Laying Down The Lore: Old World

In our second Vampire episode, we look at the aftermath of the death of Nagash and the scattering of the Vampires. We look at the ignoble fate of Alcidizzar and the items he claimed from Nagah's corpse. The rise of Kadon and the kingdom of Mourkain are explored as well as the state of Vampires around the Warhammer world. We follow the conquests of the Strigoi vampires Ushoran and Vorag Bloodyt...

In this, our first vampire counts episode, we unveiled Dhar's total love, and not at all sexual desire, for the dead. We looked at their origins and their sudden and inexplicable division between the wet dead and dry dead. We looked at the 5 main bloodlines of vampire vounts, some of the regions of Warhammer that they infest, and their relations with the living. We then cast our minds back to...

Mini Mayhem! In this, our final look into Dwarfen culture, we explore the incredible capacity the Dwarfs have for making war. We start with a list of dwarf warriors and regiments, from Thunderers and Longbeards, to Ironbreakers and Slayers, and the function they fill within the armies of each hold. We continue on into their war machines, both artillery such as the very aptly named Grudgethrower an...

The Only Way is Up! In this fifth Dwarf episode, High King Alriksson needs to secure the future of his people following the Great War against Chaos. Calling an assembly of kings he charges the assembled dwarfs to re-enact the glorious sagas of old, the Dwarf with the greatest list of deeds would be his successor. We explore the deeds of the great dwarfen lords and the renewal of racial pride that...

It’s the Little Things! In our fourth Dwarf episode, the time of woes continues with the fall of many Dwarf holds. King Baragor of Karak Kadrin becomes the first slayer king and the holds of Karak Eight Peaks, Karak Azgal and Karak Drazh all fall to the Greenskin and Skaven menace. This degradation continues until the Dwarfs come across a potential race of allies dwelling on the surface, MANKIND!...

A New Low! In our third episode on Dwarfs we see that the creation of the great Vortex was successful and heralds the Golden age of the Dwarfs. We look at the trade between the Dwarfs and their new allies the Elves, respect, in particular, grew for Malekith and there was the expansion of the Karaz Ankor, their everlasting realm. But then BETRAYAL and DESTRUCTION as the Great War of Vengeance begin...

From Small Beginnings! In this our second Dwarf episode, we explored the early history of the Dwarven race, their creation in the jungle caves of the Southlands, their exploration northwards and the establishment of fortresses and holds as they move through the Worlds Edge Mountains. Guided as they were by the Ancestor Gods Grungni, Valaya, Grimnir, and their incestuous offspring the culture was f...

DWARFS! DWARFS! DWARFS!In this our first look at the glorious Dwarven race we take a look at what makes a Dwarf so great… Their age! (Dhar approves). We look at the stages of a Dwarf’s life and the role they fill during each phase. We follow this up with an examination of their clan structure, and their guilds, including the mighty runesmiths, before examining the types of Dwarf out there and what...

In this our final look into Greenskins, we explore the Greenskins capacity for making war. We start with an exploration of the powers of the Waaagh, its psycho-social origins and the spells available to orc and goblin shamans. We saunter through both the Common and Savage Orc warbands and their hilariously named cavalry units. Next up are the three flavours of goblins, their units and a deeper exp...

In this our fifth look into Greenskins we explore the stories of two of the greatest contemporary warbosses. Skarsnik rose to power within the crooked Moon tribe through savvy leadership and quick dealing with both enemies and allies. Exiled for his mercantile nature he fought his way back to the very heart of Karak Eight Peaks to face a former ally to claim the title of King of Eight Peaks. Grimg...

Our fourth episode on Greenskins we look at two very different warlords both of whom were influenced by external sources. The legendary brutality of the Greenskins was often used as a weapon by manipulative foes. Azhag the Slaughterer rose to prominence in Kislev after the discovery of a mysterious crown, one that imbued him with magical powers at the expense of invidious directives. Grom the Pauc...

In this our third dive into Greenskins, we look at the concept of the Orc Waaagh (always three a’s), specifically the rise and fall of Gorbad Ironclaw, the greatest Orc warlord since the founding of the Empire. With the judicious use of colossal squigs he brought his neighbouring warlords to heal before wreaking havoc on the dwarves of the Middle and Worlds Edge Mountains. With the Dwarves cowerin...

