10/19: Rise of Nagash series completed, Neferata started. Almost all VC and TK units are finished while the Scourge profile is also finished. Have played through enough WOD zone and added relevant information to that profile.
My plan for this week is to finish Neferata, W'orsan, Heldenhammer, and Von Carstein series. I may not finish all books by Halloween but I should finish all category "A" books which I have identified as the most important ( Not counting the above, other such books are Liber Necris, Tomb of the Serpent Queen, Sigmar's Blood, Return of Nagash )
10/20: Finished Neferata book
10/21 : Finished Night's Masters, a Vampire Source book and part way through the next BL book.
10/24: Almost finished incorporating all information from the codexes. In the midst and almost finished with three books.
10/25 : Finished W'orsan, End Times: Fall of Aldorf, and halfway through Drachenfels. Goal for tommorow is finishing the latter, then Heldenhammer and the Krell account following that.
Unit Preview
Necrofex Collosus
Mobility: 5
Training: 4-5
Max Range: Spell
Preferred Range:
^^
Many are the dread creations of the Vampire Counts, but of
the most feared is the Necrofex Collosus. Only the greatest necromancers have the power,
the resources and the will to create this powerful machine. While they vary in
size and form they all have the same shape- a gigantic humanoid fashioned upon
frame of iron, bone or bronze, and then bound with corpses and flesh. Then via
a great ritual in which much sacrifice is required, the death machine is
brought to life and given terrible sentience of its own.
The Necrofex is a monster on the field, able to pose a
threat to entire armies. One notable Necrofex actually roamed the countryside
of Estalia for a hundred years, rampaging and destroying all in its path. They
are incredibly potent for an undead army, and in fact they act as focus points
for death magic, allowing wizards in the immediate, 50 meter vicinity to cast
spells with less difficulty then before. Its powerful enough to actually
disrupt and make it harder for wizards of light and life to cast their spells
near it, and its screams are so powerful that they can kill through sheer
terror alone.
Offensive: At 24 meters (78 feet) in
height. this is Collosal creature capable of stomping and smashing enemies.
Against particularly large or important foes it may end up trying to impale
them on its multi-story leg. As mentioned its screams can kill a foe with pure
terror if their morale/leadership doesn’t hold up. Some variants have scythes built into these
limbs, or they have the hands of still living corpses grow out to grab people.
A very, very select few are so powerful that they are binded to the soul of a
Necromancer or Vampire directly, and thus can cast spells.
Defensive:
Powerful regeneration that applies against anything but flaming and magical
attacks, with holy spells doing additional damage. A few are transfused with
ghoul or vampire blood, making this regeneration more potent.
===Additional
Factors===
The creature is incredibly rare thanks to the cost of making
it and difficult to properly control.
Vampires
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Mobility: 5
Training: 5-9
(Dependent on Age)
Max Range: Spell
Preferred Range: Varies between group
Vampires are true masters of undeath, the ultimate creatures
of the night. Though these creatures appear human their similarities end there,
being as far different in ability and attitude as an ape is from a man. For the
most part they are selfish, power-hungry creatures that desire little more then
to dominate and conquer. To that end many have infiltrated human society,
posing as lords and ladies and enacting influence on the lands they inhabit.
Some take a more direct means, forming great armies of the dead to force their
will over the living. Others don’t care about Humanity, instead to seeking to
master magic or the martial arts. Still others, particularly the Strigoi,
devolve into creatures obsessed only with feeding and drinking on the blood of the
living.
Vampire Physiology, Mentality and Powers
Vampires, by virtue of the magic flowing through their
veins, are superhuman to a (wo)man. This
does vary however by degree depending on age, position on the bloodline lineage
(to be discussed later) and some degree on innate ability. They are physical
stronger than humans, able to break bones with every punch, snap necks
effortlessly, life hundreds of pounds with frightening ease, shatter skulls
with a squeeze, tear off limbs or even physically rip a man in half . They are
exceptionally fast, with the least of them able to run and react 2-3 faster than
a man and the faster being considered blurs by those who fight them. Agility
too can allow them climb up buildings, trees or even some walls assassins creed
style, jump like a mountain lion, and practically
dance between combatants in melee.
