probing for anyone who might hold secrets useful either to his hive or to his own work.

77

EXULON THEXUS MERCENARY CEPHALYX WARCASTER A mind which will not bend will be shattered. —Exulon Thexus

THEXUS SPD STR MAT RAT DEF ARM CMD

6

4

5

4

14 14

10

PROSTHETIC BLADES POW

P+S

5

9

FOCUS DAMAGE FIELD ALLOWANCE WARJACK POINTS MEDIUM BASE

8 15 C +5

FEAT: TELEKINETIC TIDE

SPELLS

e en l po ers o Exulon exus re s n ne rl inex us i le n rou them he can reach into the orl o sei e ol o is ene ies n nipul e e ill r ns or e in o ere pie es on e o r is ene ies re elpless o resis e i e o is r ne i

While in this model’s control area, friendly models gain 2 DEF and ARM against ranged attacks. Deceleration lasts for one round.

Push each enemy nonwarlock, non-warcaster model currently in Thexus’ control area 2 in any direction. Mercenary – This model will work for Cryx. Selective – This model can be included only in Mercenary Contract armies that list Cephalyx as possible .

THEXUS

COST RNG AOE POW UP OFF

DECELERATION HEX BLAST

When this model is directly hit by an enemy ranged attack, you can choose to have one friendly, non-incorporeal Monstrosity model within 3 of this model directly hit instead. That model is automatically hit and suffers all damage and effects. Spell Driver – When this model casts a spell, it can channel the spell through another model in its battlegroup that is in its control area. Once a spell is cast this way, the model it was channeled through suffers d3+1 damage points.

Possessed of the most crushingly powerful intellect of his kind, Exulon Thexus is an unconventional member of the cephalyx elite. He has arisen to lead his hive and has restored them to greatness by entering into an unprecedented alliance with Cryx. Thexus is both uncompromising and pragmatically efficient, quite willing to send his minions to their destruction to further his long-reaching plans. His refusal to accept the limitations of the flesh drove the exulon to indulge in radical methods to sur them. Though all exulons augment their brains to magnify their psychic powers, Thexus has gone far beyond his peers, enduring dangerous and excruciating procedures to expand his brain mass. The power he wields has given him a ravenous hunger that drives him to consume the psyches of his foes. Nothing gives him more satisfaction than rending and absorbing lesser minds to feed his own. After he has siphoned their thoughts and memories, he casts aside the empty living husks to be transformed into drudges.

78

3

SELF CTRL 10

3

– 13

NO NO NO YES

Enemy upkeep spells and animi on the model/unit directly hit by Hex Blast immediately expire.

INFLUENCE

1

10

–

–

NO YES

Take control of target enemy non-warcaster, non-warlock warrior model. The model immediately makes one normal melee attack, then Influence expires.

PSYCHO SURGERY

2

SELF CTRL

–

NO NO

Each model in this model’s battlegroup currently in its control area immediately heals d3 + 1 damage points. This spell can only be cast once per turn.

RAMPAGER

3

10

–

–

NO YES

Take control of target enemy non-character warbeast. You can make one full advance with the warbeast and can then make one normal attack with it, then Rampager expires. While the warbeast is affected by Rampager, it cannot be forced and you cannot use its animus. Rampager can be cast only once per turn.

TELEKINESIS While one or more enemy models are in this model’s command range, models in this model’s battlegroup can run or charge without spending focus.

3

2

8

–

–

NO

*

Place target model completely within 2 of its current location. When Telekinesis targets an enemy model, it is an offensive spell and requires a magic attack roll. A model can be affected by Telekinesis only once per turn.

TACTICAL TIPS HEX BLAST – Because they expire immediately, upkeep spells and animi that had an effect when the model/unit was hit or damaged will have no effect. RAMPAGER – You cannot free strike a model you control.

Having existed for over four hundred years, Thexus has shrewdly negotiated the politics of his kind, dominating mental inferiors and manipulating his rivals in order to sur or destroy them. Now Thexus feels he has augmented his brain as far as he can through customary means; he intends to be the first of his kind to achieve transcendence into a creature of pure thought. He pursues this without regard for the small-minded taboos of his peers. Thexus sees within the Convergence of Cyriss a possible key to the first gate barring his way, and he engages this enemy with driven persistence. Though Thexus does not hesitate to battle personally, he is protective of his mortality. He prefers to observe from a distance, allowing subordinates and monstrosities to clash while he manipulates mental tethers to arrange for victory. He plucks pieces of the enemy’s battle plan from the minds of its living soldiers and can focus on a dozen simultaneous events to orchestrate a perfect outcome. Thought is raw power to Thexus, and his intellect is so terrible his mere presence on the battlefield causes his enemies mental pain. Those who fall directly under the lens of his telepathic scrutiny are torn apart by waves of pure psychic force.

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SUBDUER MERCENARY CEPHALYX HEAVY MONSTROSITY We require new flesh. Our greatest living tools will bring it to us. —Fleshforger Lexulus

SUBDUER

SUBDUER SPD STR MAT RAT DEF ARM CMD

5

10

5

4

10 17

—

NET LAUNCHER L

RNG ROF AOE POW

6

1

3

—

IMPALING BLADE R

POW

P+S

6

16

DAMAGE

1

2

3

4

5

6

L

L

M

B

R

R

L

M

M

B

B

R

FIELD ALLOWANCE POINT COST LARGE BASE

U 7

Eyeless Sight

NET LAUNCHER Catch – If this weapon directly hits an enemy model with an equal or smaller base, immediately after the attack is resolved the model directly hit can be pushed any distance directly toward this model. After the model directly hit is moved, this model can make one normal melee attack against it. After resolving this melee attack, this model can make additional melee attacks during its combat action. Quake – On a direct hit against an enemy model, all models hit are knocked down.

Massive insensate creations that tower over humans, monstrosities are masterfully crafted fusions of meat, bone, and metal. Chosen from those who have fallen into the clutches of the cephalyx, the subjects doomed to undergo the grueling process of transformation are selected for their physical stamina and mental malleability. These procedures, which represent an investment of weeks of work, are among the most complex surgeries the cephalyx perform on outsiders. Organs are cut free from flesh and bathed in alchemical growth solutions before being reintroduced to a radically expanded body cavity. Flesh is pumped with alchemical mixtures that foster rapid tissue development and increased bone mass and density. The final monstrosity is several times the mass of the original subject, its skin and bones toughened to endure extreme punishment. Sensory organs are carved away and the monstrosity’s brain attuned to a psycho-spectrum, allowing it to perceive its surroundings free of the limitations of the flesh. Few monstrosities use this superlative vision better than the subduer. Perceiving the battlefield as overlapping waves of psychic emanation, a subduer

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TACTICAL TIP CATCH – “Any distance” means “as much as necessary,” not “any distance the player chooses.”

eyelessly tracks those trying to slip beyond the grasp of its masters, following their movements silently from behind its solid helmet. Its massive net launcher allows it to capture these victims from a distance. When fired, the weighted net slices through the air to envelop targets in a mesh of taut steel and drag them screaming back to their fate. Captives the cephalyx deem suitable for experimentation are secured, while those found wanting are efficiently eliminated with a single, whistling slash of the subduer’s bladed arm.

WARDEN

MERCENARY CEPHALYX HEAVY MONSTROSITY The weapons of our enemies are inconsequential as long as our protectors stand. —Agitator Hrekon

TACTICAL TIP FOLLOW UP – This model stops moving if it s another model. This model does not advance if the model slammed is destroyed by the attack.

The monstrosities known as wardens are a concession by the cephalyx to the frailty of their own atrophied bodies. Crafted to react quickly to any attack and inured to even catastrophic injury, a warden instinctively places itself in harm’s way to shield its makers. Muscles like corded steel soak up bullets and cannon fire, and hardened plates of armor can withstand the fists of a heavy warjack. After enduring a blow, the warden retaliates with its vise-like clamps and brutal strikes of its metal-plated head. A warden’s defensive actions are purely the product of insidious biological manipulation. The cephalyx artfully reconfigure the architecture of a warden’s mind, enabling

WARDEN Eyeless Sight When this model slams an enemy model, immediately after the slam is resolved this model can advance directly toward the slammed model up to the distance the slammed model was moved. This model can make slam power attacks without spending focus or being forced. Models slammed by this model are moved an additional 2 .

WARDEN SPD STR MAT RAT DEF ARM CMD

5

10

5

4

10 17

—

HEAD PLATE H

POW

P+S

4

14

MECHA FIST L

POW

P+S

4

14

MECHA FIST R

POW

P+S

4

14

DAMAGE

1

2

3

4

5

6

Once per round, when a friendly model is directly hit by a ranged attack during your opponent’s turn while L L M B R R within 2 of this model, L M M B B R you can choose to have this model directly hit instead. This model is FIELD ALLOWANCE U automatically hit POINT COST 6 and suffers all LARGE BASE damage and effects. This model cannot use Shield Guard if it is incorporeal, knocked down, or stationary.

HEAD PLATE Buckler This model can add this weapon’s POW to its head-butt and slam power attack damage rolls.

MECHA FIST Open Fist

it to perceive the world through a suite of new senses beyond anything as crude as sight or sound. In addition, the monstrosity’s reflexes are rewired. Autonomic responses that once helped the subject avoid pain instead compel it to hurl itself into the path of attacks meant for a cephalyx. When a warden suffers too much damage to easily repair, its makers discard it like a scalpel that has lost its edge.

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WRECKER MERCENARY CEPHALYX HEAVY MONSTROSITY Such purity of purpose is a sight to behold, repugnant as its form might be. —Axis, the Harmonic Enforcer

WRECKER

WRECKER SPD STR MAT RAT DEF ARM CMD

5

10

5

4

10 17

—

BALL & CHAIN L

POW

P+S

7

17

POW

P+S

7

17

Beat Back – Immediately after a normal attack with this weapon is resolved during this model’s combat action, the enemy model hit can be pushed 1 directly away from the attacking model. After the enemy model is pushed, the attacking model can advance up to 1 .

DAMAGE

1

2

3

4

5

6

L

L

M

B

R

R

L

M

M

B

B

R

FIELD ALLOWANCE POINT COST LARGE BASE

BALL & CHAIN Reach

BALL & CHAIN R

Eyeless Sight

U 7

If this model hits the same target with both its initial attacks with this weapon, after resolving the attacks it can immediately make one melee attack with this weapon against each model in its LOS that is in this weapon’s melee range.

This attack ignores the Buckler and Shield weapon qualities and Shield Wall.

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TACTICAL TIPS BEAT BACK – The attacking model can advance even if the enemy model is destroyed by the attack. CHAIN ATTACK: BLOODBATH – A model with a crippled weapon system cannot use it to make chain attacks or special attacks, including power attacks.

