Death battle tome flesh-eater courts

Ravenous, frenzied and utterly insane, the
mordants of the Flesh-eater Courts scrabble
towards their enemies with a terrible hunger
in their eyes. They are the remnants of once-
glorious kingdoms, transformed into hideous

fiends through the curse of the Carrion
King – yet in their madness they still believe
themselves to be knights and noble soldiers,

cleansing the Mortal Realms of the very
monsters they have become.

It was during the Age of Chaos, when the
servants of the Dark Gods brought untold ruin
to the realms, that the first Flesh-eater Courts

arose. In those hellish days, fire and famine
swept across the lands, mighty empires were
drowned in blood, and the humble and regal
alike were driven to cannibalism in order to
survive. In their desperation, these wretched
masses fell under the sway of the abhorrants,
powerful vampiric creatures whose delusions
united the carnivorous hordes into terrifying

and insatiable armies.

By the time the God-King Sigmar unleashed
his Stormcast Eternals to drive back the Chaos
scourge, the Flesh-eaters had long abandoned
their sanity. The Ghoul Kings and their subjects

saw the Stormhosts not as saviours, but as
invaders, come to despoil the lands and impose

upon them Sigmar’s tyranny.

The courts continue to haunt the ruins of their
kingdoms, hunting down any foolish enough to
trespass into their territories and pouring out
in pallid hordes to devour their enemies. With
the dead now rising across the Mortal Realms,

the Flesh-eater Courts are expanding more
rapaciously than ever, for in the horrors of the

Soul Wars they see a time of joy and plenty.

CONTENTS

CONTENTS

CANNIBAL KINGDOMS ................................4 Charnel Throne ..................................................................60
Morgaunt Grand Court ....................................................62
THE CARRION KING ..................................................8 Hollowmourne Grand Court...........................................63
Blisterskin Grand Court...................................................64
COURTS OF DELUSION .............................................10 Gristlegore Grand Court ..................................................65
Revenants of the Ravaged Lands.....................................12 Battleplan: Stirring the Nest ............................................66
Indentured to Death..........................................................14
The Coming of the Soul Wars ..........................................16 PATH TO GLORY........................................................68
Flesh-eater Courts Warband Tables ...............................70
TALES OF MADNESS..................................................18
WARSCROLLS ..............................................................72
DERANGED KINGDOMS..........................................20 Cannibal Court ..................................................................72
Dark Legacies .....................................................................22 Royal Family .......................................................................73
Morgaunt Grand Court ....................................................24 Attendants at Court...........................................................73
Hollowmourne Grand Court...........................................25 Deadwatch...........................................................................74
Blisterskin Grand Court...................................................26 Abattoir ...............................................................................74
Gristlegore Grand Court ..................................................27 Ghoul Patrol .......................................................................74
Abhorrants ..........................................................................28 King’s Ghouls .....................................................................75
Courtiers .............................................................................30 Royal Mordants ..................................................................75
Mordants .............................................................................32 Royal Menagerie ................................................................75
Menagerie............................................................................34 Abhorrant Ghoul King on Royal Terrorgheist .............76
Insane Manifestations.......................................................35 Abhorrant Ghoul King on Royal Zombie Dragon .......78
Abhorrant Archregent ......................................................79
GRISLY PAGEANTRY ...................................38 Abhorrant Ghoul King .....................................................79
Varghulf Courtier..............................................................80
MANIFEST INSANITY ..............................................44 Crypt Ghast Courtier........................................................81
Crypt Ghouls ......................................................................81
DEATHLY REVENANTS............................................48 Crypt Infernal Courtier....................................................82
Crypt Flayers ......................................................................82
PAINTING YOUR FLESH-EATER COURTS............50 Crypt Haunter Courtier ...................................................83
Crypt Horrors.....................................................................83
RAVENOUS HORDES ..................................54 Royal Terrorgheist .............................................................84
Royal Zombie Dragon .......................................................85
ALLEGIANCE ABILITIES ..........................................55 Cadaverous Barricade .......................................................86
Battle Traits .........................................................................55 Chalice of Ushoran ............................................................86
Command Traits ................................................................56 Corpsemare Stampede ......................................................87
Artefacts of Power .............................................................57
Spell Lores ...........................................................................58 PITCHED BATTLE PROFILES ..................................88
Mount Traits .......................................................................59

DESIGNED BY GAMES WORKSHOP IN NOTTINGHAM

With thanks to The Faithful for their additional playtesting services.

Death Battletome: Flesh-eater Courts © Copyright Games Workshop Limited 2019. Death Battletome: Flesh-eater Courts, GW, Games Workshop, Warhammer,
Stormcast Eternals, and all associated logos, illustrations, images, names, creatures, races, vehicles, locations, weapons, characters, and the distinctive likenesses

®thereof, are either or TM, and/or © Games Workshop Limited, variably registered around the world. All Rights Reserved.

No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying,
recording or otherwise, without the prior permission of the publishers.

This is a work of fiction. All the characters and events portrayed in this book are fictional, and any resemblance to real people or incidents is purely coincidental.

British Cataloguing-in-Publication Data. A catalogue record for this book is available from the British Library. Pictures used for illustrative purposes only.

Certain Citadel products may be dangerous if used incorrectly and Games Workshop does not recommend them for use by children under the age of 16 without
adult supervision. Whatever your age, be careful when using glues, bladed equipment and sprays and make sure that you read and follow the instructions on
the packaging.

ISBN: 978-1-78826-606-2

Games Workshop Ltd., Willow Road, Lenton, Nottingham, NG7 2WS, United Kingdom
games-workshop.com

As the pall of death spreads over the Mortal Realms, the deranged cannibals of the Flesh-eater
Courts emerge from the ruins of once-great civilizations in search of prey.

CCKAAINNNNGNIDBIABOLAMKLSINGDOMS

Hidden among the ruins of the Mortal Realms are the Flesh-eater Courts. Bound by the madness of their cursed
monarchs, throngs of creatures known as mordants eke out a wretched existence, waging wars against kingdom
after kingdom in order to feast on the flesh of their enemies.

Echoing through the mouldering diet of rancid flesh and bone. Even strong-willed soon see the king as
rubble of once-magnificent then these creatures are worthy of he sees himself. Before long, those
kingdoms comes the sound of pity, for their transformation into that once hid in shame from the light
scrambling claws and the wet ghouls is not yet complete; only stand tall, armoured in delusion.
smack of blood-stained lips. At the once they partake of an abhorrant In a mockery of civilisation, the
centre of this horrific din stands an king’s feast do they become what are abhorrant brings them into his
abhorrant, and in a voice that is at known as mordants. court, inviting the pale horrors that
once regal and raving he sounds the bow and scrape in his presence to
call to war. As his snarled command The kings themselves are bestial join in his grisly feasts.
reverberates across the ruins, scores vampires who rule over swathes of
of Crypt Ghouls come racing from the Mortal Realms by the strength By the will of the abhorrants do the
their dens, remnants of recent meals of their ragged courts. Completely courts congregate in the realms.
still dripping from gaping mouths delusional, they have become Gathering up feasts from among the
as they charge out to find fresh prey. known as abhorrants by their living and the dead, they rend apart
Hulking Crypt Horrors lope ahead of soulblighted kin. Abhorrant Ghoul their enemies and prepare the flesh
the ghoul throngs, brandishing the Kings are so lost in their madness of the fallen for their lord’s culinary
bones of those they have devoured that they believe themselves to be pleasure. Some mordants might even
and bellowing gibbered commands. mortal monarchs, while Abhorrant be blessed to sup the king’s blood –
Overhead, the skies darken as Crypt Archregents perceive themselves in their minds drinking wine from
Flayers and giant cadaverous beasts as emperors ruling over vast their master’s table. However, the
take wing, deafening those below domains. When they come to a place thick crimson draught brings with
with screeches and roars as they fly infested with cannibals, they see it a terrifying transformation. These
forth to hunt. not monsters, but starving peasants creatures arise as drooling horrors,
and soldiers eager for the hand of a slaved utterly to their new master,
Wherever the Flesh-eaters gather, beneficent master. Each abhorrant and bereft of what remained of
the air quickly grows thick with is more than just a delusional their sanity. In time, a few of these
the reek of decaying meat, and the beast – they are also the source of ‘blessed’ ones might even ascend
ground becomes littered with filth- contagious madness. Weak minds from mordants to join the vampire
encrusted bones. Yet the mordants are quickly turned, but even the ranks of the abhorrants, and if
do not see themselves as grotesque fortune favours them, in turn found
wretches – in their madness, they their own courts, thus spreading the
are instead gallant soldiers and noble madness of the Flesh-eaters.
knights, marching out in full regalia
to conquer the wicked and rid the DESOLATE DOMAINS
lands of evil. Born from the twisted Mordants lurk amid the ruins of
mind of their abhorrant kings, this countless fallen empires, their
sorcerous delusion stays with them depraved nations bound together by
even as they rip the flesh from their a shared madness. As the abhorrant
enemies’ bones with their bare teeth. kings who rule over these fallow
kingdoms grow in power, so too
DRIVEN TO DEPRAVITY do their mockeries of civilisation
In every corner of the realms, slowly spread their sinister influence
nightmarish tales are told of the further across the realms.
Flesh-eater Courts. When war
and famine ravage a land, its most By the beginning of the Age of
desperate and determined people Sigmar, the Flesh-eaters thrived
survive in any way they can. Giving in dark corners across the Mortal
in to hunger, they turn upon the Realms. For centuries beyond count
fallen, the weak, and even each the abhorrants had followed the
other in their quest for sustenance. heady scent of battle, claiming for
Retreating into the shadowed ruins themselves places to raise their
of their towns and cities, these banners and form their courts
cannibal cults devolve into hideous amidst the mayhem of war. It was
parodies of society, kept alive on a these ghoulish migrations that

seeded courts from the Dreaming Utilising the sorcery of these gates, From the perspective of the
Tombs of Hysh and the great there also exist sprawling Flesh-eater abhorrants, the other races are
Oakbastions of Ghyran to the alliances. Kings and their courts, usurpers and invaders. Unholy
Quicksilver Vales of Chamon having divided up portions of the barbarians hammer at their gates
and Themacarn Wastes of Aqshy. realms, use the gates to connect and slay their subjects, and thus
On the Penumbral Sea of Ulgu, their ruinous lands. Some of the deserve only death. After all, it is the
floating kingdoms are filled with largest of these confederations duty of a good king to watch over his
countless mordant shadows, while even span multiple realms, like the people and keep them from harm.
the Splinterbridge cities of Shyish’s Wargspine Citadel Grand Court.
carrion deltas groan under the Amidst the vast ruin of this once- No matter how far the mordants
weight of corpulent cannibals. great fortification, countless courts and their abhorrant kings spread
Outside of Azyr, there are few lands have arisen to infest the castle’s throughout the realms, their
within the Mortal Realms that do great bastions, each of which exists wretched presence always draws the
not conceal a court. As mortal, in a different realm. Wargspine is a gaze of Nagash. The Lord of Death
daemon and undead armies storm stronghold many foes have tried to has long held plans for the Flesh-
through Realmgates or march across claim, though all have failed. eaters. Despite the strange place they
continents to war, the Flesh-eaters occupy, being neither fully living
often go to battle both with and nor truly dead, Nagash considers
against them. them his own, and there has been a
shadowy struggle fought between
Many courts have made their homes the Flesh-eaters and their deathless
around Realmgates, learning that god over the centuries. Some have
these are places of battle and riches, journeyed to the Realm of Death
and the nearby lands are always to kneel before the necromancer,
ripe for bloody harvests. Often, an their kings cowed by the Death
invader will have no knowledge God’s might. Many, however, have
that they are walking into a domain purposefully put distance between
claimed by an abhorrant until the themselves and their would-be
ruins around them come alive with overlord, fearful of the revenge the
a thousand sets of hungry eyes. God of Death might visit upon them.

K ing Pergrin looked down into the valley before a powerful beat of its wings began soaring forwards,
him, surveying the hovels and gore-filled over the heads of the soldiers below, down the ridge
trenches of the enemy encampment. Writhing towards the wretched enemy.
amongst the filth and squalor he saw the pallid bodies
of his foe – wretched creatures all, devoid of mercy and ‘Show them no mercy!’ Pergrin shouted again, his
any semblance of civility. He had long pursued these impassioned voice carrying over the clatter of arms
monstrosities. Having driven them from his lands after and armour. His loyal troops replied in kind, their
years of their predations against his subjects, he had battle cry echoing across the valley…
hounded them into their squalid realm, slaughtering
them without restraint so that his kingdom might Kastor Veldan, last general of the Sapphire Kingdoms,
at last be free of their curse. Now but a single band heard the inhuman snarling filtering down into the
of them remained, not more than five hundred in valley. He reached for his scabbard and rushed out
number, and he had them cornered in the valley below. of his tent, wearily trying to recall how many troops
Soon they would be no more, and the nightmare they he still had after the last engagement. Whatever the
had brought to his people would finally be over. number, it would not be enough. Emerging through
the tent folds, the general saw the few remnants of his
Pergrin raised his sword arm high, then glanced once-grand army forming up for a last defence. Their
over his shoulder at the gleaming ranks of armoured bravery could not be denied, even now, when all hope
soldiers behind him. had been dashed.

‘Show them no mercy!’ he bellowed. Veldan looked beyond his troops and saw the endless
The soldiers advanced as one. Infantrymen poured swarm of Ghouls and Crypt Horrors pouring down
over the crest of the hill in crisp rows, moving swiftly the ridge towards them. Flying above them upon an
yet with precision fit for a parade ground. Alongside undead monstrosity was the leader, the Ghoul King
them rode the knights of the domain, their flapping who had hunted the people of the Sapphire Kingdoms
banners proudly displaying the colours of every to extinction. Veldan knew that soon he and his
fief in the kingdom. With his army in full advance, soldiers would be gone too, his flesh ripped from his
Pergrin pressed his heels into his mount, signalling bones and devoured by the mad throng of the enemy.
to the griffon that it was time to fly into battle. The He knew this, yet he drew his sword, stood beside his
magnificent beast launched itself into the air, and with troops, and prepared to die with honour.