This trait of superhumanism follows into durability. It is
again dependent on age with young vampires, while having some regeneration, are
still able to be killed by wounds that could kill a mortal man. Vampires of greater power can keep going even
with these wounds and eventually heal even from dismemberment. These vampires
effectively require decapitation or a stab through the heart (preferably both)
to put down. Even then their remains can be regenerated with time and help,
meaning incineration of the corpse is the most effective way to permanently
ensure destruction. To date only Nagash, in one bizarre ritual, has shown to be
able to pull a vampire back from that.
Thanks to their longevity vampires can continue to grow and
learn over their lifespans, in some cases accumulating millennia of knowledge. However
this results in greater detachment from humanity and a stifling of emotions
that they once had. Pity, compassion, love
(except in a few rare cases) all wither and die. As a result they grow arrogant
and callous, viewing humans as cattle at best and vermin at worst. They become
obsessed with power, whether it be through pursuing arcane might or on the
physical realm . They like stability and Constance, and dislike change and
progress.
All vampires require blood to survive. Without blood they
will start to lose their sanity and grow weaker and weaker over time. Though some
powerful vampires can survive on only a glass of blood every years, others,
such as the young ones, lack that discipline and must feed nightly. This is
ideally human blood or the blood of other sentient creature. Though animals can
provide this blood it is apparently not as potent. A very select few vampires,
the followers of Abhorash, can completely do away with this need for blood by
drinking that of a dragon, becoming immune to the urge thereafter.
Vampires can come to acquire powers over time as a result of
their training, age and bloodline. These can be mental, such as the ability to
beguile, project supernatural horror or an aura of dark majesty that lowers
morale of enemy troops in the vampire’s vicinity. Some seek to master combat,
becoming exceptionally skilled, agile or strong. Others seek to master the beast
within, becoming horrible to look upon, getting physically stronger or giving
into his bloodthirsty nature completely. A few, such as the Necrarchs, seek to
master magic and others are capable of shape shifting forms. All vampires can dominate others through
sucking their blood and then refusing to kill them or give a “kiss” (see below,
would create another vampire) , though willpower can allow others to resist
somewhat.
Vampires share some potent weaknesses. They are all weak to
the sun, though to varying degrees. Young vampires will die quickly from any
exposure, while long lived Vampires are made uncomfortable by its presence.
That is why many Vampire armies, when they march, employ sorcerous means to
block out the sun. Vampires are similar in that destroying or wounding the
heart can at the very least paralyze them (if old and powerful) or kill then
instantly if young. The young ones also
cannot handle running water and this may kill them if no escape is found quickly. Decapitation,
as mentioned, is another effective method
while burning is a vulnerability to some vampires. . Holy Magic however
will wound and kill vampires of all degrees.
Vampire Origins and Bloodline introduction:
The origin of the vampire can be traced back to the
Nekaharan city of Lahmia, where Queen Neferata and other noblemen in secret
tried to recreate Nagash’s life extension potion. Though the events differ
between the sources and who exactly created it (whether it was Neferata herself
or Arkhan is unknown) what is known is that Neferata was the first vampire, and
she quickly spread it to her followers. For the next several hundred years she
ruled behind the scenes, enacting plots and tightening Lahmia’s rule over the
other cities. Eventually others found out however, and marched as one coalition
on Lahmia.