When a straightforward application of brute force is needed, the cephalyx turn to the wrecker, a monstrosity created to topple fortifications and mow through ranks of the toughest resistance an enemy can offer. Wreckers are purpose-built to deal punishing blows and do it well, especially when buttressed by an agitator. Whipping its two flail-like limbs at high speed, a wrecker carves through massed enemies and rips through the hulls of heavy warjacks. Everything within reach is flattened and torn apart by the cruel weapons it swings. Whirling blades are mounted in the reinforced heads of its flails, magnifying the damage dealt with each strike. The ear-splitting, highpitched shriek the blades produce when carving through heavy armor is enough to send weak-willed soldiers running, and the sight of a comrade crushed and ripped asunder by them causes even the stouthearted to tremble.

CEPHALYX MIND BENDER & DRUDGES MERCENARY UNIT

The mind is a weapon. Thought is sharper than any blade, more explosive than any ordnance. —Mind Bender Glaxosk

TACTICAL TIP MAGIC ABILITY – Performing a Magic Ability special action or special attack counts as casting a spell.

Some cephalyx cabals obsessively work at the leading edge of their particular field of cephalomek to refine their techniques. One such group, known as mind benders, focuses on pure psychic might. After reshaping their minds through augmentative surgery, mind benders are capable of unleashing mind-destroying waves of psychokinetic force through specially conditioned and modified drudges. They spur these drudges forward with psychic prods of alchemically supplemented adrenaline until the drudges stand among the enemy, then broadcast their power through their charges. Drudges used this way are burned out instantly, their minds rendered empty husks in a flash of blinding light. Mind benders hold a privileged position among the cephalyx. They possess greater mental strength than cephalyx of lesser castes, and their specialized work allows them the leisure to concentrate on projects of their own choosing. Except when the overlords call them to battle, they spend their lives within cloistered operating theaters, devoted to the development and refinement of their unique drudges, permitted to focus on their esoteric studies in endless pursuit of mental expansion.

Selective – This unit can be included only in Mercenary Contract armies that list Cephalyx as possible .

MIND BENDER SPD STR MAT RAT DEF ARM CMD

5

6

6

14 13

9

PROSTHETIC MANIPULATORS

MIND BENDER Fearless

4 POW

P+S

2

8

DRUDGE GRUNTS SPD STR MAT RAT DEF ARM CMD

5

8

5

2

11 15

4

BATTERING FISTS RNG 6. Target Drudge grunt gains 4 MAT and STR and can immediately advance 4 . Adrenal Flood lasts for one turn.

POW

P+S

4

12

OFFICER’S DAMAGE FIELD ALLOWANCE BENDER & 5 DRUDGE GRUNTS BENDER & 9 DRUDGE GRUNTS SMALL BASE

5 2 4 6

Center a 4 AOE on this model or a grunt the spell is channeled through. Other models in the AOE suffer a POW 12 magical damage roll. Psychic Assault is a RNG SP 8 magic attack. This attack ignores LOS. Models hit suffer a POW 12 damage roll. This model can channel spells through grunts in this unit that are in formation. When it does, you can choose up to two more of those grunts and cast the spell once through each, even if the channeler is engaged. Grunts in this unit that channel a spell this way are then removed from play. When this model is directly hit by an enemy ranged attack, you can choose to have one friendly, non-incorporeal Drudge Grunt model within 3 of this model directly hit instead. That model is automatically hit and suffers all damage and effects.

DRUDGE GRUNTS Eyeless Sight Fearless

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CEPHALYX DOMINATOR MERCENARY UNIT ATTACHMENT When the mercenaries turned on us it wasn’t treachery. I saw in their eyes they were unable to stop themselves. Their bodies were no longer their own. —Trencher Captain Maywell

DOMINATOR SPD STR MAT RAT DEF ARM CMD

6

6

6

4

14 13

9

PROSTHETIC BLADES POW

P+S

5

11

DAMAGE FIELD ALLOWANCE POINT COST SMALL BASE

5 1 1

This attachment can be added to a small- or medium-based nonCephalyx Mercenary unit. Selective – This unit attachment can be included only in Mercenary Contract armies that list Cephalyx as possible .

DOMINATOR

When this model’s melee damage roll fails to exceed the ARM of the living model hit, that model suffers 1 damage point. While this model is in play, models in its unit gain Fearless . While this model is in play, models in its unit gain Tough . Linchpin – When this model is destroyed or removed from play, other models in this unit lose Fearless for one round and immediately flee. This model is a Ranking Officer. While this model is in play, models in its unit are Mercenary Cephalyx models instead of Mercenary models. When this model is directly hit by an enemy ranged attack, you can choose to have one friendly, non-incorporeal model in this unit within 3 of this model directly hit instead. That model is automatically hit and suffers all damage and effects.

What the cephalyx covet, they will claim. When the hive becomes aware of individuals with exceptional talents they desire, shadowy figures called dominators emerge from beneath the earth to enthrall them. A dominator subdues its subject from a distance, skillfully peeling back any resistance like a surgeon laying open a chest cavity, until it can overpower the mind and hold it in bondage. Abducted into surgical complexes, these subjects endure a masterfully subtle application of cephalomek that preserves their inborn talents and outward appearance while utterly binding them to the dominator’s will. Dominators lead their enslaved warriors in missions on behalf of the hive. They are called upon to conduct covert raids for such purposes as gathering raw materials for the hive or confounding the enemy before a coordinated onslaught. The soldiers a dominator controls might unnoticed among their own kind until positioned where

84

they need to be, so they are used to penetrate slumbering cities or encamped armies. A dominator’s puppets perceive and understand what their cephalyx master compels them to do but have no power to resist. Instead they can only watch themselves strike at their slaver’s command, as if trapped in a violent and inescapable nightmare.

CEPHALYX AGITATOR MERCENARY SOLO

There is something to savor in the horror that floods their feeble minds as I force them to turn upon one another. —Agitator Helixor

TACTICAL TIP MAGIC ABILITY – Performing a Magic Ability special action or special attack counts as casting a spell.

Agitators are a subordinate caste of cephalyx who oversee the more mundane aspects of feeding, caring for, and maintaining control of monstrosities. Among the darkened tunnels of a cephalyx hive the agitators tend the packs of monstrosities in the service of their masters. They work closely with those responsible for the manufacture of monstrosities and drudges as aids and subordinate surgeons. The tasks they perform are seen as base but necessary by the upper echelon, and the agitators earn little

Selective – This model can be included only in Mercenary Contract armies that list Cephalyx as possible .

AGITATOR

SPD STR MAT RAT DEF ARM CMD

6

6

6

14 13

9

PROSTHETIC BLADES

AGITATOR Fearless

4 POW

P+S

5

11

DAMAGE FIELD ALLOWANCE POINT COST SMALL BASE

5 3 2

When this model’s melee damage roll fails to exceed the ARM of the living model hit, that model suffers 1 damage point.

Influence is a RNG 10 magic attack. Take control of target enemy non-warcaster, non-warlock warrior model hit. The model immediately makes one normal melee attack, then Influence expires. While within 5 of this model, friendly Drudge and Monstrosity models gain +2 on attack and damage rolls. Instigate lasts for one turn. Psychic Assault is a RNG SP 8 magic attack. This attack ignores LOS. Models hit suffer a POW 12 damage roll. When this model is directly hit by an enemy ranged attack, you can choose to have one friendly, non-incorporeal Monstrosity model within 3 of this model directly hit instead. That model is automatically hit and suffers all damage and effects.

esteem among their betters. Nevertheless, the monstrosities they ister to are critical tools for excavating new sections of the hive, hauling raw materials to operating bays, and serving as linchpins of the hive’s defense. Agitators shepherd monstrosities to where they are needed, supervise them in their labors, and control them in battle. The agitators excel at telepathically rousing monstrosities and drudges to combat readiness, blanketing areas with agitating mental energies. During battle, they drive nearby drudges and monstrosities to greater violence. Although these mental influences are highly successful, their effect is neither targeted nor refined. In time each agitator hopes to master more precise control over these mental powers and rise above its lowly station.

85

SWAMP GOBBER RIVER RAIDERS MERCENARY MINION PRIVATEER SEA DOG SOLO Don’t rush to judge ’em by their size, lads. I’ve seen ’em paint the deck with the guts of ogrun and men. —Bosun Balasar Grogspar

RAIDER SPD STR MAT RAT DEF ARM CMD

6

3

5

5

14 12

7

HARPOON PISTOL RNG ROF AOE POW

6

1

—

10

P+S

3

6

FIELD ALLOWANCE 3 RAIDERS SMALL BASE

These models will work for Circle, Skorne, and the Blindwater Congregation pact.

RAIDER

HAND WEAPON POW

Mercenaries – These models will work for Cryx.

3 2

This model gains an additional +2 DEF when benefiting from concealment or cover.

This model can make melee and ranged attacks during the same combat action. When this model makes its initial attacks, it can make both its initial ranged and melee attacks.

HARPOON PISTOL If this weapon hits a non-Incorporeal enemy model, this model can be placed B2B with that enemy model.

HAND WEAPON Weaken – A living model hit by this weapon suffers 2 STR and DEF for one round.

Although many gobbers have gained acceptance at the fringes of society, swamp gobbers have always held a particularly unsavory reputation, and those who serve as river raiders among the pirate crews that prey on western Immoren are no exception. With rusted hooks, axes, and swords, they hack into their enemies with a savagery common only to the wilds. For many gobbers, the laws of man hold little meaning, particularly where ownership is concerned. Most have a natural inclination to view the property of others as their own, another trait that makes a life of piracy appealing. Given their short stature, every scrap of respect gained from their fellow sea dogs must be earned, and it is with this in mind that only the most ruthless of swamp gobbers find themselves taking up piracy as a profession. With the ingenuity typical of their kind, swamp gobber river raiders possess a penchant for tinkering, often leading them to utilize unconventional weaponry when launching an assault on an unsuspecting ship. Most notable among these contraptions are the mechanized harpoon pistols with which they have become associated. The sight of a gobber raider piercing a man’s chest with such a weapon is bloody enough, but seeing that gobber then pull himself atop his victim and finish the poor man with hook or blade can make even the staunchest of pirates look on in a state of utter

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TACTICAL TIP CAMOUFLAGE – If a model ignores concealment or cover, it also ignores concealment or cover’s Camouflage bonus.

shock. Once in the fray, the quick reflexes and low profile of a gobber allow him to slip past incoming blows while hacking at shins and ankles, bringing opponents twice his size to their knees. Immoren’s rivers are plagued by piracy every bit as much as its seas. The Dragon’s Tongue and Black Rivers in particular host numerous raiders and pirate bands. Serving as major trade routes between and within nations, these waterways see hundreds of ships a day, many carrying expensive exports or military ordnance destined for one front or another. Such ships make appealing targets, especially when considering the diminished naval presence along the rivers. As with many of the pirate crews operating on the open seas, those combing the river for merchant vessels to plunder often call the port city of Five Fingers their home. Here river crews trade with seafaring crews through intermediaries, each side bartering for the equipment they need and the luxuries they desire. Gobbers in particular have a knack for such negotiations, especially when dealing with the sizable gobber population and the various bogrin gangs residing in Five Fingers, an attribute that has helped broaden their appeal among the river pirate crews. Given the constrained nature of river piracy, those committed to this line of work become intimately familiar with the lay of the swamps, tributaries, and backwaters available to them and prefer small, shallow-keeled boats capable of utilizing a variety of escape routes. Swamp gobbers are often recruited for their knowledge of these areas. Places such as the Bloodsmeath Marsh and Blindwater have proven themselves havens for river pirates seeking to evade capture. This has aligned many pirate crews with fringe groups inhabiting the area. In recent years, river pirates have even been rumored to have smuggled Cryxian forces from Five Fingers to the Thornwood, the full repercussions of which remain to be seen. Though such dealings are never done in the light of day and are rarely discussed between crews, many pirate bands continue to serve the Nightmare Empire when sufficient coin is offered.