The armies of the courts surge into battle to the sound of insane howling and bellowed gibberish. But as the
slaughter wears on, and fear and madness start to take hold, the enemy begin to share in the insanity, hearing the
silver trumpets and rousing speeches that echo in the minds of the cannibals.



THE CARRION KING

THE CARRION KING

From ancient vampire bloodlines were the original abhorrant kings spawned. Shunned by their kin for their
cannibalistic ways, they scattered out into the realms, weaving trails of madness through the ruins left by the Age
of Chaos and becoming the first generation of Abhorrant Ghoul Kings.

The origins of the abhorrants are where departed ancestors could due to Nagash welcomed his coming,
an ancient and tragic tale. During be given their due. He also helped and lined their streets with graverose
the Age of Myth, the first abhorrant the weak and infirm pass into the petals as he walked among them,
roamed the realms. He had been underworlds, and took life from whereas those who usurped the
a favoured servant of Nagash, and tyrants who misused their mortal natural order of life and death were
back then he was fair and strong, existence. Before becoming the made to feel the full measure of
and was surrounded by a loyal court first abhorrant, this champion was his wrath.
of knights and nobles. Wherever he known by many names in many
travelled, he administered justice in lands – Sumeros Summerking, the Though the truth of his ignominious
the name of the Great Necromancer, Blood Rose Prince and Ushoran the decline has been lost to the march
building hallowed shrines dedicated Handsome to name but a few – and of time, it is believed by many that
to the worship of the God of he was equally loved and feared. the king fell out of favour with
Death and glorious mausoleums Those civilisations that paid their Nagash and was punished with a
hideous transformation. No longer
was he welcomed as a benevolent
saviour; instead he was shunned
and even hunted by those empires
for whom he had done so much.
Malformed and filled with anger
against his former master, he became
a monster like no other, and began
prowling the Nightlands of Shyish.
He continued to travel from land to
land, but instead of granting boons
to the Great Necromancer’s loyal
subjects, he offered them only a
portion of his bitter malice. Such was
the devastation spread by his fury
that scores of Nagash’s kingdoms
were destroyed, their lords slain,
their peoples torn apart and their
cities reduced to naught but ruins
and broken corpses.

Such an insult could not be borne
by Nagash, and so he ordered his
Mortarchs – most loyal and powerful
of his servants – to bring the
wayward king to heel. The Mortarchs
of Night, Sacrament and Blood
gathered their unliving armies, and
in a series of brutal wars managed
to scatter the last of the king’s
forces. The one known as Ushoran
was brought before Nagash, but
rather than obliterating his soul the
Great Necromancer imprisoned his
former servant in a prison called the
Shroudcage. A towering edifice of
broken promises, its walls reflected
endless untruths upon the king,
reducing him to a raving wreck, as
twisted in mind as he was in body.
So the king might have stayed for

all eternity, had not the God-King his praises from the foot of his dark During the Age of Chaos, when
Sigmar descended from Azyr. In throne, and many of these in turn anarchy and ruination abounded,
the first years of the Age of Chaos, went on to create their own courts. what few tales were told of the
Sigmar invaded the Realm of Death, So it is that each Flesh-eater Court Carrion King came to an abrupt
incensed by Nagash’s perceived is a reflection of the First Court, end. Though the influence of
betrayal at the Allpoints. During their abhorrants trying to recreate in his derangement persisted and
Sigmar’s rampage through the Great madness the memories passed on to continued to grow, his whereabouts
Necromancer’s domain, his armies them through blood. became completely unknown. More
brought down the bastion that mysterious still are his motives and
held the Shroudcage, unwittingly It was during this same age that loyalties, for none can truly say
allowing the thing that would Nagash was laid low by Archaon, whether the Carrion King continues
become known as the Carrion King the Everchosen of the Chaos Gods. to rage against Nagash, or if in
to scuttle forth from the ruin. The Great Necromancer was not his madness he believes himself
destroyed completely, and was to be in the Great Necromancer’s
Loosed into the shadows, the first spirited away by his Mortarchs to good graces. Many of those courts
abhorrant began to build his court the underworld of Stygxx, there descended from him fight alongside
once more. He found those knights to slowly regain his sundered the undead armies of the Mortarchs,
who had survived the wars against power. Nonetheless, in his absence but others attack the servants of
Nagash’s Mortarchs – those who the empire of the Carrion King Nagash on sight. Those whose
were still loyal to their sovereign expanded greatly. The abhorrants cursed lineage is least removed from
lord – and upon them he bestowed a he created spread throughout the Carrion King still live within
portion of his grand madness, before Shyish before travelling through the the ruins of his ancient kingdom
setting out to travel the lands once Realmgates to found kingdoms in deep within Shyish. In them, the
more. In his insanity, the Carrion far-distant lands. Like all inhabitants curse of the king is strong, and their
King believed himself the benevolent of the Mortal Realms, these courts collective madness feeds off and
champion he once had been, when in were set upon by the armies of permeates the land. The further
truth he had become more monstrous the Dark Gods, but where most from this ruinous empire the courts
than ever. Cities of cowering mortals, civilisations crumbled to dust under stray, the more their delusions
tomb-fortresses of undead warriors the relentless advance of Chaos, the diverge from that of the Carrion
and invading Chaos armies, all had Flesh-eaters thrived. For every army King, though the degree of their
the abhorrant’s kindness visited of mordants that were hacked apart insanity remains undiminished.
upon them, and were left broken and or set ablaze by idolatrous warriors,
butchered. The Carrion King found more were raised from the pitiful The full truth of Ushoran’s tale has
a willing source of servants amongst masses that had been left to wither been forgotten by all but one: the
lost and depraved mortal cannibals and die in the ruins of once-glorious Great Necromancer. Indeed, Nagash
– and in those times such wretches cities. United by the madness of an remembers well what transpired,
were plentiful indeed. With his abhorrant, these mordants turned and still seeks his former champion
blood he created sycophants to sing their hunger into a deadly weapon. across the Mortal Realms.

THE FIRST COURT imprisoned. Freed from the Shroudcage, the Carrion
Before his descent into madness, a court of knights and King gathered those who had been his courtiers to
nobles followed Ushoran on his journeys. Drawn from his side once more, passing his insanity to them and
different corners of the realms, this court comprised making them the First Court in his resurrected empire.
the finest and most noble of warrior lords, and together Lord Marrowbroth took up his position of old as
they rode resplendent as glorious children of the night. protector of the Carrion King, gathering elite mordants
Some were peerless statesmen, entrusted by their liege to his ragged banner to ensure no harm would again
to impart chivalry to the kingdoms to which they befall the sovereign. The swift and secretive Baron
travelled. Others were mighty warlords, commanded Gizzard commanded Ghouls in great patrols around
to defend the meek and eradicate the unjust. These the borders of his lord’s burgeoning lands, seeking
knights were still unshakeably devoted to their king, out enemies who dared draw near and slaughtering
even after he had been afflicted by Nagash’s curse, any who let their guard down. These and others were
fighting alongside him as he waged war throughout the first of the Carrion King’s cursed descendants,
Shyish. When the Mortarchs were sent to apprehend and they carved out a gruesome domain in Shyish
Ushoran, his court fought to the bitter end. Many during the Age of Chaos before spreading out into the
died, others were scattered, yet even in defeat they realms to found new courts of their own. Of this initial
remained loyal. generation of abhorrants, little else is known, their
histories lost beneath a veil of time and madness. It is
Some believe it was the knights of the court that lured said that some travel the realms as Archregents, and
Sigmar towards the stronghold where their liege was that others fight beside the Carrion King to this day.

COURTS OF
CDOEULRUTSSIOOFNDELUSION

Just as in any mortal court, an abhorrant king’s followers are each assigned a station under his beneficent rule.
Lords and courtiers command soldiers, servants and peasants, with all mordants accepting their rank and role
within the infectious madness of their masters.

A sane observer looking upon a glory, though they usually remain of which sometimes carries the
Flesh-eater Court sees only a nest of subservient to his desires. Those ancient title of Marquis Gruelsop.
bestial cannibalism and mindless that do are known as sycophants, Ferocious agents of the court, they
horror. Wretched Crypt Ghouls root and can range from a single ‘heir’ lead the Royal Mordants, and are
around in piles of reeking dead, their to the throne to a whole brood of often trusted by their king with
filthy claws picking decaying meat bloodsuckers taking on the roles command of the court’s armies.
from rancid bones while they snarl and titles of the king’s doting family. Crypt Infernal Courtiers and
and spit at each other in a guttural For example, in the first Flesh-eater Crypt Haunter Courtiers are field
tongue. Packs of towering Crypt Court established by the Carrion commanders and earn titles like
Horrors, Haunters and their kin King, the Giblet Prince was the heir the Lord Marrowbroth or the Lord
loom in the shadows like deathless apparent and closest to his sovereign. Liverbelch, overseeing the soldiers
guardians, darting into the press of The Offal Queen oversaw the of the Deadwatch and the Abattoir
ghouls to claim whole corpses at will. bloodnurseries, caring for the newest respectively. The traditional position
The mass of pallid bodies writhes of the brood, and making sure they of Lord Chamberslough is held
like a cluster of maggots, and the air fed regularly on the red bounty their by a Crypt Haunter Courtier who
grows ever thicker with the stench father provided. Then there were rules over the Lickspittles keeping
of decrepitude. the Sweetbread Princelings, chosen order at court. Then there are the
companions of the Giblet Prince, monikers of Marquis Retchbile
Yet beneath this macabre veneer is charged by the king to keep his heir and Baron Gizzard, Crypt Ghast
an even more nightmarish truth. In safe, be it in the madness of battle Courtiers who stand as marshals for
the midst of this pit of monsters sits or out on a hunt. Similar hierarchies the king’s massed mordant armies,
the Abhorrant Ghoul King upon a exist in other courts, with some be it the stalwart and proud ranks
throne of mortal remains. Tall and even sharing the names and titles of of the King’s Ghouls or the stealthy
powerful, everything about the king those first sycophants – these are the Ghoul Patrol.
screams that he is a bestial predator, courts in which the Carrion King’s
from his lithe, corded muscles to the delusion persists in its purest form. Each Flesh-eater Court is a discrete
dark hunger in his inhuman gaze. kingdom, yet all swear allegiance
However, this is not how he appears Beyond the inner circle of a Ghoul to the Carrion King. In his absence,
to himself or his followers. They see King, favoured mordants see to the mightiest of all abhorrants see
him upon a gilt throne in a great the daily running of the court. his will fulfilled across the realms.
hall. Next to him, his men-at-arms Above all other mordants reign the These Abhorrant Archregents
stand to attention or spar, ready Varghulf Courtiers, the greatest rule over vast empires comprising
for the call to war. Servants scurry many separate courts, collecting
about preparing another feast for flesh-tithes from the Ghoul Kings
their lord, or attend to the running beneath them and delivering insane
of the kingdom. His thronging proclamations with the authority
subjects are hale and hearty, well of their lord. Some allow their
fed on the bounteous produce of his subservient Ghoul Kings to act
ordered lands. The yawning chasm autonomously in pursuing their
between truth and perception is gruesome agendas, insisting only
fuelled by a singular, all-consuming that these lesser abhorrants provide
delusion, emanating from the their Archregent with worthy gifts.
twisted mind of the Ghoul King to Others choose to oversee all matters
infect every mordant in his presence. within their empires, keeping close
They believe themselves sane and watch over their manifold holdings
civilised, and are incapable of seeing and a short leash on their petty
their own abject wretchedness. Ghoul Kings. To a sane mind, a
domain ruled by such an Archregent
Within the madness of a Flesh-eater is like a continent-sized abattoir,
Court, each individual has their role. with multiple courts working in
The king is lord and master of all, unison to butcher and devour all
an absolute monarch of a deranged who step inside their borders. In
nation. Sometimes, he might create these nightmarish empires, the air
other abhorrants to share in this itself seethes with madness.

Sycophants and mordants grovel before the throne of their sovereign, offering up grotesque gifts as a sign of fealty.
The nightmarish sight is complemented by the reek of blood and offal, though in the eyes of the Flesh-eaters it is a
stately affair in which each perfumed noble makes a grandiose display of their loyalty to the court.

Revenants of the Ravaged Lands

REVENANTS OF THE RAVAGED LANDS

The Mortal Realms are host to many and varied Flesh-eater Courts. The greatest number reside in Shyish, for it was
here that the Carrion King’s insanity first took hold; but as subsequent generations of abhorrants spread further
they found cannibals susceptible to madness scattered throughout the lands that had been ravaged by Chaos.