Since then vampires have spread across the world and formed
different bloodlines. These bloodlines are shared groupings of vampires that
can trace lineage back to a similar bloodline, or lineage. While vampires cannot
procreate via traditional means they can give mortals a “Blood Kiss” which
will, over time, turn them into a vampire. While the original, fire generation can
give the blood kiss with near impunity it becomes harder and harder for transference
to occur as you go down the line, with 5th generation vampires only
able to “sire” one “get” in their long lifetimes. To do more would result in
gradually weaker vampires and the ruination of the bloodline, and if a vampire
seems to be on the verge of doing that others of its kind will hunt it down. Thus while first or second can hand out the
kiss fairly regularly a 5th generation is going to be extremely
choosy with whom they share blood with!
In general the higher a vampire is on the bloodline, the
more powerful they are, with the original founders (the first generation of
vampires from Lahmia) being some of the most powerful combatents the world has
ever known. However luckily, for an ambitious underling, it is possible for one of the lower generation to accumulate greater
amounts of power. This can be done by
drinking the blood of other vampires and thus absorbing their essence and
powers. Eventually this will allow someone like Manfredd von Carstein – a second
generation vampire at best, and a 5th at worst- to accumulate enough
power to rival-and in some traits surpass- Neferata herself!
Specific Bloodlines:
-Von Carstein:
Princes of the Night
In modern day the Von Carstein bloodline is probably the
most infamous and perhaps powerful of the great vampire families. Here is the
bloodline of Manfredd and Vlad, two individuals who very nearly conquered the
Empire directly. Unlike the other bloodlines it is unknown as to who the
founder of this bloodline is. It may be Anakht, or Vashnash, or Vlad himself
(or one of the former two as Vlad’s past life).
This bloodline is infamous for its ambition, arrogance,
megalomania and cleverness(more so then most vampires). Unlike the Lahmians,
who seek to guide mandkind indirectly, or the other, uncaring branches the Von
Carsteins want to rule over all of mankind directly and openly. Everything else is a means to an end. Of all
the bloodlines they are most likely to study and master politics, military
strategy, and physical prowess that only the blood dragons surpass. They are known as great patrons of the arts,
but usually this is a means to an end. Too they are seen as masters of Dark
Magic, with only the Necramarchs capable of surpassing them. Of all the
bloodlines they seem most based off of popular representations of Dracula mixed
with Machiavelli’s The Prince.
In terms of numbers this is probably going to be the second most
populous of the five branches, behind the more stable hierarchy of the Lahmians
.This is due in part to the great weakness of the Von Carstein; megalomania,
madness and treachery. Almost all Von Carsteins hold only themselves to be the
superior vampire, and though proud of their bloodline they constantly scheme
and murder each other. This can be done for the consolidation of power or
because the vampire feels another vampire doesn’t belong in their bloodline. The
purges launched by Manfredd in recent years have been particularly
devastating to Carstein numbers. However
in addition the Von Carstein bloodline is given to madness and such mad rulers
can cause great wars among other, saner Von Carsteins by spreading the Blood Kiss
around too much ( Konraad Von Carstein was infamous for giving the Kiss to
Hobbits, prostitutes, and people who randomly pleased him) or declaring war on
other members.
In terms of powers the Von Carstein bloodline is going to be
the mo0st varied, but in general they will choose whatever individual vampires
personally believe will aid them in conquest best.
-Blood Dragons: Knights
of Darkness
Of all the Great Vampire Bloodlines, the Blood Dragons are
the most militant and aggressive. They were sired by Abhorash, a mighty captain
of Lahmia who sought perfection in all things military. Ultimately he sought to
become the most perfect warrior that ever lived, and to become free of the
Curse for Blood that he had always hated. The full extent of his adventures
after the Fall of Lahmia is unknown, only that he traveled far and finally
cured himself of this blood addiction by drinking from a dragon. It is unknown
at current what happened to him.