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THE DEVIL’S SHADOW MUTINEERS MERCENARY PRIVATEER SEA DOG CHARACTER UNIT Dark dealings make for long shadows. —Fiona the Black

MAR SPD STR MAT RAT DEF ARM CMD

6

6

7

4

14 12

7

POW

P+S

3

9

MORLAND SPD STR MAT RAT DEF ARM CMD

7

7

4

14 12

7

PISTOL RNG ROF AOE POW

8

1

—

10

CUTLASS POW

P+S

4

11

ZIRA SPD STR MAT RAT DEF ARM CMD

6

6

4

7

14 12

7

PISTOL RNG ROF AOE POW

8

MAR Fearless

SABER

6

Mercenaries – These models will work for Cryx.

1

—

DAMAGE FIELD ALLOWANCE POINT COST SMALL BASE

10

5 EA C 4

When this model destroys a living enemy model with an attack, after the attack is resolved you can return one destroyed model in this unit to play. The model returns with five damage boxes, must be placed within 3 of this model, and cannot activate the turn it returns to play. The destroyed model is removed from play but does not provide a soul or corpse token. When this model makes a melee attack during its activation, its front arc extends to 360 , and it can make one melee attack against each model in its LOS that is in its melee range.

MORLAND Fearless See above.

Morland

Mar

ZIRA Eyeless Sight Fearless See above.

SABER

Zira

CUTLASS Make a melee attack. Instead of making a normal damage roll, the POW of the damage roll is equal to this model’s STR plus twice the POW of this weapon.

Black Penny – This attack ignores the firing into melee penalty.

88

TACTICAL TIP OFFICER – Because Mar is an Officer, when she is destroyed she does not replace Morland or Zira. Instead Morland or Zira becomes the unit commander.

Although details vary depending on the telling, the trio called the Devil’s Shadow Mutineers have inspired endless stories and rumors. Key elements remain the same A nefarious ship by the name of the e il s o , associated with both piracy and the slave trade, set out from Five Fingers into the uncharted Sea of a Thousand Souls and disappeared. No trace could be found; it was as if the ship had sailed off the face of Caen itself. A year later reports surfaced of a vessel matching the description of the e il s o preying on ships along the Broken Coast. One rumor claimed the crew had been hired to seek the homeland of the Orgoth, who cursed them to a life of madness. Some spoke of mutiny and murder while the vessel was becalmed hundreds of miles from shore. Whatever transpired, of the hundred souls who had crewed that ship, only three returned, each unhinged and changed. Before their disappearance, the three had been capable sailors but were otherwise thought unremarkable. Morland was a large man, more noteworthy for his temper than for his skill with a cutlass, but now he wields a pair of blades with deadly ease. His chest is pocked with the scars of gunshot wounds that would have killed an ordinary man. Zira, who was little more than a novice pistoleer and dabbler in the occult when she disappeared, is guided by unseen forces to deliver unerring shots despite the loss of her sight. Mar, previously disposed to lift the spirits of the crew through song, is now gripped by madness and a thirst for murder. Witnesses claim to have seen one or another of the three cut down only to watch them rise again, hungry for vengeance. Mar, Zira, and Morland frequent secluded establishments, sipping drinks they no longer taste. Their appearance—and that of the e il s o —always coincides with a storm. The trio disperse as quickly as the ill weather, staying only long enough to form contracts with desperate men. Their goals remain a mystery, and the three otherwise go wherever the ghostly winds send their cursed ship.

89

HAMMERFALL SIEGE CRAWLER MERCENARY RHULIC BATTLE ENGINE Nothing cracks a fortified position like Rhulic engineering. —Durgen Madhammer

SIEGE CRAWLER SPD STR MAT RAT DEF ARM CMD

5

15

6

6

9

20

10

QUAD CANNON —

10

1

—

12

RNG ROF AOE POW

12

1

4

15

SIEGEBREAKER R

RNG ROF AOE POW

12

1

4

15

BASH —

SIEGE CRAWLER

RNG ROF AOE POW

SIEGEBREAKER L

Mercenary – This model will work for Cygnar and Khador.

POW

P+S

0

15

DAMAGE FIELD ALLOWANCE POINT COST HUGE BASE

22 2 9

When this model advances into B2B with an enemy model during its activation, it can push that model up to 2 directly away from it. A model can be pushed by Bulldoze only once per activation. Bulldoze has no effect when this model makes a trample power attack. This model does not suffer blast damage. Friendly models B2B with it do not suffer blast damage.

This model can make melee and ranged attacks in the same activation. When this model makes its initial melee attacks or a power attack, it can also make its initial ranged attacks. This model can make ranged attacks even while in melee.

QUAD CANNON Make d3 + 1 ranged attacks targeting a primary target and any number of secondary targets within 2 of the first target. Ignore intervening models when declaring secondary targets. A secondary target cannot be targeted by more attacks than the primary target. Auto Fire counts as one attack for ROF.

SIEGEBREAKER Critical Stagger – On a critical hit, the model hit loses its initial attacks and cannot make special attacks for one round.

Embodying Hammerfall’s emphasis on impenetrable defenses backed by substantial firepower, the Hammerfall Siege Crawler paves the way for assaults on hard targets, making it one of the most effective and sought-after mobile artillery batteries in all of western Immoren. Devastating blasts from its guns make short work of walls and infantry alike. With a series of robust piston-driven legs to propel it forward, the Siege Crawler traverses the field at a slow but uncompromising pace that many defenders find unnerving, shrugging off both small arms and artillery fire with its thick armor plates. Rhulic forces advance behind these lumbering machines, using their armored bulk for protection as they move on fortified positions. The low rumble of its engines has become widely regarded as an ill omen for any beleaguered fortress on the wrong side of a mercenary contract.

90

TACTICAL TIPS AUTO FIRE – These attacks are simultaneous. Attacks against targets beyond this weapon’s range will automatically miss. CRITICAL STAGGER – that a model that cannot make special attacks cannot make power attacks.

The Siege Crawler represents one of the few Rhulic assets designed purely for military action. Initial concepts originated from far simpler machines employed in both small-scale demolition efforts and clan feuds dependent on siege weaponry. Seeing the potential for increased gains in mercenary work abroad, Great Clan Dhurg suggested outfitting existing mercenary corps with similar machinery, granting them access to heavy artillery generally associated with warjacks without the costs associated with cortex production. To this end, engineers of the clan set out to fashion a mobile firing platform worthy of the reputation maintained by mercenaries at Hammerfall under the clan’s employ. With financial backing from Great Clan Orm and the heavy steamjack foundry of Great Clan Uldar, the concept came to fruition in short order. Every Siege Crawler is crewed by a team of six dwarves, each a veteran soldier who has been specifically trained for this work, which requires some expertise in engineering as well as in gunnery. The machine’s captain takes up the spotter’s position at the uppermost hatch and calls out orders to his crew. The crawler’s weapons are manned by three gunners stationed inside its armored hull. A single loader rotates between the three firing stations to ensure a constant stream of ammunition, occasionally taking time to stoke the furnace. The final member of the crew, a dedicated engineer, alternates between adjusting complex s of levers and dials controlling the machine’s movement and operating the various steam vents that allow for its sustained functionality. In order for a Siege Crawler to operate at full efficiency, such teams must act in concert, requiring extensive drills before they ever see combat. Despite the considerable investment required to prepare these dwarves, their ability to lay low the walls of fortifications with minimal losses has garnered them a favorable reputation among employers with deep pockets.

91

MODEL GALLERY

DENEGHRA, THE SOUL WEAVER Cryx Epic Cavalry Battle Engine Warcaster

92

DYNAMO

MOROS

Cygnar Character Heavy Warjack

Retribution Character Light Myrmidon

93

SEPULCHER Cryx Colossal

94

THE DEVIL’S SHADOW MUTINEERS Mercenary Privateer Sea Dog Character Unit

95

PAINTING GUIDE DENEGHRA, THE SOUL WEAVER CRYX BANE The initial work on this armor is done using the airbrush. An airbrush allows you to quickly lay down colors to get a feel for the lighting situation of the model, which will inform later decisions about where to place shading and highlights with your brush. For the Cryx Bane armor plates, work from dark to light. Step 1) Coat each armor plate with a solid layer of Cryx Bane Base mixed with a lot of Blue Ink and Brown Ink. The inks help darken the color to a rich green-black. Step 2) Apply a mixture of Thornwood Green and Cryx Bane Base. Be sure to leave plenty of the dark paint from step 1 visible in areas where shadows would accumulate.

Step 3) Make a mixture of Cryx Bane Base, Thornwood Green, and Cryx Bane Highlight and apply this as the next layer. For each successive layer, cover less of the model’s surface in order to create a gradient between the shadows and the highlights. Step 4) Apply a layer of pure Cryx Bane Highlight. Step 5) Mix Cryx Bane Highlight and Thrall Flesh and apply it sparingly to the areas where light would be the most concentrated, such as the uppermost portions of the armor plates near the top of the model.

Cryx Bane Base

Thornwood Green

Blue Ink

Cryx Bane Highlight

Brown Ink

96

1

2

4

5

3

STRIPS OF SKIN The strips of skin that stretch between the bones of the wyrm’s wings and wrap its body are also done with an initial layer of airbrushing. Step 1) Using the airbrush, basecoat the strips with a layer of Battlefield Brown and Hammerfall Khaki.