ENDLESS FEEDING waves of frenzied Flesh-eaters have faced the Flesh-eaters enough
GROUNDS expecting lost riches or precious times in battle to recognise the
During the Age of Chaos, the realms grave goods, only to find craters filled focused intelligence that underpins
suffered greatly. Bloodthirsty killers with rotting meat and broken bones. their savagery.
turned glittering continents into
reeking charnel houses, and dark An Abhorrant Ghoul King is always In a similar fashion, when an
wizards loosed storms of sorcery ready for an attack against his lands. abhorrant looks to the lands
that warped the landscape beyond Whether he believes himself the bordering his kingdom, he does not
recognition. In the wake of terrible master of a mighty fortress – which see the embattled nations and savage
wars, many lands became ripe for the in reality is a crumbling castle long hordes that surround him for what
slow, terrifying transformation into a since abandoned by the conquerors they really are. In his mind’s eye,
Flesh-eater kingdom. Stumbling and that put it to the torch – or a nomad these other mortals are twisted to
shaking, the survivors of these fallen prince encamped for a time to secure fit his delusion, their appearance,
states emerged from the ruins of their supplies, he will ferociously protect words and motives mangled beyond
once-great civilisations, only to face what is his. Like knights of the realm, recognition. Many a Freeguild
new and insidious threats. Starvation Crypt Flayers soar over the court’s caravan has passed through the
and madness took their toll, and domain, drawn by the hissing cries desolate barrens of an abhorrant’s
the creatures turned to murder and of the Ghoul Patrol. These flying kingdom, believing the ruin-scape
cannibalism to survive. In time, terrors shadow those who would to be devoid of life, only to be set
packs of scavengers arose from defile their master’s kingdom, while upon by tearing claws and chomping
among the survivors to prey upon ghoul hosts lay cunning ambushes teeth. To the Ghoul King and his
their erstwhile kin, and the darkness in the invader’s path. United by their mordants these interlopers appear
beyond the campfires of marauding delusion, Flesh-eater armies show a as roving barbarian hordes, come to
Chaos armies was filled with pale level of coordination that is belied by pilfer their granaries and abscond
horrors and the sickening crunch and their gruesome appearance, and that with their livestock. Similarly, the
slurp of bones being devoured. To the has been the doom of countless foes. king’s courtiers may be sent to
abhorrants, the call of these hungry butcher a nearby Arcanite Cult as it
children was like a siren’s song, and THE MORTAL COIL weaves profane sorceries and gives
whether it took days, years or even The other denizens of the Mortal praise to Tzeentch, or to feast on the
centuries, a deranged ruler eventually Realms are only dimly aware of the flesh of an ancient Slann attempting
arrived at each of these pits of despair madness afflicting the Flesh-eaters. to conjure its saurus armies. But
and depravity to bring about a In the eyes of most humans, aelves in the mind of the abhorrant he is
macabre transformation. and duardin, they are grotesque simply sending the most learned
and bestial creatures, driven by nobles of his court to impart the
This sinister process still plays out their insatiable hunger and utterly spiritual wisdom of his kingdom
in famished and forsaken territories incapable of rational thought. to his parochial and somewhat
across the Mortal Realms. In a dark The truth of their dark insanity is backwards neighbours.
mockery of the kingdom that came known only to those scholars who
before, an abhorrant will swiftly have deciphered the scrawls of So warped in body and mind are
set about creating, in his own mordants, and to those veterans who the Flesh-eaters that most other
delusional mind, a functioning state. mortals do what they can to avoid
Ragged pennants of flesh are hung them entirely. The Idoneth Deepkin
above crumbling ruins. Scouting are particularly wary of them, for
parties range out across the land, their memory magics have little
establishing fresh borders for their effect on those so disconnected
lord’s armies to defend and seeking from reality. Amongst the Anvils
out plentiful hunting grounds with of the Heldenhammer, certain
which to feed the populace. In the Lord-Ordinators have used their
broken remains of cities, nests of scrying powers to glimpse the minds
ghouls take up residence, stockpiling of abhorrants. They have seen the
food and weapons. These offal pits noble intent that lies behind so
and midden heaps are the treasure many of these creatures’ actions, yet
houses of the court, and are closely the enormities of the Ghoul Kings’
guarded. More than one foe has deeds puts them beyond any hope
battled their way bitterly through of redemption.

OUTPOURING OF still live a peaceful existence – they of livestock and nights making
MADNESS continue to think they are at one merry with their fellow honoured
As abhorrants spread their insanity with nature, even as they hack and dead. Similarly, mordants who saw
across the Mortal Realms, their devour their former Sylvaneth allies. themselves as gallant beastslayers
delusions manifested in different spent their afterlife slaughtering
ways. To the untrained eye, the These and countless other delusions endless series of monstrosities,
courts that have formed are equally exist throughout the realms, leading holding aloft the severed heads
depraved, yet the horrors endured to vast kingdoms that are blind to as commoners showered them
by each nation of cannibals vary in their own atrocities. Though their with flower petals. Many of these
their grotesqueness. Even in their once-glorious nations were brought underworlds were reserved for
basest state, a part of each wretch’s to an apocalyptic end by the Age of those who lived pure and just lives,
mind clung to the glory of who their Chaos, the Flesh-eaters believe that cleaving to chivalric codes and
ancestors had once been – before the they held firm against the darkness, resisting temptation. Conversely,
coming of Chaos and the ravages of maintaining their values while the an afterlife of torment and penance
war – and it was to these memories world around them went mad. awaited those who strayed from
that the abhorrants anchored the path of honour. But in their
their insanity. deranged minds, mordants saw
themselves as paragons of virtue,
In Ulgu there had been vast NO REST FOR THE shielding the weak from evil while
networks of kingdoms for whom WICKED remaining untouched by corruption.
open war was anathema to their The underworlds of Shyish are This could not be further from the
way of life. These shadow kingdoms carved out of the collective belief of truth, yet their unshakable belief
fought each other with words and myriad mortals. A given culture’s in the nobility of their actions
secrets, seeding spies amongst their conception of the afterlife is formed ensured that, upon death, they
rivals’ retainers and using rumour from the raw amethyst magic of pass blissfully into an underworld
and misdirection to support or the Realm of Death, and it is to this alongside the other souls of their
undermine as they saw fit. Faced land that the souls of that culture decayed civilisation.
with the armies of the Dark Gods, go upon their death. The mordants
these peoples were swiftly overrun, of the courts – despite their deathly Since the Shyish necroquake, which
their extraordinary guile doing little pallor – are living creatures saw a wave of unfettered death
to save them from the blade. Those possessed of souls, and in the depths energy blasted across the Mortal
who survived as cannibals clung of their insanity still hold to the Realms, the underworlds of the
to their culture of intrigue, and beliefs of their old culture regarding Flesh-eaters have undergone a
when swayed to the will of a mighty the afterlife. marked change. Where once the
Archregent lost all memory that souls of mordants passed into death
their whispering existence had ever So it was that when a new court was as untainted souls, they have now
been interrupted. The abhorrants formed, the afterlife into which its begun carrying the horrifying reality
that now rule these kingdoms send mordants passed when they died of their existence with them into the
their courtiers to learn the heart of remained largely unchanged. Courts afterlife. Upon parting with its body,
their rival or bend the ear of their who believed themselves to be a mordant’s spirit no longer becomes
ally, and the courtiers dutifully pastoral fiefdoms had underworlds a manifestation of the civilised being
return to their sovereign bearing in which spirits dwelt amongst lush it believes itself to be. Instead it takes
the mangled heart of an invading fields, spending days rearing herds the form of a frenzied gheist that
warlord or a severed head to be set at mercilessly cannibalises the other
the foot of their Ghoul King’s throne. souls that share its underworld. In
this way, the underworlds of the
Throughout Ghyran there were courts have become grim mirrors of
nations of people who dwelt their living kingdoms – nightmarish
amongst the verdant forests. They domains that are seen as paradise
ate only that which they grew in by their demented inhabitants. Vast
their hanging gardens, and made regions of Shyish have succumbed
alliances with those alongside whom to this insanity, and where once
they lived, such as the Sylvaneth there were great swathes of peaceful
of Dreadwood Glade. When the Flesh-eater underworlds, there are
armies of Nurgle invaded, blights now continent-spanning hellscapes
and plagues ran rampant throughout through which hungering spectres
the forest, and the peoples were prowl. Such is the force of the
forced to hunt down and eat those Flesh-eaters’ delusion that dead
not yet afflicted or face starvation. mordants may not even notice their
This barbarity was unimaginable to own incorporeality, and may rise
the Ghyranites, so their minds were en masse to fight alongside their
easily bent into believing that they still-living brethren.

Indentured to Death

INDENTURED TO DEATH

Nagash casts a dark shadow over the Realm of Death. The Great Necromancer claims all who toil under his gaze,
including the mordants and their kings. Yet to the mordants Nagash is as much nemesis as he is deity, and for
every ghoul who offers him fealty, another hates the God of Death with maddened fervour.

Just as they are varied in the speeches, stirring their hearts to new inhabitants’ imaginations, its bone
delusions they spread, abhorrants heights of bravery before they charge palisades and blood moats are real
are divided in their view of the Great gallantly towards the foe. However, enough, and make it a formidable
Necromancer. Some revere Nagash the deathless generals that command bastion that is fiercely defended
as a benevolent emperor and seek such combined armies do not look against any suspected servant of
him out, hopeful of finding solace in upon the Flesh-eaters with the same Nagash sent to bring them to heel.
his strength. Others loathe him as a reverence. Vampires, Wight Kings
force of destruction or dominance, and Necromancers respect the As much as their perceptions of
forever fearful that Nagash is their raw savagery of the mordants they Nagash differ, so too do the Flesh-
doom or is seeking to cage them. lead, but are wary of the madness eaters view the Great Necromancer’s
Abhorrants either fawn at Nagash’s that infects their minds. Outside empire in Shyish through various
feet or hide from his gaze in order to of the abhorrants themselves, no lenses of madness. Some see the
better pursue their own agendas. To warlord could completely control Shyish Nadir not as a plunging abyss
all Flesh-eaters, however, Nagash’s such insanity. in the heart of the realm, but as a
godhood is utterly undeniable. soaring mountain atop which sits a
Amongst the Flesh-eaters, the most paradisaic domain. To others, the
From bone-thick feeding grounds, fervent worshippers of Nagash see yawning maw is the mouth of a great
those courts allied to Nagash look all other deities as pretenders. These beast that they must ride out to slay,
up to crumbling statues of the courts march across the realms, or a sacred prison in which Nagash
Great Necromancer, offering their tearing down graven images of false himself is incarcerated.
praise through mouthfuls of rotting gods and slaughtering idolaters. The
meat. They do not see the grim and mordants of the Hollowmourne Though every member of a Flesh-
fleshless visage of a heartless god Grand Court are renowned for their eater Court has been affected by
carved into the stone, but a divine zealotry in this regard, smashing the abhorrant’s curse, and has
face with piercing eyes, watching the profane icons borne to battle by therefore been instilled with
over the landscape with majestic Chaos Lords, toppling the altars to madness born of death magic,
authority. In the delusion of some Gorkamorka built up by greenskin mordants themselves are not dead.
abhorrant kings, Nagash appears tribes, and sacking cities in which Their wretched existence can best
as a beneficent deity wrapped in statues to Sigmar have been erected. be described as teetering on the
flowing golden robes, or wearing The bones of those slaughtered by edge of the grave – neither dead
a shining crown as he smiles the Hollowmourne mordants are nor undead, but possessed of only
down from the sky. To honour then fused together into an effigy of the most grotesque semblance of
their god, many courts have built the Great Necromancer, for in this life. As such, they are immune to
shrines among the ruins of their way the newly conquered lands are the power Nagash wields over all
kingdoms, such as the Corpsefane deemed to be consecrated. dead things. With a whispered
of the Nightlands, covered with ten command, the Great Necromancer
thousand flayed faces, all stitched By contrast, those courts that can order vast legions of skeletons
together with the same expression distrust Nagash will travel as far and billowing armies of gheists to
of rapture. away from the Realm of Death as do his bidding, but his words have
possible in an attempt to escape the no hold on the lingering mortality
Those courts that hold Nagash in gaze of Nagash. Many of these courts of the mordants. Abhorrants, on
divine regard fight willingly in the would sooner face destruction or the other hand, are vampires, and
armies of the dead. Mordants scuttle famine out in the wilds of the Mortal as such the call of Nagash resounds
alongside clattering ranks of skeletal Realms than bow before him, and within the tattered remnants of their
warriors and hordes of shambling will go to great lengths to stay one souls. However, the insanity carried
deadwalkers, looking upon their step ahead of the God of Death. by abhorrants gives them a certain
allies as curiously uniformed Some are forever on the move, degree of immunity from the Lord of
soldiery from neighbouring like the Gluttonous Carnival. Its Undeath, for though his will cannot
kingdoms. Soulblight Vampires roving corpse caravans, heavy with directly be denied, his words are
issue orders in a seductive tongue, scavenged meat, endlessly rumble twisted beyond recognition in the
but the magic-tinged words that across the land as they try to evade warped minds of the Ghoul Kings
compel the undead have little effect their imagined pursuers. Others and Archregents. In this way, it is
on the Flesh-eaters. Instead, the construct vast fortresses, like the the same curse that Nagash inflicted
shared madness of the mordants Witherclaw in Ghyran. Though that keeps the descendants of the
leads them to hear only rousing its high walls exist only in its Carrion King from being controlled.



The Coming of the Soul Wars

THE COMING OF THE SOUL WARS

The Flesh-eaters arose from the horrors of the Age of Chaos. Where other mortals races were brought to the brink
of annihilation, the mordants grew steadily in number. But this time of expansion was not to last, for a storm was
gathering in the heavens that threatened to wash away all the abhorrants had built.