Blood Dragons seek to master the mind and body like their
champion Abhorash did, and ultimately free themselves from the addiction. To
that end they disdain the conquest of the Von Carsteins, or the backseat rule
of the Lahmians, and in particular look down upon the uncontrolled excess of
the Strigoi. Though less powerful then other branches in magic and necromancy,
they can utilize this trait if need be. Though honor bound they disdain normal
humanity and see nothing wrong with slaughtering entire villages to test a new
blade. In combat they are the least
likely to cheat and often seek to challenge particularly strong enemy foes to
duels. They might spare their foes if they believe the enemy has the potential
to be a stronger foe in the future.
Blood Dragons are rare for the most part, traveling the
world as individuals or small groups for hire. This rarity is in part because
Blood Dragons are at times are most open in their feeding so that they can
attract challengers, and thus lure huge mobs who then overwhelm them. Their tendency to seek out the strongest foes
may lead to their deaths if they actually find one. They are also the most
discerning of Vampire Bloodlines. They will not infect anyone who can’t control
themselves and will only infect a very skilled opponent after s/he has
proven-multiple times- that they are worthy fighters.
In terms of powers this order is most likely to cultivate
that which improves their martial skill, like increased speed, strength and
durability (beyond ordinary vampires).
-Lahmians: Deathless
Courtiers
The Lahmians are the first sect of Vampires, created by
Neferata herself almost 4,000 years before the present timeline. Since then she
has ordered this bloodline to spread, like a great spider spinning her web. Her
beautiful courtesans- almost all of them female- now have their hand in almost
every city of the Old World and beyond. They are based at the Silver Pinnacle,
a former Dwarf-Hold they took 3,000 years ago.
Lahmians seek indirect power, never ruling from the front
but always playing a role from the backseat. It’s unknown what their ultimate
objectives are other than that the Queen would one day like her glorious city
of Lahmia rebuilt. The order of Lahmians guides humanity from behind the scenes
against threats to its existence, such as Chaos or the Von Carsteins. The order
takes a great interest in human politics and advancement, and for that reason
its members are often masters of statecraft, politics and the arts. So efficient
is their spy ring that’s it’s said that Neferata knows who the next elected
ruler would be before the previous ruler dies.
Lahmians are not natural warriors like the Blood Dragons and
to a lesser extent the Von Carsteins, nor ferocious like the Strigoi, nor as
skilled in magic as the Necrarchs. Though elements of all of the above can be
found in them these ladies instead focus on seduction and infiltration. Usually
their powers develop towards seducing enemies or allowing them to infiltrate
enemy societies. Thus when it comes to spies, saboteurs and manipulators,
particularly among human societies, there are none better than the Lahmian
sisterhood. This isn’t necessarily limited to Humanity though, and Neferata herself
has shown a remarkable ability to manipulate the succession of Orc Warbosses to
get what she wants.
In terms of powers Lahmians prize speed and guile above
everything else.
-Necrarchs: Disciples
of the Accursed
Of all the Vampire Bloodlines, Necrarchs are the rarest,
most secretive, and perhaps most deadly. Even Neferata, master of infiltration,
has found it difficult to infiltrate this group and fears their motivations. In
truth they are perhaps the only Vampire Bloodline loyal to Nagash, a trait
started by their founder W’orsan who was counted alongside Arkhan as Nagash’s
most loyal servent (though he and Arkhan hated each other) . However his line was cursed
in many ways, and W’orsan was killed and consumed by his apprentice, who was in
turn killed and consumed by his apprentice.
Necrarchs seek a world not ruled by the dead, but composed
almost entirely of the dead. Of all the Vampires their goals are most in line
with Nagash’s and it for that reason they are most loyal to him. They are
scholars, masters of science and magic who believe in arcane power above all
other types. More then just collectors they actively pursue new knowledge in
their dark laboratories. Thus they count as among the most knowledgeable of
vampires. In keeping with Nagash’s vision they are most dedicated to killing
everything around them and thus they are hunted by Witch Hunters above all
other bloodlines.