Ordic Olive Hammerfall Khaki

Beaten Purple

Thrall Flesh

1

2

Step 2) Using the airbrush, apply a zenithal highlight of pure Thrall Flesh. Step 3) Using a paintbrush, add some highlights of Thrall Flesh. These will stand out on the airbrushed Thrall Flesh you applied in step 2 because the airbrush requires much thinner paint, changing the color and coverage slightly. Step 4) Using a paintbrush, shade the wings with a 1:1 mixture of Ordic Olive and Beaten Purple. Apply this thinly over most of the surface to tint the strips of skin, but apply it thickly where shadows would concentrate.

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ARMOR PLATES Once the armor is airbrushed, return to the armor plates with a paintbrush to smooth the blends and add even more contrast. Use very thin paint to keep from completely covering the airbrush work, applying glazes in the following steps. (Airbrush the strips of skin before you do this brush work, as airbrushing can be somewhat imprecise.) Step 1) Shade the armor plates with a mixture of Cryx Bane Base and Brown Ink.

Cryx Bane Base

Brown Ink

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Step 2) Add additional Brown Ink and some Green Ink to the mixture used in step 1 and apply this as a second shade to the deepest recessed areas of the armor plates. This mixture should be fairly dark. Step 3) Reapply sparing highlights of Cryx Bane Highlight with the paintbrush. The paintbrush allows for greater control, which enables you to be more exact with your highlights than is possible using the airbrush.

Green Ink

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PAINTING GUIDE BLIGHTED GOLD Step 1) Prepare a mixture of two parts Blighted Gold, one part Thornwood Green, and a drop of Brown Ink. Use this to basecoat the gold trim. Step 2) Shade the trim with Thornwood Green and Cryx Bane Base.

Blighted Gold

Step 3) Mix Cryx Bane Base, Brown Ink, and Green Ink and use that to apply a second shade to the portions of the trim that would lie in the deepest shadows. Step 4) Highlight the trim using a 2:1 mixture of Blighted Gold and Solid Gold. Step 5) Add a sparing highlight of Solid Gold and Radiant Platinum.

Thornwood Green Brown Ink Cryx Bane Base Green Ink Solid Gold Radiant Platinum

3 WYRM FLESH Step 1) Basecoat the wyrm flesh with Menoth White Base. Step 2) Shade the flesh with a mixture of Menoth White Base and Sanguine Base.

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Menoth White Base Sanguine Base Exile Blue

Step 3) Add Exile Blue to the mixture used in step 2 and apply this color to the deepest shadows of the flesh.

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BLIGHTED STEEL Step 1) Basecoat the steel areas of the model with Cold Steel. Step 2) Shade the steel with Cryx Bane Base plus one drop each of Green Ink and Brown Ink. Step 3) For the darkest shading, make a mixture of three parts Turquoise Ink, three parts Brown Ink, two parts Cryx Bane Base, and one part Thamar Black.

Cold Steel

Brown Ink

Cryx Bane Base

Turquoise Ink

Green Ink

Thamar Black

Step 4) Using Cold Steel, add highlights by going back over some of the area you have painted.

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CRYX GLOW Step 1) Basecoat the glowing areas with Menoth White Highlight.

Step 4) Add a single drop of Green Ink to Yellow Ink and use this to glaze the Menoth White Highlight line from step 3.

Step 2) Create a glaze by mixing Green Ink and Yellow Ink and apply this to the glowing areas.

Step 5) Do one last sparing application of Menoth White Highlight to represent the hottest, centermost portion of each glowing area.

Step 3) Apply a line of Menoth White Highlight down the center of each glowing area.

Menoth White Highlight Green Ink Yellow Ink

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PAINTING GUIDE DENEGHRA FLESH Step 1) Basecoat the flesh with a mixture of four parts Thrall Flesh, four parts Frostbite, and one part Beaten Purple.

Step 4) Apply a final shade of Exile Blue and Sanguine Base as thin lines between the flesh and the other parts of the model.

Step 2) Add Sanguine Base to the basecoat color from step 1 and use this for the first shading.

Step 5) Using the basecoat color from step 1 plus Morrow White, add highlights.

Step 3) Add Exile Blue to the basecoat color from step 1 and use this for the second shading.

Thrall Flesh Frostbite Beaten Purple Sanguine Base Exile Blue Morrow White

3 BLACK LEATHER Step 1) Basecoat Deneghra’s black leather with Thamar Black. Step 2) Apply a highlight of Coal Black, leaving half the Thamar Black from step 1 showing in the shadowed areas.

Thamar Black

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Step 3) Apply a second highlight using Underbelly Blue and Coal Black. Step 4) Add some Cryx Bane Highlight to the mixture from step 3 and use this for the final highlights. Be sparing with these.

Coal Black

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Underbelly Blue

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Cryx Bane Highlight

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SADDLE LEATHER Step 1) Basecoat the saddle with Idrian Flesh. Step 2) Apply highlights with a mixture of Idrian Flesh and Menoth White Base. Step 3) Shade over the top of the area with a thin mixture of Idrian Flesh and Brown Ink. Step 4) Use a mixture of Coal Black and Brown Ink for the final shading.

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Idrian Flesh Menoth White Base Brown Ink Coal Black

BONE Step 1) Basecoat the bone areas with Menoth White Base. Step 2) Apply shading with Cryx Bane Highlight. Step 3) Shade further with a mix of Bastion Grey and Battlefield Brown. Step 4) Highlight with Menoth White Highlight.

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Menoth White Base Cryx Bane Highlight Bastion Grey

Menoth White Highlight

WYRM TEETH Step 1) Basecoat the teeth with a mixture of Coal Black and Brown Ink and highlight with a thin line of Cryx Bane Highlight. Step 2) Add a glinting reflection of Menoth White Highlight to each line of Cryx Bane Highlight.

Coal Black

Brown Ink

Cryx Bane Highlight

Menoth White Highlight

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PAINTING GUIDE WYRM TONGUE Step 1) Basecoat the tongue with Midlund Flesh and Carnal Pink. Step 2) Apply a thinned highlight of Menoth White Highlight. Then mix Midlund Flesh and Coal Black and use this to apply spots to the base of the tongue.

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Step 3) Glaze the whole tongue with Murderous Magenta and Red Ink, concentrating the mixture toward the base of the tongue and making sure it is translucent enough that the spots show through. Step 4) Apply a second shade with a thin glaze of Bastion Grey plus a drop of Blue Ink. This will tone down the color and give the whole tongue a sickly appearance.

Midlund Flesh Carnal Pink Menoth White Highlight Coal Black

Murderous Magenta

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Red Ink Bastion Grey Blue Ink

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MOROS Moros’ glossy black armor presents significant challenges even for experienced painters. You can see here the method the studio used to paint this unique character warjack. Step 1) Basecoat the model with Thamar Black and Cold Steel. Step 2) Shade the metal portions of the model with a mixture of Ironhull Grey, Beaten Purple, and Coal Black. Step 3) Apply a mixture of Meredius Blue and Thrall Flesh to the glowing channels.

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Step 4) Add delicate, glinting highlights to the glowing channels with Menoth White Highlight. Step 5) Clean up the shiny black armor with Thamar Black. Then use a mixture of Coal Black, Exile Blue, and Thamar Black for highlighting. This mixture will be the base for the highlight colors used in the next several steps, with more and more Menoth White Highlight added as you proceed. Step 6) Add Menoth White Highlight to the highlighting mixture from step 5 and begin blending highlights onto the black areas.

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Step 7) Add more Menoth White Highlight to the mixture from step 6 and use this to refine the highlights.

Step 10) Basecoat the blades with Quick Silver. Add shading with a mixture of Meredius Blue and Ironhull Grey.

Step 8) Add enough Menoth White Highlight to the mixture from step 7 to make a mixture that is mostly Menoth White Highlight. Use this to apply delicate highlights.

Step 11) Use a mixture of Meredius Blue and Greatcoat Grey to apply additional shading to the blades.

Step 9) Finish the black areas with tiny dots and lines of Morrow White to give the impression of bright reflections.

Step 12) Coat the model with matte varnish and allow to dry completely before highlighting the metal areas. Use Cold Steel to highlight the darker metal and Quicksilver to highlight the blades.

Thamar Black

Beaten Purple

Thrall Flesh

Morrow White

Cold Steel

Coal Black

Menoth White Highlight

Quick Silver

Ironhull Grey

Meridius Blue

Exile Blue

Greatcoat Grey

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DEEPER OBLIGATIONS PART TWO THE THORNWOOD

“This is beyond anything I have seen before, brother,” said Sid Norvor to his fellow paladin Anson Durst. Durst grunted affirmation. After a pause he said, “Strange that we will soon battle alongside unbelievers who invaded Sul.” Both of the Order of the Wall had only just ed the Northern Crusade. They had been diverted midway through their trip to the Llaelese city of Leryn, sent instead to meet with Intercessor Kreoss, who was already marching south into the Thornwood. Other than the sigil identifying their order, the two paladins were very different. Durst was by far the larger of the two. Impressive as Norvor was in his ancient blessed armor, Anson Durst was a giant among men. He was a full head taller and considerably wider, outweighing the other man by more than a hundred pounds. His heavy armor was of a more modern style, recently forged by the Sul-Menite Artificers and equipped with the arcane turbine that marked him as a warcaster. Their weapons displayed a similar disparity— Norvor wielded a traditional firebrand ed down from antiquity, while Durst’s mechanikal weapon Recompense had been forged for war only recently. The warcaster paladin found it difficult to think amid the chaos of the battle sprawled across the perimeter of the darkened valley below. Dozens of skirmishes were raging around the great Cryxian fortress, which seethed with unholy power. The sky above pulsed unnaturally with strange, churning storm clouds, while lightning flickered below, adding pale flashes within the green surges of necromantic energy. The Khadorans had situated mortars along the hilltops surrounding the valley and were lobbing shells down into areas where the Cryxians were concentrated. Occasionally these blasts fell perilously close to their own soldiers. Closer to the center the undead enemies were protected by a variety of bulwarks and barricades, and the ground was riddled with trench-like chasms that facilitated Cryxian troop movements. Both thralls and cephalyx drudges emerged periodically from these gashes to rush the nearest attackers. Durst understood that such defensive fighting was counter to Cryx’s usual tactics, but their position seemed strong. Both the Khadoran and Cygnaran armies were keeping their distance, preferring to deal damage at range, and it seemed as though the incoming fire was doing little except further rending the already ravaged valley. When word had come to Durst that he was called to the Northern Crusade, he had initially been troubled. Countless