As the forces of the Dark Gods were A TIME OF PORTENTS THE DEAD ARISE
approaching total domination over Through long years of brutal conflict, In the wake of the Shyish
the Mortal Realms, Sigmar opened the armies of Sigmar’s pantheon necroquake, the souls of the dead
the Gates of Azyr and sent forth clawed their way back from the pour from ancient crypts and mass
his Stormcast Eternals. Great forks point of obliteration. The servants graves across the Mortal Realms.
of lightning lanced down across of the Dark Gods still pursued their But where Nagash planned to
the realms and peals of thunder nightmarish campaigns across the raise a Nighthaunt army beholden
resounded throughout reality as the Mortal Realms, and greenskin and to his will, the death magic he
Stormhosts marched to battle. In ogor tribes continued to carve great unleashed was tainted by the touch
a series of brutal campaigns, they swathes of devastation throughout of Chaos. Many of the risen gheists
wrested control of vital Realmgates the lands, but the dying embers of were twisted and misshapen, and
from the servants of Chaos, allowing hope had been rekindled within instead of answering the Great
the scattered survivors of embattled many mortal peoples. As the endless Necromancer’s call, they now roam
civilisations to be united once more wars raged on, and the number of wild, taking out their mindless
in defence of the realms. To the slain rose ever higher, the realms torment on all in their path. This
beleaguered humans, aelves and were visited with new phenomena. same corruption has augmented
duardin, the Stormcast Eternals Soothsayers, scryers, prophets and arcane energies across the realms in
were an embodiment of hope, a priests started to see deathly portents terrifying ways, birthing anarchic
manifestation of the God-King’s hinting at some great calamity that spells that never perish. Though
implacable will sent to lead them was soon to come. These visions were Nagash’s master stroke was soured,
out of their darkest hour. But to followed by physical manifestations he has still brought about a time of
the Flesh-eaters, the sigmarite- – gheists burst from cracks in dread – the Soul Wars – in which
clad warriors were something far ancient tombs and the unquiet dead the followers of Sigmar, the armies
more sinister. began clawing their way up from the of the Dark Gods and the greenskin
grave in greater numbers than ever hordes face an unending tide
The Stormcast Eternals drove back before. It quickly became apparent of death.
not only the Chaos-worshipping that this was the result of some
hordes, but all who opposed Sigmar’s dreadful power emanating from the Amongst the courts, the spectral
law. Greenskin tribes were hunted heart of Shyish. uprisings are seen as holy events.
down and butchered, undead legions Each court filters the grim
were shattered and sent back to their Nagash had watched as the denizens phenomena through the prism
graves, and the kingdoms of the of the Mortal Realms fought and of their specific madness, but all
Flesh-eaters were besieged. Where died. The soul of every living being believe that the unleashing of the
the abhorrants had once reigned was his by right, to be given over underworlds into the other realms is
supreme, their madness spreading at the point of death, but no small a sign of a golden age of prosperity.
through ever-growing numbers number were being denied him, In the vicinity of many courts,
of desperate wretches, they were siphoned off by gods and sorcerers. Nighthaunt processions tear across
now forced to defend their borders Sigmar had stolen the souls of the lands, slaughtering the living
on multiple fronts – against the fearsome warriors to create his with ghostly blades and incorporeal
savagery of the Chaos warbands, and Stormcast Eternals, binding them talons, and leaving naught in their
against the newly galvanised forces to his service so that they would wake but barren fields strewn with
of Order. In the warped minds of the not pass into the underworlds corpses. The Ghoul Kings see these
abhorrants and their subjects, the when struck down, and through processions as jovial communities
Stormcast Eternals were not noble arcane rituals the aelves also kept of peasants, coming to harvest the
warriors, but morbid abominations, the souls of their departed from crops that surround their kingdoms,
wrought from dead flesh and imbued passing to Nagash. Such affronts and this delusion is given credence
with unnatural life. The Flesh-eaters could not be borne, and so the Great when every mordant is able to feast
won many great victories over the Necromancer began gathering on the bounty that the Nighthaunts
Stormhosts, yet those foes they cut the realmstone of Shyish. From have provided.
down were returned to life between it he constructed an enormous
battles, with the Stormcast Eternals inverted pyramid, towards which To other courts, the teeming gheists
who had been reforged multiple the death energy of the entire realm are seen as learned ancestors and
times appearing to the mordants as was drawn, before being blasted famed warriors returning to the
cadaverous monsters in increasing outwards in an apocalyptic eruption mortal coil in the Flesh-eaters’ hour
states of decrepitude. that rippled across existence. of need. Mordants fight alongside

thrashing Chainrasp hordes and SAINTS AND GODS Some courts revere Nagash’s other
whirling masses of Spirit Hosts Of all the newly unleashed gheists, Mortarchs with similar ardour.
against their common enemies, and the most terrifying is Lady Olynder, Neferata, Mortarch of Blood, is a
in their madness the Flesh-eaters Nagash’s Mortarch of Grief. Calling master seducer and manipulator, yet
hear words of ancient wisdom out across the realms, she summons she is viewed as a peerless diplomat,
and cries of encouragement in the the anarchic Nighthaunt processions travelling from empire to empire
wailing of the Nighthaunts. back to Shyish that they may be convincing tyrants and warlords
united as a single, unstoppable army. to set aside their petty differences.
Some courts have been overrun All mortals who gaze upon her are Mannfred, Mortarch of Night, wages
completely by the spectral filled with soul-crushing woe, their wars of cruelty and terror, but to
processions, their feeding grounds every thought ripped from their some Flesh-eaters he is the noblest of
now awash with unthinking gheists. mind and replaced with visions of generals, winning grand campaigns
In these places the Nighthaunts sorrow – all, that is, except for the through compassion and unflinching
attack the Flesh-eaters with as much crazed Flesh-eaters. They see her civility. Arkhan, Mortarch of
malice as they would any other not as a bringer of misery, but as a Sacrament, is the greatest of
living foe, perhaps remembering shining beacon of hope, a warrior Nagash’s students, second only to
that their death came at the hands of saint who is the living embodiment his master in his abilities with death
these cannibals, or perhaps because of majesty. Instead of sobbing grief- magic, but to certain abhorrants and
it suits the will of Nagash. But even stricken before her, many mordants mordants is a beneficent scholar,
these courts believe themselves to and even abhorrants bow at her hem seeking to spread his wisdom to the
be celebrating a time of prosperity. in respectful praise. More than one corners of the realms. Even to those
Where they battle against untamed court has followed the processions of courts who fear and despise Nagash,
spirits their madness has them Lady Olynder to war, believing her to these Mortarchs may still be upheld
participating in tournaments, and be a saviour sent by Nagash – or else as living saints. These Flesh-eaters
those Flesh-eaters that are slain are the anointed champion of whatever do not see the Mortarchs as servants
believed to have simply retired from gods their madness leads them to of Nagash, but as divine beings
the contest to drink and make merry believe in – and they fight in her come to herald the return of the
with their new friends. name with zealous fervour. Carrion King.

TTAALELSEOSFOMFAMDNAEDSSNESS

Just as decay claims a mouldering corpse, the Flesh-eaters have spread out to infest the ruins of the Mortal
Realms. Theirs are the deeds witnessed not by scholars and wise men, but by the desperate and hopeless, who
either join their fiendish ranks or are devoured by courts of madmen.

AGE OF MYTH THE SHROUDCAGE NOBLE BEASTS
Just as the Mortal Realms are In Shyish, beastmen of the
THE FIRST DELUSION beginning to devolve into anarchy, Slatehorns Greatfray roam the
Sigmar awakens from his slumber the bond between Nagash and mountain range known as Betrayer’s
and begins travelling the Mortal his champion transforms into Barrier, slaughtering the dragons
Realms. Those primitive tribes he animosity. After being disfigured, that roost in those peaks. Word
encounters are gifted with great Ushoran turns upon his master, of this reaches the abhorrants of
wisdom and knowledge, and using his knowledge of the Great the Morgaunt Grand Court – who
fledging nations swiftly expand into Necromancer’s empires to wage a believe the Shyishan dragons to be
sprawling civilisations. Amongst the devastating series of campaigns. majestic gryphons – and together
peoples raised up by the God-King Eventually, the Carrion King – as he they amass their ghoul armies
are whole kingdoms who proclaim comes to be known – is bested, and is and march on the Barrier. After a
this age of prosperity will never imprisoned within the Shroudcage, long and gruelling campaign, the
end. This mindset is passed down there to rot in undying anguish. Slatehorns are eradicated, though
through the generations, and it is the not before they have slain the last of
descendants of these merry believers AGE OF CHAOS the dragons. Three of the Morgaunt
who will ultimately prove most Ghoul Kings pay their respects to the
susceptible to the abhorrants’ curse. THE MADNESS OF THE winged creatures, praying that they
CANNIBAL KING will continue to soar through the
NOBILITY IN DEATH After Nagash’s betrayal of Sigmar skies as magnificently in the afterlife.
The pantheon formed by Sigmar during the opening stages of the Age By some miracle, the creatures are
rules over the Mortal Realms, of Chaos, the God-King rampages resurrected, and henceforth serve as
slaying the mighty godbeasts that through Shyish, and in doing so mounts for the Ghoul Kings.
roam the land and driving savage topples the bastion that holds the
monstrosities beyond the borders Shroudcage. Ushoran escapes his CLEANSED BY BLOOD
of civilisation. Each god in the prison and his madness begins to In their continual migrations,
pantheon has many servants, and spread unchecked across the realms. Flesh-eaters of the Hollowmourne
amongst those champions loyal to Now utterly insane, the abhorrant’s Grand Court come across a horde
Nagash is a king known by countless twisted view of the world manifests of Bloodreavers indulging in a
names. A warrior, general and in various ways, with some of those cannibalistic feast. The Flesh-eaters
statesmen of great renown, this king afflicted by his delusion pledging are repulsed by the sight, believing
travels far and wide, accompanied themselves wholeheartedly to the Khornate savages to be knights
always by his court of noble Nagash, while others swear oaths to from an infidel kingdom, gorging
knights. By his deeds Nagash gains lay low the Great Necromancer. themselves on unclean meats. The
worshippers in the furthest reaches mordants charge their foes, wiping
of the Eight Realms. them out to a man, then proceed
to consecrate the battlefield by
CRACKS IN SANITY devouring the bodies of those
A growing shadow creeps over the they have slain, as well as the
lands as mortal nations examine corpses that had been part of the
their neighbours with jealousy, Bloodreavers’ feast.
resentment and suspicion. Where
once cooperation and community STAR-CROSSED
flourished, now the races of humans, As the madness of the Flesh-
duardin, aelves and orruks become eaters takes hold over more of
increasingly factionalised, trusting the realms, the ancient Slann
only in their kindred, and sometimes Starmaster Tesolesalak lays siege to
not even that. But such animosity the Dreamgheist courts in Hysh.
is not entirely natural – the Dark But when Tesolesalak advances
Gods look to the Mortal Realms further into the Flesh-eaters’
from beyond the veil of reality, domain, he finds himself engaged
and through the hairline cracks in on a battlefield that is surrounded
existence they exert their influence, by a score of Charnel Thrones.
stirring latent malevolent emotions The raw insanity emanating from
to sudden fervour. these grim constructs seeps across

the battle lines, and before long envoy. He tells them that his king Hundreds of Crypt Flayers from the
even the Starmaster’s inscrutable will pay fifty thousand gold coins to Blisterskin Grand Court descend
mind is being gnawed at by the the mercenaries if they eradicate the through the clouds of vultures,
Dreamgheists’ delusion. As the Slaaneshi cults in the lands around swooping down to rip the Freeguild
battle rages on, the saurus and skink his small kingdom. The Kharadron soldiers from the battlements before
warriors conjured from Tesolesalak’s accept, and the last of the cultists are turning their attention on those
mind become more and more cut down by aethershot in a matter stationed inside the outpost. Against
deranged, appearing not as mighty of weeks. When the duardin go to this vertical assault, the Dunekeep’s
soldiers, but as twisted monstrosities collect their payment, they are met mighty walls only serve to pen in the
who attack their enemies and their not by a royal envoy, but by slavering terrified garrison.
allies with equal fervour. ghouls, and in place of gold coins
they are presented with thousands THE LUNATIC SEER
AGE OF SIGMAR upon thousands of vertebral discs, The Abhorrant Archregent known
each of which bears a scrawled image as the Skinless Sultan miraculously
CLOUDED MINDS of the Carrion King. calculates where the Bad Moon will
The God-King Sigmar opens the next appear. This feat draws the
Gates of Azyr and sends forth his GOOD TIDINGS attention of Skragrott the Loonking,
Stormhosts, halting the Chaos Across the Mortal Realms, who wishes to add the abhorrant
advance on many fronts. Though soothsayers and prognosticators astronomer to his fungal asylum.
bitter wars continue to rage, there foresee a time of great tribulation.
is much rejoicing throughout the Soon after, even those without AN HONOURLESS DEED
realms, for in the Stormcast Eternals mystic intuition are afflicted by grim Following the Shyish necroquake,
do the beleaguered mortals see their dreams, or else come face to face countless graves are opened
salvation. But not so the Flesh- with the growing numbers of risen throughout the Mortal Realms,
eaters – in their mangled minds they dead. These portents cause terror allowing uncontrolled Nighthaunt
see only darkness in the gathering to spread like plague, yet amongst processions to begin surging across
thunderheads, and to them the the Flesh-eaters there is joy and the lands. A group of abhorrants
glistening ranks of sigmarite-clad celebration. In the clattering legions from the Gristlegore Grand Court
warriors are but honourless cut- of skeleton warriors and moaning try to rein in one such procession,
throats in the armies of a false god. hordes of deadwalkers, the Flesh- believing them to be frightened
eaters see hale and hearty peasants refugees in need of saving. The
BALANCE OF POWER merrily returning to work the lands. abhorrants block off a mountain pass
Deep in the Ghurish Gnarlwood, the Many Ghoul Kings proclaim that the in an attempt to corral and calm the
abhorrant known as the Nightstalker coming harvests will be bountiful, howling gheists, but the Nighthaunts
sends his mordants to eradicate a and that these jocund times are to be do not listen to the Flesh-eaters’
tribe of Bonesplitter orruks. Since celebrated with daily feasts. offers of aid. Worse still, a mighty
time immemorial, the Bonesplitterz contingent from one of the Celestial
have preyed on the gargantuan DARKNESS DESCENDS Warbringers’ Sacrosanct Chambers
carnivores that prowl the ancient In an attempt to establish a military strikes down into the pass, banishing
forest, but the Nightstalker sees way station, desert-dwelling Free the trapped spectral horde and
them as lowly poachers, flouting Peoples construct the Dunekeep – a slaughtering the abhorrants. A single
his sovereignty by hunting in his fortified outpost in the centre of the Ghoul King emerges alive, and he
royal grounds. Hundreds of ghouls Reaver Wastes. Duardin masons swears a vow of vengeance against
descend upon the Bonesplitterz build enormous walls around the the Stormcast Eternals for their
encampment, and in gruesome outpost, which are then bound barbaric and cowardly act.
battle they tear the orruks limb from with aelven wards and lined with
limb before feasting on the mangled Ironweld artillery, making them THE THRONE AWAITS
green flesh. With their predators more than capable of holding back The confluence of death magic in the
annihilated, the population of the Khornate hordes and greenskin centre of Shyish plunges the city of
giant beasts within the Gnarlwood tribes of the region. For two decades Nagashizzar into a bottomless chasm
explodes, spilling out into the the Dunekeep stands strong against from which nothing can escape.
surrounding territories. The Astral marauding warbands, and the Those living souls not swallowed by
Templars – already stretched to their corpses of those repelled at its walls the Shyish Nadir begin migrating
limit against the Chaos hordes in the are left to bake in the harsh desert further towards the edge of the
region – are forced to divert several sun. Then, over a few short days, Realm of Death. Many are never
Strike Chambers to contain the vast flocks of carrion birds begin heard from again, and some return
savage stampedes. circling above the fortress, their in a deranged state, babbling about
numbers so great they block out the a mighty ruler who shall come to
WAGES OF DEATH sky. The defenders are shrouded in be known across the lands. Each
A Kharadron sky-fleet out of Barak- darkness and deafened by the shrill garbled account gives this figure a
Urbaz is approached by a pallid cawing, but this is only the prelude different name, but all give him the
to the true horror that awaits them. same title – the Carrion King.