In this, our second Greenskins episode, we look at the early Migrations of the orcs and goblin tribes as they spread over the world. Arriving in the worlds Edge Mountains they encounter the Dwarfs and thus begin the millennia long Goblin Wars. Finally we look at the War against Humanity which culminates in the apocalyptic battle at Blackfire Pass (among the sideways skyscrapers Ben!). Their foe Si...

In this our first Greenskins episode, we explore the general history of the many types of Orcs and Goblins and set the stage for their further deep dives. We look at their mysterious arrival and early pre-history together with establishing the myriad species of Greenskins, their oddly fungal reproduction cycle, and their love of both caves and psychedelic mushrooms. Finally, we touch on the many b...

In this, our final look at the Skaven race, we dive into what makes them so compelling, the four great clans! We examine the techno-warlocks of Clan Skryre and their horrific engines of war; The suppurating monks of Clan Pestilens and the many diseases they carry; The Frankensteinesque beastmasters of Clan Moulder with their Rat Ogres and Abominations leading the charge; and the stealthy assassins...

From Skavenblight to the Hellpit we journey through the sprawling Under-empire of the Skaven race, stopping at notable points. We then transition to have a look at the hierarchy of the Skaven world. The dreaded Lords of Decay, The Council of 13, their advisors and priesthood of the Horned Rat, the Grey Seers. We deep dive into the convoluted system of secrets and manipulation that constitutes Skav...

Empire in ruins! We explore the aftermath of the Skaven releasing the Black Plague and razing  every settlement they can and enslaving the survivors. We discuss the redoubtable Mandred Skavenslayer, of the Middenheim Skavenslayer’s, defender of the Empire while Emperor Boris Goldgatherer leads debauched feasts. The Skaven try their luck again releasing the Red Pox in Bretonnia only to run afoul of...

Return to Cripple Peak! Our second episode delves into the most and yet least bloody tunnel fighting war of the Old World. The largest deposit of warpstone ever found is on the line and the Skaven hordes vie for control of it with the undead hordes legions of Nagash. We explore the sad life and undignified death of Alcadizzar and the terrifying Fellblade that allowed Clan Rikek to conquer the migh...

In this episode, the first of our 5 part Skaven exposé, we discuss Skaven origins encapsulated in the morbid poem “Doom of Kavzar”. We discuss the Darwinist nature of their society, clans, and their ravenous obsession with warpstone. We explore whether the Horned Rat and Nurgle are brothers from another mother or just brothers in rotted and smelly arms? We join the first great expansions from Skav...

In this episode, the last of our 5 part introduction to the World of Warhammer, we take another guided tour this time through the wider world. We stroll through the Badlands (and briefly look at Nagashizzar, Darren's favourite place in this, or any other, fantasy world), Land of the Dead, Araby, the Southlands, Ulthuan, Naggaroth, Lustria, the Dark Lands, and the Ogre Kingdoms. We also touch u...

In this episode, we take a short, guided, tour through the kingdoms of the Old World, from the Empire through the Wastelands, Bretonnia, Estalia, Tilea, and finally on to the Border Princes and Kislev.  We take a look at the main realms of man and briefly explore their cultures and backgrounds. We also take a gander at some of the other races found in this part of the Warhammer World including the...

In this episode, we finally extract ourselves from the Realms of Chaos and take a tour through the metaphysical manifestations of other races and cultures in the form of their deities. Old Ones, Elves, Dwarves, Greenskins, Ogres, and Halflings. We have a look at the whys and wherefores of their religions without judgment, except the Fimir because... yeah... ⁠⁠⁠⁠Show notes⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ Chat with us on...

In this, our second episode, we focus on the topic of Chaos ...aos ...aos and dive a bit deeper into the four chaos gods a.k.a The Happytime Funsters, their purviews and legions, and ponder the process of their design (we suspect a set random beast tables). We follow this with a brief discussion the Winds of Magic (Chamon-mutha***er!) and what happens when things get out of balance. We end with a...

In this episode, Darren attempts to encapsulate the first 10,000 years of Warhammer Fantasy history for Ben and Cral. This includes world formation, old ones, slann, chaos, the polar gates, the collapse of the polar gates (boo!), magic, orcs, elves and their great vortex (woo!), and the onomatopoeic qualities of Nurgle... nurgle nurgle. This episode of Laying Down the Lore is brought to you by Tem...

The LDTL series in a nutshell.