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civilians had seen their lives destroyed in Llael, and the Northern Crusade had played a part in that. His order taught that there were innocents even among unbelievers; such people deserved protection, not persecution. Llael was no place for a simple man, a soldier of the faith, as Anson viewed himself. The world and its moral ambiguity had become difficult for of his order. Perhaps that was why they were so few. They called him the Rock of Faith, an epithet that made him uncomfortable. He had been content to be just a paladin, no more. He had been blessed with strength, fortitude, and skill at arms. He had not hoped for other gifts, but Menoth had a different plan. The recent emergence of his warcaster talent had forced him to accept new responsibilities. It had changed his place both in his order and among his brothers. After the order to Kreoss reached him, he had sought out Grand Paladin Trenton Bouridor for advice. It was unclear to him how he could serve the theocracy’s military leaders and yet uphold his vows. The venerable leader of their order had exhorted him to remain true to his code and his faith above all else. He was not an exemplar—the priests and scrutators must be respected, but his soul belonged to Menoth, and it was to Menoth he would ultimately answer. He was now ed with an unlikely alliance between formerly embittered armies working together against a profane foe. Providence had placed him where he needed to be, for which he prayed thanks to the Creator. Other than the faithful, their army included a host of Umbrean horsemen and heavy infantry loyal to Khador’s Great Prince Tzepesci. Yet this blended army did not march with perfect solidarity. Durst had heard rumors of heated words between Tzepesci and the hierarch regarding plans for the engagement. Tensions were high between the Khadorans and the people of the crusade, and each kept to their own camps. It was difficult to imagine how they would fight together, even without considering the Cygnarans they would soon be ing. Compared to the greater army, Durst led a relatively small force. The infantry under his command were divided between Temple Flameguard and Knights Exemplar, including several squads of cinerators and thirty knights errant. When he had received his orders Durst had been bringing fresh warjacks to the Northern Crusade from Sul, and so he retained a large battlegroup. Most were light warjacks, including Vigilants and Devouts, but looming over these were a pair of formidable Indictors gripping swords and shields as tall as a man. The powerful blessings on these warjacks allowed them to negate unholy magics employed against them or nearby, and Durst was glad to have them on this assault, given Cryx’s methods.

His eye was drawn to sudden activity amid the armies below. Smoke and distance partially obscured his view, but he could discern the advance of heavy Khadoran warjacks on the far side of the valley. Closer to them a contingent of storm knights in Cygnaran blue was also on the move, together with numerous warjacks lit by galvanic coils. These forces pushed inward against the necrofactorium, summoning bright flashes of lightning as the clouds surged overhead in response to the call for storm. Durst lifted Recompense and shouted, “Stand ready to advance! March on my order!” His voice rang, and his orders were repeated by his immediate subordinates Seneschal Horrus, who led his knights, and Preceptor Manter, in charge of his Flameguard. He mentally directed his light warjacks in of the phalanxes, each machine ready to interpose itself and accept harm intended for the men. The engines of his Indictors rumbled in readiness. Their postures reflected Durst’s own eagerness to engage. His men were similarly poised, weapons readied, and he knew that the heart of every soldier pounded with the anticipation of battle. He muttered a quick prayer. Feeling taut as a bowstring he turned to watch Intercessor Kreoss atop his steed, his lance in resting position. The intercessor was not far from Hierarch Severius. The warjacks accompanying them stood before thousands of Sul-Menite soldiers. Vladimir Tzepesci also rode with them, apart from the rest of his Umbreans, who were fanned out on the hillside beyond the opening into the valley. The three leaders surveyed the scene before them, and every soldier awaited their commands. Tzepesci’s steed stomped impatiently, and the great prince’s posture was agitated as he pointed sharply down to the valley. Hierarch Severius stood still as a statue. Looking back to the valley, Durst saw that the Cygnaran force had driven deep into the Cryxians but was uned by the rest of the army. Most of their soldiers advanced only far enough to fire at extreme rifle range. Several Defenders had been similarly positioned. “What are they doing?” Norvor asked. The warcaster frowned and shook his head, not understanding the strategy. This was not the full engagement he had expected. It was as though Cygnar and Khador had each decided to send a single isolated and inadequate force against the greater foe. The Cryxians were reacting like ants whose nest had been threatened. Hundreds of thralls surged forth, together with numerous necrotite-fueled ’jacks. It seemed highly likely they would encircle the Cygnaran knights and cut them down. Those knights appeared to be pushing for a specific objective. A flare went up near the rear ranks and Durst saw some of the officers fighting below turn their way, as if expectantly.

Durst had not been privy to the plans—that was a matter left to the intercessor, the hierarch, and the great prince— but it seemed clear the signal was intended for them. Kreoss adjusted his posture on his steed but awaited the word of the hierarch, who was unmoving. At last, the agitated great prince raised his spear high above his head and made a circling motion as he spurred his mount to re his soldiers. He turned to charge down the hill at the enemy. The Umbreans followed close behind, cavalry at the fore. Still the Northern Crusade held back. Watching the charge of the Umbreans, Durst felt torn, for they seemed far too few to matter against the great Cryxian horde. Already the Cygnaran vanguard was encircled, their forward momentum halted as they engaged the enemy. The Umbreans would experience the same fate. Hierarch Severius must have a plan, but every instinct in Durst’s being insisted they should attack. Squinting toward the battlefield below, he saw the talon-like outer spires connected to the central necrofactorium light with green balefire. Flames licked out and obliterated the nearest living soldiers. He could see ghostly tormented phantoms as the souls of the fallen left their bodies to be swept up by the spires. He felt his stomach churn—those who fell on that field might lose their immortal souls. They would not to Urcaen.

FLAMES LICKED OUT AND OBLITERATED THE NEAREST LIVING SOLDIERS.

“By the Creator, this is not just,” he said. The words of Grand Paladin Bouridor echoed in his mind, and he considered the paladin code. Yes, those soldiers were unbelievers, but they all shared a united cause; it was Cryx that was the foe here. He could not stand by and do nothing. He was in motion before he had consciously decided to act. “With me! Advance!” he shouted, sending his Indictors running at full tilt down the hillside. Soon the Flameguard and exemplars were rushing alongside him. So few of us, he thought, but he was willing to die doing what must be done. Runes surrounded him as he gathered his power, praying to Menoth to shield his men. Holy sigils erupted around each of his warjacks, delivering a blessing of protection to each of them. He shouted his battle cry and ran forward to obliterate what Cryxians they could reach.

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DEEPER OBLIGATIONS, PART TWO

Intercessor Kreoss gripped his reins but maintained his composure as he saw the signal flare, then watched the Umbreans follow Vladimir in his charge on the right. Not long thereafter Anson Durst’s small force rushed down from the hill to his left, acting on the paladin’s own initiative. They had considerable ground to cross before they would catch up with the embattled Cygnarans, but then the foe would consume them. He looked to Hierarch Severius, who was staring straight ahead through his scrutator mask. Kreoss moved his horse closer to the leader of the Protectorate so he could speak without his voice carrying. “Hierarch, that was the agreed-upon signal. Should I give the order to engage?” He was aware of his own impertinence. Whatever the symbolic nature of his new rank, so long as Severius was here, the crusade was his. It was Kreoss’ duty to obey. The hierarch seemed unconcerned but after a pause answered calmly, “We will not needlessly sacrifice the lives of the faithful to rescue a few godless Cygnarans from their own folly.”

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“I understand, Your Holiness,” Kreoss replied. He was considering the earnestness of Paladin Durst and the credit the man was to the faith. He knew how little Severius cared for the Order of the Wall. “Yet we consented to travel here, to fight this foe.” “And so we shall.” A hint of annoyance crept into Severius’ voice. “On of my choosing, not that of a Khadoran great prince, much less their arrogant supreme kommandant. We are not figures on his game board. He withholds his army, hoping the faithful will suffer in their stead. I think not.” “By your will,” Kreoss said. He watched as Durst and his small group of men crashed into the Cryxians and were swallowed by the dark mass of bane thralls. Above the shadowy forms he saw Protectorate warjacks battling on. Golden runes of invoked holy power seemed pale and insubstantial against the brighter green of the surrounding balefire. After a moment he said, “I fear for Paladin Durst. I will reprimand him for his impulsiveness, if he lives. It would be unfortunate to lose a man of his prowess so soon after ing our crusade.” It was as far as he could go, to remind the hierarch it was a warcaster

they watched go to his death. They did not have so many they could throw one away. They both watched in silence as the battle intensified. The Umbreans managed to break through the Cryxians to reach Durst’s force, but the Cygnaran storm contingent was suffering heavy casualties. The necrofactorium’s spires pulsed in response to each death like an erratic heartbeat. After a protracted pause, Hierarch Severius inclined his head, giving Kreoss his leave to act. The intercessor immediately raised his lance to signal his knights and spurred his horse forward. His warjacks were already in motion and the entire crusade followed his lead. They charged toward the shadows surrounding the Rock of the Faith.

Lord General Stryker cursed as their advance stalled in a quagmire of muddy ground and Cryxian resistance. Balefire seared through his army, dropping knights one after another. They retaliated with blade, lance, and lightning, but every thrall or drudge they took down was replaced by two more. He felt a surge of dread at the sound of a Khadoran hunting horn rising above the clamor of combat from the south. That was their signal to hit their objective with all the voltaic energy they could muster, but they were still too far away. “Where are the Menites?” he asked under his breath as he spurred his horse forward, aiming uicksilver to fire another electrical burst into the approaching foes. He knew the answer. They had arrived, but they stood atop the northern hills to watch as their old enemies were cut down. Had their agreement with the Khadorans been made solely so they could exploit these circumstances? With the threat of Cryx so clear, such a decision seemed impossible, even for a man with fire instead of blood in his veins like Severius. Stryker’s goal was visible ahead—a centrally positioned spire amid the outer defenses Irusk had indicated they should smite with lightning. Bloat thralls had come forth from the bowels of the central necrofactorium to fire corrosive blasts into the front lines, while smaller bile thralls surged forward heedless of survival. Most were annihilated in flashes of lightning, but some few got close enough to explode into acidic sludge that melted flesh and bone to leave puddles of steaming gore in the mud. The knights had been ordered to protect the stormsmith stormcallers in particular. At the center of his force moved a trio of Storm Striders, but one was washed in balefire, with a single surviving operator desperately throwing the levers of its controls. It wobbled on its legs.