DERANGED
DKEIRNAGNGDEODMKISNGDOMS

Despite appearing like motley hordes, Flesh-eater armies display preternatural cunning and organisation on
the battlefield. The blood-curdling snarls of abhorrants are heard by their mordant followers as crisply delivered
orders, and through their shared madness the Flesh-eaters work to enact their gruesome stratagems.

A Flesh-eater Court is a self- that is terrifying to their enemies A single court may be roused to
contained kingdom, at the heart of but akin to the clarion call of a war by its Ghoul King to drive off
which sits an Abhorrant Ghoul King. hunting horn to the soldiers of the an invading army or to defend his
These lords are the sinew that tethers king’s court. honour after a perceived slight.
the mordants together, bestowing Courtiers and mordants are
grandiose delusions of nobility on Other favoured courtiers may also be mustered and together they march
their subjects. The king’s mordant trusted to direct their own armies in to battle, scrabbling forwards with
armies are completely in the thrall battle, leading vanguard forces ahead maws agape beneath banners of
of their master, and at his command of the main body of Flesh-eaters or flapping skin. Such a campaign
they scour the realms in search of raiding enemy settlements. When can reduce a well-fortified city to a
fresh prey, their pale bodies pouring granted a position of command, a slaughterhouse in a matter of days,
over the land like grave-worms over courtier speaks with the authority of but when an Archregent calls upon
a decaying corpse. their abhorrant sovereign, exuding the courts under his command, the
the madness with which they have realms truly tremble. Hundreds
There is usually but a single been so completely infused. of thousands of cannibal fiends
abhorrant king ruling a court, tear across the lands, swallowing
though in rare cases a council of The bulk of the Flesh-eater continents as they advance and
the most powerful vampires might population is formed of ghoul hosts drowning whole nations in gore.
be in control instead – provided, that grow and shrink depending on
of course, that they are united the fortunes of their court. These are Though each court has its own
by a singular madness. Fledgling overseen by Crypt Ghast Courtiers, internal hierarchy, with noble titles
abhorrants whose delusions are who to themselves and their troops and military ranks derived from the
not yet as powerful form the king’s are vaunted veterans possessed of the twisted depths of the Ghoul King’s
brood of sycophants and successors. finest arms and armour. Individual mind, many courts are arranged
regiments are led by Crypt Ghasts, around similar principles. This
Beneath this ‘royal family’ stand all chosen from the most vicious structure is based upon that of the
the king’s favoured lieutenants – and cunning of their kind. Ghast court founded by the Carrion King,
Crypt Haunter Courtiers, Varghulf Courtiers often have grand and and has been echoed countless times
Courtiers and Crypt Infernal ancient titles, which they aspire to across the realms. This hierarchy
Courtiers, which serve as nobles and treasure, even as they covet the is divided into three tiers, with
of the court and lead its illustrious attention of their king. Similarly, the abhorrant sovereign at the top,
institutions. These are the largest Crypt Ghasts strive to constantly surrounded by his sycophants and
and most dangerous of the king’s prove their worth in battle, and with attendants at court. Below them
servants, and they occupy the upper noble intentions drive themselves are the elite soldiery of the Ghoul
echelons of his kingdom. and the Crypt Ghouls they lead to King’s most trusted courtiers, who
ever-greater depths of depravity. view themselves as knightly orders
When the entirety of the court enacting the bidding of their liege.
is called to war, the Ghoul King The lowest tier contains the vast
often leads the army, but will might of the abhorrant’s armies,
sometimes give command to one his slavering Crypt Ghoul packs,
of his sycophants or Varghulf serving as line infantry and scouting
Courtiers. Varghulfs drink long rangers. The majority of the courts
and deep from their master’s veins, that cleave to this hierarchy do so as
and so their connection with the a matter of tradition, believing they
court’s sovereign is strong – they are maintaining the values of the
are entirely devoted to their liege, greatest and most noble kingdom to
and for this reason are more have ever arisen within the Mortal
trusted to enact his vision upon Realms. But some abhorrants are so
the Mortal Realms than any of the deluded that they believe themselves
other courtiers. Like many Ghoul to be ruling over the First Court in
Kings, Varghulfs lead from the sky. the Carrion King’s stead, going so
Swooping over the battlefield, they far as to give their sycophants and
screech at the warriors battling courtiers the same names and titles
below them – a high-pitched sound as their ancient forebears.

THE ABHORRANT The Abhorrant Ghoul King Greth the Decrepit rules over the
GHOUL KING Clatterbone Court in Shyish. As a close descendant of the First
Court, the delusion that spreads from him to his followers aligns
ABHORRANT closely with that of the Carrion King.

ROYAL FAMILY ATTENDANTS AT COURT
Greth the Decrepit keeps his most trusted The obsequious Lord Chamberslough fawns over
abhorrant subjects close at hand, to serve him in
the king and fights with horrific vigour.
battle and to join him in feasting.
LORD CHAMBERSLOUGH
SYCOPHANTS CRYPT HAUNTER COURTIER
ABHORRANTS
LICKSPITTLES
CRYPT HORRORS

DEADWATCH ABATTOIR ROYAL MORDANTS
Lord Marrowbroth Lord Liverbelch is charged Marquis Gruelsop is a savage
commands the defence of with keeping the king’s stores commander and Greth’s most
Greth’s kingdom. stocked with fresh flesh.
trusted courtier.
LORD MARROWBROTH LORD LIVERBELCH
CRYPT INFERNAL CRYPT HAUNTER MARQUIS GRUELSOP
COURTIER COURTIER VARGHULF COURTIER

CURSPOCK HARFLECK BUTCHERS GLUGRASP
CRYPT FLAYERS CRYPT HORRORS CRYPT HORRORS

VILESCRAPE DRUBSCROTE SPLEENLICK
CRYPT FLAYERS SLAUGHTERERS CRYPT FLAYERS
CRYPT HORRORS
SLOPCRAW SLUGSOUR
CRYPT FLAYERS BOGLEECH CRYPT GHOULS
BOTTLEWASHERS

CRYPT GHOULS

GHOUL PATROL KING’S GHOULS
Baron Gizzard and his ghouls stalk the When new prey has been found, it is Marquis
wastelands at the edge of the court’s domain.
Retchbile who leads the charge into battle.

BARON GIZZARD SLUMCRAWL MARQUIS RETCHBILE SPLEENSCAB
CRYPT GHAST CRYPT GHOULS CRYPT GHAST CRYPT GHOULS
COURTIER COURTIER
FILCHLURK SLUGSPOIL
ILLCREEP CRYPT GHOULS GLUGSPEW CRYPT GHOULS
CRYPT GHOULS CRYPT HORRORS

ROYAL MENAGERIE Many and varied are the delusions of the abhorrant kings,
and their courts are just as diverse. Shown here is an
TERRORGHEISTS AND example of the structure of a court and its titled courtiers,
ZOMBIE DRAGONS but every court has its own peculiarities and may have a
structure that only loosely resembles this.

Dark LegaciDesARK LEGACIES

The military formations of the Flesh-eaters harken back to the First Court in Shyish. Various abhorrants have
adopted elements of this twisted structure into their delusions, even believing their own sycophants and generals

to be the same that long ago served the Carrion King.

SYCOPHANTS CARRION KING LORD
CHAMBERSLOUGH
THE ROYAL FAMILY SOVEREIGN OF THE COURT
Every abhorrant is an heir to the VIZIER OF THE
The sycophants are the Carrion King, who was first to ATTENDANTS AT COURT
memory of the Carrion bear the curse of insanity. The
King’s ancient family given delusions of a court’s princes and It is said the Lord
form. Names like the Offal lords are splinters of his original Chamberslough once vied for
Queen and Giblet Prince hold madness, warped echoes of the control of the Carrion King’s
a shred of the Carrion King’s domains, yet his worth as a
history, and in some stories, noble customs and practices commander was such that he
they become the Awful of the warriors who pledged was taken in by the Carrion
themselves to the Carrion King
Queen and Gibbeted so long ago. The regal names they King, becoming a loyal
Prince, hinting at bore were twisted by the march of servant and Vizier of
the fate that years to become vile parodies of
befell them. the once-great men and women the Attendants
at Court.
they represent.

LORD
MARROWBROTH

FIRST KNIGHT OF
THE DEADWATCH
Pride radiates from the
Lord Marrowbroth, for he
is the champion protector of
the king. He was the most
loyal of the Carrion King’s
servants, the Lord of the
Harrow Wrath armies that
defended the kingdom

from Nagash’s
Mortarchs.

MARQUIS LORD BARON
GRUELSOP LIVERBELCH GIZZARD

COMMANDER OF THE MASTER OF CHIEF RANGER OF
ROYAL MORDANTS THE ABATTOIR THE GHOUL PATROL
The Lord Liverbelch is
Loyal to a fault, the Marquis the master of banquets A keen-eyed hunter, the Baron
Gruelsop stands as the greatest and chief taster to the king. Gizzard leads the king’s scouts.
Whole regions of the Carrion Stories say the original baron
of the king’s courtiers and King’s empire were harvested
leader of the Royal Mordants. for his blood feasts, and the was once a commoner who
The marquis turned the slaves Lord Liverbelch gathered patrolled the icy Helfrost
fair-skinned youths from Empires at the kingdom’s
and prisoners that are his faraway kingdoms to edge, though he became
wards into some of the quench the thirst of
finest soldiers in the a favoured servant of
king’s army. his sovereign. the king.

MARQUIS
RETCHBILE

LORD OF THE
KING’S GHOULS
Martial might is the domain
of the Marquis Retchbile.
While Ushoran was served
by many skilled generals, the
marquis is the memory of
these warriors confused into
a single figurehead by the
madness passed down

by the Carrion
King.

THE ROYAL MENAGERIE
The Carrion King kept many pets from his journeys across Shyish and the realms beyond. Favoured among his
mounts were the Blood Drakes and Chiropteran Behemoths. Though the names and deeds of these beasts have long
been lost to history, each abhorrant king fondly remembers these creatures and lavishes his attention on the Zombie

Dragons and Terrorgheists of his menageries, as if the huge undead creatures were his own living offspring.

Morgaunt Grand Court

MORGAUNT GRAND COURT

From the Prime Innerlands of Shyish come the heaving masses of the Morgaunt Grand Court. Countless pallid
bodies stained by their latest slaughter surge across the desolate landscape to sunder all in their path. Theirs are
amongst the oldest courts in all the realms, and in them the Carrion King’s madness remains at its purest.

The courts that make up the Yet from the crumbling ruins the they set about slaughtering all who
Morgaunt Grand Court are the Morgaunt Grand Court arose. Gifted trespassed within their domain.
descendants of living kingdoms in with the madness of the Carrion
the Realm of Death. Their culture King, the mordants saw their Since the Age of Chaos, Morgaunt
had been one of chivalry and corpse-strewn homelands as lush abhorrants have spread throughout
honour, in which the gallant and and verdant once more, and their the realms, drawing mordants to
strong fought to protect the weak slavering abhorrants as pinnacles of their side in overwhelming numbers
and unfortunate. When the peoples nobility. They set about reclaiming wherever they establish new courts.
in these kingdoms were beset by their territories from the invaders, They see other living beings as
invaders or plagued by prowling driven by the belief that they could invading armies or rampaging
monstrosities, the kings would return their lands to a state of monstrosities, and so march out
gather knights and soldiers to their peace. But in truth, the rise of these en masse to cleanse their lands.
banners and march out to purge courts only served to further soak They look to Nagash as their patron
their lands of wickedness. It was said the northern reaches of the Prime god, and see all who oppose him
that to become a member of a king’s Innerlands with gore. Wherever as wicked and ignoble. Above all
court in those days, an aspiring abhorrants and courtiers travelled, else, they have a fierce loathing of
knight had to prove his bravery ghouls flocked to their side in droves Sigmar. The Morgaunt courts believe
and selflessness through service to – the bonds of loyalty between that, were it not for the God-King’s
the king’s subjects. A knight might high-born and commoners having betrayal, Nagash would have been
have laid low a shambling cadaver persisted across generations of able to repel the forces of Chaos from
titan that was feeding on the people cannibalistic savagery – and together Shyish once and for all.
of a particular village, or hunted
down the draco-vulture that had
been gorging itself on livestock
in a given region and plunged his
blade through the winged beast’s
black heart. Similarly, to serve in
a sovereign’s army a soldier had to
uphold the core tenets of chivalry,
and had to be willing to lay down his
life for the least of the king’s subjects.

These kingdoms prospered in Amidst the bones, skin and dripping viscera, ancient symbols of the Morgaunt
the Age of Myth, their influence Grand Court can be seen daubed in blood.
extending from the Amethyst
Princedoms in the north to the
Glittering Marsh in the south.
They were hailed by their allies
as exemplars of civilisation, and
respected by the few enemies they
had as worthy and honourable foes.
They also lived in peace with the
dead within their borders, treating
the spirits of the departed with
the same dignity as they did the
living – and it was this coexistence
with their ancestors that caused
these kingdoms to side with Nagash
when Shyish was beset by invaders.
The armies of Sigmar and Chaos
tore through the Realm of Death,
sundering the magnificence of the
chivalric civilisations, scattering
their peoples, and driving them to
the brink of annihilation.

Hollowmourne Grand Court

HOLLOWMOURNE GRAND COURT

Packs of hulking cannibals stampede towards their foe to the sound of insane snarling. As the armies of the
Hollowmourne Grand Court close in, Crypt Horrors charging at the fore launch themselves into the opposing
lines, obliterating shield walls and butchering the enemy’s ordered ranks.