Alongside the Strigoi the Necrarchs have the most difficulty
operating openly. This is because their
masters curse have turned them into hideous corpse things, and they have become
extremely twisted in mind, being mad and paranoid to an extreme. Many die in
their own experiments, or killed by other Necrarchs. They are extremely
paranoid in who they turn into vampires and thus they are the rarest bloodline
in existence.
In terms of power Necrarchs prize magical ability above all
else, and many are gifted with Witchsight, which allows them to see the spirit
world.
-Strigoi : Beasts in
Shadow
Once the Strigoi had a great kingdom situated in the
badlands, ruled over by the founder of their bloodline Ushoran. Ushoran was an effective ruler who managed a
cohesive kingdom of both living and dead, however he made the mistake of
insinuating he was a better ruler then Neferata. Between Lahmian manipulations
and a massive Ork Waagh this great kingdom was destroyed, their people
scattered. However the Strigoi could find no safe haven among the other
Bloodlines. The early Von Carsteins used to hunt them, angry about past
arrogance. Lahmians spurned and sent Human armies after them, Blood Dragons
sought them out to kill because they
posed a challenge, and Necrarchs used them as experiments. Throughout this every group of living beings –orcs,
dwarves, Humans As a result the Strigoi- isolated to the outskirts of society-
developed a massive hatred of everything, living or dead.
The Strigoi rule over kingdoms of ghouls, subsisting on
diets of vermin and the dead. As a result of this, and the fact that the
bloodline always possessed a greater degree of beastial nature then other
bloodlines, they hardly resemble humans anymore. Instead they look like hulking
versions of the Crypt Ghouls that they rule. Many are mad or extremely
nostalgic of the old glory days, holding great grotesque courts and pretending
that they are once again lords. Yet others are fully cognizant of what happened
and desire revenge against both the Living and the Dead. Only the Strigany- a
gypsy like people hated by the rest of humanity for its vampire-tainted past,
who are descendants of Ushoran’s human subjects- welcome them and only to them
do the Strigoi provide any sort of loyalty.
The Strigoi do not give the Blood Kiss easily and thus are
the second or third rarest group of vampires. In part this is due to snobbery,
as the Strigoi do not believe any who haven’t suffered like they have deserve
to become one of them. However it’s also due to a sincere belief that
inflicting the Blood Kiss upon someone they like would be the ultimate cruelty,
for then they would be hunted and hated by everyone as the Strigoi are. Thus
only those who show long term devotion- most likely Stringany- get to be
uplifted into their ranks.
Stringoi focus on physical ferocity above everything else,
and in combat they can overpower even other vampires. Though they are capable
of magic it is more instinctual then anything.
Offensive: See
Physical traits, with the Strigoi beind the strongest of the Vampires. Most
vampires use the most ancient and magical weaponry they can find, and are
accomplished duelists. Even young vampires are more than a match for most squads
of humans, while only the greatest of champions can hope to even fight, much
less kill, an aged vampire. Vampires may have varying degrees of mastery over
the Lores of Death, Shadow, Undeath and Vampires.
Defense: See
Traits. Many Vampires have magically powerful armor or protective artifacts.
===ADDITIONAL
FACTORS===
Can ride any mount shown in the profile, with the best
riding zombie dragons or Terror Gheists.
Required Reading for Undead Legion
-Undead Legion
--Neferata
--Worsan
--Heldenhammer (Sigmar series)
--Von Carstein Series (3 books)
--Sigmar's Blood (both novel and campaign book)
--Return of Nagash (to be reread...which means done at a faster pace)
--Vampire Genieve
--Ulrika Series (2/3 done)
--Vampireslayer (reread)
--Zombieslayer (reread)
--Tomb of the Serphent Queen
--Blade of Chaos (reread Tomb King Scene)
--Gildead's Curse
--Curse of the Necrarch
--Dreadfleet
--Blighted Empire
--Luthor Huss
--Runefang
--Liber Necris
--FFG books (2-3)
--Codexes (most already read, but will go over)
--Numerous Short stories
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