Swift-moving soulhunters raced to engage his cavalry while banes emerged from the shadowy darkness to assail his knights as they advanced on foot. Stryker frantically directed his warjacks into position to allow them to endure the brunt of the assault, trying to maintain some forward momentum. His Centurions were helping hold the front, and those knights nearest his Stormclads were weathering the Cryxian counterassault better than the rest. Flying bonejacks picked at the edges of his force, both Scavengers and Shrikes, the latter sweeping through exposed groups of men with bladed wings, leaving a trail of dead and maimed soldiers behind. He would have given half his force to have Haley at his side, up and healthy again. But that was not to be. In addition Sloan was still missing in action, as was Brisbane, and Kraye was not back to full strength after his recent injuries. The war had taken a bitter toll. Nemo and Darius were directing forces behind him, ready to advance when he succeeded. Perhaps he should not have kept so much in reserve. At last there was movement from the northern hills, among the gold and white of Sul-Menites. He had to restrain an instinctive and almost visceral reaction to the sight of those colors on his flank. He narrowed his eyes when he saw it was only a small force led by a broad-shouldered warcaster whose shield bore the mark of the Order of the Wall. This group threw itself against the Cryxians surrounding the Cygnarans. Stryker shouted encouragement to his officers and adjusted their tactics to take advantage of this new . Faster than he would have expected, the Menites broke through the Cryxians and closed on their goal. “Now! Strike!” he yelled. A torrent of voltaic energy exploded across the intervening space to crash repeatedly against the conduit spire, twisting metal and shattering stone. The onslaught was less than Stryker had planned; two of the Storm Striders had been neutralized and the ranks of the stormcallers were thinned. Still, the spire crumbled and fell. For a moment they felt renewed hope as the green glow of the Cryxian defenses dimmed, but after a few seconds the spires surged back to full strength, unleashing renewed torrents of necromantic energy and siphoning the souls of the slain. Either the attack had been too small or they had delivered it too late, their efforts not following close enough to those of the Khadorans. Stryker felt growing rage at the thought of spending so many lives to reach this point only to fail. He shouted, “Pull back!” They would have to fight back to the main line, where the rest of the army was providing what cover fire they could. He saw that the Protectorate army was moving at last, the bulk of it marching with no particular haste. His eyes narrowed. The zealots had damned them.

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DEEPER OBLIGATIONS, PART TWO The paladin of the Order of the Wall had fought through to reach them, his own force torn up and tattered, several of his warjacks destroyed. Across the field of battle the two warcasters exchanged a look and Stryker inclined his head. There, at least, stood one worthy Menite. In the other direction the Umbreans had helped close up their flank, which might allow them to retreat. “Recover what fallen you can!” Stryker ordered. It was too little, too late. They had achieved their objective— but to no effect. With the necrofactorium at full strength and feasting on fresh souls, he wondered if they should call a general retreat. The confluence of circumstances that had brought three armies to the field today might never happen again. He gritted his teeth and looked for Nemo’s lightninglimned form. They had a hard decision to make.

The warjack to which Kommander Karchev’s body was crudely affixed was a poor substitute for the battle frame he was used to. He allowed himself a rare moment of reflection as he stretched his borrowed limbs for the first time since his capture at Point Bourne by the foul wraith witch Deneghra. The mere thought of the Cryxian’s name flooded his mind with rage. He would see her undead flesh broken and crushed beneath his iron fist. She should have killed him when she had the chance. “Karchev?” Strakhov’s voice sounded distant to his ears, but his fellow warcaster’s disregard for military etiquette by omitting his rank pulled him from his thoughts. “Yes, Kommander?” Karchev said. “Are you experiencing any issues with your systems?” Strakhov asked. The one named Alexi had jury-rigged his life systems to the warjack’s boiler, creating a hodge-podge of tubing, conduits, and cables. Though the mechanik had managed to make the systems work, Karchev could acutely feel that they were operating at well below optimal levels. He was pragmatic enough to know the small miracle the crippled mechanik had achieved given the circumstances, though. He said, “Nothing I cannot endure.” “Are you sure?” Strakhov nodded his head toward the warjack’s left arm that cradled Karchev’s life-sustaining shell against its torso. Growling with effort, he craned his head to follow the kommander’s gaze and saw that the warjack’s hand and torso were scorched black where they held him, burned by arcane spillover from his anger.

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“I am Khadoran,” Karchev said. He leveled a stare at Strakhov until the other warcaster turned and continued on. When his two companions were no longer looking, Karchev silently reprimanded himself for his lack of self-control. His power had been kept suppressed by the Cryxians for so long he was finding it difficult to maintain restraint. It did not help that the cortex Strakhov had managed to salvage required constant guidance. The sensation of controlling the damaged warjack to govern his movements was entirely different from how he had controlled his own chassis frame. The process required some acclimation, and his mind was fogged. He felt like a man who had been bedridden for years being forced to run on withered legs. The muted sounds of battle overhead kept up an unsteady rhythm as they moved through the Cryxian base, becoming louder as the group moved toward the surface. More than a century of military experience allowed Karchev to see the battle in his mind. It was clear the allied forces were making a push. The thought of his comrades leading the charge without him ignited renewed frustration in his core. He had been helpless as he listened to the last battle, vicariously experiencing the defeat of those who had fought and bled to reach him. His lifelong desire to crush the enemies of the Motherland was intensified by a burning desire for revenge. By the way Strakhov tilted his head, it was clear he, too, was mentally playing out the battle above. ust as they entered a relatively large chamber dominated by strange machinery, a loud explosion shook the complex. Karchev watched with interest as the great churning and interlocking gears taking up most of the cavernous chamber ground to a halt. The green lights illuminating the chamber then flickered and died, leaving them in utter darkness. “What’s happened?” Alexi whispered. “It would appear Irusk has made his play,” Strakhov responded. After several seconds they felt a vibration through the floor. The lights restored themselves, and a tortured screech of machinery filled the chamber as the oversized gears and pistons began to churn again. “Whatever his plan, it has failed,” Strakhov said. He turned to Karchev. “We must move quickly, Kommander. Our escape window narrows.” Karchev ignored him, instead focusing on the huge machinery. “No,” he said at last. “We must assist our comrades.” “How?” Strakhov asked incredulously. “We hurt the enemy however we can.” Karchev locked his steely gaze with Strakhov’s. “Get clear of this place. I will catch up with you if I am able.”

“Kommander, you can’t possibly hope to do any significant damage here . . . .” Strakhov’s words died in his throat. Already the air about Karchev radiated with extreme heat. Concentric rings of runes blazed and crackled with building energy, expanding from the older warcaster. “Go. Now!” Karchev said through gritted teeth. He commanded the warjack to take him closer to the heart of the Cryxian machinery without bothering to see if Strakhov followed his orders. Instead he focused on the anger building within him. Piece by piece he let go of mental barriers and restraints he had put in place over the years. Memories flooded him. The anguish of defeat at the Battle of the Tongue in the First Thornwood War—the rage he felt when the High Kommand had judged him unfit for duty—the torment he had endured at the hands of the wraith witch. Power white-hot and burning consumed him, taking away every memory, every conscious thought of regret, pain, or failure. Only rage remained.

of his own exploits around the campfire, and many far exceeded the original deeds. Surveying the destruction Karchev had unleashed here, Strakhov was forced to it that perhaps the legends did not go far enough. The entire chamber was scorched black from the tremendous arcane blast. The gigantic machinery had been completely destroyed, its oversized pieces wrenched apart and scattered into piles of twisted, smoldering scrap. Strakhov’s expression was stony. He could not begin to confront the likelihood of Karchev’s current state. The kommander had not even had the protection of a power field. He survived a century ago, Strakhov told himself. He’ll survive this time. He felt a swell of relief when he saw the hulking form of the cobbled-together warjack, its red armor now mostly blackened steel. Despite the superficial damage it was still standing, heavy smoke pouring from its stacks. More importantly, it still cradled the kommander. Strakhov strained to push

Unlike at the Dragon’s Tongue all those decades ago, he did not let the power utterly consume him. Instead he focused it, compressed it, enslaved it to his will. The pain of trying to control it was like nothing he had ever felt before. Karchev felt as if his entire body were being burned to ash. His skin blistered and peeled as the power within him reached a critical point. He poured every last scrap of what it was to be Alexander Karchev into the impending detonation. The effort of concentrating so much energy into an impossibly small space was like trying to squeeze a stone into dust by will alone. Karchev released a great howl as the energy reached critical mass and then catalyzed, violently expanding outward in the blink of an eye. With a shriek of tortured and shredded metal, the Cryxian machinery ripped apart and the entire room was consumed in one final cataclysmic explosion.

Alone, Strakhov carefully picked his way back through the rubble of the tunnel just beyond the chamber where he had left Karchev to strike his blow against the Cryxians. While he respected and ired the kommander, Strakhov had always thought the legend of his final moments in the First Thornwood War had been embellished in frequent retelling. He knew infantrymen told tales

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DEEPER OBLIGATIONS, PART TWO aside several pieces of rubble as he called out, “Kommander! Kommander Karchev!”

warcaster seemed frail, his breath coming in slow, ragged gasps. His face was pallid and his complexion almost a blue-grey.

“I told you I would . . . catch up.” Karchev chided. His voice was still hard, but his words came slowly and with pauses for breath. A cursory examination revealed why. Much of the machinery that had connected Karchev’s shell to the warjack’s boiler hung in tatters. Strakhov was disturbed to see fluids leaking from rents in Karchev’s armored torso—one oily black, another like clouded water ed by the distinct color of blood.

When they emerged to the surface, Strakhov was so focused on getting Karchev back to Khadoran lines that he did not even pause to savor the taste of fresh air—albeit fresh air tinged with smoke and newly spilled blood. It was not until he ed the sight of white- and gold-armored Menites that Strakhov paused to take in the larger battle.

Ignoring the reprimand, Strakhov asked, “How bad is the damage?” “Nothing to dwell on,” Karchev said flatly. “Where is . . . the mechanik?” Strakhov shook his head. If Karchev felt any remorse over Alexi’s death, he made no outward sign. Not that Strakhov believed by the look of the damage that the mechanik could have done much to help Karchev now. Strakhov needed to get the kommander back to friendly territory. “Can you move?” Strakhov asked. Strakhov saw the warjack’s eyes flare as Karchev connected with the machine’s cortex to assess its capabilities. “The systems function . . . but my pace will be slow.” “I can assist with that.” Strakhov summoned runes to help empower the ’jack.

LIGHTNING SPLIT THE SKIES WITH THUNDER INDISTINGUISHABLE FROM THE ROAR OF KHADORAN HEAVY GUNS.