More so than any other Flesh-eaters, The Hollowmourne Grand Court The Hollowmourne courts continue
the history of the Hollowmourne is all that remains of this once- to search for the buried relics they
Grand Court is shrouded in mystery. proud crusade. While they still were sent to defend, their abhorrants
In a long-dead age, the empire that believe themselves to be a noble regularly launching new crusades
spawned the Hollowmourne courts order of royal knights, heavily into enemy lands. After annihilating
extended across the Mortal Realms. armoured horsemen towering above the foe on the open field, the Flesh-
Its glorious emperor – whose name their enemies on the battlefield, eaters slaughter their way through
has been lost to the ravages of time – in truth their bodies have grown towns and strongholds alike with
brought knowledge and civilisation to monstrous proportions after terrifying speed, digging up tombs
to those whom he encountered, generations of gorging upon and graveyards in the blind hope that
fostering harmony between flesh. In battle, the largest of their they will find what they are seeking.
disparate lands and prosperity number barrel ahead of the throng, Usually such frenetic searches yield
for all. In his travels throughout charging out like lancers to shatter only rotting corpses, though in their
the realms, he discovered many the enemy’s defences, leaving those delusion the Flesh-eaters see these
wondrous relics, some of which he mordant packs that follow to feast as sacred artefacts deposited by
used to help lift up his people, and upon the broken bodies of the their dimly remembered emperor.
others that he deemed too dangerous dead and dying. Long gone are the The largest of the Hollowmourne
for mortal use. In order to protect resplendent suits of mail that once greedily devour these corpses, secure
those in his empire, this emperor defined this order, its last vestige in the belief that they are keeping
secreted the arcane implements and the oxidised colouration of the precious relics they have discovered
eldritch devices he had found within mordants’ sickly flesh. from the clutches of the enemy.
enchanted vaults, and in this way
kept them hidden until a time in
which they would be needed. Among
the few who had knowledge of these
vaults was an order of royal families
from Chamon known as the Knights
of the Hollowmourne, who knew not
what was in the vaults, only that they
must be protected at all costs.

When the servants of the Dark This coat of arms is a grim mockery of the crossed blades of the Knights of the
Gods began to sweep across the Hollowmourne, which symbolised their oath to their emperor.
Mortal Realms, the Knights of
the Hollowmourne were sent to
secure the vaults against the taint
of Chaos. Every kingdom dedicated
to the order rode swift into hostile
territory, their knights clad in the
finest armours of Chamon. As they
advanced they swore oaths that their
duty would not go unfulfilled, but
their enemies were too powerful,
and their defiant crusade was
shattered. The tattered remnants
of the order kept moving, trying to
outpace the enemy. When rations
ran out, the peasants were eaten
next, for the knights could not give
up their horses if they hoped to ever
fulfil their duty. But eventually,
even the steeds were consumed,
and it was this most unthinkable
act that opened the minds of the
Hollowmourne to madness.

Blisterskin Grand Court

BLISTERSKIN GRAND COURT

Darkness envelops the battlefield as the mordants of the Blisterskin Grand Court fill the sky. The flapping of
leathery wings and the screeching of hundreds of hungering mouths deafens those below, drowning out all
thoughts of hope and heralding the gruesome slaughter that is to come.

The Flesh-eaters of the Blisterskin When the armies of Chaos swept amongst them were blessed with
Grand Court are instantly across Aqshy, the sun-worshippers wings with which to rise ever closer
recognisable by the hideous burns were driven from their homes, their to the sun, while the rest looked
that cover their bodies. Long and cities and crops set ablaze. With no upon them with awe, following their
wretched lives spent terrorising the harvests to sacrifice, they gave over swift flights with zealous fervour.
sun-blasted plains of Aqshy have left the weak and old as burnt offerings,
these creatures with gaping patches and prayed desperately for the sun The Blisterskin Grand Court
of peeled skin, beneath which layers to scour the legions of the Dark continues to send its members to its
of charred musculature and bleached Gods from the realm. Their descent neighbours’ lands, but where once
bone lie exposed. As they scrabble into wretchedness was swift and they spread tenets of devotion, they
across deserts and barren lands in irreversible, yet the hope of the now sow only horror across Aqshy
search of fresh victims, the reek of scattered survivors was rekindled and beyond. The royalty still guide
seared meat precedes their advance. by the arrival of mighty abhorrants. their subjects in acts of worship,
But even if their prey catches wind Afflicted by madness, the sun- ensuring that offerings are given up
of this acrid scent there is little worshippers believed they had finally after each harvest. As such, when
chance of escape, for the armies of gained the enlightenment they had the armies of the Blisterskin courts
the Blisterskin Grand Court move at always sought. No longer did they descend upon their enemies, a third
terrifying speed, following the lead humble themselves by hiding from of those they slaughter are left to fry
of winged mordants and courtiers as the sun, instead choosing to bask in the sun, leaving great swathes of
they encircle their enemies. in its full fury, their flesh cooking blackened and bloated corpses that
in the blazing heat. The most pious tell of the Flesh-eaters’ presence.
The empire from which the
Blisterskin courts arose was The motifs of the Blisterskin Grand Court depicted the common folk and the
founded upon various forms of sun royalty all looking upwards towards the glorious light of the sun.
worship. Their priesthood was made
up of members of multiple royal
families, with kings and queens of
neighbouring city states leading their
people in sacred rites. During the
harvest season, a third of every crop
was given up as sacrifice – sheaves
were placed atop the tallest ziggurats
and left to be claimed by the sun,
thereby ensuring that the next
harvest would be abundant. At high
noon, royals and commoners alike
retreated indoors while the sun was
at its most intense, an act of humble
acknowledgement of its wrathful
glory. Though these kingdoms were
dotted across Aqshy, they knew
the light of the sun emanated from
Hysh, and they saw this distant
realm as the sacred place from which
all illumination and wisdom pour
into existence. They actively sought
out other civilisations to whom
they could spread their culture,
proselytising such nations as Bataar,
Aspiria, and the Agloraxi in the west
of Aridian. With these states they
shared their most sacred beliefs,
imploring all to honour the sun so
that darkness might never fall across
the lands.

Gristlegore Grand Court

GRISTLEGORE GRAND COURT

Where once they lived in harmony with the lands around them, the Gristlegore courts now rampage across Ghur,
butchering all they see. They believe themselves to be ruled by tranquil and peace-loving kings, but the grim truth
is that the abhorrants of these courts are beings of pure frenzy.

The crack of boulders being perfection, and were able to best Now transformed by their insanity,
smashed aside and trees being many opponents at once – but their the royals of the Gristlegore Grand
uprooted precedes the advance of skill could not save them from the Court prowl the realms like packs
the Gristlegore Grand Court. Those coming of Chaos. of alpha predators. In their minds
they are hunting huddle together in they still seek balance and harmony,
defensive positions, listening as the As the armies of the Dark Gods even as they shred their prey to
insane snarling of the Flesh-eaters stormed through Ghur, the Tranquil gruesome chunks. Their desire to
draws ever closer. Monstrous howls Kingdoms descended into anarchy. be at one with their surroundings
rise above the din as abhorrants, Peaceful minds were filled with causes them to pierce their own
courtiers and great winged beasts panic, and the common folk called flesh with shards of Ghurish
burst through the dense foliage, and upon their lords to face the coming realmstone, and they believe they
with savage haste tear their startled hordes. But though they fought are purifying themselves through
enemies to bloody ribbons. valiantly the nobility could not save fasting even when dripping hunks
their people, and were forced to of meat are lodged in their maws.
The armies of the Gristlegore watch as their subjects were put to To the Gristlegore abhorrants, every
Grand Court are led by champions the blade and their cities razed to strike or arcane manifestation is
of peerless ferocity. Fighting the ground. With no one left to fight measured, delivered with precision
with gruesome fervour, these for, these disgraced royals wandered only after all other paths to victory
warriors hack down multiple foes aimlessly, until they were found by have been contemplated – yet to see
with every passing heartbeat and powerful abhorrants and once more such a beast in action is to behold a
launch waves of amethyst magic given purpose. mindless, thrashing monstrosity.
that pulverise whole ranks of the
enemy. Only the undead creatures
of the Ghoul Kings’ menagerie have
any hope of keeping pace with the
rampant butchery.

The ferocity of the Gristlegore courts Only the savage royalty of the Gristlegore Grand Court are depicted in their
is in stark contrast to the culture of heraldry, for to them falls the responsibility of protecting their people.
the Tranquil Kingdoms from which
they arose. Before succumbing to
the abhorrant’s curse, the people of
this Ghurish civilisation found ways
to live in balance with their savage
surroundings. Slavering beasts,
carnivorous plants and predatory
mountains were all viewed with the
greatest respect, and were treated
as sovereign beings. The highest
virtues were introspection and
contemplation, whereas hunting
and killing were seen as necessary
evils to be avoided when possible.
Though the realm in which they
lived abounded with predators, the
people of the Tranquil Kingdoms
sought peace where they could find
it, spending long weeks fasting and
meditating. When forced to war, the
nobility rode at the fore to engage
the enemy first, for by risking their
own lives they hoped to spare their
subjects from the horrors of open
battle. These nobles honed the
arts of swordplay and spellcraft to

Abhorrants

ABHORRANTS

In contrast to the regal kings and emperors they see themselves as, abhorrants are truly monstrous beings. They
are the vampiric heirs of the Carrion King, capable of slaughtering their way through entire enemy armies, and it
is through them that his curse is spread across the Mortal Realms.

ARCHREGENTS creep by, the abhorrant becomes master, but even those who battle
The longer that a Ghoul King exists ever more corded with iron-hard the Flesh-eaters begin to perceive
in its state of madness, the more muscle, its hide ever thicker and flashes of the abhorrant’s delusions,
powerful it becomes. Some believe more leathery. The vampire’s flickering like half-seen flames about
that this is simply the curse of madness deepens, its conviction in the edges of their vision. In time,
Ushoran replicating belligerently in its own supremacy reaching such this insanity extends beyond the
the vampire’s clotted veins. Others fanatical levels that it leaves traces borders of a single kingdom, binding
have suggested that it is the strength of its crazed visions superimposed mordants and other abhorrants into
of the abhorrant’s own insanity that upon reality. Not only do the a united empire.
bolsters the will and martial might abhorrant’s courtiers become ever
of the creature. As the centuries more dedicated and loyal to their Each Abhorrant Archregent rules
over the Ghoul Kings within its
domain. Where a Ghoul King
requires the aid of its courtiers to
rally the masses and command its
armies into battle, an Archregent
has such far-reaching and
indomitable will that it can achieve
this feat all by itself. Some amongst
the Flesh-eaters believe them to
be mouthpieces of Ushoran, and
certain Archregents even claim
to have attended the court of the
Carrion King.

Where Abhorrant Ghoul Kings are
ferocious hunters that lead their
armies from the fore, Archregents
become brooding and reclusive.
Though it possesses the raw strength
to punch through a castle gate, or
tear an armoured knight of Chaos
in two with its bare talons, it takes
a great deal for an Abhorrant
Archregent to bestir itself to action.
While it prowls its innermost
sanctums, the running of its empire
is left to petty Ghoul Kings, who
maintain the flesh harvests and
carouse at the head of bloody feasts
in the Archregent’s honour.

Only when a truly mighty threat
to the kingdom arises does an
Abhorrant Archregent take to the
battlefield, and then it is a force to
behold. Sprinting as fast as the wind,
the Archregent tears through its
enemies as though they were wet
parchment. Blood flows in rivers
as the ancient abhorrant slakes its
deranged thirst, before summoning
its elite warriors to its side and
charging forwards to slaughter those
foes that remain.

GHOUL KINGS steeped in the magic of death and are wearing suits of impenetrable
An abhorrant king is the vicious darkness. Abhorrant Ghoul Kings armour, and the sheer strength of
ruler of a Flesh-eater Court. Whether can use their fell wizardry to knit their magically fuelled delusion
scrambling across the ground with together their wounds, mend the causes swords and spears to bounce
terrifying speed or riding upon the broken bodies of their mounts, hurl harmlessly from their flesh. Others
back of an undead monstrosity, an sorcerous bolts or even summon see themselves wielding ensorcelled
Abhorrant Ghoul King is a savage troops with but a gesture. In their weapons that strike and parry with
embodiment of insanity. Time and deranged minds, they believe arcane alacrity, when in reality
the curse of the Carrion King have themselves to be conduits of holy the Ghoul King’s magic sends the
given the abhorrants a hideous power or benevolent practitioners mordants themselves into a fury in
appearance, far removed from the of magic. A Ghoul King may speak which they thrash at their foes with
ageless beauty of other vampires. an ensorcelled command for its unnatural speed and savagery.
However, they are just as deadly as enemies to kneel before it, and to
any of their bloodsucking kind. This its eyes they immediately drop to It is via the same dark wizardry
is most evident when the abhorrant the floor in humble acquiescence that the abhorrant is able to
rapaciously feeds on still-living – but in truth its words summon transform a wretched cannibal into
enemies, streams of gore spilling tendrils of necrotic energy that a mordant – it is the vital ingredient
down its face as he drains the vital rip the limbs from its foes, leaving in his sordid feasts, and the key to
essence from organs and hunks of only the mutilated torsos to writhe expanding his court. With a delicate
flesh that it rips from his foes. pathetically in the mud. The stir of one of its claws, it can imbue
abhorrant can also amplify the blood draughts with bizarre power,
If the size and supernatural strength madness of its followers, causing transforming all who sup upon them
of an abhorrant king were not their insanity to manifest physically. into disturbing horrors slaved to
enough to strike fear into its foes, Mordants are made to believe they its will.
then there is also the madness that
burns in its eyes. The vampire’s CHARNEL THRONES
delusion makes it a terrifying and Grim constructions rise above the bloodstained wastelands and
unpredictable opponent, much reeking piles of carrion flesh that mark an abhorrant’s domain. Built
feared by the races of the Mortal upon the ruins of once-grand castles and wrought from corpse-
Realms. Ghoul Kings lead from matter, these Charnel Thrones are the nightmarish seats of power
the fore, surging towards the foe from which the Archregents and Ghoul Kings rule over their subjects.
alongside their most favoured Upon such a throne, an abhorrant sees itself seated on a work of
courtiers with packs of slavering artistry without parallel. The ancient bones that form the struts and
mordants scrabbling behind them to spars of the throne are perceived as glittering rods of gold and silver,
join in the slaughter. Upon reaching while gouged claw marks and remnant pieces of sinew are believed to
the enemy lines, the abhorrant be ornate filigree and inlaid gemstones.
carves a brutal path through all
before it, severing heads and limbs As the ravenous packs of a court spread further into the surrounding
with each swipe, ripping bones and lands, their sovereign orders ever more Charnel Thrones to be
organs from still-living bodies before constructed. An abhorrant’s master masons – the courtiers and
devouring the dripping offal. Whole sycophants to whom it imparts visions of its desired construction –
swathes of soldiers are cut down are given the task of gathering materials and building a new throne.
by the Ghoul King’s brutality, yet These masons scavenge battlefields and graveyards, seeking out
the true targets of its fury are the skeletal pieces to be used in fulfilling the grand design. Only the
generals who have lead trespassers bones of those who have been killed by an abhorrant’s deranged
into its sovereign domain. Driven death magic are fit for this purpose. Thousands of remains are picked
by the belief that it is a just noble, through to find those in which the arcane energies of Shyish have
and that almost all creatures outside soaked down to the marrow, with those found unworthy being cast
its court are savage barbarians, the aside as scrap.
king offers no quarter to threats
against its people. Perhaps more When the Charnel Throne is at last pieced together, and the abhorrant
frightening than the conviction perches itself upon it for the first time, the bones begin to scream and
this madness lends the king is its shake under the unbearable weight of its madness. From that point
infectious nature. Those who linger on, the throne is a conduit for the abhorrant’s delusion, casting its
too long in the abhorrant’s presence insanity into the mind of all who behold it. The hideous wailing and
risk losing their own minds, until ceaseless clatter of a Charnel Throne is enough to drive the enemies
they too see the king as it sees itself of the Flesh-eaters insane, and the morbid din echoes across the
– a radiant and sovereign ruler with landscape for leagues in every direction, drawing distant packs of
unquestioned authority. mordants to come bow before their king.