The pair made their way to the surface as quickly as the damaged ’jack would allow. Thankfully they managed to avoid any significant Cryxian forces. Strakhov assumed that the vast majority of the undead were already engaged in the surface battle, which, by the sounds of it, had intensified. He was for a moment overwhelmed with the noise that had previously been muffled. Lightning split the skies with thunder indistinguishable from the roar of Khadoran heavy guns while the sound of steel upon steel rang beneath it all. He wondered if the destruction wrought by Karchev had been of use; he could not help but feel some optimism, hoping they had bought those embattled some advantage. He felt certain he could sense Khadoran cortexes and the slight tingle of nearby warcasters. Far more concerning was Karchev’s physical state now that his life systems had begun to fail. The once-indomitable

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He saw the blue of Cygnar alongside the red of his countrymen as expected, but the sight of so many Protectorate troops coming in from the north caused him a moment of alarm, then wonder. They were clearly focused on Cryx, fighting alongside the others rather than against them. It was as if all of western Immoren had come to destroy the cancer that festered within the Thornwood. Even so, the Cryxians were far from beaten. “We need to get you away from the front lines,” Strakhov shouted over the cacophony of battle. Karchev did not take his eyes from the battle beyond. “No. My place is here . . . beside my countrymen,” he said. His eyes flared into pools of blazing arcane energy, and his warjack carried him forward with a grinding of gears. The machine picked up an ice axe from a fallen uggernaut as it made its way toward a beleaguered group of Khadorans struggling to hold against a large mass of Cryxian thralls. Cursing under his breath, Strakhov moved quickly to keep pace with the other warcaster. He had not come this far only to lose Karchev now. He fired several shots into the Cryxians, doing his best to clear the way. As they closed on the mass of undead, he found himself acutely aware of how much he missed having a battlegroup to control. Sensing a pair of nearby Khadoran cortexes, Strakhov veered them in that direction, shouting and pointing. Karchev’s warjack trampled through several thralls and annihilated several more with wide swings of its shimmering ice axe. Mechanithralls at the rear of another group of embattled enemies turned at the new threat, then gave an inhuman howl and rushed Karchev. Strakhov extended his will to evoke an explosion that ripped through the center of them, obliterating several. He followed with a pair of shots from his riot gun. The warcasters broke through the undead throng to find themselves face-to-face with their astounded countrymen. Karchev’s warjack looked worse than ever, spewing steam and smoke from places it should not have been. Its right leg dragged, leaving a great furrow in the muddy ground. Strakhov grabbed an open-mouthed Winter Guard lieutenant by the arm and shouted, “I’m in command here now! I need to get Kommander Karchev to the rear!”

“K-Kommander Karchev?” the lieutenant stuttered, wideeyed at the sight of the legendary warcaster being carried under the arm of the heavily scarred machine. Even now the kommander was turning to face additional undead heading toward them. “Karchev is alive?” “Yes,” Strakhov said, “and I intend to keep him that way. Find a surgeon and some battle mechaniks! Now, Lieutenant!” The startled junior officer tore his eyes from Karchev, nodded, and rushed away. A great shout went up from the nearest soldiers, who recognized Strakhov or Karchev or both. Strakhov had not considered it until this moment, but he had been gone so long that his people had likely given him up for dead as well. He ignored them and approached a Man-O-War kovnik who was ’jack marshaling a Decimator and a Destroyer fighting nearby. “Kovnik, I’m taking control of your machines. Watch my back.” Without waiting for acknowledgment, Strakhov strode toward the warjacks, already reaching out to them with his mind.

Vladimir Tzepesci pulled his spear free from the Harrower helljack he had just toppled and then urged his steed back toward the larger battle. Very few of his warjacks were left, but he mentally took stock of them, letting his mind flicker through their cortexes as the Umbreans around him rallied. Drago had carved through several brute thralls that had sought to flank his position and stood ready for more, axes in hand. The allied forces had pushed back the Cryxians to close on the main fortress. The moment the necromantic spires had gone dead, a surge of hope had gone through the gathered men, and even those who had moments ago been exhausted and terrified were inspired to fight with fresh vigor. Amid the deafening clamor of the battle, with the smoke and reeking haze that surrounded them, it was difficult to tell exactly what had transpired to cripple the Cryxian facility. Whatever the cause, it was enough that the necrofactorium was now inert—the seemingly unending barrage of necromantic destruction had ceased, and with it the tortured howling of captured souls. A roar went up from several places among the gathered mortal armies. Those soldiers that had been held in reserve now charged forward to the fighting. Vlad scanned the Khadoran lines, noting where Irusk was leading his forces at some distance from the Umbreans. At last he saw the one he sought—Forward Kommander Sorscha Kratikoff fought not far off, urging on her warjacks while unleashing her ice magic upon the foe. He directed his soldiers to regroup and positioned his few remaining warjacks to best advantage.

“Prepare for another charge,” he told Viscount Barak Ushka, who rode nearby astride his heavy destrier. “Hopefully the last.” He galloped toward Sorscha’s position. She wore the white and red of the 1st Border Legion on her warcaster armor and was advancing alongside some of the highly decorated of that force. She saw him approach, and their eyes met. Though her expression did not change, a great deal was conveyed in the look she gave him. He removed his helmet as he neared, ignoring the steam that rose from his sweating face and damp hair. He inclined his head. “Kommander Kratikoff. My army is a bit tattered, but those who remain are eager for battle. Shall we forces on the main drive? It has been too long since we fought side-by-side.” He willed that his true feelings be felt across the bond they shared despite the mundane nature of his spoken words. “It would be my honor, Great Prince Tzepesci.” Her tone was also cool, but he understood the suggestion of richer emotions conveyed through the barest widening of her eyes and the relaxation of the muscles of her jaw and neck. They had been apart far too long. “Let us deliver the final blow.” He gave her a warm smile, one he allowed himself only in private or in the heat of battle. “Yes. Together, we will finish this.” She rallied her men and called for an advance even as Vladimir signaled to his own officers. When their troops were aligned, they sent the warjacks ahead and advanced on the central tower. At the top of the structure, Asphyxious looked down at the closing host, unmoving.

Atop one of the upper platforms of the central tower, Deneghra staggered as the entire structure shook from an enormous explosion far below. She knew at once it must have come from deep within the interior. She regained her footing as the shuddering ceased—as did all the thrumming and vibrations of the fortress machinery. The stillness was ominous. Lich Lord Asphyxious turned a baleful glowing eye from the battle below and toward her. “An explosion below,” she said, unnecessarily. “I do not know where.” She had no skarlocks that were not already engaged in the battle beyond the fortress, though she expected some of her other minions would bring her news of the disturbance when they were able. “The central engine chamber,” Asphyxious said in a rasping growl. “How could an intruder penetrate so deeply undetected?”

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DEEPER OBLIGATIONS, PART TWO “Karchev,” Deneghra answered, the name rising unbidden to her lips. Her mind raced as she considered how far his prison was situated from anything vital. She had taken every precaution. It seemed impossible he could have affected anything from where he was and equally impossible that he could have escaped it without her subordinates noticing. Then again, the battle had been occupying most of them. Many of the self-willed undead that would ordinarily have remained within the bowels of the necrofactorium had been sent to seal the cephalyx tunnels. “With any luck, he perished in the attempt,” Asphyxious said. His tone carried venom, but he returned his attention to the armies below, as if this development were not disastrous. She stared at Asphyxious and could not help some indignation. She had exhorted him multiple times to see to their prisoner, to find a way to help her break and transform him—though perhaps no will, even the lich lord’s, could have reached the recalcitrant Khadoran. She had never encountered a mind so impervious and unyielding. She could feel the draining away of the energies that had been flooding into her and Asphyxious, energies that had allowed them to hurl spells and control warjacks from afar, multiplying their powers. She latched onto what lingering necromantic energies she could, pulling them into her soul cages. She could see the outer spires going dark one by one as the power that sustained them faded. With those inoperative, the outer defenses collapsed, and the arrayed armies surrounding the necrofactorium reacted like a vast single organism. What had once been wary was now emboldened. With her augmented awareness shut down, the helljacks at the fringes of the facility complex were left bereft of direct guidance while the enemy rushed forward with renewed zeal. She had witnessed a new army arriving from the north and through the eyes of bonejacks in that quarter had seen rank upon rank of Protectorate soldiers. For a moment she had thought this new force might fall upon its erstwhile enemies and buy them some time. Then the Menites advanced in concert alongside the Khadorans and Cygnarans, raising their weapons only against the undead. A noose of warjacks and living soldiers closed on the outer thralls and began to tear through them. The enemy’s fears had been banished and hope restored. She instructed one of her skarlocks below to unleash the forces they had kept back as their last defense. With another mental order she had brute thralls crank the wheels to open the nearby aperture where her mount awaited. “My lord, you must leave now,” Deneghra said. “The age should be intact, despite whatever happened below. They will seal it behind you.”

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Lich Lord Asphyxious had been staring out at the seething armies as if transfixed. Now he moved back from the ledge, perhaps with reluctance. “Yes, it is time,” he said slowly. “I will take to the air to delay the foe. We will rendezvous later, at the appointed place.” She knew that, had she been alive, her heart would be beating faster now. Asphyxious must leave, now. She felt the indistinct echo of what had once been fear. Vast armies closed around them, and she knew she might be flying to her final death. They faced each other for a moment, and though his inhuman and unliving face was the same as ever, she could feel a faint stirring of what little emotion he could muster ripple through the energy emanating from him. He stepped closer to her and said, “I will bid all my minions to ensure no harm comes to thee until we stand together again.” Then he turned to descend into the depths.

Deneghra mounted the saddle of her great necromechanikal beast and took to wing, summoning a wave of necrotitetainted air to help propel them high above the battlefield. The serpentine construct let loose a chilling, metallic howl that caused the mortals below to pause in their advance and gaze upward in mute horror. As she raced forward, the wraith witch raised her right hand and gathered her arcane power. Her mount was circled by green runes in a complex pattern of interlocking rings. Then the air split open above her and a howling gate opened a crack into the cold outer reaches of Urcaen, from which tumbled screaming and tormented souls. Invoking this vortex was a tremendous strain that would cost her, but for a moment she felt a shadow of the power that had flowed to her through the necrofactorium. To add to the souls pouring through the gate, she reached out to collect those gathered by soul keepers amid the fighting below. Lightning blazed through her thralls, and others were cut down by withering rifle fire. She heard incoming fire from the Khadoran colossal, though she knew it could not reach her. An unearthly wind surrounded her, knocking aside all lesser projectiles and lending swiftness to her mount. She leaned forward and plummeted to fly swiftly across the undead army below, using the soul energy she had stored to pour power into every helljack and bonejack under her control. Their eyes lit with green fire and they surged forward to attack. Ghostly thralls poured forth from the necrofactorium, the last reserves. Her mount opened its fanged maw to unleash a spray of corrosive bile that hissed across the nearest ranks of charging Iron Fang uhlans. She invoked her magic to send several others tumbling off their steeds from the force

of focused necromantic bursts. She stripped away the protective armor of the nearest storm knights and saw them dissolve beneath an outpouring of thrall bile. She delighted in delivering death, feeling the gathering of souls as an almost sensual pleasure even as she pushed her helljacks onward in an escalating frenzy of destruction. The enemy momentarily staggered and paused to regroup under her onslaught, and she knew the moment had ed. This had been the last gasp of the necrofactorium; she only wished she could have sent the enemy warcasters to their graves with its collapse. Her Krakens had been destroyed, and one by one the remaining helljacks were being torn asunder by holy Menite blades, crackling lightning, and the blasting pikes of Iron Fangs. Her thralls reaped an impressive toll but were trampled under the steel-shod hooves of warhorses. Others were gunned down or blown apart by cannon and warjack fire. The circle around the central tower closed, and she bade her helljack Nightmare to flee into the shadows. It would re her when it could. North of the central tower an entire region of muddy earth had been lit in a blazing inferno by the Protectorate forces. Hierarch Severius stood atop a far hill, limned in golden runes as he invoked a litany of prayers and unleashed his power through his Revengers. Equally formidable warcasters led their cohorts on every side. Deneghra took satisfaction that for a short span of heartbeats she alone had brought these combined armies to a standstill. For a moment she had finally exceeded her twin in power. As the mortar fire reached the tower, she knew it was time. The enemy would obliterate the lich lord's work and descend into the tunnels with flames and ash. She let her mount unleash another hellish gout of bile, and then she gathered hot winds around herself and soared upward into the night, leaving the burning Thornwood to mortals.

Strakhov wiped black, viscous thrall ichor from his blade with a piece of torn cloth. Now that he had come down from the state of heightened tension and awareness he had maintained while within the bowels of the Cryxian facility, exhaustion pulled at him. He could think of nothing but eating real food and succumbing to sleep. After weeks of

sleeping on cold stone floors with one eye open for enemies, an army cot sounded as comfortable to him as the finest bed. There were still things to be done. He must check on Karchev, for one. He had managed to convince the venerable kommander to retire to the rear for critical repairs only once the battle had clearly swung in their favor. Even then, it had required Strakhov appealing to Karchev’s sense of duty to convince him to leave the field. The battles in the weeks and months ahead needed the hero of the Motherland alive and fit for duty. Strakhov sheathed his weapon, then pushed himself to his feet and stiffly made his way to where Karchev was receiving repairs and medical attention. Already the kommander looked stronger, his face no longer ashen. The sight did Strakhov good. Karchev caught his gaze and inclined his head once in acknowledgement. It was enough. A sudden shout of “Supreme Kommandant!” from soldiers farther away drew Strakhov’s attention. Men and women

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DEEPER OBLIGATIONS, PART TWO dropped what they were doing to stand at attention. Years of military life caused Strakhov to snap up as well, despite his fatigue—an ingrained reflex.

composure. After a long moment, Irusk continued. “Your presence has been sorely missed in these last months.” It was the kindest tone Strakhov had ever heard in that voice.

Supreme Kommandant Gurvaldt Irusk walked down the aisle of soldiers, his armor and uniform showing signs of his own role in the recent battle. Nonetheless his posture was ramrod straight, and his keen eyes betrayed none of the fatigue the rest of those gathered could not hide.

Karchev nodded. “I am eager to resume the fight.”

“Kommander Strakhov,” he said, his powerful voice ringing with authority. “Your return from the dead has been a subject of much . . .” Irusk paused as if carefully considering his words, then continued, “discussion among the kommandants.” Strakhov needed no clarification. He had acted outside his orders in his efforts to rescue Kommander Karchev. By any interpretation of military law he had at the least deserted his post, a grave infraction. Warcasters were given tremendous latitude and might escape punishment for such an offense, but that was not always the case. He kept his expression neutral. “I saw an opportunity to recover Kommander Karchev, so I took it.” “A bold decision—one that led to our forces being deprived of your leadership in exceptionally dangerous times. And this is not the first time your personal initiative has put operations at risk.”

“There will be ample opportunity in the days to come. The Motherland has no shortage of enemies.” The two shared a long look, and Karchev slowly smiled and again inclined his head. Irusk turned smartly and marched away, leaving a respectful silence behind him. SOUTHWESTERN THORNWOOD, TWO WEEKS EARLIER

Empress Ayn Vanar walked unannounced into the command tent where Supreme Kommandant Irusk and Great Vizier Blaustavya were meeting, savoring the look of surprise on both their faces before they hastened to offer her the proper obeisance. They were meeting with Aleksandra Zerkova, whose expression remained cool. Apparently she was not surprised so easily. “Forgive my interruption, Supreme Kommandant. I am in no mood to sit idly while others manage my affairs.” “Of course, Your Majesty,” Irusk offered quickly. He inclined his head toward Zerkova. “We were confirming that the encampment is secure once again. The Greylords have seen to it.” The empress nodded. “And making arrangements for my ongoing safety, I gather.”

“THIS IS NOT THE FIRST TIME YOUR PERSONAL INITIATIVE HAS PUT OPERATIONS AT RISK.”

“I stand by my decision, Kommandant.” Strakhov’s voice remained completely level, his eyes never leaving Irusk’s. “What if you had failed?” Irusk demanded. Strakhov did not flinch. “Failure was never an option, sir.” Irusk kept his intense stare on Strakhov for several long moments, his face unreadable. Strakhov could not help but notice how deathly quiet everything around him was. The only sound he could hear was his own heartbeat. He was not afraid, though. It was for such tasks as this rescue that he had been trained, and he had been successful. Finally Irusk released his gaze to turn to Karchev. “It is good to see you well, Kommander,” he said. Though his expression did not change, his voice wavered slightly and he paused. Strakhov felt startled to realize the supreme kommandant, overcome with emotion, needed to regain his

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“That is our foremost concern,” Blaustavya said. “We intend for Obavnik Kommander Zerkova to escort you in the days ahead, while we march on the Cryxian fortress.” She looked from one to the other and then said, “I welcome her protection. But there are other matters that will soon require her attention.” “Your Majesty?” Irusk asked. She gave him an even look, but not an unkind one. There were certain protocols in the military, with its strict chain of command. She knew it was unseemly to exercise her authority in this way, with Zerkova present and Irusk the ranking officer, but sometimes it was important to remind her senior officers whom they ultimately served. She had been playing a dangerous and difficult game, and this was the last piece to put in place. She turned to Blaustavya and asked, “What of the traitor?” “He confessed and was hung. Too clean a death, by my reckoning.” “And this tent is secure? From both friends and enemies?” She could not resist a bit of emphasis on the first half of that equation.

“Absolutely,” he said, looking wounded. “My agents have secured this area, and the Greylords have mystical precautions in place. We may speak openly.” Zerkova was watching the exchange with an appraising look in her one good eye. This was the first time she had been taken into the empress’ confidence, so her curiosity was understandable. “Traitor?” Irusk asked, his tone mild, though his jaw was clenched. “You found a spy?” Ayn gestured for Blaustavya to explain. He sighed before speaking. “Before our journey here from the capital, we discovered a member of our retinue had been compromised. It is fortunate for us that, cunning though they are, the lords of Cryx are less adroit at manipulating the living than they are the dead. Their methods to ensure compliance were heavy-handed and so not difficult for us to discover. I suspect the plot was hastily arranged. I would have ordered the man executed immediately, but the empress had other plans.” The way he emphasized his words left no doubt as to his disapproval of her choice in this matter. Ayn gave him a stern look and he grimaced. She said to Irusk, “You may have wondered how the Cryxians knew precisely where we were to meet.” Irusk nodded once and said, “I thought it likely a lapse by the Cygnarans.” She nodded. “A reasonable conjecture, but no, not in this case. The fault was ours. Mine. I allowed this traitor to learn of the meeting and to deliver that information to his master.” Irusk’s eyes widened and he stared at her in disbelief. Zerkova’s expression suggested surprise and approval. She was a woman quite familiar with complex and risky plots. Ayn continued, “This was against the great vizier’s recommendation, of course. I was confident that having foreknowledge would enable us to take sufficient precautions to ensure the attempt would fail. Naturally there would be risk. I did not wish to tip our hand and alert the Cryxians that we knew their plans, lest they change them. They might have sought to intercept me during the crossing of the Thornwood instead. The temptation to take out the leaders of both nations at once would be an opportunity they could not let . So, in one sense delivering this information may have ensured my safe arrival.” She did not say it aloud, but she had also weighed the fact that it would not bring her any grief if King Leto were to be killed in the attempt. “Why put yourself in such peril?” Irusk asked. “You placed me in an unusual position, Supreme Kommandant, when you entered into your alliance with Cygnar.”

“I am sure that is true,” she said, locking her eyes on his. “Great Prince Tzepesci will undoubtedly say something similar regarding his agreement with the Menites. The outcome is the same. Your actions forced me to come here, to reassert my authority and to demonstrate to my army that you and I are in accord. It is vital they know that everything you do is an extension of my will, that any authority you possess flows from me.” After a pause she released his gaze and said, “Unwittingly, you also created an opportunity. This battle in the Thornwood against Cryx is vital, not only for the threat they pose, but for the aftermath of victory. We must ensure that the Khadoran Empire is positioned for the next stage in this war. Peace will not last. We must subjugate all enemies, including those who pretend to be friends. The moment Cryx is dealt with, they will plot against us. Both sides will be vulnerable.” She could see Irusk taking this in. He said, “That matter has occupied my thoughts since this alliance began.” “Let it distract you no longer,” Ayn said. “I am here to remove that burden, to allow you to focus on the battle at hand. We will not allow our enemies to move against us. Rather, we will seize the initiative.” She continued, “I will leave the details to you and the great vizier, but I have certain requirements. First, I intend to speak to our soldiers, to commend them and inspire them, before you leave to confront Cryx. When you have gone to attend to that task, Kommander Zerkova will escort me north, to ensure my safety until I rendezvous with those who will deliver me to the capital. Meanwhile, Zerkova will prepare an ambush for Hierarch Severius on his return journey to Llael. You will muster other forces to seize Armandor and Torre Torcail in Ord and Stonebridge Castle in northern Cygnar immediately after we have our victory over Cryx. You will fight in good faith alongside our ‘allies’ against Cryx but regroup to secure positions after that battle, separating sufficiently from elements of the Cygnaran Army to prepare for a renewal of hostilities against them. Ensure they are in no position to retaliate when word of our actions reaches them. There will be delay and confusion, amid which you will seize advantage for the empire.” Their silence was absolute. The empress felt satisfaction to see that she had surprised them so utterly; even Blaustavya had not known of this. On his face and Irusk’s she could discern some deeper uncertainty, but on Zerkova’s there was nothing but readiness and iration.

She saw him recoil. He said, “I am sorry if I acted hastily, Your Majesty. It seemed the only choice.”

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