Abhorrants, like many vampiric
creatures, are powerful wizards,

Courtiers

COURTIERS

Misshapen monsters, the Flesh-eater courtiers stand as hunchbacked lords within an abhorrant king’s court.
Grown strong upon the tainted blood of their master, these mordant leaders wade into battle, directing the
king’s armies as their lesser kin cluster in deranged adoration around their clawed feet.

VARGHULF COURTIERS As befits their position, Varghulfs that fall from its maw. As Varghulfs
Favoured servants of the king, are gore-drenched monsters in consume their prey they are swiftly
Varghulf Courtiers hold the highest combat, their fury only being reinvigorated, muscles reknitting
rank a mordant can earn. They are surpassed by Abhorrant Archregents and rents in their flesh closing up
the most trusted members of the and Ghoul Kings. When surrounded in moments – and it is not only
court, and the most likely to lead an by enemies, a Varghulf enters a flesh that they feed upon. With
army if their monarch is otherwise terrifying frenzy, slaughtering faster lolling tongues they lap up dark
occupied. Even when flying to battle than the eye can follow. Varghulfs energies from the air, devouring the
alongside its sovereign, a Varghulf are possessed of a voracious hunger, sorcerous tendrils that erupt when
acts as a monstrous marshal, its and as they tear a red road through abhorrants use their insane magic to
howls carrying far to draw more a battle they rip great chunks off cast spells or summon the dead. This
Flesh-eaters into the combat. It is to their prey, which they cram down foul energy strengthens such a beast,
these beasts that leadership over the their gullets then and there. Packs giving it might beyond even that
hand-picked Royal Mordants falls, of smaller mordants scurry in their suggested by its massive frame.
with some Varghulf Courtiers even wake, doing their best to keep
being dubbed Marquis Gruelsop, up with the blinding pace of the CRYPT HAUNTER
the same title as that given by the Varghulf ’s slaughter and snatching COURTIERS
Carrion King. up any discarded pieces of meat Creatures of rotting flesh and
twisted bone, the Crypt Haunter
Courtiers are among the strongest
of an abhorrant’s mordant servants.
They have supped from the Ghoul
King’s veins, and his dark magic
has transformed them. Most
mordants given a pure draught of
the king’s blood devolve so far into
savage insanity that they end up
tearing themselves apart in a frenzy
of self-loathing, but those who
survive are reborn with monstrous
strength. In battle, they are brutal
fighters who lead from the front,
bathing in the rain of viscera caused
by their ferocious attacks. Crypt
Horrors respond unquestioningly
to the orders of these courtiers,
in their madness seeing them
as fearless commanders clad in
gleaming armour.

Crypt Haunter Courtiers are trusted
members of the court who hold high
status, and are respected and feared
by all who serve the king. They also
enjoy rare autonomy amongst their
mordant kin, and those that are
granted the rank of Lord Liverbelch
will be despatched at the head of
an Abattoir of ghouls and horrors,
leading the scrabbling packs from
the front lines. When they return
victorious, it is also their duty to
prepare the royal feast, and test the
dishes to be set before the king.

CRYPT GHAST CRYPT INFERNAL Courtiers often soar at his side,
COURTIERS COURTIERS vying for their lord’s attention.
The Crypt Ghast Courtiers are vile Crypt Infernal Courtiers are created Screaming summons to their kin, the
creatures gifted in the ways of war. when a Crypt Flayer has performed courtiers lead daring strikes against
Displaying a measure of intelligence a heroic deed that the king deems the most formidable foes, rising high
beyond that of their fellow cannibals, worthy of reward. A banquet is held above the battlefield before folding
these crook-back champions are where individuals so honoured are their wings and plunging into the
frenzied field commanders for the fed the flesh of an undead dragon. heart of the enemy lines. When
Abhorrant Ghoul Kings’ armies. Their guts mutate agonisingly, they emerge from combat, their
Forever jockeying for position, their allowing these predators of the sky mouths are dripping with gore and
first priority is to fawn before their to exhale lethal clouds of noxious the juices of burst organs, and their
sovereign and present him with fumes, much like the beast they have talons are covered with chunks of
gifts of freshly torn flesh. On the eaten. These flying courtiers lead the flesh and shattered pieces of bone.
most servile Ghast Courtiers the Deadwatch, the Abhorrant Ghoul Only those most doughty of foes
Ghoul King bestows various titles King’s personal bodyguard. Gifted can survive being skewered by the
to denote their status, sometimes with exceptional senses, they can Infernal Courtier’s hooked claws,
gifting them with splintered shards detect enemies from leagues away, yet these victims are simply carried
of bone or other gruesome fetishes as identifying their victims by scent back to the Abhorrant Ghoul King,
medals for worthy service. In their alone, and swooping off into the presented to him as prisoners. In his
minds, Crypt Ghasts are the noble night to bring back gory prizes for madness, the Ghoul King may order
heroes of the realm, clad in shining their dark master. an Infernal Courtier to interrogate
armour, with pennants snapping on such a prisoner, which in practice
the ends of their weapons. So armed When an Abhorrant Ghoul King amounts to the winged creature
with delusion, they proudly lead rides to war astride his Terrorgheist opening its captive’s skull and
the court’s troops to war, sniffing or Zombie Dragon, Crypt Infernal devouring what lies inside.
out tasty prey either at the head of
endless ranks of foot soldiers or
ranging ahead with scouting parties.

Like all mordants, Crypt Ghast
Courtiers have been corrupted by
their king’s madness. Most were once
great heroes, wizards or sages who
fell into despair and cannibalism.
Some even commanded armies in
brutal campaigns fought against the
Flesh-eaters, before defeat and then
anguish transformed them into the
very creatures they had sought to
eradicate. Though wretched, they
retain shreds of what they once were,
and they enforce their peculiarities
upon the ghouls they lead. If a
particular Ghast Courtier was given
to gluttony in their former life, the
mordants that serve under them will
partake in staggering displays of
gorging, creating a grim simulacrum
of the fine feasts their leader once
enjoyed. If the Ghast Courtier was
cruel, their followers exact as much
pain as possible from the foe, often
flensing and carving their enemies’
bodies long after the point of death.
If they were cunning, their soldiers
melt from the very shadows in the
wake of their nefarious master. A
king will choose a Crypt Ghast
Courtier’s role based upon the
creature’s talents and inclinations,
utilising them against the many
enemies of the court.

Mordants

MORDANTS

The cannibalistic wretches known as mordants flock towards Ghoul Kings and Archregents, drawn by the
irresistible magnetism of the abhorrants’ madness. Forming up in packs to better hunt their prey, they are more
savage than soldier, yet in their minds they march in lockstep to war for the glory of their noble kingdom.

CRYPT HORRORS of fingers and gums. Only the work Crypt Flayers are born when the
Lumbering and snarling into battle of the king’s Abattoir keeps their blood of monsters flows freely on the
come the Crypt Horrors. Their flesh growth in check, the bones regularly feasting table. On such fell nights,
stuck through with jagged bones harvested to make medals for the an Abhorrant Ghoul King might
and dripping blades, these are the king’s men. bestow a horrific transformation
knights of their court, armed not upon his servants. The deranged
with sword and steed, but claw Crypt Horrors are routinely sovereign mixes his blood with
and fang. They are monstrous honoured for their service by the Terrorgheist flesh and necrotised
beasts, ineffably loyal and ever king and his courtiers, and they fluids, and those ghouls who sup
eager to serve their lord in battle, will be offered tokens of the court’s on this concoction are twisted into
and they express their constancy appreciation. Prized skulls, decaying new and terrifying shapes. A layer
through fits of feral rage and acts of limbs and crude bone weapons are of writhing skin grows around the
gruesome slaughter. presented to the Crypt Horrors as ghoul, and then from this fleshy
trophies, and the most decorated sack a Crypt Flayer emerges into
Despite their hunched forms, Crypt might rise in the ranks to become the realms.
Horrors loom above their smaller Crypt Haunters and take leadership
brethren, each one a monster of pale of a Crypt Horror pack. Crypt After being reborn in this way,
flesh and twisted bone. Hideously Horrors lovingly care for these the enchantments bestowed upon
strong, they rip organs right out gifts, which they see as pennants, the Crypt Flayers take full hold,
of their victims, stuffing shining resplendent armour or swords. transforming them into dark
handfuls of offal into their dripping They may even claim such spoils in predators. Growing huge and
maws. Crypt Horrors were once battle, and relieve their victims of twisted, Crypt Flayers gain the
ghouls that were fed vampire blood burdens like their arms or spines. added nightmare growth of leathery
by their Abhorrant Ghoul King, and The Crypt Horror may shove its wings. Their claws elongate, spines
as a result their bodies have grown newly acquired prize, still dripping burst from their backs and their eyes
enormous, becoming stronger with gore, through its skin or down glow stronger to pierce the murk and
and swifter through the power of its maw, or it may turn it against its gloom of battle. No longer bound
dark sorcery. former owner. to the earth, they take to the skies
as airborne scouts and warriors for
In the depths of their delusion, CRYPT FLAYERS the court. Ferocious killers, Crypt
Crypt Horrors believe themselves Crypt Flayers haunt the night, Flayers wheel through the air above
to be mounted defenders of the soaring through the sky like dark their king’s domain, sniffing the
realm, charging into battle clad in shadows above the battlefield. With wind for juicy hunting grounds.
shining plate. As befits their role keen eyes they pick out enemies in Those of who are seen as most
within the court, they are often the gloom below, and their powerful noble by their cannibal kindred are
the first to the fight, sprinting out nostrils latch onto the waft of fear. called Crypt Infernals – taller and
ahead of the king’s foot soldiers Swooping down with lightning stronger than the rest, they lead
to crash into the midst of the foe. speed, they snatch hapless victims from the front as shining examples
Here, their supernatural resilience off their feet, sinking their fangs into to their ‘men’.
and prodigious strength are put their captives even as they soar back
to good use, each sweep of their into the air. Whether seen through a lens of
claws ripping throats open and madness or in all their rotting glory,
shattering shields. Return attacks none that have faced them can
have little effect, the Crypt Horrors’ doubt that Crypt Flayers are brutally
own bodies quickly healing mortal efficient in battle. They are darkly
wounds, even closing around their blessed by the tainted Terrorgheist
enemy’s blades. These regenerative flesh they have ingested, and in
powers are a gift of the abhorrant’s their chests dwells a measure of the
blood that runs in their veins, undead beast’s capacity to unleash a
though it comes at a price. Their mind-shredding shriek. With their
muscles and bones are constantly mouths impossibly wide they let
twisting and growing, spines from loose a chorus of chilling howls, as
their ribs and vertebrae forcing if the gates to a dozen underworlds
their way through flesh, just as their had been flung open at once. Their
talons and teeth push their way free victims’ blood turns to ice in their

veins and terror grips their hearts as begin to believe that they are stout meal it flies into a frenzy, swiftly
the sonic assault washes over them. foot soldiers of the king’s court or ripping hunks of meat from one
The Crypt Flayers then dart from keen-eyed scouts ranging ahead of enemy before moving on, eager to
the sky like harpoons of sharpened his armies, though in truth they are avoid sharing its war spoils with its
bone, running any remaining still a cannibal horde of ragged and demented kin.
warriors through and lifting hungry monsters. Anyone caught in
them off the ground, screeching the path of a ghoul pack has but two Utterly devoted to their abhorrant
in exaltation as their prey dies choices: fight or be devoured. Once master, Crypt Ghouls will brave
screaming in a spray of gore. As they the king has set them on an enemy’s death without hesitation. Any
take back to the sky, the pack fights trail, the flesh-eating creatures will craven parts of their soul have been
among themselves for the largest not rest until they have returned to extinguished by the madness of their
and most gruesome keepsake to lay their master laden with dripping king, and they fight like rabid beasts,
at their king’s throne. slabs of freshly harvested meat. often dying to the last rather than
displeasing their lord. In those rare
Crypt Flayers are regarded with awe Crypt Ghouls are especially deadly instances when a ghoul does turn
and adulation by their mordant kin. in large numbers. A single creature to flight, their kin swiftly drag them
It is viewed as a good omen to see will take its time feeding, stripping down. Such is the fate for cowards
one or more of these winged beings the flesh from a victim until it in the Flesh-eater Courts, where the
circling above an expedition, and has reduced its prey to little more courageous fight on in their king’s
their shrill screams fill each ghoul than a bare skeleton. However, as favour, their bellies filled with the
with pride to be in their king’s court. soon as there is competition for its flesh of the weak.
The Crypt Flayers themselves believe
they are borne aloft by enchanted
pinions gifted to them by their
sovereign, or are convinced they are
riders mounted upon magnificent
flying beasts. In the minds of
other mordants, Crypt Flayers are
hallowed warriors, having been
daubed with sacred oils by their
king. Their howls do not sound like
life-rending shrieks, but holy verses
intoned with pious authority.

CRYPT GHOULS
Reeking drool drips from gaping
mouths, mixing with the blood
and scraps of flesh that are lodged
between rows of rotting fangs. As
one, the Crypt Ghouls howl and
hiss their adulation for their king,
even as they scuttle into battle at
his command. Their chipped talons
tear at the ground, their maws
stretch wider in eager anticipation
of the feast to come. Then, with an
explosion of insane ferocity, they
crash into the enemy lines.

Ghoul is a word known in almost
every corner of the Mortal Realms.
These are the vile creatures who
make up the majority of a court’s
seething armies, and they have
an appetite for flesh that is both
repulsive and insatiable. Once
afflicted by the abhorrant’s curse,
the ghouls do not see themselves
as monsters, and the longer they
serve their monarch, the stronger
their madness becomes. They

Menagerie

MENAGERIE

In crude pens fashioned from colossal bones the Ghoul Kings keep the decrepit beasts of their menageries. Some
abhorrants use their favourite undead pets as mounts to bear them into battle, whereas others simply unleash
these flying monstrosities and allow them to tear through the opposing army at will.

ROYAL TERRORGHEISTS A Terrorgheist’s fangs are far from is but an illusion created by the vast
Nightmarish beings born of its deadliest weapon, and the beast’s quantities of dark energy used to
the oldest Shyishan sorceries, scream is as unmistakable as it is animate such a creature, and it is
Terrorgheists are undead monsters devastating. A high-pitched wail, it raw amethyst magic that emanates
bound to the will of the abhorrant cuts across the battlefield, shattering from the monster’s skull. Only the
kings. At some point they were the minds of nearby prey. Those strongest wielders of necromantic
proud creatures of flesh and blood, not slain outright are reduced to power can command these
but now they are heaving carcasses gibbering wrecks, howling as blood creatures, and without their will
of rotting muscle and cracked bone, runs freely from their ears and eyes. the beasts are swiftly rendered inert
with a vampiric thirst equal to that once more.
of their masters. They soar over the ROYAL ZOMBIE DRAGONS
throng of combat, their otherworldly The sky shudders to the beat of The darkness that animates a
senses seeking great foes to slay. leathery wings when a Zombie Zombie Dragon is never more
Especially large enemies are snatched Dragon descends upon its prey. As evident than when it expels its
up, the Terrorgheist sinking its the stench of the beast washes over breath, spewing it forth as a coiling
fangs into warm flesh and drinking the enemy, the air becomes chill, cloud of pestilential death magic.
deep. The foul creatures strengthen for the aura of death around the This killing miasma withers flesh
visibly as they wolf down their prey, undead dragon is strong. Its eye and corrodes the soul, instantly
their ragged flesh regenerating and sockets glimmer with what appears sapping the life from living beings.
wounds disappearing, to the dismay to be a ghostly intelligence. Yet this In its wake are left husks where once
of their enemies. were soldiers.

Insane Manifestations

INSANE MANIFESTATIONS

Like all vampiric creatures, abhorrants draw their magic from the deathly energies of Shyish. Since the
necroquake, many of their most powerful conjurations persist as undying spells, blighting the landscape in
perpetuity or feeding off madness and fear as they carve their way across the realms.

CORPSEMARE STAMPEDE CHALICE OF USHORAN CADAVEROUS
With a bellowed word, an abhorrant Before his corruption, Ushoran BARRICADE
sends tendrils of sickly light lancing crafted an ensorcelled goblet with Those Flesh-eaters who believe
from his outstretched fingers. These which he could bestow blessings themselves to be especially pious
beams of necrotic energy plunge upon his loyal subjects. Wrought may call upon ancestral spirits to
into the earth, causing the ground from gold and silver, and encrusted aid them in battle. By invoking
to heave violently upwards until it with realmstone from the lands oaths sworn many centuries ago
cracks open and a quintet of rotting he conquered, it was said that by civilisations that bowed before
horses bursts forth. These undead this goblet drew into itself the Ushoran, an abhorrant gives life
steeds charge headlong into whatever finest vintages from each liberated to the buried dead that served his
hapless victims stand before domain, and in this way never sovereign in bygone times. From
them, crushing packed ranks of ran dry. Those who supped this long-forgotten tombs they emerge,
infantry beneath the thrash of their wine were imbued with a portion rising up to the battlefield so that
gore-encrusted hooves. of their king’s majesty, and could they may once more fight for the
stay the hand of death with a mere cause of their lord.
To the abhorrant who summoned it, command. Though this famed
a Corpsemare Stampede appears as chalice has been lost to the ravages In the eyes of an abhorrant, the
a herd of graceful beasts formed of of time, abhorrants who invoke dead upon whom they have called
purest light. He sees them surging the name of the Carrion King manifest as mighty spectral
forwards in radiant splendour, can summon its simulacrum to warriors, clad in ornate armour
driven by inherent nobility to lay the battlefield. and carrying broad shields. The
low all who are wicked of heart. spiritual guardians form up into a
Mordants who behold the stampede When manifested, the Chalice tight defensive position, and from
are overcome with a sense of of Ushoran appears as a colossal within their ranks rises a barrier
humility, for they know that the construction of polished bone. Each of impenetrable light. They were
judgement of the enchanted beings is of the skulls that form its rim is of once defenders of Ushoran’s empire,
levelled at them, just as it is against a pretender who was slaughtered at charged with protecting the walls of
their enemies, and that the beasts the hand of the Carrion King, and his keeps and castles for all eternity,
will deliver the king’s fury upon the cup overflows not with wine, and they diligently carry on this
them if they are found wanting. but with the blood and viscera of duty from beyond the grave. Silent
those butchered on the battlefield. and dauntless, they stand firm as
Yet in truth there is no such rhyme The screaming spirits of the slain the enemy charges, holding back
or reason to the stampede’s path. bear the chalice aloft, and with every waves of foes whilst shielding the
The insane sorcery that animates fresh kill their gore rises higher abhorrant’s armies from hails of
the corpsemares causes them within the receptacle, overflowing arrows and bolts.
to wheel and charge in erratic and drenching nearby Flesh-eaters.
patterns, barrelling through rows of Bathed in this necromantic harvest, But these spectral defenders are
screaming warriors in one direction wounds seal closed and severed an illusion seen only in the insane
before switching course and bolting limbs regrow, and even those minds of the Flesh-eaters. It is not
towards a fresh set of bodies. A mordants who have been cut down gleaming warriors that rise from
blood-chilling whine issues from may rise to fight once more. the grave, but mouldering corpses
their skeletal jaws as they move imbued with mindless hunger
across the battlefield, and with every and rage. As they claw their way
hoof-fall comes a deafening crack of up through the ground they drag
dark magic. Even the most dauntless with them twisted remnants of the
shield wall cannot hold them back ancient civilisation of which they
– armour crumples, bones shatter were once a part – rusted palisades
and organs burst as the corpsemares covered with gore and barbed fences
ride over their victims. Any attempt that surrounded mass graves. Foetid
to strike them down proves utterly blood spills forth from the wound
fruitless, for the ragged flesh of in the earth, releasing a nauseating
the horses’ bodies sloughs away fume into the air, while cadaverous
rapidly, only to be replaced with the hands grasp at any foes foolish
gore of those crushed into the mud enough to stray within reach of the
beneath them. moaning dead.

A seething throng of Flesh-eaters from the Morgaunt Grand Court descend upon the Ironjawz
army that has invaded their bone-strewn homeland.



GGRRISISLYLYPAPGAEGAENATNRYTRY

With their filth-encrusted flesh, gore-covered claws and macabre accoutrements, Flesh-eater Courts Citadel
Miniatures are a horrific presence on any tabletop. Here we present a showcase of these miniatures, expertly
painted by Games Workshop’s very own ’Eavy Metal Team and Design Studio army painters.

An Abhorrant Archregent perched atop his Charnel Throne surveys the cannibalistic forces gathered around him, his
mere presence serving to twist their deranged perception of reality even further.

Crypt Ghast
Courtier

Crypt Ghouls

Mordants surround their greenskin foes on the battlefield, moving in to rip their prey limb from limb before carrying
away the tattered pieces of flesh as offerings to their Ghoul King.

Abhorrant Ghoul King Varghulf Courtier

Abhorrant Ghoul King on Royal Terrorgheist

Hollowmourne Morgaunt Abhorrant Archregent
Crypt Flayer Crypt Flayer

Crimson gore soaks into the sun-parched earth as an Abhorrant Archregent leads his maddened followers to battle
against the rage-filled servants of the Blood God.

Crypt Horrors

Closing in on their prey, snarling packs of Crypt Ghouls and Crypt Horrors surge through the miasmal mists, their
mouths agape in anticipation of the feast to come.

Seeing themselves as crusading knights, Flesh-eaters of the Hollowmourne Grand Court barrel headlong towards the
Stormcast Eternals’ defensive line, howling their gibberish war cries as they charge.

MMAANNIFEISFTEISNTSAINNISTAY NITY

Gristlegore Crypt Horror Blisterskin Crypt Flayer Shyishan Crypt Horror

The appearance of each Flesh-eater Court is a reflection of its abhorrants’ madness. Cannibals see themselves
dressed in the brightly coloured armour and fine regalia of their domain, and through dark magics their skin and
muscles take on these colours.

Morgaunt Flesh-eaters race across the wind-whipped plain towards their foe, their madness
blinding them to the illusory magics of the Disciples of Tzeentch.

Corpsemare Stampede Chalice of Ushoran

Cadaverous Barricade

Skaven of the Clans Skryre burrow up into Chamon to plunder a fabled empire, only to find the
snarling ranks of a Flesh-eater Court waiting for them amongst the ancient ruins.

DRDEEEATVAHTELHNY ALRYNEVTENSANTS

Flesh-eaters gather in the crumbling ruins of long-dead civilisations, drawn by the call of the abhorrants and
bound by their madness into armies of cannibal warriors. There are many ways to collect a Flesh-eater Courts
army, and this spread offers one example of how a hungering horde can be mustered for war.

When collecting a Warhammer Age The leader of this army is Visk the Commanding the right flank is the
of Sigmar army, it’s a good idea to Blood-drinker, a mighty Abhorrant Varghulf Courtier known as the
have a plan. How you decide which Archregent. Not only is he a visually Marquis de Flense. Ardently loyal to
units to include in your Flesh-eater impressive general for the army, he his Ghoul King and his Archregent,
Courts army might be based on the is also a savage combatant who can he flies above the battlefield
look of the models, how you envision use deathly magic to strengthen accompanied by an escort of Crypt
them performing during a tabletop his allies and rip apart his foes. Flayers, seeking out the thickest clots
battle, or could follow a narrative At his side is his royal lieutenant, of enemy warriors upon whom to
found in a battletome or even one King Manglemaw, an Abhorrant sate his bloodlust. Meanwhile, on
of your own invention. There is no Ghoul King who rides a monstrous the ground below, a Crypt Haunter –
single right way to collect your army, Terrorgheist into battle. Both Visk granted the title of Lord Slendernail
only the way you deem best. The and Manglemaw have the ability by his abhorrant for his feats in
goal is the same – to field a ravenous to summon their insane minions combat – leads his Crypt Horrors in
Flesh-eater Courts army that is ready directly into the thick of combat, loping charges against the foe, tearing
for action! Here is how we assembled allowing them to bolster the strength through the ranks of opposing armies
the collection shown below. of their army when needed. with gruesome enthusiasm.

On the opposite flank, the darkly of the court – nightmarish flyers 1. Abhorrant Archregent
charismatic Crypt Haunter Courtier, that can hunt the skies above the 2. Abhorrant Ghoul King on
Lord Scabmire, howls gibberish battlefield. A Royal Terrorgheist
commands to the cannibals he leads. and a Royal Zombie Dragon drawn Royal Terrorgheist
A unit of Crypt Horrors serves as his from the Ghoul King’s menagerie 3. Varghulf Courtier
battlefield bodyguard, slaughtering provide an intimidating presence on 4. Crypt Haunter Courtier
any enemies that draw near their either flank, while behind them are 5. Crypt Horrors
lord, or roaming out alongside him two more units of Crypt Flayers. All 6. Crypt Horrors
in search of fresh prey. Arrayed in of these highly mobile and deadly 7. Crypt Flayers
front of Scabmire are four units of creatures can swoop swiftly to 8. Crypt Flayers
Crypt Ghouls, the foot soldiers of the wherever they are needed, flocking 9. Crypt Flayers
court. They race forwards in heaving towards the front lines to add their 10. Crypt Ghouls
packs to overwhelm the enemy, their savagery to an assault, or hunting 11. Crypt Ghouls
blood-encrusted claws tearing at down and picking off lone units. 12. Crypt Ghouls
the ground and their mouths agape 13. Crypt Ghouls
in anticipation of the feast to come. As a whole, this Flesh-eater Courts 14. Royal Terrorgheist
They are the true core of the army, in army presents a collector and 15. Royal Zombie Dragon
terms of both the carnage they can painter with a variety of gruesome
unleash and in the visual impact they creatures, and with an assortment ‘These wretches are a blight on our
have on the tabletop. of heroes, monsters and mordant beloved homelands, and must be
troops, it also serves as a competitive slaughtered one and all. Join with me,
Bringing up the rear of Visk’s insane tabletop force offering many exciting my countrymen, as I show these curs
throng are more winged creatures gaming options.
the resolve of true nobility.’
- Visk the Blood-drinker